Falcons To Sign DE Samson Ebukam
The Falcons are adding another new edge rusher to their defense. Former Colts defensive end Samson Ebukam has agreed to sign in Atlanta, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Ebukam, 30, appeared in 14 games in 2025 after missing the entire 2024 season due to a torn Achilles. The Colts were understandably cautious about his return to the field; his snap count and sack production were both the lowest of his career since his 2017 rookie year. Ebukam did put up a respectable 10.2% pass rush win rate, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required), which represented a much less severe drop from his production between 2019 and 2023.
In that time, Ebukam recorded at least 4.5 sacks every season with a career-high of 9.5 in 2023, his first year in Indianapolis on a three-year, $27MM deal. Returning to that peak seems unlikely given that his pressure generation that season was not significantly higher than the rest of his career, but another year removed from a major injury should offer better results in Atlanta in 2026.
Ebukam is the second edge rusher the Falcons have added in free agency. They also signed Azeez Ojulari, another veteran who will provide depth behind 2025 first-rounders Jalon Walker and James Pearce. Pearce is currently facing felony charges in Florida and could be subject to league discipline, which would push Ebukam and Ojulari into bigger roles.
If Pearce is available, Ebukam and Ojulari will instead profile as more direct replacements for Leonard Floyd and Arnold Ebiketie, who combined for 5.5 sacks in 2025 and hit free agency this week.
Commanders To Add RB Rachaad White
With the Buccaneers adding Kenneth Gainwell, Rachaad White is on the move. He is heading to Washington, according to NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo.
The Arizona State alum will rejoin college teammate Jayden Daniels with the Commanders. The fifth-year running back is joining the Commanders on a one-year agreement, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets.
White and Daniels overlapped with the Sun Devils from 2020-21. White did not play with likely Commanders target Brandon Aiyuk, who was Daniels’ teammate in 2019, as the running back spent time at two other schools — Division II Nebraska-Kearney and Mt. San Antonio Junior College — before arriving in Arizona.
Although Gainwell’s Tampa arrival to team with Bucky Irving ensured White would need to look elsewhere for his second contract, he expected as much well before the Bucs’ free agency decision. White pointed to a Tampa exit immediately after the team’s 2025 season ended. Supplanted by Irving as the Bucs’ starter in 2024, White was needed to return to his starting post last year due to the second-year back battling multiple injuries. But Tampa Bay did not with to continue with the Irving-White partnership in 2026.
White put together a promising 2023 season, amassing 1,539 scrimmage yards. Among RBs that year, White’s yardage total ranked fourth. Despite that impressive showing, White lost his job to Irving midway through the 2024 slate. The Bucs drafted the Oregon product in Round 4 in 2024, and the move changed their plans at RB. White maintained a role alongside the swiftly developing runner, but it became clear Irving was the team’s future at the position.
Washington lost Austin Ekeler to an Achilles tear in Week 2 of last season; that certainly hurt the team’s ability to involve its backs in the passing game. White has 11 career receiving touchdowns, and his strong 2023 season included 593 receiving yards. The 27-year-old RB presents an option to complement Jacory Croskey-Merritt, who totaled 805 rushing yards as a rookie but only 68 through the air. With Washington losing Chris Rodriguez to Jacksonville, Croskey-Merritt and White look like the team’s new top backfield tandem.
In Daniels’ final season with the Sun Devils (2021), White totaled 1,462 scrimmage yards (462 receiving) and 16 touchdowns. The elusive back parlayed that season into a third-round selection. It will be worth wondering if White’s ceiling in Washington is an RB2/pass-down option; he has a career 3.9-yard average per carry (as Irving outshined him when healthy). But Dan Quinn wanted to lean on the run more, with that being part of the reason behind Kliff Kingsbury‘s ouster. A 1-2 punch involving Croskey-Merritt and White would likely feature extensive work for both.
Eagles To Re-Sign P Braden Mann
Despite the NFL still being in the first week of free agency, several teams are making punter moves. The Eagles are among them, reaching an agreement to re-sign Braden Mann.
Mann agreed to a four-year, $14MM accord, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets. The Eagles’ punter over the past three seasons, Mann is now signed through 2029. Mann will see $7MM guaranteed on this deal.
Rebounding after losing his job midway through a Jets rookie contract, Mann is now tied for fifth in per-year punter salaries. The Giants just moved the bar to $4.1MM by reuniting John Harbaugh with Jordan Stout, and the Eagles are spending bigger than they normally do at this spot. As The Athletic’s Zach Berman points out, the Eagles have not paid a punter top-10 money during Howie Roseman‘s GM tenure. Mann is going into his fourth season as Philly’s punter; the Eagles have not seen a punter stick around that long since Donnie Jones (2013-17).
Mann averaged a career-best 49.9 yards per punt last season. After not faring as well in the less friendly MetLife Stadium confines, Mann has averaged at least 48.8 yards per boot in each of his Eagles seasons. Mann’s 49.9 number ranked sixth last season.
The Jets drafted Mann in the 2020 sixth round out of Texas A&M, but veteran Thomas Morstead replaced him in 2023. The Steelers claimed Mann in April 2023 but waived him months later. The Eagles scooped up the struggling specialist via a September 2023 practice squad deal. Mann, 28, then replaced Arryn Siposs and has punted in every Eagles game since.
Bengals To Sign DT Jonathan Allen
The Vikings’ two high-profile street free agent defensive linemen — Jonathan Allen, Javon Hargrave — lasted one season in Minnesota, each being released Wednesday. Both have already found new homes.
After Hargrave landed with the Packers, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports Allen is joining the Bengals on a two-year deal worth $28MM. The $28MM is the deal’s max value, per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero, who notes the base value checks in at $26MM. This still represents a soft landing for Allen, who has been cut in each of the past two years.
[RELATED: Bengals Extend LT Orlando Brown Jr.]
Allen joins Boye Mafe as new arrivals on Cincinnati’s D-line. The Bengals have devoted some early-free agency funds to upgrading one of the NFL’s worst defenses. They have added Mafe, Allen and safety Bryan Cook to Al Golden‘s unit. Cincy now has three veteran options at defensive tackle, with Allen joining B.J. Hill and T.J. Slaton. The team also has former second-round pick Kris Jenkins Jr. in the fold at DT.
A former Washington first-round pick, Allen will be on his third team in three years. The Commanders cut bait in 2025, and the Vikings designated Allen a post-June 1 release Wednesday. Allen started 17 games with Minnesota last season and was a Pro Bowler in Washington. The 2017 draftee is going into an age-31 season, joining Hill in that regard. Slaton is 28. Slaton and McKinnley Jackson are in place as the NT options for the Bengals, with Allen being added as a three-technique rusher.
Although Cincinnati’s defense became less abysmal late in the season, the unit still ranked 30th. The unit was missing Trey Hendrickson for most of the season, but it struggled in 2024 with the standout defensive end submitting a Defensive Player of the Year runner-up finish. The Bengals have seen their defense (and Joe Burrow injuries) limit them over the past three seasons. Burrow’s first NFL setback — his 2020 ACL tear — actually came on a tackle by Allen and Montez Sweat (as SI.com’s Jay Morrison reminds).
Washington disbanded its four-first-rounder D-line at the 2023 trade deadline, dealing away Sweat and Chase Young. Allen and Daron Payne played together in 2024, but Allen missed much of that resurgent Commanders season with a pectoral injury. With Young’s career sidetracked by a 2021 knee injury, Allen stepped up; his Pro Bowls came during this period, with the Alabama alum combining for 16.5 sacks from 2021-22. Allen combined for 66 QB hits from 2021-23 but has not been as productive since.
This will move Allen back to a 4-3 scheme, after he transitioned to Brian Flores‘ 3-4 look in 2025. Those distinctions mean less and less, but they do still matter to a degree. Allen posted 3.5 sacks and 11 QB hits in 17 Vikings games. This $13MM-per-year contract is a bit south of where he was with Minnesota and Washington ($17MM and $18MM per year, respectively), but it shows teams still view the longtime interior presence highly.
Chiefs To Sign CB Kader Kohou
The Chiefs are signing former Dolphins cornerback Kader Kohou, per NFL insider Jordan Schultz.
Kohou, 27, missed all of the 2025 season due to a torn ACL suffered in training camp. He served as Miami’s primary nickel for the previous three seasons with 47 appearances, 38 starts, and more than 2,500 defensive snaps. He only played sparingly on special teams with no involvement in 2024.
Kohou arrived in Miami in 2022 as an undrafted free agent out of Texas A&M-Commerce. He was targeted more than any other defender in the league as a rookie, but allowed only 6.1 yards per target and three touchdowns. He regressed in 2023 with 7.7 yards per target and eight touchdowns but returned to his 2023 numbers the following year. That earned him a $3.26MM restricted free agent tag last offseason, though he will likely earn significantly less with the Chiefs.
In Kansas City, Kohou will look to prove his health and compete for a role in the Chiefs’ secondary, which has already lost three cornerbacks this week, including Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, two of their starters in 2025. Joshua Williams, who played key snaps in the previous three seasons but not 2025, is also gone, so the Chiefs will need to find new options on the boundary in 2026.
Kohou has played a majority of his career snaps in the slot, but 2023 fourth-rounder Chamarri Conner will likely keep that role next season. But his 743 snaps of experience on the boundary could help him compete for a job in a Kansas City pass defense that will look very different relative to last year’s unit.
Ravens Release QB Cooper Rush, Sign OL Jovaughn Gwyn
The Ravens signed Cooper Rush to a two-year deal last year to serve as Lamer Jackson’s backup, but that experiment ended during his second start after the MVP’s early-season knee injury.
Baltimore went back to Tyler Huntley – who won both of his starts in 2025 – and Rush rode the bench for the rest of the season. The Ravens were expected to part ways with the former Cowboys in the offseason, and re-signing Huntley to a two-year deal over the weekend supported that projection.
Indeed, the Ravens have released Rush, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. The move comes without a post-June 1 designation, so it will be processed right away, clearing $453k and leaving $2.2MM in dead money. The eight-year veteran will now hit the open market in search of a new backup opportunity, though his struggles in Baltimore will likely force him to compete for a job during training camp.
The Ravens’ other Thursday move is the signing of Jovaughn Gwyn (also via Pelissero), who is coming to Baltimore to reunite with offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford. Gwyn, 26, was a seventh-round pick out of South Carolina in 2023. He has only played 11 regular-season offensive snaps – all in 2025 – with nine at right guard plus one as an inline tight end and another as a fullback, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
In the preseason, though, Gwyn has played center as well, a key still for a Ravens offensive line that just lost Tyler Linderbaum in free agency. Gwyn does not project as a starting-caliber replacement, though he is clearly valued by Ledford. But with the potential for 2025 backup center Corey Bullock to step into a bigger role this year, Baltimore needed to add more depth at the position and now has Gwyn to back up multiple spots along their line.
Broncos To Re-Sign Lil’Jordan Humphrey
The Broncos let Lil’Jordan Humphrey walk in free agency last year, and the Sean Payton favorite joined the Giants in free agency. But he made his way back to Denver via an in-season return. The veteran Payton charge will be the latest Bronco to re-sign this offseason.
Denver is retaining Humphrey, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero. With the Broncos losing Troy Franklin and Pat Bryant in the playoffs, Humphrey was needed as a regular on offense. He came through against the Bills, hauling in a long touchdown pass at the end of the first half. This will be Humphrey’s fourth season in Denver.
Humphrey, 28 in April, played for Payton in New Orleans before joining him in Denver in 2023. The three-year Saint worked mostly as a backup in New Orleans and has contributed more in Denver as a blocking wideout. He did play an auxiliary role in Bo Nix‘s rookie-year success, totaling career highs in catches (31) and yards (293).
The Giants stashed Humphrey on their practice squad after cutting him last August, and the Broncos ended up signing him off the New York P-squad in November. Playing in only three games for the 4-13 Giants, Humphrey saw action in seven for the 14-3 Broncos. He caught a regular-season touchdown pass against the Packers, and after dropping a would-be touchdown early in the Bills divisional-round matchup, the 6-foot-4 pass catcher came through with a 29-yard TD pass in the final minute of the first half during the No. 1 seed’s overtime win.
The Broncos have not yet signed an outside free agent, but they have been busy retaining their own. Although John Franklin-Myers and P.J. Locke have departed, Denver has brought back Alex Singleton, Justin Strnad, J.K. Dobbins, Adam Trautman and Sam Ehlinger over the past few days. The team also retained Ben Powers after the veteran guard was mentioned as a trade candidate. It would seem the Broncos will add outside UFAs soon, but last year’s AFC West champs are submitting a continuity-focused approach thus far.
Added to that list of re-signings: tight end Lucas Krull. The team announced the reserve tight end, nontendered as an RFA last week, is staying. As the RFA tender numbers keep rising, teams have increasingly opted to nontender these players and bring them back at reduced rates. After a 152-yard 2024 season, Krull played in just four games last year and caught only two passes.
Krull joins Trautman, Nate Adkins and Evan Engram in the Broncos’ tight end room. Engram did not impress regularly last season and is a logical cut candidate, but the 31-year-old pass catcher has nearly half his 2026 base salary guaranteed. Denver already used one of his early post-June 1 designations on Dre Greenlaw.
Lions To Sign DB Christian Izien
The Lions are adding some more insurance to their secondary after an injury-riddled 2025 season. Former Buccaneers safety Christian Izien is headed to Detroit on a one-year deal, per NFL insider Jordan Schultz. The pact is worth $2MM, including $1MM guaranteed, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Izien, 25, signed in Tampa Bay as an undrafted free agent in 2023 and carved out a role as the team’s primary nickel defender. He appeared in every game with four starts and a 64% snap share, allowing 6.9 yards per target and bringing in two interceptions.
The Buccaneers increased and diversified Izien’s role in 2024 with rookie safety Tykee Smith taking over as the full-time nickel. Izien started 10 out of his 14 appearances with a 75% snap share and moved all around the defense with 308 snaps at free safety, 205 snaps in the slot, and 135 in the box, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required). His coverage stats improved and he also ranked fourth on the team with 75 tackles.
Izien was pushed out of the secondary rotation in 2025. Rookie cornerback Jacob Parrish took over in the slot, which pushed Smith into Izien’s 2024 role. Izien did not play more than two defensive snaps in a game until December and finished the year with just 166 total, though he did the most special teams work of his career.
The Buccaneers declined to place a restricted free agent tag on Izien, clearing his path to Detroit. The Lions did not have a dedicated nickel in 2025, but Izien could fill that role in 2026. He may even step into bigger duties early on with star safety duo Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph both recovering from significant leg injuries.
Titans To Sign DE Jacob Martin
While Will McDonald and Bryce Huff will not be part of Robert Saleh‘s first Titans defensive line — at least, they’re not involved presently — we now have a fourth ex-Saleh-era Jet D-lineman bound for Tennessee.
Jacob Martin is signing a two-year Titans deal, NFL insider Jordan Schultz tweets. He follows Jermaine Johnson, John Franklin-Myers and Solomon Thomas as former Saleh Jets D-linemen reuniting in Nashville. Martin is reuniting with Saleh on a two-year deal worth up to $11MM.
Johnson, Martin, Thomas and Franklin-Myers were all teammates on the 2022 Jets. Martin was a short-lived Jet, to be fair, with the team sending the eight-game contributor to the Broncos at the 2022 deadline — as Denver needed EDGE depth following its Bradley Chubb trade. Martin spent last season with the Commanders, with whom he enjoyed a career-best season.
Martin, 30, registered 5.5 sacks and 18 quarterback hits during his lone Washington campaign. A Commanders team that underinvested at edge rusher used Martin as a 14-game starter, playing him in front of all-time great Von Miller (though, Miller led the team with nine sacks). Washington has since made big moves to bolster its front, signing Odafe Oweh and K’Lavon Chaisson. Miller remains a free agent, while Martin will see a nice contract bump after playing last season for $2.59MM.
The Titans began this reunion committee of sorts by hiring Aaron Whitecotton as D-line coach. They they traded T’Vondre Sweat for Johnson, deeming the latter a better fit for Saleh’s 4-3 scheme. Franklin-Myers signed a three-year, $63MM deal; the Jets had traded the interior D-lineman during the 2024 draft, but he played a lead role for the team during Saleh’s first three seasons. Tennessee then added Thomas in a low-level pick-swap trade — the Cowboys gave up the nine-year veteran to move up just seven spots in the draft — before this Martin agreement came to pass.
While it is safe to assume Jeffery Simmons may be left out of some inside jokes in the near future, the All-Pro D-tackle will still be anchoring the Titans’ D-line. Though, the Martin addition does make it possible — with both he and Johnson DEs and Thomas and Franklin-Myers DTs — to roll out a Jets alumni foursome in certain packages.
A ninth-year vet, Martin has been a solid rotational option in his career. He has been traded twice, being part of the 2019 Jadeveon Clowney-to-Seattle swap before his Denver trek, and started 29 games. He has 26.5 career sacks, and the 18 QB hits with Washington were 10 more than the former Seattle sixth-rounder had ever compiled in a season. The Titans will be the Colorado native’s eighth NFL team.
Bengals Extend LT Orlando Brown Jr.
Orlando Brown Jr. is no longer in a contract year. Given a four-year deal in 2023, the former Super Bowl left tackle starter will now see his Bengals accord stretched for an additional season.
Cincinnati gave the veteran LT a two-year extension Thursday, according to a team announcement. This stands to lower Brown’s $21.99MM 2026 cap number. Brown was tied to a four-year, $64.1MM contract, but he is now signed through the 2028 season. Brown said (via ESPN.com’s Ben Baby) he negotiated the deal himself.
“The Blackburn family and the Brown family made this a smooth negotiation,” Brown said. “The deal creates a sense of stability for myself and the organization. I didn’t necessarily feel the need to reset the market. We have great players in this locker room. It’s rare for a player to say, but making it team-friendly … The way that I see it, it puts me and my family and the organization in a good spot.”
This mindset appears to differ from how Brown landed in Cincinnati. The Chiefs franchise-tagged their Super Bowl LVII left tackle in 2022 and offered him a top-market contract, but Kansas City’s six-year proposal — which matched the Trent Williams 49ers term length — did not meet Brown’s guarantee ask. Players have increasingly turned to shorter-term contracts as the cap keeps rising, and Brown rejected Kansas City’s proposal. After playing the 2022 season on the tag, he wound up in Cincinnati via free agency.
The Bengals have been unable to approach their early-2020s heights during Brown’s time in the Queen City, with Joe Burrow injury trouble and a defensive regression defining a tough three-year stretch for the franchise. During that span, however, Brown has started 45 games. The second-generation NFL tackle has not played at a Pro Bowl level — where he was in Baltimore and Kansas City — and Pro Football Focus has yet to rank him as a top-40 tackle during a Bengals season. But ESPN’s run block win rate metric did slot the veteran eighth overall among tackles last season.
PFF ranked Brown 66th and 60th among qualified options at tackle in 2024 and ’25, respectively, and Brown missed six games due to injury during his second Bengals season. A Pro Bowler at right tackle in Baltimore and left tackle in Kansas City, Brown is heading into an age-30 season. Brown supplanted Jonah Williams in 2023, sliding the former first-rounder to the right side (where he stayed upon signing with the Cardinals). This contract places Brown on track to become the longest-tenured Bengals LT since Andrew Whitworth, though the guarantees will be important to see on that front.
Cincinnati has been proactive with extensions for linemen in recent years, twice giving center Ted Karras new deals and shrewdly extending Trey Hendrickson (one year, $21MM) in 2023. The latter pact became a point of contention, and Hendrickson has since defected to the Ravens after a yearslong negotiating saga to close out his Bengals tenure.
Although the Bengals’ O-line has taken criticism in recent years — as Burrow has failed to stay healthy — the team looks set to run back its 2025 front five after re-signing right guard Dalton Risner. The veteran guard has consistently struggled to command even midlevel deals in free agency, and this year was no exception. Risner’s one-year Bengals deal carries a $3.25MM base value, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets. Via a $1.75MM playtime incentive, Risner’s accord can max out at $5MM.