Vikings To Sign LB Jordan Hicks
Not long after being made a Cardinals cap casualty, Jordan Hicks found a new home. The Vikings are signing the veteran linebacker, Adam Caplan of Sirius XM Radio tweets.
Hicks has agreed to a two-year contract worth $10MM, Caplan adds, noting the deal includes $6.5MM guaranteed. Incentives can take the price up to $12MM. This will be Hicks’ third team; he has played every-down roles for his previous two (Philadelphia and Arizona).
The Cardinals allowed Hicks to seek a trade after they drafted Zaven Collins last year, but the team ended up keeping Hicks in his usual full-time role. Hicks played 97% of the Cards’ defensive snaps last season, starting in all 18 Arizona games. The Cards have drafted off-ball ‘backers in each of the past two first rounds (Collins and Isaiah Simmons), leaving them less needy of a veteran presence like Hicks, who is set for his age-30 season in 2022.
A Super Bowl LII starter with Philly, Hicks has also rebounded from his injury-plagued Eagles tenure. He did not miss a game in three Cardinals seasons. Hicks made 150 tackles in 2019 and surpassed 110 in each of his next two seasons, totaling 29 tackles for loss with Arizona.
The Vikings may be set to use him alongside Eric Kendricks. An eight-year Viking, Anthony Barr is a free agent. Minnesota is also starting over after eight seasons of Mike Zimmer leading its defense. Ed Donatell is now at the controls, and Minnesota is shifting to a 3-4 defense for the first time in decades.
Colts To Sign CB Brandon Facyson
Gus Bradley is the Colts new defensive coordinator, but he’s also helping the front office by recruiting some former players. According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo (via Twitter), the Colts have signed former Raiders cornerback Brandon Facyson. It’s a one-year deal for the defensive back.
Following three somewhat anonymous seasons with the Chargers, he caught on with the Raiders practice squad in 2021. He ended up transforming into one of the most dependable members of Bradley’s defense, compiling 55 tackles, 13 passes defended, and one pick in 12 games (nine starts).
Xavier Rhodes remains unsigned, but one of Facyson or Kenny Moore could pick up the slack (alongside Rock Ya-Sin) in the Colts’ secondary.
Texans To Re-Sign DB Desmond King
Desmond King is returning to Houston. The defensive back is re-signing with the Texans, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter).
King will be signing a two-year deal worth $7MM, per Schefter. The deal contains $3.5MM in guaranteed money.
The defensive back spent the first four seasons of his career with the Chargers, including a 2018 campaign where he earned a Pro Bowl and All-Pro nod as a cornerback and returner. However, he found himself in and out of the lineup during the 2019 season, and he was ultimately traded to the Titans midway through the 2020 season.
Tennessee let him walk at the end of the year, and King ultimately landed a one-year deal with Houston. He ended up starting a career-high 12 games for the Texans, compiling 93 tackles, six passes defended, and three interceptions.
Steelers To Sign CB Levi Wallace
Levi Wallace is moving from Buffalo to Pittsburgh. The Steelers are adding the four-year veteran cornerback on a two-year deal worth $8MM, NFL reporter Jordan Schultz tweets.
This stands to aid a Steelers team that has Joe Haden unattached. While the Steelers gave Haden a second contract, the former first-round pick has now made it to free agency. It is somewhat interesting the Bills are letting Wallace walk for this price. The team will need to replace a four-year starter.
Despite entering the NFL as a UDFA, Wallace worked as a Bills first-stringer throughout his career. He played in all 19 Buffalo games this past season. The Alabama product should be expected to start for the Steelers next season. The Steelers reupped Cameron Sutton last year and used him as a full-time starter. He and Wallace represent a low-cost tandem, by 2022 cornerback standards.
Wallace, 26, has six career interceptions. More became asked of him last season, when Tre’Davious White suffered a season-ending injury on Thanksgiving night. While Buffalo’s secondary did not hold up well to close out the team’s infamous loss in Kansas City, the Bills did rank first defensively in the regular season. The 6-foot Wallace finished the regular season with his lowest figure for passer rating against (72.6).
Not typically big on unrestricted free agency, the Steelers have been fairly active this week. In addition to the Mitchell Trubisky addition, Pittsburgh has agreed to terms with James Daniels and now with Wallace. The Steelers also re-signed tackle Chukwuma Okorafor for nearly eight figures per year.
Falcons Release Tyeler Davison
The Falcons have made a cost-cutting move along the defensive front. The team announced that they have released defensive tackle Tyeler Davison. 
The move incurs a dead cap charge of roughly $1.2MM, but creates just under $3.7MM in savings. The 29-year-old was a fifth round pick of the Saints in 2015. He spent his first four seasons in New Orleans, then went to the rival Falcons on a one-year deal in 2019.
That contract was followed up by a three-year, $12MM deal with Atlanta one season later. He accepted a pay cut in year two of the pact, a sign that the team may have been willing to cut ties, as they have now done. In 2021, he registered 30 tackles in 12 games.
Most notably for Davison, his playing time decreased significantly as the year wore on. He was on the field for a career-low 358 snaps, which represented just 43% of the team’s defensive plays. Playing time was opened up for Anthony Rush at the position.
The move is the second such one for the Falcons’ front seven, as last month, the team parted ways with edge rusher Dante Fowler. Neither move should be considered surprising, given the fact that Atlanta ranked 27 in the league against the run (132 yards per game) and last in sacks (17).
Chargers To Release T Bryan Bulaga
Bryan Bulaga did not hold up for long with the Chargers last season, playing in just one game. He is now back in free agency. The Bolts are releasing the veteran tackle, via ProFootballNetwork.com’s Aaron Wilson (on Twitter).
This move will save $10.7MM for the Chargers, who entered free agency among the leaders in cap space. The Bolts have already been busy bolstering their defense, headlined by the additions of Khalil Mack and J.C. Jackson. The team’s cap-space figure bumps back up beyond $20MM with the news of the Bulaga release.
The longtime Packers right tackle signed a three-year, $30MM contract with the Chargers in 2020 to be their right-edge protector. He ended up missing six games in 2020 and 16 last season, making this cut widely expected.
The Chargers used Storm Norton as their replacement right tackle. Norton remains under contract, but it would not surprise if Los Angeles attempted to upgrade. The team also has a hole at right guard, where Oday Aboushi and Michael Schofield are free agents.
Bulaga’s career is at a crossroads after this Bolts decision. He will turn 33 next week and has now missed more than 10 games in three seasons — 2013, 2017 and 2021. The former first-round pick underwent core muscle surgery in October. The Iowa product has made 122 career starts, breaking in for Green Bay’s Super Bowl-winning team as a rookie in 2010 and signing an extension to stay with the Packers in 2015.
Texans To Re-Sign TE Pharaoh Brown
The Texans continue to bring back some of their in-house players. The team is re-signing tight end Pharaoh Brown on a one-year deal worth up to $4MM (Twitter link via NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport).
Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson adds that $3MM of the total is fully guaranteed, while playing time incentives give the deal its potential value of $4MM (Twitter link). If Brown can reach the maximum, he would double his earnings from last season.
The 27-year-old joined the Raiders as a UDFA in 2017. He then spent one season with his hometown Cleveland Browns, though he recorded just two catches. He has spent the last two years in Houston, where his production has seen a notable increase.
In 28 games with the Texans (including 21 starts), Brown has posted 37 receptions for 334 yards and two touchdowns. By keeping him in the fold, the Texans are obviously pleased with the steps forward he has taken during his time with them.
Houston should still have enough cap room to make more moves, either by way of retaining more of their promising players from last season, or outside additions such as that of M.J. Stewart made earlier today.
Colts To Re-Sign LB Zaire Franklin
The Colts have plenty of cap space to work with, but a number of holes to fill on their roster. They took a step towards keeping part of their defense intact today, however. The team is re-signing linebacker Zaire Franklin on a three-year, $12MM deal (Twitter link via PFF’s Doug Kyed). The contract includes $4MM in guaranteed money.
Franklin, 25, was drafted in the seventh round by the Colts in 2018. He made it onto the roster right away, establishing himself as a core special teamer. His role in the third phase has grown since then, as he has played 80% of ST snaps in the past three campaigns.
Defensively, the Syracuse product took on a bigger workload in 2021. He played a career-high 200 defensive snaps, and started 11 of the 17 games in appeared in. He totalled 4o tackles, one interception and two pass breakups. Seen as an ascending talent, he was in line for a healthy raise compared to the earnings from his rookie contract.
With a value of $4MM per year on average, Franklin will rank second on the team in terms of annual compensation amongst the team’s linebackers, behind only Darius Leonard. With the likes of Bobby Okereke and Malik Jefferson facing free agency next year, having Franklin under contract for the medium-term future is significant for the team.
Jets To Sign S Jordan Whitehead
Following Alex Cappa‘s defection to the Bengals, another Buccaneers starter is leaving. The Jets are signing Jordan Whitehead, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com tweets. It’s a two-year agreement, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com tweets.
A veteran safety, Whitehead joins cornerback D.J. Reed in a Jets secondary that has added two starters Tuesday afternoon. Whitehead worked as a starter throughout his four-year Bucs career, helping the team mount its run to Super Bowl LV. The soon-to-be 25-year-old DB is signing for $14.5MM, CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson tweets.
[RELATED: Jets Re-Sign DB Lamarcus Joyner]
Tampa Bay drafted Whitehead in the 2018 fourth round, and he started 55 games for the team over the course of his rookie contract. The Bucs gave Carlton Davis a new deal but have opted to let Whitehead and M.J. Stewart leave from their homegrown secondary. Two years remain on Antoine Winfield Jr.‘s rookie pact.
Whitehead, a Pitt alum, forced two fumbles during the 2020 playoffs and stood out during the Bucs’ Round 1 win over the Eagles this past season. In 2021, Whitehead allowed a career-low 62.6 passer rating when targeted and yielded a career-low (by far) 8.6 yards per completion.
The Jets ranked last in both points and yards allowed in 2021, giving Robert Saleh a long way to go as he aims to elevate the team’s capabilities on this side of the ball. Reed and Whitehead represent nice steps here. The Jets have long been expected to part ways with Marcus Maye, who is a free agent after suffering an injury during his franchise tag season.
Lions To Re-Sign Kalif Raymond
Kalif Raymond‘s first season in Detroit was the most productive of his career, and it appears to have earned him an extended stint with the team. The Lions are re-signing the receiver/returner, reports NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo (Twitter link). 
[RELATED: Lions To Sign DJ Chark]
Raymond, 27, signed in Detroit last year. That came after the Titans elected not to tender him as a restricted free agent. The move surprised some, given that he had established himself as one of the best returners in the league. He had averaged nine yards per punt return in his lone season in Nashville, a figure he improved upon with the Lions.
Raymond turned 21 punt returns into 236 yards in 2021, good for an average of 11.2 yards per runback. The more notable aspect of his inaugural season in the Motor City, though, was his career year as a receiver. He posted 48 catches for 576 yards and four touchdowns. Those numbers stand in stark contrast to what he had done previously, as he totalled only 19 receptions prior to last season.
With Raymond staying in Detroit, the Lions’ WR corps continues to take shape. The team is set to add former Jaguar DJ Chark, in addition to the recently re-signed Josh Reynolds. Those two, along with Amon-Ra St. Brown, should give the team an improved passing attack in 2022.