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Carson Wentz played through a significant injury in his non-throwing shoulder during much of his time filling in for J.J. McCarthy. The veteran will undergo season-ending surgery to repair the damage, but Minnesota’s starter is now in position to return to action.

McCarthy will spend the coming days preparing for Week 9 with the starters, head coach Kevin O’Connell said (via Ben Goessling of the Minnesota Star Tribune). An ankle sprain has kept the 2024 first-rounder out of the lineup since he was injured in Week 2. McCarthy was on track to resume QB1 duties when healthy in any case, but especially with Wentz now sidelined his return will be welcomed by the team.

While recovering from meniscus surgery, McCarthy missed his entire rookie campaign. Expectations were nevertheless high for the former college national champion entering the season, one which largely did not go to plan prior to the injury. McCarthy’s ability to deliver consistent play under center presuming he can remain healthy the rest of the way will be critical for a Vikings team which finds itself last in the NFC North.

The 22-year-old was a full participant in today’s practice, a positive sign he will be able to play in Week 9 as hoped. Minnesota (3-4) ranks 18th in the NFL in scoring and the team’s defense has regressed compared to last season. A boost in terms of quarterback play would be critical to the Vikings’ playoff chances but McCarthy is far from a known commodity at this point in his career. Another inexperienced signal-caller (undrafted rookie Max Brosmer) will serve as the team’s backup the rest of the way.

As for the third-string role, a deal has been lined up in time for Week 9. John Wolford is being signed to the practice squad, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports. The 30-year-old has made seven regular season appearances in the NFL, each of which came during a three-year span as a member of the Rams. Wolford and O’Connell overlapped with each other in Los Angeles, and a midseason reunion has now been worked out in Minnesota. This pact will provide the Vikings with a veteran presence on the depth chart in the event McCarthy or Brosmer miss time.

Chiefs To Bring Back DT Mike Pennel

October 29th, 2025 at 1:26pm CST by Sam Robinson

Mike Pennel is in an age-34 season and saw a struggling Bengals defense drop him. Pennel, however, requested the release. He has found a familiar landing spot.

Following a workout, the 12th-year veteran defensive tackle is returning to the Chiefs, veteran insider Jordan Schultz tweets. This will be Pennel’s third stint with the team; his most recent covered the past two seasons. The Chiefs waived defensive end Malik Herring, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, moving Pennel onto the active roster.

Pennel has been on four of the Chiefs’ five Patrick Mahomes-era Super Bowl teams, being elsewhere only for their Super Bowl LVII-winning season in 2022. Chris Jones advocated for his return recently, via Schultz, calling the experienced depth DT important for the team’s culture. Pennel was a part-time starter alongside Jones last season, and the Chiefs will see what he has left in his mid-30s this year.

The Chiefs initially added Pennel as a free agent in 2019, and they re-signed the backup interior option in 2020. The second deal barely cleared $1MM. Pennel returned as a practice squad option in 2023, following one-offs with the Falcons (2021) and Bears (2022), and saw his role expand in the playoffs. Last year, the Chiefs re-signed him on a one-year, $1.38MM deal. The three-time reigning AFC champions reupped him again this offseason (at $1.42MM) but cut him as they set their initial 53-man roster, leading to the Cincinnati agreement.

Playing in all eight Bengals games this season, Pennel had begun to lose playing time as the campaign progressed. His 25% defensive snap share remained in the ballpark of his recent Chiefs usage, but it had dropped over the past three games. Only part of Chiefs rosters during Steve Spagnuolo‘s seven-year DC tenure, Pennel will return as a role player for a team that lost Tershawn Wharton in free agency and has lost second-round rookie D-tackle Omarr Norman-Lott to an ACL tear.

Last season, Pennel started seven games and recorded three sacks in the regular season. He has played between 25-34% of K.C.’s defensive snaps over his previous four seasons with the team. Pennel has started six playoff games (including Super Bowl LVIII) with the team, including three in 2023 and one last season. He joins Derrick Nnadi as DTs reacquired by the Chiefs this year; Kansas City added Nnadi back in a trade with the Jets just before the season. This duo joins Jones and Jerry Tillery in K.C.’s DT room.

Raiders Open Practice Window For Aidan O’Connell

October 29th, 2025 at 11:45am CST by Connor Byrne

Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell has been out all season with a fractured wrist, but a return may be on the horizon. The Raiders opened the signal-caller’s practice window on Wednesday, Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. They’ll have 21 days to activate O’Connell from IR.

A fourth-round pick from Purdue in 2023, O’Connell combined for 17 starts through last season under former head coach Antonio Pierce. O’Connell completed 62.6% of passes with 20 touchdowns and 11 interceptions during his first two NFL seasons, but that wasn’t enough to keep his starting job.

With new head coach Pete Carroll at the helm, he reunited with ex-Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith in an offseason trade. The Raiders gave up a third-round selection for Smith and quickly signed him to a two-year, $75MM extension, making him the team’s unquestioned QB1.

Smith’s arrival left O’Connell as the Raiders’ backup, but his injury in their preseason finale threw a wrench into those plans. The Raiders subsequently traded for another veteran QB, Kenny Pickett, whom they acquired from the Browns for a 2026 fifth-rounder.

The investments in Smith and Pickett haven’t paid off for the Raiders, who are off to a 2-5 start and sitting in last place in an otherwise loaded AFC West division. With more interceptions (10) than touchdowns (seven), Smith ranks 30th in the league in QBR. The team pulled him for Pickett in a 31-0 blowout loss to the Chiefs in Week 7. Pickett attempted his first two passes of the year in that game and completed them for a total of eight yards.

With the Raiders now coming off their bye week, Smith is still the starter heading into Sunday’s game against Jacksonville. If Smith continues to struggle mightily over the next few weeks, perhaps Pickett or O’Connell (or both) will see time under center later in the season.

Broncos Sign Marcedes Lewis To Practice Squad

October 29th, 2025 at 10:02am CST by Connor Byrne

Tight end Marcedes Lewis is continuing his long-running career at the age of 41. Lewis has agreed to join the Broncos’ practice squad, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

With backup tight end Lucas Krull set to undergo foot surgery, the Broncos have been in the market for help at the position. They placed waiver claims on Brenden Bates and Ben Sims in recent days. Bates, whom the Texans waived, wound up with the Browns. The Vikings won out on Sims after the Packers cut him.

Unable to reel in either Bates or Sims, the Broncos brought in Lewis for a workout on Tuesday. Already the oldest tight end in NFL history, Lewis did enough to secure a practice squad spot and will now attempt to log his 20th season in the league.

After playing his college football at UCLA, Lewis entered the pros as a first-round pick (No. 28) of the Jaguars in 2006. He played with them through 2017, securing one Pro Bowl nod along the way, before stints with the Packers (2018-22) and Bears (2023-24). The 6-foot-6, 267-pounder combined for 437 catches, 5,155 yards, and 40 touchdowns with those three teams.

During the waning years of his career, Lewis has seen his impact as a pass catcher drop off significantly. He totaled just 11 receptions from 2022-24, but along with his blocking skills, Lewis is a durable option. He appeared in 17 games in each of the previous four seasons.

Having already missed the Broncos’ first eight contests this year, another 17-game slate isn’t in the cards for Lewis. Nevertheless, he could work his way into the mix for the AFC West contenders during the second half of the campaign. Lewis would give the Broncos a third tight end behind Evan Engram and Adam Trautman.

Steelers Amend Kyle Dugger’s Contract

October 29th, 2025 at 9:05am CST by Connor Byrne

The Steelers made a notable addition to their secondary on Tuesday in acquiring safety Kyle Dugger from the Patriots. While Dugger entered the day under contract through 2027, that is no longer the case. The last two years of his deal “have been wiped out,” according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. He’ll reach free agency after the season.

Then an important part of New England’s defense, Dugger inked a four-year, $58MM extension with the team in April 2024. Dugger remained a full-time starter last year, the lone season of the Jerod Mayo era. Things changed this season under new head coach Mike Vrabel, who demoted Dugger to a backup role.

Dugger, who entered the season with a $9.25MM base salary, is still owed around $5.4MM (plus $1MM in per-game roster bonuses). The Patriots will pay the majority of it, per Rapoport.

With Dugger now on track to hit the open market in the offseason, he’s a low-cost rental for the AFC North-leading Steelers. Not only did the Steelers (4-3) drop their second straight game in Week 8, but they lost starting safety DeShon Elliott to a knee injury. They placed Elliott on IR to make room for Dugger. Elliott is set to miss at least four games, which will leave Dugger, Juan Thornhill, Jabrill Peppers (previously teammates with Dugger in New England), and Chuck Clark as Pittsburgh’s healthy options at safety.

With 81 NFL games, 69 starts, and nine interceptions on Dugger’s resume, the Steelers are hopeful that he’ll aid their last-ranked pass defense. Dugger is in line to make his Steelers debut this Sunday against the 7-1 Colts, owners of the best record in the league and the top-ranked offense.

Bears Sign S C.J. Gardner-Johnson

October 29th, 2025 at 8:25am CST by Connor Byrne

Safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson is joining his third organization of the 2025 season. The Bears are signing the 27-year-old to their active roster, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Gardner-Johnson appeared in 16 of the Eagles’ regular-season games in 2024 and tied a career high with six interceptions. He was also part of the Eagles’ Super Bowl-winning playoff run, but they parted with him after the season.

In a trade that hasn’t worked out for either side, the Eagles sent Gardner-Johnson and a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Texans for offensive lineman Kenyon Green and a fifth-rounder in next year’s draft.

Green, who couldn’t crack the Eagles’ roster, is now a member of the Ravens’ practice squad. Gardner-Johnson lasted just three games in Houston before the team released him. He reportedly clashed with teammates and was unhappy with his role in the Texans’ defense.

After the Texans said goodbye to him, Gardner-Johnson joined Green on the Ravens’ practice squad. It was a short-lived stay, however, as the Ravens moved on a week later. Gardner-Johnson signed with Baltimore before the team acquired safety Alohi Gilman from the Chargers. With Gilman’s arrival blocking a path to playing time, Gardner-Johnson’s agent asked for his client’s release. The Ravens granted it.

After a couple of weeks on the open market, Gardner-Johnson will indeed find a clearer avenue to playing time on Chicago’s active roster. He’ll also reunite with defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, who coached Gardner-Johnson in New Orleans from 2019-21. Those were Gardner-Johnson’s first three NFL seasons, a 43-game span in which he picked off five passes. Allen left a positive impression on Gardner-Johnson.

“He got my career going. I appreciate him,” Gardner-Johnson told the CHGO Bears podcast last February.

While the 4-3 Bears have two established starting safeties in Jaquan Brisker and Kevin Byard, who lead their defense in snaps, their secondary is dealing with multiple significant injuries. Cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon are on IR. A groin injury has kept Johnson out since Week 1, while Gordon landed on the shelf with calf and groin issues before the Bears’ loss to the Ravens last Sunday. Gordon is Chicago’s top nickel corner, but the addition of Gardner-Johnson could help fill the void during his absence. The Bears plan to use Gardner-Johnson as a slot corner, head coach Ben Johnson announced (via Courtney Cronin of ESPN).

Steelers To Acquire S Kyle Dugger From Pats

October 28th, 2025 at 11:20pm CST by Connor Byrne

The Steelers saw starting safety DeShon Elliott go down with a knee injury in a Week 8 loss to the Packers. They’re acting quickly to address the position. Pittsburgh will acquire safety Kyle Dugger and a 2026 seventh-round pick from New England for a 2026 sixth-rounder, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

This is the second trade of Tuesday for the Patriots, who previously sent defensive end Keion White and a seventh-rounder to the 49ers for a sixth-rounder.

At 5-2 and atop the AFC East, the Patriots aren’t in position to sell leading up to the Nov. 4 trade deadline. However, both Dugger and White fell out of favor this year under new head coach Mike Vrabel.

A second-round pick of the Bill Belichick regime in 2020, Dugger quickly emerged as a key cog in the Patriots’ defense. He started between 13 and 17 games in each season from 2021-24 and racked up nine interceptions during that span.

The Patriots handed Dugger a four-year, $58MM extension with $32.5MM in guarantees in April 2024, locking him up through 2027. Despite that expensive commitment, Dugger emerged as a trade candidate late last summer when it became clear he was no longer a clean fit in the Patriots’ defense.

The Patriots held on to Dugger for the first couple months of the season, but he experienced a significant dip in playing time during the team’s hot start. Before the trade, Dugger saw action in a meager 38.4% of defensive snaps while working behind starting safeties Craig Woodson and Jaylinn Hawkins. Pro Football Focus ranks Dugger’s 2025 performance 62nd among 88 qualifying safeties. With Dugger gone, Dell Pettus and Brenden Schooler are now the Patriots’ main reserves at safety.

The 29-year-old Dugger will now have a chance at a larger role with another division leader in Pittsburgh, which will place Elliott on IR, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Elliott will miss at least four games, which left the Steelers in the market for immediate help at safety. Pittsburgh will face four straight postseason contenders – the Colts, Chargers, Bengals, and Bears – with Elliott on the shelf.

The 4-3 Steelers have dropped two games in a row, largely as a result of an inability to stop the pass. Quarterbacks Joe Flacco (Bengals) and Jordan Love (Packers) combined to shred the Steelers for 702 yards, six touchdowns, and no interceptions over the past two weeks. Typically known for boasting a vaunted defense, the Steelers rank dead last in the league in passing yards per game allowed (273.3).

Dugger will now join a Steelers safety group consisting of Juan Thornhill, Chuck Clark, and former Patriots teammate Jabrill Peppers. He and Peppers often started next to each other in New England from 2022-24. Peppers has taken on a reserve role in his first season in Pittsburgh, but Dugger could regain a starting job now that he’s headed to the Steel City.

49ers Acquire DE Keion White From Patriots

October 28th, 2025 at 10:29pm CST by Sam Robinson

10:29pm: The 49ers did, in fact, end up signing Ferrell to a practice squad deal after today’s workout, per Schultz. Since leaving San Francisco, Ferrell’s seen his fair share of struggles — failing to make Washington’s initial 53-man roster this year then signing to and getting cut from the Chargers’ practice squad — but with so many injuries plaguing the 49ers’ defensive ends room, a familiar face will be a welcome one as Ferrell joins White as new reinforcements.

5:48pm: In need at edge rusher since Nick Bosa suffered a season-ending torn ACL in Week 3, the 49ers have since lost Bryce Huff to a short-term hamstring malady. They are making an effort to upgrade in the meantime, swinging a deal with the Patriots.

The Pats are sending Keion White to the 49ers, veteran insider Jordan Schultz reports. Signed through 2026, White is on a second-round contract. This is a pick-swap agreement, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero. New England will add a 2026 sixth round pick; San Francisco receives White and a 2026 seventh-rounder in a move which is now official.

Months after giving Huff a much-needed fresh start, the 49ers will do the same for White. The former high-end EDGE prospect did not play in Week 8, with NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport indicating the Pats were attempting to trade him. Rather than an injury scuttling that, White rested Sunday and is now headed west.

During Jerod Mayo‘s year in charge in 2024, White worked as a 13-game starter. That brought a mixed bag, as the Georgia Tech alum tallied five sacks and 16 QB hits. Those numbers were far better than his rookie-year showing (1/5) in those pass-rushing categories, even as the Pats played most of Bill Belichick‘s finale without then-lead rusher Matt Judon.

This year, White has started just one game. He does not have a sack or a QB hit, being among those to have fallen out of favor under head coach Mike Vrabel. Offseason free agent additions Harold Landry and K’Lavon Chaisson have taken over as the Patriots’ top EDGE players, making White expendable during the first year of the Vrabel regime.

While this might not be the end of the 49ers’ trade effort, the NFC West team had attempted to make an upgrade here for a while. Trey Hendrickson came up as a name the team asked about; the Bengals are not interested in moving the contract-year sack ace. General manager John Lynch confirmed the 49ers were interested in making a move, and the team can add White to its list of in-season EDGE pickups in recent years. The 49ers acquired Chase Young, Randy Gregory and Charles Omenihu via trade in recent seasons, and Huff rejoined defensive coordinator Robert Saleh via trade this offseason.

Huff recorded a career-high 10 sacks when he played under Saleh, then the Jets’ head coach, in 2023. The 27-year-old now leads the 49ers with four sacks this season, but Bosa still ranks second with two despite missing the team’s past five games. With a lack of complements to Huff, the 49ers were in dire need of pass-rushing help. It remains to be seen whether White will provide it, but the 49ers are left to hope a change of scenery will yield positive results.

Before agreeing to land White, the 49ers worked out free agent defensive ends Clelin Ferrell, Casey Toohill, Kingsley Jonathan, and Andrew Farmer on Tuesday, per Matt Barrows of The Athletic. The 49ers have plenty of familiarity with Ferrell, who was a 17-game starter for them in 2023. He finished with 3.5 sacks that year. While the 49ers could still circle back to Ferrell, Toohill, Jonathan, or Farmer, White has emerged as their newest acquisition.

Connor Byrne contributed to this post.

Patriots, Marcus Jones Agree To Extension

October 28th, 2025 at 10:20pm CST by Adam La Rose

10:20pm: The deal’s base value checks in at $36MM over three years, Rapoport and Pelissero add. It could max out at $40.5MM, making Jones one of the three highest-paid slot cornerbacks in the NFL, per Field Yates of ESPN. Jones is now the Pats’ second-highest-paid corners — behind free agency addition Carlton Davis. While the deal’s structure is not yet known, this provides security for the corner/return man for the mid-2020s at the very least.

11:27am: Marcus Jones will not reach free agency upon the upcoming conclusion of his rookie pact. The cornerback/punt returner has agreed to a Patriots extension.

Jones has a three-year deal in place to remain in New England, Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network report. Financial terms are not yet known. It is nevertheless safe to assume a raise is in store for Jones, who is now on the books through 2028. The team has now announced the news.

A third-round pick in 2022, Jones entered the league with experience on offense and defense in addition to his strong showings in the return game. He has not been a factor as a receiver with New England, but the 27-year-old has taken on a larger workload with each passing season as a corner. Jones has been on the field for three-quarters of the Patriots’ defensive snaps in 2025 as a standout slot contributor. That can be expected to continue for the foreseeable future.

Jones notched double-digit pass deflections for the first time in 2024, and with nine so far this season he is comfortably on track to set a new career high in that regard. The Houston product has added a pair of interceptions and his first sack in 2025. In terms of coverage, Jones has surrendered a completion percentage of 61.1% and a passer rating of 81 so far; both of those marks are the best since his rookie season.

Special teams allowed for Jones to make an immediate impact in the NFL. He led the league in total and average punt return yards, earning first-team All-Pro acclaim along the way. This season, Jones already has one touchdown on 10 returns. He is once again topping the NFL with an average of 21.6 yards per runback. Especially if he can continue to serve as a standout figure in the third phase, this extension will be one the Patriots feel comfortable with.

The cornerback market as a whole has experienced surges in recent years, but the main beneficiaries of that trend has been perimeter cover men. Slot corners – a label which will no doubt remain accurate for the 5-8, 188-pound Jones throughout the remainder of his career – by contrast have not seen as much in the way of upward movement. Kyler Gordon moved the bar to $13.33MM in terms of average annual compensation for slot corners this offseason, so it will be interesting to see how Jones compares with this pact.

The Patriots already have one notable CB contract on the books in the form of free agent addition Carlton Davis. He is attached to an $18MM-per-year pact through 2027. Meanwhile, Christian Gonzalez will be eligible for an extension as soon as this coming offseason. The 2024 second-team All-Pro will be in line for a monster accord if he continues to perform as one of the top young corners in the league and a foundational member of New England’s defense. If/when Gonzalez has his second contract in hand, he will join other figures in the Patriots’ secondary attached to notable deals.

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