Minor NFL Transactions: 5/21/24
Here are Tuesday’s minor NFL moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: WR Daylen Baldwin
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: WR Matt Landers
New York Giants
- Waived (with injury settlement): RB Deon Jackson
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Waived (with injured designation): WR Keilahn Harris
Jackson is the only name here with much extended experience in the NFL. Jackson was part of the Colts’ three-pronged approach to replace lost production during Jonathan Taylor‘s injury-riddled 2022 season.
Zack Moss and Nyheim Hines were the other two to earn starts, but Jackson displayed the most versatility. Moss had 365 rushing yards but only had four catches for 12 yards, while Hines had 188 receiving yards but only 36 rushing yards. Jackson found extended use in both areas with 236 rushing yards and 209 receiving yards. This is because Jackson’s role as a backup changed partway through the season, when the Colts traded Hines to Buffalo for Moss. When Hines was on the team, Jackson was the primary backup ball carrier. When Moss came to town, Jackson’s role shifted to more of a third-down receiving back. His past versatility could land him on another NFL roster once he’s healthy again.
Steelers, RB Jonathan Ward Agree To Deal
Jonathan Ward took part in the Steelers’ rookie minicamp, and his performance there has produced an agreement. The veteran running back is signing with Pittsburgh, Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 reports. The deal is now official.
Ward started his career with the Cardinals in 2020, and across the next three years he bounced on and off the team’s practice squad. The former UDFA saw just nine carries in Arizona during his time with the team before being waived. Following a brief stint on the Jets’ taxi squad, he joined the Titans.
The 26-year-old again saw sparse usage on offense upon heading to Nashville. In 10 Titans contests, Ward logged only 20 offensive snaps. He did, however, remain a mainstay on special teams. The Central Michigan alum has more than 550 third phase snaps to his name, and continuing in that capacity will no doubt represent his path to a roster spot in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers have Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren in place atop the running back depth chart. The team’s decision not to exercise the former’s fifth-year option has made him a pending free agent and invited questions about his future with the team. The latter is on course for restricted free agency after the 2024 campaign, so his production relative to that of Harris will be a key storyline for the team.
Ward joins fellow former UDFAs Aaron Shampklin (2022) and Daijun Edwards (2024) as running backs aiming to carve out a spot on the end of the roster. The Steelers ranked sixth in special teams DVOA last year, so a strong showing this summer will be needed for any of them to survive roster cutdowns at the end of the preseason.
AFC North Rumors: Ravens, Steelers, Hines
After losing both of 2023’s starting guards, Kevin Zeitler and John Simpson, to free agency, the Ravens have been tasked with replacing both starters on either side of center Tyler Linderbaum. Though Baltimore had thoughts to address those holes in the 2024 NFL Draft, The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec reports that a third-round run on guards led the team’s draft room to shy away from the position.
Starting with the seventh pick of the third round, the Ravens watched Isaiah Adams, Cooper Beebe, Christian Haynes, Zak Zinter, and Dominick Puni all come off the board. Similarly, in the fourth round, a run that included running backs Jaylen Wright, Bucky Irving, Will Shipley, Ray Davis, and Isaac Guerendo (the last four making up four of the five picks before Baltimore’s) led the team to go in another direction (though Wisconsin’s Braelon Allen was available and selected four picks later).
These runs, especially the four running backs selected in the five picks before the Ravens’ selection, seemed strategic, given the team’s obvious desire to add to both positions in the draft. Faced with this challenge general manager Eric DeCosta pivoted, and instead of drafting a player at those positions far above their distinguished value, Baltimore addressed other needs, selecting Penn State pass rusher Adisa Isaac and Iowa State cornerback T.J. Tampa.
Unrelated, rookie safety Beau Brade, one of the Ravens’ top undrafted free agent signings out of Maryland, is set to be sidelined for a few weeks after injuring his ankle in the team’s rookie minicamp. Considered one of the most likely undrafted players to make a roster spot (the Ravens historically have at least one per year), Brade is expected to be back before the team adjourns for the final break before training camp.
Here are a few other rumors coming out of the NFL’s toughest division:
- The Steelers utilized three of their seven draft picks in an attempt to make improvements to their offensive line, including taking Washington offensive lineman Troy Fautanu 20th overall. While the team was happy to see Fautanu fall to them, considering they predicted he could go as high as No. 10, the team also had their eye on Georgia offensive tackle Amarius Mims. With all the recon the team dedicated to offensive linemen, Pittsburgh likely figured out that Mims was headed to Cincinnati two picks before them, so it speaks to the team’s feelings on Fautanu that they opted not to make a trade up. As soon as they put in the pick in the first round, they went back to work, targeting West Virginia center Zach Frazier to determine whether or not he would still be around at No. 51 (he was).
- New Browns running back Nyheim Hines missed the entire 2023 season on injured reserve after tearing his ACL in a freak jet skiing accident last summer. Known for his abilities receiving out of the backfield and returning kicks, Hines lines up as a perfect complement to recovering lead back Nick Chubb on paper. In order to do that, though, Hines has to come all the way back from the season-ending injury. On the Up & Adams show on FanDuel TV, Hines explained that he’s made progress on his rehabilitation and is on schedule for his recovery.
Steelers’ Cameron Heyward Addresses Upcoming OTA Absence
A number of veterans around the NFL are set to miss OTAs as they aim to land new contracts. That group includes Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward, who will be absent from the team during upcoming OTAs. 
The three-time All-Pro is under contract for one more year with his $65.6MM 2020 extension set to expire. Heyward admitted in January that he needed time to evaluate his future, but he is now committed to continuing his decorated career. As a result, he is angling for an extension while missing voluntary workouts.
When speaking about his situation on his Not Just Football podcast, Heyward said, “[I] have always attended these, but at this time it’s just contract negotiations, and I want to be a Pittsburgh Steeler, but we’ll see what happens” (h/t ESPN’s Brooke Pryor).
Heyward, 35, has spent his entire 13-year career in Pittsburgh, establishing himself as one of the league’s top interior defenders over that span. He racked up six straight Pro Bowls from 2017-22, but last season he was limited to just 11 regular season games due to a groin injury. The Ohio State product – who was healthy in time for the Steelers’ wild-card game – had avoided lengthy absences each season since 2016 prior to his missed time in 2023.
With just two sacks, this past campaign was Heyward’s least productive year since his rookie campaign from a pass rush perspective. He has reached double-digit sacks three times in his career, though, including the 2021 and ’22 seasons. A return to health could once again provide the team with a multitude of options at the defensive tackle spot, and an extension would likely lower Heyward’s 2024 cap hit ($22.4MM).
In Heyward’s absence, the Steelers’ OTAs will include veterans Larry Ogunjobi, Montravius Adams and Dean Lowry along the D-line. Pittsburgh has also invested at the position in the draft in recent seasons with the selections of DeMarvin Leal (2022), Keeanu Benton (2023) and Logan Lee (2024). The latter three will be in the team’s long-term plans, and it will be interesting to see if the same winds up being the case for Heyward.
Steelers DL Cameron Heyward Seeking Extension, To Skip OTAs
After initial thoughts that Steelers defensive mainstay Cameron Heyward was perhaps contemplating retirement, we heard reports that seemed to indicate that he intended to return for his 14th season of play. The latest from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler seems to indicate that Heyward’s visions for the future expand far past the 2024 NFL season. 
Heyward, 35, has spent all 13 of his NFL seasons with the Steelers, somehow getting better with age. Before reaching the fifth-year option of his first-round rookie contact, the Steelers extended Heyward to a six-year, $59.25MM deal. Up to that point, Heyward had showed plus attributes as a pass rusher with a career-high of 7.5 sacks in a season. After missing the team’s final ten games of the first year of his new contract in 2016, Heyward delivered a career year with 12.0 sacks, 16 tackles for loss, and 22 quarterback hits the following season.
Since then, Heyward has perennially been considered one of the top interior pass rushers in the NFL, missing a Pro Bowl last year for the first time since that breakout season. In addition to a down year, Heyward missed more than two games with injury for the first time since 2016, sitting out six contests near the beginning of the year. That groin injury was part of Heyward’s consideration to hang up his cleats, but according to Fowler, Heyward is healthy from last year’s injury and plans to play “several more years.”
In order to play several more years, though, Heyward is going to need a new contract. The veteran is heading into the final year of his most recent deal. He is reportedly seeking an extension and is pushing for the new deal this offseason, so much so that Heyward is planning not to attend the team’s organized team activities. An extension could also benefit the Steelers, as well, as Heyward is set to represent a $22.41MM cap hit in 2024. A new deal could lessen that cap hit, pushing bigger numbers to later years.
Heyward, who also skipped Pittsburgh’s voluntary offseason workouts, has never missed an offseason program during his time as a long-time team captain. Going to these lengths shows just how serious he is about pursuing a new deal that keeps him in town for several more seasons.
Poll: Who Will Lead Steelers In QB Starts?
Bailing on their handpicked Ben Roethlisberger successor two years in, the Steelers put together one of the more interesting quarterback offseasons in recent NFL history. Two starters on other teams last season are now in the mix, with neither tied to a pricey deal nor a commitment beyond 2024.
The dominoes that led Kenny Pickett out of Pittsburgh began to fall before the team’s Russell Wilson signing, but that contract — a veteran-minimum deal agreed to before the Broncos officially designated Wilson a post-June 1 cut — led the way in driving Pickett to Philadelphia. After it looked like Wilson had a firm grip on the Steelers’ starting job, the team reached an agreement on a low-cost trade for Justin Fields. The final year of the ex-Bears first-rounder’s rookie contract is on the Steelers’ payroll — at the cost of merely a conditional sixth-round pick.
Mike Tomlin has said plenty to suggest Wilson will be his starter in 2024, but given the age gap between the two high-profile acquisitions and how the potential Hall of Famer’s Denver chapter unfolded, it would be a bit unusual if Fields was not mentioned as a candidate to step in at some point. The team has already been linked to pursuing potential deals with both QBs beyond 2024, though the club’s longstanding policy not to negotiate contracts in-season will put these efforts on hold. That seems unrealistic, given each’s starter background. For this year, however, the Steelers have assembled a unique depth chart — one that also includes UFA addition Kyle Allen.
An eight-asset package — headlined by two first-round picks — brought Wilson to Denver. The Broncos cut the cord on the Wilson contract before the extension years (on a five-year, $245MM deal) began. This will bring record-smashing dead money to Denver’s payroll, as the Steelers’ Wilson contract (one year, $1.2MM) barely ate into the $85MM dead cap coming the Broncos’ way through 2025. Wilson bounced back in 2023, but Sean Payton deeming him a bad fit represented another setback in a career that has veered off course.
After a shockingly poor 2022 season when paired with overmatched HC Nathaniel Hackett, Wilson rebounded — to a degree — under Payton by throwing 26 touchdown passes compared to eight interceptions. Slotting him 12 points higher than 2022, QBR ranked Wilson 21st last season. That settled in six spots behind Fields. It is arguable Wilson (six original-ballot Pro Bowl nods) disrupted his Hall of Fame path with the Broncos stay and needs a strong Steelers season to firmly reestablish himself as a Canton-bound player. Fields stands in the way of this reality, and Tomlin kept the door open — while still affirming Wilson will go into training camp as the starter — for the younger player to challenge for the job at some point.
While Wilson trails only Michael Vick and Cam Newton in career QB rushing yards and is the league’s only 40,000-5,000 player, Fields is certainly a better runner from the position. Joining Wilson with a propensity to take sacks, Fields both led the NFL in sacks taken and QB rushing yards in 2022. The Bears saw some improvement through the air last season, and QBR interestingly viewed the Ohio State product’s 2022 showing as superior to his 2023 slate. Fields also posted a worse yards-per-attempt number (6.9) compared to 2022 (7.1) and upped his passer rating by barely a point from the ’22 campaign.
Mentioned as a player expected to command at least a Day 2 pick in a trade, Fields bringing the trade value he did reflects a dim outlook around the league regarding his potential to improve significantly as a passer. The Steelers quickly declined Fields’ fifth-year option, joining the Broncos (Zach Wilson), Cowboys (Trey Lance) and Jaguars (Mac Jones) in passing on an extra year for a recently acquired QB. Pittsburgh will still attempt to finetune the former No. 11 overall pick, and it will be interesting to see how long they do so while keeping him in a backup role. If Fields plays at least 51% of Pittsburgh’s offensive snaps this season, the 2025 pick owed to the Bears vaults to a fourth-rounder.
The post-Killer B’s Steelers have been among the NFL’s most dependable teams, but the ceiling from the Roethlisberger-Antonio Brown–Le’Veon Bell period dropped as Big Ben aged and then Pickett, Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph stepped in. Improved Pittsburgh defenses have been unable to make the past three Steelers squads, even as two of them advanced to the postseason, Super Bowl-caliber operations. This season will be key to isolate some variables within the organization, as Pickett and since-booted OC Matt Canada are gone. After seeing QB play sink his Falcons tenure, OC Arthur Smith will be tasked with coaching two middling — at this point, at least — signal-callers.
The Steelers are banking that Smith and the Wilson-Fields duo will provide sufficient upgrades from their previous play-calling setup and what the QB group of the past two seasons offered. Who will be the quarterback that ends up as the team’s preferred option by the season’s stretch run? Who gives the Steelers the best chance to succeed? Vote in PFR’s latest poll and weigh in with your thoughts on this revamped setup in the comments section.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/14/24
Today’s minor moves:
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: WR Jalen Camp
- Claimed off waivers (from Steelers): OT Kellen Diesch
- Waived: K Lucas Havrisik
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: LB Chris Collins
- Waived: LB Brevin Allen
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: DT Mario Kendricks
Minnesota Vikings
- Released: CB Joejuan Williams
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DL Shakel Brown
- Waived: DL Earnest Brown IV, OL Corey Luciano
Washington Commanders
- Released: QB Jake Fromm
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/13/24
Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: TE Ross Dwelley
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: LB Cam Gill, DL T.J. Smith
Chicago Bears
- Signed: WR John Jackson, DT Dashaun Mallory, LB Paul Moala, WR Freddie Swain
Detroit Lions
- Signed: WR Kaden Davis, TE Parker Hesse
Green Bay Packers
- Claimed off waivers (from 49ers): DL Spencer Waege
- Placed on reserve/retired list: OL Trente Jones
Kansas City Chiefs
- Re-signed: LB Cole Christiansen
- Released: DT Matt Dickerson
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: DL Chris Collins
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: OL Ireland Brown, CB Jason Maitre
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: TE Sammis Reyes
New England Patriots
- Signed: RB Terrell Jennings, G Ryan Johnson, LB Jay Person, DE Jotham Russell
- Waived: RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: DT Kendal Vickers
- Waived: NT John Penisini
New York Giants
- Signed: DL Elijah Chatman
- Waived: OLB Jeremiah Martin
New York Jets
- Signed: WR Hamze El-Zayat, RB Markese Stepp
- Waived: RB Jacques Patrick, DE Marquiss Spencer
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: CB Shon Stephens
- Waived: TE Noah Togiai
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Waived: OL Kellen Diesch
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DL Shakel Brown
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: DE Nathan Pickering, LB Devin Richardson
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: TE Nick Vannett
Steelers, CB Anthony Averett Agree To Deal
Anthony Averett was one of several experienced players who used rookie minicamps as a way to earn an NFL deal. The veteran corner spent the past few days at the Steelers’ camp, and that has indeed produced a contract. 
[RELATED: Steelers Met With Cameron Sutton]
Averett’s agent told Pro Football Talk a one-year Pittsburgh agreement has been reached. The 29-year-old will thus spend the remainder of the offseason looking to earn a 53-man roster spot. The Steelers already have Joey Porter Jr. and trade acquisition Donte Jackson in place as projected starters, but Averett has notable first-team experience of his own.
The latter entered the league as a fourth-round pick of the Ravens in 2018. Averett was used sparingly during his first two Baltimore campaigns, but he logged 18 starts across the 2020 and ’21 campaigns. That led to a one-year, $4MM Raiders agreement during his first trip to free agency. He was limited to just six games in 2022, however, something which hindered his market value.
Averett began last year with the 49ers, but he was let go amidst further injury issues. That led to a brief Lions practice squad agreement before San Francisco checked back in. No agreement was reached the second time around, though, and the Alabama product did not see any regular season action in 2023. He will aim to bounce back this season on a Steelers team which has made a number of moves on defense.
The team’s draft was centered mainly on offense, however, and sixth-rounder Ryan Watts represents Pittsburgh’s only rookie in the secondary. Veteran Patrick Peterson – who played with the Steelers last season but was released midway through his $14MM pact – remains unsigned. Head coach Mike Tomlin is open to bringing Peterson back into the fold, but it will be interesting to see if this Averett addition changes that stance.
Pittsburgh entered Sunday with over $18MM in cap space. With most of the team’s draft class having been signed already, the Steelers thus have the flexibility to make post-draft veteran additions such as this one. Averett’s pact will no doubt be a low-cost flier, but his previous starting experience gives this move a degree of upside.
Contract Details: Brown, Phillips, Highsmith
The Eagles recently made A.J. Brown the highest-paid wide receiver in NFL history. We already knew a number of details from that incredible contract, but thanks to Will Laws of Sports Illustrated, we now know of a wild detail with unprecedented consequences.
Laws points out that Brown’s deal includes a void year at the end of the contract that will hold a $53.52MM cap hit. This is actually a common contract technique the Eagles have been employing in recent years that allow them a ton of flexibility financially. Several other players have massive voidable cap hits like Jalen Hurts ($97.55MM), DeVonta Smith ($35.78MM), and others.
This likely doesn’t mean that someday the Eagles will suddenly be committing a triple-digit cap figure to players no longer on their roster. That could only happen if they see every contract through to completion. More likely, Philadelphia will be extremely strategic about how long to hold on to those players, cutting them at times that will allow for ideal cap savings. For instance, starting in 2027, the Eagles will be able to cut Brown and receive more in cap savings than they’ll be losing to dead money.
Here are a few other contract details on recent deals around the NFL:
- Thanks to the veteran salary benefit, the Buccaneers‘ new deal with defensive end William Gholston will have the minimum $1.21MM base salary that will only count for $1.15MM against the salary cap, according to Greg Auman of FOX Sports. Gholston will also be able to earn an active roster bonus of $167.5K in Week 1.
- The Texans recently signed linebacker Jacob Phillips to a new contract. Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 tells us the deal is for one year and $1.15MM. He’ll receive a base salary of $1.06MM and a signing bonus of $45K. He can earn additional per game active roster bonuses of $2,941 for a potential season-total of $50K.
- This last bullet is actually details on a restructure that the Steelers pulled off recently with pass rusher Alex Highsmith, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The team was able to convert $8.75MM of Highsmith’s 2024 base salary into a signing bonus while adding a void year to the end of his four-year deal, $68MM deal. As a result, Pittsburgh clears out $7MM of cap space.