HEADLINES

Rylie Mills

NFC West Notes: Rams, Kittle, Hawks, Cards

May 14th, 2025 at 10:45am CST by Sam Robinson

Tyler Higbee has been the Rams‘ top tight end for many years, dating back to the team’s separation from Gerald Everett in 2021. Higbee, however, is now in Year 10 and coming off a three-game season. The Rams have attempted to install an heir apparent on multiple occasions, most notably failing in an attempt to trade up for Brock Bowers last year. Los Angeles then was tied to an effort to move up for Colston Loveland last month, and ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler indicates the team did discuss trades with teams holding top-10 picks.

Once Loveland went to the Bears at 10, the Rams regrouped and traded down, picking up a 2026 first-rounder (from the Falcons) to do so. Upon leaving Round 1, however, the Rams eyed the next wave of tight ends in this draft. Both Mason Taylor (LSU) and Terrance Ferguson (Oregon) were on the team’s radar, per Fowler, who notes Ferguson was rated higher despite Taylor going to the Jets four spots earlier. The Rams have Ferguson (591 receiving yards in 2024) readying to become the Higbee heir apparent.

Here is the latest from the NFC West:

  • Ferguson is unlikely to unseat George Kittle as the NFC West’s top tight end anytime soon, as the 49ers extended their All-Pro dynamo recently. San Francisco’s four-year, $76.4MM deal includes $35MM guaranteed at signing. Beyond fully guaranteed money in 2025 and ’26, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio notes $2MM of Kittle’s 2027 pay ($17.15MM) is locked in at signing. The 49ers have also dived into the option bonus game, which will help keep Kittle’s cap hits under $19MM until 2029. Kittle can unlock $5MM more in 2027 guarantees by being a 2026 Pro Bowler or landing on the All-Pro first or second team that year; reaching a number of statistical benchmarks that year also could allow Kittle to cash in on that $5MM 2027 bump, Florio adds.
  • Sam Darnold‘s three-year, $100.5MM Seahawks contract became classified as a pay-as-you-go pact, and ESPN’s Brady Henderson provided an important detail here. Seattle gave Darnold a $15MM roster bonus, but it is not due until February 13 — five days after Super Bowl LX. The Seahawks can cut bait during that window, reminding of the Raiders’ 2023 Derek Carr divorce, if the Darnold partnership does not pan out. Seattle would still pick up a $25.6MM dead money hit (due to signing bonus proration) by cutting Darnold after one season.
  • DC Aden Durde pushed for Rylie Mills in Round 5 (via the pick obtained in the Sam Howell trade), but the Seahawks will wait a bit to see the Day 3 D-lineman in action. A torn ACL sustained in December is expected to keep the Notre Dame product out until at least midseason, John Schneider said (via Henderson). A late-season return is also in play for a player who will be more of a long-term option in Seattle.
  • Not rostering a fullback in many years, the Seahawks had planned to add one to work in Klint Kubiak‘s offense. They did so in the draft, as Schneider confirmed (via Henderson) Alabama tight end Robbie Ouzts — a fifth-round pick — will begin his career at fullback. The 274-pound SEC product will compete with Brady Russell, who has played 26 Seahawks games (zero starts) since arriving in September 2023.
  • A former South Carolina defensive back, Landon Grier made an early foray into the NFL scouting ranks. The Cardinals hired him straight out of college to be a scouting assistant. The son of Dolphins GM Chris Grier, Landon is not expected back with the Cards in 2025, with InsidetheLeague.com’s Neil Stratton noting the younger Grier is on track to return to the college ranks for a personnel role.
  • The 49ers are also parting ways with a scouting staffer, with Stratton adding Michael Zyskowski is moving on after three years with the franchise. Late spring regularly serves as a point teams reshuffle scouting staffs, as contracts usually run through the draft in an effort to ensure continuity ahead of the event.

Seahawks Trade Sam Howell To Vikings

April 26th, 2025 at 9:45pm CST by Ben Levine

The Seahawks added Jalen Milroe on Friday night, doing so after reacquiring Drew Lock. As Sam Darnold‘s backup crew looks set, the team is moving on from Geno Smith‘s final QB2.

Seattle is sending Sam Howell to the Vikings, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. Minnesota will add the former Washington starter, who had been on the trade block ahead of his contract year. The Seahawks paired Howell with the No. 172 pick, and they acquired pick No. 142, per Albert Breer of TheMMQB.

According to Jeremy Fowler, also of ESPN, the two teams have been quietly working on this deal since last week. Once the Seahawks’ offseason moves and draft intentions made it clear that they were ready to move on from Howell, conversations began the ultimately led to today’s trade.

There’s plenty of natural connections with this trade. The Seahawks, of course, poached Darnold from the Vikings with a lucrative free agent offer. Despite Aaron Rodgers heavily hinting at his desire to join the Vikings, the organization has made it clear they’re content to roll with J.J. McCarthy as their QB1.

Assuming the Vikings stuck with the status quo, that meant they still had an opening for a backup ahead of Brett Rypien. So, in comes Howell, who brings plenty of experience to the role. The former fifth-round pick started all 17 games for Washington in 2023. The Commanders went 4-13 in those outings, with Howell completing 63.4 percent of his passes for 3,946 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 21 interceptions.

The Vikings have been pretty adamant that they won’t be adding Rodgers to their QBs room, and the team’s depth chart seems to be taking shape with this latest acquisition. Rypien brings four games of starting experience, so the Vikings now have two fallback options should McCarthy struggle or suffer an injury.

The Seahawks traded from their surplus and managed to move up 30 spots in the draft. The team used their new selection on Notre Dame defensive tackle Rylie Mills. The lineman finished his Fighting Irish career with 17 sacks, including a career-high 7.5 this past season. A late-season knee injury may have slightly impacted his draft position, and the Seahawks are getting an agile defensive lineman who should be able to contribute right away.

Sam Robinson contributed to this report.