HEADLINES

Cowboys, TE Jake Ferguson Agree To Extension

July 27th, 2025 at 10:23pm CST by Rory Parks

The Cowboys and tight end Jake Ferguson have agreed to a four-year, $52MM extension, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. The deal features $30MM in guarantees, including a $12MM signing bonus.

Although it was reported earlier this year that Dallas was eyeing a new deal for Ferguson, the negotiations mostly flew under the radar. In terms of average annual compensation, the contract places Ferguson seventh in the NFL’s tight end hierarchy. It also makes him the highest-paid TE in franchise history (h/t Rapoport).

Ferguson, 26, was selected by the Cowboys in the fourth round of the 2022 draft. He played in just 40% of the club’s offensive snaps in his rookie campaign, but he assumed TE1 duties in 2023, when Dalton Schultz left in free agency. As part of a prolific Dallas attack that led the league in scoring and finished fifth in total offense that year, Ferguson tallied 71 catches for 761 yards and five TDs.

Of course, 2024 was a different story. With quarterback Dak Prescott missing over half of the season due to injury, Ferguson totaled just 494 receiving yards and failed to reach the end zone. Nonetheless, Ferguson has shown he can be a productive member of a healthy and capable offense, and the Cowboys have opted to bet on that upside rather than allow the Wisconsin product to play out the final year of his rookie contract.

In addressing the extension, new head coach Brian Schottenheimer partially attributed Ferguson’s downturn in production to the TE’s own health concerns (via Jon Machota of The Athletic). Ferguson suffered a sprained MCL in Week 1 of the 2024 slate and then dealt with a concussion in the middle of the season, but those issues appear to be behind him. Schottenheimer also said Ferguson has lost weight and is moving well.

“I have zero doubts in my mind that his production will get back to where it was the year before,” Schottenheimer said. “I think last year was just kind of one of those years that you look back on your career and it was more of a fluke than anything.”

Historically, Prescott has relied heavily on his tight ends, so getting the Ferguson deal done represents a key piece of business for the Cowboys. The team remains in a holding pattern in its talks with star edge rusher Micah Parsons, and while that situation has understandably generated the most headlines, new contracts for players like Tyler Smith, DaRon Bland, and Brandon Aubrey could also be in the works.

NFC Staff Updates: Eagles, Packers, Panthers

July 27th, 2025 at 10:20pm CST by Ely Allen

The Eagles recently announced a number of title changes and new hires in their personnel and operations departments, per Mike Garafalo of NFL Network.

In his 15th season in the NFL, and his ninth in Philadelphia, Matt Holland was elevated to assistant director of college scouting. After holding personnel positions in Washington and Cleveland, Holland joined the Eagles in 2017 as a pro scout, elevating to senior pro scout, northeast area scout, senior college/pro scout, and most recently, midwest area scout. His promotion goes hand-in-hand with that of Jarrod Kilburn, who’s been named assistant director of pro scouting. Kilburn worked pro scouting internships for the team back in 2012 and 2014 but didn’t join the team in an official capacity until 2022, when he was hired as a college/pro scout after a 2021 internship.

Others receiving new titles in the scouting department are new pro scout Terrence Braxton, new west coast area scout Rod Streater, and midlands area scout Duke Tobin Jr. Braxton is entering his third year with the team and earns the promotion after switching from operations to scouting last year. Streater joined the team in 2022 as a northeast area scout and has been serving as the team’s NFS scout in the two years since. Preston Tiffany has been hired to fill Streater’s vacant NFS scouting role after a lone year as the director of player personnel at LSU. Tobin, the son of the Bengals’ director of player personnel, is in his third year with the Eagles, following roles as a player personnel associate and a scouting assistant.

We also now finally have a job title for Joe Douglas, who was announced as a new hire back in May. Per Garafolo, Douglas, the former Jets general manager, will be joining Matt Russell, the former Broncos vice president of player personnel, and Dave Caldwell, the former Jaguars general manager, in the shared titles of senior personnel directors/advisors to the general manager. Howie Roseman now has two former GMs and a VP of player personnel advising him.

In operations and analytics, James Gilman has been promoted to senior director of football research and strategy, Jon Liu has been elevated to director of football analytics, and Zachary Steever has been named assistant director of football research and strategy. Gilman is in his eighth year with the team, having started as a quantitative analyst and elevating to senior quantitative analyst, assistant director of football analytics, and director of football analytics. Liu fills Gilman’s old role in his eighth year with the team. He started as a football analytics intern before elevating to football operations analyst, football analytics coordinator, and assistant director of football analytics. Steever steps into the new role after serving as a senior quantitative analyst last year.

Additionally, Grant Reiter was named football transactions coordinator after serving as football transactions intern in 2022 and football transactions associate in 2024. His 2023 season was spent with the Browns as a football administration & research/strategy assistant. New hires in the group are football operations coordinator Molly Rottinghaus and software developer Leif Thorson.

Here are a couple of other staff updates from around the NFC:

  • Back in May, it was announced that Packers president and chief executive officer Mark Murphy would be passing on his titles to Ed Policy at the team’s annual shareholders meeting, per Matt Schneidman of The Athletic. That meeting occurred on Friday inside Lambeau Field. At the meeting, the team also went over the annual financial report, released the Wednesday before, per team editor Mike Spofford. Green Bay reported $83.7MM in operating profit in FY2025, a $23.6MM increase from last year. The anomalous increase was the result of an extra home game, courtesy of the 17-game schedule, showing just how impactful those extra home games are for the teams that get them.
  • Lastly, the Panthers hired Benjamin Brown to serve as director of data science, according to ESPN’s analyst expert Seth Walder. Brown previously served as the NFL data science manager for PENN Entertainment and has held roles with SumerSports and Pro Football Focus, as well.

49ers To Sign CB Eli Apple

July 27th, 2025 at 9:30pm CST by Ely Allen

The 49ers already entered training camp working to establish their cornerbacks group after losing Charvarius Ward and Isaac Yiadom in the offseason. The position took another hit two days ago when returning starter Renardo Green left practice early with an apparent hamstring injury, per Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle. An update today from Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports reported that head coach Kyle Shanahan expects that Green will be out at least until the team’s second preseason game, meaning about a two-week absence.

Down another body in the room, San Francisco moved to sign veteran cornerback Eli Apple, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who was informed by Apple’s agent, Kevin Conner. Apple is now set to join his seventh NFL team as he heads into his 10th year of play. His new deal with the 49ers will be a one-year agreement.

Apple hasn’t held a full-time starting role in the NFL since his two-year stint with the Bengals ended after the 2022 season. 2023 saw Apple signed by the Dolphins around this same time of year when Jalen Ramsey suffered a knee injury in training camp. He appeared in 10 games with Miami, starting four. Last year, Apple went unsigned into the regular season and eventually signed with the Chargers after Asante Samuel Jr. went down. The cycle continues for a third year in a row as Apple lands with a team late because of an injury.

One of the reasons Apple is rarely getting long-term deals is his own injury history. Apple has never played in every game of a full season in his nine-year career. His best attempts were in the final of two years of his rookie contract (split between New York and New Orleans), in which he started and played in 30 of a possible 32 games, and his two years in Cincinnati, in which started 30 of 31 appearances out of a possible 34 games. Overall, he’s missed 30 games due to injury over the years, including most recently, the Chargers’ last six game of 2024.

Regardless, the Niners are turning to the veteran to help fill out a thin room in training camp. As it stood before the injury to Green, Deommodore Lenoir was set to start opposite Green on the outside, after spending most of 2024 in the slot. Lenoir’s nickelback role was likely to be filled by third-round Western Kentucky rookie Upton Stout, who frequented the position for the Hilltoppers last year. Behind them, free agent additions Tre Brown, Siran Neal, and Dallis Flowers added depth to the group, along with a few less-experienced incumbents like Tre Avery, Darrell Luter Jr., and Chase Lucas. Apple’s experience should help the group this summer and give him a chance to stick into the season, even after Green’s return.

In addition to adding Apple, the 49ers also saw the return to the field of wide receiver Ricky Pearsall. The second-year receiver had been placed on the active/physically unable to perform list a little over a week ago with a hamstring injury, but he’s now passed his physical and returned to practice, per Nick Wagoner of ESPN.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/27/25

July 27th, 2025 at 7:11pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are Sunday’s minor transactions to close out the weekend:

Arizona Cardinals

Buffalo Bills

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

  • Activated from active/NFI list: RB Amar Johnson

Kansas City Chiefs

New York Jets

Arizona is adding the brother of Stephon Gilmore after placing two cornerbacks on injured reserve earlier today. Thomas-Oliver was released by the Lions a day after suffering a hamstring injury in practice. He had returned to practice only three days ago from the active/non-football injury list.

Giants WR Bryce Ford-Wheaton Suffers Achilles Tear

July 27th, 2025 at 3:55pm CST by Adam La Rose

Bryce Ford-Wheaton missed his rookie season due to an ACL tear, and he has once again been dealt a major injury blow. The Giants receiver/special teamer went down in practice today and observers feared an Achilles tear would be revealed after further testing.

That injury has indeed been confirmed, Dan Duggan of The Athletic reports. The news marks a highly unfortunate development for Ford-Wheaton, who will in all likelihood miss all of the coming campaign. The former UDFA managed to play 14 games in 2024, his lone healthy NFL campaign to date.

[RELATED: Recapping Giants’ Offseason]

Ford-Wheaton saw only a pair of snaps on offense last season, but he made his presence known on special teams. The 25-year-old handled a 78% snap share in the third phase, and he was in position to do the same in 2025 provided he survived roster cuts. Instead, his attention will once again turn to a lengthy rehab process.

The Giants’ receiver room will once again have the likes of Malik Nabers, Darius Slayton, Wan’Dale Robinson and Jalin Hyatt in place. Those holdovers are joined in training camp by a number of contenders for an spot on the end of the roster, including free agent signing Zach Pascal. Today’s news will not impact New York’s offensive plans, but the Giants’ special teams units will be shorthanded moving forward.

Ford-Wheaton is on track for restricted free agency next offseason. This injury obviously decreases his chances of being tendered in 2026 and thus adds uncertainty to his Giants future.

Jaguars HC Liam Coen Addresses Travis Hunter’s Practice Schedule

July 27th, 2025 at 3:09pm CST by Adam La Rose

Travis Hunter saw incremental increases in his practice workload during the spring, seeing time at receiver and cornerback. As padded practices take place, a curated plan will be implemented for the Heisman winner.

Earlier this month, it was confirmed the Jaguars would continue ramping up Hunter’s responsibilities during training camp, with certain practices involving work on both sides of the ball. After beginning strictly as a receiver, this year’s No. 2 pick has also handled cornerback drills in camp. Head coach Liam Coen recently confirmed a day-by-day approach will be taken in this case.

“You want to give him a couple days offense, a couple days defense, and then give him an opportunity to go flip-flop within the same practice and then that will kind of become the norm,” Coen said (via ESPN’s Michael DiRocco). “Every moment, every minute that he is in the building, it is accounted for and trying to make sure that we maximize his time, our time so that we can ultimately get the best outcome.”

Given the price Jacksonville paid to move up from fifth to second in the first-round order on draft night to land Hunter, his performance will be central to the evaluation of Coen and rookie general manager James Gladstone. A regular workload on offense and defense should await the Colorado product if all goes according to plan regarding his acclimation for both positions. As could be expected, no firm decision has been made yet with respect to how many snaps Hunter will play on any given week.

DiRocco has tracked the offense/defense snap split so far in camp, illustrating how certain days will contain exclusive work at one position or the other. Strong showings in that respect will allow for the team to continue including two-way days in Hunter’s summer routine. If the 22-year-old manages that workload well, he should be in store to take on a unique role come the regular season.

Cardinals CB Starling Thomas Suffers Torn ACL

July 27th, 2025 at 2:25pm CST by Rory Parks

2:25pm: Thomas has landed on injured reserve, per a team announcement. That move confirms he will join Murphy-Bunting in missing the entire 2025 campaign. Fellow cornerback Jaden Davis – who inked a futures deal in January – is also on IR.

11:56am: Cardinals cornerback Starling Thomas suffered a torn ACL during Friday’s practice, as ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. Thomas will likely miss all of 2025 as a result.

Thomas, 25, signed with the Lions as an undrafted free agent in 2023. He impressed in his first training camp with Detroit but was unable to make the club’s 53-man roster at the end of the summer. The Cardinals claimed him off waivers, and by the end of his rookie season, he had become a full-time starter.

He continued to operate in that capacity in 2024, appearing in a full complement of games and starting 15 of them en route to a 75% snap share. While his peformance last season was certainly an improvement on his rookie showing, he has not yet made much of an impression in terms of surface-level stats or advanced metrics.

Pro Football Focus assigned Thomas an uninspiring 60.9 overall grade (with a matching coverage grade) in 2024, which placed him 76th out of 116 qualified corners. The UAB product also surrendered a 100.6 quarterback rating and is still waiting for his first career interception. He tallied just six passes defensed in his 820 defensive snaps last year.

While ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss believes the Cardinals are well-equipped to withstand Thomas’ absence, the team was seemingly counting on him to remain a key contributor in the secondary. As Theo Mackie of the Arizona Republic writes, Thomas and second-round rookie Will Johnson were splitting reps at one outside corner spot, with 2024 second-rounder Max Melton getting the lion’s share of the looks on the opposite side.

With veteran Sean Murphy-Bunting set to miss the entire 2025 campaign as well, the Cardinals could look to the free agent market for reinforcements. The team’s CB room is comprised largely of young talent like Melton, Johnson, 2023 third-rounder Garrett Williams, 2024 third-rounder Elijah Jones, and fifth-round rookie Denzel Burke.

On the other hand, as Weinfuss suggested when Thomas first suffered the injury (video link), Arizona may feel it has enough depth even without Murphy-Bunting and Thomas in the mix.

Rams, RB Kyren Williams Nearing Extension?

July 27th, 2025 at 12:06pm CST by Rory Parks

It sounds as if extension talks between the Rams and running back Kyren Williams are continuing to trend in the right direction. As was the case with spring work, Williams timely reported to training camp, and he emphatically stated he would be a full practice participant while negotiations are ongoing (via Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic).

Head coach Sean McVay told reporters (including Rodrigue) that Williams’ agent, Drew Rosenhaus, spent time at the team’s training camp site on Thursday to discuss Williams’ contract with Los Angeles brass. No agreement is in place yet, but McVay conceded that the mere fact Rosenhaus made the trip is an indication that discussions are going well.

McVay expressed similar sentiments back in May, so it is unclear how much work remains to be done before the two sides strike an accord. In any event, the Rams understandably will not reset the running back market for Williams, and it is difficult to predict exactly where his new contract will rank among the deals his RB peers have secured.

The top of the market is set by game-changing talents like Saquon Barkley ($20.6MM average annual value), Christian McCaffrey ($19MM), and Derrick Henry ($15MM). While the soon-to-be 25-year-old Williams has the age advantage on those players, he does not have nearly the same record of production.

Williams, a fifth-round pick in 2022, saw just 35 totes in his rookie season. He exploded onto the scene in 2023 with a league-leading average of 95.3 rushing yards per game to go along with a stellar 5.0 yards-per-carry rate. He added 206 receiving yards for good measure and piled up 15 total touchdowns.

Increased usage in 2024 (316 carries, as opposed to 228 in 2023) was accompanied by a drop in efficiency. Williams’ 4.1 YPC mark in 2024, while solid, was not stellar, and he also fumbled five times. He nonetheless remained a touchdown and first down machine, recording 16 total scores and moving the chains a total of 91 times.

As such, it would not be surprising to see Williams hit the $10MM/year threshold, an AAV that seven other running backs presently enjoy. Barring an unforeseen development, an extension should be expected sooner rather than later.

Dolphins, S Minkah Fitzpatrick Agree To Reworked Deal

July 27th, 2025 at 9:50am CST by Rory Parks

Shortly after hiring agent Drew Rosenhaus, Minkah Fitzpatrick has secured a reworked deal from the Dolphins. As ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports, Miami has added a $16.245MM signing bonus to Fitzpatrick’s thru-2026 contract, which previously contained no more guaranteed money (Schefter’s ESPN colleague, Marcel Louis-Jacques, offered a minor correction on the bonus amount, which is reportedly $16.435MM).

No years were added to the pact, so Fitzpatrick remains eligible for free agency after the 2026 season. He was previously due to earn $15.5MM in base salary in 2025, and while he was not in jeopardy of missing out on that money given that he was just acquired in the blockbuster trade that sent Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith to the Steelers, the extra security and expedited cash flow is surely a welcome development.

Rosenhaus said he and Fitzpatrick are comfortable with the restructure and will continue to work towards an extension. It is nonetheless fair to wonder how anxious the ‘Fins will be to put an extension in place since they do not yet know how their former first-round pick will fare in new defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver’s scheme. Plus, despite earning Pro Bowl accolades in each of the last two seasons, Fitzpatrick was not as effective from either an advanced metrics or ball production perspective over the 2023-24 campaigns as he was earlier in his career.

The revised pact will result in a $2MM bump in 2025 pay for Fitzpatrick, per Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network. That money was moved from what Fitzpatrick was due to earn in 2026, so the 28-year-old will thus be in line for $17.5MM in 2026 and $15.6MM in 2026, and the salary-to-signing bonus mechanism (as confirmed by ESPN’s Field Yates) will result in $11MM in cap savings on this year’s ledger. That represented a key need for the Dolphins, who had just over $1MM in cap space and who now have increased flexibility to conduct in-season business.

Re-acquiring Fitzpatrick was part of Miami’s major offseason overhaul in the secondary, which will see four new starters in 2025. The club recently signed Jack Jones and Mike Hilton in an effort to address a dire cornerback situation that was exacerbated by the Ramsey departure.

Jets QB Justin Fields Returns To Practice On Limited Basis

July 27th, 2025 at 8:51am CST by Nikhil Mehta

JULY 27: Fields took part in individual drills and 7-on-7 work on Saturday, per Jared Schwartz of the New York Post. The club’s new QB1 thrived in the 7-on-7 session, showing good mobility and completing all six of his passes, including one touchdown toss.

Fields did not take any 11-on-11 reps, and Glenn says the passer still has “a ways to go” before he returns to full participation. Still, a frightening situation is clearly trending in the right direction.

JULY 24, 9:30pm: Fields’ injury is not considered significant, Cimini reports. In spite of the relatively positive update, missed time should still in store. Per Vacchiano, Fields could be sidelined for a portion of training camp along with some or all of the preseason. Both follow-up reports indicate a return to full health in time for Week 1 is expected, and the team has since confirmed Fields is dealing with a dislocated toe, a much less severe ailment than some of the alternative outcomes.

10:07am: Jets quarterback Justin Fields was carted off the field this morning after suffering a dislocated toe during practice, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

The severity of Fields’ injury remains unknown, but the Jets appear to have avoided a worst-case scenario with a toe injury rather than one to the knee or lower leg. Furthermore, the affected toe was not fractured, nor is it the big toe, per Rapoport.

Jets head coach Aaron Glenn said (via ESPN’s Rich Cimini) that he believes Fields’ toe was stepped on during a play. The 26-year-old quarterback is expected to undergo more tests to determine how long he will be sidelined.

Glenn expressed confidence in Fields’ backup, Tyrod Taylor, a journeyman quarterback who played for four different teams over the past five seasons.

“We have an outstanding backup in Tyrod, who’s been in this league for around 14 years,” said Glenn. “[With] the leadership he brings, we’re all good.” Glenn also noted that Taylor brings a similar skillset to Fields that will allow the Jets to continue developing their offense with minimal interruption.

“I don’t think there’s any drop-off as far as what we want to do in terms of play-calling,” continued Glenn (via FOX Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano). “We’re all excited to have that guy here.”

That excitement won’t continue if Fields’ injury is more severe and he ends up sidelined for an extended period of time. It appears initially that the Jets have avoided major disaster, but further testing will provide a more definitive outlook.

Load More Posts