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Markquese Bell

NFC Contract Details: Golston, Giants, Bucs, Cowboys, Cards, Panthers, Seahawks, Eagles

March 25th, 2025 at 2:37pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are more contract details from some recently agreed-upon contracts around the NFC in free agency:

  • Poona Ford, DT (Rams). Three years, $27.6MM. While not quite as high as the $30MM initial report, Ford’s contract includes $15.6MM guaranteed at signing, via OverTheCap. This comes after Ford played the 2024 season for $1.79MM in total. The Rams guaranteed $3.75MM of Ford’s $5MM 2026 base salary at signing. If on Los Angeles’ roster by Day 5 of the ’26 league year, Ford will see the other $1.5MM lock in. If the 29-year-old DT is still on L.A.’s roster on Day 3 of the 2027 league year, a $2.25MM roster bonus is due.
  • Chauncey Golston, DE (Giants). Three years, $18MM. This is slightly less than initially reported, but The Athletic’s Dan Duggan indicates it comes with $12MM fully guaranteed. The Giants guaranteed Golston’s 2025 and ’26 money.
  • Baron Browning, LB (Cardinals). Two years, $15MM. Receiving $10MM guaranteed at signing, Browning will see part of his 2026 base salary guaranteed. $2MM of the trade pickup’s $4.39MM 2026 base is locked in at signing, per Cards Wire’s Howard Balzer, who adds a $2MM roster bonus is due on Day 5 of the 2026 league year. The bonus is not guaranteed at signing. If Browning reaches eight sacks in 2025, his 2026 base salary increases by $2MM. Five sacks represents Browning’s highwater mark thus far.
  • Patrick Jones, LB (Panthers). Two years, $15MM. This is down from the initial report as well, but the ex-Vikings rotational rusher will see $10.25MM guaranteed, The Athletic’s Joe Person tweets. Another $4MM is available via performance-based incentives, per OverTheCap.
  • Evan Brown, G (Cardinals). Two years, $11.44MM. The Cardinals are guaranteeing Brown $6MM at signing, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets. If the veteran interior O-lineman is on Arizona’s roster by Day 5 of the 2026 league year, he is due a $500K roster bonus.
  • Akeem Davis-Gaither, LB (Cardinals). Two years, $10MM. Arizona is guaranteeing Davis-Gaither $5MM at signing, Wilson tweets. The veteran linebacker’s $4.39MM 2026 base salary is nonguaranteed, giving the Cardinals an out after one year.
  • Anthony Nelson, LB (Buccaneers). Two years, $10MM. The Bucs guaranteed Nelson $5.5MM to re-sign, Wilson tweets. Tampa Bay included a $500K roster bonus due on Day 5 of the 2026 league year.
  • Markquese Bell, S/LB (Cowboys). Three years, $9MM. Bell will be guaranteed $6.2MM at signing, Wilson adds; this covers the young defender’s signing bonus and 2025 and ’26 base salaries.
  • Jamie Gillan, P (Giants). Three years, $9MM. Down a bit from initial reports, Gillan’s deal includes $4MM guaranteed, Duggan adds. The deal includes $1.2MM via incentives.
  • Solomon Thomas, DL (Cowboys). Two years, $6MM. The Cowboys guaranteed the former No. 3 overall pick $3MM, Wilson tweets. That covers a signing bonus and his 2025 base salary. An additional $2MM is available through playing time- and sack-based incentives.
  • Josh Jones, OL (Seahawks). One year, $4MM. Jones will see $3MM guaranteed at signing, per OverTheCap. This is up from his $665K guarantee with the Ravens last year.
  • Jimmy Garoppolo, QB (Rams). One year, $3MM. The Rams secured Garoppolo for a second season, doing so despite authorizing a pay cut. Garoppolo played out a one-year, $3.19MM deal in 2024. Like in 2024, Garoppolo’s deal is fully guaranteed.
  • Josh Uche, DE (Eagles). One year, $1.92MM. The Eagles guaranteed Uche $1.25MM, the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane tweets. $500K in sack-based incentives are available. Uche played for $3MM in 2024. Despite this low-value deal, Philly included four void years.

Cowboys To Re-Sign Markquese Bell

March 9th, 2025 at 6:11pm CST by Sam Robinson

Playing multiple positions for the Cowboys over the past two years, Markquese Bell will be staying in town. A day before the legal tampering period launches free agency, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler reports Bell is re-signing with Dallas.

Bell, who has played both safety and linebacker with the Cowboys, is staying on a three-year deal that can max out at $12MM. Most of Bell’s first two seasons will be guaranteed, Fowler adds. This deal comes as Bell was to be a restricted free agent.

The Cowboys acquired Bell as a UDFA out of Florida A&M and deployed him as a backup in 2022. After the first of Demarvion Overshown’s major injuries (an ACL tear) occurred in 2023, Dallas slid Bell into a linebacker role primarily. Bell was certainly undersized for the position but made 94 tackles (three for loss) and forced two fumbles.

Dallas did transition Bell back to safety last season, as Overshown returned and Eric Kendricks arrived in free agency. Bell did not factor into Dallas’ defense much during Mike Zimmer’s return, as he finished with just six tackles. Bell missed eight games as well, so it will be a bit interesting to see the base value of this deal.

The Cowboys still roster safety starters Donovan Wilson and Malik Hooker. Barring another return to linebacker, Bell will be in position as a top backup and special-teamer heading into his age-26 season.

Cowboys Activate Marshawn Kneeland, Chuma Edoga From IR

November 23rd, 2024 at 2:26pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Cowboys made a flurry of roster moves on Saturday, including the activation of rookie defensive end Marshawn Kneeland and veteran offensive tackle Chuma Edoga from injured reserve, per a team announcement.

Kneeland, the 56th overall pick in April’s draft, was designated for return on Wednesday after recovering from surgery on a partially-torn lateral meniscus. Edoga has been ramping up in practice for a few weeks after a preseason toe injury sidelined him for the Cowboys’ first 10 games.

Neither player is expected to start for the Cowboys on Sunday, but they will provide depth on the edge of the trenches on either side of the ball. Kneeland is still hunting for his first career sack at defensive end, while Edoga is likely to serve as a swing tackle behind Tyler Guyton and Terence Steele.

To make room on their 53-man roster, the Cowboys placed safety Markquese Bell on injured reserve and waived defensive end K.J. Henry. Bell had to undergo shoulder surgery after a Week 11 injury, while Henry became surplus to requirements with Kneeland’s return.

The Cowboys also ruled out All-Pro guard Zack Martin with 2023 undrafted free agent T.J. Bass likely starting in his place. Dallas is also swapping out one All-Pro cornerback for another with Trevon Diggs ruled out and DaRon Bland expected to make his season debut after recovering from a setback from his foot surgery. Bland has played just two games with Diggs over the last two season, per The Athletic’s Jon Machota, and he will be the sixth different starting outside cornerback for Dallas this year, according to Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News.

Injuries have been a constant issue for the Cowboys this season. On Sunday, the team’s top-five 2024 salary cap hits – totaling more than $100MM – will all be sidelined, per ESPN’s Todd Archer. That list includes Martin and Diggs, along with Dak Prescott, DeMarcus Lawrence, and Brandin Cooks, who all remain on injured reserve. Prescott is out for the season, while Lawrence is still rehabbing from a Lisfranc injury. Dallas declined to activate Cooks from injured reserve after he was designated for return earlier this week and progressing towards a return to the field.

Cowboys Designate Brandin Cooks, Marshawn Kneeland For Return

November 20th, 2024 at 5:15pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

5:15pm: McCarthy confirmed that Bell will undergo surgery on his left shoulder, per Archer.

4:27pm: The Cowboys have designated wide receiver Brandin Cooks and defensive end Marshawn Kneeland to return from injured reserve, per a team announcement.

Cooks landed on IR in early October with an infection resulting from a procedure on his injured knee, while Kneeland required surgery for a partially-torn lateral meniscus around the same time. Both players are now eligible to return to practice. Once they do, they have three weeks before they must be activated to the 53-man roster or revert to season-ending IR.

Cooks disappointed to start his second year in Dallas, catching just nine of 19 targets for 91 yards in four games. Jalen Tolbert and Kavontae Turpin have since surpassed the veteran in yards-per-game, so he may see a reduced role when he returns.

Kneeland, the 56th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, played in just five regular season games with 10 tackles and zero sacks before he injured his knee. Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence went down around the same time, severely handicapping Dallas’ edge rotation over the last month. Parsons played in Weeks 10 and 11, but Lawrence remains on injured reserve, so Kneeland could be in line for expanded opportunities if he beats his veteran teammate back to the field.

Head coach Mike McCarthy also mentioned offensive lineman Chuma Edoga as a candidate to practice this week, per WFAA’s Ed Werner. Edoga was designated for return on November 13, but has yet to practice since injuring his toe in the preseason. McCarthy added that tight end Jake Ferguson is still progressing through concussion protocol.

The Cowboys will be without safety and core special teams contributor Markquese Bell for the rest of the season, per ESPN’s Todd Archer. Bell dislocated his shoulder in Week 11 and could need surgery, which will land him on injured reserve in the coming days.

Cowboys To Move Markquese Bell Back To Safety

April 14th, 2024 at 11:07am CST by Rory Parks

A collegiate safety, Markquese Bell joined the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2022 and played in just 22 defensive snaps in his rookie season. In 2023, he was moved to linebacker and given a much larger workload, and he acquitted himself rather nicely.

In 17 games (eight starts) last year, Bell racked up 94 total tackles to go along with four passes defensed and two forced fumbles. He also fared well in the eyes of the advanced metrics, with Pro Football Focus assigning him a 76.8 overall grade that ranked 18th out of 74 qualified players. His 83.5 coverage grade, perhaps a function of his safety background, was the fifth-highest mark among his LB peers.

Former defensive coordinator Dan Quinn left Dallas to become the Commanders’ head coach this offseason, and his replacement, Mike Zimmer, will be moving Bell back to his natural safety position, as David Moore of the Dallas Morning News confirms. Zimmer prefers to have good size at the linebacker spots, and Bell — who is listed at 205 pounds — does not offer that. Plus, despite his PFF rankings, Bell’s lack of size and lack of experience as an LB were exposed at times last season, including the Cowboys’ stunning playoff ouster at the hands of the Packers.

Dallas has already reunited Zimmer with former Vikings charge Eric Kendricks, who will operate alongside Damone Clark and DeMarvion Overshown. Clark started all 17 games for Dallas in 2023 and compiled 109 tackles, though the 2022 fifth-rounder sometimes struggled with the increased responsibilities. Overshown, a 2023 third-rounder, had a promising camp and was expected to take on a meaningful role as a rookie, but a preseason ACL tear kept him off the field for the entirety of the campaign.

Despite Kendricks’ veteran presence and the upside of Clark and Overshown, Moore still believes that the linebacker unit is the weak link of the Dallas defense. The fact that the Cowboys are moving Bell out of that group is further indication that they plan to select an LB in the early stages of the upcoming draft. We recently heard that the club does not plan to use its first-round choice on the position, but in Moore’s estimation, a Day 2 selection would be more than defensible.

The team scheduled “30” visits with Michigan’s Junior Colson and Texas A&M’s Edgerrin Cooper, and Moore names Ohio State’s Tommy Eichenberg and Clemson’s Jeremiah Trotter Jr.  as other potential targets. Bruce Feldman of The Athletic, meanwhile, hears that the Cowboys “really like” NC State prospect Payton Wilson (subscription required).

Dallas has starting safeties Malik Hooker and Donovan Wilson on lucrative multi-year pacts; Hooker’s deal runs through 2026, while Wilson is under club control through 2025. Therefore, Bell may not be a starting safety, but given his relative success last season, Zimmer should find a way to get him on the field often.

Cowboys Add 20 UDFAs

May 21st, 2022 at 9:51am CST by Ben Levine

The Cowboys had one of the biggest UDFA classes in the NFL, signing 20 undrafted rookies to contracts:

Bell got a chunk of money to join the Cowboys, receiving $215K in guaranteed money, per PFF’s Doug Kyed (on Twitter). The Florida A&M product missed the 2020 campaign but returned for the 2021 season, finishing with 95 tackles and a pair of sacks. Bell has shown some ability to play on both sides of the ball, making him an intriguing prospect (and, presumably, a good fit for special teams).

Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com tweets that Empey got $110K in guaranteed money. The lineman was a four-year starter at BYU, although injuries limited him to only 15 combined appearances between the 2020 and 2021 seasons.