Cardinals To Re-Sign K Chad Ryland
Chad Ryland has been with Arizona since early in the 2024 season. Another Cardinals contract has now been worked out in his case. 
Ryland has agreed to a one-year deal, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reports. He worked as the Cardinals’ kicker for 13 games in 2024 and did so again on a full-time basis the following season. Team and player worked out a two-year pact last time around, but this latest one will allow Ryland to compete for the kicking gig in 2026.
The former Patriots draftee only lasted one year in New England. After struggling during his rookie campaign, Ryland was waived by the Patriots. That was followed in short order by a Cardinals practice squad agreement, and he soon found himself on the active roster. Ryland connected on 28 of 32 field goal tries in 2024 with Arizona, including a perfect mark (four-for-four) from beyond 50 yards.
A drop in accuracy took place this past season. Ryland saw his FG mark drop to 75.8%, missing eight total attempts. Four of those came from beyond 50 yards, though, and expectations will remain high at least from close range moving forward. Ryland, 26, was on course for restricted free agency this spring. Instead of issuing a tender in this case, the Cardinals have opted to work out a one-year pact which will no doubt check in near the league minimum.
Joshua Karty signed with Arizona in December after his Rams tenure came to an end. Karty is likely on course to receive an exclusive rights free agent tender in the near future. That would set up a training camp competition with Ryland for the 2026 kicking role.
Cardinals Revise Contracts Of RB James Conner, CB Sean Murphy-Bunting
James Conner‘s immediate future is no longer in question. The veteran running back will remain in place for the Cardinals for 2026. 
Team and player have agreed to a revised contract, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports. Conner is on the books for one more year, and he was originally scheduled to carry a cap charge of $9.83MM while earning a base salary of $6.39MM. One or both figures will presumably be lowered as a result of today’s move.
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Conner, 31 in May, was limited to just three games in 2025 due to an ankle injury. That led to questions about a potential trade or release ahead of the final year of his contract, but instead the two-time Pro Bowler will play a sixth season in Arizona. Conner has been a key figure on offense throughout his Cardinals tenure, and while the team will likely explore running back investments this spring he will once again be counted on to handle a heavy workload if healthy.
Cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting has also worked out a restructured contract, per Pelissero’s colleague Mike Garafolo. A knee injury suffered in the spring led to surgery and landed him on the reserve/NFI list. That ensured Murphy-Bunting would miss the entire 2025 campaign. He too will enter the coming season as a pending free agent.
Murphy-Bunting was due $7.5MM for next year prior to his revision; a pay cut could also be in store in this case, something which would lower his cap hit from its scheduled $9.25MM figure. A release would have yielded notable cap savings, but instead Arizona will bank on Murphy-Bunting returning to full health. In that event, the former Buccaneer and Titan will likely be counted on to handle a starting role.
The Cardinals entered Sunday with roughly $48MM in cap space, putting them in much better financial shape than many other teams at this time of year. Nevertheless, Arizona will likely generate even more flexibility with these restructures. Given their respective health and contract statuses, it will be interesting to see how both Conner and Murphy-Bunting fare in 2026.
Saints Rumors: Taylor, Jordan, Davis, Rattler, Carr, Kamara
Although Saints cornerback Alontae Taylor drew considerable interest in the run-up to last season’s trade deadline, New Orleans kept the 2022 second-rounder in the fold, which suggested he may be a candidate for a second contract with the club. However, it appears Taylor will be playing elsewhere next season.
ESPN’s Katherine Terrell recently reported that the Saints expect Taylor, who just finished his rookie deal, to test the open market. Several days later, the player himself published a post on X that reads, “New Orleans – thank you for letting me shine in ‘The Big Easy.’”
That certainly sounds like Taylor has played his last snap for the Saints, who will need to address the nickel corner position in free agency or the draft. Terrell expects the 27-year-old to have a strong market thanks to an impressive platform campaign in which he boasted 1.0 yards per coverage snap and -1.4 EPA allowed. Terrell wonders if that performance is sustainable in light of Taylor’s less impressive prior body of work, but it appears as if that will be another team’s concern.
New Orleans did meet with Taylor’s camp at the combine, along with reps for fellow pending free agents Demario Davis and Cameron Jordan. Like Taylor, Jordan will hit the open market for the first time in his career, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Now entering his age-37 season, Jordan is the Saints’ franchise leader in games played (243). The New Orleans stalwart and 2010s All-Decade Team member turned back the clock in 2025 by posting 10.5 sacks, reaching double-digits for the first time in that department since 2021. The defensive end is therefore sure to draw outside interest, and he is reportedly open to leaving Louisiana. With nearly $150MM in career earnings but no Super Bowl ring to his name, it would be fair to expect a club that profiles as a more obvious championship contender than the Saints to pique Jordan’s interest (although it does not sound as if the door to a 16th season with New Orleans is entirely closed).
Davis is also going into his age-37 season, and as Terrell notes, he has not offered any public remarks as to whether he would like to stay with the Saints or sign with another team. New Orleans wants to retain the two-time Pro Bowler, who just set a career-high with 143 tackles in 2025 (which marked the ninth straight season in which the durable linebacker recorded over 100 stops). The Jets are said to be interested in a reunion with their 2012 draftee.
Second-year quarterback Tyler Shough flashed enough in his rookie year to make the Saints believe he can be the long-awaited heir to Drew Brees, and that makes 2024 fifth-rounder Spencer Rattler a trade candidate. The Jets were also mentioned as a possible Rattler suitor, but Terrell says New Orleans has not yet received any calls on the 14-game starter. Ditto Derek Carr, who is amenable to coming out of retirement if the right opportunity presents itself.
Carr, who will turn 35 later this month, is still under Saints control, so a trade would need to be worked out if he is to continue his playing career. We recently heard there is a tepid market for his services, though, and Terrell confirms that – at least as of the end of this year’s scouting combine – the Saints had not heard from other teams or even from Carr’s own representation. Terrell says it would cost somewhere in the range of a third- to fifth-round pick to acquire Carr.
Now that they have their starting QB in place, Terrell says the Saints hope to focus on a rushing attack that was among the league’s least productive in 2025. New Orleans finished with the fifth-fewest rushing yards in the league last year, as RB1 Alvin Kamara generally underwhelmed over the first 11 games of the season and then missed the final six contests due to an MCL sprain. As we get closer to the draft, Terrell expects to see increased speculation connecting Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love to New Orleans and its No. 8 overall pick.
Known for their bloated salary cap figures that require offseason gymnastics to get into cap compliance, the Saints did not have nearly as much work to do this year. As Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football reported, the Saints restructured the contracts of DE Chase Young, S Justin Reid, and TE Juwan Johnson. OverTheCap.com indicates the club presently has about $20MM of cap room, some of which could be earmarked for the offensive line. Terrell expects the Saints to prioritize their front five along with a running back addition, and head coach Kellen Moore specifically highlighted the left guard spot as an area of need. There are a number of free agent options (Isaac Seumalo and Zion Johnson, for instance) who could fit the bill.
The Saints also restructured Kamara’s deal, per Underhill, but it was not the standard salary-to-signing bonus restructure they employed for Young, Reid, and Johnson. Instead, as Underhill details, New Orleans used the collective bargaining agreement’s so-called “50% rule” to their advantage.
When the salary a player is due to earn a year from now is less than 50% of what he is due to earn in the present season, his team can convert his salary into a non-guaranteed signing bonus that can be prorated over future years for cap relief purposes. In other words, if Kamara is released, the Saints would still realize the benefits of the restructure, which would not be the case in a standard reworking whereby salary is converted into a guaranteed signing bonus. Because of that, Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network suggested the Kamara situation is one to monitor (implying, presumably, that a release is on the table, although such a move would obviously leave the club even more shorthanded at the running back position).
We finish this lengthy roundup of Saints news by passing along a team announcement that Will Clapp has been added to the coaching staff as an offensive assistant. New Orleans selected Clapp in the seventh round of the 2018 draft, and he suited up for 66 games (22 starts) over a seven-year playing career that also included stops with the Chargers and Bills. He announced his retirement last month, and it was speculated at the time that he could be joining the New Orleans staff.
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.
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.
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.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/7/26
Saturday’s lone minor move in the NFL:
Kansas City Chiefs
- Re-signed: LS James Winchester
Winchester has been in place with Kansas City since 2015, and his career will stretch into at least a 12th campaign. He has agreed to a one-year deal for the offseason year in a row. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports the pact is worth $1.75MM and is fully guaranteed. That ensures Winchester, who will turn 36 this summer and has yet to miss a game in his career, will remain the league’s highest-paid long snapper.
Vikings Work Out Several Restructures
Until recently, the Vikings were on track to be well over the 2026 salary cap. That has produced a number of cost-shedding moves over the course of this week, including several restructures. 
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T.J. Hockenson has agreed to a contract adjustment, Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network report. This move will free up roughly $5MM in cap space. Prior to the restructure, Hockenson was due to carry a cap charge of $21.3MM in 2026, the highest in the league among tight ends.
The two-time Pro Bowler has struggled to regain his previous form since suffering a major knee injury in 2023. As a result, Hockenson’s cap figure would have been a sore spot had it remained intact. Instead, he will look to rebound in 2026. Hockenson was originally under contract through 2027, but Pelissero notes the final year of his deal has been removed through this arrangement. He is now on course for free agency next spring.
Minnesota has also worked out simple restructures in the case of wideout Justin Jefferson and left tackle Christian Darrisaw, per Pelissero. That process consists of converting base salaries into signing bonus to create immediate cap space. Over $27MM in breathing space for 2026 has been generated by those moves. Given their ages and importance to Minnesota’s offense, Jefferson and Darrisaw loomed as obvious candidates for restructures. Their respective deals run through 2028 and ’29, leaving plenty of time for future adjustments if needed.
Cornerback Byron Murphy‘s deal has been restructured as well, as detailed by Ben Goessling of the Minnesota Star Tribune. Roughly $11MM in savings have been generated in his case as a result. Murphy remained in place with the Vikings on a three-year, $54MM pact last offseason. His cap charge is now on track to spike in 2027, but there is no danger of a release taking place before then.
A number of veterans will not be in place for the Vikings once the 2026 season begins. Defensive linemen Javon Hargrave and Jonathan Allen as well as running back Aaron Jones will soon become free agents upon being released, while center Ryan Kelly has retired. The restructures finalized in recent days are enough for Minnesota to attain cap compliance in time for the start of the new league year, per Over the Cap.
Chargers Re-Sign Khalil Mack
Khalil Mack will not test free agency ahead of the 2026 season. He will instead remain in place with the Chargers for next year. 
Mack has agreed to a one-year deal with Los Angeles, as first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The Bolts will retain at least one of their two high-profile edge rushers as a result of this news. Mack has been in place with the team since 2022. This latest re-signing is now official, per a team announcement.
Retirement was once again a talking point at the end of this past season. It was reported earlier this month, however, that Mack planned on playing in 2026. That will indeed be the case. A re-signing was mentioned as a likely scenario in this case, so today’s news comes as little surprise.
During each of his first three Chargers seasons, Mack earned a Pro Bowl nod (bringing his career total to nine). He set a new career high in sacks with 17 in 2023, and upon arrival new general manager Joe Hortiz made it a priority to keep him in the fold. Mack played on a one-year, $19MM pact in 2024, and he did the same on a deal worth $1MM less the following season. Both of those contracts were fully guaranteed.
Team and player have worked out the same arrangement this time around. This is once again a fully guaranteed accord valued at $18MM, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. That includes a $10MM signing bonus (h/t Over the Cap). Los Angeles will have Mack in the fold as a key figure in the pass rush department while Tuli Tuipulotu plays out the final year of his rookie contract. The latter earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2025 and if/when an extension is signed in his case, it will bring about a major raise.
Mack was limited to 12 games this past year, but he has largely remained durable during his Chargers tenure. With 11.5 sacks since 2024, expectations will remain high for at least steady production along the edge in this case. The former Defensive Player of the Year has racked up 113 career sacks, good for 28th all time. Only six active players have more, and a move into the top 25 will be within reach.
Attention will now turn to the matter of fellow Chargers edge rusher Odafe Oweh. He is currently one of the top pending free agents among pass rushers, and a first career trip to the open market looms. Hortiz has expressed a desire to retain not only Mack but Oweh as well. It will be interesting to see if he manages to do so, something which could be feasible given the Chargers’ healthy cap situation.
Ravens, QB Tyler Huntley Agree To Deal
Tyler Huntley‘s tenure in Baltimore will continue. The pending free agent quarterback has agreed to a new Ravens deal, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. 
This is a two-year pact. Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic notes it has a base value of $5MM. Incentives can push Huntley’s earning potential to $11MM, per both reports. This agreement has now been made official by an announcement from his agent.
Since arriving in the NFL, Huntley has spent most of his career with Baltimore. The former undrafted free agent has made 32 combined regular and postseason appearances; 27 of them have come as a member of the Ravens across two different stints. Huntley saw time with the Browns during the 2024 offseason before retuning to Baltimore. Later that year, he departed the practice squad to sign with the Dolphins and fill in for an injured Tua Tagovailoa.
Huntley once again wound up in Cleveland this past summer, although he did not survive roster cutdowns. That resulted in a Baltimore return via a practice squad deal. The 28-year-old found himself back on a depth chart including Lamar Jackson, but free agent signing Cooper Rush was in place as well. Rush received the first opportunity to replace an injured Jackson early in the 2025 season, but Baltimore’s offense struggled mightily with him at the helm.
Huntley eventually took over, and he handled starting duties in Weeks 8 and 17. Baltimore won both of those games, and over the course of the season Huntley set new career highs in completion percentage (77.6%), yards per attempt (6.4) and passer rating (103.1). Those figures came about in large part due to a small sample size, of course, but they helped raise the Utah’s product’s value ahead of a free agent period lacking in high-end quarterback options.
Huntley could have tested the market next week. Instead, he has agreed to a deal which will extend his current Ravens tenure. Rush is on the books for 2026 as things stand, but this news points even further in the direction of a release in his case. That would leave Jackson – whose pending extension remains a key cost-saving move yet to be finalized – and Huntley atop the QB depth chart moving forward.
This agreement marks a raise from the $1.17MM Huntley made in 2025. Baltimore has other key financial decisions to make for a number of reasons, not the least of which being creating the cap space needed to finalize the Maxx Crosby trade. With plenty more work to be done, the Ravens have at least settled their quarterback setup ahead of the new league year.