NFL Player News

Smith-Njigba will catch passes from a new quarterback in 2025 after the Seahawks traded Geno Smith to the Raiders on Friday, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.

The turbulent week in Seattle continues, as previously the Seahawks released WR Tyler Lockett before fellow WR DK Metcalf requested a trade. Last season, Smith-Njigba led all Seahawks receivers in receptions (100), receiving yards (1,130), and touchdowns (six). While potentially losing Metcalf would force defenses to key in on Smith-Njigba even further, the 2023 first-round pick was superb across two games without Metcalf last year, generating 249 yards and two touchdowns. The bigger concern for Smith-Njigba's fantasy value in 2025 is the quarterback, though he should be a target hog once again considering his role in the slot -- where he played 75 percent of snaps last year -- is secure.

The Jaguars officially released Reynolds on Friday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Jacksonville officially cut both Reynolds and tight end Evan Engram (shoulder) on Friday, clearing additional cap space before the start of free agency and the legal tampering period next week. Reynolds' release will free up roughly $4.26 million in cap space. The veteran wideout joined the Jaguars as a waiver claim last December, ultimately securing one of five targets for 11 yards across four regular-season appearances with the team.

The Jets tendered Charles (knee) on Friday, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports.

Charles suffered a torn ACL in Week 14 against the Dolphins, but the Jets seem to have hope he'll be able to return to action at some point in 2025. He played nearly all of his snaps in 2024 on special teams and projects to play a similar role in the upcoming campaign.

Duvernay will be released by the Jaguars, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

The wide receiver finished 2024 with 11 catches for 79 yards and no touchdowns in 13 games, though he also contributed 351 kickoff-return yards and 167 punt-return yards. Duvernay, a two-time Pro Bowl return man, signed a two-year deal with the Jaguars last March after playing out his rookie contract with the Ravens, but he was caught in a series of cost-cutting moves by Jacksonville as it tries to clear cap space going into the new league year.

Reynolds is in line to be released by the Jaguars, Chris Tomasson of The Denver Gazette reports.

The wide receiver was claimed by the Jags in December after being waived by Denver, per Tomasson. Reynolds only caught one pass for 11 yards in four games with Jacksonville after grabbing 12 for 183 and a score in five contests with the Broncos. The 2017 fourth-round pick of the Rams initially signed a two-year deal with Denver last offseason after playing out a two-year contract with Detroit.

Dotson secured 19 of 33 targets for 216 yards across 17 regular-season games with the Eagles in 2024. He also rushed once for 13 yards.

Dotson played a sizeable 649 offensive snaps during the regular season for Philadelphia, working in a No. 3 receiver role behind A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. His most impactful game of the season came during the Eagles' win over Kansas City in Super Bowl LIX, with two catches for 42 yards on three targets. The 2022 first-round pick looks set to reprise a similar role for the 2025 season, though with all of Brown, Smith, running back Saquon Barkley and tight end Dallas Goedert pushing for opportunities on offense, he seems likely to again end up on the outside looking in for fantasy purposes.

The Jaguars are finalizing a trade Thursday that will send Kirk (collarbone) to the Texans, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

Kirk, who is recovering from a broken left collarbone suffered in late October, looks set to join Nico Collins atop Houston's wide receiver depth chart. The veteran slot man will face opportunity as one of C.J. Stroud's top targets, especially with Stefon Diggs (knee - ACL) a pending free agent and Tank Dell (knee - ACL) a candidate to miss much, if not all, of the 2025 season. Per Pelissero, the Texans are taking on Kirk's salary of $16.5 million for 2025 and sending a 2026 seventh-round pick to Jacksonville in exchange for the 28-year-old veteran wideout.

Atwell and the Rams agreed to terms Thursday on a one-year, $10 million contract, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Atwell, a 2021 second-round pick, was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, but he'll instead return to Los Angeles on a fully guaranteed one-year, $10 million contract. Coming off a 2024 campaign in which he compiled a career-best 42-562-0 receiving line across 17 regular-season contests, the timing and guarantees of Atwell's deal signal that the Rams view him as a valued contributor on offense, especially in the context of Cooper Kupp's expected departure this offseason. With Demarcus Robinson still a pending unrestricted free agent, returning quarterback Matthew Stafford's top wideouts next season could feature a lineup of Puka Nacua, Atwell and Jordan Whittington.

Teams have contacted the Bengals about trading for Higgins but have been told he isn't available, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports.

A franchise tag can pave the way for a trade, but in this case it seems more likely to lead to a multi-year contract. The Bengals may end up rethinking their stance, however, if negotiations don't progress within the next few weeks and there's serious risk of no long-term agreement being reached before the July 15 deadline. Higgins might hesitate to sign his franchise tag (worth $26.17 million) if that were to happen, having already played under the tag once, although he'd likely still sign it before Week 1 rather than miss out on around $1.5 million each week. The Bengals hope it won't come to that and presumably have already begun negotiations for a multi-year contract.

Metcalf requested a trade from the Seahawks on Wednesday, and Seattle has agreed to explore moving the wideout, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Metcalf -- who has one year left on his contract -- is seeking a new deal, so any trade would likely be contingent on the acquiring team being willing to extend him. The 27-year-old wideout is coming off a season in which he posted a 66-992-5 receiving line over 15 games, and while that level of production represented a step back from previous years, Metcalf is still likely to draw ample interest around the league from teams looking to add a field-stretching playmaker. Seattle released longtime slot wideout Tyler Lockett on Wednesday, so the team's receiving corps could look dramatically different in 2025 if Metcalf is ultimately traded.