The Cardinals will release quarterback Kyler Murray next week. Where will he land?
DraftKings has the Vikings as the early favorites to sign the first overall pick in the 2019 draft, at -110.
The Jets are next at +175, with the Dolphins at +320 and the Browns at +450.
The Falcons, at +500, are one of the most intriguing options, given their talent elsewhere on offense. As mentioned over the weekend, however, new president of football operations Matt Ryan (a 6'5" former quarterback) will have to be content to ride with an undersized signal caller.
There’s a long shot to watch, at +7500: The Rams. They’ll likely need a replacement for Jimmy Garoppolo at No. 2 behind Matthew Stafford, and there’s an unverified (for now) rumor making the rounds that Stafford has already contacted Murray to make the case for coming to L.A.
Murray’s former head coach in Arizona, Kliff Kingsbury, is now a member of the Rams’ coaching staff. And Murray’s former Oklahoma teammate, Baker Mayfield, had a late 2022 cup of coffee with the Rams that may have helped launch his resurgence in Tampa.
The real question is whether Murray wants to play in 2026, or whether he’s content to take a step back for a year and lay the foundation for wherever he’ll be in 2027.
Either way, the clock is ticking (as it is for all of us). Murray turns 29 later this year. The high-end speed and acceleration will fade. At some point, he’ll need to transition to pocket passer if he hopes to keep playing deep into his 30s.
The Jets are the team most likely to draft Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson, according to the betting odds.
The Jets are +250 favorites to draft Simpson, who is viewed by most as the second-best quarterback prospect in the 2026 NFL draft. Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is a near-lock to go to the Raiders with the first overall pick.
If the Jets love Simpson, they could take him with the second overall pick. But most people see Simpson as the kind of prospect who would go late in the first round or early in the second.
The teams with the next-best odds of drafting Simpson are the Steelers and Rams, both at +280. They’re followed by the Dolphins at +450 and Cardinals at +500. Longer shots are the Browns at +650 and Vikings at +1300.
From 2015-24, the NFL saw five or more franchise tags placed on players each of those offseasons. A total of five tags were used the past two years.
The deadline to tag players in 2026 passed Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
Only three teams used a franchise tag, with Jets running back Breece Hall, Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens and Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts tagged as non-exclusive franchise players. In 2025, Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins and Chiefs offensive guard Trey Smith were the only players tagged.
The only other time two or fewer players were tagged was 1994, the first year of the franchise tag, when Pittsburgh tight end Eric Green and Vikings defensive tackle Henry Thomas received their team’s franchise tag.
The Colts placed the transition tag on quarterback Daniel Jones on Tuesday.
Teams will have until July 15 to work out a long-term deal with tagged players, or the players will play on the tag for 2026.
Nick Folk had a strong 2025 season with the Jets and the 41-year-old kicker isn’t planning to walk away from the NFL.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that Folk plans to play a 19th season in 2026. Folk is set to become a free agent next week.
Folk played for the Jets from 2010-2016 and returned to the team last year. He was 28-of-29 on field goals and has led the league in field goal percentage the last three years while missing just three kicks. Folk is also 47-of-47 on extra points over the last two seasons.
That record should serve Folk well as he looks for a spot to play in 2026.
The Jets have placed the franchise tag on running back Breece Hall.
Hall was slated to become an unrestricted free agent next week, but the tag means the Jets are planning to hold onto him.
If Hall wants to, he can now sign a one-year, $14.293 million contract for the Jets to play for them in 2026 and then hit free agency again in 2027, or get franchised again, which would increase his salary to $17.152 million.
Or Hall can continue to negotiate a long-term contract with the Jets. A deal beyond 2026 would have to get done by the July 15 deadline; otherwise he can only sign a one-year contract this year.
The Jets could also work out a trade with another team that wants Hall and is willing to pay him what he’s asking for. Or another team could sign Hall to an offer sheet, but in that case, if the Jets didn’t match the offer, the team would have to send the Jets two first-round draft picks. Which means it’s not going to happen.
Most likely, Hall and the Jets will work something out, and he’ll remain with them in 2026 and beyond.
