Thursday’s minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
Cleveland Browns
Miami Dolphins
Harden, a seventh-round rookie, is dealing with a shin injury. Today’s move means he will be out for at least four weeks, further delaying his chance to make his regular season debut. Harden was inactive for the Browns’ Week 1 loss.
Garett Bolles is a pending free agent who has expressed interest in remaining with the Broncos beyond 2024. Regardless of if that happens or not, the eighth-year left tackle intends to continue playing for the foreseeable future. 
Bolles inked a four-year, 68MM extension during John Elway‘s final season as general manager. Since then, the regime led by GM George Paton and head coach Sean Payton has made a number of lucrative investments up front. Right tackle Mike McGlinchey and left guard Ben Powers were added as outside free agents, while right guard Quinn Meinerz landed a big-ticket extension this offseason.
That has led to questions about Bolles’ future in Denver, although the team did not consider trading him ahead of the 2024 campaign. The 32-year-old has made it clear he hopes to continue his tenure in the Mile High City, but another lucrative contract will be challenging given the other commitments already on the books along O-line. Bolles will not consider retirement in the event a new Broncos accord is not worked out, though.
“I pride myself on that I feel like I’m in good health,” the former first-rounder said (via Chris Tomasson of the Denver Gazette). “I feel like my mind and body feel great. I feel young for what everybody wants to say my age is. I feel like I can play for a lot more years.”
Bolles is the team’s longest-tenured player and he is set to remain the unquestioned starter along the blindside. A veteran of 100 games, he has yet to make a playoff appearance but his career has consisted of consistent play as a full-time left tackle contributor. Bolles finished 19th amongst all tackles in overall PFF grade last season, and another strong campaign in 2024 would help his free agent stock.
A number of high-end blockers have managed to continue their careers well into their 30s, especially if they manage to remain healthy along the way. Bolles has missed notable time only once (in 2022), so the former second-team All-Pro could draw attention on the open market if he were to avoid a major injury this year. It will be interesting to see if the Broncos pursue another extension over the coming months or if they allow Bolles to test free agency in 2025. Either way, he will be aiming for another multi-year pact given his comments.
Connor McGovern returned to the Jets yesterday when he inked a practice squad deal. The veteran center thought his career had ended following the knee injury which ended his 2023 campaign, however. 
“After I got hurt, I called my wife and was like, ‘Well, that’s it. We’re hanging ’em up,” McGovern said (via ESPN’s Rich Cimini). “If or when this team goes to the playoffs and if I wasn’t helping in some capacity, I’d be pretty disappointed that I didn’t seize any opportunity. I had to come have another ride with this group and be a part of something special.”
McGovern held a starting role at center from his arrival with the Jets in 2020 through the dislocated kneecap which limited him to just seven contests last campaign. The 31-year-old’s agent encouraged him to remain in shape through the offseason, Cimini notes, and it ultimately allowed him to return to New York. 2023 second-rounder Joe Tippmann took over at center after McGovern’s injury, and he remains in place atop the depth chart.
With Wes Schweitzer on injured reserve due to a hand injury, though, McGovern is now in place as the Jets’ backup at the position. Schweitzer will be out for at least the next three weeks and the Missouri alum could take his place on the active roster via gameday elevations. Players can be brought onto the roster via an elevation up to three times, and it would come as no surprise if New York took that route with McGovern.
If Tippmann remains healthy, McGovern will be unlikely to see any playing time in 2024. He will be an experienced option if called upon, however, and any action would add to his 102 career appearances. It remains to be seen if McGovern explores another contract after the season, but for at least the time being he will extend his career over a short span.
Jevon Holland‘s contract year started off well. The fourth-year safety’s goal-line punch-out denied Travis Etienne a potential back-breaking touchdown, keying a Dolphins comeback win over the Jaguars.
The Dolphins lost their other two safety regulars from last season — Brandon Jones, DeShon Elliott — but Holland remains, and the team identified him as an extension candidate in the spring. In the months since, this process does not appear to have gained steam. As several clubs moved to extend key players before the start of last season — one notable Texas-based deal coming hours before kickoff — Holland remains on his rookie contract.
[Offseason In Review: Miami Dolphins]
Miami has not intensified its extension talks with Holland, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler offers. The former second-round pick cannot speak with other teams until March’s legal tampering period, but the Dolphins went through a busy offseason on the extension front. They paid offensive cornerstones Tua Tagovailoa and Jaylen Waddle and came to a rework agreement with Tyreek Hill, a transaction that reminded of Chris Grier‘s Xavien Howard payday in 2022 in that both players had three years left on their existing deals. The Dolphins then re-upped Jalen Ramsey, who had already seen the team greenlight more guarantees upon acquiring him via trade.
Starting 43 games for the Dolphins since being chosen 36th overall in 2021, Holland has now forced four fumbles over the past 18 games. The Oregon alum is in his age-24 season, and while this year featured some twists and turns in the safety market, teams showed — via the Xavier McKinney Packers signing and Antoine Winfield Jr. Buccaneers extension — they are still willing to pay top-market rates for difference-makers. Holland has displayed that talent.
Pro Football Focus rated Holland as a top-five safety in 2021 and again last year. The Dolphins have again changed their defensive scheme, making a coordinator change (from Vic Fangio to Anthony Weaver) for a third straight year. Perhaps the team wants to gauge Holland’s fit in Weaver’s system before accelerating talks, but the closer the Dolphins come to free agency, the more difficult it stands to be to retain the young defender.
Following an offseason that featured a cap situation that effectively prevented a Christian Wilkins franchise tag and led to he and Robert Hunt leaving in free agency, Miami is not expected to carry much in the way of 2025 funds. While it is still early here, the Dolphins sit with the NFL’s third-worst 2025 projection (per OverTheCap). That would make a franchise or transition tag more difficult, and while teams have a way of navigating troubled waters (see: New Orleans) to pay the players they want, Wilkins’ defection — after extensive Dolphins efforts to retain him — shows cap trouble brings consequences.
Two safeties — Winfield and Kyle Dugger — were tagged this offseason, with the Patriots transition-tagging the latter. Both signed lucrative extensions. This path could be a viable Dolphins path with Holland, but the team still has some time to avoid a lofty cap hold hitting its payroll via a March tag.
Tyson Campbell‘s Week 1 injury will significant affect the Jaguars’ defense. The team is not going week-to-week with its recently extended cornerback, with ESPN’s Adam Schefter noting it will use IR in this case.
A hamstring injury sidelined Campbell, and while teams regularly keep players dealing with this type of injury on their active rosters, the issues often linger. The Jags will give Campbell at least four weeks to heal. He cannot return until Week 6.
Jacksonville has already used two of its eight allotted injury activations, having stashed safety Andrew Wingard and running back Keilan Robinson on IR upon setting its initial 53-man roster. Players placed on IR after that point do not immediately count against a team’s activation total, but those given return designations early — thanks to an offseason rule change — already do. Campbell returning in Week 6 or shortly thereafter would trim the Jags’ activation count to five.
The Jags have moved Tre Flowers back to their active roster, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. The veteran cornerback joined the team this offseason but did not land on the 53-man roster last month. Jacksonville still offered Flowers a practice squad spot and has now turned to the six-year vet as a reinforcement.
Campbell commanded a four-year, $76MM extension this summer, one that featured the Jags already handing out the two most lucrative deals in franchise history — to Trevor Lawrence and Josh Hines-Allen. Campbell’s contract included $31.4MM guaranteed at signing, but the deal’s structure calls for $27.7MM more (via an option bonus and a 2026 base salary guarantee) to be paid by March 2025. The Jags certainly have plenty of confidence in Campbell, a third-round pick in 2021.
This stings for a Jags team that blew a two-touchdown lead to the Dolphins in Week 1. The Jags released Darious Williams early this offseason and moved on from veteran slot corner Tre Herndon as well. The team already has an injury-prone CB starter, in free agency addition Ronald Darby.
Campbell’s setback will be a significant test for a team aiming to bounce back from a 2023 collapse. The Jags used rookie third-rounder Jarrian Jones and 2022 seventh-round pick Montaric Brown in part-time roles Sunday; they also drafted De’Antre Prince in Round 5. Darby and Flowers represent veteran presences, with the latter having played for new DC Ryan Nielsen last season in Atlanta.
SEPTEMBER 12: In terms of base value, the Vikings are giving Phillips a three-year, $15MM accord. The deal includes $10.3MM guaranteed at signing, according to OverTheCap. Receiving a $5MM signing bonus, Phillips will see his base salary climb from $1.4MM to $7MM from 2024-25, per the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling. Of that ’25 base, $4.7MM is guaranteed.
SEPTEMBER 10: Harrison Phillips had a strong start to the campaign on Sunday, and he has landed a new Vikings deal in time for Week 2. Team and player have reached agreement on a two-year extension, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports. The deal is now official, per a team announcement.
The pact has a maximum value of $19MM, Pelissero adds. Phillips – who has remained a full-time starter along the defensive line for Minnesota since 2022 – will collect more than $13MM in guaranteed money. This deal means Phillips will remain in place through 2026.
The 28-year-old played out his rookie contract with the Bills. Over that span, he logged 11 starts and served as a run-stopping presence. Phillips recorded only 1.5 sacks in 45 Buffalo contests, but he still managed to secure a three-year pact from the Vikings in free agency. That deal was worth $19.5MM, so his play since joining the team has done enough to command a notable raise in the Vikings’ view. Phillips is set to collect $6.5MM in 2024 while carrying an $8.33MM cap hit. His base salary already locked in just before the start of the regular season, but today’s news will increase his up front earnings while potentially lowering his cap charge for the year.
Phillips logged a career-high snap share of 60% during his debut Vikings season. That produced a consistent performance against the run along with minimal pass rush production. The former third-rounder saw him playing time jump once more to 74% in 2023, the first year after Dalvin Tomlinson departed in free agency. Phillips easily posted a career high in tackles (92) while also setting a new personal best with three sacks. Not long after beginning the final year of his deal, he has now received a new commitment.
Minnesota does not have another big-money deal in place along the defensive interior. The likes of Jerry Tillery, Jonathan Bullard and Levi Drake Rodriguez are in line as complementary players to handle rotational roles alongside Phillips, who should be expected to remain a starter for the foreseeable future. The latter recorded a sack on Sunday, and further development against the pass could prove this new investment to be worthwhile.
Additions along the D-line are a potential goal for Minnesota during the 2025 offseason. The team is currently projected to be among the league leaders in cap space, so a lucrative move from outside the organization could be in play. Regardless of whether of not that takes place, however, Phillips will remain a key member of the unit for years to come.
Two years after the Browns made the controversial decision to trade for Deshaun Watson, they have seen the move backfire. Watson has struggled to find his Texans form and battled injuries since coming to Cleveland. That tenure began with the 11-game suspension incurred from the slew of sexual assault and/or sexual misconduct civil lawsuits that emerged in 2021 and ’22. Two years later, the Browns are still dealing with Watson’s past.
In a civil suit filed in Houston, a woman accused Watson of sexual assaulting her in October 2020. Twenty-six women made similar allegations in civil filings from 2021-22, leading Watson out of Houston. The previous 26 alleged this activity took place during massage appointments. That separates the 2020 incident, which allegedly took place in the woman’s home.
The Browns were certainly not the only team prepared to look past the initial wave of suits and acquire the former star via trade, but being the winner of those March 2022 sweepstakes has significantly affected the franchise. Despite Dak Prescott‘s recent extension including $231MM guaranteed, no team has come close to the Browns’ $230MM fully guaranteed contract.
Still representing the eighth-year quarterback, attorney Rusty Hardin said (via cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot) Watson “strongly denies” the allegations in this latest suit — filed anonymously. The NFL is looking into the matter but has no plans to place the embattled passer on the commissioner’s exempt list, ESPN.com’s Daniel Oyefusi tweets.
Responding to Hardin, the accuser’s attorney — Tony Buzbee, who played a lead role in the previous batch of accusers’ suits — said (via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero) he and his client attempted a private resolution for nearly a year. No settlement occurred. Responding to a question about this timetable, Watson said (via the Lorain Morning Journal’s Jeff Schudel) he had “no idea.” Watson settled suits with 23 of his initial 24 accusers.
Buzbee calls this matter “the most serious and egregious case brought against Watson to date” and indicates Watson’s lawyers did not cooperate. Hence, the filing and more off-field headlines for a player who now has major on-field issues.
Coming back from shoulder surgery, Watson did not play in the preseason. The 28-year-old passer also faced the Cowboys with a similar setup — down Nick Chubb and tackles Jedrick Wills and Jack Conklin. The latter two are on their way back, while Chubb remains on the reserve/PUP list. But Watson has shown little indication he will submit a turnaround effort in Cleveland. That threatens to derail an otherwise well-built Browns roster, which fared better with Joe Flacco at the controls last season. Flacco was surprised the Browns did not make an effort to re-sign him, after the 2023 Comeback Player of the Year expressed continued interest in staying. Instead, Jameis Winston is Cleveland’s QB2.
The Browns famously guaranteed Watson’s entire five-year contract. Criticism came the team’s way for doing this, but had the Browns not done that, the Georgia native was poised to waive his no-trade clause for the Falcons. He had previously ruled out Cleveland, but Jimmy Haslam subsequently placed the credit (blame?) on GM Andrew Berry for the idea to offer the fully guaranteed deal to tip the scales. Following Flacco’s run to the playoffs, Haslam extended both Berry and Kevin Stefanski.
Watson said Wednesday ownership communicates support to him daily, but extreme concern about his 2024, ’25 and ’26 seasons bringing fully guaranteed $46MM base salaries has no doubt surfaced inside the Browns’ building. Whether the team can escape the guarantees would come down to Watson being suspended under the NFL’s personal conduct policy again.
Upon signing, Watson needed to inform the Browns of any events that might lead to a future suspension, per Yahoo’s Charles Robinson and Jori Epstein. Although the QB’s first Browns contract was finalized in 2022, SI.com’s Conor Orr indicates he needed only to have informed the team about this matter by March 2023, when the first restructure took place.
Even though this allegation comes from Watson’s time with the Texans, if he did not tell the Browns about it (and it leads to a suspension), it could open the door to guarantees being voided. Though, we are not there yet. Watson denying the incident took place further muddies the waters regarding informing the Browns, which would introduce a gray area in the event this civil matter progresses.
As it stands, Watson counts $19.1MM on Cleveland’s 2024 cap sheet. The Browns, however, moved that number this low due to going through with a second restructure in August. The second reworking inflated Watson’s 2025 and ’26 cap hits to $72.9MM, which would shatter an NFL record — especially now that Prescott is extended — for a single player.
The Browns cutting Watson in 2025 would bring, thanks to the two restructures, $172MM in dead money. Needless to say, Watson is not a realistic 2025 cut candidate — even in a world in which the Broncos just took on $83MM-plus in dead cap on the Russell Wilson contract. In 2026, the Browns moving on would cost more than $99MM in dead money, which would be spread over two years in a post-June 1 scenario.
The QB continuing on his current path and now dealing with another off-field matter obviously reflects poorly on the Browns’ fateful 2022 decision, which also included slashing Watson’s 2022 base salary to the veteran minimum to reduce the money he would lose in a suspension. Watson will continue to start for the Browns, who will hope he can assimilate in an offense designed to be more in line with his skillset — at least, that is the goal — under new OC Ken Dorsey. But the team now has another off-field matter overshadowing its third-year starter.
Making major updates to their wide receiver room by using the trade market and the first round, the Panthers are certainly in the early stages of a rebuild. Their highest-paid wideout looms as an extension candidate, with a Steelers-constructed contract expiring at season’s end.
The Panthers, however, have yet to engage with wide receiver Diontae Johnson on an extension, according to Joseph Person of The Athletic, as the team tries to determine the best future pass catchers for young quarterback Bryce Young.
Johnson arrived in Carolina from Pittsburgh in March in exchange for cornerback Donte Jackson and a sixth-round pick. The Steelers also sent a seventh-round pick to the Panthers to close the deal. The Panthers hope that Johnson will give Young a second reliable target alongside veteran Adam Thielen, who surpassed expectations last season with 103 catches and 1,014 receiving yards — more than the team’s next two leading receivers combined.
Johnson signed a two-year, $36.7MM extension with the Steelers in 2022, but the Panthers are wisely waiting for him to prove himself in Dave Canales‘ system. The veteran wideout only caught two of his six targets for 19 yards in Carolina’s regular-season opener against the Saints, but he is encouraged by Canales’ use of motion to create favorable matchups.
“They’re moving me around just to get me on ’backers or nickels or different corners,” said Johnson last week. “Try to attack them in different ways. Just little stuff like that is going help us keep the offense on the field and allows me to move the sticks for the offense.”
Johnson has shown interest in an extension with the Panthers in the past. If Johnson can assimilate smoothly into Canales’ offense and develop chemistry with Young, he could cash in on the recent explosion of receiver contracts. While his career pedigree would not warrant the $30MM-plus per-year figures of Justin Jefferson, CeeDee Lamb, and Brandon Aiyuk, a strong season could vault him into the $25MM range.
“It gives me motivation to keep working hard, keep my head down, keep grinding,” Johnson said of this year’s ballooning WR market. “The time will come if I can just continue to make plays and be consistent.”
At 28, Johnson should have a nice opportunity collect a lucrative third contract — either from the Panthers or in free agency — by March. His production in Canales’ offense will provide an important value update for the former Steelers third-round pick. Carolina holds exclusive negotiating rights with Johnson until the 2025 legal tampering period.
The Bears got good news surrounding the knee injury that knocked Rome Odunze out of Sunday’s season opener. Per Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz, the rookie wide receiver suffered a Grade 1 knee sprain, the “best-case scenario” for the team and player.
Odunze suffered his MCL injury while blocking for Velus Jones Jr. during a fourth-quarter screen pass. The rookie stayed in the game for one additional play before exiting for good. The wideout is officially considered week-to-week, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, and there’s been no indication that the ninth-overall pick will have a stay on injured reserve. Coach Matt Eberflus said the Bears were “lucky” to avoid a serious injury, and he even kept the door open to Odunze playing in Week 2.
Wednesday’s injury report also showed that fellow receiver Keenan Allen didn’t practice while nursing a heel injury. Eberflus later clarified that the wideout was considered day-to-day, and there’s hope the offseason acquisition can hit the practice field on Thursday and Friday following his day off.
In the unlikely event that both Odunze and Allen are sidelined, the Bears’ deep wide receiver grouping will be down to just D.J. Moore. Rookie QB Caleb Williams is certainly hoping for his full arsenal of wideouts following an NFL debut where he completed only 14 of 29 pass attempts for 93 yards.
More injury notes from around the NFL…
Today’s practice squad transactions:
Arizona Cardinals
Carolina Panthers
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Indianapolis Colts
Los Angeles Chargers
New Orleans Saints
New York Jets
Philadelphia Eagles
San Francisco 49ers
Tennessee Titans