Packers, OL Sean Rhyan Agree To Three-Year Deal
The Packers have agreed to a three-year extension with offensive lineman Sean Rhyan, as Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network were first to report. The deal is worth $33MM and can max out at $39MM. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Rhyan will get an $11MM signing bonus.
The Packers selected Rhyan in the third round of the 2022 draft, and after appearing in just one special teams snap in his rookie season, he saw action in 12 games in 2023. Almost all of that work came at right guard, and in 2024, Rhyan became the full-time starter at RG.
In the eyes of Pro Football Focus, Rhyan performed adequately in 2024. His overall PFF grade of 62.0 was roughly league-average, but he lost his grip on the starting job after the first few games of the 2025 slate. 2024 first-rounder Jordan Morgan displaced him, and as ESPN’s Rob Demovsky observes, Rhyan appeared unlikely to remain in Green Bay as of the midway point of last season.
But in Week 10, starting center Elgton Jenkins sustained a lower leg fracture, and Rhyan was thrust into the pivot for the remainder of the season. His overall PFF mark for his 2025 efforts (59.0) was below average, and his 38.5 pass-block grade was abysmal. However, GM Brian Gutekunst viewed the situation differently, saying at this year’s scouting combine that Rhyan played the center position at a “very high level” once he got his feet wet (via Matt Schneidman of The Athletic).
Gutekunst backed up his comments with this deal, which makes Rhyan one of the league’s highest-paid centers despite just nine career starts at the position. The move also means that Jenkins will be released or traded, as Demovsky and Schneidman note (ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler had previously mentioned Jenkins as a trade candidate).
Morgan, who played at left tackle in college, did not keep the right guard gig for very long, as Anthony Belton took over there in Week 13. Nonetheless, with Rasheed Walker likely to depart in free agency, Morgan is in line to move back to the blindside for his pivotal third year in the pros.
From left to right, the Packers’ starting OL at the moment appears to be comprised of Morgan, Aaron Banks, Rhyan, Belton, and Zach Tom.
Colts WR Alec Pierce, Packers WR Romeo Doubs Drawing Extensive Interest; Pierce Prefers To Stay In Indy
Since the Colts have placed the transition tag on QB Daniel Jones, the only way they can keep WR Alec Pierce from speaking to interested teams when the legal tampering period opens tomorrow is by agreeing to terms on a new contract. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler expects negotiations between Pierce and Indianapolis to go down to the wire, and there are a number of clubs waiting to pounce if a deal is not consummated.
Fowler names the Patriots, Commanders, Raiders, and Titans as teams that are in the mix for Pierce. New England’s interest was noted previously, and with the club set to make Stefon Diggs a one-and-done in Foxborough, it makes sense that it wants to bring in another weapon for third-year QB (and 2025 MVP runner-up) Drake Maye.
After advancing to the NFC Championship Game in Jayden Daniels’ rookie year in 2024, the Commanders limped to a 5-12 mark last season. That was due in large part to Daniels’ health woes, which limited him to just seven games, but Washington could stand to bolster its contingent of pass-catchers. Beyond WR1 Terry McLaurin, the club has Luke McCaffrey, Treylon Burks, and 2025 fourth-rounder Jaylin Lane under contract for 2026.
That trio combined for 558 receiving yards and four TDs last year, so a player with Pierce’s abilities would be a welcome addition. Fowler hears this free agency period could be an especially active one for the Commanders, who have roughly $90MM in cap space and who are looking to capitalize on Daniels’ rookie-contract window. In addition to wide receiver, Washington is interested in upgrading at running back, cornerback, edge rusher, and possibly tight end. Fowler names the team as a “sleeper” for Tampa Bay’s Mike Evans, whom the Buccaneers are actively trying to re-sign.
The Raiders will release veteran signal-caller Geno Smith and are poised to select QB Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 pick in the draft. Even though Las Vegas reportedly prefers to keep Mendoza on the bench for at least the early stages of his rookie campaign, adding weapons for him will be a key goal. According to Fowler, the Raiders are also interested in Rashid Shaheed, who has a big fan in new head coach Klint Kubiak (Kubiak, of course, has worked with Shaheed in both New Orleans and Seattle). Fowler cautions that the Raiders’ bigger need is the offensive line, but the club has plenty of spending power with over $120MM in cap room.
Like the other teams mentioned in connection with Pierce, the Titans are looking to add receiving help for a young quarterback. Tennessee is hoping Cam Ward, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2025 draft, will progress quickly under the tutelage of new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, and acquiring proven pass-catchers will be key in achieving that goal (particularly with Calvin Ridley on the chopping block). The team has been connected to the Giants’ Wan’Dale Robinson as well.
Pierce is a big-play threat who has led the NFL in yards-per-catch in each of the past two seasons. However, some evaluators believe the Packers’ Romeo Doubs is the most well-rounded receiver eligible for free agency this year, and in addition to Pierce’s market, the Patriots, Commanders, and Titans are closely monitoring Doubs’ situation.
The 49ers are looking at Doubs as well, per Fowler. The four-year Packer, who is also expected to draw interest from the Bills, has three 600-plus-yard seasons on his resume, including a career-high 724 (on 13.2 yards per catch) in 2025. San Francisco could lose Jauan Jennings to the open market and is set to move on from Brandon Aiyuk, making wide receiver an obvious area of need. Green Bay, though, has not ruled out a Doubs re-up; GM Brian Gutekunst said at this year’s scouting combine that he would love to see the Nevada product return (via Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk).
Fowler confirms Pierce, who has a close relationship with Jones, would prefer to stay with the Colts. That said, the Cincinnati product is in line for a deal paying him at least $27MM per year, and if Indianapolis does not pony up that kind of cash, it may not be able to keep Pierce in the fold.
No Trade Interest In Cowboys WR George Pickens Yet; Pickens, Falcons TE Kyle Pitts Likely To Play On Franchise Tender?
Cowboys WR George Pickens and Falcons TE Kyle Pitts were two of the three players to receive the franchise tag this year, along with Jets RB Breece Hall (the Colts also applied the transition tag to QB Daniel Jones). According to Albert Breer of SI.com, there is a good chance that both Pickens and Pitts play out the 2026 season on their franchise tenders rather than on new, long-term deals.
Per Breer, the Cowboys and Falcons may want to see that the 2025 performances of Pickens and Pitts, respectively, are sustainable and were not merely a contract-year flash. In Pitts’ case, such an evaluation is purely an on-field one.
As a rookie in 2021, Pitts earned a Pro Bowl nod and topped 1,000 receiving yards. After that, the Florida alum was unable to meet expectations until his 2025 bounce-back campaign, during which he set new career-highs in receptions (88) and touchdowns (five) while amassing 928 yards despite uneven quarterback play.
In 2022, Pitts was limited to 10 games, primarily as a result of an MCL tear. He needed to have his knee drained regularly the following season, and despite playing a full 17-game slate in 2023 and 2024, he appeared in less than two-thirds of Atlanta’s offensive snaps in those years.
His snap share jumped to 88% in 2025, and the increase in playing time coincided with an increase in production. If Pitts can replicate that showing in 2026 under new head coach Kevin Stefanski, a lucrative multiyear deal could be in the offing. His 2025 franchise tender is worth $16.32MM.
The Cowboys, meanwhile, are hoping Pickens can not only be as effective between the lines as he was in 2025 (93/1,493/9), but also if he can stave off the maturity issues that ultimately forced the Steelers to trade him to Dallas in the first place. Although the Cowboys’ approach here will be informed by the fact that they already have fellow wideout CeeDee Lamb on a deal near the top of the receiver market, any reluctance to authorize a similar contract for Pickens could be driven by more than finances.
The contentious negotiations between owner Jerry Jones and Micah Parsons’ agent, David Mulugheta, culminated in the blockbuster trade that sent Parsons to the Packers in August. Jones’ presence and the fact that Mulugheta also represents Pickens have led to speculation that Pickens could be traded this offseason despite the franchise tag, and Tony Pauline of EssentiallySports.com confirms a trade remains a possibility.
However, Pauline has not yet heard of any trade interest in Pickens as of yet. The 25-year-old receiver is due to earn $27.3MM on the franchise tender.
Eagles, Jordan Davis Agree On Extension
The Eagles will avoid letting defensive tackle Jordan Davis play out his fifth-year option and hit free agency next offseason. Per NFL insider Jordan Schultz, Davis and the Eagles are finalizing a three-year, $78MM extension to keep the 26-year-old interior defender in Philadelphia. He becomes the highest-paid nose tackle in NFL history on a deal which is now official.
Davis’ $26MM AAV is tied with former teammate Milton Williams for the second-highest annual pay of any interior defensive lineman, per OverTheCap. The deal includes $65MM in guaranteed money, which would be the most fully guaranteed money at his position in league history.
Including his fifth-year option, Davis will be under contract through the 2029 season for a total of $91MM, or $22.75MM per year. That is still a sizable amount for a player with just eight career sacks and no Pro Bowl or All-Pro recognition, but Davis still has plenty of untapped potential.
The Eagles leapfrogged the Ravens during the 2022 draft to select Davis with the No. 13 pick after four strong seasons at Georgia and one of the most impressive performances in the history of the Combine. The hulking 6-foot-6, 336-pounder got off to a slow start in the pros, logging just 3.5 sacks and six tackles for loss in his first three seasons. An ankle sprain and a carefully-managed snap count in Davis’ rookie season raised some concerns about his durability and fitness, but he played in every game in 2023 and 2024 with more than 900 total snaps.
In 2025, Davis took his game to another level. His 72 tackles, 4.5 sacks, nine tackles for loss, six passes defended, 686 defensive snaps, and 61% snap share were all career-highs. Those are not necessarily eye-popping numbers, but his size and strength consistently demanded double-teams in the trenches, creating better opportunities for his teammates.
Davis’ extension will raise questions about the Eagles’ plans with Jalen Carter, also a former Georgia first-round pick. He was the more productive player in 2023 and 2024, but he missed five games due to injury (and one due to an ejection) in 2025. Philadelphia will have to make a decision on his fifth-year option – worth $27.13MM (via OverTheCap) – by May 1. Carter will also be eligible for a long-term extension and will likely be shooting for the biggest defensive tackle contract of all-time. The market is currently capped by the $31.75MM per-year deal of Chris Jones, though Carter has yet to reach his level of production. Still, he should push close to $30MM per year, if not more, a pricey figure for a team that already has a lot of money committed to the future.
Still, Eagles general manager Howie Roseman is known as a salary cap wizard and could certainly find a way to keep Carter even after Davis’ extension. If he cannot, he will at least have Davis anchoring the middle of his defense for at least the next four seasons.
Nikhil Mehta contributed to this post.
Kyler Murray Eyeing Vikings; Jets Showing Interest
The Cardinals are moving on from Kyler Murray. A last-ditch trade effort is still taking place, but absent that, Arizona is prepared to release its longtime starter. Two usual suspects are on the radar here.
Vikings interest in Murray has come out at multiple points this offseason, but Sportsboom.com’s Jason La Canfora indicates the soon-to-be unattached quarterback would prefer a Minnesota deal. Though, the Jets will present a clearer path to a starting job.
New York has been connected to some lower-profile names, from Tanner McKee to Jarrett Stidham to Tyson Bagent; a recent report has now tied the team to a Frank Reich–Carson Wentz reunion. That would certainly be an uninspired path for the Jets, who would seemingly be prepared to chase a 2027 first-round QB if Wentz truly became the stopgap option. But La Canfora indicates the Jets appear to be the team “most desperate” for Murray.
Murray, 28, will be looking for a place to bounce back, and ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini views the quarterback as unlikely to share the Jets’ level of interest here. The Vikings have elevated a few veteran quarterbacks’ stocks — from Kirk Cousins to Sam Darnold to Daniel Jones — under Kevin O’Connell, but they are still developing J.J. McCarthy.
Adam La Rose’s most recent PFR mailbag addressed the line the Vikings are attempting to walk in trying to upgrade at QB while still having hopes for McCarthy, and Murray throwing himself into that mix would be interesting. Jones passed on this last year, choosing a Colts starter path despite the Vikings offering more money. Murray, however, is a different type of free agent. The Cardinals are on the hook for his 2026 salary, making fit the priority as opposed to an offer. This is similar to Russell Wilson‘s 2024 market, when he signed with the Steelers for the veteran minimum (as the Broncos paid the bulk of his tab).
New Jets OC Frank Reich is also believed to be high on Jacoby Brissett from their time together in Indianapolis, Cimini adds, and La Canfora notes the Cardinals have received trade offers on Brissett — whom last year’s staff appeared to prefer guiding the offense compared to Murray.
The Jets have been previously connected to Brissett, who is tied to a two-year, $12.5MM Cardinals deal. Reich coached Brissett from 2018-20 in Indy. Brissett looms as a Cardinals stopgap option, and GM Monti Ossenfort signed him last year. But with Malik Willis and Jimmy Garoppolo connections forming, will Arizona be too attached to its primary 2025 starter? La Canfora also ties Garoppolo to the Cards, which will make a Brissett trade — as several teams are looking for starters ahead of a thin QB draft — something to monitor.
With Murray needing to show he remains capable of above-average play, his upcoming choice will be critical. At 5-foot-10, the former No. 1 overall pick will not be a fit for every offense. He certainly ran into obstacles during the back half of his Cardinals career. If he is not traded, enough Minnesota smoke has emerged to indicate there will be some mutual interest here.
As for the Jets, they have also been doing some homework on Tua Tagovailoa. The longtime Dolphins starter also has his 2026 salary guaranteed; both he and Murray are likely to be vet-minimum options in bounce-back scenarios. As of now, though, Murray is believed to be driving more interest than Tagovailoa.
Offseason Outlook: Minnesota Vikings
One year ago, the Vikings found themselves at a crossroads. J.J. McCarthy was coming off a rookie season spent entirely in recovery, while Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones approached free agency.
Both Darnold and Jones wound up landing starting positions elsewhere on the open market. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was not entirely averse to keeping one of the two veterans in place, but he and the Vikings were ultimately prepared to hand the reins over to McCarthy. On every front – the play by Jones on an impressive Colts team prior to his Achilles tear, Darnold’s contribution to the Super Bowl champion Seahawks and McCarthy’s struggles – that decision backfired.
Adofo-Mensah is now out of the picture, while Minnesota faces the unenviable task of finding a starting-caliber passer amidst a challenging cap situation. The team’s offense will have a high floor if the right one can be acquired, and another year of strong defensive play should be expected in 2026. But the central question in the Vikings’ case remains unanswered on the eve of the new league year.
Coaching/front office:
- Fired GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah; Rob Brzezinski in place on interim basis
- Extended defensive coordinator Brian Flores
- Hired Frank Smith as assistant head coach, replacing Mike Pettine
- TEs coach Brian Angelichino became Steelers’ OC
- Defensive pass-game coordinator Daronte Jones joined Commanders as DC
- Added Matt Thomas to front office
Hired during the 2022 offseason, Adofo-Mensah joined the Vikings at the same time as head coach Kevin O’Connell. The latter’s reputation has steadily gained steam over time, but that was not the case regarding Minnesota’s front office leader.
Offseason Outlook: San Francisco 49ers
After finishing their 2024 campaign 6-11 due to a litany of injuries to impact players, the aim of the 49ers' offseason last year was two-fold: 1) get healthy and 2) build depth. A number of free agency departures made this task even more difficult. Ultimately, injuries reared their ugly head again in 2025, and though San Francisco fared better this time around, its season still came to an early end with several key contributors absent.
As a result, this year's offseason will likely have a similar aim. The team has players who need to get healthy enough to contribute again in 2026 and enough cap space to continue improving in an attempt to get back to the Super Bowl. All in all, this will be an offseason of simply taking care of business as the 49ers look to stay inside a championship window that they have not quite been able to deliver on yet. With two Super Bowl losses and two conference championship losses in the past seven years, San Francisco will continue working to get over that hump.
Coaching/front office:
- Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh hired as Titans' HC
- Hired Raheem Morris as DC replacement
- Assistant head coach on defense Gus Bradley became Titans' DC
- Run-game coordinator/tight ends coach Brian Fleury became Seahawks' OC
- Offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak withdrew from HC searches
- Hired Matt Eberflus as assistant head coach of defense
- Hired Jerry Gray as defensive backs coach
- Added Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to front office
While a change at defensive coordinator seems like it has potential to shake things up in the Bay Area, this is business as usual for the 49ers defense. Dating back to 2022, San Francisco has played each season with a different DC. Yet, aside from an injury-riddled 2024 campaign, the unit has routinely been among the best in the NFL.
Patriots Have Most Interest In Trading For A.J. Brown
It increasingly seems like an A.J. Brown trade could come together. Despite the financial implications of such a deal, the Eagles seem motivated to move the 28-year-old, though it will likely take a significant offer to make it worth their while.
The Patriots are the “most interested” in trading for Brown, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The Chargers have also been linked to a deal, but the presence of Mike Vrabel (and the lack of a star wideout) in New England make it a logical destination. Stefon Diggs was the first Patriot to record 1,000 receiving yards in a season since Julian Edelman in 2019, and he will not be around next year.
New England’s current receiver room is comprised of veteran Mack Hollins, 2023 draftees Kayshon Boutte and Demario Douglas, and last year’s rookies, Kyle Williams and Efton Chism. The first three had solid 2025 campaigns but only combined for 110 catches and 1,548 receiving yards, while Williams and Chism both made a few plays downfield but did little beyond that.
Hollins offers a steady floor but a low ceiling. Boutte and Douglas both showed signs of development with career-best efficiency metrics. And Williams and Chism could certainly become more consistent contributors. But a team hoping to avoid a Super Bowl hangover needs to be proactive to do so. Rather than waiting until the summer (or later) to upgrade their receiving corps, trading for Brown now would allow the Patriots to take a ‘best player available’ approach to April’s draft.
It would also reunite Brown with Vrabel, which could alleviate some of the locker room concerns with acquiring the infamously expressive wideout. He would also replace Diggs as a proven, high-end veteran target for Drake Maye. The two have similar pedigrees, but Brown is four years younger with better statistics across the last three years.
Meeting the Eagles’ reported asking price of first- and second-round picks is doable for the Patriots. They can be more willing to move draft capital for veterans while Maye and other key players at expensive positions are on rookie deals.
Philadelphia will still have to figure out a way to accommodate the net decrease in cap space resulting from dealing Brown, but both sides seem ready to move on, and, as a result, the Patriots seem ready to move in.
QB Aaron Rodgers’ Steelers Decision Not Imminent
The Steelers’ 2025 season ended with a bit of a whimper. Losing on a Week 17 trip to Cleveland to keep the Ravens in the AFC North race then beating their division rival and moving on to the playoffs by means of a missed 44-yard field goal attempt at the buzzer, Pittsburgh’s flame finally went out at the hands of a stifling Texans defense that held them to six points at home. The questions immediately turned to what direction was the team heading in. 
Since Ben Roethlisberger‘s final season in 2021, the quarterback carousel in Pittsburgh has failed to set up the future of the franchise. Their first attempts post-Roethlisberger were to set up that future by drafting first-round Pitt-product Kenny Pickett, but a three-way battle that included former first-round pick Mitchell Trubisky and Steelers backup Mason Rudolph failed to produce a winner over time. So in 2024, the team abandoned the develop plan and jumped on the pro scouting train, signing veteran Russell Wilson and trading for Justin Fields.
That combination seemed to be working for the franchise, until it didn’t. With Wilson starting the season injured, Fields led the team to a 4-2 start, and when Wilson took over, Pittsburgh won six of its next seven games. The season came crashing down, though, as the Steelers’ limped into the playoffs on a four-game losing streak before losing their first-round playoff game for their fifth-playoff trip in a row. The team stuck with the free agent route last year but moved on from Wilson in favor of veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
The Steelers 2025-pursuit of Rodgers was a long, drawn-out process. Over the course of four months, Rodgers casually moved through the headlines, mulling retirement and weighing offers from this team or that team. As other franchises grew impatient or began to see the writing on the wall, that writing pointed closer and closer to Minnesota or Pittsburgh, but despite a couple of efforts from the team on different occasions to get some clarity, an answer didn’t officially come until early June, forcing the Steelers to maneuver much of the offseason, including the draft and free agency, without a concrete plan on who was playing quarterback.
So after the 2025 season ended on a bit of a downward trajectory, it seemed a foregone conclusion that Rodgers would be mulling over his future again, and once the team moved on from long-time head coach Mike Tomlin, it seemed impossible that Rodgers was long for Pittsburgh. That was, until the Steelers replaced Tomlin with Rodgers’ head coach of 13 years in Green Bay, Mike McCarthy. All of the sudden, the signs were pointing right back to Pittsburgh for Rodgers, but ever the patient customer, Rodgers has refused to say anything definitive on the matter.
During a recent appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Rodgers provided sound bites that conveyed little urgency or imminency. “We’re sitting here. It’s March 4th. Free agency starts in a week,” he dictated. “I’ve been spending a lot of time with my wife…just been laying low…But I’ve talked to (McCarthy), I’ve talked to (general manager Omar Khan). There’s been no deadline that’s been put in front of me. There’s been no contract offer or anything, so there’s nothing that I’m having to debate between.
“I’m a free agent,” he concluded. “And, again, I’m enjoying time with my wife and enjoying this part of the offseason, and I think there’s conversations to be had down the line, but right now, there hasn’t been any progressive conversations.”
In one of his many recent interviews, Khan also spoke on the situation, per Mark Kaboly, a correspondent for The Pat McAfee Show. “I mean, I don’t really want to say it has to be done by (free agency),” Khan explained. “You know, we’d like to have an idea, but it’s just, it isn’t going to go like it did last year…He knows how we feel, and I think we know how he feels about us. It was a good experience for both sides.”
That doesn’t sound entirely like two sides on the same page. It sounds more as if the Steelers are pretty itchy to know what their situation is going to be moving forward but don’t want to pressure Rodgers. Mike DeFabo of The Athletic asserts that team is working under the assumption that “Rodgers is going to return for 2026, but until he gives them a definitive answer, they can’t speak in certain terms.” He adds that Pittsburgh believes it will “get an answer from Rodgers in the next few weeks,” which could mean a lot of things.
Part of the reason the Steelers are eager to know their situation is so they can address other contract issues with confidence in what their numbers are going to look like. Particularly, DeFabo mentions that the Steelers are hoping to secure two of the team’s premier pass rushers alongside T.J. Watt. Khan recently expressed his desire for the team to reach an extension agreement with outside linebacker Nick Herbig. Two issues arise from this desire. First, Herbig may not want to sign an extension just yet. He may be interested in betting on himself to continue improving his output each season in the hopes of really cashing in next year.
The second issue stems from 2023’s extension of fellow outside linebacker Alex Highsmith. The prevailing thought has been that it wouldn’t be practical for the Steelers to commit that much cap space to Herbig, Highsmith, and Watt, and that someone would end up on the outside looking in, but Khan’s response to notions that he couldn’t extend Herbig while retaining Highsmith was simply that “you can’t ever have enough (edge rushers).” This is likely why the Steelers are working to extend Herbig now, making it more feasible to stomach all three contracts. It will be interesting to see if Pittsburgh can land on a deal that sufficiently satisfies Herbig without breaking the bank.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/7/26
Here are Saturday’s tender decisions:
RFAs
Non-tendered:
- Broncos: DL Matt Henningsen
- Chiefs: OL Mike Caliendo
Henningsen played a rotational role on defense in 2024 and ’25 for Denver. Caliendo, meanwhile, totaled 42 appearances and seven starts across three years in Kansas City. Both players are now on course to reach free agency next week unless they elect to re-sign with their respective teams in the immediate future.