Chiefs Likely To Release RT Jawaan Taylor
The Chiefs needed to give Jawaan Taylor a player-friendly contract in order to sign him in 2023, when the former Jaguars right tackle stood as one of the top free agents available. While Kansas City achieved success during Taylor’s stay, the blocker has not lived up to expectations.
Taylor signed a four-year, $80MM contract with the Chiefs. Because of his lofty status in that year’s free agent pool, the Chiefs included language that guaranteed Taylor’s 2025 salary in March 2024. That effectively gave him three years’ worth of security. The Chiefs indeed stuck with Taylor in 2025, but now that they are beyond the guaranteed portion of the contract, they are not expected to let him play out the deal.
Kansas City cutting Taylor is anticipated, per The Athletic’s Jesse Newell. Our Chiefs Offseason Outlook post pegged Taylor as the Chiefs’ most obvious cut candidate, and moving on would save Kansas City $20MM. The team did not tamper with Taylor’s contract, as void years would have increased the dead money total in a release (it stands at $7.39MM presently). With the Chiefs projected to be well over the cap, this move will almost definitely happen before the legal tampering period begins March 9.
As Taylor has struggled mightily with penalties (40 in three Chiefs seasons), he has also generated scrutiny for uncalled false starts. The Chiefs also have an in-house replacement in Jaylon Moore, who signed a two-year, $30MM contract. Moore’s price tag surprised even 49ers GM John Lynch, and he entered last season as the NFL’s most expensive non-Kirk Cousins backup. Moore was called upon to fill in for left tackle Josh Simmons last season, as the first-round rookie was away from the team for unspecified reasons, but Newell points to this being an easy solution for the Chiefs post-Taylor.
A four-year Jaguars RT starter, Taylor made it to free agency when Jacksonville franchise-tagged Evan Engram in 2023. Taylor then started for both Chiefs Super Bowl teams in 2023 and ’24. Pass block win rate placed Taylor 15th among all tackles in 2024 and seventh last season. At 28, Taylor should land an opportunity to start elsewhere in 2026. But he will not command a $20MM-per-year salary as he did as a first-time free agent. The Florida alum also underwent knee surgery last summer and finished the season on IR. Though, the Chiefs shelved several players after being eliminated from playoff contention.
Mike Danna also resides as a cut candidate, per Newell. The Chiefs’ top need may be at defensive end opposite George Karlaftis, and cutting Danna — who has not lived up to a three-year, $24MM deal — would save $8.94MM. The Chiefs have given Danna 49 starts since drafting him in the 2020 fifth round. He combined for 11.5 sacks from 2022-23 but only tallied 4.5 in 28 games over the past two seasons. Kansas City has also not seen 2023 first-round pick Felix Anudike-Uzomah provide much of anything, creating a glaring D-end need.
QB Cole Payton Rising On Draft Boards?
An annual tradition involves quarterback prospects making climbs based on pre-draft workouts and meetings. With a big gap emerging between Fernando Mendoza and the field this year, room for growth exists to bridge it. A familiar program has produced a candidate generating buzz to potentially be this year’s second quarterback chosen.
North Dakota State’s Cole Payton is generating early praise, with Sportsboom.com’s Jason La Canfora indicating some in the scouting community view him as this draft’s second-best QB prospect. Early-second-round grades have followed within this contingent.
The Bison, whose status as the top Division I-FCS program has triggered an upcoming move to the Mountain West Conference, have seen two of their quarterback prospects become top-three picks over the past 10 years. Carson Wentz completed a radical pre-draft rise in 2016, going second overall. Trey Lance went third overall five years later. Both the Eagles and 49ers’ moves required monster trade packages to move up. In between, Easton Stick was drafted in the 2019 fifth round.
While Wentz enjoyed an MVP-worthy 2017 and led the Eagles to the playoffs in 2019, neither he nor Lance ultimately justified their draft slots. That may play into teams’ evaluations of Payton, who is only a one-season starter at the FCS level. That season brought a strong dual-threat profile, with the 6-foot-3 prospect passing for 2,719 yards (with a 16-4 TD-INT ratio) and rushing for 923 — to go with 13 rushing scores. Payton averaged 12.1 yards per attempt and finished third in voting for the Walter Payton Award, given to the FCS level’s best player. This reminds of Lance’s 2019 season. Lance, however, was long held as a first-round prospect before San Francisco’s monster trade-up. Payton has yet to make inroads to that level and probably will not.
With Dante Moore and Arch Manning returning to school and other 2026 prospects not delivering on hype last season, a void exists. Alabama’s Ty Simpson is generally regarded as this draft’s second-best QB, so it will be interesting to see if Payton — who impressed at the Senior Bowl — can turn more heads as the pre-draft process progresses. With a host of teams needing help at the position and Mendoza almost certainly ticketed for Las Vegas at No. 1 overall, teams talking themselves into other options on Day 2 — or late in the first round — will be a draft storyline to follow.
Eagles Expected To Name Parks Frazier QBs Coach
The Eagles will have a number of new staffers on the offensive side of the ball in particular in 2026, highlighted of course by OC Sean Mannion. Several returnees are in position to handle different roles next season while continuing to work under head coach Nick Sirianni.
One of those is Parks Frazier. In 2025, Frazier worked as Philadelphia’s pass-game coordinator. He is still in the fold, and a new title is likely to be finalized shortly. Frazier is expected to be named quarterbacks coach, Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports reports.
Scot Loeffler held the role of QBs coach last season, but he was not retained upon Mannion’s arrival. An outside hire has no doubt received consideration, and Greg Olson was named as a potential Loeffler replacement. Instead, it appears as though Frazier – whose coaching career began in 2015 – will become Jalen Hurts‘ latest position coach. Frazier’s resume includes an interim offensive coordinator stint with the Colts, but he has never held the title of QBs coach to date.
The offense remained a talking point in the Eagles’ case through 2025. This past season, the team ranked 23rd in passing offense and 19th in scoring. Improving on those totals will be imperative for Mannion (Kevin Patullo‘s replacement) during his first coordinator gig but also his assistants. It appears as though Frazier, 34, will be one of the more important figures on the sideline.
Elsewhere on the Eagles’ staff, Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports assistant offensive line coach Greg Austin along with offensive quality control coaches Eric Dickerson and Montgomery VanGorder will all be retained. Each of their roles for next season have yet to be finalized, however. Further shuffling with respect to job titles could be coming as a result. Tight ends coach Jason Michael will not return in 2026, per McLane.
Meanwhile, Zenitz reports the Eagles are bringing in Bills nickels coach Mike Pellegrino. He will serve as the team’s new defensive backs coach. The secondary will remain a strength of Philadelphia’s defense in 2026 if all goes according to plan, and Pellegrino will face high expectations upon arrival.
Seahawks, Patriots Among Potential Maxx Crosby Suitors?
With the new league year approaching, Maxx Crosby‘s uncertain future remains a major storyline around the NFL. The star edge rusher is still in place with the Raiders for now, but teams are aware of the possibility of a trade. 
During the latest edition of the Breer Report (video link), Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated noted Crosby could still be willing to continue his Raiders tenure. In place with the team since being drafted in 2019, Crosby has repeatedly indicated a preference for spending his entire career with one team (although he has not shot down the latest round of trade speculation). Owner Mark Davis, meanwhile, has remained consistent in his messaging about wanting to keep the five-time Pro Bowler in the fold.
As Breer notes, Crosby and Davis continue to have a strong relationship. He adds Crosby and new head coach Klint Kubiak have already met briefly, with their initial encounter going well. Since then, Kubiak promoted Rob Leonard to the role of defensive coordinator. Leonard previously worked as Vegas’ defensive line coach and run-game coordinator, making him a familiar face for Crosby in particular. It will be interesting to see if that makes a difference in the 28-year-old’s stance or the team’s willingness to accept anything less than a blockbuster trade price to consider moving on.
Any team in the NFL would of course be upgraded with Crosby in the fold. Breer identifies the Seahawks and Patriots as being among the teams which have an interest on this front (although the list of potential suitors who have reached out is much longer). Both Seattle and New England are in a strong position with respect to projected 2026 cap space. Each team could see changes along the edge this offseason, though.
Boye Mafe is set to see his Seahawks rookie contract expire in March, and he is not high on the team’s priority list in terms of retaining members of its Super Bowl-winning roster. K’Lavon Chaisson, meanwhile, is also a pending free agent. The former first-rounder thrived during his debut New England campaign, posting a career-high 7.5 sacks during the regular season. Chaisson added another three sacks in the playoffs, and at the age of 26 he is set to cash in during free agency.
In the event Seattle and/or New England lose those pass rushers on the open market, a Crosby acquisition would make even more sense. Both teams have a first-round pick, although the Patriots have 11 total selections in 2025’s draft compared to the Seahawks’ four. Whether or not either of the Super Bowl participants make a strong Crosby push will be worth monitoring over the coming weeks.
‘No Trade Market’ For Tua Tagovailoa
FEBRUARY 16: The Dolphins’ preference remains a trade at this time, NFL insider Jordan Schultz confirms. He adds the team does not want this situation to “drag too long,” so a decision could be coming shortly. It could very include a release in the absence of a market on the trade front.
FEBRUARY 13: As the new league year is fast approaching, the Dolphins have been working desperately to figure out a way out of the corner they’ve painted themselves into. As it’s been reported recently that Miami is nearing a decision on the future of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, it appears one option may be getting taken away from the team. 
According to SportsBoom’s Jason La Canfora, there is “no trade market” for Tagovailoa. All conversation from both the Dolphins and Tagovailoa concerning the future has revolved around the idea of a trade. At season’s end, Tagovailoa made it known that he would welcome a fresh start elsewhere, while the team made it known their hope was to trade him.
Our most recent update before this indicated that the Dolphins were still focused on the trade route for Tagovailoa’s exit, and they expressed a willingness to eat some of money owed to the quarterback in order to make it happen.
Just before the 2024 NFL season, Miami made the move to sign Tagovailoa to an extension following a season in which he led the NFL in passing yards while starting every game of the season for the first (and only) time in his career. In the wake of several other record-breaking contracts at the position, the Dolphins agreed to a four-year, $212.4MM deal with over $167.17MM in guaranteed money. Since then, Tagovailoa has missed a combined nine games in two seasons and, after averaging over 260 yards per game in three straight seasons, saw his average yards per game plummet to 190 this year.
We knew that Tagovailoa’s benching this year, combined with his huge contract and injury history, made a trade difficult, forcing the Dolphins to offer up the possibility of throwing in some offsetting cash. Per La Canfora, though, Tagovailoa isn’t a difficult trade piece; he’s a non-starter. Backed by input from several top NFL executives, La Canfora seems to indicate that teams in the league are already so turned off by Tagovailoa’s poor play and frequent concussions that they’re not even willing to take him on at a reduced rate.
La Canfora included a series of quotes from said executives, with several not limiting themselves to the language of polite society. One general manager simply told La Canfora, “They’re (screwed).” He went on to call the contract untradeable, saying that, even with Miami “willing to eat a (boat)load of” Tagovailoa’s contract, they “just don’t see a market for him.”
Another top exec relayed to La Canfora a “four-pronged” list of reasons Tagovailoa and the Dolphins were stuck with each other. It started with Tagovailoa’s inability to effectively push the ball down the field and make plays consistently anymore. It then moved to perceived leadership issues with concerns that he couldn’t move a locker room and comes off as ingenuine. The third prong called his concussion history alone “a no-go for a lot of teams,” and the fourth ended by calling his deal a “terrible…contract that nobody wants to touch.”
If Miami is unable to trade Tagovailoa, they will then be forced with the new decision of whether to cut him or keep him. In keeping him, the Dolphins would be retaining perhaps the most expensive backup quarterback in the NFL. As they attempt to obtain a new, young option at the position this offseason with which to move forward, Tagovailoa’s continued presence could also create uncertainty and doubt in the locker room. Cutting the 27-year-old, though, would shoulder the Dolphins with $99.2MM in dead money without providing any cap savings. Cutting him now would lock that money in for the 2026 season alone, whereas the best-case scenario would see the team designate him as a post-June 1 cut, allowing them to split that $99.2MM over two seasons — still a dire result.
Essentially, though the Dolphins seem to believe they’re making a decision between three options, the rest of the league appears to have limited them to two. Miami will need to figure out how best to work around the massive contract obligations that remain tied to Tagovailoa as they attempt to move on to a new era of quarterback.
Jaguars Re-Sign RB DeeJay Dallas
The Jaguars have kept a pair of veterans in the fold with today’s moves. In addition to Matt Dickerson, DeeJay Dallas will be in place for the offseason.
Dallas split his time between the Panthers and Jags in 2025. The veteran running back wound up making three appearances with each team, continuing in his familiar role as a special teams presence. Dallas will be counted on to remain a core piece in the third phase for Jacksonville in 2026, with the team announced on Monday that he has been re-signed.
During his time with the Seahawks (2020-23) and Cardinals (2024), Dallas did not manage to establish himself as a regular on offense. His career high in carries for one season is 35, and it is unlikely that will change with the Jags. Today’s news will ensure depth in the backfield as the team contemplates its options with Travis Etienne.
Etienne is not expected to receive the franchise tag, meaning a trip to free agency looms. Etienne topped 1,000 rushing yards for the third time in his career in 2025, and he could be one of the top backs on the market provided no Jacksonville agreement is reached. The Jaguars also have 2025 draftees Bhayshul Tuten and LeQuint Allen in place, and they are likely to once again have a role on offense next year.
The same will likely not be true of Dallas, 27, even if he manages to survive roster cuts this summer. Nevertheless, he could carve out a role for himself as a kick returner. Dallas has amassed 2,254 yards in that regard over the course of his career, and that figure could increase during his first full season in Jacksonville.
Browns To Hire Mike Rutenberg As DC
The Browns were known to be nearing a hire for their defensive coordinator vacancy. One of the finalists will indeed be heading to Cleveland. 
Mike Rutenberg is the Browns’ choice, as first reported by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. Not long after team and staffer interviewed, an agreement has been reached. Rutenberg’s tenure with the Falcons will now come to an end.
Retaining Jim Schwartz was a key priority for the Browns leading up to their head coaching search. The highly-regarded DC was in the running to be promoted to the role, but Todd Monken was hired instead. Over a brief period, Schwartz’s future was unclear but as many predicted he wound up resigning.
That decision left Cleveland in need of a new defensive coordinator for the first time since Schwartz arrived in 2023. A list of candidates quickly emerged, and while there were staffers who withdrew the team was able to generate a group of finalists late in the hiring cycle. Rutenberg was one of three candidates firmly in the mix, and his attention will now turn to the first coordinator gig of his coaching career.
The 44-year-old has worked in a number of capacities at the college and NFL levels. Rutenberg has experience as a defensive backs coach and a pass-game coordinator in both regards, but he has also worked with linebackers in the pros. He served as the Jets’ LBs coach prior to following Jeff Ulbrich from New York to Atlanta last offseason. After a one-year Falcons stint, Rutenberg will take charge of a defense which ranked fourth in yards allowed in 2025. Few staffing changes are expected in the wake of this move, per Tony Grossi of The Land on Demand.
The Browns have the reigning Defensive Player of the Year (Myles Garrett) along with 2025’s Defensive Rookie of the Year (Carson Schwesinger) in the fold. Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward and others round out what should be a strong unit once again in 2026. Rutenberg will certainly face high expectations upon arrival in Cleveland as the team aims to take needed steps forward on offense under Monken and Co.
Given today’s news, only one defensive coordinator opening remains around the NFL. The Patriots have a vacancy, although they are widely expected to continue with Zak Kuhr as their defensive play-caller after he handled those responsibilities in 2025. Provided Kuhr’s status is confirmed in the near future, it will bring an end to the DC hiring cycle for 2026.
Here is a final look at the Browns’ search:
- Ephraim Banda, safeties coach (Browns): Interviewed 2/7
- Charlie Bullen, defensive pass-game coordinator (Giants): Interview requested; withdrew from search
- Jonathan Cooley, defensive pass-game coordinator (Panthers): Interview requested
- Aubrey Pleasant, defensive pass-game coordinator (Rams): Interviewed 2/9
- Mike Rutenberg, defensive pass-game coordinator (Falcons): Hired
- Jason Tarver, linebackers coach (Browns): Interviewed 2/7; finalist
- Cory Undlin, defensive pass-game coordinator (Texans): Held in-person interview 2/14; finalist
- Dino Vasso, defensive backs coach (Texans): Mentioned as candidate; withdrew from search
Dolphins Release G James Daniels, WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine
Monday is shaping up to be an important day for the Dolphins with respect to veteran cuts. James Daniels is also on the way out. 
The veteran guard is being released, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports. Daniels was under contract for the next two seasons, but it comes as little surprise he is being cut given the way 2025 played out. Daniels suffered a pectoral injury in Week 1, and he wound up missing the remainder of the season. The news is now official, per a team announcement.
Instead of Miami’s new regime keeping the 28-year-old in place and hoping for a healthy bounce-back season, a release will take place. The Dolphins will be hit with a dead money charge of $4.8MM by cutting Daniels right away. If a post-June 1 designation is used, Miami will generate $2.42MM in savings against $1.2MM in dead cap. Teams can use the post-June 1 option when processing releases on up to two players per year.
The Dolphins are in position to move on from several veterans this offseason. New general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley will have a number of key decisions to make ahead of the new league year opening in March. Miami was one of several NFL teams which entered Monday projected to be over the cap. In addition to necessary cost-shedding moves, a rebuild will be sought out this spring.
Daniels is a veteran of 91 games and 85 starts in the NFL. The former Bear and Steeler signed a three-year, $24MM pact last offseason to join Miami. That move was set to give the Dolphins a guard starter for 2025 and beyond, but things did not go according to plan due to the injury. A tepid free agent market is likely in store.
The Dolphins are also cutting wideout Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, per Pelissero. He was also added on the open market last year. The former Titan proved to be an effective secondary contributor on offense earlier in his career, but he posted just 11 receptions with Miami in 2025. Instead of remaining in place for the final year of his deal, Westbrook-Ikhine will also turn his attention to the open market.
Miami’s roster reset is well underway in advance of free agency. Other veteran cuts will remain something to watch for over the coming days.
Dolphins Release WR Tyreek Hill
As expected, Tyreek Hill‘s tenure with the Dolphins is ending. The All-Pro wideout is among the veterans being let go on Monday. 
Hill is being released, as first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter. This marks an end to his four-year run in Miami. As Hill continues to recover from the season-ending knee injury he suffered in Week 4, he will now become a free agent. The Dolphins have since confirmed the news.
2026 was set to include $36MM in compensation in this case. Hill was due to collect a $5MM roster bonus as part of that figure in March, but many expected a release to take place well before that point. Miami has been busy on Monday, with the team’s list of veteran cuts including edge rusher Bradley Chubb and others. His release, along with that of Hill, will substantially alter the Dolphins’ cap situation.
Cutting Hill immediately would generate a slightly higher dead money charge ($28.25MM) than the cap savings it would create ($22.89MM). Like in Chubb’s case, a post-June 1 designation would be much more beneficial for the Dolphins. Taking that route would yield over $35MM in savings against while spreading out the dead cap charges across the next two years. In either case, Miami is well into cost-shedding season given the team’s actions today.
Hill is free to join another team, but since his injury there have been questions raised about his future. It will be interesting to see how much of a market forms in this case given the eight-time Pro Bowler’s health status. Hill is also the subject of an NFL investigation into domestic violence allegations. His history regarding other off-the-field issues represents another factor which could hinder Hill’s value.
The Dolphins received notable trade interest in Jaylen Waddle leading up to the 2025 deadline. To little surprise, Miami retained him. Waddle – who is under contract through the 2028 campaign – is now in line to handle WR1 duties moving forward. The rest of the team’s depth chart at the receiver position could see several changes this offseason.
Hill established himself as one of the league’s most productive players over the course of his Chiefs tenure. The former fifth-rounder was named a member of the 2010s All-Decade team based on his showings in Kansas City, and expectations were high upon arrival in Miami. The 2022 blockbuster deal which saw the Dolphins acquire Hill brought about five picks for the Chiefs and helped them reset their core. With the Dolphins, Hill proved to be a highly productive contributor.
In 2022, he broke the 1,700-yard threshold. Hill matched that feat the following season, leading the league in yards and touchdowns. A drop-off was suffered in 2024, a year in which the Dolphins dealt with quarterback injuries. Hill could be seen as a viable target in certain cases if suitors consider him a bounce-back candidate. Otherwise, his health status and intentions with respect to his future will be a major storyline.
The Dolphins are in position to usher in a new, young core during the opening year of the Jon-Eric Sullivan-Jeff Hafley era. Further changes can be expected, but several veteran contracts are already coming off the books in a sign of the wide berth granted by owner Stephen Ross. Inexpensive receivers will be targeted during the spring for Miami, while Hill will weigh his options.
Jaguars Re-Sign DL Matt Dickerson
Matt Dickerson saw the heaviest workload of his career in 2025, his first season with the Jaguars. The veteran defensive lineman will remain in place for next year. 
Dickson has re-signed with the Jags, per a team announcement. Instead of exploring the market next month, he will continue his time in Jacksonville. A journeyman across several years in the NFL, Dickerson managed to work his way from the practice squad to the active roster with the Jags in 2025.
The 30-year-old wound up making eight appearances this past season. That included the first four starts of his career. Dickerson logged a defensive snap share of 39%, comfortably the highest of his NFL tenure. He also chipped in on special teams at a higher rate than his previous stops around the league.
Dickerson saw sparse usage with the Titans, Falcons, Chiefs and Dolphins during a stretch from 2018-24. The former undrafted free agent has totaled 48 games in his career during the regular season, although he did not see any time during the 2022 campaign. A Super Bowl winner dating back to his lone year in Kansas City, Dickerson will offer plenty of experience to Jacksonville’s defensive line as he looks to continue carving out a regular role for himself.
The UCLA product was attached to a veteran minimum deal in 2025. This latest pact will no doubt be similar. Jacksonville entered Monday as one of the teams projected to be over the cap, but keeping Dickerson in the fold will not require a notable financial commitment.