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Rams Finalize Matthew Stafford Restructure

May 5th, 2025 at 9:50pm CST by Adam La Rose

After a new round of speculation about his future – tied not to his desire about playing in 2025, but rather where he would do so – Matthew Stafford and the Rams reached agreement on another restructure. Now, that deal is officially in place.

Team and player finalized the new agreement over the weekend, as first reported by Ben Volin of the Boston Globe. Per the teams of the pact, Stafford will collect $44MM in 2025 along with $40MM the following year. That $84MM total stands in sharp contrast to the $58MM which was originally owed over the next two years (although it falls well short of the top of the QB market)

Stafford’s future has been considered year-to-year by Los Angeles, but the team’s latest raise notably included $56MM in full guarantees. That figure consists of the remaining $40MM to be paid out for this season, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, along with an additional $16MM in 2026. Rapoport adds that Stafford’s ’26 compensation will vest provided he remains on the roster by the start of free agency next spring.

For the past four years, Stafford has operated as the Rams’ starter. After helping lead the team to the Super Bowl during his debut Los Angeles campaign, the former No. 1 pick was limited to nine games the following year. Stafford has remained durable since then, and the Rams’ continued decision not to draft a successor indicates their confidence he will continue to operate at a high level moving forward.

The 37-year-old received permission to gauge his market this offseason, but no trade agreement was struck with suitors like the Giants or Raiders. As a result, Stafford and the Rams will look to build off the success of the 2024 campaign with stability under center for at least another two years. Given the length of this latest restructure, team and player will no doubt welcome the lack of questions regarding Stafford’s short-term outlook.

Chiefs Waive BJ Thompson

May 5th, 2025 at 8:40pm CST by Ben Levine

The Chiefs moved on from BJ Thompson today, but the separation may be temporary. According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 in Houston, the Chiefs waived the defensive end with a non-football illness designation.

The specific designation of the transaction means Thompson will most likely land back in Kansas City. Assuming the player passes through waivers unclaimed, he’ll be placed on the non-football illness list, allowing him to continue his rehab without taking up a roster spot.

Andy Reid acknowledged as much while speaking with reporters yesterday. The coach noted that Thompson has made progress in his recovery from his 2024 cardiac arrest, and the transaction isn’t an indication that the player is facing the end of his playing career.

“[H]e is making progress, but just not quite, not quite there yet, but he’s made great, great strides,” Reid told reporters (h/t Charles Goldman of AtoZ Sports). “And so in this day and age of the way football is, we had to do something there. And this is the route that we went. But it doesn’t mean his career is over by any means, just where we’re at today.”

A 2023 fifth-round pick, the Stephen F. Austin product played sparingly as a rookie. During a team meeting last summer, Thompson suffered a seizure that resulted in cardiac arrest for more than 90 seconds. He regained consciousness a few days later. Fortunately, it sounds like Thompson is doing much better, but the Chiefs are still playing it very safe when it comes to his playing future.

The Chiefs made another move today, waiving linebacker Blake Lynch (via Wilson). The veteran joined the Chiefs late last season and got into one game for his new squad. He re-signed with the Chiefs back in March. Lynch has appeared in 29 career games, with the majority coming from a 16-game showing with the Vikings in 2021.

NFL Minor Transactions: 5/5/25

May 5th, 2025 at 7:55pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Green Bay Packers

Los Angeles Rams

Josiah Deguara brings 65 games of experience to Arizona, with the majority of those appearances coming during his four seasons with the Packers. While he’s had a consistent special teams role in recent years, he’s also managed to contribute offensively. This includes a 2021 campaign where he hauled in 25 catches and two touchdowns with Aaron Rodgers as his QB.

The tight end is coming off a 15-game showing in Jacksonville where he was limited to only three catches all season. The veteran should compete for a role behind Trey McBride, with the Cardinals also rostering the likes of Tip Reiman and Elijah Higgins at the position.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/5/25

May 5th, 2025 at 6:49pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s draft pick signings:

Kansas City Chiefs

After quickly signing OT Josh Simmons to his first-round rookie contract, the Chiefs are now pivoting to the other end of their draft board, agreeing to contracts with their final two selections from the 2025 draft.

Bassa was a four-year starter at Oregon, including a 2023 campaign where he earned second-team All-Pac-12 honors after finishing with 71 tackles. His 54 tackles in 2024 represented his lowest total since his freshman year, but that likely didn’t do much to hurt his draft stock.

Smith served as mostly a backup during his three seasons at Miami, but he had a breakout showing after transferring to SMU for the 2024 campaign. The RB finished this past year with 1,659 yards from scrimmage and 18 touchdowns.

Packers Sign 10 UDFAs

May 5th, 2025 at 1:32pm CST by Adam La Rose

While serving as the host of the 2025 draft, the Packers selected eight rookies over the course of the three-day event. Green Bay has since added to its rookie class with the following UDFA signings:

The Packers do not have a track record of making major commitments in term of base salaries for undrafted free agents. Baldwin represents an exception, however. ESPN’s Rob Demovsky reports he received $100K locked in for his base salary along with a $15K signing bonus. That is a strong indication he will receive a long look during the summer.

Brown measured 6-1 and 223 pounds at FAU’s Pro Day, during which he posted a 4.53 40-yard dash time. That combination of size and speed could help him land a roster spot in a special teams capacity. Brown posted a pair of interceptions, along with eight pass deflections and a forced fumble in 2024.

Stackhouse won a pair of championships with the Bulldogs during his five-year run with the team. With only three sacks to his name, he will look to carve out a role based on his play against the run. The 6-3, 320-pounder totaled 96 tackles (including nine for a loss) in college.

Chiefs Sign First-Round T Josh Simmons

May 4th, 2025 at 9:58pm CST by Ely Allen

Following closely on the tails of the Cowboys and offensive guard Tyler Booker, the Chiefs have come to terms with Ohio State offensive tackle Josh Simmons on his first-round rookie contract. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the four-year contract (with a fifth-year option) for the 32nd overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft is worth $14.68MM.

Simmons could end up being a bit of a project in the NFL. After a redshirt season at San Diego State, Simmons started a season at right tackle for the Aztecs before transferring to Columbus and switching to left tackle. As a redshirt junior, Simmons returned to start on the left side for another year before suffering a season-ending knee injury.

In his time with the Buckeyes, the 22-year-old displayed quickness off the line of scrimmage and impressive balance. While he isn’t much of a bulldozer in the run game, his quickness can help him be effective on pulls. What really shines for Simmons is his pass blocking abilities, which were good enough to put him in serious consideration for OT1 honors in the draft class, before he experienced his injury setback.

He won’t be a project because he needs to develop, he’ll potentially be a project because his road back to 100 full health may be a bit of a journey. The injury led him to be the fifth tackle taken in the draft and the eighth offensive lineman taken. If it was poor play that led to his slide, he may have slipped out of the first round altogether. Because of his injury, though, any team that drafted him was likely going to want to use a first-round pick on him so that the fifth-year option would give them a bit of additional time to evaluate his prospects for a second NFL contract.

In Kansas City last year, starting tackles Jawaan Taylor and Wanya Morris were anything but impressive. For competition, the team has last year’s second-round pick, Kingsley Suamataia, and free agent signing Jaylon Moore to work with, as well. Suamataia started the first two games for the Chiefs at right tackle last year before being benched for Morris, while Moore finished the last portion of 2024 filling in for Trent Williams as the 49ers’ starting left tackle.

In an ideal situation, it would be asking a lot of Simmons to jump into a competition that could see any combination of two of Taylor, Morris, Suamataia, and Moore bookending the line. He falls into a perfect situation, though, where, sure, plenty of question marks remain on the depth chart, but there are plenty of options who can man the spots effectively until Simmons is recovered and ready to compete and contribute. His fifth-year option gives him a bit of breathing room to show his worth before his rookie deal expires.

Simmons is just the first Chiefs rookie to sign their contract. The team has six more players from their draft class that still need to ink their deals.

Ravens Sign 17 UDFAs

May 4th, 2025 at 6:36pm CST by Ely Allen

Going stride-for-stride with the Seahawks in competition for the league’s largest rookie crop, the Ravens, much like Seattle, have signed 17 undrafted free agent rookies to join their 11-man draft class. The newest additions to Baltimore’s 28-man rookie class are:

The Ravens are notorious for finding undrafted free agents who have potential to make the 53-man roster. That will be a tall task for this year’s group as 17 of them compete with the 11 draft picks. That goes double for the several small school signees like Hutchinson, Jackson, Lowery, Ntoh, Penning, and Pitz, who will have to show what they can do in camp after playing inferior competition in college.

Christian-Lichtenhan certainly stands out as a possible contender for a roster spot. After the Ravens entered the draft needing to add bodies at tackle, Christian-Lichtenhan has volunteered his 6-foot-8, 315-pound frame for the job. After graduating from Colorado with a degree and 19 starts at left tackle to his name, Christian-Lichtenhan transferred to Corvallis, where he started all 12 games as the blindside blocker for the Beavers.

In Higgins and Martin, the team brings in two inside linebackers, a position at which Baltimore usually harbors hard-working UDFAs for their special teams value. Higgins was projected to be a late-Day 3 pick but just slipped out of the draft. In his two years as a starter (out of five total with the Hawkeyes), Higgins notched 295 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, three forced fumbles, 14 passes defensed, and five interceptions. After his only season as a starter at East Tennessee State, Martin leveraged a strong year into a transfer to Memphis. For the Tigers, Martin started two seasons, tallying 206 tackles, 33.0 tackles for loss, 10.0 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, nine passes defensed, and three interceptions. Both are undersized backers who display sideline-to-sideline ability and strong coverage abilities.

Jackson stands, perhaps, the strongest chance to make the roster from the small schools. Jackson started three of his five seasons in Normal. His final two years (172 tackles, 11.0 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, 11 passes defensed, and four interceptions) were his strongest. His versatility earned him first-team All-MVFC honors, and he was recognized at the Senior Bowl as the National team’s Top DB. His versatility gives him a strong chance to compete for a roster spot.

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/4/25

May 4th, 2025 at 5:42pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s only minor NFL transactions to close out the week:

Philadelphia Eagles

After announcing their initial undrafted free agent signing class earlier this week, Philadelphia has tacked on a late addition in Jackson. After five years of finding his footing (two seasons at Michigan and three at Washington), Jackson finally broke out as an impact player in his sixth year of college (his fourth with the Huskies). He reeled in 85 passes for 893 yards and seven touchdowns, adding a score on the ground, as well, in 2024.

Davis-Price, a former third-round pick out of LSU, will now have a chance to join his third team in as many years. If he clears waivers, he could have his choice of where he signs.

Chiefs Add 16 UDFAs

May 4th, 2025 at 2:31pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Chiefs made a total of seven selections during the draft, and they will be joined by 16 undrafted free agents at rookie minicamp. Here is a look at Kansas City’s 2025 UDFA class:

Of the names on this list, at least six have received a six-figure commitment from Kansas City. The most lucrative pact – in terms of guarantees – is the one for Briningstool, with Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 reporting he received a total of $264K locked in. Watson, meanwhile, landed $249K in guarantees (per Wilson). They will both look to earn a roster spot as a depth tight end option.

Wilson reports Cooper secured a $20K signing bonus as part of his $259K in total guarantees. The 24-year-old spent the first four seasons of his college career at Texas State before playing pair of seasons with the Cowboys. At 6-6 and 326 pounds, he could look to earn a place on the roster as a swing tackle or compete for playing time at guard.

Izzard landed $225K in guarantees, Wilson adds. His 4.85 40-yard dash time from Penn State’s Pro Day is an indication of his athleticism, something which could earn him a spot on the D-tackle depth chart. According to Wilson, meanwhile, Knowles received a $20K signing bonus along with $200K in guaranteed salary.

Czaplicki’s base salary for 2025 includes $95K locked in; Wilson adds his pact also contains a $5K signing bonus. Matt Araiza operated as the Chiefs’ punter last season, producing a net average of 41.5 net yards per punt. 25 this season, Araiza will have competition during training camp.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/3/25

May 3rd, 2025 at 8:00pm CST by Adam La Rose

Saturday’s lone draft pick signing:

Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles inked four of their draftees to rookie deals yesterday, and they have taken care of another pierce of business on that front. Half of Philadelphia’s selections are yet to be signed, including each of the team’s first three picks.

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