NFL Player News

The Chiefs nontendered Yelder, who appeared in 14 games and played 18% of snaps last year, this offseason. Yelder signed with Washington in May but was released before the start of training camp last month. The special teamer and in-line blocker will compete with Luke Stocker and Tommy Hudson for a roster spot in Tennessee.

A former fourth-round pick by the Bills back in 2018, Johnson is now set to hit free agency. The veteran corner, who has spent nearly all of his career in the slot (4,527 slot snaps per PFF), started eight games for the Bills last season, earning a PFF coverage grade of 66.8 while allowing 34 receptions for 332 yards and two touchdowns on 51 targets. A change in defensive scheme likely led Johnson’s release, but the decision to cut him will also clear over $8.6 million in cap space if he is designate as a post-June 1 release. Johnson will turn 30 this offseason and should have plenty of suitors on the open market.

A hip injury caused Sanders to miss all of the 2025 season. Now, the veteran kicker with an 84.6 percent field goal percentage that includes a 68.8 percent on kicks of 50-plus yards will now be free to sign with any team. Sanders, 30, has been one of the top kickers in the league since joining the Dolphins as a seventh-round pick in 2018, and should have multiple suitors on the open market if he is fully recovered from his hip injury.

Ingold was the highest-paid fullback in the league at the time of his release and will now be looking for a new home. The 29-year-old vet has spent the last four seasons with the Dolphins and was named to the Pro Bowl in 2023. His release will clear just over $3 million in cap space for the Dolphins, who are attempting to get under the salary cap before the start of the season.

DeVito spent all of last season with the Patriots but never took a snap for the team. The former UDFA served as the team’s QB3 behind Joshua Dobbs and will likely have a chance to compete with Dobbs for the team’s QB2 spot now that both are slated to return in 2026. For his career, DeVito has thrown for 1,358-8-3 on 222 passes while completing 65.3 percent of his attempts.

This comes from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. In hopes of getting under the cap before the start of the new league year, the Vikings will restructure the deals of both Jefferson and LT Christian Darrisaw, likely by converting portions of their base salaries into guaranteed money. The Vikings rank last in the league in available cap space, per OverTheCap.com, and will likely restructure a few more deals in the coming days to get to a point where they have money to spend in free agency.

Just days after the team opted not to tender Moody as a restricted free agent, they have now re-signed him for next season before the start of free agency kicks off next year. Moody was 18-of-20 on field goal attempts last season for the Bears and Commanders after going 1-for-3 in Week 1 for the 49ers. The former third-round pick only attempted two field goals from 50-plus yards last season, and will likely find himself in a kicking competition later this summer.

To be clear, the Raiders have not confirmed that they will be taking Mendoza No. 1 overall in next month’s draft. That said, Russini notes that “if the Raiders continue to lean toward” selecting him, their preference is to not start Mendoza immediately. It’s an interesting point to consider, especially with the recent release of Geno Smith, that now puts the Raiders firmly in the market for a veteran QB when free agency officially kicks off next month. Mendoza has 35 college starts under his belt and is fresh off leading Indiana to a national championship and a 16-0 season. It’s not uncommon to hear teams say they don’t want to hand a job a rookie QB, even one that is expected to go No. 1 overall, so we wouldn’t read too much into this until teams start reporting to mini-camp and later training camp.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter was first to report the move. Smith’s release will clear $8 million in cap space for the Raiders, but the team will also take on $18.5 million in dead money. Smith, like former head coach Pete Carroll, is officially one-and-done with the Raiders. The coach and QB joined forces after a four-year stint in Seattle that saw Smith rebuild his career under Carroll, but they were unable to enjoy similar success with the Raiders. Smith went 2-13 as a starter in Vegas while throwing for 3,025 yards, 19 touchdowns and a league-high 17 interceptions. Smith, 35, should have plenty of suitors around the league as a veteran who could serve as either a bridge for a younger QB, or as a short-term fix for one season for teams hoping to land a franchise QB in what projects as a strong 2027 draft class.

While the Patriots, Chargers, and Ravens all remain teams to watch as potential suitors for Brown, the fact that no team has submitted an official offer is notable. The Eagles’ asking price for Brown, who turns 29 in June, is reportedly high, and they aren’t expecting to come down from it. While it seems like the Eagles are willing to trade Brown, their high asking prices continues to suggest they would prefer to keep him barring a “godfather offer” coming across the table. Russini later added that whatever happens with a trade, the Eagles and teams interested in Brown hope “the situation (is) resolved in the next couple of days.”

It was reported on Thursday that the Cowboys “thought they were close” to landing Crosby before other teams came out of the woodwork. That said, the Cowboys, who are curiously interested in a star pass rusher, have not been completely deterred from their efforts to land Crosby. Rumors of multiple first-round picks being offered for Crosby suggest the Raiders could get close to what they hoped for when it was reported they wanted a “Parsons-like trade package” in exchange for his services. Russini also reports the Ravens are “a team to watch” as trade negotiations continue to unfold, while adding the belief is that the Raiders “are willing to work on a deal” to trade the five-time Pro Bowler.