CB Darius Slay Will Only Play In 2026 For Eagles
Darius Slay played 10 games in 2025, doing so as a member of the Steelers. An intra-state move back to the Eagles was his intention upon being waived, but the Bills put in a claim. 
Slay declined to report to Buffalo, and as such he finished the campaign on the reserve/retired list. A return to the NFL could be in store for the veteran cornerback. To little surprise, though, Slay will only resume his career if he returns to Philadelphia.
“No team can call me but [the] Eagles,” the 35-year-old said in a clip posted to X. “No team can call me, everybody knows.”
After a seven-year run with the Lions, Slay enjoyed a productive run in Philadelphia. The six-time Pro Bowler was a full-time starter through his five Eagles seasons. He took a one-year, $10MM pact with the Steelers last spring as part of Pittsburgh’s decision to make a number of veteran moves in the secondary. Slay made 10 appearances and nine starts, being held without an interception during that span and allowing a passer rating of 108.0 in coverage (the second-worst figure of his career).
As such, the former All-Pro would likely face a weak market in the event he intended to gauge his suitors across the league. Nevertheless, Slay will focus on either a return to Vic Fangio‘s unit – one which still includes Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean – or his post-playing days. The Eagles also added Riq Woolen in free agency, shoring up the cornerback position. Philadelphia did, on the other hand, lose safety Reed Blankenship on the open market.
If Slay were willing to handle safety duties upon returning to Philadelphia, a 2026 deal may become more feasible. The team currently has $40MM in cap space, so finances would not be an issue if interest on this front proved to be mutual.
Cowboys’ Rashan Gary Accepts Pay Cut
One of the many defensive additions made by the Cowboys last week was the trade for Packers edge rusher Rashan Gary. The veteran agreed to a pay cut to help facilitate the deal. 
Gary reduced his compensation for 2026 and ’27 to $16MM, as detailed by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. He was originally owed $19.5MM this season and $22.5MM for the final year of his contract, but none of that was guaranteed. Gary received a signing bonus of $13.2MM, per Pelissero, locking in most of his pay for his debut Cowboys campaign.
$1MM in active roster bonuses are present in both years of this new pact, ESPN’s Todd Archer adds. Gary’s 2026 cap charge has dropped to $5.4MM as a result of the restructure, which includes the addition of void years. The 28-year-old is on course to receive a $15MM base salary in 2027, but without any of that figure guaranteed at signing Gary’s future in Dallas will depend solely on how he performs next season.
Adding in the pass rush department was seen as a key priority for the Cowboys as part of their overall renovations on defense. Gary was acquired for a fourth-round pick, a sign of Green Bay’s willingness to move on from the remainder of his contract but also the former first-rounder’s poor finish to the 2025 campaign. A rebound would help Dallas’ production along the edge while also increasing the chances of Gary’s Cowboys stint lasting more than one season.
The team heavily pursued a Maxx Crosby trade leading up to free agency, and the Raiders All-Pro is still available at this point. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has not closed the door to renewed Crosby interest, but Dallas has been busy on multiple fronts with respect to defensive contracts. That includes the re-signing of Sam Williams, one of the team’s many edge rushers whose contracts recently expired. Jadeveon Clowney, Dante Fowler and Payton Turner remain unsigned at this point.
With nearly $19MM in cap space, the Cowboys have the ability to make more defensive additions during the second wave of free agency. Regardless of what happens on that front, though, Gary will be counted on to serve as a key EDGE presence. It will be interesting to see if he can play his way into an extended Dallas tenure.
Rams Considered Trading Davante Adams
The Rams have been one of two teams showing considerable interest in A.J. Brown this offseason. Had Los Angeles managed to swing a deal for the Eagles All-Pro, another wideout trade likely would have taken place. 
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports that during discussions about a Brown acquisition, the Rams were “pursuing the possibility” of a Davante Adams swap. Dealing Adams to another team would have helped make a Brown trade more feasible from a financial standpoint, similar to how the Colts’ decision to deal away Michael Pittman Jr. eased the cap implications for Alec Pierce‘s new contract. Nevertheless, Adams remains on course for a second Los Angeles campaign.
As detailed in Sam Robinson’s Rams Offseason Outlook, Adams is due a $6MM roster bonus today. Any trade in his case obviously would have been more attractive for the team prior to that payment being made. The 33-year-old is also owed a base salary of $18MM in 2026. That represents the final year of his contract. A trade would create $20MM in cap savings against $8MM in dead money, but head coach Sean McVay said last month he expected Adams to be retained for next season.
Added in free agency last spring as a Cooper Kupp replacement, the six-time Pro Bowler proved to be an effective signing for the Rams. Adams caught a league-leading 14 touchdown passes in 2025 and played a key role in helping Los Angeles reach the NFC title game. Expectations will be high in his case provided no trade winds up being worked out later in the offseason.
The Rams have Puka Nacua eligible for an extension, one which will presumably move him near the top of the receiver market. A new deal in that case, not to mention the latest adjustment to quarterback Matthew Stafford‘s pact, will add to the team’s costs on offense. Adams is set to carry a cap charge of $28MM in 2026. Especially if no Brown acquisition is made, though, keeping him could be worthwhile.
Los Angeles sent a package including the No. 29 pick in April’s draft to Kansas City for cornerback Trent McDuffie. The Rams still have a first-rounder (No. 13), but no team has been willing to meet Philadelphia’s asking price (a Day 1 selection and more) for Brown yet. With a key checkpoint on Adams’ pact now having been reached, he is increasingly likely to remain in place regardless of what happens on the Brown front.
Eagles Re-Sign TE Dallas Goedert
11:31pm: According to ESPN’s Tim McManus, Goedert’s new one-year deal in Philly will be for $7MM. McManus adds that at least $4.25MM of that figure will be guaranteed as he receives that amount as a signing bonus.
3:05pm: Efforts between Dallas Goedert and the Eagles to work out a new arrangement have proven successful. Team and player are in agreement on a one-year deal, as first reported by Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The move is now official. 
The Eagles pushed back Goedert’s void date multiple times recently to keep buying time for negotiations. Monday afternoon represented the latest deadline on that front. With time to spare, a one-year contract agreement has now been reached.
Instead of reaching free agency for the first time in his career, Goedert will play a ninth season for the Eagles. GM Howie Roseman said at the Combine his desire was to finalize a re-signing in this case. With that having been accomplished, Philadelphia will avoid taking on $20.49MM in dead money for 2026.
Goedert has yet to play a full season in his career, but in 2025 he managed 15 appearances. During that time, the 31-year-old set a new personal mark with 60 catches and 11 touchdowns. A notable offensive role will no doubt await him once again with this new pact in hand. Goedert agreed to a pay cut last year, one in which he received $10MM. It will be interesting to see how this pact shakes out from a financial standpoint.
Garafolo notes Goedert had an outside market, which comes as no surprise given his strong 2025 showing. The former second-rounder would have represented a notable addition for any number of teams, but he will still be counted on as a key pass-catching presence for the Eagles at least one more time. Philadelphia will have a new offensive coordinator (Sean Mannion) for 2026 although plenty of stability on the roster is currently in place.
Of course, any potential A.J. Brown trade could change that. The Eagles’ situation with respect to Brown has not changed based on this Goedert news, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. A swap ending Brown’s Philadelphia tenure prior to June 1 would lead to major cap implications for the team, so Roseman could remain patient since the opening wave of free agency is in the books. Nevertheless, a trade involving the All-Pro wideout is viewed as inevitable at some point.
A Brown trade could elevate Goedert’s target share for 2026. Even if that does not prove to be the case, though, the latter should reprise his role as a productive secondary option in the passing game. The Eagles have already retained Grant Calcaterra while adding fellow tight end Johnny Mundt. Those two will offer depth next season, but Goedert will be counted on to lead the way at that position.
Derek Carr Still Not Drawing Interest
After taking a year off from football, Saints quarterback Derek Carr has expressed interest in returning to the NFL next season. The problem for Carr is that teams have not shown much desire to coax him out of retirement. Five days into the new league year, the Saints have not received any inquiries about Carr’s availability, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports.
While New Orleans still holds Carr’s rights, resuming his career there is not on the table. The Saints found a new starter in 2025 second-round pick Tyler Shough, who had an encouraging rookie year. Prying Carr from the Saints may only cost a late-round pick, but job openings have dwindled this week.
The Cardinals (Gardner Minshew), Dolphins (Malik Willis), Falcons (Tua Tagovailoa), Jets (Geno Smith) and Vikings (Kyler Murray) have all added potential new No. 1 signal-callers. Carr has said he wants to play for a team with a chance to contend, which could have ruled out the Cardinals, Dolphins and Jets even if they had interest in the soon-to-be 35-year-old.
Looking around the rest of the league, Las Vegas and Pittsburgh are probably the last teams that do not have their starting passers under contract. The Raiders will address that when they draft Indiana Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza No. 1 overall next month. The inevitable Mendoza addition will officially rule out a reunion with Carr, a four-time Pro Bowler with the Raiders from 2014-22.
Meanwhile, the Steelers are continuing to wait for Aaron Rodgers to decide whether he wants to play a 22nd season in 2026. If Rodgers retires, the Steelers may be Carr’s best bet. After going 10-7 and winning the AFC North last year, the Steelers will aim to contend again next season. However, it is unknown if general manager Omar Khan and new head coach Mike McCarthy would even given serious thought to a Carr trade. They may have their sights set on Kirk Cousins as a fallback plan.
Carr might not find a taker in the next few months, but interest could arise if a team loses a starting QB to an injury between training camp and the trade deadline. At least two clubs considered Carr during the season last year, though he was less open to returning at that point.
The Bengals, then dealing with an injury to Joe Burrow, called the Saints about Carr in October. Two months later, the Colts contacted Carr in the wake of Daniel Jones‘ early December Achilles tear. The Nov. 4 trade deadline had passed by then, meaning Indianapolis could not have landed Carr unless New Orleans cut him and nobody ahead of the Colts made a waiver claim. There would be fewer hoops to jump through in acquiring Carr now, but another NFL opportunity does not appear imminent.
Ravens Not Done Adding To OL; Any ‘Huge Moves’ Weeks Away
As the Ravens sat for days under the assumption that defensive end Maxx Crosby was going to be on their books, while simultaneously pursuing free agent pass rusher Trey Hendrickson, the rest of the roster got decimated in free agency. As the team watched key contributors like tight end Isaiah Likely, fullback Pat Ricard, safeties Ar’Darius Washington and Alohi Gilman, and even punter Jordan Stout exit left and right, the biggest hit came in the middle, when the Raiders — whom Baltimore would soon spurn — drew first blood, signing center Tyler Linderbaum to a market-setting deal. 
The Ravens already had work to do along the offensive line as the perception entering the offseason was that improvements were needed at the interior guard spots. Baltimore spent most of the season starting Daniel Faalele and Andrew Vorhees at offensive guard, and by the end of the season, Pro Football Focus (subscription required) graded them out as the 52nd- and 59th-best guards, respectively, out of 79 players graded at the position. Vorhees is still under contract for another season, but Faalele’s contract expired alongside Linderbaum’s.
So far, the Ravens have responded to the losses by reuniting with veteran guard John Simpson and signing little-used, rotational interior lineman Jovaughn Gwyn. As it stands right now, Simpson could slip into the guard spot opposite Vorhees while Ronnie Stanley and Roger Rosengarten man the bookend tackle roles. Per PFF, Simpson is only a slight upgrade over Faalele, grading as the 51st-best guard last year. Second-year third-round pick Emery Jones Jr. could also compete for a starting role along the interior. At center, though, without Linderbaum, the team currently only has Corey Bullock, an undrafted signee from two years ago.
Clearly, more additions are needed to build a full offensive line. Unfortunately, the market for effective interior lineman has risen to a point of stagnation, where no one is making any moves at the current price. According to Jeff Zrebiec, Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta relayed plans to bring a few offensive linemen in over the next couple of weeks. He followed up that comment a couple days later by telling the media that the team “won’t make any huge moves in the weeks ahead.” DeCosta felt more opportunities to improve the roster could surface over time, though the team might be slowing down their processes a bit so that any additional free agent signings won’t be attributed to the team’s compensatory draft formula.
LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin Re-Elected As NFLPA President
While he’s yet to find a home in free agency, veteran linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin received some good news tonight as the NFL Players Association announced his re-election as NFLPA president. 
This will be Reeves-Maybin’s second term in the role after taking over in 2024. NFLPA presidents serve two-year terms and are elected by the board of player representatives from around the league. A nine-year veteran, Reeves-Maybin has spent the majority of his career as a depth linebacker and special teamer, though he did start 11 games for the Lions in 2021. He earned Pro Bowl and second-team All-Pro honors in 2023 for his play on special teams.
Reeves-Maybin’s election two years ago made him the first black NFLPA president since Dominique Foxworth served from 2012-14. His re-election makes him the first black NFLPA president to serve multiple terms since Troy Vincent did so from 2004-08. Foxworth was succeeded in 2014 by Eric Winston, who filled the role for six years before turning it over to J.C. Tretter.
Retiring from play after four years as NFLPA president, Tretter continued to work with the union as chief strategy officer and was considered a leading candidate to step in as interim executive director amid the recent controversy with former executive director Lloyd Howell, but he instead chose to resign from his position. Reeves-Maybin has also been praised for his leadership during a rocky period in the union’s history as the NFLPA has dealt with financial impropriety and a collusion coverup.
Joining Reeves-Maybin in re-election were NFLPA executive committee members Oren Burks, Cameron Heyward, Ted Karras, Case Keenum, Brandon McManus, and Thomas Morstead. The group also saw four new members elected to serve on the executive committee. Tanoh Kpassagnon, Jonathan Greenard, Harrison Phillips, and Zaire Franklin will be filling the seats left vacant by outgoing executive committee members Calais Campbell, Austin Ekeler, Ryan Kelly, and Thomas Hennessy. Kpassagnon was named treasurer.
2026 NFL Draft Visits: Browns, Cooper, Proctor
Though free agency is dominating the news feed this week, the 2026 NFL Draft is fast-approaching and teams around the league have been welcoming draft prospects for top 30 visits. The Browns got busy with these early into March, hosting Arizona State wide receiver Jordyn Tyson on March 4, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Cleveland hosted Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson and Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate the next day.
The Browns’ passing attack struggled in 2025, ranking 31st in the NFL. Cleveland didn’t have a 1,000-yard receiver for the first time since 2021. Despite playing every game this year, WR1 Jerry Jeudy‘s receiving line totals (50 receptions-602 yards-2 touchdowns) were nearly all half what they were in 2024 (90-1,229-4). The team’s leading receiver in 2025 was third-round rookie tight end Harold Fannin (72-731-6).
Seeing this, it makes sense the Browns are looking to add elite talent to the receiving corps. Daniel Jeremiah at NFL.com ranks Tate as the sixth-best prospect in the class and the best wide receiver, slotting Tyson in at 21st overall and WR4. Both pass-catchers are explosive playmakers with prototypical size and length. They own similar skillsets when it comes to their control of changing speed and direction, but Tyson slides down the board a bit as some health issues in college have led to durability questions.
Simpson is the bridge between projected No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza and the rest of the QB crop projected to go in the third or fourth round of the draft. Simpson is currently hovering near the back of the first round in most projection but could easily jump up if a quarterback-needy team gets antsy. After only playing one season as a starter in college, some scouts feel Simpson would benefit from sitting and developing a year or two before starting. The Browns currently are slated to watch Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders battle for the QB1 job. The team could consider drafting Simpson to sit behind them both for a year before competing for the job himself.
Here are a few other draft visits from around the league:
- According to Luca Evans of The Denver post, the Broncos hosted Indiana wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. this past Friday. Jeremiah slots Cooper in at 18th overall and WR3. The AFC West Champs return all their top receivers from last year but may be looking for more consistent production in an upgrade at the WR3 role. Alongside many transfer additions, Cooper’s championship season with the Hoosiers was the culmination of four years of work from the bottom. He led the No. 1 team in the country in receptions (69) and receiving yards (937) and finished second on the team in receiving touchdowns (13).
- Lastly, the Texans hosted Alabama offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor on March 6, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. The Texans return three starters on the offensive line from last year, and signed Braden Smith and Evan Brown to potentially fill the empty two spots. Still, the Texans have struggled to find consistent lineups on the interior line and could benefit by adding a lineman in the draft to compete at both guard and tackle, allowing Smith to do the same. Proctor slots in as Jeremiah’s 23rd-best overall prospect and the sixth-best offensive lineman.
Alabama QB Ty Simpson Projected To Steelers?
We’ve gotten through just the first week of free agency, and already a number of teams with question marks at quarterback have found a solution. A thin draft class at the position necessitated some proactive movement by a couple of teams in free agency to fill the role behind center, clearing things up a bit as we start to look forward to the 2026 NFL Draft. 
It seems a foregone conclusion at this point that the Raiders will be selecting Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 overall pick next month. Past that, it’s unclear how many other passers, if any, will hear their names called in the first round. Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson is widely seen as the QB2 behind Mendoza and likely the only other college arm worth taking Day 1. These factors usually depend on necessity, so how needy are today’s NFL teams for a rookie quarterback?
The Dolphins, Falcons, and Vikings are three teams who opted to go the free agency route to address the position. Miami released Tua Tagovailoa after six years with the team and opted to sign free agent Malik Willis off a two-year stint as a backup in Green Bay. Atlanta quickly picked up the Dolphins’ scraps, signing Tagovailoa to the veteran minimum to compete with their other lefty quarterback in an open competition. Minnesota chose a similar route, bringing in Kyler Murray after his release from Arizona.
Obviously, there’s a chance that none of the three situations work out. Willis has only started six games in his career, Tagovailoa just turned in the worst season of his career, and Murray has missed over half the season twice in the last three years due to injury. And while signing these free agent options could stand every chance to turn things around, as well, it serves another positive purpose. Signing these quarterbacks allows these three teams to kick the can down the road to next year’s draft class or maybe even the class after that, in hopes of a more QB-rich group.
Looking at the current QB landscape around the NFL, it seems there are perhaps four teams for whom it would make sense to draft a quarterback this year — not counting the Raiders. These are teams that currently roster (or will likely roster) a veteran quarterback who can start while a drafted rookie is developed until they are ready to step in. These teams would be the Cardinals, Browns, Jets, and Steelers. Technically, the Rams could fit in here, as well, but as long as Matthew Stafford is playing at an MVP level and keeping the team in contention, Los Angeles isn’t likely to use a top pick on a passer.
Even between those four teams, the Cardinals will see veteran Jacoby Brissett return alongside newly signed free agent Gardner Minshew, the Jets traded for Geno Smith and return Justin Fields, and the Browns could see Deshaun Watson dueling with Shedeur Sanders in 2026. These situations don’t necessarily have the potential for ceilings as high as what the Dolphins, Falcons, and Vikings could see, but those QB duos could potentially serve as bridges to buy time for later draft classes all the same.
That leaves us with the Steelers, who are currently set to return only Mason Rudolph and Will Howard at quarterback. There are some expectations that 42-year-old veteran Aaron Rodgers could come back to play another season with his former Packers head coach Mike McCarthy now in charge in Pittsburgh, but Rodgers has been taking his time in making a decision.
If he does come back, this could set up the perfect situation for Simpson. One of Simpson’s biggest knocks is that he has only played one season of college football as a starter. Allowing Simpson to sit and learn under Rodgers could end up being the perfect recipe to building the next star passer to wear black and yellow. It seems we’re not alone in that thought, either. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk claimed yesterday to have sources who believe the Steelers “will take him if he’s on the board when Pittsburgh makes the 21st overall pick.”
NFL Free Agency Rumors: Giants, Aubrey, Browns, Robinson
One of the first free agent priorities for the Giants this past week was re-signing right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor, ensuring that the offensive line would be returning at least four out of five starters from the 2025 season. With Eluemunor under contract, New York only needs to fill its right guard spot now, left vacant as Greg Van Roten hits the free agent market.
The team did re-sign former seventh overall pick Evan Neal, who has failed to live up to his draft status in four years with team, but they’re eyes were clearly set on bigger fish to fill the role. After analyzing the options available on the free agent market, though, the Giants may return to the familiar. In their view, the crop of guards available could certainly be serviceable starters, but they aren’t worth the price they’re going for at the moment.
One such option is former Browns starting guard Wyatt Teller. A three-time Pro Bowler who twice earned second-team All-Pro honors, Teller certainly has displayed a high level of play during his time in Cleveland. While New York would be interested in Teller filling their hole at right guard, his $10MM per year price tag has made them balk at the prospect of signing him. ESPN’s Jordan Raanan has gone so far as to say that the Giants are “no longer willing to pay a mid-tier guard,” ruling them out of signing options like Teller, Joel Bitonio, or Dylan Parham. Connor Hughes of SportsNet New York believes that, because of this, the team could revisit re-signing Van Roten off the open market.
Lastly in New York, veteran kicker Graham Gano remains on the team’s roster at this time, but Dan Duggan of The Athletic, does not believe that will be the case for long. Duggan asserts that his continued presence could be related to the Injury Protection Benefit in the players’ Collective Bargaining Agreement. Regardless, he does not believe Gano will be on the roster next year.
Here are a few other rumors concerning free agency from around the NFL:
- Since entering the NFL three years ago, Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey has left no doubt that he is one of the premier placekickers in the NFL. In three years of play, Aubrey has three Pro Bowl selections, one first-team All-Pro honor, and two second-team All-Pro honors. Recognizing his greatness, the Cowboys have already offered to make him the highest-paid kicker in the NFL, raising the current highest annual average salary of $6.5MM with a $7.5MM offer, but no deal has gotten done, as Aubrey’s agent is asking for $10MM per year. Per Joseph Hoyt of The Dallas Morning News Aubrey was hoping that Dallas allowing him to test the market as a restricted free agent would show that other teams would match the value he’s seeking, but the second-round tender Dallas placed on him might prevent that from occurring.
- We had known that the Browns would be saying goodbye to the abovementioned Teller and veteran tight end David Njoku, and we had even speculated that a post-June 1 designation could assist the team in both transactions. Well, this week, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reported the final post-June 1 designations, and as expected, both Teller and Njoku were on that list. Cleveland will get some cap relief as a result of applying the designation to each departure.
- Former Panthers defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson was released from Carolina the day before the start of the new league year, and he immediately signed the next day with the Buccaneers. According to Greg Auman of FOX Sports, Robinson explained that, when the Panthers granted him permission to seek a trade, Tampa Bay was one of two teams with which he communicated — the other being San Francisco. When no trade developed and he became a free agent with his release from the team, his prior experience talking to the Buccaneers laid a clear path forward.