NFL Player News

Alie-Cox received a second-round tender from the Colts on Tuesday, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.

The 27-year-old is a restricted free agent, and the Colts clearly want to retain him for 2021. Alie-Cox caught 31 passes for 394 yards and two touchdowns in 15 games last season. Any interested team would need to give up a second-round pick in order to sign Alie-Cox to an offer sheet, so he's likely to remain in Indianapolis.

The Packers extended a second-round tender to Tonyan on Tuesday, Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Tonyan was a pleasant surprise for the Packers last season, hauling in 52 of 59 targets for 586 yards and 11 touchdowns. That was good for 9.9 YPT and a 21.1 percent touchdown rate, which may be unsustainable but highlights his importance to Green Bay's passing attack. Other teams still can give Tonyan an offer sheet, but it'll cost them a second-round pick if the Packers ultimately decide not to match it.

Coach Sean Payton believes the Saints are done adding quarterbacks after they re-signed Jameis Winston to compete with Hill (knee) for the starting job, Luke Johnson of The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.

Payton did say the team will still make some calls, and it would be easy enough to make an argument for drafting a quarterback in April. Winston is signed to a one-year contract, while Hill's "four-year, $140 million" contract extension is all voidable after 2021 (it just helped the team push some cap hit to 2022). The camp battle between these two QBs will be one of the major fantasy-football stories of the summer, with Hill offering upside thanks to his running ability, while Winston already has a 5,000-yard season on his resume. The Saints have lost a lot of talent this offseason, but they still have Sean Payton, Alvin Kamara, Michael Thomas and one of the better O-lines in the league.

Manhertz is signing a two-year, $7.25 million contract with the Jaguars, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The deal includes $4.25 million guaranteed, a nice sum for a blocking specialist. Manhertz has 12 receptions on 1,531 offensive snaps in 70 NFL appearances.

In addition to Smith, the Patriots have also signed fellow tight end Hunter Henry, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

From a scheme standpoint, the duo of Smith and Henry points to the Patriots offense using plenty of two-TE sets this coming season. It's an approach that's worked for the team in the past. From a fantasy standpoint, both players should have productive outings, but the presence of another talented pass catcher like Henry figures to cut into Smith's weekly ceiling. In any case, New England's aggressive approach in free agency has resulted in a revamped passing attack filled with multiple options for QB Cam Newton.

Swaim is staying with the Titans on a one-year contract, John Glennon of BroadwaySportsMedia.com reports.

The new league year hasn't even started and the Titans have already lost TE Jonnu Smith and WRs Corey Davis and Adam Humphries. Retaining Swaim won't change much for the passing offense, but it does give the team a competent blocker alongside passing-down specialist Anthony Firkser. The 27-year-old Swaim has 57 catches in 53 NFL appearances, including just nine in 10 games for the Titans last season.

Henry is signing a three-year, $37.5 million contract with the Patriots, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The Patriots add another big name to their long list of free-agent acquisitions, a group that also includes fellow TE Jonnu Smith and WRs Kendrick Bourne and Nelson Agholor. The addition of Henry points to frequent use of multi-TE formations, which could be part of a run-first offense if Cam Newton is still the starting QB. This isn't the best landing spot in terms of Henry's 2021 fantasy value, but partnering with Bill Belichick and Josh McDaniels could nonetheless prove wise long-term.

Smith has agreed to a four-year, $50 million deal with the Patriots, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Per the report, $31.25 million of Smith's deal is fully guaranteed. This aggressive move by the Patriots provides a major upgrade for the team at the tight end position. Smith, who caught 41 of his 65 targets for 448 yards and eight TDs in 15 games with the Titans last season, immediately ascends to the top of a depth chart that currently also includes Ryan Izzo, Devin Asiasi, Dalton Keene and Matt LaCosse. Of that group, Smith profiles as the clear-cut top pass catcher and should provide QB Cam Newton with a much-needed red-zone weapon in 2021.

The Saints are restructuring Hill's (knee) contract into a voidable four-year, $140 million extension, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The grand total of Hill's extension appears enormous, but with all years being voidable it essentially serves as a means for the Saints to clear up cap space and potentially move dead money into future years. The restructure comes following the announcement of Drew Brees' retirement, a development which gives Hill's spot on the roster a new context, even if it wasn't completely unexpected. With Jameis Winston currently set for free agency, Hill stands atop the Saints' quarterback depth chart. In the four games he filled in for Brees last season, Hill averaged 209 passing yards, one passing touchdown and 0.5 interceptions per contest. He also boosted his totals with an average of 52 rushing yards and one score on the ground per game, numbers which would extrapolate to a high-end fantasy season across 16 starts. Of course, it seems probable that Hill will face some form of real competition for the No. 1 gig, whether Winston re-signs or New Orleans brings in another option.

The Lions released James on Thursday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

James had the two worst years of his career in Detroit, logging just 142 and 129 receiving yards in 2019 and 2020, respectively. Wherever he next lands, James should at least benefit from not working behind T.J. Hockensen, which could potentially allow the tight end to reprise production levels similar to what he once recorded in Pittsburgh. From 2016-18 with the Steelers, James strung together three straight seasons with at least 300 receiving yards and two touchdowns.