Keep it locked here for the latest offseason buzz heading into the legal tampering period
Welcome to 2025 NFL free agency. Trades and signings of impending free agents can’t become official until Wednesday at the earliest, but Monday kicked off the first big waves of activity. And all 32 teams got in on the action in some way. A few of them swung blockbuster deals for quarterbacks, including the Seattle Seahawks landing Sam Darnold on a $100 million deal. A few others prioritized the trenches, with the Chicago Bears and Carolina Panthers pouring millions into the offensive and defensive lines.
More roster shuffling is on the way, as free agent contract and trade negotiations continue. A handful of teams are still in the market for quarterback help, and big names like Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson could be next to put pen to paper (unofficially, at least) as veteran answers. Meanwhile plenty of Pete Prisco’s top 100-ranked free agents are still sorting through their options, weighing inquiries from across the league. That’s not accounting for other proven vets like Cooper Kupp, who’s set to be released by the Los Angeles Rams provided the team can’t find a trade partner for the aging wide receiver before Wednesday.
Keep it locked right here for live updates and analysis, including all the latest rumors and reports regarding players available:
Check out CBS Sports’ updating tracker of the top 100 NFL free agents with many of the top names already off the market. Free agent deals will come in fast and furiously, so keep it locked here for live updates covering every signing, trade and extension during 2025 free agency.
DeAndre Hopkins heading to Baltimore
The Baltimore Ravens always seem to be in the market for a receiver and they landed a big one today with the addition of DeAndre Hopkins. The five-time Pro-Bowler is ditching Kansas City to head to Baltimore. Hopkins has agreed to terms on a one-year, $6 million contract, CBS Sports NFL Insider Jonathan Jones has reported.
Hopkins caught 41 passes for 437 yards and four touchdowns during his lone season in Kansas City last year. The receiver was ranked as the 96th best free agent on Prisco’s top 100 list.
NFL hands out compensatory picks for 2025 NFL Draft
The NFL handed out a total of 35 compensatory picks today with those picks going to 13 different teams. Although the exact formula the league uses to award picks hasn’t been released, it essentially comes down to this: a team that loses more or better free agents than it acquires in the previous year is eligible to receive compensatory draft picks.
Using that “formula,” the big winners this year were the Ravens, Cowboys and Dolphins, who all received four extra picks. The best pick went to the Vikings, who got a third-rounder (97th overall) for losing Kirk Cousins last year. The Dolphins, Lions, 49ers, Giants and Rams also earned a third-round pick thanks to the formula.
Here’s a look at all of the picks that were handed out
Dolphins set to add Titans’ second-leading receiver from 2024
The Dolphins receiving room just picked up an impressive addition with Nick Westbrook-Ikhine agreeing to terms on a two-year, $6.5 million deal that includes $3.2 million in guaranteed money, according to NFL.com.
Westbrook-Ikhine caught 32 passes for 497 yards in 2024 with his yardage total ranking second on the team. The most impressive part of his season is that he caught nine touchdown passes, which ranked in the top 10 in the NFL.
Westbrook-Ikhine will be joining a Dolphins offense that already has Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, so he should be solid No. 3 receiving option for Miami.
Chiefs add a tight end
The Chiefs already have Travis Kelce and Noah Gray, but they’ve also added another tight end to the roster. Robert Tonyan is expected to sign with Kansas City, NFL Media has reported.
Tonyan spent the 2024 season with the Vikings, but he recorded exactly zero catches in five games of action. As recently as 2022, the 30-year-old caught 53 passes for 570 yards while playing for the Packers and the Chiefs would likely be thrilled if he can give them something close to that in 2025.
Panthers have a new punter
With Johnny Hekker heading to Tennessee, the Panthers suddenly found themselves in the market for a punter on Tuesday and they filled that need by adding Sam Martin. The former Bills punter has agreed to terms on a one-year deal worth up to $3 million, according to NFL Media.
The 35-year-old Martin, who spent his past three years in Buffalo, is heading into his 13th NFL season.
Jacoby Brissett set to sign with Cardinals
It looks like the Cardinals will NOT be going into the 2025 season with Clayton Tune as their backup QB. Going into free agency, Tune was the only QB on the roster behind Kyler Murray, but that’s not the case anymore. Brissett has agreed to terms on a deal with the Cardinals, ESPN has reported.
The Cardinals will be the sixth team that Brissett has played for since entering the NFL in 2016.
Titans have a new punter
We now know why the Titans decided to get rid of Ryan Stonehouse: It’s because they already had a another punter lined up. Johnny Hekker, one of the best punters in NFL history, has agreed to a one-year deal with Tennessee, according to ESPN.
The Titans have a new special teams coach in John Fassel and the signing of Hekker reunites the four-time All-Pro punter with the long-time NFL assistant. Hekker and Fassel spent eight seasons together while with the Rams.
Saints sign Super Bowl winning safety
The Saints just made their first big move of free agency (that didn’t involve re-signing someone) and that move was signing Justin Reid away from the Chiefs. The two-time Super Bowl winner has agreed to terms on a three-year, $31.5 million deal that includes $22.25 million in guaranteed money, according to ESPN.
Reid started a total of 59 games, including three Super Bowls, for the Chiefs over the past three seasons. Reid will now be teaming up with Tyrann Mathieu as the two safeties in New Orleans’ secondary.
The good news for the Saints is that not only are they getting a safety, but they’re also getting a backup kicker.
Cowboys add another former first-round pick
The Cowboys haven’t been very busy in free agency, but they have been busy signing former first-round picks away from other teams. Earlier Tuesday, they signed Solomon Thomas, the third overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, and now, they’ve added another one. Former Saints defensive end Payton Turner has agreed to terms on a one-year, $3 million contract that includes $2 million in guaranteed money, according to NFL Media.
Turner was the 28th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, but he just never panned out in New Orleans. It’s a low-risk signing for a player who had two sacks and two forced fumbles while playing in a career-high 16 games last season (He only played in 15 games during his first three seasons combined).
Leonard Floyd finds new team just hours after being released by 49ers
The former 49ers pass-rusher already has a new team after being released early Tuesday afternoon by San Francisco. Floyd has agreed to a one-year, $10 million contract with the Falcons, CBS Sports NFL Insider Jonathan Jones has reported.
Floyd racked up 8.5 sacks with the 49ers last season, which was the second-highest total on the team. If Floyd can replicate that number in Atlanta, the Falcons would likely be thrilled and that’s because they struggled to rush the passer last year. In 2024, the Falcons recorded just 31 sacks, which was the lowest number in the NFC and second-lowest number in the NFL.
Cardinals re-sign Zay Jones
Zay Jones will be staying in Arizona for another season. The Cardinals have announced that Jones has agreed to a one-year contract. According to Fox Sports, the deal is worth up to $4.4 million. Jones caught 82 passes for five touchdowns while with the Jaguars in 2022, but he’s fallen off since.
In 2024, which was his first year with the Cardinals, Jones caught just eight passes for 84 yards in 11 games. He missed five games due to a suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy.
Steelers QB options: Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson both still in play
Antonio Brown might be insisting that Aaron Rodgers is going to sign with the Steelers, but it doesn’t look like that’s the case yet. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Rodgers has been talking to the Steelers, but if they can’t agree on a deal, then Pittsburgh will likely look to bring Russell Wilson back for another year.
According to DK Pittsburgh Sports, the Steelers have also reached out to Mason Rudolph, because even if they land Rodgers or Wilson, they’re still going to need a backup QB and in that case, a return to Pittsburgh would make sense for Rudolph.
Antonio Brown trying to break some Aaron Rodgers news
Please take this with a grain of salt, but former Steelers receiver Antonio Brown is reporting that Rodgers has agreed to a two-year deal with the Steelers. Brown was the first one to report that Russell Wilson would sign with the Steelers last year, but he’s also whiffed plenty of times in situations like this, so you’ll have to decide whether you want to believe him or not.
Titans letting record-setting punter leave team in free agency
It doesn’t look like Ryan Stonehouse will be returning to Tennessee. Stonehouse is a restricted free agent so if the Titans wanted to keep him, they could have just given him a one-year contract tender at $3.62 million. However, that won’t be happening. The punter’s agent, John Perla, told Chris Tomasson of the Denver Gazette that the Titans are planning to let Stonehouse walk in free agency.
“Thanks to the Titans for the opportunity. We understand teams make difficult decisions, and they’re going to move on,” Perla said.
During his rookie year in 2022, Stonehouse broke a punting record that had stood for 72 years. He averaged 53.1 yards per punt, which topped Sammy Baugh’s record of 51.4 that had stood since 1940. In 2023, Stonehouse tied his own record by once again averaging 53.1 yards per punt.
Although Stonehouse has a booming leg, he doesn’t have very much finesse. His net punting average in 2024 was just 38.6 yards, which ranked 33rd in the NFL among qualified punters. He also had two punts blocked, which was tied for the most in the NFL. Opposing players also averaged 13.9 yards per return on Stonehouse punts, which made the Titans punt coverage team the second-worst in the NFL.
The cost to tender Stonehouse would have been $3.26 million, which would have made him the third-highest paid punter in the league and that Titans apparently didn’t want to pay that.
Tennessee’s decision means Stonehouse will be hitting free agency and thanks to his booming leg, he likely won’t be out of a job for long.
Saints re-sign 2024 leader in receiving yards
The Saints don’t have very much salary cap space, which has limited their ability to sign outside free agents, but they have been busy taking care of their own. The latest move came when they re-signed Juwan Johnson on Tuesday. The tight end is getting a three-year, 30.75 million deal that includes $21.25 million in guaranteed money, NFL Media has reported.
Johnson led ALL Saints players in receiver yards last season with 548. He came on strong at the end of the season, averaging six catches and 73 yards per game over the final two weeks of the year. The 28-year-old was ranked as the third-best available tight end on Prisco’s list of the top 100 free agents.
Puka Nacua is switching numbers
The Rams receiver has worn No. 17 in each of his two NFL seasons, but he’s making a switch for 2025. Davante Adams has worn No. 17 for his entire career, so it appears that Nacua simply decided to give up the number to Adams and he’ll be making the switch to 12. Nacua wore No. 12 in both high school and college, so it’s a number he’s definitely fond of.
Ravens fullback returning for a ninth season
The true fullback is a dying breed in the NFL, but not in Baltimore. The Ravens have had Patrick Ricard for eight seasons and he’ll be returning for at least one more after agreeing to re-sign with the team on a one-year deal, according to The Athletic.
The five-time Pro Bowler will be staying in Baltimore where he’ll continue to be Derrick Henry’s lead blocker.
Micah Parsons is enjoying the 49ers’ roster implosion
The Cowboys star definitely took notice that the 49ers are purging their roster. With Brock Purdy set to get a new extension soon, the 49ers are doing almost a full reset and Parsons is loving every minute of it.
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