Newsstand News & Rumors

Packers, Rashan Gary Agree To Extension

October 30th, 2023 at 10:31pm CST by Adam La Rose

While short-term changes to the Packers’ roster could be coming in the next two days, a cornerstone of their defense is set to remain in place for the foreseeable future. Edge rusher Rashan Gary announced on Monday that he has signed a four-year, $96MM extension.

The deal comes as Gary is playing out his fifth-year option to finish off his rookie contract. Taking into account his 2023 salary of $10.89MM, the extension will pay out a total of $107.5MM to the former first-rounder and keep him on the books through 2027. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports the contract includes a signing bonus of $34.64MM.

Gary had a slow start to his career with only seven sacks across his first two seasons in the league. The Michigan alum took on a full-time starting role in 2021, however, and his increased workload produced an uptick in his statistical impact. Gary registered 9.5 sacks that year, leading to the Packers’ decision to exercise his option and expectations of a strong follow-up campaign.

However, an ACL tear limited him the 25-year-old to nine games in 2022. Despite showing continued effectiveness prior to the injury, it threatened to hinder Gary’s market for a new deal pending his recovery process. He rehabbed in time to suit up for Week 1, though, and he has yet to miss a contest in 2023. Gary made it clear last month he was open to negotiating a new long-term pact, and efforts on that front have now cemented his status as a key member of Green Bay’s core moving forward.

The $24MM AAV of the extension places Gary fifth in the NFL amongst edge rushers in that department. Nick Bosa‘s historic 49ers deal has set a new high mark at the position, and today’s agreement makes Gary the 10th pass rusher to eclipse the $20MM-per-year mark. He will now sit atop the pecking order (just ahead of left tackle David Bakhtiari and cornerback Jaire Alexander) as Green Bay’s highest-paid player.

Gary has recorded 4.5 of the Packers’ 19 sacks this season, giving him the team lead. Fellow starter Preston Smith has been floated as a trade candidate in the build-up to tomorrow’s deadline, with Gary’s extension on the horizon and first-round rookie Lukas Van Ness in place for years to come. While Smith’s future in Green Bay is yet to be determined, Gary’s is now taken care of for the foreseeable future.

Vikings’ Kirk Cousins Suffers Torn Achilles

October 30th, 2023 at 12:45pm CST by Sam Robinson

OCTOBER 30: Further testing has confirmed Cousins’ Achilles tear, Rapoport notes. He will miss the remainder of the campaign ahead of an uncertain offseason regarding his future. Rapoport’s colleague Tom Pelissero adds that a schedule with respect to surgery and a recovery timeline will come together later this week. The team has since confirmed the unwanted news.

OCTOBER 29: Kirk Cousins has never missed a game due to injury in six years with the Vikings. That streak will likely come to an end soon. The 12th-year quarterback left the Vikes’ Week 8 win over the Packers with what the team fears is an Achilles injury, per Kevin O’Connell.

The contract-year QB will undergo an MRI on what NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport confirms is an Achilles injury, but ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter confirms the worst fears. Cousins indeed tore his Achilles, according to Schefter. O’Connell used past tense at points when describing Cousins’ 2023 season, though the second-year HC did not pinpoint the severity of the malady.

This being confirmed would deal a crushing blow to the Vikings, who have rallied back from 0-3 to 4-4 via their road win today. The team has only needed to play without Cousins once since signing him in 2018, with Sean Mannion starting late in the 2021 season due to the starter contracting COVID-19.

Fifth-round rookie Jaren Hall replaced Cousins in Green Bay, but O’Connell did not confirm the BYU product would start if Cousins is indeed out of the mix, ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert notes. The Vikings reacquired Mannion earlier this month, adding the ex-Cousins backup to their practice squad. Nick Mullens will be considered for the role, but the team’s Week 1 backup is not eligible to play in Week 9. Minnesota placed Mullins on IR due to a back injury; he must miss two more games.

Cousins’ good injury fortune dates back to his Washington days. Since replacing Robert Griffin III for good, Cousins has never missed a game due to injury. This comes at an inopportune time for the player as well. Cousins and the Vikings have agreed on three contracts since 2018, but the team let its longtime QB1 go into a contract year this season. The sides agreed on a restructure in March. Cousins, 35, does not expect to revisit negotiations until 2024.

The Vikings are attempting to become the sixth team to book a playoff berth in a non-strike season after starting 0-3. Only one club — the 2018 Texans — have done this in the 21st century. Naturally, with the NFL expanding its playoff bracket to 14 teams in 2021, more teams are bound to join this club. Minnesota seemed poised to make a strong push, as only two games against a team with a winning record — both Lions matchups — remain on the defending NFC champions’ schedule. But Justin Jefferson missing more time — potentially being out longer than the four-game minimum — and Cousins being likely out for the rest of the season will suddenly make a postseason voyage unlikely.

When Cousins went down, he was in the process of leading Minnesota to a second straight win without Jefferson. Cousins completed 23 of 31 passes for 274 yards and two touchdowns. The steady QB sits tied with Tua Tagovailoa for the NFL lead with 18 TD passes this season. Cousins entered Sunday on pace for a career-high mark; his current best came in 2020. But the Vikings will be set to regroup, with Jefferson being forced to miss two more games due to his IR placement.

Mullens is in his second season with the Vikings, who signed him just before the 2022 campaign. Of the internal replacement options, Mullens is the most experienced QB on Minnesota’s roster, having started 17 games (16 of those in San Francisco). Mullens is a career 65.3% passer, whose TD-INT ratio sits at 27-22. While Kyle Shanahan‘s system undoubtedly aided the former UDFA, Mullens would seemingly be the team’s best option. But it is unknown if his back injury will cooperate in the near future. Mannion has been in the NFL since 2015 but has made three starts.

This could be the injury that prompts a Carson Wentz discussion. The Jets passed on pursuing the 30-year-old free agent when Aaron Rodgers went down in Week 1, but given the midseason emergency circumstances, it would stand to reason the Vikings would consider a one-time MVP candidate who has 92 starts on his resume. The Commanders released Wentz in March; the former No. 2 overall pick has not been closely connected to a team since. Colt McCoy auditioned for the Vikings earlier this month, but the team brought back Mannion soon after.

Titans, Eagles Agree To Kevin Byard Trade

October 23rd, 2023 at 10:06pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Eagles have made a signficant addition to their secondary. Philadelphia has agreed to a trade which will see them acquire safety Kevin Byard from the Titans, as first reported by Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reports that fellow safety Terrell Edmunds, along with 2024 fifth- and sixth-round picks will be headed back to Tennessee. The Eagles have long been named as a candidate to make an addition in the secondary – particularly at the safety spot – and now that has taken place. The move marks an end to Byard’s seven-plus year run in Nashville.

With that said, this move will represent a homecoming for the Philadelphia native. Byard’s time with the Titans appeared to be on shaky ground in the offseason, with new general manager Ran Carthon approaching him (unsuccessfully) about agreeing to a pay cut. In spite of that, the 30-year-old made it clear he was not looking to be moved out of Tennessee. He ultimately agreed to a restructured contract, a move which lowered his base salary to $4MM this season.

Given the ease which which his 2023 earnings could be absorbed – along with the fact no guaranteed money is in place in 2024, the final year of his deal – Byard represented an attractive trade chip. He was recently reported to be the subject of interest from teams, but doubts remained regarding the compensation Tennessee could fetch in return. Instead of seeing Byard potentially become a cap casualty in the offseason, the Titans will now receive a pair of Day 3 picks along with a short-term replacement in Edmunds, who signed a one-year deal this offseason.

The picks exchanged here will be the Eagles’ highest pick in the 2024 fifth and sixth rounds, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones tweets. Both are conditional selections, per GOPHNX.com’s Howard Balzer. It is unknown at this point what conditions are included here, but this will bring an end to an eight-season partnership between Byard and the Titans.

Byard earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro acclaim in 2017 and ’21, and he has remained productive across his time in Nashville. He has recorded multiple interceptions every full year since his rookie campaign, and eclipsed 100 tackles twice. His ball production and coverage marks have taken a step back this year, but he will be joining a more talented defense upon arrival with the Eagles, a team which has lost a number of key members of its secondary since their Super Bowl appearance.

That included the free agent departure of both Marcus Epps and C.J. Gardner-Johnson, and Philadelphia has been in search of a true replacement for the latter’s playmaking in particular early in the season. Byard will have the chance to take on a starting role alongside Reed Blankenship (when healthy) in the team’s new-look safety arrangement. Their performances when paired together will go a long way in determining the secondary’s success, especially given the season-ending injury suffered by slot corner Avonte Maddox.

The Eagles entered today with roughly $4.3MM in cap space, so this move will likely be the most notable one the reigning NFC champions can afford. Still, it proves the team’s all-in approach as they look to go one step further than they did last year. From Tennessee’s perspective, meanwhile, this move will invite questions about Carthon and Co. being willing to part with other veterans. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill and running back Derrick Henry are not believed to be on the block, but at 2-4 it would not come as no surprise if the Titans were to act as sellers in other moves ahead of the October 31 deadline.

Eagles Sign WR Julio Jones

October 21st, 2023 at 3:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

OCTOBER 21: To little surprise, Jones will make his Eagles debut on Sunday. The team announced he (along with cornerback Mekhi Garner) is a game day elevation for Week 7. Jones will thus revert back to the taxi squad after the contest, allowing two more game day call-ups before a signing on the active roster will be required. It will be interesting to see how large of a role he plays within an already capable Eagles offense during Sunday’s primetime matchup against the Dolphins.

OCTOBER 17: Already rostering one of the NFL’s top wide receiver tandems, the Eagles will add an All-Decade player to the mix. The team agreed to a deal with Julio Jones on Tuesday.

Jones, who has not played since his Buccaneers one-off in 2022, signed a one-year contract with the Eagles, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. This will be Jones’ age-34 season. Jones will reunite with ex-Titans teammate A.J. Brown and former Falcons sidekick Olamide Zaccheaus.

This is a practice squad deal, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. Since the league expanded P-squads to 16 players in 2020, teams have used the increased flexibility to stash veterans and provide ramp-up periods. The Eagles did this recently with Bradley Roby, who joined the team on a P-squad agreement before moving up to the 53-man roster days later. Jones should be expected to be on Philly’s active roster soon, with CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones indicating a real chance exists this transaction will happen before Week 7.

The Eagles are adding Jones not long after placing their No. 3 wideout, Quez Watkins, on IR. Watkins has missed three games this season and landed on IR ahead of Week 6 because of a hamstring ailment. The 5-1 team brought in Marquez Callaway and Dezmon Patmon for workouts Monday, Schefter adds, but will go with one of this era’s best receiving options. Jones is obviously well into his post-prime period by this point, but the 6-foot-3 target supplies tremendous experience — both as a lead target on a Super Bowl team and a supporting-caster on playoff-bound squads.

Philly has shown a willingness to bring in accomplished veterans near the end of their careers, doing so in 2022, when they aided their run defense by signing defensive tackles Ndamukong Suh and Linval Joseph midway through last season. Both vets stayed on the team through Super Bowl LVII. Jones, who played in Super Bowl LI with the Falcons, will sign on to chase a ring in what could very well be his final season.

Jones authored the most statistically productive five-year run by a pass catcher in NFL history, totaling 7,994 receiving yards from 2014-18. That stretch produced two first-team All-Pro nods, and Jones ripped off three second-team All-Pro seasons during his lengthy peak, one that effectively concluded with the 2019 season. That 15-game Atlanta slate represents a line of demarcation of sorts for Jones, who saw injury trouble wrap his prime during the 2020 slate. He has missed 21 games due to injury over the past three years.

The initial months of the Terry Fontenot–Arthur Smith Falcons partnership led to a Jones trade to the Titans. Brown had pushed for the Titans to acquire Jones in 2021, and while the duo played together for a team that booked home-field advantage in the AFC playoffs, both missed time due to injuries. The hamstring trouble that slowed Jones in 2020 followed him to Tennessee. He finished the ’21 season with 34 catches for 434 yards and one touchdown. Signing with the Buccaneers last year, Jones worked as an auxiliary target alongside Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. The 12-year veteran tallied 24 catches for 299 yards and two scores for a Bucs team that cratered offensively, though a porous NFC South kept the Tom Brady-fronted team afloat en route to a playoff berth. Jones missed games but did not land on IR during his Tampa stay.

Returning this year will delay Jones’ Hall of Fame induction, though given the waits receivers regularly endure en route to Canton, the former No. 6 overall pick may not be a lock for first-ballot enshrinement. Nevertheless, the surefire Hall of Famer will join an Eagles team that endured an ugly loss to the Jets. Brown and DeVonta Smith are coming off a 1,000-1,000 season, and Zaccheaus finished with 533 yards for the 2022 Falcons. Though, the diminutive Philly native has just 74 yards this year. Watkins cannot return until Week 12, leaving a bit of a void behind Brown and Smith. Howie Roseman will see if Jones can help fill it for the Super Bowl-contending squad.

Colts QB Anthony Richardson To Undergo Season-Ending Surgery

October 18th, 2023 at 10:05pm CST by Sam Robinson

Gardner Minshew‘s time at the controls in Indianapolis looks set to run through season’s end. After consulting with multiple doctors, Anthony Richardson will be shut down for the campaign’s remainder.

Richardson will undergo season-ending surgery to repair his AC joint injury, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports. The No. 4 overall pick went on IR last week, and while a return was in play, an update to the situation indicated the Florida alum was facing a longer return timetable than initially forecast. The Colts will proceed with considerable caution here. Jim Irsay confirmed Richardson’s season is done.

“We collected several medical opinions and we felt this was the best course of action for his long-term health,” Irsay said. “We anticipate a full recovery and there is no doubt Anthony has a promising future.”

Although Richardson showed early promise, he suffered injuries in three of his four games with the Colts. A concussion in Week 2 and the Week 4 shoulder injury came after Richardson runs. While the Colts drafted Richardson in large part because of his rare athletic skillset, those talents led to this early shutdown. The team also did not want a repeat of the Andrew Luck situation, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler notes.

Luck sustained a partially torn labrum during the 2015 season but finished out the year and opted not to undergo surgery in 2016. This led to Luck playing hurt throughout the ’16 slate and practicing on a limited basis for most of that year. Once the former Indianapolis franchise QB opted for surgery in 2017, complications from the procedure led to a full-season absence. Luck returned for the 2018 campaign, earning Comeback Player of the Year acclaim, but stunned the football world by retiring just before the 2019 season. The former No. 1 overall pick cited the mental toll the extensive rehab took on him as a central reason for his NFL exit. This left the Colts adrift at QB for years; Richardson is in place to stop the carousel.

The merry-go-round will spin again for a while, with Minshew now the starter. Luck’s 2017 shutdown led to Scott Tolzien opening the year as the starter, but Jacoby Brissett replaced him quickly. Thrown into another emergency circumstance, Brissett was back in place as Indy’s starter in 2019. The Colts then churned through Philip Rivers, Carson Wentz and Matt Ryan from 2020-22, with Sam Ehlinger and Nick Foles also stepping in during a disastrous 2022 season. Richardson was the seventh Colts Week 1 starting quarterback since 2017. Only Washington (2017-23), Cleveland (2013-19) and San Diego (1987-93) match that throughout NFL history. Minshew is not part of that list, but he will almost definitely end up taking the bulk of the Colts’ snaps in 2023, putting him in position to cash in on up to $2MM in playing-time incentives.

As expected from a one-year college starter who did not show plus accuracy in college, Richardson offered an up-and-down early sample. He completed only 59.5% of his throws and averaged 6.9 yards per attempt. But the 6-foot-4, 244-pound talent flashed immediately as a dual threat, amassing 136 rushing yards in fewer than three full games. The Colts have the 21-year-old QB under contract through 2026, with a fifth-year option existing in the rookie deal to push it through 2027. Through that lens, Indy’s careful plan — one ESPN.com’s Stephen Holder notes involved Richardson’s camp — makes sense. Though, it certainly hurts the 2023 Colts edition.

Irsay had indicated the Colts would have chosen Richardson first overall, with the team running an effective smokescreen operation — one that involved steady Will Levis-to-Indiana rumors — before the draft. Richardson will now have several months to recover, leaving Minshew back in a starting role. The Colts informed Minshew when he signed a one-year, $3.5MM deal that he would be backing up whomever the team drafted in the first round, the Indianapolis Star’s Joel Erickson notes. The ex-Jaguars sixth-round pick began his career as Foles’ backup but usurped him. The Jags moved on after drafting Trevor Lawrence in 2021, but Minshew has now been in Shane Steichen‘s offense for three seasons.

The ex-Eagles backup struggled in his second Colts start, throwing three INTs in a one-sided loss in Jacksonville. But Minshew, 27, has made 26 starts over his five-year career. While he does not threaten defenses the way Richardson does, the experienced passer’s accuracy chops will be more dependable compared to the rookie’s current capabilities. This will double as an opportunity for Minshew to re-establish himself as a bridge-level starter or earn a more lucrative QB2 deal for the 2024 season and beyond.

Broncos Trade Randy Gregory To 49ers

October 7th, 2023 at 7:30pm CST by Sam Robinson

OCTOBER 7: Providing final details on the picks swapped in the Gregory trade, which is now official, NBC Sports’ Matt Maiocco notes that the seventh-round selection the 49ers will receive originally belonged to the Rams. San Francisco, meanwhile, will send its own sixth-rounder back to Denver as the latter team aims to move on from a highly disappointing free agent investment.

OCTOBER 6: The Broncos found a taker for Randy Gregory, who is set to head west. The 49ers agreed to acquire Gregory on Friday, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero. Denver had been planning to release the recently demoted edge rusher, but he will catch on in an interesting place.

A pick-swap trade will complete this process. San Francisco is sending a 2024 sixth-rounder to Denver for Gregory and a 2024 seventh, per Pelissero. The 49ers have shown an ability to coax bounce-back offerings from defensive linemen, with Kris Kocurek a highly regarded position coach. They will try this formula with Gregory, who is in the second season of a five-year, $69.5MM contract.

This trade will involve the Broncos paying a portion of Gregory’s $10.89MM in remaining 2023 salary, 9News’ Mike Klis reports. It turns out, the Broncos will pay almost all of Gregory’s salary. Save for the prorated veteran minimum ($840K) that will be on the 49ers to cover, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reports the Broncos will be responsible for the rest. The Broncos were ready to eat that money by releasing Gregory, so it makes sense they were fine with making this payment to secure late-round draft compensation.

The team picked up most of Von Miller‘s remaining 2021 salary upon dealing him to the Rams before that year’s deadline. That increased the compensation, with the Rams sending second- and third-round picks for the future Hall of Famer. Signed to help fill the Miller void in Denver months after that trade, Gregory did not live up to expectations. As such, his trade value is much lower.

The 49ers will pick up some flexibility with Gregory, whose contract calls for nonguaranteed salaries from 2024-26. At the time of signing, the Broncos had added the ex-Cowboys second-rounder on a long-term deal that checked in outside the top 20 for edge rusher AAV. Now, the 49ers will take a chance on Gregory. It will be interesting to see if the 49ers view Gregory as a non-rental, seeing as they just signed off on Nick Bosa‘s record-shattering extension, but the team does have an intriguing Bosa sidekick en route.

Gregory, 30, has flashed promising talent. He posted six-sack seasons with the Cowboys in 2018 and 2021, combining for 32 QB hits in those years, but injuries and suspensions have interrupted much of his prime. After a four-suspension run in Dallas — albeit under a CBA that featured harsher penalties for substance abuse — Gregory signed with Denver in 2022. The Cowboys were close to re-signing a player they had stood by despite his rampant unavailability, but contract language led to a snafu, changing both Dallas and Denver’s edge rusher plans. Gregory had been in talks with the Broncos last March but had said he would return to the Cowboys if they matched the terms. The Denver deal went through. Much has changed for the AFC West franchise since the Gregory deal came to pass, however, and the fit did not work out.

Needing shoulder surgery in 2022, Gregory was sidelined until Week 1. The Broncos did see some positive early returns from Gregory last season, when he played opposite Bradley Chubb. But a knee injury led Gregory to IR after Week 4. He did not return until late December and was not in top form upon coming back. Sean Payton hired ex-Broncos HC Vance Joseph as his defensive coordinator, and Gregory ended up benched by Week 4. Calling out Gregory for poor effort in the team’s 70-20 thrashing in Miami, the Broncos used Nik Bonitto and Jonathon Cooper as their starting edge rushers in Chicago.

This pair will hold down the fort for the time being, but the Broncos have free agency pickup Frank Clark and converted ILB Baron Browning nearing returns. The team designated Browning for return from the PUP list Wednesday, and Clark is aiming to come back by Week 5. The pair have rehabbed knee and groin injuries, respectively.

A Bonitto-Cooper-Clark-Browning foursome brings some intrigue for the Broncos, but the team has seen its OLB situation change since Gregory’s injury and the Chubb trade transpired in 2022. Joseph’s return to Denver has not gone smoothly, either; the Broncos rank last in total defense and points allowed. And the Gregory signing will go down as a clear miss for Broncos GM George Paton.

The 49ers let both Samson Ebukam and Charles Omenihu walk in free agency, saving up for the Bosa extension. The team has used ex-Raiders top-five pick Clelin Ferrell as the starter opposite Bosa, but 2022 second-rounder Drake Jackson is tied for the team lead with three sacks. Gregory joining the 49ers opens the door to a stacked defensive line. Although it is uncertain if the 4-0 team will want Gregory starting or in place as a rotational backup, the prospect of a Bosa-Gregory-Arik Armstead–Javon Hargrave quartet is now in play.

Kocurek and Bosa led the way in helping Ebukam, Omenihu and Arden Key generate plus work upon arriving in San Francisco. Gregory flashed better pre-Bay Area form compared to that trio, and the Super Bowl contenders will bank on their infrastructure once again. With the Broncos on the hook for most of Gregory’s 2023 money, this qualifies as a flier. The 49ers will gauge the fit before determining Gregory’s post-2023 future.

Chargers To Trade J.C. Jackson To Patriots; Christian Gonzalez Likely Out For Season

October 4th, 2023 at 10:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Chargers are giving up on their J.C. Jackson experiment. A year after signing the former Patriots standout to a big-ticket deal, the Bolts will cut bait and send the veteran defender back east. The Patriots are reacquiring Jackson, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports.

New England and Los Angeles will swap late-round picks in 2025, Rapoport adds. The Patriots and Chargers will exchange sixth- and seventh-rounders in the ’25 draft. This surprising move will aid a Pats team decimated at cornerback and make the AFC East squad responsible for part of a contract it did not want to pay in 2022.

A franchise tag candidate last year, Jackson instead hit the open market after not entering serious negotiations with the Pats. He followed the likes of Logan Ryan, Malcolm Butler and Stephon Gilmore out the door. The Patriots have continually passed on paying corners, and they let the Bolts give the ballhawk a five-year, $82.5MM contract that came with $40MM guaranteed at signing. That deal did not end up working out for the AFC West club, and now Jackson will follow the likes of Kyle Van Noy and Jamie Collins as defenders to reunite with the Patriots in recent years.

This trade will come after Christian Gonzalez sustained an injury against the Cowboys. The Patriots, who already played their Week 4 game without Jack Jones and Marcus Jones, are unlikely to have their first-round pick back until next season. Gonzalez sustained a torn shoulder labrum that is expected to sideline him for the rest of the season, Rapoport reports. The promising cover man is on track for surgery. WEEI’s Mike Kadlick initially reported Gonzalez suffered the labrum tear. The Oregon product had sought a second opinion, but with surgery upcoming, the Jackson trade will bring back a player quite familiar with Bill Belichick‘s system. Gonzalez will head to IR this week, SI.com’s Albert Breer tweets.

Jackson’s fit in L.A. deteriorated swiftly. The Chargers made their highest-paid corner a healthy scratch in Week 3, a decision that confused Jackson, who had recovered from a ruptured patellar tendon in time for Week 1. Jackson did not play in the Bolts’ Week 4 win over the Raiders, either, and said last week he was not yet 100%. With his career stonewalled in California, one of the NFL’s premier turnover machines will be called upon to operate in the system that made him a high-end free agent target.

Despite missing the second half of last season due to the knee injury, Jackson has corralled 26 interceptions since coming into the league in 2018. No player has picked off that many passes in that span. Jackson grew into a regular as a rookie in 2018, helping a Gilmore- and Devin McCourty-led secondary keep the Rams out of the end zone in Super Bowl LIII. Given more responsibilities in the three ensuing seasons, Jackson intercepted 21 passes from 2019-21. The Patriots rolled out top-seven scoring defenses each year.

Illustrating Jackson’s limited trade value on this top-10 CB contract, the Chargers will cover much of his 2023 salary to facilitate the move. New England is only on the hook for $1.5MM of the $9.33MM remaining on Jackson’s base salary, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler adds. The Bolts will pick up the rest in a signing bonus. Considering the Pats’ hesitation with regards to meeting Jackson’s high price in 2022, this part of the transaction does not surprise.

Collins and Van Noy also returned at reduced rates; the Pats ended up moving away from Collins twice — while letting the Browns and Lions pay him — but coaxed quality production from their off-and-on linebacker while he was attached to lower-end money. Jackson is still signed through 2026 and carries base salaries of $12.4MM, $12MM and $12.1MM, respectively, from 2024-26. No more guarantees remain on the deal, though, offering the Patriots flexibility on a player they know well. Still, Jackson is coming off a down 2022 season in Brandon Staley‘s system — one that ended with a severe injury last October. Jackson was also issued an arrest warrant in connection with a 2021 speeding charge.

Jackson, 27, will rejoin slot bastion Jonathan Jones in the Pats’ secondary. Jack Jones is also eligible to come off IR in Week 5, though it is unclear if the second-year defender will be ready to do so. Marcus Jones is not eligible to come back until Week 7. The Gonzalez component, however, represents the biggest wound out of New England’s secondary injuries. This news also hits harder after the report of Matt Judon‘s biceps injury. Judon is out for an extended period, with surgery on tap. A late-season return is not out of the question, but the Pats’ secondary will face tougher assignments without the red-sleeved pass rusher providing steady pressure.

After trading down in Round 1, the Patriots chose Gonzalez at No. 17 overall. Washington had considered the Pac-12 prospect but chose Emmanuel Forbes at No. 16. ESPN’s Scouts Inc. assigned a top-10 grade to Gonzalez as a prospect, and the 6-foot-2 rookie had delivered immediate impact. Pro Football Focus ranked Gonzalez as the league’s seventh-best corner to start the season. His rookie contract runs through 2026, with the Patriots holding a fifth-year option for 2027. But this obviously stings for a Pats team that had never chosen a pure cornerback in the first round under Belichick.

The Chargers had held a slot competition between Asante Samuel Jr. and Ja’Sir Taylor this summer. While Samuel ended up winning it, Taylor replaced him inside early in the season. The second-generation NFLer re-emerged in a full-time role on the outside, and despite Staley having indicated a Jackson-Samuel-Michael Davis battle for boundary reps was on tap, the Bolts will rely on their younger corners going forward.

Broncos To Release OLB Randy Gregory

October 4th, 2023 at 4:15pm CST by Sam Robinson

4:15pm: When speaking about the Gregory move, Payton said (via the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson) the Broncos are still in the process of trying to find a trade partner. If no deal materializes, the release will go through in the next day or so. Notably, Payton added that Gregory did not, in fact, ask for his release upon learning that the Broncos will turn their attention to younger members of their edge rush group. In any event, he will soon find himself out of the Mile High City.

10:16am: The Broncos are admitting a mistake on Randy Gregory early. After benching the 2022 free agency pickup in Week 4, Denver is moving on. The team is releasing the veteran edge rusher, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.

This will tag the Broncos with a big dead-money hit. They had signed Gregory to a five-year, $69.5MM deal in free agency, finalizing a deal after Gregory talks with the Cowboys hit an 11th-hour snag. Denver intends to use its younger pass rushers under Sean Payton. The Broncos have now moved on from Gregory and Bradley Chubb in consecutive years.

Denver moved Gregory to the trade block this week, with 9News’ Mike Klis reporting the team had been trying to unload the talented but unreliable veteran. As a vested vet, Gregory will head straight to free agency. The former Cowboys second-round pick asked for his release Tuesday, per Klis, and Payton will grant the request after no trade buyers emerged.

Gregory, 30, had been a key part of GM George Paton‘s post-Von Miller edge rusher plan. A year after deploying a Chubb-Gregory setup at outside linebacker, the Broncos are rid of both. They dealt Chubb to the Dolphins at last year’s deadline, doing so while Gregory was out with a knee injury. While Gregory showed flashes as a pass rusher, his Broncos tenure featured the undependability his Cowboys run did. Gregory’s Broncos run ends with just three sacks.

The Cowboys thought they had a deal done with Gregory, but the oft-suspended Nebraska alum objected to language inserted into the contract. Denver made the initial Gregory offer in March 2022; the former Dallas starter said he would stay a Cowboy if the team matched the terms. Dallas did, but the disagreement on language led Gregory to Colorado. The Cowboys ended up doing fine after Gregory left, forming a dominant edge-rushing group that includes Dorance Armstrong — who re-signed shortly after Gregory’s defection — along with Dante Fowler and 2022 second-rounder Sam Williams.

Gregory came to Denver on the heels of a shoulder surgery, one that kept him out of training camp last year. A knee injury sidelined Gregory early in his first Broncos campaign, and while he returned late in the year, Gregory’s first season offered little in the way of production. Denver managed to field a top-10 defense largely without Gregory, though its pass rush took a hit after Chubb’s departure. The Broncos benched Gregory after giving up 70 points in Week 3, with the ninth-year veteran’s effort — particularly against the run — leading to the demotion.

While the Broncos remain fairly deep on the edge, two of their cogs here — Baron Browning and Frank Clark — are unavailable. Browning is on Denver’s reserve/PUP list due to an offseason knee injury, while Clark is working his way back from an abductor malady sustained in a recent practice. Browning is eligible to return this week, though it is uncertain if the third-year linebacker will be ready. Clark is hoping to come back for this week’s Jets matchup.

The Broncos benched Gregory for Nik Bonitto, a 2022 second-rounder. He and 2021 seventh-rounder Jonathon Cooper are the Broncos’ starting edges for the time being. The two teamed up on the pivotal Justin Fields fumble-six in Sunday’s comeback win. Bonitto, Denver’s top 2022 draft choice, registered 2.5 sacks against the Bears. The Cooper-Bonitto duo may generate some optimism, but the Broncos have taken a massive step back on defense. Vance Joseph‘s unit ranks last in points and yards allowed, with a historically bad Miami outing sounding alarm bells.

The Gregory chapter represents a misstep on the Broncos’ part. The team had hoped Gregory’s lower-mileage Cowboys run — thanks to four suspensions — would help lead to a late prime period. Instead, Gregory is gone after just 10 games with the team. The Broncos will eat $16.1MM in dead money as a result of the cut. Gregory’s Cowboys form, which produced six-sack seasons in 2018 and 2020, will undoubtedly lead to another chance elsewhere. Though, it is unlikely he will come close to the $14MM-per-year pact the Broncos authorized.

Bills CB Tre’Davious White Tears Achilles

October 2nd, 2023 at 3:10pm CST by Ely Allen

OCTOBER 2: A Monday MRI confirmed the fears. White suffered an Achilles tear, Sean McDermott said. This will bring another early end to the top Buffalo corner’s season. White needed a full year to return from the ACL tear that ended his 2021 campaign, and he will soon start another lengthy rehab journey.

OCTOBER 1: In an otherwise extremely positive day in Buffalo that included the return to the field for Bills safety Damar Hamlin and a rather convincing win over the division-rival Dolphins, the Bills experienced a terrible scare as veteran cornerback Tre’Davious White left the game with an apparent ankle injury.

An update from the team’s public relations account on X informed that White had been downgraded to out for the game and that he was being evaluated for an injury to his Achilles tendon. Unfortunately, those evaluations are not looking promising as it is currently feared that White has suffered a torn Achilles, according to Jeff Darlington of ESPN.

This continues a troubling trend for the 28-year-old cornerback, who has not played in every game since his sophomore season in 2018. While he missed three games in the 2019 and 2020 seasons, White was still able to establish himself as a top cornerback in the league with a first-team All-Pro selection and two Pro Bowl appearances. In 2021, though, White would miss the final six games of the season after tearing his ACL, and that would start an unusually long absence.

Of course, ACL injuries routinely require a lengthy recovery process, but White intentionally decided to slow play his return to the field. The long-term injury was the first of his entire sports career dating back to childhood, and the sedentary lifestyle that recovery required of him took a toll on his mental health. He took an extra couple of months before coming back to play, and the decision paid off, allowing White to be effective in his return to the field.

Unfortunately, including last year’s playoffs, that return only lasted 11 games before he suffered an unrelated, potentially long-term injury. If White truly did tear his Achilles, he would almost certainly be out for the remainder of the season. Hopefully, if an MRI tomorrow confirms the severity of the injury, White is in a better place to deal with a long-term recovery and will be able to make another strong return.

In the meantime, the Bills secondary, already short today starting safety Jordan Poyer with a knee injury and last year’s first-round pick Kaiir Elam, who has been a healthy-scratch for the first four weeks of the season, will turn to a number of backups to fill White’s potential absence. Christian Benford and Taron Johnson have been starting alongside White so far this season. If White is forced to miss the rest of the season, the team will need to rely more on Dane Jackson, Siran Neal, and Cameron Lewis. Figuring out what they’re doing with Elam probably wouldn’t hurt, either.

Raiders Release DE Chandler Jones

September 30th, 2023 at 10:00pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Chandler Jones situation is set to come to an expected conclusion. The veteran defensive end is being released by the Raiders, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The move is now official, per the transactions wire.

The move comes after Jones was arrested in Las Vegas for two violations of a domestic temporary restraining order yesterday. That, in turn, marked the latest chapter in an off-field saga which has prevented the four-time Pro Bowler from seeing game time in 2023, the second year of his Raiders deal. Jones had been on the team’s NFI list prior to his release.

Jones went public with his criticism of head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler at the start of the month, something which was sparked by Jones being locked out of the team’s facility when attempting to work out. The situation has escalated quickly since then, with the 33-year-old adding he did not want to continue playing for the organization so long as the ex-Patriots tandem remained in place.

As his absence lasted deeper into the campaign, it seemed increasingly likely the Raiders would elect to move on from Jones in response to his situation. The two-time All-Pro cautioned against the chances of that, however, when alleging owner Mark Davis is keeping a “huge secret.” No further details have emerged on that front, and it will be interesting to see if any will moving forward now that Jones is no longer with the team.

The former Patriots and Cardinals starter said earlier this week that he was recently taken to Seven Hills Behavioral Health Hospital “against my will.” In spite of that, the Raiders were thought to be open to a return to the field on Jones’ part at some point down the road. Instead, they have decided to put an end to his tenure in Sin City, which was marked by underwhelming statistical performances prior to recent events.

Attached to a three-year, $51MM deal signed in free agency last year, expectations were high for Jones upon arrival in Vegas. He recorded only 4.5 sacks and three tackles for loss across 15 games in 2022, however, leaving him with plenty of room for improvement this season, something which will not come to pass. His release will create roughly $12.2MM in dead cap charges in 2023 and ’24, Schefter notes.

Maxx Crosby remains in place as the anchor of the Raiders’ edge rush contingent. First-round rookie Tyree Wilson – whom the team planned to use in a rotational capacity alongside Jones early in his career – will likely be in line for an increased workload with a return for the latter no longer an option. Wilson has logged a 40% defensive snap share so far, totaling three tackles in as many games. Jones, meanwhile, will begin a stint in free agency which will no doubt last for some time given his current situation.

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