NFL Reserve/Futures Deals: 1/7/25
Many teams have started signing players to reserve/futures contracts, allowing the organization to retain (routinely) young, practice squad players through the offseason. Here are the latest reserve/futures contracts:
Arizona Cardinals
- DE Anthony Goodlow, OL Sincere Haynesworth, RB Zonovan Knight, NT P.J. Mustipher
Atlanta Falcons
- WR Makai Polk
Buffalo Bills
Chicago Bears
- TE Jordan Murray
Cincinnati Bengals
- CB Micah Abraham, RB Gary Brightwell, CB Nate Brooks, WR Cole Burgess, OT Andrew Coker, DE Raymond Johnson III, S PJ Jules, S Jaylen Key, G Tashawn Manning, WR Kendric Pryor, LB Craig Young
Indianapolis Colts
Las Vegas Raiders
- DL Tyler Manoa
Miami Dolphins
- WR Tarik Black, LB William Bradley-King, S Jordan Colbert, DT Neil Farrell, OT Ryan Hayes, OL Chasen Hines, LB Dequan Jackson, CB Isaiah Johnson, CB Jason Maitre, OT Bayron Matos, LB Derrick McLendon, TE Hayden Rucci
San Francisco 49ers
- OL Isaac Alarcon, WR Russell Gage, WR Isaiah Hodgins, OT Jalen McKenzie
49ers Fire ST Coordinator Brian Schneider
Coordinator firings continue around the NFL. The 49ers are moving on from special teams coordinator Brian Schneider, ESPN’s Nick Wagoner reports. 
Schneider has served as a special teams coordinator on a number of occasions at both the college and NFL levels. His longest stretch in the pro game came with the Seahawks from 2010-20. That spell included considerable success in the third phase, and he quickly landed his next opportunity during the 2021 hiring cycle with the Jaguars.
Schneider wound up stepping away from the Jacksonville posting for personal reasons, but again he did not need to wait long to find his next opportunity. The 53-year-old joined Kyle Shanahan‘s 49ers staff in 2022, leading the 49ers’ special teams for each of the past three seasons. Struggles in that area have now led to a change.
San Francisco’s special teams were a sore spot in 2024, a year in which few things in any phase went according to plan. Penalties and turnovers in the coverage and return game were a common theme for the campaign, as were the inconsistencies of second-year kicker Jake Moody. The former third-rounder had a strong rookie campaign, but this season he took a step back by connecting on only 24 of 34 field goal attempts. A rebound in 2025 will be a key goal for Moody in particular and several of San Francisco’s ST contributors in general.
It remains to be seen if Shanahan is planning any other changes on his staff. Ahead of the season finale, he offered a vote of confidence for first-year defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen, suggesting continuity will be in place on that side of the ball next year. With respect to special teams, however, changes will be coming this offseason.
NFL Reserve/Futures Deals: 1/6/25
With the regular season having come to an end, many teams have started signing players to reserve/futures contracts. This allows organization to retain (routinely) young, practice squad players. Here are the latest reserve/futures contracts:
Arizona Cardinals
- WR Andre Baccellia, CB Jaden Davis, CB Darren Hall, OL Matthew Jones, WR Tejhaun Palmer, TE Bernhard Seikovits, DL Ben Stille
Atlanta Falcons
- DT Junior Aho, WR Phillip Dorsett, RB Elijah Dotson, WR Dylan Drummond, G Joey Fisher, G Jovaughn Gwyn, DB Lamar Jackson, QB Emory Jones, DE Khalid Kareem, WR Jesse Matthews, DB Benny Sapp III, OT Tyrone Wheatley Jr.
Carolina Panthers
- RB Emani Bailey, G Ja’Tyre Carter, TE Dominique Dafney, LB Kenny Dyson, LB Thomas Incoom, WR T.J. Luther, TE Jordan Matthews, WR Dax Milne, C Andrew Raym, G Brandon Walton
Chicago Bears
- OL Theo Benedet, OL Chris Glaser, WR John Jackson, LB Carl Jones Jr., DL Jamree Kromah, QB Austin Reed, OL Ricky Stromberg, WR Samori Toure, TE Joel Wilson
Cleveland Browns
- G Javion Cohen, S Trey Dean, DE Marcus Haynes, OT Roy Mbaeteka, TE Tre’ McKitty, OT Julian Pearl, DE Elerson Smith, K Andre Szmyt, OT Lorenzo Thompson
Dallas Cowboys
- G Jack Anderson, DB Luq Barcoo, DT Denzel Daxon, WR Kelvin Harmon, LB Brock Mogensen, WR Jalen Moreno-Cropper, DB Troy Pride Jr., LB Luiji Vilain, WR Seth Williams
Indianapolis Colts
- RB Salvon Ahmed, LB Austin Ajiake, LB Liam Anderson, QB Jason Bean, S Marcel Dabo, CB Alex Johnson, G Atonio Mafi, TE Sean McKeon, WR D.J. Montgomery, DE Durell Nchami, TE Albert Okwuegbunam, DT Pheldarius Payne, G Josh Sills, WR Laquon Treadwell
Las Vegas Raiders
- DE David Agoha, OT Gottlieb Ayedze, CB M.J. Devonshire, CB Keenan Isaac, WR Shedrick Jackson, WR Tyreik McAllister, DE Ovie Oghoufo, C Will Putnam, LB Brandon Smith, RB Isaiah Spiller, OT Dalton Wagner, WR Kristian Wilkerson
New York Giants
- K Jude McAtamney, DL Ross Blacklock, C Bryan Hudson, C Jimmy Morrissey, DL Casey Rogers
New York Jets
- OL Zack Bailey, RB Zach Evans, T Obinna Eze, TE Zack Kuntz, G Kohl Levao, QB Adrian Martinez, LB Jackson Sirmon, WR Brandon Smith, DB Tre Swilling, WR Easop Winston
San Francisco 49ers
- DL Jonathan Garvin, OL Sebastian Gutierrez, DL Tarron Jackson, OL Zack Johnson, CB Chase Lucas, S Jaylen Mahoney, QB Tanner Mordecai, OL Drake Nugent, WR Terique Owens, TE Mason Pline, WR Trent Taylor
Seattle Seahawks
- DT Quinton Bohanna, CB Ryan Cooper, LB Michael Dowell, CB Tyler Hall, C Mike Novitsky, DE Kenneth Odumegwu, S Ty Okada, WR Cornell Powell, LB Jamie Sheriff, LB Tyreke Smith, CB Damarion Williams
Tennessee Titans
- DT McTelvin Agim, DT Abdullah Anderson, LB Curtis Bolton, OL Chandler Brewer, DT Isaiah Iton, CB Gabe Jeudy-Lally, OLB Kyron Johnson, WR Stanley Morgan, TE Thomas Odukoya, S Gervarrius Owens, T Isaiah Prince, RB Jabari Small
Brock Purdy Targeting Early-Offseason Extension
The 49ers have taken their time with most of their big-ticket extensions under John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan. Brandon Aiyuk and Nick Bosa signed just before the past two seasons, respectively, while the Deebo Samuel and George Kittle deals occurred during training camp. Brock Purdy is targeting a deal much earlier.
Not long after a report surfaced pointing to the 49ers not being keen on paying Purdy a top-market rate, the three-year veteran quarterback is targeting a deal that ends this matter before the team’s offseason program begins in April. Purdy made it clear he will seek a 49ers extension. All signs point to the franchise being ready to explore a deal for the seventh-round steal.
[RELATED: Assessing Purdy’s Extension Candidacy]
“I want to obviously get it done,” Purdy said, via ESPN.com’s Nick Wagoner. “If that’s an opportunity to be able to get that done quick, that’d be great. Just so we can get back for phase one.”
While that has not been San Francisco’s M.O., they have hammered out a notable QB contract early in an offseason during the Shanahan-Lynch regime. The 49ers gave Jimmy Garoppolo a then-record contract in February 2018. Of course, the primary difference between a Garoppolo payday and a Purdy pact centers around team control. The 49ers paid Garoppolo weeks before he was to hit free agency; Purdy’s rookie deal runs through the 2025 season. That gives the 49ers time, and Purdy’s hopes may not align with the organization’s.
It stands to reason the 49ers will not deviate from their plans to pay Purdy, but they are under no obligation to do it early. This coming offseason, thanks largely to the 2021 and ’22 QB classes not producing many extension candidates, may also not see the market change. Josh Allen could have a say, even though the Bills have him locked down for multiple years, but the 2023 and ’24 offseasons settled a lot of business on the QB market. This would allow the 49ers to wait a bit, and Purdy’s price point will matter significantly as well.
Purdy, 25, has accomplished more than Jordan Love and Trevor Lawrence, who inked $55MM-per-year deals this past summer. It would stand to reason those accords would be the former Mr. Irrelevant’s floor. Even if the 49ers are understandably not comfortable going into the $60MM-AAV (with a player-friendly structure) neighborhood Dak Prescott populates by himself, it will then be on the team to determine whether that Lawrence-Love territory would work. Otherwise, the team would have another year of rookie-deal control and a $40MM-plus franchise tag at its disposal.
49ers Unwilling To Authorize Top-Of-Market Extension For QB Brock Purdy?
49ers quarterback Brock Purdy will be eligible for an extension at season’s end, and a report from last month indicated that San Francisco wants to hammer out a new deal for its starting signal-caller this offseason. Earlier this week, Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports reported that the team could wait on a Purdy extension – perhaps with an eye towards franchise-tagging him in 2026 if need be – but Robinson confirms the Niners would prefer to strike a multiyear accord in the coming months.
[RELATED: Purdy’s Elbow Injury Not Long-Term Concern]
After all, the QB market continues to boom, even for players below the top tier of the position. Although Purdy has regressed from his excellent 2023 performance and has been more inconsistent in 2024 – while also turning the ball over 15 times – players like Jordan Love and Trevor Lawrence arguably had not proven as much as Purdy when they entered their own negotiations, which culminated in $55MM/year contracts for the former first-rounders.
It therefore stands to reason that Purdy could command at least that much in his impending talks with the 49ers, and according to Robinson, the success of the contract discussions will depend on how ambitious Purdy’s camp plans to be. If 2022’s Mr. Irrelevant shoots for the top of the market – in other words, if he aims for Dak Prescott’s record-smashing $60MM AAV or Joe Burrow’s $146.51MM in full guarantees – then San Francisco could balk (even though Purdy has had more postseason success than Prescott, the Cowboys’ passer had unique leverage due to his prior contractual dealings with Dallas).
On the other hand, if Purdy is more “reasonable” in his demands and would be willing to accept a deal akin to Love’s (four years, $210MM, with $100MM in fully guaranteed money), the Niners may be willing to play ball. Since Purdy, as a seventh-round pick, has made less than $3MM over his first three years in the league, even a payout on Love’s level would doubtlessly be quite tempting.
That said, the Iowa State product continues to be a QBR darling, as he presently ranks seventh in the metric after leading the league in that regard, along with “traditional” quarterback rating, in 2023. He ranks 13th in quarterback rating among regular starters in 2024 (coincidentally, one spot behind Love). This is despite the fact that invaluable skill-position players Brandon Aiyuk and Christian McCaffrey have played a combined 11 games, with future Hall of Fame left tackle Trent Williams also missing significant time.
Plus, Purdy has compensated for his downturn in passing output with an improvement in his efforts as a runner, as he has carried the ball 66 times for 323 yards (4.9 yards per carry) and five scores. He is not a perfect player, and he may need more talent surrounding him than a truly elite passer might, but when it comes to quarterbacks, clubs are understandably reluctant to pass on a bird in the hand, no matter the cost. The Niners’ competitive window still appears to be wide open, and unlike the Cowboys during their first round of extension talks with Prescott, they may want to lock down their QB1 before the market continues to soar.
Minor NFL Transactions: 1/4/25
The last minor moves and standard gameday elevations of the 2024 NFL regular season:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed to active roster: S Andre Chachere
- Elevated: RB Tony Jones Jr., T Luke Tenuta
- Placed on IR: T Jackson Barton
Atlanta Falcons
- Elevated: CB Lamar Jackson
Buffalo Bills
- Elevated: OL Will Clapp, DE Casey Toohill
Carolina Panthers
- Activated from IR: RB Miles Sanders (story)
- Placed on IR: LB Amaré Barno
- Signed to active roster: DE DeShawn Williams
- Elevated: OLB Thomas Incoom, OLB Kenny Dyson
Cincinnati Bengals
- Elevated: DT Domenique Davis, WR Kendric Pryor
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed to active roster: QB Will Grier
- Elevated: CB Troy Pride
- Placed on IR: CB Kemon Hall
Denver Broncos
- Elevated: DE Matt Henningsen
Detroit Lions
- Signed to active roster: DB Morice Norris
- Elevated: DL Chris Smith, CB Stantley Thomas-Oliver
Houston Texans
- Signed to active roster: CB D’Angelo Ross
- Elevated: DE Solomon Byrd, S Russ Yeast
- Placed on IR: LB Jamal Hill
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Elevated: DE Joe Gaziano
Kansas City Chiefs
- Elevated: LB Blake Lynch, QB Chris Oladokun
Las Vegas Raiders
- Elevated: TE John Samuel Shenker
Los Angeles Chargers
- Activated from IR: S Alohi Gilman (story)
- Elevated: WR Dez Fitzpatrick, S Eddie Jackson
Los Angeles Rams
- Elevated: T AJ Arcuri, OLB Keir Thomas
Miami Dolphins
- Elevated: T Ryan Hayes, QB Skylar Thompson
Minnesota Vikings
- Elevated: LB Calvin Munson, OLB Gabriel Murphy
New England Patriots
- Signed to active roster: CB Miles Battle, DE Truman Jones, LB Monty Rice, TE Jack Westover
- Elevated: WR Alex Erickson, TE Mitchell Wilcox
- Placed on IR: C Ben Brown, S Jabrill Peppers, WR Ja’Lynn Polk
New Orleans Saints
- Elevated: S Millard Bradford, RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire
New York Giants
- Signed to active roster: RB Dante Miller
- Elevated: OLB Boogie Basham, T Tyre Phillips
New York Jets
- Placed on IR: CB Sauce Gardner
- Signed to active roster: DL Bruce Hector
- Elevated: CB Tre Swilling, OL Zack Bailey
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed to active roster: DE Alex Barrett, LB DaShaun White
- Elevations: G Drake Nugent, WR Trent Taylor
- Placed on IR: G Spencer Burford, LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed to active roster: CB Artie Burns, NT Brandon Pili
- Elevated: DT Quinton Bohanna, TE Tyler Mabry
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Elevated: CB Dallis Flowers, LB Deion Jones
Tennessee Titans
- Signed to active roster: DE Khalid Duke, WR Tay Martin
- Elevated: S Gervarrius Owens, K Matthew Wright
- Placed on IR: LB Otis Reese
Ross’ new deal to the Texans’ 53-man roster is good through the 2025 season, as well. Ditto for Jones, signed to the active roster in New England today.
Sanders returned to practice this week, and his activation will allow him to close out his second Panthers season on the field rather than on the mend. His Carolina tenure has fallen well short of expectations and a release in the near future could be in the cards. Given the team’s backfield injuries, though, Sanders could handle a notable workload tomorrow while potentially auditioning for free agent suitors.
Gilman’s return will be welcomed by the Chargers’ defense. The 27-year-old has remained a full-time starter this season, his second straight handling first-team duties. Los Angeles is assured of a wild-card spot, but moving up to the No. 5 seed in the AFC playoff picture could be possible on Sunday. In any case, Gilman’s presence will be key for a Bolts defense which leads the league in points allowed per game (17.6).
Gardner’s campaign will come to an end after 15 games played. He fell short of a Pro Bowl nod for this first time in his young career, but the fourth pick of the 2022 draft remained a critical member of the team’s secondary when healthy. Gardner is eligible for an extension this offseason, and his financial future (which will include a fifth-year option decision in the spring) will be a key point of focus once New York’s head coach/general manager tandem is in place.
Brock Purdy Avoids Structural Damage
JANUARY 3: John Lynch confirmed Friday during a KNBR interview (h/t 49ersWebZone.com) that Purdy avoided any long-term elbow issues. The 49ers are preparing to sit their starter for Week 18, but this issue should not impact him for too long into the offseason.
DECEMBER 31: An MRI revealed that 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy suffered no structural damage after leaving the game on Monday night, but he is not expected to play again this season, per Eric Branch of The San Francisco Chronicle.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said that Purdy “most likely” will sit out the 49ers’ regular season finale next week, though he is not dealing with any “long-term issues.” Specifically, the ulnar collateral ligament he tore in the NFC Championship Game in January 2023 is not affected.
San Francisco was eliminated from postseason contention in Week 16, so neither Purdy nor Shanahan will want to risk further damage in an essentially meaningless Week 18 game.
Purdy’s current injury is unlikely to impact upcoming extension negotiations with the 49ers. The 2022 seventh-round pick is still under contract for $1.12MM in 2025, but he will be looking to cash in after making less than $1MM per year to start his career.
Purdy will finish the 2024 season with 3,864 passing yards, a 65.9% completion rate, and 20 touchdowns to go along with 12 interceptions, a decrease from his 2023 Pro Bowl production. That downtick isn’t entirely Purdy’s fault, as the 49ers have dealt with significant absences from three of their best offensive players: Christian McCaffrey, Brandon Aiyuk, and Trent Williams.
Shanahan has not decided who will start at quarterback in Purdy’s place next week. Brandon Allen started on November 24 when Purdy was sidelined with a shoulder injury, but Joshua Dobbs was active instead of Allen on Monday. Dobbs’ mobility could give him a leg up behind the 49ers’ banged-up offensive line, though Allen won the backup quarterback job during the preseason and is still listed as such on the team’s depth chart.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 1/2/25
Today’s practice squad moves:
Detroit Lions
- Signed: S Morice Norris Jr.
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: S Terrell Edmunds
- Released: S Emany Johnson
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DE Tarron Jackson
The Chargers added some veteran safety depth in Terrell Edmunds today. The former first-round pick most recently had a two-month stint with the Steelers, collecting seven tackles in five games. Alohi Gilman could soon return to the Chargers lineup, but the team will still be down two players at the position with Elijah Molden and Marcus Maye sidelined, so there could be some open snaps for their newest player.
Jed York: 49ers Will Retain Kyle Shanahan, John Lynch For 2025
Little (if anything) has gone according to plan for the 49ers this season. Monday night’s loss leaves the team with a 6-10 record, but major changes on the sidelines or in the front office will not be coming. 
[RELATED: 49ers Unlikely To Replace DC Nick Sorensen?]
Owner Jed York said prior to last night’s game that head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch will be back for 2025 (h/t the San Francisco Standard via ESPN). That comes as no surprise given the pairing’s track record of success, but it will end speculation about their respective futures. Shanahan and Lynch have been in place together since 2018.
That stretch has included four trips to the NFC title game along with a pair of Super Bowl appearances. No championships have been won under the Lynch/Shanahan regime, but that (general) run of consistent success resulted in new contracts last year. A dismissal of either would have therefore come as a major surprise even in the wake of this year’s underwhelming showing. Injuries have played a major factor on both sides of the ball, and a return to health from several key players will be welcomed in 2025.
Shanahan’s name has been floated as a potential candidate for a team looking to replace its head coach, with the Bears in particular being mentioned as a landing spot. Lynch emphatically shot down that speculation earlier this month, however, and Shanahan himself stated his desire to remain in San Francisco for the foreseeable future. Any movement in his case would have required York and the 49ers’ ownership group changing course only one year after authorizing an extension. To little surprise, that will not happen.
Once Week 18 comes and goes, attention will turn to the offseason and the multitude of key decisions which need to be made. Quarterback Brock Purdy will be eligible for an extension, while several key players remain on track for free agency. Safety Talanoa Hufanga and linebacker Dre Greenlaw are among those high on the team’s list of preferred targets for a re-signing, but expensive pacts for San Francisco’s offensive core will make it difficult on a number of fronts to commitment to new contracts elsewhere on the roster.
A return to contention will be expected for next year in San Francisco’s case, especially with continuity regarding the team’s top decision-makers. As the coaching landscape takes shape over the coming weeks, meanwhile, Shanahan’s name will no longer emerge as one to watch.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/31/24
The last minor NFL transactions of the 2024 calendar year:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed to active roster: C Nick Leverett
- Placed on IR: RB Trey Benson
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: RB John Kelly
- Placed on IR: WR Cedric Tillman
- Waived (with injury settlement): LB Brandon Bouyer-Randle
Detroit Lions
- Waived: S Morice Norris
Houston Texans
- Signed off Saints’ practice squad: T Austin Deculus
- Placed on reserve/NFI: T Zachary Thomas
New Orleans Saints
- Signed of Cowboys’ practice squad: T Josh Ball
- Placed on IR: LB Jaylan Ford
New York Jets
- Placed on IR: K Greg Zuerlein
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on IR: LB Dre Greenlaw (story)