Bill Barnwell
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- Bill Barnwell is a senior NFL author for ESPN.com. He analyzes soccer on and off the area like nobody else on the planet, writing about in-season X’s and O’s, offseason transactions and a lot extra.
He is the host of the Bill Barnwell Show podcast, with episodes launched weekly. Barnwell joined ESPN in 2011 as a employees author at Grantland.
If the 2024 season was the Year of the Superstar Running Back, then the finish to the 2025 NFL marketing campaign may flip this into the Year of the Superstar Wide Receiver.
The two best wideouts in soccer, the Rams’ Puka Nacua and the Seahawks’ Jaxon Smith-Njigba, are competing for a visit to the Super Bowl this weekend in the NFC Championship Game. Both of these groups made important receiver additions in free company this previous offseason, as the Rams signed Davante Adams and the Seahawks went for former Rams wideout Cooper Kupp. The Patriots kicked quarterback Drake Maye into MVP gear with a sequence of additives over the previous few offseasons, together with Stefon Diggs, who signed a large deal to affix them in the spring. The Broncos are the exception right here, however you get the concept: It certain has been useful to have an impactful wideout or two in the lineup each week, deep into the postseason.
With that in thoughts, this upcoming offseason’s wide receiver market is shaping as much as be fascinating. This may very well be the most energetic marketplace for veterans since 2022, when Adams, Tyreek Hill and A.J. Brown have been traded for draft picks in a matter of weeks. Some of these strikes produced Super Bowls, though in Hill’s case, it was for his outdated crew, not his new one.
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Brown is one in all numerous wideouts who may very well be traded this offseason after a irritating 2025 marketing campaign. We might see a strong cap casualty market, too, with big-name stars leaving for brand spanking new groups. And there are a couple of free brokers coming off rookie offers who may land unexpectedly huge contracts on the open market.
Today, I’ll run by nearly each notable veteran receiver who could be altering groups this offseason. I’ll begin, although, with the one wideout who must be staying put after being traded final summer time. (Receivers are listed alphabetically inside every part.)
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The franchise WR | Free brokers
Cut candidates | Trade candidates
The franchise wideout
(*20*)
George Pickens, Dallas Cowboys
For all the deserved criticism Cowboys proprietor and basic supervisor Jerry Jones acquired for buying and selling Micah Parsons and then utilizing most of that draft capital to land a lesser defensive participant in Quinnen Williams, there is not any arguing that sending third- and fifth-round picks to the Steelers for Pickens and a sixth-round decide was an enormous victory for Dallas. Pickens was an ideal match for the Cowboys, who wanted an outdoor receiver with dimension and vertical skill to enhance CeeDee Lamb’s work on the inside.
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Pickens delivered with a profession 12 months. I had him as the third-best wideout in soccer and a first-team All-Pro after he racked up 93 catches for 1,429 yards and 9 touchdowns. Pickens needed to accept a second-team All-Pro nod from the voters, however both method, we’re nonetheless speaking about him as one in all the six finest receivers in the NFL in 2025. That’s a massively proficient and precious participant when you think about Pickens made $3.7 million in 2026.
If the Cowboys resolve to let Pickens check the open market and transfer on after one season, it will be beautiful if he landed something in need of $30 million per 12 months with a multiyear assure. There will probably be groups cautious of paying anybody Mike Tomlin and the Steelers wished to let go, however there is not any denying Pickens’ expertise and skill to influence video games. He would not even flip 25 till March, making him one in all the youthful free brokers this offseason.
The downside for Pickens is that the tippy-top of the wide receiver market has risen quicker than the franchise tag for these gamers. The franchise tag for wideouts in 2026 tasks to return in at $28.6 million, making it simple for the Cowboys to justify utilizing it. Even if Dallas decides it would not need to signal Pickens to a long-term deal, it might tag and trade him.
The almost certainly situation ought to see Pickens return to the Cowboys in 2026 on the franchise tag. If he can show that 2025 wasn’t an outlier season, the Cowboys will probably be extra inclined to signal him to a long-term deal. If not, nicely, Pickens would hit the open market subsequent season. For now, although, the tag looks as if the most believable path for one in all the league’s breakout stars.
Unrestricted free brokers
Romeo Doubs, Green Bay Packers
An sometimes tumultuous run for Doubs in Green Bay probably got here to an finish in the Packers’ wild-card loss to the Bears. The underrated Doubs was suitably impactful in his last recreation, catching eight passes for 124 yards and a landing. That goes nicely with a 151-yard efficiency in his playoff debut, a win over the Cowboys in the 2023 wild-card spherical, and an 83-yard follow-up the subsequent week towards the 49ers.
Given how typically the Packers run the ball and how keen they’re to rotate a deep, flat receiving corps, Doubs has additionally gone lacking at instances. He actually did so for a couple of practices in 2024, main the Packers to droop their 2022 fourth-round decide for a recreation. Doubs returned and performed out the remainder of his Packers tenure with out incident, however GM Brian Gutekunst used two of his prime three picks in the 2025 draft on wide receivers and prolonged Christian Watson, who would have additionally been a free agent.
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Doubs is due to this fact extraordinarily more likely to truly make it to free company, which is not at all times the case for younger wideouts. And there was regular progress in his underlying metrics. Doubs’ yards per route run has improved throughout his time in Green Bay, from 1.4 throughout his rookie and second seasons to 1.8 in Year 3 and 1.9 in Year 4. Drops will be a problem, however the 6-foot-2 wideout produced a top-30 catch rating this season, per ESPN’s receiver scores.
I’ll be fascinated to see the place Doubs’ deal is available in. There’s an opportunity groups see him as solely a midtier No. 2 receiver, leaving him one thing in the vary of $15 million per 12 months. I believe there will probably be not less than one crew that sees him as a participant with untapped potential who might blossom in a extra pass-happy scheme and with a steadier, extra dependable utilization sample. That crew could be keen to go north of $20 million per season.
Mike Evans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
With Evans’ streak of 1,000-yard seasons damaged by a sequence of accidents in 2025, the probably future Hall of Famer might hit free company underneath unsure circumstances. Two years in the past, Evans was a free agent as a youthful participant with out a important harm in his previous. He landed a two-year, $41 million pact to stick with Tampa Bay, and whereas he appeared productive when he was on the area, Evans missed 12 of 34 doable video games (and most of two others) due to varied illnesses.
On the area, Evans remains to be producing at a excessive degree. His 2.3 yards per route run ranked 14th amongst all wideouts over the previous two seasons. ESPN’s receiver rating, although, advised a significant drop-off between 2024 and 2025 on a route-by-route foundation, as Evans fell from second in total rating amongst wideouts to tied for 94th. One-year falloffs can occur with receiver rating — Stefon Diggs went from fourth in 2022 to 53rd in 2023 earlier than leaping again to 3rd in 2024 and tying for first in 2025 — so I’d be keen to imagine that Evans might bounce again towards the prime of the charts in 2026.
The participant Evans’ camp will attempt to hyperlink the star wideout to is Davante Adams, who hit free company after a irritating age-32 season and landed a two-year, $44 million contract with the Rams, together with $26 million assured at signing. Adams completed with 789 receiving yards in 14 video games, however he fashioned a reference to Matthew Stafford and scored 14 touchdowns in his first 12 months with Los Angeles.
Would the Bucs conform to that form of deal? It won’t make sense, provided that they dedicated a three-year, $66 million deal to Chris Godwin Jr. final offseason and used their first-round decide on Emeka Egbuka, who was wonderful in the first half earlier than fading as the season went alongside. Tampa Bay must signal Jamel Dean, Cade Otton, Haason Reddick and Lavonte David (or their replacements) this offseason, and spending greater than $20 million per 12 months on a pair of wide receivers won’t be the finest use of its sources.
Evans is a franchise legend, although, and the guidelines will be completely different when these sorts of gamers are concerned. It would shocking if he performed some other place in 2026.
Jauan Jennings, San Francisco 49ers
The two-year, $11.9 million deal Jennings signed earlier than the 2024 season proved to be a discount, as accidents opened up a job in the beginning lineup for the former standout highschool quarterback. Jennings delivered, racking up 132 catches for 1,618 yards and 15 touchdowns over the previous two seasons. He additionally excelled on third down and in the pink zone over that span, which provides some further contextual worth to his manufacturing. Throwing two landing passes on two tries in the postseason hasn’t damage, both.
Jennings got here into the league as a man who might need profiled as an influence slot choice, however Kyle Shanahan has used him primarily as an outdoor goal. Jennings took about 63% of his snaps there over the previous two seasons. He has been just a little extra environment friendly working out of the slot, and I’d wish to see whether or not the 2020 seventh-round decide might hit a brand new degree if he joins a crew that may afford him extra snaps there.
Of course, that assumes he leaves the 49ers, which appears up in the air. Jennings unsuccessfully tried to carry in for a brand new deal final summer time and wasn’t as productive whereas enjoying by shoulder and ankle accidents earlier this season, however he has been a precious participant for the 49ers in the second half and into the postseason. We’ll get to Brandon Aiyuk’s unsure future, however Ricky Pearsall additionally hasn’t but established himself due to accidents, and George Kittle’s standing for the begin of the 2026 season is unclear after he tore an Achilles in the win over the Eagles in the wild-card spherical.
At 29, that is in all probability Jennings’ solely sensible likelihood of touchdown a multiyear assure. He could be price extra to the 49ers than anyone else, but when they need him again, they will want to supply a major increase to maintain their homegrown wideout round.
Christian Kirk, Houston Texans
The Jaguars have been planning to cut Kirk final offseason, however at the final minute, the Texans surprisingly traded a seventh-round decide to amass him from their divisional rivals, making certain that they would not must win Kirk’s affections in free company. It was a fortuitous flip of occasions for Kirk, who ended up making the $16.3 million he was initially set to make in 2025, greater than he might have anticipated to land had he truly hit the open market.
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Kirk rewarded the Texans for his or her largesse, though it took some time. He did not make a lot of an influence throughout the common season, racking up 28 catches for simply 239 yards over 13 video games. In the wild-card spherical, although, Kirk dramatically reemerged with an enormous recreation towards the Steelers, turning 9 targets into eight catches and 144 yards. He added a second landing and 20 receiving yards in the season-ending loss to the Patriots.
As a 29-year-old receiver principally restricted to fit work, Kirk will not have an enormous market in free company. But he is a well-regarded teammate and has an 1,108-yard season on his résumé, so he ought to discover some assured cash as a 3rd wideout on a receiver-needy crew in 2026.
Alec Pierce, Indianapolis Colts
Last offseason, groups determined for velocity merely overpaid to signal replacement-level expertise at wide receiver in free company. The Rams introduced again Tutu Atwell on a one-year, $10 million deal and obtained 192 receiving yards over 10 video games, as the transfer into 13 personnel groupings and the ascension of Xavier Smith and Konata Mumpfield cut off Atwell’s entry to the area as the third wideout behind Davante Adams and Puka Nacua.
The Jaguars signed Dyami Brown to an an identical contract after a scorching postseason in Washington, but regardless of Travis Hunter’s knee harm, they basically misplaced curiosity in Brown after a gradual begin. Jacksonville traded for Jakobi Meyers and promoted Parker Washington forward of him in the lineup. Brown performed single-digit snaps down the stretch and was a wholesome scratch in the season-ending loss to the Bills.
If speedy receivers who barely see the area are price $10 million offers, Pierce’s pending free company poses an fascinating query: What if a speedy receiver who was truly good hit the market? Pierce narrowly topped 1,000 yards for the first time as a professional with a 132-yard effort towards the Texans in Week 18, however his breakout wasn’t actually a product of higher quarterback play in 2025. His charge of off-target potential receptions was roughly the similar in 2024 (23.5%) and 2025 (23.8%).
Really, there was two variations of Pierce. The 2022-23 editions have been extra like Atwell and Brown as low-efficiency, high-reward deep threats, as he averaged simply 1.1 yards per route run — 89th out of 101 qualifying wideouts. A forged of fixing quarterbacks did not assist, however Pierce wasn’t capable of command a significant goal share.
Over the previous two years, although, Pierce has upped that yards per route run determine to 1.9 in 2024 and 2.2 in 2025. The mixed 2.1 determine is nice for twentieth amongst wide receivers over that span, simply forward of gamers reminiscent of Jameson Williams and Tyreek Hill. And it will be powerful to argue that Pierce was enjoying with higher quarterbacks than both participant over that two-year span. Pierce nonetheless instructions one in all the decrease goal shares in the league given his utilization sample as a downfield risk, however he has basically been a barely extra environment friendly model of Williams, who signed a three-year, $80 million deal final season.
0:42
What is Alec Pierce’s fantasy outlook for 2026?
Matt Bowen breaks down the significance of Alec Pierce’s free company vacation spot for his fantasy worth subsequent season.
Pierce’s stat traces are form of a throwback to a different period. This is a league wherein nice wideouts may common solely 11 or 12 yards per catch, as Amon-Ra St. Brown has over the previous couple of seasons, buying and selling huge performs for regular completions and first downs. The NFL as a complete has moved towards shorter passes going again to the West Coast offense’s arrival in the Nineteen Eighties, a development that has solely accelerated over the previous decade.
Pierce, on the different hand, averaged 22.3 yards per reception in 2024 and 21.3 yards per catch in 2025, main the league each instances. The final time a participant had two seasons with not less than 30 catches or extra whereas averaging greater than 20 yards per reception over his first 4 professional campaigns was all the method again in 1994, when Alvin Harper did it in his third and fourth seasons for the Cowboys. DeSean Jackson, in all probability the most comparable receiver for Pierce in latest reminiscence, averaged 18.6 yards per reception and then 22.5 yards per catch in a way more pass-happy Eagles offense early in his profession.
Philosophically, the NFL is leaning extra into the run and away from the fast recreation than it has in years. In half, that is a product of defenses daring groups to run by enjoying two-deep shells and gentle containers and making a extra fertile surroundings for dashing the soccer. We’re seeing offenses reply by getting larger, leaning into two- and three-tight finish units and enjoying sixth offensive linemen up and down the area extra typically than they’ve in a decade, hoping to power defenses into enjoying larger personnel groupings or bringing a security into the field to assist towards the run. The final purpose is to search out methods to create explosive performs towards defenses which are doing no matter they will to take these off the desk.
Pierce is a strolling explosive-play risk, which makes him a really precious participant. I’m fascinated to see how excessive his market will get. Just updating the Williams contract for a projected 9% improve in the wage cap could be a three-year, $87.2 million pact. Even that may be promoting Pierce brief, as a result of Williams wasn’t a free agent and might negotiate with just one crew when he signed his extension with the Lions. (Pierce additionally would not have any suspensions in his previous, which might have made negotiations harder for Williams.)
I do not assume it is wild in any respect to counsel that Pierce may very well be taking a look at one thing in the ballpark of $30 million per 12 months in free company, which brings the franchise tag into play. The 2026 tag for wide receivers is projected to return in at $28.1 million. A second franchise tag in 2027 could be a minimal of $33.7 million. If the Colts need to re-sign Pierce (or if Pierce hits the market), I’d count on his asking worth to be a minimal of $62 million assured over the first two seasons. That’s some huge cash for a participant who hasn’t profiled as a No. 1 receiver over his profession, however true top-end velocity is difficult to return by.
Wan’Dale Robinson, New York Giants
Robinson quietly emerged in the second half of 2025 as one thing greater than the gadget receiver he had been for many of his tenure with the Giants. Forced into the lead receiver function after Malik Nabers went down with a torn ACL and Darius Slayton floated in and out of the lineup, Robinson managed his first 1,000-yard season with a 113-yard efficiency towards the Raiders earlier than sitting out Week 18.
He averaged 2.1 yards per route run, method up from his 2023 (1.5) and 2024 (1.3) marks, each of which have been under league common. That was pushed by Robinson making his catches farther downfield. About 76% of Robinson’s targets between 2023 and 2024 have been inside 5 yards of the line of scrimmage. In 2025, that fell to 63%, leaving extra alternatives for him to make performs downfield and create important yardage. He had 4 catches on passes touring 25 or extra yards in the air this season after only one over the prior three seasons mixed.
At the similar time, 2025 was the first time Robinson averaged greater than 10 yards per reception as a professional, making it to 11 yards per catch with Jaxson Dart at the helm for many of the season. At 5-foot-8 and 185 kilos, there are going to be groups that merely do not see Robinson as something greater than a flexible participant on throws close to the line of scrimmage, which can restrict his choices in free company relative to that of Pierce, though they completed with related yardage totals.
0:46
Will Wan’Dale Robinson and Jaxson Dart turn into fantasy related subsequent season?
Stephania Bell breaks down the connection between Wan’Dale Robinson and Jaxson Dart and what it means for his or her fantasy future.
The participant who involves thoughts as a comparability for Robinson is Curtis Samuel, a fellow undersized second-round decide who had his finest season simply earlier than hitting free company. In 2021, Samuel signed a three-year, $34.5 million cope with Washington on the open market. That $11.5 million common wage would translate to $19.2 million with the projected 2026 cap. That could be just a little excessive, but it surely would not be a shock to see Robinson land a deal price north of $15 million per 12 months. And with the Giants eager to encompass Dart with playmakers whereas he is on a rookie contract, I might see GM Joe Schoen justifying that form of transfer.
Deebo Samuel, Washington Commanders
Catch Samuel on the proper week and he is devastating. Samuel led the league in yards after catch rating (in ESPN’s receiver scores) in 2021, 2022 and 2023, and he was second in 2024. He dropped off solely to tenth in 2025. He’s nonetheless a particular expertise with regards to breaking tackles and making one thing out of nothing. And whereas Samuel has by no means put collectively a full wholesome season as a professional, he did handle to play 16 video games for the second time in his seven-year profession this season.
On the different hand, Samuel has constant issues with drops and fumbles, with three of the latter approaching 89 touches in 2025. He has turn into much less impactful as a runner, the place he managed simply 4 first downs on 17 carries this season. And with every passing 12 months, Samuel’s 1,405-receiving yard, 365-rushing yard marketing campaign of 2021 seems to be extra and extra like an outlier. He averaged almost 111 yards from scrimmage that season and is at 61 yards from scrimmage per recreation throughout his six different seasons, a determine that fell all the strategy to 50 yards from scrimmage per recreation in 2025.
Samuel spent most of the season enjoying with varied backup quarterbacks versus Jayden Daniels, which clearly damage Samuel’s likelihood at an enormous season. But even in case you prorate out Samuel’s six video games with Daniels underneath heart, we find yourself with 99 catches for simply 850 yards, which tells you the way a lot of Samuel’s manufacturing got here on screens and lateral throws round the line of scrimmage. His common goal with Daniels on the area traveled simply 4.5 yards in the air, which might rank sixty fifth out of 67 wideouts when it comes to goal depth over a full season.
There’s a helpful participant right here, however Samuel’s harm historical past, issues holding on to the soccer and age (he turns 30 in January) will restrict his market. It could be shocking if Samuel landed a multiyear assure, and he is more likely to take a pay cut from the $17.5 million he made this season.
Rashid Shaheed, Seattle Seahawks
Shaheed profiles someplace between Pierce and the Dyami Brown/Tutu Atwell class of downfield threats at receiver. In half, that is as a result of he is coming off his least environment friendly season as a professional, together with his yards per reception mark down about 6 yards from the place it was over the prior three seasons. Shaheed made his first Pro Bowl this season as a return man, which can assist his worth, however he hasn’t had the form of contract 12 months Pierce has in Indianapolis. Shaheed can also be almost two years older than Pierce, which issues in free company.
Viewed over his first 4 years, although, Shaheed has been a helpful second/third wideout and return man whereas enjoying on some inconsistent Saints groups. I liked the match for him in Seattle as a deep risk off play-action in Klint Kubiak’s offense, and Shaheed had 4 70-plus-yard video games in six tries final season throughout Kubiak’s lone season in New Orleans earlier than struggling a season-ending knee harm. Shaheed opted for his meniscus to be repaired versus changed, which price him extra time out of the lineup in 2024 however usually results in a more healthy knee down the line.
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As I wrote after this weekend’s video games, Shaheed’s had one in all the weirder seasons of any wideout in latest reminiscence since becoming a member of the Seahawks. He has achieved just about nothing as a wide receiver, with simply 188 receiving yards over 10 video games in the Pacific Northwest. And but, he has been wildly impactful doing every little thing else, as he has run for 91 yards on eight carries and produced three return touchdowns, together with the opening rating in final week’s blowout win over the 49ers.
I’d count on Shaheed to be taking a look at one-year offers with the hope of proving himself and incomes a multiyear assure subsequent offseason. The similar arguments for Pierce having extra worth on this model of the NFL offensive meta apply to Shaheed, which can hold his ground fairly excessive. An elevated model of the Atwell and Brown contracts from final season would see Shaheed land one thing like $15 million in 2026, which appears about proper.
Tyquan Thornton, Kansas City Chiefs
Thornton reestablished himself as a viable third wide receiver throughout his run in Kansas City. Playing with Patrick Mahomes clearly helped, and Thornton did expertise the occasional drop, however the 2022 Patriots second-round decide was capable of get open downfield regularly earlier than struggling a concussion, which ultimately ended his season. He additionally dealt with kick returns for the Chiefs, taking his first snaps on particular groups as a professional in the course of.
Thornton profiles equally to Dyami Brown as a Day 2 decide with a restricted historical past of manufacturing however one who flashed when given a chance in an amazing offense throughout his last season earlier than free company. He will even be solely 25 years outdated when he hits the market in March. There could be some sticker shock on the one-year offers given to Atwell and Brown given the meager returns, however Thornton ought to nonetheless have the ability to land a one-year deal for a major increase on the $1.1 million he performed for in 2025.
Cut candidates
Brandon Aiyuk, San Francisco 49ers
If what’s taking place right here, you could be the just one. The complete Aiyuk scenario with the 49ers has been bizarre relationship again to summer time 2024, when the group was reportedly near buying and selling its star receiver to the Steelers. At the final second, although, the 49ers and Aiyuk agreed to a four-year, $120 million extension, seemingly making certain Aiyuk’s future could be in pink and gold for years to return.
Since then, Aiyuk has caught 25 passes for 374 yards. The 2020 first-round decide tore his proper ACL and meniscus in 2024, ending his season. The crew reportedly wished to trade Aiyuk after the 2024 season, suggesting that it had some purchaser’s regret on the deal, however no transfer ever transpired. The expectation was that Aiyuk would return in 2025, however that by no means occurred, with the WR reportedly lacking rehab classes. As a outcome, the 49ers elected to void the $24.9 million bonus that was beforehand assured in Aiyuk’s contract. That resolution would usually set off a grievance from the participant and the NFLPA, however Aiyuk has apparently determined towards submitting one.
0:34
49ers GM on Aiyuk: ‘He’s performed his final snap with the Niners’
49ers GM John Lynch tells reporters WR Brandon Aiyuk has performed his final snap with the crew.
You do not must have a grasp’s diploma in studying tea leaves to realize a way of the place this one is heading. And in case it nonetheless wasn’t clear, GM John Lynch mentioned Wednesday, “I think it’s safe to say that he’s played his last snap with the Niners.”
Does Aiyuk have any trade worth? The 49ers have been in place to land a second-round decide for him in 2024 and wished to get one thing in return for him final offseason, however it will be shocking in the event that they have been capable of get something greater than a conditional decide for Aiyuk now. Even if Aiyuk’s 2026 compensation is not assured, I’m unsure there will probably be many groups lining as much as pay him the $27 million that is at present due on his current contract.
Aiyuk could be launched or must renegotiate that deal earlier than touchdown some other place. One apparent touchdown spot is Washington, the place the Commanders make use of former 49ers government Adam Peters and have a gap of their lineup at wide receiver with Deebo Samuel hitting free company. Aiyuk was Jayden Daniels’ teammate at Arizona State, too. But even for a crew with a quarterback on a rookie deal, $27 million could be an enormous ask for a participant who hasn’t performed since the center of 2024.
Tyreek Hill, Miami Dolphins
The clock began ticking on Hill’s tenure with the Dolphins when he refused to enter the Week 18 recreation towards the Jets in 2024 earlier than suggesting that he wished to play elsewhere afterward to reporters. Hill and the group basically reminiscence holed that scenario and these feedback over the offseason, however that was extra a product of Hill’s contract being assured and untradable than anything.
His manufacturing declined dramatically in 2024 from what had been league-best effectivity in 2022 and 2023. Things then took an additional flip south when Hill dislocated his left knee and tore a number of ligaments in Week 4, ending his season. Hill was additionally accused of home violence by his estranged spouse, opening the wideout as much as potential league self-discipline.
Hill is due $36 million in 2026, all of which is nonguaranteed. There is a zero % likelihood he will play on that deal subsequent season. He might theoretically return to the Dolphins on a decreased wage, however with Mike McDaniel fired, the Dolphins rebuilding and no matter occurred at the finish of 2024 leaving a nasty style in the group’s mouth, it appears a protected wager that Hill has performed his final snap in Miami. His choices will rely upon whether or not and when Hill is wholesome sufficient to play.
Calvin Ridley, Tennessee Titans
There will not be many reminiscences of the Ridley period in Nashville. Unexpectedly signed to a four-year, $92 million deal by the Titans in free company two years in the past, he managed 1,017 yards in his first season with the crew, however accidents restricted Ridley to 17 catches for 303 yards over seven video games in Year 2.
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Ridley ran a catch charge of simply 51.2% over his two seasons in Tennessee, and whereas he did not precisely have nice quarterback play for many of these targets, that catch charge ended up 4.4% under expectation, per NFL Next Gen Stats. Tennessee’s different wideouts over that span ran a collective 4.7% catch charge under expectation, so Ridley wasn’t considerably higher than the Titans’ different wideouts on inexpensive contracts.
Ridley averaged a good 2 yards per route run over the previous two seasons, so there’s nonetheless a strong NFL receiver right here when the veteran is ready to keep on the area. I’m unsure we have seen any form of famous person ceiling from Ridley since he returned from his seasonlong suspension throughout the 2022 marketing campaign, although, and the 31-year-old is recovering from a fractured fibula.
Just $3 million of Ridley’s $21.8 million compensation in 2026 is already assured, and the coach and basic supervisor who signed off on that deal are now not in the constructing. Ridley would not get something near that $21.8 million determine in free company, which creates leverage for Tennessee. If the entrance workplace pushes Ridley to take a pay cut, he must both accede to Tennessee’s phrases or fend for himself in free company, the place he may simply get the similar discount in wage the Titans would offer.
Ridley has a $1 million bonus that will get paid in mid-March, which can encourage the Titans to decide on Ridley’s future comparatively shortly, however I count on them to push for a friendlier contract in 2026. They want all the assist for quarterback Cam Ward they will get, however they may need to get a extra dynamic playmaker to work alongside Chimere Dike.
Trade candidates
A.J. Brown, Philadelphia Eagles
The resolution to amass Brown in a draft-day trade with the Titans was a coup for GM Howie Roseman, who initially tried to signal Allen Robinson in free company earlier than pivoting to a way more profitable Plan B. The Eagles expanded Brown’s snap share, making him an every-down receiver, and reaped the rewards: Brown had back-to-back 1,450-yard seasons, stayed on that tempo over a 13-game marketing campaign in 2024 and helped lead the Eagles to a Super Bowl final season.
Things went distinctly south in 2025. Brown managed to make it narrowly over 1,000 yards in 15 video games, however he repeatedly expressed his frustration on and off the area as the Eagles struggled to search out common targets for his or her mercurial wideout. Brown completed the season with a disastrous postseason efficiency in the loss to the 49ers, as he dropped two passes and needed to be separated from coach Nick Sirianni.
All of this places Roseman in a tough spot. The Eagles gave Brown a three-year, $100 million contract as a part of his trade to Philadelphia, and unsurprisingly given his aggressiveness in negotiating new pacts, Roseman signed Brown to a different three-year, $96 million extension in the spring of 2024. Brown technically nonetheless hasn’t began that second deal, though he has acquired a piece of the cash from that contract in bonuses.
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How a lot blame does A.J. Brown deserve for Eagles’ loss? Stephen A. weighs in
Stephen A. Smith reacts to A.J. Brown’s efficiency in the Eagles’ playoff loss to the 49ers.
Brown is due a assured $29 million in 2026. And if the Eagles trade Brown earlier than June 1, they’d be on the hook for $43.5 million in lifeless cash. That’s not an unfathomable or unprecedented quantity in the NFL when the wage cap tasks to return in north of $300 million, and it will put the Eagles on tempo to have about as a lot lifeless cash in 2026 ($84 million) as they did in 2025 ($85.8 million). But it isn’t a situation Roseman hoped to cope with when he signed that 2024 extension.
The Eagles would additionally must discover a alternative for Brown, who stays very environment friendly on a route-by-route foundation. Brown was nonetheless sixth in the NFL in receiver rating — down from first in 2024 and second in 2023 — and it will not be simple to switch that form of manufacturing. The Eagles might count on to land some significant draft capital for Brown, however I’m unsure that may be a first-round decide given the public frustrations Brown expressed this previous season. Brown additionally will probably be 29 subsequent season, and although that is nonetheless not notably outdated by wide receiver requirements, groups develop extra hesitant about buying and selling important draft capital for veterans as they method 30.
The best factor for all events concerned could be giving the relationship yet one more shot and revisiting this in 2027, when most of the assured cash in Brown’s deal may have been paid out. But if the Eagles really feel the must push the eject button on their relationship with their prime wideout, Brown may have a captivating market. He’s nonetheless one in all the league’s finest wide receivers, even when he did not present it towards the 49ers.
Keon Coleman, Buffalo Bills
Though Coleman had a 36-yard catch-and-run towards the Jaguars, the 2024 second-round decide has clearly fallen out of favor in Buffalo. Coleman was each benched for disciplinary causes and subsequently wholesome scratched a number of instances in 2025. When he has been on the area, Coleman managed 59 catches for 404 yards and 4 touchdowns, a lot of which got here in a comeback win over the Ravens in Week 1. He had 112 yards in that win and hasn’t topped 50 yards in a recreation since then. It appeared telling in the wild-card spherical that Tyrell Shavers — who was actually enjoying by a torn ACL — had extra snaps in the second half than Coleman.
Coleman nonetheless has two years left on his rookie deal and will make $3.8 million between 2026 and 2027, most of which is already assured. That’s a pittance for a participant whom groups noticed as a Day 2 decide heading into the 2024 draft, which is why there will probably be curiosity if the Bills do resolve {that a} recent begin is finest for all events concerned. Given that proprietor Terry Pegula appeared accountable the resolution to draft Coleman on fired coach Sean McDermott throughout an explosive information convention Wednesday, it is protected to say that Coleman is best off getting out of Buffalo.
The Commanders acquired a third-round decide (and moved a fifth-rounder) once they despatched Jahan Dotson to the Eagles, whereas the Cowboys despatched a fourth-round decide to the Panthers for Jonathan Mingo and a seventh-round choice. The Bills ought to have the ability to get one thing according to the latter worth for Coleman, with groups betting they will get extra out of his dimension and contested-catch skill than Buffalo.
1:54
Jeff Saturday in disbelief over Bills proprietor’s Brandon Beane-Keon Coleman feedback
Jeff Saturday sounds off on Bills proprietor Terry Pegula’s protection of Brandon Beane concerning Keon Coleman.
Quentin Johnston, Los Angeles Chargers
It has been a weird profession for Johnston, as the 2023 first-round decide was a rookie punchline for his arms. In Year 2, Johnston established himself as a playmaker and downfield choice whereas nonetheless having a brutal run of drops towards the Ravens. And then, this previous season, Johnston’s arms … have been principally positive? Next Gen Stats nonetheless credited him with 5 drops, which is not ideally suited, however he additionally ran a catch charge 5.2% over expectation, which hints towards Johnston making extra powerful catches than the highlights may counsel. He was at minus-4.3% final season.
He obtained off to a scorching begin, with 22 catches for 337 yards and 4 touchdowns by the first 4 weeks of the season, however Johnston wasn’t capable of maintain these numbers. As a receiver who makes his greatest influence as a downfield choice, he in all probability suffered most amongst the Chargers wideouts from the accidents at sort out, which restricted Justin Herbert’s time to throw.
Oronde Gadsden’s emergence as a vertical risk additionally appeared to mute Johnston’s influence. After topping 70 yards in every of his first 4 video games, Johnston did not go over that complete once more till Week 16. Keenan Allen is a free agent, however the Chargers may really feel as if they will transfer ahead with Ladd McConkey in the slot, Gadsden as the transfer tight finish and 2025 rookie Tre’ Harris as the crew’s major exterior choice, with the skill so as to add one other receiver on the exterior in free company or at the draft.
Johnston can fill that function, however the Chargers must resolve on his fifth-year choice for 2027 this offseason, a determine that tasks at $17.5 million. That’s not going to be an unreasonable price for a second wideout, however the Chargers have Herbert on a large deal and additionally pays McConkey earlier than the 2027 season. Coach Jim Harbaugh and GM Joe Hortiz additionally inherited Johnston from the earlier regime, so they don’t seem to be as connected to him as they’d be for one in all their very own picks.
A trade could be the smartest thing for Johnston, who I feel profiles finest as an influence slot receiver. With McConkey (and Allen this season) forward of him for slot snaps, Johnston took solely 13% of his snaps out of the slot in 2025. He averaged 2.6 yards per route run out of the slot, nearly double what he averaged break up out wide. A spot the place he can play in the slot regularly may assist unlock some untapped potential, and even when one other crew picks up his fifth-year choice, it will be on the hook for under about $20 million mixed over the subsequent two seasons.
Xavier Legette, Carolina Panthers
The Bills traded down twice once they drafted Coleman. The second time was with the Panthers, who chosen Legette after transferring as much as No. 32. Like Coleman, Legette was a one-year faculty surprise whose dimension and athleticism appealed to NFL groups, however he hasn’t lived as much as expectations.
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Legette hasn’t fallen afoul of the group, which is a plus relative to Coleman, however he additionally hasn’t been as productive. Coleman has averaged 1.7 yards per route run, suggesting that he may very well be a helpful contributor with steadier enjoying time. Admittedly whereas enjoying with a much less imposing quarterback, Legette has averaged simply 1.1 yards per route run over that very same interval. He has had points with drops, together with a possible profitable landing towards the eventual champion Eagles final season in the last minute.
The Panthers nonetheless have a spot for Legette in the lineup once they play three-wide units, however he has fallen behind Tetairoa McMillan and Jalen Coker when it comes to priorities and manufacturing for Carolina. And there is not any purpose why GM Dan Morgan would hold that spot open if the Panthers can discover an improve this offseason. Legette is owed $4.4 million over the subsequent two years, all of which is assured, and he has a possible fifth-year choice in 2028 that may come up for a call after the 2026 season.
Carolina was keen to surrender on Mingo, a top-40 decide, after solely 24 video games when the proper trade supply emerged. I believe it will be related for Legette this offseason.
DJ Moore, Chicago Bears
Moore has had a wierd profession in Chicago. The Bears have been completely satisfied so as to add the now-28-year-old wideout as a part of the trade that finally gave Bryce Young to the Panthers, and Moore responded with a 1,364-yard effort in his debut season with the Bears. But his numbers have gone down dramatically in every successive season. Moore averaged 80.1 receiving yards per recreation in the 2023 season; by 2025, that had fallen to 40.1.
There are unquestionably strengths to Moore’s recreation, together with his willingness to go over the center of the area and his skill with the ball in his arms. He has additionally developed a repute for, relying on who you ask, freelancing or not at all times having his head in video games. He sleepwalking by a misplaced 2024 season at instances, and it definitely appears as if the 2018 first-round decide did not run the proper route or make the proper adjustment on the interception Caleb Williams threw in additional time throughout the divisional spherical loss to the Rams. It appeared telling that he wasn’t in the locker room after the recreation or throughout the locker cleanout Monday.
Since the Bears acquired Moore, they’ve used important draft capital on wideouts Rome Odunze and Luther Burden III, together with tight finish Colston Loveland. They’ve additionally employed coach Ben Johnson, and we do not know if Johnson actually sees Moore as an important a part of the offense. The Bears might lean into extra 12 personnel groupings with Loveland and Cole Kmet subsequent season or in any other case discover extra causes to get out of their 11 personnel packages. And the Bears may additionally need to discover extra alternatives for an Olamide Zaccheaus-type participant as their third wideout.
GM Ryan Poles signed Moore to a four-year, $110 million extension in the summer time of 2024, a deal that begins subsequent season. Moore’s $23.5 million base wage in 2026 is already assured, and if he is on the roster in mid-March, $15.5 million of Moore’s $23.5 million wage in 2027 turns into totally assured. The Bears (or any crew buying Moore) would basically be on the hook for a one-year, $40 million deal or a two-year, $49 million pact earlier than revisiting his contract after 2027.
1:08
Why ‘Mad Dog’ is mad at DJ Moore
Chris “Mad Dog” Russo sounds off on Bears wide receiver DJ Moore for not talking to the media after the Bears’ loss to the Rams.
Moore remains to be a starting-caliber wideout, and there must be curiosity if the Bears do take heed to provides. A middle-round decide could be a practical return, however the actual profit could be liberating up $24.5 million in 2026 money, which might permit Johnson and Poles to realign the offense in the coach’s most popular imaginative and prescient.
Brian Thomas Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars
I made the case for a possible Thomas trade when writing about the Jaguars after their wild-card loss to the Bills. The present entrance workplace, which has been very aggressive with its roster choices, did not draft Thomas. The 2024 first-rounder had a wonderful rookie season, however he by no means actually discovered a gradual function in Liam Coen’s offense, with exterior considerations that he wasn’t displaying the form of physicality and dedication wanted to thrive as an NFL wide receiver.
Those considerations have been overblown, however Thomas was capable of command targets on solely 21.1% of his routes in 2025, down behind Parker Washington, Jakobi Meyers, Brenton Strange and even Travis Etienne Jr. That was up at 26.9% in 2024. Thomas misplaced almost a full yard per route run, the distinction between an elite marketing campaign as a rookie and a below-average one in Year 2. He fell all the strategy to 157th (final place) in ESPN’s receiver scores.
I do not imagine Thomas is the worst receiver in the league. Teams will not have hassle remembering what he did in 2024, when he appeared to glide by defenses and effortlessly separate from man protection. Thomas can also be owed slightly below $5 million mixed over the subsequent two seasons and has a possible fifth-year choice in 2028, which might be extremely precious given his degree of manufacturing as a rookie.
The Jaguars may favor to maintain Thomas to see if they will coax a resurgent 12 months out of the 23-year-old, however with Travis Hunter returning to the lineup subsequent 12 months, Coen may favor to maneuver ahead with Washington, Meyers, Hunter and both an outdoor addition or any person like Tim Patrick (a pending free agent) as the wideout core. Critically, a Thomas trade would return significant draft capital for a Jaguars crew that traded its 2026 first-round decide to the Browns to amass Hunter.
There’s no purpose for the Jaguars to trade Thomas until they will land one thing important in return. To me, that may be a first-round decide. And there must be groups at the backside of the first spherical keen to ship that form of compensation again to Jacksonville. The Bills, who vanquished the Jaguars earlier this postseason, are an apparent match. The Browns might justify sending Jacksonville’s first-round decide again to the Jaguars to amass a much-needed wideout for his or her quarterback of the future. The Jets might put collectively a package deal that provides as much as one thing greater than a late first-rounder.
If the Jaguars do make Thomas out there, there must be important curiosity, even after an underwhelming 2025.
Jaylen Waddle, Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins did not appear determined to maneuver Waddle at the trade deadline, and I do not imagine that they will function with any form of urgency to trade him this offseason. Waddle remains to be solely 27, and he’ll nonetheless be younger sufficient to play a significant function for the subsequent Dolphins quarterback of the post-Tua Tagovailoa period.
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Waddle is also owed solely $68.6 million over the subsequent three seasons, which each makes him very simple to maintain round and will increase his potential trade worth. Sure, $22.9 million would not sound like a discount, but it surely’s already a reasonably team-friendly deal in a league wherein the prime of the market is north of $40 million per 12 months — and that quantity is just going to go up.
On the different hand, Waddle may profile as a high-end WR2 as a substitute of a real WR1. Though he had a 1,356-yard season in his second marketing campaign as a professional, he has but to put up a second season remotely shut, partly due to a gradual run of accidents. Waddle grew to become Miami’s prime wideout by default when Tyreek Hill was damage in September, and although he averaged slightly below 81 receiving yards per recreation over the subsequent six weeks, that determine fell to only 40 receiving yards per recreation over the ensuing six, with a rib harm holding the 5-foot-10 wideout out of the season-ending loss to the Patriots.
You might make a case for Waddle as an underrated wide receiver, provided that he performed with a now-benched quarterback in Tagovailoa and throughout from a extremely focused Hill. You can alternately make the argument that Waddle has one outlier season and will not have Mike McDaniel scheming areas open in 2026. I’m someplace in the center. Waddle’s team-friendly contract and Miami’s full absence of different wide receivers makes me assume the Dolphins would need a first-round decide to maneuver him this offseason. I’m unsure that may make sense for many groups.
