The NFL is making a significant change to the offseason calendar for the 2027 season.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that the free agent negotiating window will open on March 9 next year. That is the same date that the two-day window opened this year, but the change comes in how close it will be to the end of the Scouting Combine.
NFL teams will wrap up their examinations and interrogations of incoming prospects on March 8 in 2027, which moves the league away from having a week or so between the two events as they have in past years.
Under that setup, the Combine has always been rife with table-setting for free agency as agents and team executives are all in the same place with their minds on the same things. With that gap eliminated, there will likely be even more of that work being done in Indianapolis so that teams are ready to make moves right from the starting gun.
As the 16th overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft, wide receiver Jahan Dotson has been a disappointment. In two years with the Commanders and two with the Eagles, he has a total of just 1,519 career receiving yards.
Now Dotson is on his third team after signing with the Falcons in March, and he thinks he’s in the right place — for the first time.
“I want to be one of the greatest,” Dotson told Josh Kendall of TheAthletic.com. “I’m not afraid [of saying that]. I was talking to Jessie Bates, and he was talking about wanting to be the best who ever played, and I’m comfortable with those sort of things. I want to be one of the best in the league. I want to show my talent. I haven’t really gotten to do that.”
Dotson signed a two-year, $15 million contract, but he says more important than the money was believing the Falcons had a plan to use him to the best of his ability.
“The big thing for me was going to a team where I felt like my talent could be showcased,” Dotson said. “I learned a lot in my first four years in the NFL from some great receivers and great coaches, but I feel like now is really my time to put my talents on display.”
Dotson didn’t get many balls thrown his way with the Eagles last year, but that hasn’t affected his confidence.
“I 100 percent believe in my talent and ability to make plays in this league,” Dotson said. “It’s just about getting the opportunity to do so. I didn’t really have that opportunity the past couple years. Now I’m looking to really do that, and I can’t wait to make plays for this football team.”
When Kyle Pitts was a rookie in 2021, Matt Ryan was his quarterback. Now, Ryan is his boss.
Earlier this week, the Falcons president of football gave the green light to a three-year deal that will keep Pitts in red and black.
The contract replaces Pitts’s one-year franchise tag, which would have paid $15.045 million. Here are the full details of the new Pitts deal.
1. Signing bonus: $16.785 million.
2. 2026 base salary: $1.215 million, fully guaranteed.
3. 2027 option bonus: $16.49 million, fully guaranteed.
4. 2027 workout bonus: $250,000, fully guaranteed (but must be earned).
5. 2027 base salary: $1.26 million, fully guaranteed.
6. 2028 90-man roster bonus: $1 million.
7. 2028 option bonus: $13.36 million.
8. 2028 offseason workout bonus: $250,000.
9. 2028 base salary: $1.39 million.
10. 2028 per-game roster bonus: $1 million total ($58,882 per game).
11. 2028 escalator: $1 million, with $250,000 for making the Pro Bowl or first- or second-team All-Pro in 2026, the same for 2027, $250,000 for 80 catches or 900 receiving yards in 2026, and the same for 2027.
Pitts basically traded the franchise tag for a two-year, fully guaranteed deal in the amount of $36 million. If he’d been tagged twice, he would have earned $33.099 million.
The final year is not guaranteed; it gives the Falcons an option at $17 million, or as much as $18 million.
The base deal is $53 million over three years, for an average of $17.66 million. It reaches $18 million per year if he hits all four escalator triggers.
When Kyle Pitts signed the franchise tag on April 7, the Falcons tight end figured he was playing 2026 under the one-year, $15.045 million tag. But on Monday, he signed a three-year, $54 million contract.
“It was more so, ‘OK, that was my opportunity that Atlanta picked it back up to give me another year to showcase,’” Pitts said Monday, via Daniel Flick of the Atlanta Journal Constitution, “and then it was just time to squeeze the rag and just grind. I was fortunate I got the call and the interest in the long term, and when it happened, it was pretty great.”
While Pitts has not lived up to the generational talent that he was projected as the fourth overall pick in 2021, he is only 25 and coming off a season when he earned second-team All-Pro honors. He set career highs with 88 receptions and five touchdowns in 2025, with 928 yards.
Pitts said he “100 percent” believes his best football is still ahead of him, which is what the Falcons are counting on.
“I think there’s a lot more out there, a lot more to get, and a lot more things to keep grinding towards. It’s cool to see,” Pitts said.
It’s official: Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts has a new deal.
Atlanta announced Pitts signed his three-year contract on Monday.
Pitts’ new deal was first reported last week.
“Kyle has earned this opportunity through the consistency he’s shown every day and the growth he’s made both on and off the field,” Falcons G.M. Ian Cunningham said in a statement released by the team. “When we approach any contract decision, we’re always looking at the broader NFL landscape. How the market is evolving, where it’s headed, and how that aligns with our long-term roster strategy. That process-driven approach allows us to reward our own players while maintaining flexibility moving forward. We’re excited about the player Kyle is today and even more about the trajectory he’s on.
“I also want to recognize David Mulugheta and the team at Athletes First, they were professional and collaborative throughout the process, which helped us reach an agreement that made sense for both sides. We’ll continue to work towards drafting, developing, and retaining our own, and Kyle is a great example of that.”
Pitts, 25, was franchise tagged in March to keep him from fully hitting the open market after spending his first five seasons with Atlanta. Pitts put together his best campaign since his rookie year in 2025, setting career-highs in receptions (88) and touchdowns (five). His 928 receiving yards were second to his 1,026 in 2021.
With Pitts now under contract, the Falcons’ next target for a new deal is likely running back Bijan Robinson.
