Minor NFL Transactions: 5/20/26
Today’s midweek minor moves:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: TE Heinrich Haarberg
- Waived (with injury settlement): RB Montrell Johnson
- Waived: OLB Jamil Muhammad
Las Vegas Raiders
- Waived (with injury settlement): DT Brodric Martin
New England Patriots
- Signed: DT Travis Shaw
- Released: LS Niko Lalos
The Panthers are adding some tight end help in the form Haarberg, a converted quarterback during his time at Nebraska. Starting as an in-state, three-star passing prospect, Haarberg first found the field as a redshirt sophomore, after the Cornhuskers began his transition to tight end. In his second game, though, the team’s starter went down with injury, and Haarberg started 8 games under center, going 5-3. He returned to his tight end role the next two seasons but saw more action rushing than receiving, serving as a bit of a Taysom Hill-type of weapon.
The Patriots add another undrafted rookie to their class in Shaw. The North Carolina-transfer played for the Longhorns in his final year of eligibility but didn’t see much improvement in playing time after three years as a rotational piece for the Tar Heels.
Titans Hire Dave Gardi As Executive VP Of Football Operations
Weeks after Chad Brinker‘s decision to step away from his high-ranking role in the Titans’ front office, the team has made a significant hire to join its Mike Borgonzi-fronted operation. Dave Gardi will join the team as its executive vice president of football operations.
The Titans announced the hire, indicating Gardi will report directly to Borgonzi. Gardi most recently was with the Commanders, serving as their senior VP of football initiatives.
Tennessee has seen many changes to its power structure commence since Amy Adams Strunk fired GM Jon Robinson in December 2022. The team hired Ran Carthon (against then-HC Mike Vrabel‘s wishes) as GM in 2023 but promoted Brinker — hired to be one of Carthon’s assistant GMs — to their top decision-making presence during Carthon’s stay. Carthon was then fired in January 2025, as Brinker officially saw his title change to president of football ops. Borgonzi worked under Brinker in 2025, but the Titans announced the GM would take control of the 53-man roster in January. Brinker stepped down after the draft.
Gardi is set to “oversee football administration, football strategy and analytics, research, football information systems, team operations and security,” according to the Titans. He joins assistant GM Dave Ziegler as a top Borgonzi lieutenant. Ziegler is in his second year working in that capacity.
Spending two years with the Commanders, Gardi enjoyed a much longer tenure in the NFL office. Gardi spent 21 years in the league office, serving as senior VP of football operations for his final 10 years under Roger Goodell. This hire reminds of the Giants’ offseason decision to add longtime league employee Dawn Aponte to a key front office role.
In-game management duties and officiating trends were part of Gardi’s Washington responsibilities, with salary cap and contract matters falling in his purview with the league office. The Titans have Borgonzi in a much more powerful spot compared to his first year with the team, and he led the search that brought Robert Saleh to Nashville. Gardi will step in as a key member of this hierarchy moving forward.
Lions Sign WR Cedrick Wilson Jr.
The Lions addressed their wide receiver position with a Day 3 draft choice while reuniting new OC Drew Petzing with ex-Cardinal Greg Dortch. The team is making another move for potential depth, however.
Cedrick Wilson Jr. signed with the Lions on Wednesday, per a team announcement. Wilson spent last season with the Dolphins, returning to Miami after playing the 2024 campaign in New Orleans.
Wilson, 30, did not live up to a three-year, $22.1MM Dolphins accord signed back in 2022 and was released in 2024. The second-generation NFL wideout totaled 602 receiving yards and six touchdowns with the 2021 Cowboys but has not eclipsed 300 yards in any other season. Working as a tertiary Miami option alongside Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle in 2023, Wilson did tally 296 yards and three TDs. But the Dolphins moved on rather than keep him on that contract in 2024.
The Saints gave Wilson a two-year, $5.75MM to play in Klint Kubiak‘s system in 2024. With the Saints losing Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed to injury that season, Wilson provided modest assistance in 15 games (20 catches, 211 yards) and landed on New Orleans’ practice squad to open 2025. The Dolphins signed Wilson off the Saints’ P-squad last September following Hill’s season-ending knee injury; Wilson saw minimal action in 10 contests, catching just five passes for 44 yards.
Detroit returns Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams to go with second-year cog Isaac TeSlaa at receiver. A former Cardinals slot receiver, Dortch signed a one-year, $1.4MM deal that included a $1.1MM guarantee. Detroit then drafted Kentucky’s Kendrick Law in Round 5 last month. This situation will certainly not guarantee Wilson a roster spot, and it would surprise if his guarantee matched Dortch’s at this offseason juncture.
Wilson has never cleared the 35% snap barrier on special teams, though he does have 36 career punt returns on his resume. The Lions lost longtime returner Kalif Raymond in free agency; Raymond is now with the Bears. The Lions also have longtime backup/P-squad presence Tom Kennedy among their cadre of second-string candidates at receiver. Wilson will join the fray as a potential option for the 53-man roster or practice squad.
Cardinals WR Michael Wilson: Contract Will ‘Take Care Of Itself’
Stars Puka Nacua, George Pickens, Drake London and Chris Olave top of the list of receivers who are unsigned beyond 2026. Not to be forgotten, the Cardinals’ Michael Wilson is also on track to reach free agency in a year. Wilson could be a candidate for a contract extension, but he isn’t focused on the business side of the game (via Darren Urban of the team’s website).
“Truthfully that whole situation isn’t going to dictate my offseason,” WIlson said. “That’s not something that I want to show up to the building with it on my mind. I don’t want that to affect how I show up every single day because ultimately that stuff is going to take care of itself.”
Since coming off the board in the third round of the 2023 draft (No. 94 overall), Wilson has started 38 of 46 games with the Cardinals. His production has taken clear steps forward along the way.
During a 13-game rookie season, Wilson lined up on the outside on approximately 74% of snaps and caught 38 of 58 targets for 565 yards and three touchdowns. The Cardinals drafted Marvin Harrison Jr. fourth overall in 2024, and Wilson’s slot usage has climbed over 30% since then. With Harrison in the fold, Wilson finished a 16-game second season with 47 receptions on 71 targets, 548 yards and four scores.
Last year was the first 17-game season for Wilson, whose numbers skyrocketed. With quarterback Kyler Murray at the helm for the first five weeks, Wilson caught just eight of 18 targets for a meager 52 yards and a score. Murray went down with a season-ending foot injury, leaving journeyman Jacoby Brissett to finish 2025 as the Cardinals’ starter.
Wilson’s output started trending upward once Brissett took the reins, and it reached its zenith in a 15-catch, 185-yard outburst in a Week 11 loss to the 49ers. Harrison was out that day with appendicitis, leading Brissett to target Wilson 18 times. Wilson went on to accrue double-digit targets four more times late in the season (Harrison missed three of those games). He chipped in two more games of at least 10 receptions and 100-plus yards apiece. In all, the 6-foot-2, 213-pounder pulled in 78 of 126 targets for 1,006 yards and seven TDs.
The Cardinals released Murray, now a member of the Vikings, and are expected to keep Brissett as their starter to open the season. That will depend in part on whether the Cardinals and Brissett settle a contract dispute. If that happens, Wilson would stand to benefit after forming a rapport with Brissett last year. On the other hand, he has never worked with the Cardinals’ second- and third-string QBs, free agent pickup Gardner Minshew and third-round rookie Carson Beck.
Wilson is also dealing with a new coaching staff led by the offensive-minded Mike LaFleur, who replaced Jonathan Gannon. Offensive coordinator Drew Petzing and wide receivers coach Drew Terrell were around for Wilson’s breakout 2025 campaign, but Nathaniel Hackett and Tony Sorrentino are now in those respective roles. The changes are fine with Wilson, who said he’s “excited every day to come to work” under LaFleur (via Arizona Sports).
Wilson’s comments on LaFleur suggest he is open to an extension. It’s also worth noting that general manager Monti Ossenfort spoke glowingly of the 26-year-old at the Combine in February.
“Michael is everything we want in our program to be about,” said Ossenfort (via Urban).
Ossenfort’s GM tenure in Arizona has been light on positives since his hiring in 2023, but making Wilson part of his first draft class has paid dividends. It remains to be seen if Ossenfort will still be with the Cardinals next offseason, as a fourth straight sub-.500 campaign could lead to his ouster. Regardless, the Cardinals are projected to enter 2027 with the NFL’s second-most cap space. That will give them ample room to give Wilson a raise if there is mutual interest. In the meantime, Wilson is on track to collect $3.92MM in the final year of his rookie deal.
Lions Holding Competition At Left Guard
Lions third-year offensive lineman Christian Mahogany may be the frontrunner to start at left guard, but he will have to battle for the job. Mahogany will face “real competition” from Ben Bartch and Miles Frazier, per Colton Pouncy of The Athletic.
Despite earning first-team All-ACC honors as a senior at Boston College in 2023, Mahogany lasted until the sixth round of the ensuing draft. A torn ACL cost Mahogany his entire junior season at BC, and injuries have continued troubling him in Detroit.
Mahogany began his career on the non-football injury list and played just seven games (one start) as a rookie. In the wake of Frank Ragnow‘s retirement, Graham Glasgow moved to center last year. That opened up left guard for Mahogany, who became a full-time starter when healthy. However, a fractured fibula held him to 11 games. The results weren’t great when Mahogany took the field, as Pro Football Focus ranked his performance 47th among 79 guards. Mahogany’s pass-blocking grade (40.7) was PFF’s sixth-worst at his position.
Entering free agency in search of guard depth, the Lions added Bartch on a low-cost deal (one year, $1.22MM) in March. The former Jaguar and 49er has started in just 24 of 55 games during his career. As is the case with Mahogany, injuries have been a problem for Bartch. The 27-year-old has missed between two and 14 games in each of his seven seasons. He opened last year as the 49ers’ starting left guard, but he never got the job back after going down with a high ankle sprain in Week 2. While Bartch returned from injured reserve in November, a foot sprain ended his season a few weeks later.
A three-year starter at LSU, Frazier joined the Lions as a fifth-rounder in the 2025 draft. Like Mahogany, he was unavailable at the beginning of his career. Frazier began the season on the reserve/PUP list as a result of a knee injury and did not debut until Week 13. The 6-foot-6, 325-pounder came off the bench in five games and was on the field for just 46 offensive snaps, but he could take on a much larger role if he impresses over the summer.
The Lions have a few months to figure out left guard, whereas the rest of their offensive line looks set. Elite tackle Penei Sewell is on track to switch from the right to the left side, replacing released 10-year starter Taylor Decker. Sewell’s presence on the left should benefit whichever guard lines up next to him. On the other side of the line, first-round rookie Blake Miller is the favorite to start at right tackle. Second-year man Tate Ratledge has right guard locked down, and former Panther Cade Mays will start at center in the first season of a three-year, $25MM contract.
DeMario Douglas’ Patriots Roster Spot In Jeopardy?
Patriots slot receiver DeMario Douglas saw his playing time and production drop in 2025, which could go down as his last season in New England. Douglas is still a member of the Patriots, but the three-year veteran’s roster spot appears to be in jeopardy, according to Chad Graff of The Athletic.
As the 210th overall pick in 2023, the former sixth-rounder from Liberty has outplayed his draft position since he entered the NFL. Douglas started seven of 14 games as a rookie and caught 49 passes for 561 yards, though he did not find the end zone. He showed even more promise in 2024, quarterback Drake Maye‘s rookie campaign. Playing a career-high 62% of offensive snaps (up from 55% in 2023), the 5-foot-8, 192-pounder set personal bests in receptions (66), yards (621) and TDs (three) over 17 games and seven starts.
Maye took massive steps forward in 2025, a year in which he finished second in MVP voting and helped the Patriots to an AFC title. Surprisingly, Douglas was not much of a factor in Maye’s breakout. Although Douglas played a full season for the second year in a row, he logged a meager 26% offensive snap share, went without a start, and managed just 31 catches, 447 yards and three scores. Four Patriots wideouts (Stefon Diggs, Mack Hollins, Kayshon Boutte and Kyle Williams) received more playing time than Douglas.
Diggs is now off the Patriots’ roster, and Boutte may be on his way out via trade, but they added Romeo Doubs on a four-year, $68MM pact in free agency and are expected to swing a deal for the Eagles’ A.J. Brown sometime after June 1. Brown and Doubs would be the Patriots’ top two receivers in that scenario, leaving Douglas, Hollins, Boutte (unless the Pats move him), Williams and Efton Chism to round out the group. Chism had just three catches in eight games as an undrafted rookie in 2025, but if he becomes the Patriots’ kick returner, he could edge out Douglas for a roster spot, per Graff. He averaged 23.9 yards on 16 kick returns last season.
Douglas collected salaries ranging from $750K to $1.03MM in his first three seasons, but thanks to a Level 1 Proven Performance Escalator, that number will jump to $3.67MM this year. The Patriots will save almost all of that money if they trade or cut Douglas before next season. Parting with him would leave the team with a mere $33,333 in dead cap.
Kyle Van Noy Plans To Play In 2026
Over two months since free agency opened, edge defender Kyle Van Noy remains among the NFL’s class of notable unsigned veterans. That could change soon. The 35-year-old told Mike Garafolo of NFL Network that he plans to continue his career in 2026.
“I’m going to play next year,” declared Van Noy, who revealed “a lot of teams” have shown interest during his latest trip to free agency. The 12-year vet added that he could make his decision closer to training camp.
Since going in the second round (40th overall) of the 2014 draft, Van Noy has combined for 115 starts in 173 games in stints with the Lions, Patriots, Dolphins, Chargers and Ravens. The former BYU Cougar has piled up 57 sacks, 39 pass deflections and 14 forced fumbles along the way. He also won a pair of Super Bowls as a key cog in the Patriots’ defense from 2016-19.
Van Noy is now coming off a three-year run in Baltimore, where he posted the most sacks of his career (23.5). After setting a career high with nine in 2023, he totaled 12.5 (and a personal-best 21 QB hits) the next season en route to his lone Pro Bowl nod.
Van Noy was a 13-game starter for the second straight year in 2025, but his production declined as part of a defense that fell short of expectations. Over 15 games, Van Noy notched 20 tackles, nine QB hit, four pass deflections, two sacks and an interception – the fourth of his career. Pro Football Focus ranked Van Noy’s performance an underwhelming 73rd among 119 qualified edge defenders, down from 25th the previous year.
While Van Noy told Garafolo he “didn’t like how last year went,” it does not appear retirement is on the table yet. Van Noy expressed interest in eventually working in the media and/or in a front office, but that will have to wait if he catches on with one of the league’s 32 teams before next season. For now, he is one of the most established edge defenders available on a market that also includes Cameron Jordan, Joey Bosa, Jadeveon Clowney, Leonard Floyd and Haason Reddick, among others.
Chiefs WR Rashee Rice Ordered To Serve 30 Days In Jail For Violating Probation
Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice is once again in legal trouble. Rice violated his probation after testing positive for THC, Matt Foster of KSHB 41 News reports. He has been ordered to serve 30 days in jail.
Rice is on probation for five years as a result of a 2004 hit-and-run crash that led to eight felony charges. After pleading guilty to felony collision involving serious bodily injury and racing on a highway causing bodily injury, Rice was sentenced to 30 days in jail and ordered to pay $115K to the injured victims.
[RELATED: Rice Facing Multi-Month Rehab After Knee Surgery]
Rice’s jail sentence is the same one he was originally ordered to serve, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Had he not violated probation, Rice would have been able to choose when to serve his time over the next five years, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports relays. He will now have to go through with it immediately, which will prevent him from participating in the Chiefs’ upcoming OTAs and mandatory minicamp.
The NFL suspended Rice for the first six games of last season as a result of his street-racing crash. However, it is unlikely this violation will lead to another ban, according to Jones, who notes the league does not suspend players for positive marijuana tests. It is nonetheless another unwelcome off-field development for Rice, who was accused of domestic violence in a civil lawsuit filed in February. Dacoda Jones, Rice’s ex-girlfriend, claimed he repeatedly assaulted her from December 2023 to July 2025. He was not charged with a crime, and the league chose not to suspend him after reviewing the matter.
On the field, Rice is entering the pivotal final season of the four-year rookie contract he signed in 2023. During the pre-draft process, NFL teams became aware of an alleged incident in which Rice or a member of his party fired multiple shots into an empty car belonging to a member of SMU’s basketball team. The Chiefs nonetheless selected Rice in the second round (No. 55 overall), a move that has paid dividends when he has taken the field. Rice was a standout during a 16-game rookie year in which he caught 79 passes for 938 yards and seven touchdowns. He added another 26 receptions in a four-game playoff run, including six in a Super Bowl LVIII win over the 49ers.
Thanks to a Week 4 LCL tear in 2024, last year’s suspension and a concussion, Rice played a mere 12 games over the previous two seasons. Despite suiting up just eight times in 2025, the 26-year-old piled up 53 catches, 571 yards and five scores. Barring punishment from the league, the Chiefs will count on Rice to continue serving as a key weapon when the upcoming season starts. Rice will be the top receiver in a corps that also includes Xavier Worthy, Tyquan Thornton, Jalen Royals and fifth-round rookie Cyrus Allen.
QB Brendan Sorsby Files Injunction For 2026 NCAA Eligibility
With the deadline for entry into the NFL’s supplemental draft approaching, Brendan Sorsby‘s efforts to resolve the matter of his college eligibility continue. The latest development in this saga is a legal one.
Sorsby’s legal team has filed an injunction in Lubbock County, Texas, as detailed by ESPN’s Pete Thamel. A hearing for June 15 has been requested so that a ruling can be made in time for June 22. The latter date represents the deadline for players (most notably Sorsby) to enter the supplemental draft.
Given that short timeframe, an expedited resolution on the matter of Sorsby’s 2026 eligibility is being sought out. His legal team has long expected a rejection on that front, leading to the injunction as an anticipated next step. A statement from Texas Tech said the school plans to “quickly initiate the reinstatement process” for Sorsby, who included a signed affidavit in the court filing and worked out an “agreed-upon stipulation of facts” between himself, Texas Tech and the NCAA.
“The relief [being sought] is narrow: one student-athlete and one senior season,” the court filing reads in part. “The NCAA will suffer no cognizable harm from letting Mr. Sorsby play football while this case proceeds. But if this Court does not act, no future judgment can give Mr. Sorsby what the NCAA will have taken from him.”
The filing also states that Sorsby – who transferred to the Red Raiders and signed a lucrative NIL deal along the way – offered to accept a two-game suspension to begin the 2026 campaign provided he was reinstated for his senior campaign. The highly-touted quarterback is likely to face a far steeper punishment given the NCAA’s rules related to gambling. Sorsby admitted to placing small wagers on Indiana to win games during his redshirt freshman season. The wagers were not placed on any contests in which Sorsby played, and the filing claims the betting stopped in 2022.
Sorsby stipulated to making several other bets in recent years on non-football events, leading to the expectation he will not be reinstated by the NCAA. In that event, attention will turn to the matter of the supplemental draft. The low-profile event occurs on an as-needed basis for players no longer eligible to play in college, and Sorsby would represent the most noteworthy player taking part in the event in several years.
The 2027 QB draft class is expected to be led by Texas’ Arch Manning and Oregon’s Dante Moore, but several other passers are viewed as having a strong chance of being selected in the first round. On that note, Jeff Howe of The Athletic reports Sorsby is widely seen as a top-50 prospect ahead of the 2026 season. Multiple evaluators Howe spoke with indicated Sorsby may have been drafted higher than Ty Simpson – who went 13th overall last month – had he been in the 2026 class.
Recent editions of the supplemental draft have come and gone without players being taken. Teams often prefer to retain their draft capital for the main event in April rather than losing it in the summer through the auction-style supplemental version. Sorsby could of course represent an exception, though, if teams view him as a starting-caliber passer at the pro level. The timeline along which clarity emerges in this case will be worth watching closely.
Deshaun Watson Open To Staying With Browns Beyond 2026; Team Showed Malik Willis Interest
Lacking an answer at the game’s most important position, the Browns stood out as potential suitors for quarterback Malik Willis before free agency opened. The former Tennessee and Green Bay backup ultimately landed in Miami on a three-year, $67.5MM deal. Cleveland had interest, but not at that price, Daniel Oyefusi and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN report.
For the Browns, signing the unproven Willis would have meant adding another expensive QB contract, albeit a far more affordable one than they gave Deshaun Watson in 2022. The fully guaranteed five-year, $230MM pact they handed Watson after acquiring him from the Texans has been a crippling mistake, as has the decision to part with a package headlined by three first-round picks. Watson has started just 19 games as a member of the Browns, who have restructured his onerous deal on a handful of occasions.
Watson’s contract is down to its final season, but he will continue to significantly impact their books for two more years after that. He will count a combined $86.2MM in dead money against their cap from 2027-28. There is a strong chance Watson will be off the Browns’ roster a year from now, though a source close to the three-time Pro Bowler told Oyefusi and Fowler “he would be open to” staying in Cleveland if the upcoming season goes well.
It is very much up in the air if the Browns will get anything from the soon-to-be 31-year-old Watson in 2026. He will first have to outperform second-year man Shedeur Sanders in the Browns’ starting competition this summer. That may not be an especially tall order, as Sanders is far from a lock to develop into a legitimate No. 1 option, but Watson is coming off a severe injury. Watson last took the field on Oct. 20, 2024, when he ruptured his right Achilles. While rehabbing in January 2025, Watson ruptured it again. He spent all of last season on the PUP list as a result, leaving the Browns to divide 17 starts among Sanders, Joe Flacco (traded to the Bengals in October) and Dillon Gabriel during a 5-12 campaign.
The Browns spent a third-rounder on Gabriel last year and used a sixth-rounder on Taylen Green last month, but those two do not appear to be in the running for the No. 1 job in 2026. New head coach Todd Monken will decide between Watson and Sanders. The hope is Watson will perform better in Monken’s system than he did under previous head coach Kevin Stefanski.
“The way [Stefanski] wanted him to play didn’t fit his style,” the source close to Watson told Oyefusi and Fowler.
As Oyefusi and Fowler note, Monken runs more of a spread-oriented scheme. Maybe the coaching change and a return to health will revive Watson, but skepticism is warranted for a QB whose stock has plummeted over the past few years.