Mutual Interest Between Bucs, Mike Evans; WR To Explore Free Agent Options
FEBRUARY 27: While the Bucs maintain that Evans has “earned the right” to hear what other teams have to offer, ESPN’s Jenna Laine reports that Evans’ representatives at the NFL Scouting Combine, Darren Jones and Deryk Gilmore, met with the team in Indianapolis. Per Laine, Tampa Bay “will aggressively pursue trying to re-sign” the veteran wide receiver for 2026.
FEBRUARY 23: Mike Evans will play in 2026, meaning his decorated NFL career is set to include a 13th season. It remains to be seen if a new Buccaneers pact will be worked out or if a first ever free agent departure is in store. 
To no surprise, SportsBoom’s Jason La Canfora reports a mutual interest exists between Evans and Tampa Bay. The sides worked out a two-year, $41MM pact in 2024 just in time to prevent the franchise icon from testing the market. It appears that will not be the case this spring.
Evans’ agents have already conveyed his desire to seek out other options in free agency. La Canfora confirms the six-time Pro Bowler is assessing other teams based on the strength of their offenses and his potential fit. Playing on a Super Bowl contender is obviously a priority for Evans, who earned a ring in 2020 with Tampa Bay.
The Bucs have Chris Godwin under contract for two more years, and the team has made a pair of recent draft investments at the receiver spot (third-rounder Jalen McMillan in 2024, first-rounder Emeka Egbuka in 2025). Moving on without Evans would leave those three in place as the core of Tampa Bay’s passing attack, and there should be no shortage of other suitors lining up outside Evans offers. The Texas A&M product contemplated joining the Chiefs and Texans prior to signing his latest Buccaneers deal.
Injuries limited Evans to just eight games in 2025 and prevented him from registering a 12th consecutive 1,000-yard showing. He will be 33 by the start of next season, so a short-term offer from the Bucs or any other teams should be expected. As La Canfora notes, though, Evans is aiming to remain a full-time starting presence with Tampa Bay or a different suitor; he is still seen as an impact wideout by evaluators around the league. This situation will be worth watching closely as a result.
The likes of George Pickens and Alec Pierce are strong candidates to be retained via the franchise tag shortly. That could leave Evans as one of the top wideouts available on the market once free agency begins in mid-March. Another Tampa Bay re-up remains a possibility at this point, but it may very well take longer than last time for Evans’ future to be settled.
NFLPA Names Three Finalists For Executive Director
Following the controversial tenure of Lloyd Howell as executive director of the NFL Players Association, the players’ union has been searching for a permanent replacement. Per a joint report from ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr. and Kalyn Kahler, the NFLPA has narrowed its search down to three candidates: interim executive director David White, former union chief strategy officer JC Tretter, and commissioner of the American Conference Tim Pernetti. 
Howell resigned last summer after reports emerged that he had charged strip club visits to the union, worked part-time for a private equity firm seeking minority ownership in NFL franchises, and struck an agreement with the league not to disclose an arbitrator’s ruling indicating potential collusion between NFL owners against players. In the wake of Howell’s departure, White was elected to serve in the interim role of executive director after also being a finalist for the position when it was given to Howell.
White, formerly a CEO at an executive coaching/strategic firm and board chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, “has extensive labor experience” after having served as the leader of the SAG-AFTRA union from 2009-21. Tretter, the former Browns center and NFLPA player president for a five-year tenure, was also an option to serve as interim executive director, but he chose to withdraw his name from consideration after also resigning from his role with the union while denying any culpability in Howell’s wrongdoing. Tretter had been the leader of the search that led to the selection of Howell over White in 2023.
Pernetti is the only new name in the discussion. After leadership roles with Major League Soccer and the sports and entertainment company Endeavor, Pernetti served as the president of Florida’s athletic powerhouse high school IMG Academy. He was named the American Conference’s commissioner in June 2024. Other known candidates that didn’t make it to the final stage of the search process are former NFL cornerback and NFLPA president Domonique Foxworth, former NFL quarterback and player representative Matt Schaub, and former NFL center Jeff Saturday.
According to Mark Maske of The Washington Post, Tretter is “believed to have strong support among the players on the NFLPA’s ruling executive committee for the executive director job.” That won’t do him much good, though, as the decision will be made by a vote between the union’s 32 player representatives at the annual NFLPA meeting in San Diego next month.
Maske goes on to say that the player rep consensus may differ from the ruling executive committee, since Tretter is seen as a polarizing figure. White has typically been viewed more favorably, earning respect for having stabilized things in the wake of Howell’s departure, while Pernetti is not as well known to the players. Time will tell how things shake out as the league’s union moves closer and closer to establishing new leadership.
Falcons Dismiss Assistant DL Coach LaTroy Lewis
The Falcons named LaTroy Lewis their new assistant defensive line coach just 17 days ago. In the days since then, serious sexual assault allegations have surfaced against him from an unnamed alleged victim, per Darko State Media reporter and host of The Spiro Avenue Show podcast Justin Spiro.
An initial statement released by the Falcons (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk) read, “We are aware of allegations regarding LaTroy Lewis. We are in the process of gathering information and will have no further comment at this time.”
It shouldn’t have been too difficult for Atlanta’s decisionmakers to glean information on the situation. Per Spiro, Lewis was in his hotel room in Indianapolis, “where he is attending the NFL Combine with other Falcons staff,” when Spiro called him for comment on the accusations against him. About two hours after the team’s statement, Greg Auman of FOX Sports relayed that the Falcons had dismissed Lewis after a little over two weeks of employment.
The allegations against Lewis stem from a time during which he was a part of what has become a very controversial coaching staff at the University of Michigan. Working as a graduate assistant under a newly promoted head coach in Sherrone Moore, Lewis reportedly met his accuser through a social media dating platform. Spiro provided screenshots of alleged communications from Lewis to his accuser that very quickly include threats of physical and sexual violence. “Under coercive circumstances,” Lewis demanded a collection of money and items totaling around $25K. The two had still not met in person up to that point.
Shortly after, Lewis’s accuser traveled to Ann Arbor for a work-related event, and the then-Michigan staffer allegedly made his way to her location under false pretenses before physically and sexually abusing her; Spiro’s breaking report included photographs to support many of the woman’s claims against Lewis. Following the Ann Arbor interaction, the alleged victim, who was acquainted with Lewis’s head coach outside of her interactions with Lewis, reached out to Moore to make him aware of the actions of his staffer as she was too scared to go to police. A mandatory reporter under Title IX, as dictated by the University of Michigan’s policy, the head coach allegedly shirked his responsibilities when she confided in him, refusing to report Lewis to the proper authorities. In fact, Moore himself allegedly began to harass Lewis’s accuser, while recommending Lewis for a position as the defensive line coach at Toledo.
Moore has since been fired from Michigan and arrested for stalking and breaking and entering. After a year at Toledo, Lewis accepted a job a UConn before leaving to accept his most recent position with the Falcons. In the wake of his dismissal, Lewis will likely be sought to participate in the newly opened investigation by the Ann Arbor Police Department. For now, though, his short stay in the NFL ranks of coaching has come to an end.
Cowboys Notes: Pickens, Williams, Clark, Clowney, Dean, Liufau
Although the Cowboys placed the nonexclusive franchise tag on George Pickens, they should not exactly be worried about someone poaching him. An offer sheet is seen as highly unlikely, per CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones. An unmatched franchise tag offer sheet would result in two first-rounders coming back to Dallas. Pickens’ standout 2025 season notwithstanding, he would not fetch that in a trade. While a tag-and-trade scenario has been mentioned here — as the Cowboys have CeeDee Lamb on a $34MM-per-year extension — the team looks set to retain its high-profile WR2 for 2026.
“We couldn’t take the chance on losing him,” executive VP Stephen Jones said, via AllDLLS.com’s Clarence Hill. “George was fired up, excited. He said I don’t want to play anywhere but with the Cowboys. That’s what we suspected. It was all good.”
Jerry Jones spoke with Pickens by phone from the Combine following the tag, per Hill. Pickens, 25, cannot be fined for skipping minicamp or training camp workouts until he signs his $28.3MM franchise tender. The Cowboys are a staggering $56MM-plus over the cap after tagging Pickens, but they will be able to restructure contracts — including Lamb, Dak Prescott, DaRon Bland and Osa Odighizuwa — to create considerable room ahead of free agency.
Here is the latest from around Dallas:
- Another way to create some cap space would be extending Kenny Clark or Quinnen Williams. The Clark-Odighizuwa-Williams trio is set to count a whopping $63.9MM against the Cowboys’ 2026 cap, and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Nick Harris notes the team is in discussions to improve that situation this week. Clark is due an $11MM roster bonus March 13, but Harris adds he is unlikely to be traded, pointing to an extension being in play. Clark is in the final year of a three-year, $66MM Packers-designed deal — one shipped to Dallas in the Micah Parsons trade — and going into an age-31 season. The Cowboys are not expected to deal a player from their three-DT logjam, with new DC Christian Parker exploring ways to maximize it. If one of the DTs is to be moved, though, Harris points to Clark being the top departure candidate.
- In December, a second Jadeveon Clowney Cowboys contract was in play. With Parker now running the defense, Clowney’s Dallas future appears foggier. Stephen Jones confirmed (via The Athletic’s Jon Machota) no talks with the free agent-to-be have taken place. “We’re gonna work through with [Parker]. A lot of it will happen this coming week, in terms of the type of player (we’re looking for),” Jones said. “We’re gonna continue to have those talks, and then we’ll make final decisions on who we think will be productive in this particular system.” Clowney, 33 in April, has played for seven teams in 12 NFL seasons. The former No. 1 overall pick tallied 8.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss — his most TFLs since his 2018 Houston finale — as a bright spot on a bad Dallas defense.
- With Parker coming over from Philadelphia, some Eagles could be in play to follow him. The Cowboys should be expected to pursue Nakobe Dean, Hill adds. Parker and Dean overlapped for two seasons, and the latter is one of the top ILBs available. Dean’s injury history will make it unlikely he competes with Devin Lloyd or Quay Walker prices on this year’s market, but the former third-round pick should fare decently in free agency. Although Dean wants to stay in Philly, the Eagles paid Zack Baun and using a first-round pick on Jihaad Campbell last year. That makes Dean likely to relocate soon. The Cowboys have a clear need at linebacker, having cut trade pickup Logan Wilson this week. DeMarvion Overshown is also in a contract year.
- As Parker prepares to install a 3-4 defense, Marist Liufau will change positions. The off-ball linebacker is moving to a 3-4 OLB role, Machota adds. A 2024 third-round pick, Liufau has made 14 starts in two seasons.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 2/27/26
As we get closer and closer to the start of the new league year, we are starting to see NFL teams make tender decisions on restricted and exclusive rights free agents:
RFAs
Nontendered:
- Packers: S Zayne Anderson, RB Emanuel Wilson
A fifth-year veteran special teams ace, Anderson just finished his third season in Green Bay. Our friends at OvertheCap.com project the right of first refusal tenders for restricted free agents in 2026 at $3.52MM, which is more than double what Anderson made on the veteran minimum last year. The Packers’ decision not to tender him does not rule out his return for a fourth year with the team, but in order to make that happen, Anderson will have to go the route of an unrestricted free agent.
Wilson will also need to go the unrestricted free agent route. Going undrafted out of Fort Valley State three years ago, Wilson has been a strong RB2 behind Josh Jacobs in Green Bay. Over the past two years, Wilson has totaled 998 rushing yards with seven rushing touchdowns.
2027 Fifth-Year Option Numbers Revealed
With the salary cap coming in today at $301.2MM, we have clarity on what it will cost teams to apply franchise and transition tags. The salary ceiling being set also illuminates the four fifth-year option tiers for 2023 first-rounders.
This will be the sixth offseason for the tiered fifth-year option format. The NFL’s 2020 CBA changed the option structure for first-round picks, fully guaranteeing the options but doing so based on performance and usage rate. The 2011 CBA gave teams flexibility by making the options guaranteed for injury only, allowing franchises to cut players free of charge as long as they passed March physicals. The 2018 first-round class was the first to gain access to fully guaranteed options.
Players who have been original invitees to two or more Pro Bowls (original ballot only) reside on the top tier, which matches the 2026 franchise tag numbers. Here is how those numbers will look (courtesy of NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero):
- Quarterback: $43.9MM
- Running back: $14.29MM
- Wide receiver: $27.3MM
- Tight end: $15.05MM
- Offensive line: $25.77MM
- Defensive end: $24.43MM
- Defensive tackle: $27.13MM
- Linebacker: $26.87MM
- Cornerback: $21.16MM
- Safety: $20.15MM
- Kicker/punter: $6.65MM
Tier 2 on the option structure covers players who have been selected to one Pro Bowl as non-alternates. This tier matches the 2026 transition tag values.
- Quarterback: $37.83MM
- Running back: $11.32MM
- Wide receiver: $23.85MM
- Tight end: $12.69MM
- Offensive line: $23.39MM
- Defensive end: $21.51MM
- Defensive tackle: $22.52MM
- Linebacker: $21.93MM
- Cornerback: $18.12MM
- Safety: $16.01MM
- Kicker/punter: $6.01MM
Participation impacts the final two tiers. Players who achieve any of the following will get the average of the third-20th highest salaries at their position. Tier 3 consists of players who played at least 75% in two of their first three seasons, those who averaged at least a 75% snap share through three seasons or those who crossed the 50% snap barrier in each of their initial three slates.
- Quarterback: $25.9MM
- Running back: $7.42MM
- Wide receiver: $16.47MM
- Tight end: $8.16MM
- Offensive line: $19.07MM
- Defensive end: $15.94MM
- Defensive tackle: $15.45MM
- Linebacker: $15.12MM
- Cornerback: $13.67MM
- Safety: $10.8MM
- Kicker/punter: $4.84MM
The fourth and final tier consists of players who failed to reach those participation rates:
- Quarterback: $22.48MM
- Running back: $6.7MM
- Wide receiver: $16.47MM
- Tight end: $8.16MM
- Offensive line: $18MM
- Defensive end: $14.48MM
- Defensive tackle: $13.93MM
- Linebacker: $13.75MM
- Cornerback: $12.63MM
- Safety: $9.74MM
- Kicker/punter: $4.5MM
2026 NFL Franchise/Transition Tags
The NFL’s 2026 salary cap will be $301.2MM, a figure will have a significant impact on a number of other contract situations around the NFL.
Chief among them are the franchise and transition tags. Teams can use one of the two tags on one player per year, which ties them to a one-year contract at the top of their positional market. The value of the franchise tag is determined by the top five salaries at each position, while the transition tag is based on the top 10, but the calculation of the final figures factors in the salary cap.
Teams have internal projections for the next round of tag numbers and most have already made their decisions on players who could be tagged. However, any figures that differ significantly from those predictions could make them reconsider.
Here are 2025 non-exclusive franchise tag figures, courtesy of NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero:
- Quarterback: $43.895MM
- Running back: $14.293MM
- Wide receiver: $28.298MM
- Tight end: $15.045MM
- Offensive line: $25.773MM
- Defensive end: $24.434MM
- Defensive tackle: $27.127MM
- Linebacker: $26.865MM
- Cornerback: $21.161MM
- Safety: $20.149MM
- Kicker/punter: $6.649MM
The exclusive tag is often seen as prohibitively expensive, since the team must account for the entire amount on their salary cap that year. Instead, ‘franchise tag’ typically refers to the non-exclusive tag, which allows tagged players to negotiate with other teams. If they agree to an offer sheet, the original team gets a chance to match. If they decline, the player signs with a new team, who must send the original team two first-round picks.
That required compensation often makes negotiating with non-exclusive franchise-tagged players a non-starter. Instead, players on the non-exclusive tag often sign extensions with their original teams with the tag number serving as a key point of reference on a long-term AAV.
Here are the numbers for this year’s transition tag:
- Quarterback: $37.833MM
- Running back: $11.323MM
- Wide receiver: $23.852MM
- Tight end: $12.687MM
- Offensive line: $23.392MM
- Defensive end: $21.512MM
- Defensive tackle: $22.521MM
- Linebacker: $21.925MM
- Cornerback: $18.119MM
- Safety: $16.012MM
- Kicker/punter: $6.005MM
The Cowboys have already placed the non-exclusive franchise tag on wide receiver George Pickens, as have the Falcons on tight end Kyle Pitts. Other candidates for a tag – either franchise or transition – include Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker, Jets running back Breece Hall, and Colts quarterback Daniel Jones and wide receiver Alec Pierce.
One player who is unlikely to be tagged is Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum, as all offensive linemen are grouped together when calculating tag figures. That makes the OL tag representative of the offensive tackle market, which is much too expensive for a center. The NFL uses the same designations to calculate fifth-year options, which is why the Ravens did not pick up Linderbaum’s last offseason. The same issue pops up for inside linebackers, who are grouped together with outside linebackers who typically earn far more money for their pass-rushing abilities.
Pro Football Rumors Front Office Subscriber Chat: 2/27/26
Pro Football Rumors' Sam Robinson will be holding a live chat at 4pm Central today, exclusively for Trade Rumors Front Office subscribers!
Packers Hire Cam Achord As Special Teams Coordinator
The Packers have hired Cam Achord as their new special teams coordinator, per a team announcement. He will replace Rich Bisaccia after his unexpected exit last week.
Achord, 39, spent the last two seasons as the Giants’ assistant special teams coach under Michael Ghobrial. Before that, he worked under Bill Belichick in New England, first as an assistant special teams coach (2018-2019) and then as the Patriots’ special teams coordinator (2020-2023). Achord won Super Bowl LIII in his first year in New England, but the team made the playoffs only twice more in his tenure.
Achord began his coaching career at Southern Miss in 2010, working as a graduate assistant on special teams for two years before switching to offense in 2012. He then joined Southwest Missisippi Community College, where he held several different roles between 2013-2016, including time as a coordinator on offense and special teams.
The Giants were set to retain Achord under new head coach John Harbaugh and special teams coordinator Chris Horton. Instead, he will head to Green Bay to replace Bisaccia, whose resignation surprised the Packers. They also interviewed Tom McMahon, Kyle Wilbur, and Sam Sewell, but Achord’s success in New York and New England helped him win the job.
The Patriots typically fielded strong special teams units during Achord’s tenure. From 2018 to 2021, their team special teams grade from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) never ranked lower than 11th with three top-six finishes. However, their performance dipped sharply in 2022 and 2023.
The Giants did not receive spectacular special teams PFF grades under Achord, but they still made improvements year-over-year. They ranked 25th in 2023 and improved to 24th in Achord’s debut season and 17th in his second. New York also finished the 2025 season among the top 10 teams in yards per kickoff return and average starting field position.
The Packers had relatively poor special teams grades under Bisaccia. They also ranked dead-last in yards per punt return, 23rd in yards per kickoff return, and 30th in average starting field position. They were far more successful on punts and kickoffs, leading the league in yards per punt and ranking second in average kickoff yardage.
Achord will be looking to improve Green Bay’s return units while maintaining the strength of their punt and kickoff teams. Continuity with kicker Brandon McManus and punter Daniel Whelan, who are both under contract through the 2027 season, will aid in that effort. Achord may have to find a new punt returner, as Romeo Doubs is set to hit free agency. Kickoff returners Emanuel Wilson, Bo Melton, and Savion Williams are all expected to return.
Broncos Decline RFA Tender For Jaleel McLaughlin
After spending the first three seasons of his NFL career in Denver, running back Jaleel McLaughlin is heading for the open market. The Broncos will not tender the restricted free agent a contract, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports.
While the Broncos and McLaughlin are at least temporarily splitting up, he could still re-sign on a cheaper deal. That is a legitimate possibility, according to 9News’ Mike Klis, who points out McLaughlin would have gotten a noticeable raise on his RFA tender. McLaughlin made a $1.03MM base salary in 2025, in which he played just eight games. Tendering him would have cost the Broncos $3.55MM.
Dividing his college career between Division II Notre Dame (Ohio) and FCS Youngstown State, McLaughlin rushed for an NCAA-record 8,155 yards. Nevertheless, nobody drafted the 5-foot-8, 187-pound McLaughin in 2023. He went on to earn a roster spot with the Broncos and average an impressive 5.4 yards per carry on 76 attempts as a rookie. McLaughlin also chipped in 31 catches and three total touchdowns over a 17-game campaign.
With then-Broncos starter Javonte Williams struggling for the second straight season in 2024, McLaughlin took on more work as a runner. He finished the year with career highs in carries (113) and yards (496). McLaughlin’s catch total fell to 24, but he scored three TDs for the second straight year.
Williams left for the Cowboys in free agency last year, and the Broncos replaced him with J.K. Dobbins a few months later. The team had already made a bigger investment in RJ Harvey, whom it drafted 60th overall last April. Although Dobbins missed seven games, he and Harvey still split 299 carries. Those additions led to less action for McLaughin, regularly a healthy scratch before Dobbins suffered a season-ending foot injury in November. While McLaughlin averaged 5.1 yards a carry in 2025, he accrued just 41 touches (37 rushes, four catches) in eight games.