NFL Player News

Morris-to-Minnesota rumors have been percolating for days now, and it’s clear he’s Minnesota’s top choice to replace Fred Pagac. Before taking over as the Bucs’ head coach in 2009, Morris had never coordinated a defense at the NFL level. The Bucs ranked 30th in yards allowed this season, and dead last in points against.

Lions GM Brad Holmes said two weeks ago said the team is ramping up the second-year back for a heftier workload in 2024. Montgomery said the team needs Gibbs “to do from a passing game standpoint is go to the next level. ... I do think there’s a certain difference between being a really efficient check-down versus a great route-runner, a guy that can run all types of choice (routes). We know we’ve seen him do those things. But now can you go into the slot and a little bit more down the field, some intermediate stuff. Can we continue to grow him there, and that’s what we’re trying to do.” This is standard fare for offseason talk of a talented pass-catching running back. Gibbs in 2023 ran 9.2 percent of his routes from the slot. We could see a slight bump in that slot usage but it doesn’t change much about his statistical profile.

Mitchell has made consistent acrobatic downfield grabs in 7-on-7 drills during OTAs, catching the attention of beat writers and Colts coaches alike. Boyd said on Thursday, Anthony Richardson “launched a deep ball down the sideline to Mitchell, who, after beating cornerback Darrell Baker contorted his body to make an over-the-shoulder grab that drew a roar of approval from the offense. That highlight-reel play explains why the Colts were willing to take a swing on Mitchell despite just one year of big-time production from him in college.” Mitchell, the 52nd overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, posted an explosive 55/845/11 line in his final collegiate season (his only one at Texas). Mitchell should function as a pure downfield threat for the big-armed Richardson in 2024.

New Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald agreed, describing JSN’s work ethic as “awesome.” The implication is that Smith-Njigba didn’t put in the necessary work during his disappointing rookie season, during which he caught 62 of 90 targets for 628 yards and four touchdowns. JSN would have to leapfrog DK Metcalf or Tyler Lockett in the team’s pass-catching pecking order if he’s going to be a reliable fantasy option in 2024. That seems unlikely.

A 2022 UDFA, under-sized Thompkins caught 17 balls in 17 games last season, so it’s a little surprising to see him cut loose at this stage of the offseason. Heading into his age-25 campaign, 5-foot-8 Thompkins has roughly six weeks to land on someone else’s 90-man roster before training camp. That, of course, will depend on his health.

“He’ll be available at the start of training camp, so we won’t see him working through the rest of the OTAs,” coach Sean Payton claimed. “But, on the conservative side, he’s going to be just fine. It was all good news.” It, of course, isn’t good news that Estime required a scope at all, but a truly small scope would indeed have him ready for camp. Estime handled a huge 2023 workload for Notre Dame, but he is still only 20 years old and wasn’t as heavily featured in 2021-22. Provided his recovery goes according to plan, this shouldn’t be a long-term concern. Part of what Payton has promised will be a major competition at running back, Estime maintains late-round flier appeal.

The Cardinals selected Robinson with the No. 27 overall pick in this year’s draft in hopes of bolstering their defensive front. Robinson exploded for 14 TFLs and 8.5 sacks in his final season at Missouri and was named First-team All-SEC for his efforts. He has a chance help improve a defensive unit that allowed the second-most points per game and the eighth most yards per game in 2023.

Toub points out that the new kickoff rules could require kickers to be more involved in tackles — something the Chiefs may prefer for Butker to avoid. Toub said the team watched every kickoff in the XFL, which first experimented with this rule, and found that kickers were involved in “at least 25 to 40 percent of the tackles” in the tape they watched. Toub said safety Justin Reid has been viewed as a potential option to replace Butker on kickoffs, but it doesn’t seem like anything is definite at this time. It wouldn’t be surprising to see other teams consider this approach to avoid injuries to their kickers.

Presumed No. 1 RB Devin Singletary has been present at OTAs but Gray has also had a chance to work with the first-team offense. The Athletic’s Dan Duggan previously reported Gray has “a clear path... to have a bigger role” this year and Leonard’s report seems to affirm the opportunity. Gray played limited snaps as a 2023 rookie, delivering underwhelming rushing results (2.8 yards per rushing attempt) but played well in the passing game, catching six-of-seven passes and winning all three pass-protection repetitions.

The Athletic’s Nick Kosmider reports Mims “had a big day” in Thursday’s OTAs. We’re at the peak of coach-speak season, so take Payton’s quotes with a grain of salt, but a second-year leap from Mims could be on the way. Mims caught 22 passes for 377 yards and one touchdown as a rookie but was frustratingly buried near the bottom of Denver’s wide receiver depth chart behind the likes of Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Brandon Johnson. Payton and the Broncos traded up in the 2023 draft to select Mims in the second round, which should serve somewhat as a signal of how the team envisions him for the long term. With Jerry Jeudy now gone and rookie Troy Franklin carrying fourth-round draft capital, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Mims earn starting reps in his second season, giving Bo Nix an explosive weapon on the outside.

Odunze was sidelined with a hamstring injury during the first round of OTAs but was seen on video catching a deep pass from Caleb Williams in what appeared to be 7-on-7 drills. Odunze will be battling for targets in a wide receiver room that features veterans Keenan Allen and DJ Moore but could contribute immediately as a deep threat — something he specialized in during his days at Washington. As far as fantasy is concerned, Odunze’s rookie ceiling could be capped by the presence of Allen and Moore, but he should be good for a few splash weeks, making him an enticing pick in best ball drafts.