Yes, quarterback Kyler Murray will visit the Vikings on Thursday — his agent, Erik Burkhardt, has confirmed that to NFL Media.
But here’s the interesting twist, via Tom Pelissero of NFL Media: Burkhardt told him that Murray plans to meet by Zoom on Wednesday night and Thursday with executives from three to five teams that potentially have a quarterback need in 2027.
Possibilities (as we see it) include the Jets, the Steelers, the Browns, the Falcons, and the Rams.
It gives Murray an opportunity to get a head start on free agency next year, which underscores the likelihood he’ll sign a one-year, $1.3 million deal for 2026.
That makes a no-tag clause critical. He needs to be able to hit the market next year, if for whatever reason he plays well and doesn’t get a solid offer to stick around with the Vikings, or whoever he signs with.
The Vikings continue to be the clear favorite. There’s really no one else. And, as of last season near the trade deadline, the Vikings were one of the teams in which Murray was interested.
Browns Clips
Jedrick Wills is back.
The 2020 first-round pick, who last played in 2024, will sign a one-year deal with the Bears, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.
Wills played five years with the Browns, appearing in 58 regular-season games with 57 starts. As of last summer, Wills planned to get completely back to full health before resuming his NFL career.
He now will.
Terms of the one-year deal were not reported. Presumably, it’s for a reasonable amount. The goal at this point will be for Wills to re-establish him before getting a more valuable deal, ideally, in 2027.
The Browns are adding a tight end.
Per Mike Garafolo of NFL Media, Cleveland has agreed to terms with Jack Stoll on a one-year deal.
Stoll, 28, appeared in 15 games with four starts for the Saints last season. He caught six passes for 46 yards with a touchdown. He was on the field for 209 offensive snaps and 132 special teams snaps.
Stoll entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2021. He’s played a total of 76 games for the Eagles, Dolphins, and Saints, catching 29 passes for 239 yards.
With Malik Willis, Tua Tagovailoa, Geno Smith, and Daniel Jones off the board for 2026, the next available (inevitably) quarterback to watch is Kyler Murray.
The Vikings have been strongly linked to Murray, who has $36.8 million in full guarantees from the Cardinals in 2026. He can take a one-year deal for the minimum based on his years of service ($1.3 million) and stick the Cardinals for the $35.5 million balance.
It becomes a great deal for the cap-strapped Vikings, who could have Murray and J.J. McCarthy under contract for the coming year at a total cap charge of less than $7.3 million.
With the Dolphins, Falcons, Jets, and Colts now out of the mix for a potential Kyler courtship, Murray’s options are limited. The Steelers are waiting for Aaron Rodgers. Who else needs a potential starter for 2026? The only team that could conceivably enter the conversation is the analytics-obsessed Browns, who may not be able to resist the opportunity to acquire the “asset” of a former No. 1 overall pick for the minimum.
Last year, as the trade deadline approached and we poked around the possibility of a Murray deadline deal, we learned two things: (1) there were too many moving parts to make a trade happen; and (2) Murray’s preferred destinations were the Raiders (due to the presence of Chip Kelly) and the Vikings (due to the presence of Kevin O’Connell).
Kelly is long gone from Las Vegas. That leaves one team.
The bettors seized on it, even before the other seats were filled. Minnesota opened as a -110 favorite to be Murray’s next team. The odds moved to -295, before the bet went off the board.
So, yes, Murray to Minnesota makes the most sense. And he’ll likely be the next domino to fall in the annual offseason quarterback carousel.
Elgton Jenkins was released by the Packers this week and the veteran offensive lineman has found his next team.
NFL Media reports that Jenkins is expected to sign with the Browns after agreeing to terms with the AFC North team on a contract. It’s a two-year deal worth $24 million with $10 million in guaranteed money.
Jenkins has seen time at all the positions on the offensive line over his seven-year NFL career. He played center in Green Bay during the 2025 season and has played more snaps at guard than any other spot.
It seems likely that he will land on the interior of Cleveland’s line as well. The Browns agreed to a trade with the Texans for tackle Tytus Howard and they are set to sign former Chargers guard Zion Johnson as a free agent.
The Browns have re-signed offensive guard Teven Jenkins, the team announced Tuesday.
He played in all 17 games with the Browns last season after signing as an unrestricted free agent in the offseason, and Jenkins made four starts at right guard.
Jenkins, 28, did not commit a penalty in his 324 offensive snaps last season.
He returns under new offensive coordinator Travis Switzer and offensive line coach George Warhop.
The Bears selected Jenkins in the second round of the 2021 draft. He has appeared in 62 games, with 42 starts, in his five seasons.
Jenkins has played left tackle, left guard and right guard.
Nobody ever said free money is easy.
The Browns’ effort to build a new stadium with public funding has hit a significant roadblock, in the form of a court challenge to the manner in which the politicians plan to pick the taxpayers’ pockets.
Via Laura Hancock of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Magistrate Jennifer D. Hunt issued a preliminary injunction blocking the effort to siphon unclaimed funds.
Preliminary injunctions are rarely awarded; they keep the status quo in place until the lawsuit can be resolved. In this case, it means that Ohio can divert none of the billions in unclaimed funds for the new Browns stadium until a final ruling is issued.
The legal challenge to using unclaimed funds is simple — it arguably violates the takings and due process clauses of the Ohio Constitution.
To get a preliminary injunction, the plaintiff must show, among other things, a substantial likelihood of success as to the merits of the claim. Getting a preliminary injunction, then, is a key stepping stone toward winning the case.
The Ohio Attorney General’s office is planning its next steps. Obviously, there will be appeals that could lead all the way to the Ohio Supreme Court. For now, however, Ohio can’t touch a single penny of unclaimed funds while the case proceeds.
Which puts the entire project on hold, unless Ohio comes up with another way to come up with its subsidy for the new stadium.
The Jets traded Quinnen Williams to the Cowboys during the 2025 season. They have now lost Quinnen’s brother.
Linebacker Quincy Williams has agreed to a two-year deal with a maximum value of $17 million, according to Jordan Schultz of The Schultz Report.
Williams reunites with Browns defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg, who was his linebackers coach with the Jets for four of Williams’ seasons in New York.
Williams, 29, entered the NFL as a third-round pick of the Jaguars in 2019 and spent two seasons in Jacksonville.
He joined the Jets in 2021 and played 78 games with 73 starts in his career in New York, making All-Pro in 2023.
In 2025, Williams totaled 83 tackles, 3.5 sacks and seven passes defensed in 13 games. He missed four games with a shoulder injury.
New Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski will have a familiar face on Atlanta’s defensive line in 2026.
Defensive end Cameron Thomas has agreed to a one-year, $3.1 million deal with the Falcons, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Thomas, 26, was a Cardinals third-round pick in the 2022 draft. He was traded to the Chiefs at the start of the 2024 season and played four games for the club before he was waived in November.
The Browns — then coached by Stefanski — claimed Thomas and the defensive end served in a reserve role for Cleveland.
In 2025, Thomas appeared in all 17 games, recording 28 total tackles with 2.5 sacks and seven quarterback hits. He was on the field for 29 percent of Cleveland’s defensive snaps and 57 percent of special teams snaps.
The Browns have spent big to bolster the interior of their offensive line.
Free agent guard Zion Johnson has agreed to sign with Cleveland, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. It’s reportedly a three-year, $49.5 million contract with $32.4 million guaranteed.
The 26-year-old Johnson was a 2022 first-round pick of the Chargers, who chose to let him test free agency after four years rather than pick up his fifth-year option. That choice may prove to benefit Johnson, given the value of his contract with the Chargers.
Johnson has been a starter for all four of his seasons in Los Angeles, and now he’s slated to start for the next three years in Cleveland.
