Cardinals To Sign OL Will Hernandez
Will Hernandez has reportedly found his second home in the NFL. According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, the guard is signing with the Cardinals (Twitter link). A team announcement has confirmed that it is a one-year contract.
Hernandez, 26, was a second-round pick of the Giants in 2018. He started right away, and remained the team’s top left guard throughout the majority of his time there. Durability generally wasn’t a concern, as he only missed three games, all of which were in 2020.
Hernandez’s performances didn’t live up to his draft stock, however. His 67.9 PFF grade during his rookie season was the highest of his career. Of his 15 total sacks allowed, seven came this season. 2021 also saw him commit six penalties, again the worst mark in a single season during his NFL tenure.
The Giants have made a number of changes to their offensive line this offseason, after the unit continued its recent struggles in 2021. They signed former Colt Mark Glowinski and brought in Jon Feliciano following his release from the Bills. Projected to be starters along the interior of the line, that left Hernandez in need of a new team.
Last week, the Cardinals hosted Hernandez on a free agent visit. Between that, and the reported loss of starting guard Max Garcia to the Giants, this move doesn’t come as a surprise. Hernandez will now look to rebuild his value while joining not only his former positional coach in Sean Kugler, but one of the NFC’s top teams in general.
Texans Re-Sign LB Neville Hewitt
The Texans are bringing back a key contributor from Lovie Smith‘s defense from last year. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Houston is bringing back linebacker Neville Hewitt on a one-year deal. 
Hewitt performed admirably in a single season try out for the Texans last year. The seventh-year undrafted player out of Marshall played the third-most snaps for Houston’s linebackers behind starters Christian Kirksey and Kamu Grugier-Hill, racking up five starts along the way.
Hewitt did enough coming out of college in 2015 to sign on as a free agent with the Dolphins as a rookie. After increasing his role in Year Two, the Dolphins waived Hewitt, stashing him on the practice squad for most of the 2017 season.
In 2018, Hewitt signed a one-year contract with the Jets, starting four games in his first season in New York. Hewitt broke out a bit over the next two years, stepping in to start all 28 games he appeared in with injuries to players like C.J. Mosley providing the opportunity for him to show what he could do. In 2020, Hewitt led the Jets in tackles with a career-high 134, adding 2.0 sacks, four passes defensed, and one interception to the stat sheet, as well.
The productive year in New York earned him a one-year contract with Houston in May of last year. With Kirksey and Grugier-Hill both set to return, as well, the Texans bring back their top three linebackers, providing a nice bit of defensive familiarity for Lovie Smith to start his head coaching tenure in Houston.
Eagles Sign LB Kyzir White
One of the NFL’s top tacklers last season has found a new home. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports (via Twitter) that the Eagles have signed Kyzir White.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports (on Twitter) that White is inking a one-year deal worth up to $5MM.
White had a breakout campaign in 2021. The linebacker started all 17 games for the Chargers, finishing with a team-leading 144 tackles, good for eighth in the NFL. White added four QB hits, one sack, two forced fumbles, and two interceptions. He got into 84 percent of his team’s defensive snaps.
White was a 2018 fourth-round pick by the Chargers. The West Virginia product got into 30 games (20 starts) through his first three seasons in the NFL, collecting 134 tackles, 0.5 sacks, and six tackles for loss.
The 26-year-old will be joining a depth chart that’s led by recent acquisition Haason Reddick. Philly is also rostering the likes of T.J. Edwards, Davion Taylor, Shaun Bradley, and Patrick Johnson.
Jets Sign K Greg Zuerlein
Greg the Leg has landed in the Big Apple. The Jets announced that they have signed veteran kicker Greg Zuerlein. It’s a one-year deal worth $2.75MM, according to Connor Hughes of The Athletic (via Twitter).
Zuerlein, 34, has managed to stick around the NFL for 10 seasons, coming into the league from a Division II school and playing eight years with the Rams. That included a 2017 campaign where the kicker earned All-Pro honors after converting 95 percent of his field goals (including six of seven from 50+) and 95.7 percent of his extra point tries.
Since that 2017 campaign, Zuerlein has converted only 81.4 percent of his field goals, and the 2021 season saw him miss a career-high six extra point attempts. As a result, the veteran was cut by the Cowboys earlier this month, saving the organization $2MM. According to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter), the veteran kicker had back surgery last offseason that “affected his swing,” so there’s some optimism Zuerlein can return to form in 2022.
The Jets relied on the duo of Eddy Pineiro and Matt Ammendola for kicking duties in 2021. The two players are still on the Jets roster, but their future outlook with the organization doesn’t look great following today’s transaction.
Chiefs Sign RB Ronald Jones
The Chiefs are bringing in a veteran running back. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter), Kansas City is signing RB Ronald Jones to a one-year deal. The running back can earn up to $5MM on his one-year pact (per Pelissero on Twitter).
[RELATED: Chiefs Host WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling, RB Ronald Jones]
Jones met with the Chiefs earlier this week alongside wideout Marquez Valdes-Scantling. MVS ended up inking a three-year, $30MM pact with the Chiefs.
Jones was a 2018 second-round pick by the Buccaneers. He saw an inconsistent role during his first four seasons in the NFL; he had more than 1,000 yards from scrimmage in both 2019 and 2020, but he was limited to only 492 yards from scrimmage in 2021 while playing second fiddle to Leonard Fournette. Jones does have some pass-catching ability (76 career receptions) and he’s averaged a modest 4.5 yards on his rushing attempts, so there’s a good chance he’ll be a usable piece in the Chiefs offense.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire should return to the top of the depth chart in 2022, but backups Jerick McKinnon and Darrel Williams are both free agents. That means Jones will likely compete for backup reps with Derrick Gore.
Dolphins, CB Byron Jones Rework Contract
The Dolphins are working to keep one the league’s most respected cornerback tandems together in Miami while retaining a bit of spending ability under the salary cap. According to Field Yates of ESPN, cornerback Byron Jones agreed to a reworked contract today to help create some cap space. 
The Dolphins converted $13.26MM of the base salary due to Jones in 2022 into a signing bonus. Along with clearing $750,000 of cap space by reworking the contract of safety Clayton Fejedelem, Miami was able to create $11.35MM of cap space. With the release of offensive lineman Jesse Davis and wide receiver Allen Hurns yesterday, the Dolphins have cleared $17.55MM of cap space in the course of two days.
The new available spending money makes the recent additions of tackle Terron Armstead and wide receiver Tyreek Hill (who was extended after his trade from Kansas City) a bit easier to stomach. Jones was able to joke about helping the team acquire such talent, tweeting out clown-faced emojis meant, in his words, to depict “(him) restructuring (his) contract just to have Tyreek Hill burn (him) everyday in practice.”
The Dolphins’ focus will now likely shift to the other side of the secondary with cornerback Xavien Howard. Howard is reportedly seeking an increase in salary and a reworked deal could kill two birds with one stone: getting Howard a new and improved deal while creating a bit more cap space for Miami.
Bucs Re-Sign T Josh Wells
Swing-tackle Josh Wells will sign his fourth-consecutive one-year deal with the Buccaneers, according to Greg Auman of The Athletic. Auman adds that the deal is worth $1.12MM, with $895,000 guaranteed.
Wells has served as a key backup lineman in his three seasons in Tampa Bay. He participated in the team’s 2020 Super Bowl run, starting one game and playing in 15, not including his appearances in all four playoff games. Wells, 31, has operated in this capacity for most of his career. The former UDFA has topped out at five starts two times, doing so with the Jaguars in 2018 and for the Buccaneers last year. Wells has earned eight total starts and appeared in 45 games over his first three seasons in Tampa.
With Donovan Smith and Tristan Wirfs returning to bookend the Bucs’ offensive line, Wells is a depth signing that secures Tampa’s first man off the bench should anything happen with Smith and Wirfs. He also provides a familiar face as the team seeks to replace both guard spots. Alex Cappa departed in free agency to sign with the Bengals and Ali Marpet retired at the ripe old age of 28. Tampa brought in former Bengal Fred Johnson and acquired Shaq Mason in a trade with the Patriots in an attempt to fill those spots, but retaining Wells gives them some room for error as they attempt to replace the production from last year.
Wells joins returning starting center Ryan Jensen as the Buccaneers are trying to put together another Super Bowl squad for Tom Brady. He is sure to continue playing a key role as the offensive line’s sixth man with a chance to earn a starting spot protecting the NFL’s oldest active player.
Raiders Re-Sign OL Jermaine Eluemunor
After appearing in 14 games for the Raiders last season, offensive lineman Jermaine Eluemunor has agreed to return to Las Vegas, according to Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network. In a series of transactions heading into the weekend, the Raiders have made sure to bring back a proven backup lineman who could earn a starting spot. 
A fifth-round pick for the Ravens in 2017, Eluemunor had already traveled more than most draft prospects. Eluemunor was born in England, moving to New Jersey in his teenage years and finding football. After applying to around 120 schools, he earned a scholarship to Texas A&M before getting drafted to Baltimore.
Eluemunor had three starts in two seasons with the Ravens as a reserve lineman before being traded alongside a sixth-round pick to New England in exchange for a fourth-round pick. His first year as a Patriot was plagued with injury, but he was named the starting right tackle to start the 2020 NFL season. A Week 6 ankle injury landed Eluemunor on injured reserve, but he returned four weeks later to start four of the eight remaining games of the season.
A free agent after his stint in New England, Eluemunor signed with the Dolphins, getting cut before the season started. Four days later, he joined the Jaguars for a four-day period before getting cut yet again. Eluemunor wasn’t unemployed for long, though. Two days later, Eluemunor landed in Vegas.
An injury to Week 1 starter Denzelle Good elevated Eluemunor to first-string in a matchup versus his former team, the Ravens. Eluemunor, who had been with the team for only two weeks, made three more starts for Las Vegas before returning to his role as a backup and special teamer.
The Raiders return key contributors from last year Kolton Miller, John Simpson, Alex Leatherwood, and Andre James. Vegas has also re-signed back ups Jackson Barton and Brandon Parker, as well as recently signing Alex Bars, who started 11 games in three seasons with the Bears. Despite the addition of Bars, the Raiders have a ton of familiarity heading into 2022.
In contrast to the recent additions, Las Vegas has cut cornerback Jordan Brown, defensive end P.J. Johnson, offensive lineman William Sweet, safety Natrell Jamerson, and wide receiver Javon Wims.
49ers Re-Sign CB Darqueze Dennard
Darqueze Dennard is staying in San Francisco. The 49ers reached an agreement to retain the veteran cornerback Friday, announcing a one-year deal.
This doubles as a rebound opportunity for the former first-round pick. The longtime Bengals defender played in just three games last season — with the Giants and 49ers — and has not had a regular role since 2020. His 49ers practice squad landing late last season has secured another opportunity.
The Bengals drafted Dennard 24th overall in 2014, between their Dre Kirkpatrick and William Jackson first-round selections, and the Michigan State product settled in as a slot corner. The Bengals re-signed Dennard after his rookie contract expired in 2019. Despite a knee injury delaying the start to his season, Dennard allowed just a 48.6% completion rate when targeted. But Cincinnati let him walk in 2020.
The Falcons used Dennard in eight games that season, but a hamstring injury limited him. He allowed a 62.7% completion rate when targeted as a Falcon. Dennard’s 2021 Cardinals agreement led to a preseason IR placement and an injury settlement.
San Francisco lost its longtime slot corner, K’Waun Williams, to Denver this week. Dennard, 30, figures to be in the conversation to fill the void. Though, given his recent injury trouble and off-grid 2021, he will certainly have competition.
Chiefs To Sign LB Jermaine Carter
Former Panthers linebacker Jermaine Carter generated interest on the market, but he has made a decision. The Chiefs are adding the four-year veteran, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. It’s a one-year deal, per ProFootballNetwork.com’s Aaron Wilson (on Twitter).
Carter has just one season of full-time starter experience, but he is coming off a 17-start slate with Carolina. The 27-year-old defender visited the Chiefs on Friday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets, joining defensive end Arden Key in that regard.
[RELATED: Chiefs Sign WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling]
This addition is interesting for a Chiefs team that used second-round picks on off-ball linebackers in each of the past two years, selecting Willie Gay and Nick Bolton. The latter enjoyed a standout rookie year and should remain the anchor of Kansas City’s defensive second level. But Carter is poised to play a key role for the six-time reigning AFC West champions, who have operated aggressively since freeing up money by trading Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins.
A former fifth-round pick, Carter drew interest from multiple teams in free agency. He made 88 tackles (three for loss) with the Panthers last season. Carter’s emergence led to Carolina trading Denzel Perryman to Las Vegas during training camp last year. The Panthers will move forward without the Marty Hurney-era investment.