NFL Player News

Jones went 5-3 as the 49ers’ starter while Brock Purdy was out with a foot injury. He finished the regular season ranked 10th in EPA per play. He is a great backup for Shanahan’s system, but the 49ers could also get a haul in return for Jones on the trade market. Both the free agent pool and the draft class are thin at quarterback, and plenty of teams will need one this offseason. With one year left on his current deal, a desperate team would likely send a Day Two pick to San Francisco for Jones’s services. For now, it looks like the team will keep him in the fold, but that could change once offers start rolling in.

Rivers is the current coach at St. Michael Catholic High School. The future Hall of Famer, who came out of retirement to try to keep the Colts in the playoff hunt this season, again retired after the Colts were eliminated, but has reportedly been researched by several teams as a head-coaching fit, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. Rivers is reportedly close with Josh Allen, who is sitting in on head-coaching interviews with the team. Rivers does not have any experience as an NFL coach, and would join the ranks of former Colts interim head coach Jeff Saturday should be land the gig.

Smith was with the Titans from 2011 until 2020, when he left to take the role of the Falcons’ head coach. The veteran offensive play-caller has fielded several requests from other teams regarding their offensive coordinator vacancies, and was most recently passed on by the Chargers in favor of Mike McDaniel. Smith’s run-loving ways could pair well in Tennessee for a team short on receiver talent, but he would have his work cut out for him to help turn around what was one of the worst offenses in the league last season.

Whitecotton also had an in-house interview with the Cowboys to fill their defensive coordinator vacancy, but it’s worth noting that the veteran coach has never served as a defensive coordinator. Whitecotton worked with the Jets under Robert Saleh in the past, so this interview with the now Saleh-led Titans shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.

Bills beat writer Ryan Talbot notes that “a source close to Kincaid confirmed what Knox said” on the podcast. This certainly comes as a bit of a surprise. Kincaid, who popped up on multiple injury reports this season due to a knee injury, apparently played through the entire season with a PCL injury he suffered in 2024, which caused him to miss some time. We would assume that surgery will be in Kincaid’s future to correct the issue after he was limited to just 253 routes run this season on a career-low 368 offensive snaps, but we’ve yet to see anything from the team to suggest that. Kincaid averaged an impressive 2.70 yards per route run in his limited action, but the Bills offense will be better off in 2026 if they can have him on the field for a full assortment of snaps.

Harris continues to make the rounds for defensive coordinator openings. The former Pro Bowl corner, who entered the league as a coach in 2012, joined the Bears last offseason as their defensive backs coach and pass game coordinator after spending the previous five seasons with the Cowboys in a similar role. Under Harris, the Bears led the league with 33 turnovers, which included 23 interceptions. Harris most recently met with the Commanders and spent four years coaching alongside Dan Quinn during their days in Dallas. Harris seems primed to make the leap to defensive coordinator somewhere this offseason, but could have more interviews on the way as other teams continue to fill head-coaching vacancies.

According to Fowler, “interest in Udinski is real” for the Browns. Fowler said the Browns are still expected to meet with Rams assistant Nate Scheelhaase next week before making any decisions, but Udinski will have a good chance to make an early impression. In his first season as the Jaguars’ offensive coordinator, Udinski helped lead the team to the sixth-highest scoring offense in the league, while Trevor Lawrence enjoyed a career-year that put him in the MVP conversation. Udinski turned 30 earlier this month and would become the youngest head coach hired in NFL history should the Browns give him the job.

With former Chargers DC Jesse Minter now heading to Baltimore to serve as their next head coach, the Chargers have a new vacancy to fill. The obvious connection here is the Harbaughs. After spending the last two seasons coaching with John Harbaugh in Baltimore, Orr could become the latest coach and/or player to make the leap to Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers. Orr’s time in Baltimore was marked by challenges. Despite his defense ranking ninth in points allowed in 2024, the Ravens often felt like they underperformed on that side of the ball in big moments, and they fell to 18th in points allowed and 24th in yards allowed in 2025. Wherever he lands next, Orr will have a lot to prove after underperforming expectations this season.

With the Bills entering their first head-coaching search of the Josh Allen era, the team will let its MVP quarterback have more than his share of say on who leads the team into the future. Allen and the Bills again came up short in their quest for their first Super Bowl in last week’s loss to the Broncos, spurring the change at head coach that took many on the team by surprise. Buffalo has already begun its head coaching search, but has interviews with multiple outside candidates starting on Friday and lasting over the weekend.

McDaniel is expected to take the job as the Chargers’ offensive coordinator, but he’ll still take time to speak with the Bills about their head-coaching opening before settling for a coordinator role. McDaniel withdrew his name from the Browns’ head-coaching search earlier this week in favor of the Chargers’ job, but having the chance to lead a team with one of the best quarterbacks in the game in Josh Allen could be too much for McDaniel to pass up should the opportunity present itself. The Bills are early in their head-coaching search and still have other potential suitors to meet over the weekend, but for now, McDaniel is in the mix.

The 2025 Heisman Trophy winner and national champion didn’t take long to announce his decision. Just days after downing Miami in the College Football Playoff national championship game, Mendoza, who is widely believed to be the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, will leave college for the pros. Mendoza is a fourth-year prospect who got his start at Cal, before transferring to Indiana for the 2025 season. Under head coach Curt Cignetti, Mendoza showed tremendous improvement, throwing for career-highs across the board while finishing with a line of 3,535-41-6 through the air and leading the nation in yards per attempt (9.3) and touchdown passes. He’s a prototypical pocket passer standing at 6-foot-5, and weighing in at 225 pounds, but Mendoza also showed off the wheels at times, rushing for 76-377-7, per PFF, who does not account for rushing yards lost due to sacks. The Raiders, who currently hold the No. 1 pick in the draft, seem destined to take Mendoza come April in hopes of fixing the quarterback woes that have plagued them since Derek Carr left after the 2022 season.