Chargers To Host 2025 Game In Brazil
FEBRUARY 20: The NFL’s game in Brazil in 2024 was heavily criticized for deficient field conditions that made it difficult for players to find their footing. The league is working to address those concerns in coordinator with Brazilian stadium officials, per ESPN’s Kris Rhim, though this season’s matchup hosted by the Chargers is set to be played in the same stadium as last year.
FEBRUARY 19: The NFL is officially returning to Brazil in 2025. The Eagles and the Packers squared off at São Paulo’s Arena Corinthians in 2024, and the Chargers are set to host another regular season game there in 2025, per a team announcement.
Earlier reports indicated that the NFL was in talks with Brazilian officials regarding a long-term hosting agreement. Scheduling a follow-up to last season’s matchup is a sign that the NFL plans to play in Brazil for years to come.
Like last year, the game will take place on the first Friday of the regular season; in 2025, that will be September 5. The league has not yet announced the other team who will be playing in Brazil, though the Chargers’ 2025 away opponents are already known. They are scheduled to host the rest of the AFC West, the Jaguars, the Titans, the Cowboys, the Giants, and the Dolphins.
The NFL has scheduled 49 international games since 2007 with just six between divisional opponents. That makes it less likely that the Chargers would host the Broncos, Chiefs, or Raiders in Brazil, though the last two games in Mexico City featured teams from the same decision. Since the Jaguars and the Dolphins are hosting other international games, the NFL is unlikely to make them travel overseas a second time in one season. That leaves the Titans, Cowboys, and Giants as the primary candidates to face the Chargers in Brazil. The NFL’s full schedule will be announced later this spring.
There are now seven confirmed international games set for 2025: three in London, England (hosted by the Jets, the Browns, and the Jaguars), one in Berlin, Germany (hosted by the Colts), one in Madrid, Spain (hosted by the Dolphins), and one in Dublin, Ireland (hosted by the Steelers). The NFL is permitted to schedule up to eight international games per season, per Mark Maske of The Washington Post, though the Jaguars’ annual games at Wembley Stadium do not count towards that total.
Browns Preparing Myles Garrett Extension Offer; Team Still Unlikely To Consider Trade?
The future of Myles Garrett remains uncertain at this point, with his public trade request still standing. It would come as no surprise around the league if a deal sending him away from the Browns were to take place, but Cleveland’s intention remains keeping him in the fold. 
Two years remain on Garrett’s pact, and he is owed roughly $45MM across that span. Without any outstanding guaranteed salary on the deal, any acquiring team would need to work out an extension moving him near (or to) the top of the edge rush financial pecking order while providing new locked in money. The 2023 Defensive Player of the Year is not using his trade request as a means of securing a new contract, however.
In spite of that, the Browns’ willingness to work out a raise with Garrett appears to be undeterred. As The Athletic’s Zac Jackson notes, the team looks to be prepared to make a “monstrous” extension offer which would keep the 29-year-old in Cleveland. (subscription required). Any new commitment on Garrett’s part would of course put to rest the chances of a trade for at least the near future and make it likely he would finish his decorated career with the Browns.
Team and player are not in alignment with respect to contending in the immediate future, and uncertainty at the quarterback spot represents a suitable reason on Garrett’s part to prefer a change of scenery. With that said, Cleveland will be able to afford an inexpensive bridge starter in free agency once the latest Deshaun Watson restructure takes place, and the No. 2 selection in April’s draft could give the team the opportunity to add a rookie to the mix. Especially if the Browns make a notable addition under center, they could attempt to rebuke trade offers and retain Garrett for 2025 and beyond.
On that point, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com writes the team could very well be prepared to wait this situation out through the start of next season (subscription required). She adds that could even be the case if Garrett were to sit out games in 2025, something which would be aimed at accelerating the trade process. Offers including at least one first-round pick and more can be expected this offseason from interested suitors, although general manager Andrew Berry has previously stated a pair of Day 1 selections would not be sufficient to make a trade something he would be prepared to entrain.
That sentiment would no doubt especially hold true after the draft, so late April represents an unofficial deadline for any movement on the Garrett front. If a renewed effort were to be made by the Browns to work out an extension, a new wrinkle to this situation would come into play.
Bengals Seeking Long-Term Deals For Ja’Marr Chase, Trey Hendrickson
The Bengals’ 2025 offseason will be defined by their ability to maintain as many core players as possible. A notable first step was foreshadowed yesterday when it was learned wideout Tee Higgins is expected to receive the franchise tag for the second year in a row. 
[RELATED: Projecting Each Team’s 2025 Cap Space]
Higgins was on track to be (by far) the most sought-after receiver in free agency, but the tag will prevent him from hitting the market. A long-term deal is the goal for Cincinnati, and presuming the tag is applied by the March 4 deadline team and player will have until mid-July to work out an agreement. Committing to a notable Higgins raise will be challenging given the contract statuses of Ja’Marr Chase and Trey Hendrickson, but keeping all three in place is the team’s goal.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Ben Baby report the Bengals aim to sign Chase and Hendrickson to long-term deals in addition to a new Higgins accord. Doing so would ensure stability at the receiver position and along the edge on defense, and it would certainly satisfy quarterback Joe Burrow‘s wishes. When speaking about the financial challenge Cincinnati faces this offseason, Burrow made it clear he would be willing to restructure his pact to free up cap space if necessary.
Negotiations with Chase took place throughout the 2024 offseason, and the team made it clear working out a monster extension was a priority. Waiting until 2025 increasingly seemed to be necessary, however, especially once Chase’s actions at training camp (which at times included holding in) did not yield a last-minute deal. To no surprise, the Bengals did not engage in contract talks with the former Offensive Rookie of the Year during the 2024 campaign.
Chase’s value was not in question entering the season, but if anything his performance upped his leverage at the negotiating table. The soon-to-be 25-year-old set new career highs across the board, topping the NFL in receptions (127), yards (1,708) and touchdowns (17). Coupled with the annual jump in the NFL’s salary cap, Chase has a clear case to surpass former LSU teammate Justin Jefferson as the league’s highest-paid receiver ($35MM per year).
That figure doubles as the high point for any non-quarterback contract as things stand. That could change this offseason, though, in no small part due to the potential for the edge rush market to take a notable step forward. Myles Garrett is in line for a new Browns pact or one which he will sign upon arriving via trade with a new team. T.J. Watt is among the veterans who could be extended at the position, meaning a Steelers raise could be in order. Micah Parsons‘ pending second contract, meanwhile, is the Cowboys’ top priority, and he could reset the market based on his age.
Nick Bosa‘s $34MM per season stands as the highest AAV in NFL history to a pass rusher, but that pact could be surpassed shortly. Despite Hendrickson’s age (30), he is in line to greatly benefit from the position’s upward movement on a new deal. The former Saint has racked up 57 sacks since signing as a free agent in 2021, including a league-leading 17.5 in 2024. Efforts to secure a raise last spring were unsuccessful, and Hendrickson’s resultant trade request was ignored by the Bengals.
With the parties in a similar situation this time around, de facto general manager Duke Tobin made it clear he is aware a lucrative new pact will be needed to keep Hendrickson in the fold. The four-time Pro Bowler is due $16MM in 2025 with a scheduled cap hit of $18.67MM; a long-term accord could allow for a new round of guarantees while lowering his immediate cap charge. For his part, Hendrickson is again open to changing teams to land a new pact, so the progress of talks with the Bengals will be worth watching closely with an outside market existing for his services.
With respect to pecking order, Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic writes Chase – set to play on his fifth-year option at the moment – is still atop the team’s to-do list (subscription required). Notably, he adds other pacts (including most importantly Higgins and Hendrickson) may actually get done before Cincinnati finalizes Chase’s new deal since the term and financial details should essentially be in place already. In any event, Tobin and Co. will be tasked with negotiating on a number of in-house fronts over the coming weeks.
Rams Did Not Approach Cooper Kupp About Pay Cut; Teams Monitoring Matthew Stafford
After eight years with the Rams, Cooper Kupp‘s time with the franchise is set to come to an end. A trade partner is being sought out, and a release before the start of the new league also looms as a possibility. 
Since the Super Bowl LVI MVP is due $20MM in 2025 (with a scheduled cap hit of $29.78MM), pulling off a trade could be challenging. The Rams could be prepared to retain money as part of an agreement, something which would likely be necessary to facilitate a swap. A pair of general managers informed Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post Los Angeles is prepared to eat at least $5MM in a potential Kupp trade.
With a release possible before the 31-year-old’s $7.5MM roster bonus is paid out (on March 17), suitors could of course wait for Kupp to hit the open market. Such a scenario could have been avoided with a restructure resulting in a pay cut and reduced salary cap charge. Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports, however, that the Rams never approached the former ‘Triple Crown’ winner about adjusting his pact (subscription required). Los Angeles is clearly prepared to move forward with a receiving corps led by Puka Nacua and a less expensive supporting cast.
Kupp has remained consistent in terms of touchdown production over the past three years (scoring 17 times in that span), but he has seen his yards per game average drop from 90.2 to 61.4 to 59.2 since the start of the 2022 season. Injuries have been an issue in each of those campaigns, something which will hinder the Eastern Washington product’s value. As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes, $5MM of Kupp’s pending roster bonus is guaranteed in full, and it includes offset language. It will be interesting to see how the situation unfolds in the lead-in to free agency.
The Kupp circumstances are taking place against the backdrop of renewed uncertainty regarding quarterback Matthew Stafford. Once again in need of a restructured pact, the 37-year-old intends to play in 2025. A fifth season with the Rams would be welcomed by team and player, but speculation has swirled about a potential trade. Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer notes teams around the league are monitoring the Stafford situation, which could very well be resolved with another round of guaranteed compensation being accelerated on his pact.
Led by several young contributors on both sides of the ball, the Rams managed a run to the divisional round of the postseason this past year. Expectations will be high in 2025, but Kupp is set to be on another team next season while uncertainty still looms over whether or not Stafford will still be in place.
NFC West Coaching Updates: Cardinals, Scheelhaase, 49ers
The Cardinals are not one of the teams to hire a new head coach this offseason, necessitating the hiring of a new surrounding staff, but they still made a few updates this offseason. For instance, we’ve already reported on the hirings of offensive line coach Justin Frye, defensive line coach Winston DeLattiboudere, and linebackers coach Cristian Garcia.
In addition to those, Matt Feeney was hired as outside linebackers coach after three years in Las Vegas, the most recent of which he spent as assistant defensive backs coach after two years as a defensive quality control coach. Alec Osborne joins Feeney as a new hire and will serve as a defensive quality control coach.
Arizona also announced two internal promotions. After working as assistant quarterbacks coach this year and an offensive quality control coach before that, Connor Senger has been promoted to pass game specialist. Lastly, Blaine Gautier, who served two seasons as the Bill Bidwill Coaching Fellow, will now work as an offensive quality control coach in 2025.
Here are a couple other coaching updates out of the NFC West:
- Rams pass game specialist Nate Scheelhaase interviewed for both the Buccaneers’ and Jaguars’ offensive coordinator jobs this hiring cycle and was even considered a favorite for the job in Jacksonville before it was announced that he would stay in Los Angeles. Perhaps a reward for staying but certainly in recognition of the interest he sparked around the league, the Rams have promoted Scheelhaase to passing game coordinator, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. He’ll continue to learn under head coach Sean McVay with increased responsibilities in 2025.
- Lastly, according to Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports, the 49ers have a new cornerbacks coach in Ray Brown. Brown most recently spent the 2024 season as the secondary coach at Boston College after a two-year stint coaching cornerbacks at Washington State.
Buccaneers, WR Chris Godwin Agree To Delayed Void Date
As we’ve seen Minnesota do in recent days with players heading to free agency like running back Aaron Jones and cornerback Byron Murphy, the Buccaneers have come to an agreement with wide receiver Chris Godwin to move his contract void date, per Greg Auman of FOX Sports. With what’s becoming a popular negotiation strategy, Tampa Bay is following the Vikings early lead this offseason. 
The Vikings have utilized this strategy to give themselves a bit more time in negotiating with veterans with expiring contracts. When those veterans have void years on the end of their expiring deals, the amount from those years officially hits the future cap as dead money at a deadline that was designated to occur this week.
Delaying the deadline provides benefits for parties. First, it grants the team more time to communicate and work towards an extension with their pending free agents. Second, it decreases the likelihood that a player will receive a franchise tag, since the deadline to announce the franchised players falls before the void deadline.
With Godwin, his impending void deadline was set to trigger $18MM in dead money against the team’s 2025 salary cap. Instead, the veteran wideout and team will have until the final day of the league year to figure out a new extension and avoid that dead money hit.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 2/18/25
Tuesday’s free agent tender decisions:
ERFAs
Tendered:
- 49ers: DT Evan Anderson, DE Alex Barrett, LB Jalen Graham, DE Sam Okuayinonu, T Austen Pleasants, TE Jake Tonges, TE Brayden Willis
The 49ers made the decision today to tender all of their exclusive rights free agents today. The move restricts the seven players from negotiating with other teams. The players will have the choice to accept the offer and play for the 49ers or not play football in 2025.
San Francisco also has two restricted free agents: linebacker Curtis Robinson and running back Jordan Mason. It is yet to be seen what the team will do with those players who, if tendered, would be allowed to negotiate with other teams but would have to give the 49ers the chance to match any offer.
Minor NFL Transactions: 2/18/25
We had a number of minor moves today in the NFL:
Cleveland Browns
- Released: RB Nyheim Hines
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: WR Kyle Philips
- Waived: CB Keenan Isaac
Philadelphia Eagles
- Released: C Nick Gates
San Francisco 49ers
- Released: LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles
Byron Murphy, Vikings Push Back Contract Void Date
The Vikings have agreed with cornerback Byron Murphy to push back the void date on his contract, per ESPN’s Dan Graziano. 
Murphy’s deal was set to void this week, which would accelerate the remaining prorations of his signing bonus into $4.2MM of dead money in 2025. The Vikings now have until March 11 until the contract voids, giving them more time to negotiate an extension with Murphy. The agreement is similar to one reached with veteran running back Aaron Jones last week.
As part of the deal, the Vikings cannot place the franchise or transition tag on Murphy. However, the move signals that the team is interested in extending Murphy for 2025 and beyond after he started all 17 games in 2024 with a team-high six interceptions. He is reportedly looking for a significant raise from the two-year, $17.5MM deal he signed with the team in 2023.
The Vikings did not reach a similar agreement with quarterback Sam Darnold, whose contract will also void this week, according to Graziano. That will cause his $5MM in remaining signing bonus prorations to hit the Vikings’ 2025 cap as dead money. However, the team retains the option to use the franchise or transition tag on Darnold, a crucial factor in their ongoing negotiations.
This continues what has already been a busy and important offseason for Minnesota. In addition to Murphy, Jones, and Darnold, the Vikings see key veteran contributors like offensive tackle Cam Robinson and cornerbacks Stephon Gilmore and Shaquill Griffin face expiring contracts this offseason, as well. The front office will have several decisions to make as they plan to once again push for the NFC North title in 2025.
Ely Allen contributed to this post.
Saints Hire Scott Tolzien, T.J. Paganetti; Team ‘Zeroing In’ On Doug Nussmeier As OC
Like many coordinators who get head coaching opportunities, Kellen Moore is bringing multiple members of his staff in Philadelphia to his new job in New Orleans.
The Saints “are currently working to finalize a deal” to make Doug Nussmeier their next offensive coordinator, per veteran NFL insider Josina Anderson. Nussmeier spent 2024 as the Eagles’ quarterbacks coach and is considered the frontrunner for the job position in New Orleans. He previously coached quarterbacks for the Chargers and the Cowboys. Nussmeier also served as offensive coordinator for several major college programs from 2008 to 2017, including Alabama, Florida, and Michigan.
Nussmeier isn’t the only top Eagles assistant following Moore to New Orleans. The Saints are also hiring Eagles run game specialist and assistant offensive line coach T.J. Paganetti, per Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football. He has spent the last eight seasons in Philadelphia, working closely with legendary Eagles offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland. Paganetti will likely take over as the Saints’ offensive line coach after John Benton followed Klint Kubiak to Seattle.
Moore is hiring another familiar face to serve as quarterbacks coach in Scott Tolzien, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. Tolzien was an assistant in Dallas when Moore was the Cowboys’ offensive coordinator from 2020 to 2022. Tolzien was promoted to quarterbacks coach after Moore moved on in 2023, but was not expected to be retained on Brian Schottenheimer‘s new staff.
Tolzien, a former NFL quarterback himself, will help the Saints navigate an uncertain quarterback situation this year. Derek Carr performed well in 2024, but struggled to stay healthy. His durability will remain a concern entering his age-34 season – if he even stays on the roster – but neither Spencer Rattler nor Jake Haener inspired much confidence in 2024. The Saints’ cap situation will hinder them in the free agent quarterback market, and the draft’s top quarterbacks will likely go before their first round pick (No. 9 overall).