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NFL Minor Transactions: 5/20/25

May 20th, 2025 at 8:38pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Houston Texans

  • Signed: DB Keydrain Calligan

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Moose Muhammad III was a notable UDFA signing by the Panthers considering his connection to the organization. The wide receiver’s father is Muhsin Muhammad, who is in the franchise’s Hall of Fame. Unfortunately, the younger Muhammad suffered an undisclosed injury that cost him his roster spot, although he’ll likely pass through waivers and land on the team’s IR.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/20/25

May 20th, 2025 at 7:49pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s draft pick signings:

Detroit Lions

Kansas City Chiefs

The Lions continue to chip away at their draft class, with only their first-round pick (DT Tyleik Williams) and second-round pick (G Tate Ratledge) remaining unsigned. The Lions clearly have high hopes for the latest signing, as the team used the 70th-overall pick on Isaac TeSlaa. The wideout had his most productive collegiate season in 2024, finishing with 545 receiving yards and three touchdowns. The rookie may have a tough time carving out a role on a deep depth chart in 2025, but he could eventually work his way into the starting lineup next to Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams.

Nohl Williams led all of college football with seven interceptions last season, and the Chiefs were quick to scoop him up with the 85th pick in this year’s draft. The Chiefs added Kristian Fulton in free agency this year, so the rookie will likely be eyeing a backup role to begin the 2025 campaign. With the signing, the Chiefs’ only remaining unsigned draft pick is second-round DT Omarr Norman-Lott.

Browns Sign Shedeur Sanders To Rookie Contract

May 19th, 2025 at 9:09pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Browns have signed rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders to a four-year rookie deal, per a team announcement.

Sanders, the 144th overall selection in last month’s draft, will earn $4.6MM on his first NFL contract, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, including a $447,380 signing bonus. Like all fifth-round picks, he did not receive any guaranteed money beyond his signing bonus.

Once projected to be a first-round pick, the former Colorado star lost out on millions of dollars after falling all the way to Day 3. In comparison, the last pick in the first round, Josh Simmons, signed a fully-guaranteed rookie contract with the Chiefs worth $14.7MM. Even if Sanders was drafted on Day 2, he would have received a significantly better deal in terms of total value and guaranteed money.

However, Sanders still has far more earning potential than the average fifth-round pick after signing endorsement deals with several major brands, including Nike and Beats By Dre. Those sponsorships started during Sanders’ time at Colorado and continued throughout the pre-draft process, indicating that they will carry over into his NFL career. However, it’s unclear how long they will last; Sanders may have to win a starting job in Cleveland to earn further extensions.

If Sanders does emerge as the Browns’ starter on his rookie deal, he would immediately be one of the most cost-effective quarterbacks in the NFL. His $1.16MM APY is less than what Easton Stick and Jarrett Stidham are earning as potential third-string quarterbacks for the Falcons and the Broncos this year, per OverTheCap.

Whether it’s Sanders or third-round pick Dillon Gabriel, a cheap long-term option under center would go a long way in helping Cleveland move forward financially after the disastrous Deshaun Watson deal. His contract still has $170MM remaining in fully-guaranteed money, all due across the next three years.

Chargers, First-Round RB Omarion Hampton Agree To Deal

May 19th, 2025 at 2:48pm CST by Adam La Rose

Omarion Hampton is the latest first-round pick from last month’s draft to agree to terms on their rookie deal. The Chargers’ top pick is on the books, Jordan Schultz of Fox Sports reports. The move is now official, per a team announcement.

As Schultz notes, Hampton’s four-year pact is worth $17.77MM. It includes a $9.56MM signing bonus. Like with all Day 1 picks, the Chargers will have the opportunity to pick up Hampton’s fifth-year option and in doing so keep him under team control through 2029.

The North Carolina product was long seen as one of the top prospects in a deep 2025 RB class. Hampton led the ACC in rushing during his sophomore campaign en route to first-team All-Conference and All-American honors. He did the same last year and along the way upped his touchdown total to 40 in three seasons. Across each of the past two campaigns, Hampton averaged 5.9 yards per carry despite logging a heavy workload both times.

As a result, it came as no surprise when he joined Ashton Jeanty in hearing his name called on the opening night of the draft. Hampton – who was long connected to the Broncos at No. 20 given their well-known desire to add in the backfield – remained on the board past Denver’s first selection. In the end, he was selected 22nd overall.

The Bolts inked Najee Harris to a one-year, $5.25MM deal in free agency, bringing in the former Steelers first-rounder as a candidate to handle lead back duties. Harris remained durable and consistent during his four years in Pittsburgh, but it did not come as a surprise to see him depart on the open market. A lack of efficiency and explosive runs have been a source of criticism throughout Harris’ career, and a Day 1 rookie addition certainly leaves the door open to his workload being lower on his second team than it was on his first.

The Chargers were one of two teams to apply the rarely-used UFA tender this offseason, and as a result they will be eligible to receive a compensatory pick if another team signs J.K. Dobbins before July 22. The team will retain exclusive negotiating rights with the former Ravens second-rounder if he remains unsigned after that date. Dobbins handled starting duties upon reuniting with offensive coordinator Greg Roman in 2024, but with Hampton in place it will be interesting to see if he takes part in a follow-up Los Angeles campaign.

Today’s news leaves second-round receiver Tre Harris as the only member of the Chargers’ draft class without their rookie deal in hand. Taking care of that will still leave the team with plenty of cap space for late-offseason moves.

Ravens, Derrick Henry Agree On Extension

May 19th, 2025 at 2:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

MAY 19: Henry’s deal is now official, and Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio notes it includes a signing bonus of $11.75MM. The pact also contains $1MM roster bonuses for the next two years, with 2025’s guaranteed. Henry’s base salaries for this year ($1.26MM) and next ($1.3MM) are fully locked in, as is a $9.7MM option bonus for the 2026 campaign.

A decision will need to be made by the Ravens ahead of the 2027 season, one in which Henry’s $11MM salary is not guaranteed. When speaking publicly on Monday after signing the deal, he declined to say whether or not he intends to continue playing by that point (h/t ESPN’s Jamison Hensley), but for at least two more years Henry’s future is assured.

MAY 14: The Ravens’ rumored Derrick Henry extension will come to pass. After a dominant Baltimore debut, extension discussions began. Weeks later, the All-Pro back is now signed beyond 2025.

Baltimore will extend Henry on a two-year, $30MM deal, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. Henry will see $25MM fully guaranteed. Delivering a monster age-30 season, Henry is now signed through 2027. This deal certainly puts the former Titans star on track to finish his career as a Raven.

Previously attached to a two-year, $16MM deal, Henry entered the 2024 free agency period with mileage concerns. Those helped keep his previously full guarantee ($9MM) low. As Saquon Barkley ($26MM) and D’Andre Swift ($14MM) received far more lucrative at-signing numbers last year, Henry did not receive comparable interest. The Ravens had targeted the likely Hall of Fame-bound back before the 2023 trade deadline, however, and they kept that interest in pairing him with Lamar Jackson a year later. Henry rewarded the AFC North team, helping it claim another division title.

Henry became only the second running back this century to gain at least 1,900 yards and fail to land a first-team All-Pro nod, joining ex-Packer Ahman Green (2003). It took a historic Barkley stampede to deny Henry that. Henry, however, led the NFL with 16 rushing touchdowns during his 1,921-yard rampage.

After the Eagles rewarded last year’s first-team All-Pro RB with a deal that included $36MM fully guaranteed, the Ravens will give their bulldozing starter a guarantee near the top tier at the position. Henry’s $25MM ranks behind only Barkley’s number and Ashton Jeanty‘s rookie contract among locked-in money at the position. It provides the 10th-year veteran considerable security for 2026, providing a clear sign the former Heisman winner will play beyond this season.

This Ravens decision represents a tremendous commitment to a player who is 31 and has logged 2,355 career carries — most among any back on a current roster. Henry has a 639-carry edge on Joe Mixon, who sits in second among active RBs. Henry has now secured two big-ticket extensions during his career. This one, despite Henry’s age, nearly eclipses his 2020 Titans accord in guarantees. That deal, agreed to at the 2020 franchise tag deadline, brought $25.5MM locked in.

Though, Henry needed to sign for four years to secure that number. The Ravens are authorizing this lofty guarantee over two based on his status as one of the most reliable RBs in NFL history. Henry has six 1,000-yard seasons on his resume; last year’s showing checked in nearly 400 yards clear of every non-2020 slate for the former rushing champ. Since he gave way to DeMarco Murray early in his career, all six have come since 2018.

Joining Barkley in making a significant difference for his team as a 2024 free agent signing, Henry will have a chance to move the Ravens back to a Super Bowl over the next two seasons. Baltimore is still taking a risk by making such a lucrative 2026 commitment for a player at Henry’s age, but the team is betting on the durable — save for a 2021 foot injury — back continuing to pound away. This durability has allowed Henry to accumulate more than $74MM during his career; Wednesday’s agreement will push that number to the $100MM doorstep.

Precise details of Henry’s new contract are still being reported, but it should reduce his 2025 cap hit, which was originally just under $13MM. That will give the Ravens some more breathing room with the salary cap as they finish signing their 2025 draft class and make their annual summer veteran additions, which could include a safety after Ar’Darius Washington‘s torn Achilles.

As for cashflow, Henry will received $14MM in 2025 and $11MM in 2026, according to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, representing all of his fully guaranteed money He’ll be due another $12MM in cash in 2027, which is essentially a team option year since none of his salary is guaranteed.

By then, Henry will be 33 years old, far past the retirement age for most NFL running backs. If he and the Ravens have captured their elusive Super Bowl win by then, he could hang up the cleats and start preparing his Hall of Fame acceptance speech. If not, he may run it back in Baltimore for one last shot at a Lombardi before he retires.

Nikhil Mehta contributed to this post.

49ers, Brock Purdy Agree To Extension

May 18th, 2025 at 9:04pm CST by Adam La Rose

MAY 18: Purdy’s extension with the 49ers also includes a full no-trade clause for the duration of the contract, per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo. That has become standard practice for major quarterback extensions, though it remains unclear if Purdy received a clause preventing San Francisco from applying the franchise tag on him at the end of the deal.

MAY 17: While a rolling guarantee structure will help protect Purdy down the line, he still is believed to have received a nine-figure guarantee at signing. The 49ers are giving their franchise QB $100MM locked in up front, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco reports. Purdy becomes the 12th active QB to secure a $100MM full guarantee.

Passers earning less per year (from Deshaun Watson to Lamar Jackson to Justin Herbert to Kyler Murray) secured more at signing, though it will be interesting to learn how the 49ers have structured Purdy’s rolling guarantees. The seventh-round success story, who secured all of $77K when he signed his rookie deal, should see more guarantees vest a year out moving forward.

MAY 16: Brock Purdy will not need to wait until training camp to ink his extension. The 49ers’ starting quarterback agreed to a deal Friday, Tom Pelissero, Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL Network report.

This will be a five-year, $265MM pact, Purdy’s agent informed the NFLN trio. The league’s latest monster QB deal includes $181MM in total guarantees; that figure consists of $165.05MM covering the next three seasons. Purdy is now on the books through 2030. The $181MM amount represents the injury guarantee, and Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer notes it contains a rolling structure.

San Francisco has long known a mega-pact was coming in this case. Whereas many of the team’s big-ticket extensions have dragged into the summer during recent years, that will not be the case with respect to Purdy. The former ‘Mr. Irrelevant’ has handled starting duties since midway through his rookie campaign, and that will remain the case – as the team hoped – for many years to come.

Purdy was due to collect a base salary of $5.35MM in 2025, the final year of his rookie pact. A massive raise was known to be in store, and negotiations began not long after the end of the season. Progress was made in relatively short order, and general manager John Lynch targeted voluntary offseason workouts as a timeline for an agreement to be in place. Indeed, prior to the start of San Francisco’s OTAs, the team’s most impactful piece of business has been taken care of. The fact Purdy was present for the beginning of voluntary work last month represented a clear sign this agreement was close.

This deal’s AAV of $53MM moves Purdy into a tie for seventh amongst quarterbacks in terms of annual earnings. The 25-year-old is on level terms with Jared Goff and narrowly behind Tua Tagovailoa in that respect; both of their deals were signed last offseason. In all, 11 signal-callers are now attached to a pact averaging at least $51MM per year.

Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo going down with season-ending injuries in 2022 opened the door for Purdy to take over as the team’s starter. The Iowa State product helped lead San Francisco to the NFC title game that year and to the Super Bowl during the following campaign. Despite making a clear error by trading up to the No. 3 slot in 2021 to draft Lance, the 49ers have thus received stable QB play (and at a fraction of the cost of veteran passers, of course). That will no longer be the case moving forward, but expectations will remain high for the team’s offense.

Throughout his tenure in the Bay Area, Purdy has enjoyed the benefits of San Francisco’s left tackle and skill-position investments. Wideout Deebo Samuel was traded earlier this offseason, but Trent Williams, Brandon Aiyuk, Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle – himself the recipient of a recent extension – remain in the fold. Purdy saw his league-leading yards per attempt average (9.6) drop to 8.5 from 2023 to ’24, but a rebound could be in store provided the team can avoid the injury issues of last year.

While much of San Francisco’s offensive core has remained intact this spring, the team’s defense has undergone a number of changes. The need to budget for this Purdy extension represented a key reason for that, but in general a number of new faces will be counted on to contribute right away at important positions. The 49ers made 11 selections during last year’s draft and in doing so added necessary cost-effective options to compensate for the surge in operating cost under center.

Questions linger about how much longer the 49ers’ current core (which still includes All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner, likely the team’s next extension priority) will remain intact and thus whether or not San Francisco’s Super Bowl window is closing. The extent to which a return to contention will take place in 2025 but also well beyond that point will be driven in large part by Purdy’s ability to deliver on expectations while playing out this deal.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/16/25

May 16th, 2025 at 8:58pm CST by Ely Allen

Friday’s only mid- to late-round draft pick signing from the 2025 NFL Draft:

Cleveland Browns

Fannin holds outstanding potential as a third-round pick for Cleveland. After a quiet freshman year for the Falcons, Fannin earned first-team All-MAC honors despite missing two games in his sophomore campaign with 44 catches for 623 yards and six touchdowns. In 2024, Fannin took his impressive play even further as he outpaced all of the NCAA’s best receivers with a nation-leading 119.6 yards per game, a nation-leading 117 receptions, a nation-leading 1,555 yards, and 10 touchdowns. For comparison, first-round tight ends Colston Loveland and Tyler Warren averaged 58.2 and 77.1 yards per game, respectively.

Regardless, Fannin was the sixth tight end taken off the board. A reason for that is likely because he lacks the size to be an effective in-line blocker in the NFL. Fannin’s best use would likely be as a type of H-back, thanks to his explosiveness as a pass catcher.

The Browns already have David Njoku, who made a Pro Bowl just two years ago, but they also got some disturbing déjà vu when he missed six games last year. Njoku hasn’t played in every game of a season since his first two years in the league. Since then, Njoku has missed 26 out of 100 possible games. He’d been better from 2021-23, missing only four games over that three-year span, but last year was a reminder of what’s ailed the Browns offense in the past, and Fannin may be an attempt to prevent too much lost production should Njoku struggle with his health again.

Fannin is the first of Cleveland’s seven drafted rookies to sign their initial four-year contracts.

49ers Add K Greg Joseph

May 16th, 2025 at 8:19pm CST by Ely Allen

The 49ers grabbed quite a few headlines when they used a third-round pick on Michigan kicker Jake Moody two years ago. Through two seasons, Moody has not exactly inspired confidence in his long-term prospects at the position. According to NFL agent Brett Tessler, San Francisco has signed his client, Greg Joseph, as some offseason competition for Moody on a one-year deal.

Joseph has been in the NFL since 2018, playing for six teams in that time, including three in just the last year. Counting teams he rostered with but failed to play for, the 49ers will be his 12th team overall and his sixth since August 2024. His longest stay in one place came during a three-year stretch with the Vikings. from 2021-23.

Perhaps the reason why he’s struggled to stick anywhere, Joseph has often struggle with accuracy and consistency. While he made all 11 of his extra point attempts last season, he’s missed 16 in his career. He’s also only missed one field goal attempt inside of 40 yards, but outside of that, Joseph is a disappointing 44 of 68 (64.7%) — 27 of 38 (71.1%) from 40-49 yards and 17 of 30 (56.7%) from 50+.

The thing is, Moody hasn’t been too much better. The third-year kicker is much more reliable on extra points (90 of 92 in his career), but the 2024 season saw him struggle mightily from distance. Like Joseph, Moody only has one miss (out of 30 attempts) from inside the 30-yard line. As a rookie, Moody only had three misses from longer than that — two from 40-49 and one from 50+. In his sophomore campaign, though, Moody missed half of his 20 attempts from 40 yards or over — five from 40-49 and five from 50+. A high ankle sprain suffered in Week 5 of the season is thought to have made an impact on his sophomore slump.

Regardless, 49ers new special teams coordinator Brant Boyer has been encouraged by his small bit of offseason time spent with Moody. Per Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports, Boyer validated that he, too, had Moody as the No. 1 kicker in the 2023 draft class, saying, “He’s as talented of a kid as it gets.” He also feels the addition of long snapper Jon Weeks, who is set to replace Taybor Pepper at the position, will potentially help Moody, as well.

Moody was the highest kicker drafted since Roberto Aguayo went in the second round in 2016 and was only the fifth kicker since 2000 to be drafted in the third round or sooner. Investing that kind of draft capital in a specialist comes with an expectation of elite play, and Moody has failed to deliver on those expectations so far. San Francisco hasn’t given up on him yet, but it appears they’ll bring in some competition, at the very least, to motivate their struggling 25-year-old.

They already brought in undrafted kicker Kenneth Almendares, who capped off a seven-year collegiate career at Louisiana by winning the 2024 Lou Groza Award, given to the best kicker in the NCAA, for a rookie minicamp tryout, but apparently, no deal was reached. Now Joseph will have his turn to push Moody to retain his job.

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/16/25

May 16th, 2025 at 6:43pm CST by Ely Allen

Friday’s minor NFL moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Kansas City Chiefs

New York Jets

Every team has, at this point, officially announced their initial list of undrafted free agent rookie signings. Still, undrafted rookies continue to find opportunities here and there in the wake of the draft.

Since the departure of Alex Mack, the Falcons have been unable to find stability at the center position. Since then, Matt Hennessy, Drew Dalman, and Ryan Neuzil have been tasked with filling the role. Dalman was a dependable option for a bit, but injury caused him to miss 11 games in the past two years. Neuzil filled in for eight starts last year, and the former undrafted free agent stands to take the starting job in 2025.

Atlanta will provide him no shortage of competition, though, with depth at the position coming in the form of Gonzalez, former seventh-round pick Jovaughn Gwyn, and former undrafted free agent Matthew Cindric. Gonzalez also brings some versatility to the line after starting games at both guard and tackle at Louisville.

Fletcher transferred to Appalachian State after four years at Michigan State. He never really got on the field much with the Spartans, only earning three starts, but he immediately made an impact for the Mountaineers. In his two years with the team, Fletcher tallied 8.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss.

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