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Aaron Schatz
Although we are far along in the 2025 NFL offseason, all 32 rosters aren’t final yet. There is still time for teams to make bold moves and try to improve. Just look at the Steelers bringing in quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Ravens signing Jaire Alexander. A few salary cap situations are in flux, so now’s the time for teams to get players locked down before the regular season.
I’ve suggested one final move for each NFL team — something they can take care of in late June or early July that will put them in a better situation for the 2025 season and/or beyond that. Some of my suggestions include contract extensions, last-minute signings and even trades. But I limited myself to just one landing spot for each of the top remaining free agents.
Let’s begin, going division by division.
Jump to a team:
ARI | ATL | BAL | BUF | CAR | CHI | CIN
CLE | DAL | DEN | DET | GB | HOU | IND
JAX | KC | LV | LAC | LAR | MIA | MIN
NE | NO | NYG | NYJ | PHI | PIT | SF
SEA | TB | TEN | WSH
AFC East
Extend left guard David Edwards
The Bills have two veterans on their offensive line entering free agency in 2026, and it would be a good idea to get at least one of them nailed down for an extra couple of years. I’m going with Edwards over center Connor McGovern, but the Bills should get by with either deal or both. Edwards was 16th among qualifying guards in pass block win rate (93.5%) last season and was also above average in run block win rate (73.1%). He’ll be 28 during the 2025 season, so he still has plenty of prime left in his career.
Sign wide receiver Keenan Allen
Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle give the Dolphins two excellent outside receivers, but there are questions about the slot. Right now, Miami’s top slot options are the Washington not-brothers, two low-round draft picks from a year ago. In 2024, Malik Washington had just 26 catches for 223 yards with no touchdowns, while Tahj Washington missed his entire rookie season with an undisclosed injury. That makes Miami the perfect landing spot for a seasoned veteran slot receiver like Allen.
Allen is 33 but still had 70 catches for 744 yards and seven touchdowns in Chicago a season ago. He did poorly in ESPN’s receiver tracking metrics last season but still got open, as indicated by his 57 open score. Hill and Waddle would give Allen a ton of room to work with underneath, giving quarterback Tua Tagovailoa a nice security blanket.
Extend cornerback Marcus Jones
It’s not easy to find one move to suggest for the Patriots. They need to spend the season sifting through players to keep for their future core, and there aren’t a lot of important players on rookie contracts who will be free agents in 2026. The only one who really matters is Jones, the nickelback and return man.
The Patriots can get him under contract with an extension to solidify their special teams and the nickelback position. Jones had 10 passes defensed last season and ranked eighth in success rate in coverage, although the completions he did give up went for a lot of yardage.
Extend cornerback Sauce Gardner and wide receiver Garrett Wilson
The problem with having both the Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year on your team is that you have to extend both guys a couple of seasons later. Thanks to the fifth-year option, the Jets know they have both Gardner and Wilson through 2026. But let’s be honest, they want to have them both a lot longer than that.
It would be nice to get deals done before the season starts. Gardner’s contract might be easier to sign because we know that Derek Stingley Jr., selected one pick ahead of Gardner in the 2022 draft, got a three-year, $90 million deal. Gardner should just get the same contract.
AFC North
Extend quarterback Lamar Jackson
My original suggestion for the Ravens was that they sign cornerback Jaire Alexander. But they went ahead and did that on a one-year deal, so let’s strike up a deal with Jackson, Alexander’s old Louisville teammate.
Extension talks with Jackson are in an “introductory stage,” according to general manager Eric DeCosta. Jackson is signed through 2027, but the two-time MVP is now 10th among quarterbacks in average annual salary. An extension would make him happy and open up a ton of salary cap space for the Ravens to use in 2026 and 2027. (Jackson is set to have a cap number of over $74 million next season.)
Solve the Shemar Stewart problem
The Bengals’ contract impasse with first-round pick Stewart is complicated. The dispute is related to specific contract language regarding the potential voiding of guarantees in case of default by the player. This is language that a lot of players have put into their contracts. The problem is that it is not language that past Cincinnati first-round picks have in their contracts, and Stewart does not want to be the first.
The Bengals must decide how much they want to hold their ground on this issue versus how important it is to get their first-round pick practicing with the team, especially considering that Stewart was considered a raw talent. If they want Stewart to accept this language, they probably need to make a concession in some other area. Otherwise, they should just use the same language they used with last year’s first-round pick, Amarius Mims, getting Stewart into the building as soon as possible.
1:55
Schefter: ‘No excuse’ for Bengals to not get deal done with Shemar Stewart
Adam Schefter talks with Pat McAfee about the Bengals’ contract disputes with Trey Hendrickson and rookie Shemar Stewart.
Make some decisions on the offensive line
Four of the five starters on Cleveland’s offensive line will see their contracts void after the 2025 season: left guard Joel Bitonio, center Ethan Pocic, right guard Wyatt Teller and right tackle Jack Conklin. But wait, there’s more! The Browns signed Teven Jenkins as their top offensive line backup, but that was a one-year contract, so he’s also a free agent in 2026.
The Browns need to decide which players they want to try to keep past 2025 and extend one or two linemen. Jenkins is the only one of those players under 30, making him the most likely to stick around long term.
Extend edge rusher T.J. Watt
It’s not necessary for me to list stats to explain Watt’s talent. And this would be the right time for the Steelers to consider dealing Watt, 32, for draft picks as part of a rebuilding effort. But let’s be honest, a team that just signed 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers is not rebuilding.
Watt skipped mandatory minicamp because of contract negotiations. If the Steelers want to have a competitive defense in 2025, they need to get him back in the building.
AFC South
Sign cornerback Rasul Douglas
The Texans lost some of their depth at the cornerback position when Ronald Darby retired in early June, so let’s give them another veteran to play behind Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter.
Douglas, 29, didn’t have a great season for Buffalo in 2024, but two seasons ago he ranked third in the NFL in my coverage DVOA metric. He can play both inside and outside, which gives coach DeMeco Ryans some more flexibility.
Sign safety Justin Simmons
The Colts added Camryn Bynum from Minnesota as their new free safety, and they still have Nick Cross, who had 146 tackles last season. But Indianapolis could use some depth at the position since Daniel Scott has never seen the field in the regular season through two seasons and Hunter Wohler is a seventh-round rookie. Enter Simmons, who started for Atlanta last season and was second-team All-Pro in 2023. Simmons would also give Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo the ability to play three-safety packages.
Sign edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney
The Jaguars have a strong pair of starting edge rushers with Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker. But there are questions about the depth behind them. Emmanuel Ogbah is 32 years old and had just five sacks as a full-time starter in Miami last season. Myles Cole had no sacks on 11.3% of defensive snaps as a seventh-round rookie.
The Jaguars could use a third strong edge rusher who can rotate with Hines-Allen and Walker, and there are a number still on the market. I’m picking Clowney over Matthew Judon, Preston Smith or Za’Darius Smith because his strength setting the edge on run plays makes him a good sub for Walker specifically.
Sign linebacker Kyzir White
The Titans don’t really have a lot of inside linebackers on the roster that they can trust. Tennessee signed Cody Barton away from Denver, but nobody else at the position played more than 10.5% of defensive snaps last season.
A strong veteran to play up the middle would be a big help, and White is still out there. He’s a steady player who had 35 more tackles last season for Arizona than any other Cardinals defender other than Budda Baker.
AFC West
Extend defensive lineman Zach Allen
Allen had a phenomenal 2024 season. He had a run stop rate of 89% — second at his position — and he had 59 pressures, which tied with Chiefs’ Chris Jones for the highest total among interior linemen. However, Allen’s contract voids after the 2025 season. He’ll be 29 in 2026, still in his prime, so the Broncos should extend him to solidify the middle of their defense for the next three or four seasons.
Extend right guard Trey Smith
The Chiefs already decided between Joe Thuney and Smith. They could pay only one of them, so Thuney was sent to Chicago and they kept the younger Smith. Right now, Smith is set to play on the franchise tag for 2025 and then become a free agent again in 2026. We know that’s not going to happen. The Chiefs need to get the extension worked out and lock one of the league’s top interior linemen down for the next few seasons.
Extend left tackle Kolton Miller
Miller is easily the best Raiders offensive lineman. He ranked only 37th in pass block win rate (88.1%) in 2024 but was 25th (89.4%) the season before, and the Raiders were also much better running to the left than running to the right in 2024.
There’s a lot of youth on the Raiders’ line, and it would be good to nail down a couple of more years with Miller as the veteran leader of the group. Miller skipped voluntary workouts in April in pursuit of a new contract but told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that he wants to “be a Raider for life.”
1:11
Why Loza is taking Jeanty over Saquon in fantasy drafts
Liz Loza explains why she is ranking Raiders rookie Ashton Jeanty ahead of Eagles superstar Saquon Barkley in fantasy drafts.
Extend left tackle Rashawn Slater
We’re going 4-for-4 on extensions in the AFC West, where some really important offensive linemen are facing free agency after the 2025 season. For the Chargers, that means left tackle Slater, whose rookie contract is about to end.
Last season, Slater ranked 22nd among qualifying tackles in pass block win rate (90.7%) and 10th in run block win rate (78.6%). Los Angeles has a few linemen who will be free agents after 2025, including Zion Johnson and Trey Pipkins III, but there’s no question that Slater is the one it needs long term.
NFC East
Extend edge rusher Micah Parsons
There are no stats needed here, right? It’s Parsons. He’s one of the best defensive players in the NFL. At 26, he’s right in his prime. Why on earth haven’t the Cowboys extended his contract yet?
Trade edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux
The Giants now have three starting edge rushers for two spots after drafting Abdul Carter to go along with Thibodeaux and Brian Burns. Thibodeaux has two years left on his rookie contract, and he’ll need an extension after the 2025 season. The team won’t want to pay him at the going price for starting edge rushers if he’s not going to be starting.
Yes, New York can use an edge rusher rotation and get plenty of value out of him. It can create a NASCAR-style package where one of its edge rushers moves inside on third down. But the Giants can also trade Thibodeaux to a contender that needs help on the edge, such as the Packers or the Lions, and probably get a Day 2 pick in return. More draft capital would be a huge help for 2026 when they’ll be trying to find as many strong offensive players as possible to build around quarterback Jaxson Dart and wide receiver Malik Nabers.
Sign wide receiver Tyler Boyd
What do you suggest for the team that has basically everything? I can’t even really suggest a contract extension here; Philadelphia’s top young player approaching free agency is Nakobe Dean, but the team already prepared for his departure by using a first-round pick on Jihaad Campbell in the most recent draft.
One thing the Eagles could use is more depth at the wide receiver position, particularly a slot receiver who can open underneath and convert third downs. Keenan Allen would fit, but we have him going to the Dolphins, so how about Boyd here?
Boyd had just 39 catches for 390 yards with Tennessee last season, but he was an important part of the Bengals’ offense from 2016 to 2023. Jahan Dotson feels like he’s in a better position to be productive in his second season in the Eagles’ offense, but Boyd would provide a strong backup in case he is not.
Extend wide receiver Terry McLaurin
McLaurin has been one of the league’s best receivers for years, but he never reached his highest potential because of poor quarterback play prior to 2024. That’s not a problem now with Jayden Daniels in town, and McLaurin ranked fifth in DYAR (defense-adjusted yards above replacement) last season.
However, McLaurin’s current contract voids after the 2025 season, and the Commanders need to fix that. He skipped a recent mandatory minicamp in hopes that it would prod the Commanders into coming closer to the number he wants on the next contract.
NFC North
Sign linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin
Linebacker depth is a bit of a problem for the Bears right now. They don’t need a starter because they have T.J. Edwards and Tremaine Edmunds, but former Lions linebacker Reeves-Maybin would be a good depth addition. He also is a big help on special teams, having made the Pro Bowl for special teams just two seasons ago. The Bears’ special teams were strong in 2024, but another good gunner never hurts.
Bring back edge rusher Za’Darius Smith
Yes, Aidan Hutchinson will be back from his tibia/fibula injury, but there still are questions about the edge rusher depth in Detroit. It was a surprise when the Lions didn’t draft an edge rusher until Boise State’s Ahmed Hassanein in the sixth round. So why not bring back a veteran who wants to be there? Smith recently told USA Today, “Hopefully I can get back to Detroit because the coaching staff and everybody in the front office are great.” He had four sacks in eight games for Detroit last season.
Extend right tackle Zach Tom
The Packers have both their starting tackles coming to free agency after the 2025 season, Tom and left tackle Rasheed Walker. However, Tom has been the better player, and the Packers drafted a potential replacement for Walker in Anthony Belton this past April. Tom ranked 18th in pass block win rate (95.1%) last season among tackles, was above average in run block win rate (75.4%), and has the versatility to play other positions along the line.
2:05
Matt LaFleur shares how Matthew Golden will fit around Jordan Love
Packers head coach Matt LaFleur joins “The Pat McAfee Show” and talks about adding Matthew Golden to his roster.
Sign edge rusher Matthew Judon
The Vikings are set with their starting edge rushers, Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel. They have 2024 first-round pick Dallas Turner waiting in the wings. And then after that, well … who is Bo Richter? Answer: He’s a second-year undrafted free agent who played 29 defensive snaps last season and is probably currently Edge 4 on the Minnesota depth chart.
The Vikings could really use a veteran to provide depth and rotate in every so often. Judon had a disappointing 2024 season with just 5.5 sacks for the Falcons, and he seems to be on the decline (he turns 33 in August). Still, he can get after the passer, and some reps as a backup might really rejuvenate his career.
NFC South
Trade tight end Kyle Pitts
Pitts has never matched the heights of his 1,000-yard rookie season, nor has he matched expectations as the No. 4 overall pick. It’s very unlikely that the Falcons extend or re-sign him after the 2025 season, so perhaps the best thing is to get some value for him now and let him see what he can do with a change of scenery.
The Jets might be an interesting landing spot for Pitts, as he could play next to rookie Mason Taylor in two-tight end sets. The Giants could also use an upgrade at the position. Even the Eagles might be an interesting trade target, as Dallas Goedert is now 30 years old.
Sign cornerback Kendall Fuller
The Panthers have their starting cornerbacks set, but they need to think about backup plans. I think Fuller would be a good fit here. He had reasonable charting metrics in Miami last season and really good metrics in Washington in 2023. He’s also versatile, with the ability to play both outside and in the slot.
Sign cornerback Stephon Gilmore
The Saints actually have salary cap room, which is a remarkable statement. They’ve moved enough money around and restructured enough contracts to be in the middle of the pack in the current effective cap space for 2025, no matter how mangled their cap space is for 2026 and beyond. That gives them the ability to bring in a veteran to help fill a hole, and they could use one at outside cornerback.
Right now, their starters at the position are 2024 second-round pick Kool-Aid McKinstry and veteran Isaac Yiadom, who returns to New Orleans after playing in San Francisco last season. Gilmore maintained his high level in 2024 with Minnesota, ranking 30th in my coverage DVOA metric while being assigned to some of the league’s toughest receivers. He could challenge Yiadom for a starting job, while serving as an important mentor for McKinstry and fourth-round rookie Quincy Riley.
Extend right tackle Luke Goedeke
Tristan Wirfs is the anchor of the Tampa Bay offensive line, but Goedeke has been playing very well recently. Last season, he ranked 27th among qualifying tackles in pass block win rate (89.5%) and was above average in run block win rate (75.3%). Goedeke has one year left on his rookie contract, so it would be good for the Bucs to lock him in long term.
NFC West
Sign wide receiver Amari Cooper
The Cardinals have a strong set of young wide receivers with Marvin Harrison Jr. and Michael Wilson, but the depth past that is questionable. Greg Dortch is a useful slot receiver, yet he’s not an outside starter if Harrison or Wilson go down. Zay Jones has wrestled with injuries for two seasons and caught only eight passes for 84 yards in 2024. Simi Fehoko has 10 career catches at the age of 28.
The Cardinals could use a veteran who can come in for Harrison and Wilson when both need to rest or if either of them is injured. The best outside receiver still on the market is Cooper, who spent last season with Cleveland and Buffalo. He did not have a good showing in 2024; he was poor in ESPN’s receiver tracking metrics and finished 80th in receiving DVOA. But at this point in his career, it wouldn’t cost much to take a chance that Cooper can rebound and provide some value.
Extend safety Quentin Lake
Lake, a sixth-round pick in 2022, has become an important part of the Rams’ defense as both a safety and a nickel slot defender. He’s a big reason the Rams led the NFL in DVOA against receivers lined up in the slot last season. Lake’s rookie contract ends after 2025, and he’ll still be only 27 in 2026. It’s time for the Rams to make sure he’s around for a while.
Extend offensive tackle Colton McKivitz
The problem here is less right tackle McKivitz and more the fact that left tackle Trent Williams turns 37 in July. He could decide to retire at any time.
McKivitz’s contract ends after the 2025 season, and the 49ers don’t want to be stuck having to replace both tackles at the same time. So the wise thing to do is to give McKivitz a small extension, maybe a couple of more seasons. He’s not a great tackle — he ranked 52nd out of 66 qualifying tackles with an 85.9% pass block win rate in 2024 — but he has improved in recent seasons. An extension would also give the 49ers some offensive line stability.
Sign guard Brandon Scherff
The interior offensive line was a major problem for the Seahawks in 2024, and while first-round rookie Grey Zabel should stabilize the left guard position, the other positions are still in flux. Olu Oluwatini is penciled in at center, where he was below average in both pass block win rate (92.4% versus NFL center average of 93.8%) and especially in run block win rate (64.5% versus 72.8%) last season.
The current leader at right guard is 2024 third-round pick Christian Haynes. Why not bring in a former Pro Bowler who can provide some stability and veteran leadership? Scherff is still available and could take the right guard position, kicking Haynes over to battle Oluwatini for the center position at training camp.
