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RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/11/25

March 11th, 2025 at 10:08pm CST by Sam Robinson

Tuesday’s tender decisions in the NFL:

RFAs

Non-tendered:

The Titans have made the decision to sign the NFL’s most decorated active punter, Johnny Hekker, to replace Stonehouse. The team informed Stonehouse he will not be tendered, per the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson; the low-end RFA number comes in at $3.26MM this year. Stonehouse stands to generate interest, as he brought down one of the longest-standing records in NFL history — Sammy Baugh‘s single-season punting average set more than 70 years ago. Stonehouse not only broke Baugh’s record by averaging 53.1 yards per punt in 2022 but repeated that average in 2023 as well. A broken leg suffered on a late-season blocked punt in 2023 led to extensive rehab, but Stonehouse still averaged 50.6 per boot in 2024.

Similarly, Gibbens will be hitting unrestricted free agency (via ESPN’s Adam Schefter) after playing a regular role. The former UDFA has made 20 career starts, including 13 in 2023. Gibbens made 95 tackles (three for loss) and notched three passes defensed that year. The Titans have since added Kenneth Murray (2024) and Cody Barton (Monday), leaving Gibbens — whom the team only used as a five-game starter last year — free to explore outside options.

49ers To Sign DB Jason Pinnock

March 11th, 2025 at 9:59pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The 49ers are signing former Giants defensive back Jason Pinnock to a one-year, fully-guaranteed deal, per FOX Sports’ Jordan Schultz and KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson.

The 25-year-old started 32 games at safety over the last two years in New York, but the Giants’ signing of Jevon Holland made it clear that the team was moving in another direction, according to The Athletic’s Dan Duggan. Pinnock will have an opportunity to earn a starting job in San Francisco after Talanoa Hufanga signed with the Broncos.

Pinnock was excellent in coverage in 2023 with a 74.8 passer rating when targeted, but that figure was above 135.0 in his other three seasons. He can play in the box and offers upside as a pass-rusher with 6.5 sacks across the last three seasons.

The 49ers also re-signed defensive tackle Kevin Givens. The 2019 undrafted free agent will head into his seventh season in the NFL, all in San Francisco. He flashed as a pass-rusher in 2024 with a career-high 3.5 sacks in just eight games before a pectoral tear ended his season. Givens will likely take on a bigger role in 2025 after the team moved on from Javon Hargrave.

San Francisco isn’t placing an RFA tender on linebacker Curtis Robinson, but they will retain him on a one-year deal, according to The Athletic’s Matt Barrows. Robinson was the 49ers’ Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee last season, but played in only three games before suffering a torn ACL. He has played three games for the 49ers in each of the last four years, with all but three of his snaps coming on special teams.

In 2025, Robinson will be joined by former Titans and Cowboys special teams ace Luke Gifford. The 29-year-old linebacker is signing a one-year deal with the 49ers, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Gifford played a career-high 203 snaps on defense in 2024 along with a core special teams role in Tennessee. Robinson and Gifford will continue their special teams prowess next season, but they may also have to play a bigger role on defense after the departure of Dre Greenlaw in free agency.

Saints Rework S Tyrann Mathieu’s Deal, Complete Host Of Restructures

March 11th, 2025 at 9:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

Joining his hometown team in 2022, Tyrann Mathieu will play a fourth season with the team. He has agreed to reworked contract, NewOrleans.football’s Nick Underhill reports. The veteran safety will be tied to a one-year, $7.2MM deal that includes incentives, Underhill adds.

The Saints are reducing Mathieu’s 2025 base salary from $6.25MM to $3.5MM, Underhill indicates. Incentives could allow the 13th-year veteran to make money back. If Mathieu plays at least 50% of the Saints’ defensive snaps next season, he will see that base climb to $4MM. Escalators between $4.5MM and $7.25MM are in place as well, Underhill adds. If Mathieu hits a 90% snap share in 2025, he would make more than he would have previously. This move will lower Mathieu’s $11.3MM 2025 cap number.

Mathieu, 32, stands to have a good chance to make money back. He has played at least 86% of the Saints’ defensive snaps in each of his three seasons with the club. He played 100% of them in 2022 and 99% in ’23. The former All-Pro’s contract is still on track to void after the 2025 season.

Mathieu’s agreement follows another batch of Saints restructures, which are commonplace as the team continues its brand of cap manipulation. New Orleans has also adjusted the deals of Cesar Ruiz, Carl Granderson and Khalen Saunders, according to OverTheCap’s Jason Fitzgerald, who adds the trio of restructures saves the Saints $13.7MM in cap space.

New Orleans has also restructured the contracts of Pete Werner and Demario Davis, per NewOrleans.football’s Mike Triplett and ESPN.com’s Katherine Terrell. Werner’s adjustment will create an additional $2.5MM in space. These moves also come after Ryan Ramczyk‘s restructure, a move that saved $16MM and likely will precede retirement.

The team is also expected to restructure Erik McCoy‘s deal, Underhill notes. A move that frees up $6.69MM in cap space is anticipated for McCoy, who is signed through 2027. As for Mathieu, it looks like his deal will be pushed through the 2026 season. His 2024 agreement tied him to the Saints through 2025, though customary void years were already present in the deal.

The Saints had resided more than $45MM over the cap recently, but they have completed more arduous journeys to reach cap compliance. Teams have until 3pm CT Wednesday — when the 2025 league year officially starts — move under the cap. OverTheCap presently lists the Saints as making another successful journey, placing them at just more than $20MM in cap room. They just take strange routes to get there.

Carr’s adjustment set to make a 2026 separation much more difficult, as $59.67MM in dead money (which would presumably be spread over two years via a post-June 1 release designation) will come in the event the middling QB is cut next year. The Saints are keeping Carr for 2025; the restructure ensures that. Questions about the Mickey Loomis operation’s increasingly complex blueprint will persist, as the Saints have not come close to escaping the NFL’s middle class since Drew Brees‘ retirement. It appears a similar plan will be in place for 2025. While hiring Kellen Moore represents a significant change, he will be working with a similar roster plan to the past few Saints efforts.

Lions To Sign NT Roy Lopez

March 11th, 2025 at 9:30pm CST by Sam Robinson

Making 50 starts for the Texans and Cardinals during a four-year career, Roy Lopez will join a suddenly higher-profile team. The Lions are adding the veteran nose tackle.

Detroit is bringing in Lopez on a one-year, $4.65MM contract, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets. A former sixth-round pick, Lopez will join Alim McNeill and D.J. Reader on the Lions’ interior D-line.

The Cardinals used Lopez as a full-time starter last season, after giving him five starts in 2023. Although a low-end investment in a draft that came as the Texans were in full rebuild mode — in the early stages of both Nick Caserio’s GM tenure and the Deshaun Watson drama — Lopez started 29 games over his first two seasons.

Houston did not carry Lopez onto its first DeMeco Ryans roster, waiving him. The Arizona native made his way to his local team as a practice squad presence but moved up to the Cards’ 53-man roster quickly. The 3-4 nose graded as a top-50 interior D-lineman (per Pro Football Focus) in 2023 and has 17 career tackles for loss. Last season, Lopez batted down three passes and forced a fumble.

Extending McNeill and signing Reader last year, the Lions have a few D-linemen of note unattached. The team has not re-signed Levi Onwuzurike or John Cominsky. Backup nose tackle Kyle Peko also remains in free agency. The team has also not seen much from 2023 third-rounder Brodric Martin.

Panthers Re-Sign OL Brady Christensen, Add P Sam Martin

March 11th, 2025 at 9:14pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Panthers have re-signed offensive lineman Brady Christensen and agreed to terms with veteran punter Sam Martin, according to a pair of team announcements.

Christensen will receive a one-year, $2.8MM contract that is fully-guaranteed, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. Carolina first acquired him with a third-round pick (No. 70 overall) in 2021 after a stellar career at BYU.

The Panthers tried to keep him at tackle as a rookie, but he moved inside in 2022 and started all 17 games at left guard. A biceps tear ended Christensen’s 2023 season after just one game, and he didn’t earn a starting job in 2024. Injuries pressed him into action anyway, and he finished the season with four starts at center and two at left tackle. The 28-year-old will compete for a starting role along the interior of the offensive line in 2025.

Martin’s deal is worth up to $3MM over one year, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. He was released by the Bills last week after spending the last three years in Buffalo. The 35-year-old previously punted for the Broncos (2020-2021) after starting his career with the Lions (2013-2019).

Statistically, Martin was a below-average punter in 2024. He has been consistent throughout his career, but has never profiled as one of the league’s best at his position. A $3M APY would move Martin into a tie with several other players as the third-highest-paid punter in the NFL, but the language of Rapoport’s report indicates that the deal’s base value is lower.

Titans To Sign P Johnny Hekker

March 11th, 2025 at 8:30pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Titans are signing veteran punter Johnny Hekker to a one-year, fully-guaranteed deal, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

In Tennessee, Hekker will reunite with his first NFL coach, special teams coordinator John Fassel. Fassell held the same position with the Rams when Hekker signed with the team as an undrafted free agent in 2012.

The former Oregon State Beaver emerged as one of the league’s top punters in his second year, limiting opponents to just 79 punt return yards on his way to Pro Bowl and first-team All-Pro honors. He earned a second-team All-Pro nod in 2014 before ripping off three straight years as a Pro Bowler and first-team All-Pro. Hekker led the league in punts, punt yardage, and yards per punt in 2015 with similar production in 2016. Improvements to the Rams offense under Sean McVay in 2017 reduced Hekker’s volume, but he remained effective at pinning opponents deep in their own territory.

Hekker was consistently paid as a top-five punter after his first contract expired and remained in Los Angeles until 2021. He then signed a three-year deal with the Panthers, but has not been able to recreate the early-career success that landed him on the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team.

Still, at 35 years old, Hekker remains an effective, consistent punter who will likely have plenty of work in Tennessee. He is also the NFL’s active leader in total punts and punt yardage who may have a shot at the Hall of Fame after he retires.

Chargers To Sign RB Najee Harris

March 11th, 2025 at 8:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

MARCH 11: In terms of base value, Harris will be tied to $5.25MM in 2025, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio notes. Incentives cover the rest of the contract. While this is more than the Chargers gave Dobbins last year, it certainly checks in as less than Harris was expected to command.

MARCH 10: The Chargers’ rumored interest in Najee Harris will produce an agreement. After four Steelers seasons, Harris is heading west on a one-year deal.

Harris will sign with Los Angeles’ AFC team on a contract worth up to $9.5MM, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets. A Bolts team that cut Gus Edwards and has not re-signed J.K. Dobbins will turn to Harris, who was the Steelers’ starting RB in each of their games since 2021.

This agreement comes hours after the Steelers placed a second-round RFA tender on Jaylen Warren. This will make the Harris three-year Harris change-of-pace option harder to pry away, but the Steelers will be in the running back market again now. Although the team was not believed to be out on Harris, not picking up his fifth-year option in 2024 provided a decent indication a 2025 separation would be acceptable.

A 2021 first-round pick out of Miami, Harris has played through injuries to start every game in his four-year career. After a 1,200-yard rookie season, Harris finished with 1,034, 1,035 and 1,043. Oozing consistency, Harris also does not bring much flash. Next Gen Stats rated him in the bottom third in rush yards over expected in 2022 and ’24, though the metric was oddly bullish on the between-the-tackles grinder in 2023.

Harris, 27, may well have a skillset that appears to Jim Harbaugh. The team did not see much from the player it previously sought as its power back — Edwards — but a newly run-oriented Bolts operation could generate plenty from Harris in 2025. Harris needing one-year deal does not bode well for his future value, however. Already accumulating 1,097 carries, the durable back will be set to log at least 200 more with the Bolts this season. That will wind his mileage to a potentially undesirable place come 2025.

Though, last year’s free agency showed teams willing to take chances on veterans at the position. Successful seasons already brought Saquon Barkley an extension and Aaron Jones a substantial raise. Derrick Henry, this generation’s RB outlier, also played himself into position for a Ravens pay bump after his 1,900-yard rushing season. Harris not being able to cash in now, after displaying durability and consistency, may be a worrying sign for his post-2025 earning potential.

Steelers, Kenneth Gainwell Finalizing Deal

March 11th, 2025 at 8:10pm CST by Sam Robinson

Backing up Miles Sanders, D’Andre Swift and Saquon Barkley, Kenneth Gainwell has waited his turn. The four-year Eagles contributor is set to relocate but without leaving Pennsylvania.

A day after losing Najee Harris to the Chargers, the Steelers are finalizing a deal with Gainwell. The sides have agreed to a one-year deal, Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz tweets. Gainwell will be on track to team with Jaylen Warren, whom the Steelers slapped with a second-round RFA tender. Warren is set to make $5.3MM this season; that does not check in too far south of the Harris fifth-year option on which Pittsburgh passed.

The Steelers will be acquiring a running back with fairly low mileage but one that has maintained a second-string role for one of the league’s best rushing attacks. Gainwell has only compiled 280 carries in his four-year career. He holds a career 4.2-yard average and has tallied 721 receiving yards.

No extended stints as a fill-in have transpired for Gainwell, as the Eagles have seen Sanders, Swift and Barkley stay healthy over the past three years. All three parlayed those seasons into new deals, with Barkley’s coming via an Eagles extension. Gainwell has been the constant throughout this period, fending off challengers for the Philly RB2 gig in 2023 and keeping it once Barkley arrived. Gainwell has just four career starts. One of those came in Week 1 of the 2023 season, but after the 2021 fifth-round pick sustained an injury that kept him out of Week 2, Swift took over and never gave back the job.

Pittsburgh certainly could be expected to augment the position further in the draft, as Warren and Gainwell will be due for unrestricted free agency in 2026. For now, a potential Warren-Gainwell partnership has formed. This offseason may bring a big opportunity for Gainwell, who turns 26 later this week. Entering the 2025 season with more than 800 fewer carries than Harris makes this a (likely) low-cost bet on fresher legs bringing upside.

49ers To Sign WR Demarcus Robinson

March 11th, 2025 at 7:42pm CST by Sam Robinson

A multiyear cog in Sean McVay’s machine, Demarcus Robinson is not leaving California. He will head north, however, as NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports the veteran wide receiver is joining the 49ers.

Robinson played two seasons with the Rams, playing alongside Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp; that came not long after a lengthy run with the Chiefs. The 49ers are adding the experienced pass catcher on a two-year, $9.5MM deal. He will be guaranteed $6MM, The Athletic’s Jeff Howe tweets.

The 49ers traded Deebo Samuel and may not have Brandon Aiyuk ready to go by Week 1. Robinson, 30, stands to have a shot at regular playing time alongside holdovers Jauan Jennings and Ricky Pearsall. When Aiyuk returns, Robinson may slide to the WR4 role. Though, he maintained regular snaps with the Rams over the past two seasons.

Although the presence of Tutu Atwell stood to further diminish Robinson’s L.A. role, he did not see his starting job threatened, starting every Rams game last season. Robinson caught 31 passes for 505 yards and seven touchdowns. The 16.3-yard average doubled as a career-high number.

The Rams re-signed Robinson last year, giving him a one-year, $4MM deal. The 49ers’ rate is comparable, but Samuel’s exit and Aiyuk’s rehab timeline open the door for some playing time. Although the Rams are jettisoning Cooper Kupp, they re-signed Atwell and gave Davante Adams a $26MM guarantee Sunday night. That trio will lead the way in L.A., as Robinson — who spent six seasons with the Chiefs earlier in his career — attempts to keep going as a supporting-caster.

Robinson has four 400-plus-yard season on his resume, the first two coming in Kansas City and the third in Baltimore. The Florida alum has quietly scored 27 career touchdowns, having initially worked as an auxiliary Patrick Mahomes target during the Tyreek Hill–Travis Kelce heyday.

Broncos To Sign WR Trent Sherfield

March 11th, 2025 at 7:13pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although the Broncos have been linked to needing significant wide receiver help, Sean Payton has mentioned a tight end or running back — a joker, in Payton parlance — as the team’s bigger need. Denver is making a lower-level receiver addition tonight, however.

Trent Sherfield is signing with the Broncos, according to Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz, who indicates it is a two-year agreement. This deal comes nearly a year after the Broncos gave Josh Reynolds a similar contract. Reynolds’ checked in at $9MM; Sherfield’s is worth $8MM.

Sherfield, 29, has played a backup role for most of his career. He started one game for the Vikings last season. While the Broncos attempted to integrate Reynolds into their offense, his IR trip for a finger injury — and later suffering injuries in a minor shooting — preceded an eventual separation. The Broncos turned to rookie-contract players to supplement Courtland Sutton after Reynolds hit IR.

Given the usage rates Marvin Mims, Devaughn Vele and Troy Franklin racked up last season, it would surprise if Sherfield became a receiving regular for the Broncos. The eight-year veteran has one 300-yard receiving season on his resume, which came in 2022 as a Dolphins WR3. He totaled 86 yards with the Bills in 2023 and 83 with the Vikings last season.

Sherfield’s contract would point to him being a good bet to be on the Broncos’ 53-man roster. With Mims, Franklin and Vele all expected back and Sutton being on the team’s extension radar, the Broncos may only have one receiver spot to offer — and even that would not be a given. If the Broncos are to pursue one of the veteran wideout options — from Amari Cooper to Keenan Allen to Tyler Lockett to the cut-candidate Cooper Kupp — to aid Bo Nix, roster math may not support it.

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