NFL Player News

You’d be hard pressed to find what Rivera did to improve Washington during his tenure. Some will point to Rivera ‘changing the culture’ in Washington despite his failures on the field, but former GM and PR nightmare Bruce Allen was fired days before Rivera was hired, and the league — not Rivera — was largely responsible for forcing former owner Dan Snyder out last offseason. It’s apparent he never established a winning culture, as he failed to finish above .500 in any of his four seasons, and he went 4-13 in a year that was supposed to be an improvement on 2022’s 8-8-1 record. Rivera is a high-character guy that has been beloved by the media and league for years, but with just three winning seasons in 13 years, it’s hard to imagine another team giving him control of a franchise anytime soon.

Turner has been a strong special teams contributor for the Lions, and he’ll remain in that role for the 2025 campaign.

ESPN’s Jenna Laine reports that the deal contains $9 million in guaranteed money. David, 35, is coming off a season where he procured 122 tackles and 5.5 sacks while helping the Buccaneers win the NFC South. The 13-year veteran should again be a strong option up the middle for the Tampa Bay defense, even if he isn’t quite the same player he was a few years ago.

James signed a three-year, $24 million contract last offseason but missed time with an ankle injury in 2024 and wasn’t particularly effective when healthy. The move will save Vegas $1.5 million in cap space. With James off the roster, second-year lineman Jackson Powers-Johnson will likely take his place in the lineup. JPJ took over at left guard early in his rookie season, filled in for a hurt James, and eventually moved back to left guard.

As Russini succinctly puts it, “We’ll see.” Roussini also notes that teams have reached out to Atlanta to see if the team plans to release Cousins, and have been told no. The Falcons have no reason to hold onto a backup quarterback who is entering year two of a four-year, $180 million contract. Atlanta may be trying to recoup some of their losses by playing hardball with other teams, but it’s hard to see Cousins sticking around into Week 1. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo previously said he expects Cousins to make his inevitable trade request after the draft. This would allow him to pick a spot where he won’t be usurped by a rookie this time around. For now, Cousins, the Falcons, and other teams are all at a stalemate.

Gallup was released by the Cowboys last offseason and signed a one-year deal with the Raiders. He abruptly retired before the start of training camp and was officially released from the reserve/retired list earlier today. Gallup suffered a torn ACL in 2021 and has never been the same. He averaged 30 yards per game in the following season and that number fell to 25 in 2023. Gallup could wind up as a reserve option for a team in need of a WR5/6, but even that seems optimistic for the former Cowboy.

The 2023 sixth-round pick was waived by the Rams earlier this week. Tomlinson was a high-volume special teamer as a rookie but didn’t see the field much on defense. He missed all of the 2024 season with an undisclosed injury. Tomlinson will look to revive his career as a depth option for the 49ers.

Allen was given permission to seek a trade a few weeks ago ahead of his impending release. Nothing materialized and the Commanders cut ties with Allen to save nearly $16.5 million in cap space. The 49ers were in a similar situation with defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, who will be officially released with a post-June 1 designation at the start of the new league year next week. Now in need of extra firepower on the defensive line, Allen makes sense as a target for a contending 49ers squad. Allen missed nine games with a partially torn last year. He tallied three sacks and four TFLs across 11 appearances including the postseason.

Hendrickson has one year left on his deal and has requested a trade after failing to sign an extension with Cincy. The Bengals have given him permission to find a trade partner. Previous reports have the Commanders and Falcons as interested teams. Now the Cardinals can be added to the list. Arizona didn’t have a single defender total more than five sacks last year. They ranked 15th in sacks per game. Hendrickson led the league with 17.5 sacks. It was his second season in a row with as many takedowns.

Reid notes that he is expected to be fully healthy soon and will hold a private workout for teams two weeks before the draft. Johnson also skipped the NFL Combine aside from the interviews. A possible top-10 pick, Johnson missed time in his final season at Ann Arbor because of a turf toe injury. A hamstring issue after ducking the combine isn’t great for his draft stock, but the private workout will give him one final shot at impressing scouts.