Transactions News & Rumors

Panthers Release RB Miles Sanders

March 11th, 2025 at 11:32am CST by Adam La Rose

Miles Sanders‘ tenure with the Panthers has come to an expected end. The veteran running back was released on Tuesday, per a team announcement.

Sanders was prepared to restructure his contract to remain in Carolina, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports. Team and player negotiated such a move, but no agreement could be reached. Now, the former Eagles Pro Bowler will hit the market for the second time in his career.

The top running back earner in the 2023 offseason, Sanders inked a four-year Panthers pact. By cutting bait halfway through the deal, the team will generate $5.23MM in cap space while incurring a dead money charge of $2.95MM. Carolina will now move forward with Chuba Hubbard atop the backfield depth chart.

The 25-year-old Canadian set new career high with 1,195 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns last season. Midway through the campaign, Hubbard inked a four-year extension which prevented him from reaching free agency this spring. He will be counted on to remain a lead back moving forward while 2024 second-rounder Jonathon Brooks rehabs his second ACL tear.

Sanders finished out his rookie contract with an impressive Eagles season (1,347 scrimmage yards, 11 touchdowns, 4.9 yards per carry). The Penn State product found himself on the move with Philadelphia electing to sign D’Andre Swift – and later, Saquon Barkley – however, leading to his Panthers agreement. His Carolina tenure did not go according to plan, and during a six-week stretch this past season Sanders was inactive.

While the 27-year-old returned to the lineup during the season finale and operated as a starter (due to other injuries), it was widely expected a parting of ways would take place. Sanders will now look to find a new home with his stock in a much worse spot than it was two years ago. The likes of Najee Harris and Javonte Williams have lined up new deals in the early portion of the offseason, and the 2025 draft class features several highly-acclaimed running backs. Sanders may need to wait to find a suitor as a result.

Texans To Sign G Laken Tomlinson

March 11th, 2025 at 11:30am CST by Adam La Rose

One piece to the Texans’ 2025 offensive line puzzle has emerged. Veteran guard Laken Tomlinson has a deal in place with Houston, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.

Tomlinson will join the Texans on a one-year contract, per Garafolo. The pact has a base value of $4.25MM and can reach a maximum of $5MM. A veteran of 163 games and 155 starts, he will be able to operate as a first-team option on his latest team.

Although the Texans fired Bobby Slowik after two seasons, DeMeco Ryans was on staff during Tomlinson’s run with the 49ers. Tomlinson, 33, no longer profiles as the level of player he was with San Francisco but did hold down a Seattle starting guard job last season. The former Lions draftee is also one of the NFL’s most durable players, having not missed a game since the 2017 season.

The 49ers’ 2017 trade for Tomlinson revived the former first-round pick’s career, and he started 80 games for the team. This also brought starts in two NFC championship games and Super Bowl LIV. Tomlinson reunited with another ex-49ers DC (Robert Saleh) in 2022, after his lone Pro Bowl season, but the Jets cut bait on his three-year, $40MM contract after two seasons. Tomlinson made his way to Seattle to be a low-cost guard option, playing for the veteran minimum in base value last season.

Pro Football Focus viewed the 10-year veteran as taking a slight step forward last year, ranking him 44th at the position among regulars. The Texans cut fellow durable guard Shaq Mason, after his ironman run ended late last season. They are adding another 2015 draftee in Tomlinson, who has made 155 career starts. Tomlinson joins an O-line that lost anchor Laremy Tunsil on Monday; the Texans traded Tunsil to the Commanders to end a six-year partnership. This could keep Tytus Howard at right tackle, after he has vacillated between tackle and guard in Houston.

Sam Robinson contributed to this post.

Chiefs Expected To Sign CB Kristian Fulton

March 11th, 2025 at 11:15am CST by Sam Robinson

Kristian Fulton had a strong season in 2024, and he is set to remain in the AFC West next year. The veteran corner will not remain with the Chargers, however.

Fulton is instead on track to sign with the Chiefs, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports. He will provide Kansas City with a starting-caliber option at the cornerback spot after handling first-team duties in Tennessee and Los Angeles. This will be a two-year deal worth $20MM, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network adds. Fulton will collect $15MM fully guaranteed, and he can earn up to $20.5MM.

This represents a bit of a deviation for Kansas City, which has relied on Steve Spagnuolo to get by with low-cost cornerbacks. The assembly line has rolled along, with the team letting Marcus Peters, Steven Nelson, Kendall Fuller, Charvarius Ward and L’Jarius Sneed find their second contracts elsewhere. The blueprint, however, hit a snag post-Sneed. No. 2 boundary corner Jaylen Watson missed most of the season and did not play well in Super Bowl LIX; he will now face competition opposite Trent McDuffie.

Lauded as a player who can thrive outside and in the slot, McDuffie spent far more time on the boundary (765 snaps) than inside (149) last season. Fulton would stand to complement the All-Pro. The Chiefs still have Watson and fellow 2022 pickup Joshua Williams contracted for one more season. If nothing else, Fulton will provide high-end insurance against the rookie-deal McDuffie sidekicks not progressing like past Kansas City corners have. Though, this contract points to a starting role in 2025.

Going into his age-27 season, Fulton joins the Chiefs after playing a key part in their 2024 season. A Fulton interception in Week 4 led to Rashee Rice suffering a season-ending knee injury on a tackle attempt, changing Kansas City’s wide receiver plan. Fulton, after struggling in his Titans contract year, was one of the new pieces that helped the Chargers lead the NFL in scoring defense last year. He started 14 games and dropped his completion percentage, yards per target, and passer rating (as the closest defender) considerably from 2023. Pro Football Focus graded him 40th among CB regulars last season.

A 37-game starter for the Titans, Fulton helped Tennessee after the team opted not to pay Adoree’ Jackson and saw Caleb Farley fail to justify a first-round pick. He will join the Chiefs as McDuffie becomes extension-eligible. The Chiefs will pick up McDuffie’s fifth-year option, however, giving them two more years of rookie-contract control. But Fulton is suddenly the Chiefs’ highest-paid CB.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.

Cowboys, Solomon Thomas Agree To Deal

March 11th, 2025 at 9:38am CST by Sam Robinson

Solomon Thomas is set to join a fourth career team. The veteran defensive tackle has a two-year deal in place with the Cowboys worth up to $8MM, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.

The former No. 3 overall pick will join a fourth NFL team, having made his way from San Francisco to Las Vegas to New York previously. The three-year Jets contributor has settled onto the role-player tier, having not come especially close to living up to his draft slot. But the ex-49ers draftee remains a useful D-lineman. And the Cowboys need lower-cost solutions both due to their monster contracts on offense but because of the deal they gave Osa Odighizuwa at the franchise tag deadline.

This is a homecoming of sorts for Thomas, who went to high school in the Dallas area. Trekking to Stanford, Thomas captured the attention of the 49ers, who traded down one spot (to give the Bears Mitchell Trubisky) in the first Kyle Shanahan-John Lynch draft. Thomas has a history playing outside and inside, but he has settled into more of a D-tackle as his career as progressed.

Over the past two seasons, Thomas has combined to register 8.5 sacks. Five of those, to go with seven tackles for loss, came in 2023; that effort helped the Jets rank fourth defensively. Thomas has only started nine games over the past six seasons, having settled into his auxiliary role, and Pro Football Focus has rated him as a bottom-end (among regulars) interior D-lineman for several years now. Teams regularly disagree with the advanced metrics website, however, and the Cowboys will be one in this case. Also delivering durability as a selling point, Thomas has missed just one game over the past four seasons.

Dallas is keeping Odighizuwa but has lost Chauncey Golston from its front (to the Giants) and has Linval Joseph unsigned after an age-36 season. The team has former first-rounder Mazi Smith going into Year 3. Thomas should be expected to step in as a backup behind Odighizuwa and Smith, and the Cowboys will aim for the once-coveted prospect still having good football left. Thomas will turn 30 before season’s end.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.

Vikings Plan To Sign DT Javon Hargrave

March 11th, 2025 at 8:51am CST by Sam Robinson

Javon Hargrave is set to be released by the 49ers shortly after the new league year begins. Once that takes place, he will become a free agent; the Pro Bowl defensive tackle already has his next destination lined up, though.

Hargrave has agreed to a contract with the Vikings, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports. Minnesota already has a deal in place with Jonathan Allen, but the team’s spending spree at the line of scrimmage is set to continue. The Vikings’ efforts to shore up their offensive line has included agreements with former Colts Ryan Kelly and Will Fries.

The 49ers came to regret their Hargrave addition, though San Francisco has not discriminated too much regarding the players it has moved on from this offseason. A host of Super Bowl LVIII starters (or would-be starters, in Talanoa Hufanga‘s case) are gone, with Hargrave’s exit known earlier than the other departures. The 49ers had made it known early this offseason they were designating Hargrave as a post-June 1 cut. After being tied to a $21MM-per-year deal, the former Steelers and Eagles starter is joining Allen up front in Minnesota.

Turning 32 in February, Hargrave is two years older than Allen. He is also coming off a season mostly nullified by injury. He suffered a partially torn triceps in September and was early to the 49ers’ injury avalanche last year. In 2023, Hargrave had totaled seven sacks, eight tackles for loss and 14 QB hits to help the 49ers to the Super Bowl. Hargrave ended up facing the Chiefs to decide consecutive seasons, though his teams came up short on each occasion.

The 49ers bet big on Hargrave, complementing Brock Purdy‘s rookie contract, after he posted an 11-sack year for the Eagles in 2022. One of four Philly double-digit sackers on a team that came within two sacks (70) of breaking the 1984 Bears’ single-season record, Hargrave added postseason sacks in 2022 and ’23. Prior to that Eagles sack binge, Hargrave — who had formerly worked as a third wheel alongside Cameron Heyward and Stephon Tuitt in Pittsburgh — made his first Pro Bowl with a 7.5-sack, 18-hit 2021.

Phillips is going into his age-29 season; suddenly, he will the 20-something representative up front for the Vikings, who entered free agency with Jonathan Bullard and Jerry Tillery unsigned. A Vikings team that ranked second against the run last season but did not see much interior pressure — no Minnesota D-lineman eclipsed two sacks in 2024 — as bulked in the latter area Tuesday morning.

Adam La Rose contributed to this report.

49ers To Place Second-Round RFA Tender On Jordan Mason; Team To Sign Richie Grant

March 11th, 2025 at 8:45am CST by Adam La Rose

The 49ers are set to lose running back Elijah Mitchell once free agency officially begins, but Jordan Mason‘s short-term future has been assured. The latter will receive the second-round restricted free agent tender, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.

This move means the 49ers are taking the same route as the Steelers did yesterday with Jaylen Warren. The second-round tender is worth $5.3MM fully guaranteed, representing a notable raise for Mason. Should he sign an offer sheet which San Francisco declines to match, the team will receive a second-round pick as compensation.

In addition, a deal has been worked out with Richie Grant. Schefter’s colleague Jeremy Fowler reports the former Falcon is signing a one-year contract. The 49ers saw Talanoa Hufanga reach agreement on a big-ticket Broncos deal yesterday, and Grant will look to help replace him.

While some teams are balking at even giving RFAs the low-end tender ($3.26MM) this year, the 49ers are doing plenty to ensure Mason stays for a fourth season. Mason beat out Elijah Mitchell to back up Christian McCaffrey last year, before the injury-prone back was lost for the season. A former UDFA out of Georgia Tech, Mason then impressed in McCaffrey’s stead by soaring to the top of the rushing yards leaderboard early — no small feat considering where Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry went last season. Mason finished with 789 rushing yards (5.2 per carry) and three touchdowns in an 11-game season.

Mason had also eclipsed five yards per carry in 2022 and ’23, but doing so on 153 totes in 2024 proved more impressive. Mason suffered a high ankle sprain during the same game — a Sunday-night loss to the Bills — in which McCaffrey’s PCL injury occurred. Although McCaffrey is on track to participate in at least some of the 49ers’ offseason activities, his injury history makes a proven backup important. Mason, 26 in May, will be on track for unrestricted free agency in 2026.

Grant comes over after a four-year tenure with the Falcons. The former second-round pick will join rookie-deal safeties Ji’Ayir Brown and Malik Mustapha — both moving into the starting lineup due to Hufanga injuries at different points — in the 49ers’ secondary. The 49ers have placed a premium on safety experience, as their deals with Tashaun Gipson have shown, and Grant is heading west after being supplanted in Atlanta’s lineup by Justin Simmons last year. He has made 33 career starts.

Sam Robinson contributed to this post

Vikings, G Will Fries Agree To Deal

March 11th, 2025 at 8:37am CST by Sam Robinson

The Vikings added one former Colt along the offensive line in the form of center Ryan Kelly yesterday, and another is also headed to Minnesota. Guard Will Fries has a deal in place, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports.

This will be a whopping five-year, $88MM pact, Fowler adds. KTSP’s Darren Wolfson’s reported yesterday that the sides were discussing a deal, so it comes as little surprise one has now been worked out. Fries will face massive expectations upon arrival given the nature of this commitment.

Fries does not have a connection to Ryan Grigson like Kelly does, as Fries is a first-time free agent who had joined the Colts in the 2021 draft. Despite not joining a team on Day 1 of the legal tampering period, Fries will cash in. While this is on the longer end of the term-length spectrum — especially as the cap has climbed like his has this decade — Fries is receiving a big number to join the Vikings. Guarantees will provide more illumination, but it is clear Minnesota eyed Fries from the start.

The Vikings have been busy Tuesday, agreeing to deals with two high-profile street free agents (Jonathan Allen, Javon Hargrave) to beef up their defensive line alongside Harrison Phillips while adding Fries as their other new piece with Kelly. The two Colts defections come as Indianapolis added long-rumored Minnesota Sam Darnold fallback option Daniel Jones. As Jones prepares to take a run at another starting job, two Colts blockers will prepare to help J.J. McCarthy transition after missing his rookie season.

A Colts starter for roughly two seasons, Fries is coming off a season-ending injury. He sustained a broken leg early last year; that halted considerable momentum. The fifth-year veteran is not yet 100%, per ESPN.com’s Stephen Holder, but all indications point to him having no issues being ready for next season on time. This contract certainly displays Vikings confidence on this front. The Vikings needed to go big for Fries, whom the Colts tried to re-sign. Pushes from the Patriots, Giants, Seahawks and Cardinals drove the market to this place, SI.com’s Albert Breer notes, as Fries did very well for himself despite the early-season injury.

Fries, who emerged out of the 2021 seventh round, graded as the league’s second-best guard (per Pro Football Focus) and had won his run- and pass-blocking matchups at a career-best rate (per ESPN) before the Week 5 setback. This came after a 17-start 2023, as Fries had taken over for less effective starter Danny Pinter during the 2022 season.

Not on the younger end among this year’s free agent class, Fries (27 in April) will be asked to start at one of the Vikings’ guard spots. Former second-round pick Ed Ingram‘s Vikings future is in doubt, after a 2024 benching, and Dalton Risner — who has not seen free agent markets come close to Fries’ new level — is again out of contract.

Adam La Rose contributed to this report.

Dolphins To Add Ifeatu Melifonwu, Re-Sign Elijah Campbell

March 11th, 2025 at 8:30am CST by Adam La Rose

The Dolphins have worked out a pair of moves in the secondary on Tuesday. A deal is in place to add safety Ifeatu Melifonwu, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.

Melifonwu will head to Miami on a one-year, $4MM pact, Schefter adds. After being limited to only three games last season (the final one of his rookie contract), his market was due to be limited to a prove-it deal. The former Lion will look to deliver a healthy campaign in advance of free agency in 2026.

The Dolphins are also re-signing defensive back Elijah Campbell, per Schefter. His deal will also be one year in length, and it will be worth $1.9MM. The former UDFA has spent the past four years in Miami, and his tenure there will continue for 2025,

A 2024 spent largely on IR impacted Melifonwu, a former third-round Lions draftee. Melifonwu played in just three games last year, with an ankle injury leading to the low-participation slate. The Lions, however, valued Melifonwu enough — during a season that featured much higher-profile injuries — to use two IR activations on him. The Syracuse alum did not debut until Week 16 but started each of the four games (counting Detroit’s divisional-round loss) he played.

Used as a six-game starter in 2023, Melifonwu saw his role increase in part because of C.J. Gardner-Johnson‘s pectoral tear. The former tallied three sacks and two interceptions for the Lions that season, though Detroit’s defense struggled in Aaron Glenn’s third year. Rather than rejoining Glenn in New York, Melifonwu will aim to play a role for a Dolphins team that lost Jevon Holland to the Giants on Tuesday morning. With Jordan Poyer also not expected back, starting spots are open in Miami.

A former UDFA, Campbell has seen action on at least 65% of the Dolphins’ special teams plays over the past four seasons. This will be the 29-year-old DB’s sixth year with the team.

Falcons To Sign LB Divine Deablo

March 11th, 2025 at 8:18am CST by Adam La Rose

Robert Spillane agreed to a deal which will see him depart the Raiders on Monday. Fellow linebacker Divine Deablo is also set to head elsewhere in free agency.

The latter has agreed to a two-year deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. The pact is worth $14MM and will pay out $8MM in the first year, Rapoport adds. After serving as a starter for much of the time spent playing out his rookie contract, Deablo will be expected to do the same in Atlanta.

Although Pete Carroll retained Patrick Graham and expressed interest in retaining several of the Raiders’ UFAs, Deablo and Spillane join Tre’von Moehrig and Nate Hobbs in leaving. The Raiders have been able to re-sign Adam Butler and Malcolm Koonce, however. The Falcons will now see if Deablo can assimilate into a new system.

A converted safety, Deablo has started 42 career games. He played a regular role for a 2023 Raiders team that snapped a long-running Raiders streak. After 20 straight seasons ranking in the bottom half in scoring defense, the Raiders finished ninth in Graham’s second season in charge. Deablo posted a career-high 106 tackles (for four loss) that season. He has logged a snap rate of at least 75% in each of the past three years, though the former third-round pick saw injury trouble limit him to only eight games in 2022.

Going into his age-27 season, Deablo will join a Falcons team that did not tender Nathan Landman (23 starts since 2023) as an RFA. The Falcons still roster former second-rounder Troy Andersen and versatile LB Kaden Elliss, who came over to join Ryan Nielsen from the Saints in 2023. Atlanta has changed DCs twice since that point, now employing Jeff Ulbrich in that role. Some turnover appears afoot at linebacker, as Deablo’s $7MM AAV would be a bit high to work as a backup or nominal starter who comes off the field in sub-packages.

Sam Robinson contributed to this post.

Giants To Sign S Jevon Holland

March 11th, 2025 at 8:13am CST by Adam La Rose

Jevon Holland found himself as one of the top free agents left on the board in the aftermath of Monday’s action. He has managed to find a new home quickly during the second day of the negotiating period, however.

Holland has agreed to terms with the Giants, as first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter. This will be a three-year, $45MM pact, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network adds. The deal includes $30.3MM in guarantees, per Rapoport’s colleague Tom Pelissero.

The top safety on PFR’s Top 50 Free Agent list, Holland checked in at No. 6 overall. The 25-year-old Canadian was held without an interception in 2024, a factor which threatened to hurt his earning potential on the open market. Another, of course, was the overall trend (which was particularly visible last offseason) of teams shying away from big-ticket safety signings. Nevertheless, Holland has managed to secure a notable payday.

With 301 tackles, 25 pass deflections and five each in the sack and forced fumble categories, the former second-rounder will be expected to produce in a number of areas for New York. Holland is set to join a team which ranked top-10 in pass defense last year but struggled on that side of the ball in several other areas. The Giants allowed Xavier McKinney to walk last spring, but they have made a commitment in line with many of the top safety deals worked out in 2025 to acquire Holland.

Once it became clear the Dolphins would not use the franchise tag in this case, a free agent departure loomed. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald notes the team did make an effort to re-sign Holland, but he had several options to choose from on the open market. The interested suitors included the Panthers, Commanders, Colts and Titans, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported yesterday. Carolina and Indianapolis have since made big-money commitments in other safeties, helping explain this Giants agreement.

New York has been active in adding on defense so far this offseason, including a lucrative deal for cornerback Paulson Adebo. He and Holland will be counted on to operate as impactful starters in 2025 and beyond as the team looks to bounce back from a disappointing season last year.

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