| NFC EAST |
| PHILADELPHIAThe Eagles get into the offseason acquisition game taking a top corner from the Super Bowl champs. ESPN.com: Free agent cornerback Riq Woolen reached agreement Tuesday on a one-year deal worth up to $15 million with the Philadelphia Eagles, agent Jason Chayut told ESPN. Woolen leaves the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks to join the Eagles, giving the team a candidate to start opposite Quinyon Mitchell. Woolen is the first outside free agent the Eagles have reached agreement with since the free agent negotiating period began Monday. He is the latest key player to leave the Seahawks in free agency, joining Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III, defensive end Boye Mafe and defensive back Coby Bryant. Woolen, 26, capped an up-and-down four seasons in Seattle by helping the Seahawks win Super Bowl LX while serving as their No. 3 corner for most of the year. Woolen is a supremely gifted player who, at his best, is one of the NFL’s better ball hawks. Since he entered the league as a fifth-round pick in 2022, his 41 pass breakups are tied for most in the league among all defenders and his 12 interceptions are fourth most among corners. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Woolen has an elite blend of size and speed. He lit up the 2022 scouting combine when he ran a 4.26 in the 40-yard dash and recorded a 42-inch vertical jump. He nonetheless fell to pick No. 151 in large part because he had played only two full seasons at cornerback in college, having started his career at the University of Texas at San Antonio as a wide receiver. Viewed as a project pick, Woolen won a starting job out of camp as a rookie and made the Pro Bowl after tying for the league lead with six interceptions, including one he returned for a touchdown. Woolen’s play since then, though, has been marked by inconsistency. In 2024, his 78.7 passer rating against as the nearest defender ranked 16th out of 77 defenders with at least 500 coverage snaps, per NFL Next Gen Stats. But Woolen was on the wrong end of critical mistakes late in games, including the decisive touchdown in a December loss to the Minnesota Vikings. He was benched for the opening drive of that game because of an undisclosed violation of team rules. In the 2025 opener, Woolen misplayed two throws on the San Francisco 49ers’ winning drive — a 45-yard completion down the sideline and the decisive touchdown in the end zone. He lost his job as the No. 2 corner to Josh Jobe, though he ended up with almost exactly as many snaps and turned his season around after its rough start. Over the first six weeks, Woolen’s 116.3 passer rating against ranked 82nd. Over the final 12, his mark of 57.2 ranked sixth. |
| NFC SOUTH |
| ATLANTABill Barnwell of ESPN.com likes the fit with QB TUA TAGOVIALOA in Atlanta: Winner: Tua TagovailoaMost “winners” don’t start the first day of free agency by being released from the only pro team they’ve ever known, so I understand why there would be some hesitation in naming Tagovailoa as a winner here. Obviously, he’s operating under very unique circumstances. The Dolphins are paying their former franchise quarterback $54 million in 2026, which is one heck of a safety net as Tagovailoa hit free agency for the first time as a pro. Leaving all that aside, though, Tagovailoa was facing an uncertain future. There were only a handful of teams with real paths toward a starting job. The Dolphins, one of those teams, were about to sign Malik Willis. Tagovailoa wasn’t going to ever be a great fit for a Browns team that’s turning over its entire offensive line this offseason. If we assume the Raiders are about to draft Fernando Mendoza, that leaves the Cardinals, Falcons, Jets and Steelers as potential landing spots. Of those four, the Falcons felt like the best opportunity. The Jets and Steelers play in cold-weather cities, where Tagovailoa has struggled down the stretch in recent years. The Cardinals would have Tagovailoa in a training camp battle with Jacoby Brissett. In Atlanta, Tagovailoa will get to play in a dome. He’ll have the inside track to the starting job because of Michael Penix Jr.’s torn ACL. The Falcons had an excellent Bijan Robinson-led running game in 2025, and they were already built to accommodate a left-handed quarterback. New coach Kevin Stefanski also leaned heavily into a left-sided boot action game despite fielding right-handed quarterbacks during his time in Cleveland, which should be an easy fit for Tagovailoa. We’ll see how Stefanski’s system fits what Tagovailoa wants to do as a passer. At its best, Stefanski’s offense in Cleveland was an under-center, play-action-heavy attack, with the quarterback turning his back to the defense before hitting shots for chunk plays. Tagovailoa was in an entirely different offense with the Dolphins, with about 89% of his dropbacks over the past four years coming out of the pistol or shotgun. He was asked to make quick, accurate passes and create YAC opportunities for his receivers, and at his best, he was able to put plenty of points up on the scoreboard. Will the Falcons’ offense meet somewhere in the middle? We’ll have to see, but Tagovailoa’s clearest path to playing with solid help around him was in Atlanta. That’s a victory on a day that otherwise felt ominous for the 28-year-old quarterback. |
| NFC WEST |
| LOS ANGELES RAMSJori Epstein of YahooSports.com liked the moves to bolster the Rams secondary: Winners Matthew Stafford’s chance at another ring: When Matthew Stafford accepted his MVP award on stage with his four daughters last month, the now 38-year-old confirmed he’ll return for another run with the Los Angeles Rams. The Seahawks edged the Rams in the NFC championship game by 4 points, despite Stafford’s 374-yard, three-touchdown performance. That’s because Seattle was able to pick apart the Rams’ weakness: their secondary, particularly their cornerbacks. Now, Los Angeles is pivoting from its strategy to hope a strong defensive front will elevate a shaky secondary. The Rams instead traded for Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie and signed Chiefs cornerback Jaylen Watson to add talented players with playoff experience. Neither came cheap. As long as Stafford stays healthy, that should position the Rams right back in the strongest group of contenders ahead of the 2026 season. |
| AFC WEST |
| KANSAS CITYTE TRAVIS KELCE is back for one more year, with inspiration from fiancée Taylor Swift. Anjali Thakur of YahooSports.com: Travis Kelce is not ready to walk away from football just yet. The star tight end of the Kansas City Chiefs has confirmed he will return for another NFL season. After months of rumors, Kelce finally cleared the air and revealed that a big reason behind his decision was his fiancée, Taylor Swift. Kelce shared the news during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on March 10. “Making another run at it, baby. Making another run at it,” Kelce said exuberantly on The Pat McAfee Show. “It’s amazing to see her [Swift] keep going to the table, keep finding new things to write about, keep finding new melodies,” Kelce said on the Pat McAfee Show. “And still seeing her have that love and joy in what she does. Yeah, of course that’s motivating.” “That’s motivating for anybody to see, let alone my fiancée and knowing that I’m going through something where I’m trying to figure out exactly what the future holds for me. Something like that definitely motivates me to say, ‘You know what? I’m not done, either. I still got some ideas in the back of my mind. I’ve still got some juice left to play this game.’” Swift’s dedication to her music inspired Kelce. Seeing her passion for her work reminded him of how much he still loves football. That motivation helped him realize he was not ready to step away from the game yet. The 36-year-old also shared that his passion for football remains strong. Even after many years in the league, the veteran tight end said he still enjoys the hard work and daily routine that come with playing in the NFL. However, the 2025 season did not bring the same big numbers Kelce has delivered for most of his career. The veteran tight end finished the year with 76 receptions on 108 targets for 851 yards and five touchdowns, which were among his lowest totals in the last decade. Even so, he remained a key part of the Chiefs’ offense and earned his 11th straight Pro Bowl selection. Kansas City’s season also ended disappointingly. The team failed to reach the playoffs, marking the first time the franchise missed the postseason since 2014. During the closing weeks of the season, Kelce admitted he was unsure about what the future held and said he would give everything he had in the final games of the year. Things became even tougher for the Chiefs late in the season when quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a season-ending ACL injury in Week 15 against the Los Angeles Chargers. With their star quarterback out and the season slipping away, Kelce and the team still pushed through the final stretch before the veteran tight end eventually took time to decide on his future. Watching Taylor Swift remain passionate about her work reminded him that he still loved football. That motivation helped him realize he still had more to give to the game. Now that the decision is made, Kelce is focused on another season with Kansas City. And for the veteran tight end, the chance to run it back with familiar faces in the Chiefs locker room played a big role in that choice. For Travis Kelce, another big reason to return is the group around him in Kansas City. The veteran tight end said he is excited to keep playing with quarterback Patrick Mahomes and head coach Andy Reid. Kelce also spoke about the environment inside the team and why it made the decision easier for him. “I think my best opportunity was playing for the Chiefs yet again and running this thing back with Pat Mahomes and Coach Reid,” Kelce said. “There’s a lot of pieces in Kansas City that I absolutely love.” While speaking with host Pat McAfee, Kelce said the Chiefs organization always knew where he stood as he considered his future. According to the veteran tight end, the process did not last long once he stepped back and thought about it. Kelce also mentioned the return of coach Eric Bieniemy as another reason he is excited for the upcoming season. Bieniemy was hired in January to be the team’s offensive coordinator, the same role he held from 2018 to 2022, and the same period when the tight end performed his best. Therefore, having familiar coaches and teammates around him made the decision much easier. At the same time, reports about his contract also surfaced. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Kelce agreed to a one-year deal with Kansas City worth at least $12 million, with a max of $15 million. Kelce has already built a legendary career with the Chiefs and helped the franchise win multiple Super Bowls. With Mahomes still leading the offense and the team remaining competitive, the veteran believes another championship push is possible. For now, Kelce looks ready for the next chapter. With another NFL season ahead and his wedding with Taylor Swift also coming up, the Chiefs star appears energized about both football and life off the field. |
| LAS VEGASThe Raiders are not EDGE MAXX CROSBY to Baltimore after all. Ryan McFadden of ESPN.com: The Las Vegas Raiders announced Tuesday that the Ravens have backed out of a trade agreement that would’ve sent All-Pro defensive end Maxx Crosby to Baltimore in exchange for two first-round picks. No further details were provided in the Raiders’ announcement, but league sources told ESPN the Ravens backed out due to medical concerns that arose during a physical. The Raiders were set to meet Tuesday night to try to figure out their next steps, according to sources. It is unclear whether the deal can be revived in some form, but this puts the Raiders in a difficult situation due to all of the money they’ve already committed to outside free agents. The Raiders were big spenders on Monday. They used the league’s most cap space to sign All-Pro center Tyler Linderbaum, one of the top free agents, to a three-year, $81 million deal that includes $60 million guaranteed, sources told ESPN. The Raiders also strengthened their defense by signing linebackers Quay Walker (three-year, $40.5 million) and Nakobe Dean (three-year, $36 million), edge rusher Kwity Paye (three-year, $48 million), while re-signing cornerback Eric Stokes (three-year, $30 million) and edge rusher Malcolm Koonce (one-year, $11 million). Las Vegas also added Jalen Nailor (three-year, $35 million) to improve its wide receiver room. The Raiders’ agreement with the Ravens would have set Crosby to Baltimore, with the Raiders receiving the 14th overall pick in April’s draft and a first-round pick in 2027. The move would’ve been made official at the start of the new league year on Wednesday, ending Crosby’s seven-year career with the Raiders. More from Jordan Dajani of CBSSports.com: Crosby underwent surgery on the meniscus in his left knee on Jan. 8. Ian Rapoport reports that Baltimore did not want to invest two first-round picks given what the Ravens’ medical experts found during Crosby’s examination. This is a fascinating development for a number of reasons. Crosby was shut down by the Raiders with two games remaining in the 2025 regular season due to his knee injury, and it was a decision he “vehemently” disagreed with, according to Fox. This was something that upset Crosby so much, that NFL Media reported it would cause him to evaluate his future with the franchise. Crosby never came out and said he wanted a trade, but there was intense speculation that he wanted out. When the Raiders shut down Crosby in December, the franchise published a statement which claimed multiple medical professionals recommended the five-time Pro Bowler be sidelined: “We have made the decision to place Maxx Crosby on the Reserve/Injured list for the remainder of the 2025 season. After deliberate and thorough consultation with multiple top medical professionals, it became clear that this decision is in the best interest of both the franchise and the player. Maxx is the ultimate warrior, and he has fought extremely hard to compete each week with his teammates since injuring his knee mid-season.” Crosby was expected to need months to recover from his knee surgery. That was obviously understood by the Ravens medical staff. But whatever they found during this physical exam worried them enough to pull out of a blockbuster deal. What will the Raiders do now? Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com: The Cowboys were in on Maxx Crosby, before he was tentatively traded to the Ravens. They’re now out. Per multiple reports, the Cowboys won’t re-engage the Raiders for a possible trade for Crosby. Via Jane Slater of NFL Media, an unnamed team source said “we’ve moved on with Rashan Gary.” And while, yes, the Cowboys did indeed trade for the former Packers edge rusher, this is Maxx Crosby we’re talking about. All due respect to Rashan Gary, but it’s Maxx Freakin’ Crosby. The Cowboys could be setting the stage to squeeze the Raiders, if they get desperate to move him, now that their best offer has evaporated like a puddle of piss in the Patagonian Desert. For now, though, the Cowboys have officially moved on from a possible Maxx Crosby trade. |
| AFC NORTH |
| BALTIMOREMore on the failed EDGE MAXX CROSBY trade from Bill Barnwell of ESPN.com: Crosby underwent a meniscus repair as opposed to trimming his meniscus, which matters in a couple of ways. A meniscus trim allows a player to recover more quickly than a repair, but teams I’ve spoken to in the past about these injuries generally believe that trims create more complications down the line and shorten careers. Meniscus repairs require longer recovery times, but they’re more likely to produce stable knees after recovery and fewer deleterious long-term effects than the trims. Crosby might very well still be recovering from the surgery he underwent at the end of the 2025 season given the typical timeframe. The timing of the trade only made things worse. Both sides wanted to have a Crosby deal done before the weekend and the start of the legal negotiating period Monday. The Raiders were in position to negotiate with the widest range of teams before free agents started flying off the board and teams filled their needs on the edge. The Ravens needed clarity on what their budget would look like with or without Crosby as a number of their standout players hit free agency. But even though the teams agreed to the trade Friday, the deal couldn’t be officially consummated until the start of the new league year Wednesday, by which point Crosby would need to pass a physical. That felt like a formality until it wasn’t. If the trade had happened in early April or in the middle of October, the two sides could have had the physicals done immediately and finished the deal in a matter of hours if they negotiated quietly enough. Here, there were several days between the decision to make the trade and the decision to undo it, and those happen to be some of the most consequential days of the NFL calendar. Did the Ravens just get cold feet and back out because they changed their mind?That’s a $94 million question. You don’t really need to guess what the Raiders are implying here. The Ravens knew Crosby was recovering from meniscus surgery. He’s 28 years old, and one of his calling cards as a pro has been playing a staggering number of snaps. Since entering the league in 2019, Crosby has played 6,449 snaps. He has the two highest single-season defensive snap totals of any defensive lineman — having played 1,038 snaps in 2022 and 1,037 in 2023 — and four of the top 21 over the past seven seasons. The Ravens were never going to go into a physical for a player who has worked as hard as Crosby over the past few years and discover that things were perfect. The Raiders clearly believe that the Ravens are making a meal out of whatever they found and using it as a pretense to change their mind. Is that what actually happened? It would be almost impossible to prove, barring some remarkable smoking gun piece of evidence from inside the Ravens organization. There’s not really any way for the Raiders to hold the Ravens accountable or insist that they follow through on the trade because they’re just pretending Crosby isn’t healthy enough to pass a physical. Though it doesn’t typically happen in high-profile trades, we do see signings affected and even wiped away by failed physicals. These teams have both had a notable signing fall by the wayside over the past 15 years. In 2017, the Ravens signed Washington wideout Ryan Grant to a four-year, $29 million deal with $14.5 million guaranteed, but a physical discovered that a late-season ankle injury was more concerning than the team expected. Baltimore backed out of the deal. The Raiders, meanwhile, signed offensive lineman Rodger Saffold to a five-year, $42.5 million contract in the spring of 2014. While that seems like a modest deal nowadays, Saffold’s $8.5 million average salary would have been the most for any guard in football at the time. The deal was widely panned; at the time, I wrote that it was “mind-boggling and impossible to understand.” It was a massive overpay from an organization that wasn’t attracting many free agents and was more than a decade removed from its most recent winning record. When Saffold came in for his physical, the Raiders were the ones who got cold feet. They failed the Rams guard over concerns about his shoulder and opted out of his deal. Saffold went back into free agency and signed a five-year, $31.3 million deal to return to St. Louis. The Raiders eventually used a third-round pick on Gabe Jackson and slotted him in at left guard instead. For what it’s worth, both teams probably had a point. Saffold underwent surgery on the shoulder that concerned the Raiders after the 2014 season and lasted only five games in 2015 before requiring season-ending surgery on the other shoulder. Grant responded to his Ravens rejection by signing a one-year, $5 million deal with the Colts, but he caught only 39 more passes over the next two years before falling out of the league. You could make a case that both the Raiders and Ravens made prudent decisions at the time, even if they weren’t popular choices. There are three reasons why I don’t believe that the Ravens pretended to use the physical as a pretense to opt out of a new deal they no longer wanted to make. One is the reaction to the news. Though there were people who didn’t really love the Crosby trade — myself included — there was no widespread backlash or suggestion that the Ravens had been fleeced. This was generally a popular trade with Ravens fans. If this were a wildly unpopular deal that made the Ravens national laughingstocks, there might be some reason to believe that general manager Eric DeCosta and the Baltimore front office would have given it a second thought. That wasn’t the case here. Another is that undoing the trade complicates the short term and long term for the Ravens organizationally. Baltimore players were excited about playing with Crosby. Fans were thrilled to add a superstar. They’re all disappointed now. Even if they don’t believe that the Ravens just changed their mind, teams are going to be more hesitant to talk trades with Baltimore given the perception that it might be more finicky about physicals and prone to reversing deals than other organizations. That wouldn’t stop the Ravens if they really felt that the Crosby deal, the biggest one they’d make over the next decade, would have been a disaster given his health, but it’s not going to make life easier for Baltimore moving forward. And the third reason is the Ravens essentially sat out the first few days of free agency as they waited for the Crosby deal to be finalized, with their only signing so far being guard John Simpson. Though there’s a Trey Hendrickson-sized elephant in the room as an alternative to the Crosby deal, the Ravens aren’t assured of landing the Bengals star. Even if they do sign Hendrickson — and especially if they don’t — the Ravens would have wanted to be more active in free agency over the weekend without the possibility of paying Crosby more than $30 million per year hanging over their heads. Instead, the Ravens lost a handful of meaningful contributors, led by star center Tyler Linderbaum, who signed with these very Raiders. Isaiah Likely left for the Giants, and he was followed by Jordan Stout, Ar’Darius Washington and Patrick Ricard. Dre’Mont Jones signed with the Patriots. Alohi Gilman joined the Chiefs. Charlie Kolar went to the Chargers. The Ravens probably weren’t going to sign Linderbaum given that massive contract number in Vegas, but they very well might have been more competitive on young players such as Kolar or Likely if they had more financial flexibility, let alone looking toward other options in free agency. At the end of the day, nobody outside of Baltimore’s building can ever really know for sure whether the Ravens were strictly reacting to Crosby’s physical, simply changed their mind or some combination of the two. I would argue that the preponderance of the evidence points toward the former. If the Ravens do sign Hendrickson on Wednesday afternoon, though, you’ll understand why conspiracy theories will be spreading like wildfire around the NFL. Can a Crosby trade still happen?With Crosby’s rights reverting back to the Raiders and the Ravens recouping their two first-round picks, both teams can act as if this trade never happened. Having already traded Crosby once, though, the Raiders should still be incentivized to get a deal done as quickly as possible. Though he could theoretically come back and play for another decade in the desert, it’s difficult to imagine either side feeling particularly thrilled about a reunion. The Raiders needed the picks more than they needed Crosby, given how far they are from contending. Crosby was going to finally get to play for a winner and a perennial contender. This could have been a win-win trade. What are the alternatives? Let’s discuss a few potential scenarios for what a new Crosby trade could look like: 1. The Raiders and Ravens could agree to another trade with new terms. The simplest way to resolve this fiasco would be to send Crosby to the Ravens with a less significant package heading back to the Raiders. The Ravens could send a first-round pick and a Day 2 selection instead of two first-rounders. They could send a conditional pick that becomes a first-rounder if Crosby hits a snap or game threshold in 2026. The Raiders could attach a conditional pick in 2028 that goes to the Ravens if Crosby sits out time in 2026 and 2027. On paper, that makes sense. In reality? I’m not sure the Raiders are going to pick up the phone if they see a 410 number show up until 2035 or so. It’s very clear that Mark Davis & Co. feel jilted by what happened, and it’s difficult to believe that they would be willing to accept anything less than what the Ravens initially offered to get a Crosby deal done for a second time with Baltimore. Doing so might encourage teams to try to change terms on deals with the Raiders in the future. And Las Vegas might not be willing to deal any player to the Ravens on principle for a while, let alone Crosby. 2. Another team trades two first-round picks to the Raiders for Crosby this week. Obviously, the best-case scenario for the Raiders right now would be getting a similar haul from another team which doesn’t share the same concerns with the Ravens about Crosby’s medical results. Doing so would both get the Raiders the draft capital they want and implicitly suggest that Las Vegas was right to suggest that the Ravens backed out of the trade for reasons unrelated to the physical. It’s possible that this gets done. If the Ravens were willing to send two first-round picks for Crosby, there were probably other teams that were willing to come close or even match that offer but just pick later in the first round of the 2026 draft than the Ravens (who were sending the No. 14 pick in the tentative swap). Landing a new deal with a team picking in the 20s wouldn’t be quite as appealing, but it would be close enough for the Raiders to feel good about moving out Crosby. But it’s going to be tougher to do this deal now than it would have been a week ago. I’ll get to who might be interested in trading for Crosby in a moment, but teams that felt as if they had missed out on the five-time Pro Bowl selection have already spent some of their resources elsewhere. There won’t be as many franchises in the mix for the Raiders to potentially play off of one another. Knowing that the Raiders were willing to trade Crosby last week, Vegas won’t have the same sort of leverage it had before Friday. There will also be general managers and owners with serious questions about whether the Ravens were right. Trading two first-round picks for a soon-to-be 29-year-old making significant money who couldn’t pass a physical is going to be a very risky proposition for any executive. Even if another team doesn’t share the same medical concerns about Crosby on closer inspection, there will be questions in the building about what the Ravens saw and whether there’s something that should be spooking any new Crosby suitor. Teams know this and will try to lowball the Raiders in their potential offers as a result. 3. Another team trades two first-round picks to the Raiders for Crosby sometime in the months to come. This is unlikely, but it’s possible that Crosby’s meniscus looks better closer to the draft or even afterward, leading a team to feel more comfortable trading two first-round picks. If another team waits until after the draft, it could acquire Crosby in 2026 and hold onto its first-round pick this year while sending their 2027 and 2028 first-rounders to the Raiders, which would be a less valuable and more uncertain offer for Vegas. 4. Another team trades a 2026 first-round pick and something that isn’t a 2027 first-round pick to the Raiders to acquire Crosby. This is the most likely scenario to me. It’s going to be very difficult for the Raiders to land a similarly-sized offer to the one they had from Baltimore. Too many teams that would have been interested are out of the running, so much money has been spent elsewhere, and the teams left will either be nervous about Crosby’s knee or use the threat of those nerves to bring the trade price down. At this point, the previous Ravens offer is mostly irrelevant in terms of negotiating. Vegas general manager John Spytek has to go back to the table and land the best possible deal for Crosby right now. Can the Raiders land a top-15 pick and a third-rounder? A late first-rounder in 2026 and a couple of Day 2 picks over the next couple of years? Will they have to settle for a late first-round pick in 2026 and a second-rounder in 2027? A deal in that ballpark seems realistic to me, even given the concerns about Crosby’s physical. 5. Another team acquires Crosby without needing to send a first-round pick. If Crosby’s medical reports are really as concerning as the Ravens suggest, there might not be a first-round pick in play. There’s always a point where a team would be willing to take a shot on a player of Crosby’s talent, but teams have already typically been loathe to pay premiums on contracts to acquire players as they approach 30. Anyone sending a first-round pick to acquire Crosby is hoping that they’re landing a player who can make an impact on this contract and on a second deal into his mid-30s. At that point, though, I have to believe that the Raiders would simply call things off. The organization seemed ready to move Crosby, but this wasn’t a situation in which the Raiders were going to be willing to simply take the best available offer if what was on the table wasn’t any better than a Day 2 pick. It was always going to take some sort of premium for the Raiders to move their most popular and successful player. It would be awkward bringing back Crosby, but if the Raiders can’t land a first-round pick, they would have to add their veteran edge rusher back into the fold for 2026. They could always explore a trade at the deadline or after the season if Crosby returns to his usual form and plays well next season. At some point, Crosby’s value will drop. Panthers fans will remember Carolina turning down two first-round picks from the Rams for Brian Burns before they eventually accepted a second-round pick from the Giants for their star edge rusher, but that process took a couple of years. If Crosby’s still on the Raiders roster in 2027 or 2028, Vegas might not be in position to command a first-round pick. For now, though, I can’t imagine the Raiders sending away Crosby without landing at least one first-round pick in return. |
| CLEVELANDBill Barnwell of ESPN.com is only mildly impressed with the additions the Browns made for their offensive line: The Browns need offensive linemen, given that four of their starters and sometimes-left-tackle Cam Robinson are free agents. Cleveland made one addition by trading for Tytus Howard, who should step in at right tackle, his preferred position. I’m not sure he has really ever been anything more than an average tackle, and the Browns gave him a two-year, $45 million extension as part of the trade, but it was time to move on from Jack Conklin, who has battled knee injuries throughout his time in Cleveland and wasn’t the same player by the end of his tenure. Cleveland added a second lineman Monday in former Chargers guard Zion Johnson, who signed a three-year deal worth $49.5 million. Even if that number comes down after we get a look at the full details, it’s just too much money for a player who hasn’t been anywhere close to a league-average guard. Johnson started for four years in Los Angeles by virtue of being a 2022 first-round pick. The Chargers declined his fifth-year option, and while Johnson’s play perked up a bit in his final season with Los Angeles, there are still major concerns about his ability as a pass blocker. He just couldn’t do anything with some of the league’s better defensive linemen, as players such as DeForest Buckner and Milton Williams were able to easily get Johnson off a solid base and go through him to the quarterback. Johnson allowed seven sacks and 19 quick pressures, with the latter figure leading all guards in 2025. His 3.0% quick pressure rate was nearly 50% higher than the league average for guards. The positives in his run blocking a season ago should have led teams to take a shot on him as a potential rotational guy in 2026. Instead, he’ll be getting $16.5 million per season over the next couple of years. The Browns would have been better off waiting to see where the guard market went if they were paying that much to come to terms with Johnson on Monday. |
| AFC SOUTH |
| TENNESSEEHave the Titans spent wisely? Bill Barnwell of ESPN.com: The Titans, meanwhile, came into this offseason with more money to spend than any other team. They had $85 million in cap room, a figure that could have risen even higher if they had moved on from disappointing veterans Calvin Ridley and L’Jarius Sneed. I wouldn’t be shocked if one or both still gets released or traded in the days to come, but the goal for Tennessee was to add talent on both sides of the football around second-year quarterback Cam Ward and star defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons. I don’t mind their moves on the defense. I’ll start with the positive. When the Titans traded T’Vondre Sweat to the Jets, a reunion with coach Robert Saleh and former Jets defensive tackle John Franklin-Myers seemed inevitable. Franklin-Myers was the best defensive tackle in a very thin market, and the Titans were able to land him and build a genuine strength in the middle of their line, albeit at a very high price. Franklin-Myers will go from making $7.5 million per year with the Broncos to $21 million per year with the Titans, the sort of massive salary bump we don’t typically see for players on their fourth NFL contract. Given the lack of alternatives, I can understand why the Titans prioritized Franklin-Myers. Tennessee also needed help at cornerback, where moves for Sneed and a bevy of draft picks haven’t worked out. They signed two solid, young players in Cor’Dale Flott and Alontae Taylor, both of whom have the ability to play above-average football as they enter the peak of their careers. Saleh has done excellent work coaching up cornerbacks in the past, so there might be meaningful upside here beyond what the Titans saw from these players in New York and New Orleans, respectively. Adding one or two players the coaching staff already knew made sense. Adding five seems a little much. In addition to Flott and Franklin-Myers, the Titans made more curious moves on offense by riding the Giants for tight end Daniel Bellinger (three years, $24 million) and wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson (four years, $78 million). Offensive coordinator Brian Daboll added another player from his past in Bills backup Mitchell Trubisky, who comes in on a two-year pact behind Ward. These offensive additions don’t move the needle in the right way. Bellinger has failed to top 300 receiving yards in a season as a pro, he isn’t a threat in the red zone, and he isn’t the same caliber of blocker in the run game as players like Charlie Kolar or Charlie Woerner. The Giants had a 39.8% success rate on designed runs with Bellinger on the field over the past four years and a 40.8% mark when he was on the sideline. That’s a very broad stat to use to draw conclusions about one player, but the Giants had one of the league’s worst running games with or without Bellinger on the field, which wasn’t the case for blocking tight ends Kolar or Woerner when they signed surprisingly large deals in free agency. Was Bellinger’s presence as a blocker really essential at this size of contract? Could the Titans have found a more reasonable alternative by being patient? Robinson had a career year in 2025, topping 10 yards per catch for the first time, but he has essentially been a gadget player over his four seasons. His average catch has come with just 6.4 air yards, which ranks 80th out of 85 wide receivers over the past four seasons. There’s a role for him in the right offense on the right deal, but one of the few things the Titans already had in their receiving room was a gadget receiver in Chimere Dike. They are making a $19.5 million-per-year bet that Robinson is a more complete wide receiver than he has let on for the vast majority of his pro career. It just seems like they would have been better off using that money on more impactful or difficult-to-find player archetypes. Will the Titans be better in 2026? Yes. But they came into Monday needing playmakers for Ward, edge-rushing help and significant investment in the secondary. Between Flott and Taylor, they solved the latter issue, but I’m not sure they meaningfully addressed either of the first two problems. |
| AFC EAST |
| NEW ENGLANDFormer Packers WR ROMEO DOUBS gets a big deal to replace another wide receiver with a five-letter last name starting with D and ending with S. Andy Backstrom of Yahoo Sports.com: Former Green Bay Packers wide receiver Romeo Doubs has agreed to a four-year, $80 million deal with the New England Patriots in free agency, according to multiple reports. Doubs, who will turn 26 in April, is still searching for his first 1,000-yard receiving season, but the Patriots are investing heavily in him. They were in need of a wideout following the release of veteran Stefon Diggs, who led the team with 1,013 receiving yards last season, which culminated in a Super Bowl appearance for head coach Mike Vrabel’s upstart group. Doubs spent the first four years of his career in Green Bay after the Packers selected him in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft out of Nevada. Last season, Doubs racked up a career-high and team-leading 724 receiving yards. His 55 catches also ranked first among Packers players during the 2025 campaign, and his six touchdown receptions were tied for first on the team leaderboard with wide receiver Christian Watson and tight end Tucker Kraft. Doubs had his best game of the season in the playoffs. He caught eight passes for 124 yards and a score, albeit in a wild-card loss to the rival Chicago Bears. Coming out of college, he was known for his strong hands and his ability to make grabs in traffic. Although he posted a 10.6% drop rate as a rookie, per Pro Football Focus, he has lowered that percentage in the years since, including in 2025. In fact, the 6-foot-2, 204-pound Doubs recorded just three drops last season, according to PFF, which also has him down for double-digit contested catches in 2023, 2024 and 2025. During the 2024 season, the Packers suspended Doubs one game for “conduct detrimental to the team.” That suspension arrived in October of that year after he was reported to have skipped two practices because he was upset with his opportunities in Green Bay’s passing game. Doubs, though, denied that report and explained that he sat out due to mental-health concerns. He admitted that he wished he would have handled the situation differently, specifically as a better communicator. Throughout his career, Doubs has shown a propensity to bounce back. He did so the week after his suspension with a pair of touchdown receptions against the Arizona Cardinals. Doubs has mounted at least 45 catches and 600-plus receiving yards in each of the past three seasons. He caught 21 total touchdowns during his Packers tenure. He was playing in a crowded receiver room that also included Watson, Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks. Last season, Matthew Golden was in there, too. Playing for the Patriots on his new contract, Doubs could garner north of 100 targets for the first time in his career — that is, if he ends up as the Pats’ No. 1 wide receiver.– – -Patriots DT CHRISTIAN BARMORE is not going to trial on an assault and battery charge, apparently because the mother of his child has moved out of state and will not return to testify. It all stems from her being two degrees off with the thermostat at the home they once shared, so not a good look for Barmore in any case. Zack Powell of The Athletic: New England Patriots defensive tackle Christian Barmore will not face a domestic assault and battery charge after Massachusetts prosecutors on Monday decided to drop it because they could not prove their case. Barmore, 26, appeared Monday in Attleboro District Court for an arraignment due to an alleged assault and battery charge on a family/household member. However, prosecutors said in court that the case was “not viable for prosecution” due to the “current state of evidence” after new information emerged from the complainant, Barmore’s then-girlfriend. Prosecutors requested a day to file a formal notice to close the case, and the judge granted it. Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III told The Athletic on Tuesday that the woman who made the complaint did not want to travel out of state for the case. “After a review of the evidence, it was determined this was a case we could not prove against the defendant,” Quinn said. “Our office spoke with the victim about the case. She lives out of state and is not coming back for the case. This decision is based on a review of the evidence, and the defendant is not getting preferential treatment.” “Mr. Barmore is grateful to the District Attorney’s Office for carefully evaluating the facts, reviewing the materials that his attorney shared with them, and acting in the interests of justice,” David Meier, Barmore’s attorney, said in a statement. The charge stems from an alleged incident in August 2025, when Barmore’s girlfriend at the time accused him of throwing her to the ground and threatening her. Barmore wasn’t arrested when the complaint was initially made, according to a court document obtained by The Athletic. The woman filed the complaint Aug. 25, but the alleged incident happened on Aug. 8. Upon Barmore’s girlfriend being notified of a hearing in December 2025, she told police that she didn’t wish to return to the state and proceed with criminal charges. Still, a court official charged Barmore on Dec. 8 that year, even without the victim present. According to a police report obtained by The Athletic, the woman, with whom Barmore has a child, had been living with him in Mansfield, Mass. On the morning of Aug. 8, the woman said Barmore woke up and became angry because the air conditioner was set at 70 degrees, though he wanted it at 68 degrees, according to the police report. He placed their 2-year-old child outside the bedroom and slammed the door shut, according to the report. The alleged assault occurred after Barmore became incensed that the woman was making food, essentially accusing her of stealing it from him, the report said. The woman called her mother, but Barmore took her phone and disconnected the call, the report said. That prompted the woman to run to the door and scream for help. Before she reached the door, according to the report, Barmore threw her to the floor. According to the police report, the woman “tried to get up, but Christian had grabbed her by the shirt in the area of her neck. Christian eventually let go, and (the woman) got up.” After the woman packed her belongings, she told police that Barmore charged after her but did not strike or make contact with her. She told police their child tried to jump into her arms just as Barmore was charging, and that’s why Barmore did not make contact with her. The woman told police she was initially hesitant to press charges because Barmore threatened her and claimed he would have his cousins “f— you up.” The Patriots and the NFL were made aware of the abuse allegations at the time. |
| NEW YORK JETSIt looks like QB GENO SMITH wasn’t released by the Raiders after all. He has been traded to the Jets. Rich Cimini of ESPN.com: After a nine-year separation, the New York Jets and quarterback Geno Smith are together again. Instead of waiting for him to be released, the Jets traded for Smith on Tuesday, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The Jets are sending a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Las Vegas Raiders in exchange for Smith and a 2026 seventh-rounder, sources told Schefter. Smith was in the Jets’ facility Tuesday morning and passed a physical, a source said. Smith will be the Jets’ starting quarterback, a job he held for the Jets from 2013 to the 2015 preseason — until he was punched by a teammate in a locker room dispute that resulted in a fractured jaw. “Complete full circle moment back to where it all began,” Smith told NFL Network in a text. “I’m excited to connect with my new teammates and coaches and everyone in the building as well as build a new relationship with the fan base and community.” To facilitate the trade, Smith renegotiated his contract, a source told ESPN. The Raiders, originally on the hook for $18.5 million, will pay him $16.2 million, a source confirmed. The Jets will pay the difference, plus a $1 million raise — a total of $3.3 million. All told, Smith will make $19.5 million. The contract details were first reported by SI.com. Before the restructure, the deal had two years and $66 million remaining on it, including $18.5 million guaranteed. If the Jets had waited for him to be released at 4 p.m. Wednesday, they could’ve signed him for $1.3 million, the veterans minimum. But they would’ve faced competition for him. The Minnesota Vikings were known to be interested. Resetting their quarterback depth chart, the Jets are likely to move on from Justin Fields, who started nine games last season before he was benched. Other than Fields, who has one year and $20 million remaining on his contract, the Jets have Brady Cook and Bailey Zappe under contract. They’re expected to add a veteran backup, perhaps Carson Wentz. The Jets could envision Smith as a bridge to the 2027 draft, which could be loaded with blue-chip prospects. They could draft a quarterback next month — not with the second overall pick, but perhaps with the 16th, 33rd or 44th choice. For now, they’re reaching into their past to address the current situation. Smith is coming off one of his worst seasons. He was 27th out of 28 qualified passers in Total QBR (34.1), and he leads the league in interceptions (32) over his past two seasons. The Jets hope he can recapture his 2022 and 2023 form, when he threw 50 touchdown passes for the Seattle Seahawks. The Jets’ second-round pick in 2013, Smith started 29 games (34 interceptions) in his first two seasons. He was poised to be the Week 1 starter in 2015, but he wound up missing several weeks after being punched by backup linebacker IK Enemkpali in a dispute over $600. With Smith sidelined, the Jets turned to veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick, who won over the team with his inspired play. He set a franchise record with 31 touchdown passes, leading the Jets to a 10-6 record — their most recent winning season. Smith served as Fitzpatrick’s backup in 2015 and 2016, and he spent the next four seasons as a backup with the New York Giants, Los Angeles Chargers and Seahawks before succeeding Russell Wilson as the Seattle starter in 2022. Smith’s best season was 2022, when he passed for 30 touchdowns and 4,282 yards and led the Seahawks to the playoffs under coach Pete Carroll. Smith made the Pro Bowl again in 2023, but his play has declined since. Interesting note on Jets QBs from ESPN – no single Jets quarterback has as many as 15 wins in the last 13 seasons: Most wins by Jets QB since 2013Geno Smith last played for the Jets in the 2016 season. His 12 wins as a starting quarterback with the franchise are still tied for third most dating back to his rookie year in 2013. QB WinsSam Darnold 13Ryan Fitzpatrick 13Geno Smith 12Zach Wilson 12— ESPN Research |
| THIS AND THAT |
| MATT SNELLA great member of the last and only New York Jets champion team has passed away at age 84. The AP: Matt Snell, the powerful running back who scored the go-ahead touchdown in the New York Jets’ Super Bowl win in 1969, has died. He was 84. The Jets announced that Snell died Tuesday morning in New York. Snell teamed with Emerson Boozer to give Joe Namath and New York a formidable backfield, helping the AFL’s Jets pull off one of sports’ greatest upsets with a 16-7 victory over the NFL’s heavily favored Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III. With the game scoreless in the second quarter, Snell went off left tackle for a 4-yard touchdown run that gave the Jets a 7-0 lead — the first time in three Super Bowls that an AFL team led. New York used a run-blocking concept it called “19 Straight” — which is engraved on the championship rings of both Snell and Boozer — to perfection against the Colts. Snell finished with a then-Super Bowl-record 121 yards rushing on 30 carries, although Namath was selected the game’s MVP. “Matt Snell will forever hold a special place in the history of the New York Jets,” Jets owner Woody Johnson said in a statement. “He was the embodiment of toughness, selflessness and belief — traits that defined our organization’s proudest moments. His performance in Super Bowl III was nothing short of legendary. “Against the odds, Matt set the tone with his physical running, delivering the Jets’ lone touchdown and helping secure one of the most important victories in sports history.” Snell, who grew up in the Long Island, New York, hamlet of Carle Place, stayed close to home his entire nine-year professional career with the Jets after four standout seasons at Ohio State. He was picked in the fourth round of the 1964 NFL Draft by the Giants, the team for which he rooted as a youngster. But he chose to sign with the Jets after they selected him with the No. 3 overall pick in the AFL draft and presented him an opportunity to play right away. He made an immediate impact for the Jets in his first season, a year before Namath arrived, winning the AFL Rookie of the Year award after rushing for 945 yards, including a then-franchise record 180-yard performance on 31 carries against the Houston Oilers. Both rushing marks remain Jets rookie records. Snell made the AFL All-Star team three times and was a first-team All-AFL selection in 1969, building a reputation as a terrific ball-carrier with soft hands as a receiver and for being a punishing pass blocker. Snell’s physical approach took its toll, though, as he dealt with several injuries, particularly late in his career. He tore cartilage in a knee in 1967 and missed seven games. Three years later, Snell was limited to three games after tearing an Achilles tendon. He played in only nine games over the next two seasons because of a knee injury in 1971 and a ruptured spleen the following year. Snell retired after the 1972 season, finishing with 4,285 yards rushing — still fourth on the franchise’s career list — and 24 touchdowns, along with 193 receptions for 1,375 yards and seven scores. After his years on the gridiron, Snell turned his attention to Wall Street, becoming a partner for Defco Securities Inc. He also became a familiar face on TV as the first pitchman for Miller Lite beer and its “Tastes Great, Less Filling” ad campaign. Snell later created his own construction company in New Jersey and worked there for several years. He also put his football career far behind him, mostly turning down interviews or having contact with his former team. Snell and Boozer were inducted into the Jets’ Ring of Honor together in 2015, but Snell refused to attend the ceremony. He revealed in Bob Lederer’s book, “Beyond Broadway Joe: The Super Bowl Team That Changed Football” in 2018 that he held a grudge against the team. Snell claimed the Jets reneged on a promise made by then-part owner Sonny Werblin that Snell would have a place with the team for life if it won the title. Werblin was bought out by his partners, including Leon Hess, before the Super Bowl-winning season. “It may be that no one in Jets management knew about Sonny’s promises to me, but in 1974, there was a recession and I was in line for a construction job,” Snell said in Lederer’s book. “I asked the Jets for a reference. They told me they didn’t do that for players. They said they couldn’t do it! Can you believe that? I can’t prove it, but I don’t think any of that would have ever happened if Sonny were in charge. That’s why I don’t get along with the organization now.” Snell was born on Aug. 18, 1941, in Garfield, Georgia, but moved to New York as a youngster. He became a star at Carle Place High School, where he’s in the school’s athletic hall of fame. He went on to even bigger fame in college at Ohio State, first as a lead blocker for the likes of Paul Warfield and Bob Ferguson and then as a defensive end. He moved into the starting fullback role as a senior and was chosen the Buckeyes’ MVP. In 2000, Snell was selected to Ohio State’s all-century football team as a defensive end. He is survived by his wife Sharon, son Beau and daughter Jada, grandson Donte, as well as great-nephew Benny Snell Jr., a former running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers. |
