NFL Player News

Hudson (6'1/199), who was injured during the Tigers’ loss to Mississippi State two weeks ago, appears to be good to go for the Iron Bowl. The sophomore wide receiver was held out of last weekend’s game against South Carolina, so he’s had some time to get closer to full strength. Hudson enters Saturday’s game with a 37-490-2 receiving line.

Stevenson qualified as a rare bright spot as one of only two Pats to find the end zone in a 29-13 defeat. Given a new backfield running mate in No. 38 overall back TreVeyon Henderson, Stevenson finished the year as the Pats’ second leading rusher. That, of course, doesn’t tell the full story, as Stevenson survived an early season deluge of fumbles to end up the most trusted back for the stretch run, including the playoffs, where he out-touched Henderson 68-35. Curious, but the Pats’ sharp coaching staff preferred Stevenson’s tough running to Hendo’s home run ability, while the veteran was a (far) superior pass blocker. Stunningly, Stevenson actually led the league in average rush yards over expected. Turning 28 later this month, Stevenson has one season left of guaranteed money. He’s guaranteed to remain a thorn in the side of Henderson partisans, but it stands to reason Hendo will get a longer 2026 runway than he did as a rookie. Stevenson is best treated as a lower-ceiling RB3 in offseason best ball drafts.

It was a rare off night for JSN on an evening where almost every other Seahawk was flying around the field and on their A game. It’s a credit to the Patriots, though their only credit in a blowout defeat. JSN also survived a foot issue and concussion evaluation as he posted his second lowest yardage total of the year. Switching quarterbacks, coordinators and offensive philosophies, it was an open question whether JSN could build off his breakout 2024. He ended up posting the eighth most receiving yards in NFL history, with his 1,793 tallies built off the back of stunning consistency. JSN posted fewer than 70 yards only one time all season, and more than 100 nine times. Smith-Njigba was a true inside-out threat, with “just” 27.9 percent of his targets coming out of the slot. Still somehow only 24 years old next week, JSN now heads into the offseason the candidate for a mega extension as he enters the final two years of his rookie deal. This is probably a situation the Seahawks will get out in front of. Regardless of his contract status, JSN is firmly in the mix for No. 1 overall status in 2026 fantasy drafts.

Continuing to shine in Zach Charbonnet’s (ACL) injury absence, Walker was the offensive star of the show in a game where points were at a premium. His box score would have been even bigger had a late long touchdown run not been called back by a dubious holding call. One of the most hotly-debated backs in all of fantasy football, Walker finally stayed healthy for an entire season but could never shake Charbonnet as his co-starting back. It was Charbonnet who featured in the red zone, rendering Walker something of a between-the-20s specialist even as he out-caught Charbonnet 31-20. Charbonnet held up better in pass protection and never put the ball on the ground. For his part, KWIII fumbled just once. Walker is an explosive back, but one who frustrates coaching staffs with his circuitous run paths. Now headed to free agency, it’s unclear if Walker will be back in Seattle considering Mike Macdonald’s lack of faith in the game’s highest-leverage spots. Of course, KWIII’s strong playoffs will undoubtedly complicate that calculus. Walker turns 26 in October.

Facing his fourth defensive onslaught in as many playoff appearances, Maye fully wilted, losing 43 yards on six sacks and coughing up a fumble six. Although the Chargers, Texans and Broncos will all tough matchups, the Seahawks proved to be something else entirely, routinely getting home with just four pass rushers. Maye did not play well, but he also never had a chance. Things were much different during the regular season. After a stunning Week 1 dud against a Raiders squad that would go on to claim the No. 1 overall pick, both Maye and his Patriots started on a Super Bowl warpath and never let up. Despite a curious lack of 300-yard performances, Maye was shockingly consistent, finishing below 200 yards only two times all season. He lapped the field in NextGenStats’ completion rate over expected, and finished top five in average intended air yards. Despite running less often than he did as a rookie, Maye was a big-play machine, and it helped carry a Pats offense running low on standalone playmakers. It was all about Maye, an extremely bullish sign for a 23-year-old second-year pro. If this is what Maye can accomplish with a skeleton crew skill corps, we would love to see what he’s capable of with a more fleshed-out unit. Expect that to arrive for 2026, keeping Maye in the MVP mix after this year’s top-two finish.

It wasn’t always the prettiest performance, but Darnold stood tall in the face of pressure — both defensive and otherwise — and avoided turnovers while taking only one sack. He could never hit on one of his patented deep completions, but did more than enough as the Seahawks’ defense absolutely smothered the Patriots’ offense to claim the second Super Bowl title in franchise history. As for the regular season, Darnold completed his multi-season comeback story, shaking off his “big game” collapse from 2024-25 to set a new career high in completion percentage (67.7) while keeping his touchdown percentage above 5.0. He finished top five in completion rate over expected, and was amongst the league leaders in average depth of target. That’s the long way of saying he paired efficiency with explosive plays, the latter of which were nearly all directed Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s way. Still on the right side of 30 and signed for the next two seasons in Seattle, Darnold should remain a priority streamer in fantasy. Despite his career revival and sterling “real life” play, Darnold’s volume is limited just enough to keep him outside the top 12 in offseason ranks.

Kubiak is set to assume the Raiders’ head-coaching role once the season concludes. Outten has evidently impressed in his lone season with the team. Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker has run for 178 yards and four touchdowns in postseason play, and the Seahawks’ offensive line has played well despite experiencing a few injuries late in the year.

With Kallerup out of the lineup, Seahawks second-round rookie TE Elijah Arroyo will make his postseason debut. Arroyo has been impacted by a late-season knee injury. He will likely operate as the team’s No. 3 tight end today. Ouzts, a fan favorite, is sidelined by a neck injury. Milroe is inactive, but will serve as the emergency third quarterback.

Spillane and LB Harold Landry (knee) are both good to go. This was the expected outcome, but it is great news for the Patriots’ defense nonetheless. ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported earlier today that both players could be limited to some sort of snap count, but those types of plans are sometimes cast aside once the game begins. Regardless, LB Jack Gibbens has proven himself as a capable backup.

Chism, an undrafted free agent rookie, was active in the Divisional Round and Wild Card Round but did not play in the AFC Championship Game. He caught 3-of-3 targets for 75 yards and one touchdown in the regular season and caught his lone postseason target for a 20-yard gain. DeVito will serve as the Patriots’ emergency third quarterback today.

This seems to be the consensus opinion regarding the Cardinals’ looming decision. Murray has a fully guaranteed $36,800,000 salary in 2025. If he is on the Cardinals’ roster at the beginning of the new league year, on March 11th, it will trigger a $20 million guarantee for the following season. A release is possible, and could help Murray find a new starting role, albeit for less money than he may desire.