NFL Player News

Boswell signed his restricted free agent tender from the Steelers on Thursday, Mark Kaboly of The Athletic Pittsburgh reports.

The Steelers applied a second-round tender on the kicker before the March 14 deadline, all but assuring he'd be back in Pittsburgh for a fourth season. Putting pen to paper makes the transaction official. On the heels of a career-best 142-point campaign, Boswell is a candidate to put up a similar number behind an offense led by Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown and likely Le'Veon Bell, who received the franchise tag for a second straight year.

Sturgis has signed with the Chargers.

Sturgis, who signed a two-year contract with the Chargers, is over a hip issue that landed him on IR while with the Eagles last season. Fellow kickers Nick Rose and Roberto Aguayo remain on the team's roster, but Sturgis will presumably emerge as the top option on that front.

Santos (groin) signed with the Jets on Thursday, Randy Lange of the Jets' official site reports.

Santos spent time with the Chiefs and Bears last season, but will now head to the Big Apple after Chandler Catanzaro signed with the Buccaneers on Wednesday. The Brazilian native converted four of five field-goal attempts last season and was also 14 of 14 on extra-point attempts while dealing with a lingering groin injury for much of the year. There's a chance the Jets bring in another kicker for training camp to battle with Santos, but his strong history inside 50 yards (34 of 37 kicks from 30-39 yards and 23 of 29 from 40-49 yards) will likely make him the favorite to win the job.

Tavecchio was given a contract tender from the Raiders on Monday, Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

This move by Oakland was to be expected as Tavecchio is an exclusive rights free agent. The 27-year-old kicker converted 76.2 percent of his kicks in 2017 with the Raiders and missed one extra point attempt. Tavecchio is expected to keep hold of the kicking duties next year, although he figures to face some competition leading up to the regular season.

The Steelers placed a second-round restricted free-agent tender on Boswell, Adam Caplan of SiriusXM Radio reports.

The move ensures Boswell will be back in Pittsburgh for one more season, as no team would be willing to surrender a second-round pick for the right to give him a contract. He'll be one of the top options at his position in fantasy drafts, coming off a 2017 campaign in which he converted 35 of 38 field-goal attempts and 37 of 39 extra-point tries. Boswell is one of the more reliable kickers in the league and is still attached to an elite offense.

Hopkins re-signed with the Redskins on Monday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

A hip injury limited Hopkins to eight games in 2017, but he remained effective when healthy for a third straight year, connecting on 14 of 17 field-goal attempts (82.4 percent) and 18 of 19 extra-point tries (94.7 percent). Boasting a career 91.9-percent conversion rate from inside of 50 yards, the 27-year-old Hopkins is one of the more reliable kickers in the league. It's fair to wonder if he'll lose out on some opportunities as the Redskins transition from Kirk Cousins to Alex Smith at quarterback. The change leaves Hopkins somewhere in the middle tier of kickers in the fantasy world, perhaps worthy of consideration at the very end of drafts.

Gano signed a four-year contract Tuesday.

The Panthers were expected to use the franchise tag on Gano, who converted at least 29 field goals each of the past four seasons and has an 81.7 percent success rate for his career. The team probably won't use its tag now that the 30-year-old is locked up for the long haul. Gano should continue as a serviceable but sub-elite fantasy option among kickers.

The Falcons and Bryant agreed to a three-year extension Monday, Will McFadden of the team's official site reports.

Bryant's lengthy career continues onward. After splitting the first seven years in the NFL with four different organizations, the 42-year-old just completed his ninth campaign with the Falcons, during which he's racked up at least 111 points in his seven full seasons with the squad. In 2016, in particular, Bryant notched a league-leading 158 points in the backs of a whopping 56 extra points and 37 field goals en route to an appearance in Super Bowl LI. With a commitment through the 2020 season, he'll have a chance to continue marching up the ranks of all-time leading scorers (he ranks 17th, as of the conclusion of 2017).

Santos (groin) required surgery to repair the groin injury that landed him on injured reserve, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Santos was only signed to a one-year contract with Chicago, so he's set to become an unrestricted free agent at the start of the new league year. However, it isn't certain how his recovery from groin surgery will impact his standing once he's out on the open market.

Gano is likely to receive the franchise tag from the Panthers, Jeremy Bergman of NFL.com reports.

Gano is coming off a strong 2017, which saw him hit 29-of-30 field goals, with his only miss coming from more than 50 yards. He's been with the team for the past six seasons and the team can keep him around for a seventh year at $4.8 million by using the tag.