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Updated 2024 NFL Draft Order

December 26th, 2023 at 8:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

While the Panthers, Cardinals and Commanders continued their losing ways in Week 16, the Patriots’ effort in Denver shook up the top of the 2024 draft. New England has dropped from second to fourth in the ’24 order.

In a strange spot in which Broncos fans and and undoubtedly many Pats supporters wanted the Russell Wilson-driven comeback to succeed, Chad Ryland‘s 56-yard game-winning field goal dropped New England out of the No. 2 spot, injecting doubt about the team’s ability to nab a top-flight QB prospect without trading up next year.

The Bears (via the Panthers) remain atop the table, holding a one-game lead on the Cardinals. Carolina closes its season with two games against eight-win teams — the Jaguars and Buccaneers. Arizona will face Philadelphia and Seattle, and with Carolina’s strength of schedule at .522 and Arizona’s at .561, the draft-order tiebreaker reaffirms the Bears’ placement on the doorstep of entering a second straight offseason holding a No. 1 overall pick. The Justin Fields matter remains an important big-picture NFL topic, but GM Ryan Poles is close to having his pick of the 2024 QB prospects.

It is not clear if the Commanders will be interested in a quarterback in the first round, but they will have a new regime running the show. The last time Washington held a top-three pick (2020), it passed on Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert due to having drafted Dwayne Haskins in the 2019 first round. With Sam Howell struggling as of late, Josh Harris‘ next set of decision-makers may want to bring in their own prospect. The Cardinals could stand in the Commanders’ way, via another trade in the top three, but suddenly Washington could be a player for a 2024 first-round QB.

Ahead of Week 17, here is how the 2024 draft order looks:

  1. Chicago Bears (via Panthers)
  2. Arizona Cardinals: 3-12
  3. Washington Commanders: 4-11
  4. New England Patriots: 4-11
  5. New York Giants: 5-10
  6. Los Angeles Chargers: 5-10
  7. Tennessee Titans: 5-10
  8. Chicago Bears: 6-9
  9. New York Jets: 6-9
  10. Atlanta Falcons: 7-8
  11. New Orleans Saints: 7-8
  12. Green Bay Packers: 7-8
  13. Las Vegas Raiders: 7-8
  14. Denver Broncos: 7-8
  15. Minnesota Vikings: 7-8
  16. Arizona Cardinals (via Texans)
  17. Pittsburgh Steelers: 8-7
  18. Cincinnati Bengals: 8-7
  19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 8-7
  20. Indianapolis Colts: 8-7
  21. Seattle Seahawks: 8-7
  22. Jacksonville Jaguars: 8-7
  23. Los Angeles Rams: 8-7
  24. Buffalo Bills: 9-6
  25. Kansas City Chiefs: 9-6
  26. Dallas Cowboys: 10-5
  27. Houston Texans (via Browns)
  28. Detroit Lions: 11-4
  29. Miami Dolphins: 11-4
  30. Philadelphia Eagles: 11-4
  31. San Francisco 49ers: 11-4
  32. Baltimore Ravens: 12-3

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/23/23

December 23rd, 2023 at 7:53pm CST by Adam La Rose

Saturday’s gameday elevations and other minor moves around the league:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys 

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New York Jets

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

The Bills will not have depth running back Ty Johnson available for tonight’s game, leading to the decision to elevate Fournette. The former Super Bowl champion will thus make his Buffalo debut, although with lead back James Cook in the lineup, Fournette will likely not receive many looks on offense. The latter has already returned a kickoff for the first time in his career, however.

Signed to the Dolphins’ practice squad last week, Ingram will also make his 2023 debut in Week 16. The 34-year-old last played during his Miami stint in 2022, during which time he started three games and recorded six sacks. With Jaelan Phillips out for the year, Ingram will look to once again give the Dolphins a rotational presence off the edge.

Bills To Place DT Jordan Phillips On IR

December 21st, 2023 at 10:35am CST by Sam Robinson

Suffering a dislocated wrist in the Bills’ dominant win over the Cowboys, Jordan Phillips expressed hope he could return for a playoff run. If the team is to qualify for the postseason, Phillips will not be available to start that journey.

The Bills are placing the veteran defensive tackle on IR on Thursday, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports. Phillips will be sidelined for the final three regular-season games and Buffalo’s playoff opener, should the team continue its recent form into a postseason berth.

Injuries continue to hinder the Buffalo defense, with Rapoport adding Micah Hyde is not expected to play Saturday against the Chargers. But the Bills received good news this week; starting defensive tackle DaQuan Jones is back at practice despite suffering a torn pectoral muscle earlier this season. Phillips has been the team’s starter in place of Jones, opening the past nine games with the first-stringers. Suffering a neck stinger, Hyde has gotten in two limited practices this week. But the Bills will be cautious with a key veteran who missed almost all of last season with a neck injury.

Phillips became part of a Bills D-tackle plan involving only experienced veterans. This offseason, the three-time reigning AFC East champs brought back Phillips on a one-year, $3MM deal. The team also extended Ed Oliver and signed Poona Ford to be part of a group featuring 2022 UFA additions Jones and Tim Settle. While Settle and Ford have starting experience, the Bills have turned to Phillips — who is on stint No. 3 with the team — in Jones’ place over the past two months.

A former second-round Dolphins pick, Phillips reignited his career in Buffalo during the late 2010s. The Bills claimed Phillips in 2018, and re-signed him on a one-year, $4.5MM deal for the ’19 season. That proved pivotal. Phillips parlayed a career year (9.5 sacks) into a three-year, $30MM Cardinals deal. Injuries marred the Arizona pact, but after the team cut him in 2022, the veteran made his way back to Buffalo. Phillips, 31, is now on his fourth Bills contract.

The team’s continued interest in extending this partnership aside, Pro Football Focus has viewed Phillips as one of the NFL’s worst D-tackles this season. Citing Phillips’ run defense as a concern, PFF grades him as the league’s second-worst DT regular this year. Phillips has registered 2.5 sacks, two tackles for loss and five pass batdowns this year. Settle has played the third-most snaps among Bills DTs this season, while Ford — a Seahawks starter from 2019-22 — has not seen much playing time.

Jones returning would certainly help the Bills, but they still have an experienced interior D-line contingent without him. The Bills have until Jan. 9 to activate Jones, who was off to a strong start before going down in early October.

Updated 2024 NFL Draft Order

December 20th, 2023 at 1:41pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Panthers’ Week 15 win over the Falcons brought the Patriots and Cardinals, who each lost, one game closer to the No. 1 overall pick. New England’s weaker strength of schedule provides keeps Arizona in the No. 3 spot, while Washington — weeks away from a likely full-scale reboot — has lost five straight to move into position for its first top-five pick since 2020.

Early reports have the Bears more likely to draft Justin Fields‘ replacement than trading a top pick once again, but the Patriots and Cardinals are still in the running for what could well be the Caleb Williams draft slot. Much less drama would emerge if New England claimed the top pick, as the Patriots would be expected to draft the top QB prize. Arizona landing atop the draft for the second time in six years could produce a derby, with Kyler Murray‘s contract difficult (but not impossible) to move for new GM Monti Ossenfort. QB-needy teams may well be hoping the Cardinals land one of the top two spots, however, providing a potential gateway to a trade-up for Williams or Drake Maye.

The Raiders’ 63-21 demolition of the Chargers slid them down six spots compared to their position last week. The Packers also climbed eight spots from their slot going into Week 15. Green Bay has not held a top-11 draft choice since it drafted B.J. Raji in the 2009 first round; that came on the heels of Aaron Rodgers‘ first season at the helm. Jordan Love‘s QB1 debut season could still produce a playoff berth, however, and the rest of the NFC and AFC wild-card races remain tightly bunched.

Here is how the 2024 draft order looks with three regular-season games to play:

  1. Chicago Bears (via Panthers)
  2. New England Patriots: 3-11
  3. Arizona Cardinals: 3-11
  4. Washington Commanders: 4-10
  5. Chicago Bears: 5-9
  6. New York Giants: 5-9
  7. New York Jets: 5-9
  8. Los Angeles Chargers: 5-9
  9. Tennessee Titans: 5-9
  10. Atlanta Falcons: 6-8
  11. Green Bay Packers: 6-8
  12. Las Vegas Raiders: 6-8
  13. New Orleans Saints: 7-7
  14. Denver Broncos: 7-7
  15. Seattle Seahawks: 7-7
  16. Pittsburgh Steelers: 7-7
  17. Arizona Cardinals (via Texans)
  18. Buffalo Bills: 8-6
  19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 7-7
  20. Minnesota Vikings: 7-7
  21. Los Angeles Rams: 7-7
  22. Indianapolis Colts: 8-6
  23. Jacksonville Jaguars: 8-6
  24. Cincinnati Bengals: 8-6
  25. Kansas City Chiefs: 9-5
  26. Houston Texans (via Browns)
  27. Detroit Lions: 10-4
  28. Philadelphia Eagles: 10-4
  29. Miami Dolphins: 10-4
  30. Dallas Cowboys: 10-4
  31. Baltimore Ravens: 11-3
  32. San Francisco 49ers: 11-3

NFL Injury Rumors: Holland, Dillon, Pacheco, Miller, Elam

December 15th, 2023 at 10:11pm CST by Ely Allen

Injuries aren’t anything to keep Dolphins safety Jevon Holland down for long. The third-year starter has missed three games this season (the most he’s missed in his short carer) while dealing with reported knee injuries. According to an interview Holland did with Adam Beasley of Pro Football Network, the Dolphins defender has been dealing with two MCL sprains.

A single MCL sprain is enough to force many players to sit out multiple games, as those knee ligament injuries are not meant to be dealt with lightly. Regardless, Holland wants to be through with missing time, telling Beasley that “he’s optimistic about playing this week.” With the team’s other starting safety DeShon Elliott out this week after suffering a concussion in Miami’s surprising loss to the Titans on Monday, the defense would be glad to return Holland to the field.

Here are a few other injury rumors from around the NFL:

  • Packers running back A.J. Dillon has already been asked to step into a starting role with Aaron Jones out for the past three weeks. Green Bay may be down another rusher as Dillon reportedly suffered a broken thumb in the team’s loss to the Giants on Monday night, per ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. Like Holland, Dillon isn’t one to miss time with an injury. The only games he’s missed in his career were due to COVID-19 during his rookie year. That being said, he’s never played with a broken thumb. He’s listed as questionable heading into the weekend, but Dillon is trying to figure out if he can play through the injury. The biggest issue comes with the fact that opposing teams will know of the injury and attempts to punch out fumbles could lead to further harm.
  • Isiah Pacheco has only missed one game since taking over as the Chiefs‘ starting running back in Week 2, sitting out for last week’s loss to the Bills. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, head coach Andy Reid reported that Pacheco underwent “a clean up procedure on his shoulder” that will force him to miss this weekend’s matchup with the Patriots, as well. Reid expects that Pacheco should be able to return after that.
  • Yet another running back, Saints rookie rusher Kendre Miller has missed the team’s past four games with an ankle injury and is scheduled to miss a fifth straight game this weekend. NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill believes that we haven’t seen the last of Miller this season. While the TCU-product may not be back immediately after this week’s game, Underhill thinks a Week 17 appearance in Tampa Bay could be in the cards for the 21-year-old.
  • Lastly, it’s safe to say that we haven’t seen the best from Bills second-year cornerback Kaiir Elam in his sophomore season. 2023 has been an injury-riddled year for the Florida-product as he’s only made an appearance in three games this year, the most recent of which only saw him on special teams. According to Ryan O’Halloran of The Buffalo News, Elam reportedly tore an ankle ligament prior to the start of the regular season. While he did sit out the team’s first four contests, Elam’s Week 5 return apparently saw him attempting to play through the injury without it being healed due to injuries to Tre’Davious White and Christian Benford in the team’s Week 4 win over the Dolphins. The injury would eventually push him onto injured reserve at the start of November. He’s since been designated to return from IR. If he isn’t able to return by shortly after Christmas, Elam will remain on IR for the rest of the year.

Staff Rumors: Licht, Bowles, Bills, Patriots

December 14th, 2023 at 9:54pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jason Licht built a Super Bowl-winning Buccaneers roster, doing so after luring Tom Brady to Tampa and completing an all-in effort that kept the Bucs as an elite team in 2021 as well. The 10th-year GM did not oversee a playoff team until Brady’s arrival, and the team regressed after the all-time great unretired last year. But the Bucs are back atop the NFC South, in another bad year for the division, with Baker Mayfield at the helm. This status aside, the Washington Post’s Jason La Canfora notes Licht and second-year HC Todd Bowles may be on the hot seat. Pointing to ownership’s interest in starting over to begin a rebuild, La Canfora indicates each of the Bucs’ top two decision-makers could be in trouble.

In his sixth season as a head coach, Bowles is overseeing a No. 13-ranked defense (DVOA places the unit 17th). The former Jets HC has taken heat for his clock management, and the Bucs have certainly dipped as a whole compared to the two Brady-Bruce Arians years. Bowles one-and-done rumors emerged late last season, and the Bucs dropped from 3-1 to 4-7 this year. With a clear chance to either qualify for the playoffs as the NFC South champ or as a wild card, the Bucs do not profile as a clear-cut candidate to dismantle their setup. But this does look to be a consideration.

Here is the latest from the coaching and front office ranks:

  • Weathering a storm of his own making last week, Sean McDermott has the Bills at 7-6. While that is a disappointing record given the team’s plus-104 point differential, Buffalo looms as a dangerous team in the AFC wild-card race. Prior to the report about McDermott using the 9/11 hijackers as an example of teamwork back in 2019, the seventh-year HC was viewed as close to a lock to return in 2024. The Bills HC, however, may not be completely in the clear, ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano writes. The Bills still have matchups against the Cowboys and Dolphins. While McDermott has led a recovery effort that has featured five playoff appearances in six years, not advancing to this year’s bracket — in a conference littered with backup QBs — would be a major disappointment. Would that fate be enough for the Bills to cut bait?
  • On the subject of the Bills’ staff, the team hired another assistant following Ken Dorsey‘s firing. Former Buffalo University OC DJ Mangas is now on McDermott’s staff as an offensive assistant, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones tweets. Mangas also was on the 2019 LSU staff alongside current Bills OC Joe Brady. Mangas, 34, spent this season as the MAC program’s OC; he was LSU’s pass-game coordinator in 2021. The Bills added Mangas to their staff during their Week 13 bye, ESPN.com’s Alaina Getzenberg tweets. This is Mangas’ first NFL gig.
  • Syracuse firing longtime HC Dino Babers will have ramifications for the Patriots. The ACC program will poach Ross Douglas from New England, per ESPN.com’s Pete Thamel, who notes the three-year Pats assistant will work as the wide receivers coach under new Orange coach Fran Brown. Douglas, 29, climbed to the role of Patriots wideouts coach this year. While the Patriots are expected to move on from their legendary HC after the season, it is not known if Jerod Mayo would replace Bill Belichick and retain a number of assistants. An outside staffer coming in would point to the Pats’ staff being mostly sacked.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/13/23

December 13th, 2023 at 7:31pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s minor moves from around the NFL:

Arizona Cardinals

Buffalo Bills

Dallas Cowboys

Jacksonville Jaguars

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

Agnew has missed the four games required to return from injured reserve, and though he’s not been activated yet, the Jaguars took the first step towards that outcome today in returning him to practice. It was shoulder and rib injuries that led to the return specialist’s placement on IR. During his absence the team had turned to rookie sixth-round receiver Parker Washington to return punts and veteran backup running back D’Ernest Johnson to return kickoffs. Jacksonville still has a few days to determine whether or not they’ll activate him right away for this weekend. If not, the team will have 21 days to activate him before his practice window closes and Agnew is reverted to season-ending IR.

Updated 2024 NFL Draft Order

December 13th, 2023 at 2:29pm CST by Sam Robinson

Two different teams have held the No. 1 overall pick in consecutive years since 2017. Amid a radical rebuild effort, the Browns carried the top pick into the 2017 and ’18 drafts. The Jaguars did the same in 2021 and ’22. It is possible the Bears will follow that up in back-to-back years. The big difference here would be the Bears traded the 2023 top choice and may unload the 2024 top pick for another windfall, depending on their evaluation of Justin Fields.

The Bears and Panthers’ March trade, giving Carolina access to Bryce Young, has become a seminal moment for both teams. As it stands now, Chicago holds two top-five picks. The Panthers are 1-12, giving the Bears a two-game lead on the Patriots and Cardinals for the top slot with four games left. Chicago finishing with the first overall selection, providing access to the quarterback of its choice, would create a big-picture decision for a Bears team that already passed on the 2023 quarterback class to stick with Fields — a QB the Ryan Poles regime did not draft. North Carolina’s Drake Maye has declared for the draft, while USC’s Caleb Williams is widely expected to follow suit.

A new Cardinals regime is also evaluating its QB, though Kyler Murray‘s $46.1MM-per-year contract (which runs through 2028) will be much harder to escape compared to Fields’. This creates an interesting scenario that will have teams who do not land two-two draft slots monitoring how Chicago and Arizona proceed. The Patriots are widely expected to pursue a quarterback in the draft, and they are likely to do so without Bill Belichick.

With gridlock forming in the AFC and NFC wild-card races, considerable movement will take place over the next month. The winner of the NFC South will likely lose several spots in the ’24 draft, as the Buccaneers did this year by winning the ’22 division title at 8-9. Here is how the draft order looks going into Week 15:

  1. Chicago Bears (via Panthers)
  2. New England Patriots: 3-10
  3. Arizona Cardinals: 3-10
  4. Washington Commanders: 4-9
  5. Chicago Bears: 5-8
  6. Las Vegas Raiders: 5-8
  7. New York Jets: 5-8
  8. New York Giants: 5-8
  9. Tennessee Titans: 5-8
  10. Los Angeles Chargers: 5-8
  11. Atlanta Falcons: 6-7
  12. New Orleans Saints: 6-7
  13. Seattle Seahawks: 6-7
  14. Los Angeles Rams: 6-7
  15. Denver Broncos: 7-6
  16. Arizona Cardinals (via Texans)
  17. Buffalo Bills: 7-6
  18. Cincinnati Bengals: 7-6
  19. Green Bay Packers: 6-7
  20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 6-7
  21. Indianapolis Colts: 7-6
  22. Minnesota Vikings: 7-6
  23. Pittsburgh Steelers: 7-6
  24. Houston Texans (via Browns)
  25. Kansas City Chiefs: 8-5
  26. Jacksonville Jaguars: 8-5
  27. Detroit Lions: 9-4
  28. Philadelphia Eagles: 10-3
  29. Miami Dolphins: 9-4
  30. Dallas Cowboys: 10-3
  31. San Francisco 49ers: 10-3
  32. Baltimore Ravens: 10-3

DaQuan Jones In Play To Return This Season

December 11th, 2023 at 3:37pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Bills have been playing without three cornerstone defenders for several weeks. Tre’Davious White is out for the season, and no indications have emerged regarding a Matt Milano return. But the other key starter the Bills lost in October does have a path back to the active roster.

Sean McDermott said Monday (via the Buffalo News’ Jay Skurski) DaQuan Jones has a chance to come back from the pectoral injury he suffered in London. Jones is not on track to be designated for return this week, but the Bills have the door open for the defensive tackle starter to return before season’s end.

Buffalo saw both Milano and Jones go down during its loss to Jacksonville in London. Those setbacks came a week after White’s Achilles tear, decimating the Bills’ defense. That has led the team toward the “In the Hunt” sector of playoff graphics, rather than its usual perch atop the AFC East. But the Bills have reestablished some momentum, beating the Chiefs in Kansas City for a third straight season. With the team’s playoff chances still live, a Jones return would make sense — should the veteran interior defender prove able — down the stretch.

When Jones went down, he was reported to have sustained a pectoral tear that required surgery. That injury regularly shuts down players for seasons’ remainders. It is possible Jones did not sustain a full tear; that would explain this somewhat surprising window to come back. Pro Football Focus had slotted Jones third among interior D-linemen through five games; the former Titans draftee had started all 21 games since his two-year, $14MM Bills deal came to pass in 2022.

Despite a plus-104 point differential, the Bills sit 7-6. Games against the Cowboys and Dolphins remain for the three-time reigning AFC East champions. The team’s impressive differential aside, it ranks 19th against the run. Jones making an unexpected comeback would certainly help the cause on this front.

While Jones has a chance to return to practice in the not-too-distant future, Micah Hyde will likely miss some upcoming workouts. McDermott called the veteran safety week to week with the stinger he suffered in Week 14. Hyde made a return from a neck injury this year; the 11th-year defender missed 15 games last season due to that malady. The Bills have better safety insurance this year, having signed Taylor Rapp. Following an inspirational return, Damar Hamlin has not seen much playing time this year. But the 2022 fill-in starter serves as depth as well.

AFC East Rumors: Eichenberg, Hines, Pats

December 10th, 2023 at 7:53pm CST by Ely Allen

With a little more time and a lot more publicity, Dolphins offensive lineman Liam Eichenberg could have a case for Comeback Player of the Year. Not really, but Eichenberg has done an impressive job of turning around his career, which was trending downwards through his first two years in the league.

An offensive tackle at Notre Dame, Eichenberg struggled as a rookie full-time starter at left tackle in Miami. In 2022, Eichenberg slid inside to the left guard spot and delivered a more admirable performance before having his season derailed by injuries.

Eichenberg opened this year as a sixth-man for the Dolphins’ offensive line, specializing on interior play. When injuries held out starting center Connor Williams, Eichenberg stepped in to complete his trifecta of starting at every position on the left side of the line. Later on, he filled in with starts at right and left guard, as well. He’s reportedly more comfortable at right guard, but the Dolphins opted to start him at left guard last week ahead of Lester Cotton, who had started there the past two weeks.

In fact, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, Miami’s staff has been so impressed with Eichenberg that, barring a miraculous return by Isaiah Wynn from a significant quadriceps injury, Eichenberg could have won the starting left guard job for the remainder of the season.

Here are a few other rumors from around the AFC East:

  • Patriots star pass rusher Matt Judon has now missed the team’s last nine games on injured reserve. Judon has certainly missed enough time to come off of IR, but there’s been no word of that possibility yet. According to Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald, when head coach Bill Belichick was asked about the possibility of Judon returning this year, the long-time skipper replied, “We’ll see. That’s a good question.” He continued, “I know he’s working hard. Matt’s been in here, works hard on a daily basis, but again, that’s a medical question that I wouldn’t be able to answer.”
  • When Bills running back Nyheim Hines suffered an off-site jet ski injury that would end his 2023 season before it even began, that put the veteran rusher in an uncomfortable position concerning his contract. Since the injury occurred away from play, Hines was placed on the non-football injury list, “which technically doesn’t require the team to pay him anything,” per Zak Keefer of The Athletic. Hines was out millions in incentives and bonuses. It took the two sides a few months to hammer out the details, but eventually, they “agreed on a smaller sum” than the $9MM over two years that they had originally agreed to. This allows the Bills to stay on good terms with Hines when he’s able to return to the team next year while saving them from having to pay his full contract for a year in which he won’t see the field.
  • When it was reported that Patriots offensive tackle Trent Brown failed to make the trip to Frankfurt with the team for personal reasons, Brown took exception to the speculation that followed. Per ESPN’s Mike Reiss, Brown felt the need to clarify that the reason he was unable to make the trip was because of the second opinion he sought on his ankle sprain. While he did attend a funeral during the team’s visit to Germany, he was not able to spend much personal time with his family as he was due back in New England for rehab.
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