The McCourtys are taking over prime-time NFL pregame shows.
With Devin a fixture on NBC’s Football Night in America since 2023, Jason McCourty will add Monday Night Countdown to his ESPN workload. Jason’s move to the Monday pregame show was announced on Monday morning.
As we understand it, it wasn’t part of the recent deal that prompted Jason to go all-in with Bristol and to abandon calling Sunday games for CBS.
With ESPN using a recent round of layoffs as a pretext for firing Ryan Clark (in the least graceful way possible), a seat became open on the Monday Night Countdown desk. Initially, and in all candor, we thought it would be another opportunity to advance the More McAfee plan — if only to further justify a looming $60 million per year payday.
McCourty moving into Clark’s chair doesn’t mean there won’t be a McAfee presence on Monday nights. Whatever his role will be, it likely won’t be announced until the ink is dry on the new contract.
Regardless, Sunday night will be Devin night, and Monday night will be Jason night. Which will surely cause some casual observers to think that it’s one guy working for both networks.
Colts Clips
The Colts are set to have linebacker CJ Allen on the field for the first time in training camp.
Allen was placed on the physically unable to perform list with a minor calf injury at the start of camp and the team announced on Friday that he has been activated. That clears Allen to get on the practice field and leaves wide receiver Alec Pierce as the only player on their PUP list.
The Colts drafted Allen in the second round this April. He was an All-American at Georgia during his final college season.
Now that Allen has been given the green light to practice, he will work on securing a starting job to kick off his NFL career.
The Colts brought in a familiar name for a tryout, but it doesn’t appear as if it was successful.
Via the league’s daily transaction wire, Chase Claypool was among a group of four players who tried out for Indianapolis on Thursday.
But the Colts ended up signing the other receiver who was a part of it — undrafted rookie Liam Clifford.
Claypool has not appeared in a regular-season game since 2023 when he played for the Dolphins. He spent time with the Bills in 2024.
Running backs Jermar Jefferson and Roydell Williams also tried out for the Colts on Thursday.
The Colts have added a receiver.
Indianapolis announced the team has signed Liam Clifford.
An undrafted free agent, Clifford participated in the club’s rookie minicamp on a tryout basis.
Clifford played his college ball at Penn State, catching 42 passes for 530 yards with one touchdown over 52 career games with 15 starts.
The Lions and Falcons are each dealing with apparent hold-ins by their respective star running backs.
While Jonathan Taylor is not on his first pro deal, he is in a contract year. But he’s not taking the same approach with the Colts.
Taylor was on the field practicing with the team on Wednesday and said after the session that he feels like an extension is on its way.
“I have faith,” Taylor said, via Nathan Brown of the Indianapolis Star. “There have been some good conversations, but I have faith between my agent and the front office.
“Like I‘ve said already, I would love to be a Colt for life, and I have faith that things are moving in the right direction.”
Taylor signed a three-year, $42 million extension with Indianapolis midway through the 2023 season. He’s No. 1 in franchise history with 69 rushing touchdowns and No. 2 in rushing yards, needing 1,629 to take over the No. 1 spot from Hall of Famer Edgerrin James.
Colts General Manager Chris Ballard is in the last year of his contract.
From his comments in his Tuesday press conference, he knows it could be his final season with the team.
The Colts have not made the postseason since 2020 — which was quarterback Philip Rivers’ first one-year stint with the team. Indianapolis has just one postseason victory in Ballard’s tenure, which came all the way back in 2018.
When asked on Tuesday if he’s expecting a contract extension before the season, Ballard candidly answered, “No. I wouldn’t do one.”
Why not?
“I’m in the last year of my deal,” Ballard said. “We need to win.”
But Ballard said his status will not “at all” affect how he approaches potential extensions for players.
“I think I will always — and y’all all know me well enough — I’m always going to do the best thing for the organization,” Ballard said. “Ultimately, that’s my job. Anytime you do selfish, alternative, ulterior motive in play — that’s not good for the game, it’s not good for the organization. We will always do what’s best for this club. I have too much respect for the Colts, I have too much respect for what Mr. Irsay stood for as an owner, too much respect for the girls — for Carlie [Irsay-Gordon], Casey [Foyt], and Kalen [Jackson] — as they start their venture as owners into this thing. No, we’ll always do the right thing.”
Ballard was also asked about how much pressure he feels going into the 2026 season. His answer was reflective, expressing plenty of gratitude.
“[T]his is my 26th year in the league,” Ballard said. “And as a kid, if you would’ve told me, I’d be able to work in football and do this for a career, I would’ve signed up 100 times over. OK? The journey’s different for everybody. I’m just a steward in this position. I’ve always believed that. And I’ll always do the best thing for the organization — both short and long-term. That’s just how I tick and how I roll. I’m grateful that I’ve always had a job in this league that I have great respect for and that will never change. Like, the fun to me is the journey — that’s the fun part. Even the hard moments, they’re not — compared to what other people have to go through, they’re not really that … hard. They’re judged, rightfully so — we’re in the public eye, and we should be judged. But I get to do football every day, and I never take that for granted.
“So, in terms of the pressure, nobody puts more pressure on me than myself to succeed. But like if I’ve learned anything over the years, sometimes you’ve got to enjoy all of it — the good and the bad. That’s the fun part of this, going through things that are not always easy with people that you care about and respect. Man, not everybody gets to do that in life. I’ve been very fortunate.”
Anthony Richardson requested a trade this offseason, but he remains on the Colts’ roster and it doesn’t sound like any move involving the quarterback is imminent.
General Manager Chris Ballard said at a Tuesday press conference that the team intends to keep Richardson, Daniel Jones and Riley Leonard on the roster into the regular season. That is the case despite the fact that Richardson’s trade request remains in place.
“It is. I think they’re realistic and we’re realistic,” Ballard said, via WISH. “We’re not just giving him away, not going to do that.”
Ballard’s comments suggest the Colts’ commitment to keeping all three quarterbacks could shift if another team makes an aggressive play for the 2023 first-round pick. The absence of such a play this offseason may mean that it will take an injury elsewhere in the league for someone to offer the Colts anything that would change their mind.
The Colts’ defense has received a boost for the start of training camp.
Defensive tackle DeForest Buckner told reporters on Tuesday that he’s been medically cleared after undergoing neck surgery in December. He did not participate in on-field drills during Indianapolis’ offseason program.
“I’m excited to get back out there, get back on the field,” Buckner said Tuesday, via Stephen Holder of ESPN. “Obviously, I was cleared yesterday. So, obviously, everybody has a plan on getting me back on the field. And, yeah, I’m just excited to get back out there with the guys.”
Buckner, 32, was able to play just 10 games last season after playing 12 in 2024. The veteran defensive tackle finished 2025 with 4.0 sacks, nine tackles for loss, and 13 quarterback hits.
If he’s healthy and productive in 2026, it will be a significant help to a defensive unit that finished last year No. 21 in points allowed and No. 23 in yards allowed.
The Raiders signed defensive end Patrick Johnson, linebacker Buddy Johnson and wide receiver Deven Thompkins, the team announced Monday.
They were among the eight free agents the Raiders worked out. Running back Miles Sanders was not among the workout players signed by the team.
Patrick Johnson joins the Raiders for his sixth NFL season after spending 2025 with the Eagles, where he played in nine games. He finished with three tackles, one sack, two quarterback hits and one tackle for loss, along with five total tackles on special teams.
Johnson has appeared in 70 career games with the Eagles (2021-25) and Giants (2024) after initially entering the league as a seventh-round draft pick of Philadelphia. He has totaled 14 tackles, a sack, six quarterback hits, two tackles for loss, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
Buddy Johnson joins the Raiders for his fifth NFL season after entering the league as a fourth-round pick of the Steelers in 2021. He has played 33 games with the Steelers (2021), Cowboys (2023-25) and Colts (2025).
Johnson has totaled four tackles and one tackle for loss on defense as well as 23 special teams tackles.
He started last season on the Cowboys’ practice squad and was elevated for one game before signing to the Colts’ active roster in Week 5. He played 12 games for Indianapolis.
Deven Thompkins joins the Raiders for his fifth NFL season after entering the league as an undrafted free agent with the Buccaneers in 2022. He has played 36 career games with the Buccaneers (2022-23), Panthers (2024) and Falcons (2025).
In his career, Thompkins has 29 receptions for 162 yards and one touchdown as well as 13 carries for 94 yards. He has seen some action as a returner in his career, posting 368 yards on 42 punt returns (8.8 avg.) and 1,005 yards on 45 kickoff returns (22.3 avg.).
In corresponding moves, the Raiders waived wide receiver Jonathan Brady, linebacker Chris Thomas and defensive tackle Laki Tasi.
The Colts placed linebacker CJ Allen and wide receiver Alec Pierce on the active/physically unable to perform list.
Players on the list can return as soon as they pass a physical before the Aug. 30 roster cut-down.
The Colts also announced they waived undrafted running back Lincoln Pare with a non-football injury.
Pierce continues rehab after left ankle surgery in March. The surgery was needed to fix a problem he’s had since 2024 after a platelet-rich plasma treatment in January didn’t work as hoped.
Pierce was expected to need 4-6 months post-surgery, which will keep him sidelined into training camp.
Pierce, who re-signed with the Colts on a four-year, $114 million deal, set career highs with 47 receptions and 1,003 yards last season. He also had six touchdowns.
Allen tweaked his calf in a workout, James Boyd of TheAthletic.com reports, but it is not believed to be a long-term injury.
