Player News
Texans signed RB Nick Chubb to a one-year, $2.5 million contract.
The former workhorse finds a new home after another lost season due to injury, landing in Houston on a one-year deal that carries a maximum value of $5 million. The incentive-laden contract makes sense for both parties considering Chubb’s recent injury history, providing a proven low cost option behind Joe Mixon in the backfield pecking order. Chubb passed his team physical Monday, prompting the signing and also indicating that he is on track in his return from a broken foot that ended his 2024 season after just eight games.
The Jaguars signed P Logan Cooke to a four-year, $16 million contract extension.
The seven-year veteran, who turns 30 next month, is coming off a strong year. In 2024, Cooke earned his first Pro Bowl selection after setting a career high in net punting average (44.8), which ranked second highest in the NFL. Cooke also pinned 34 of his 68 punts (50 percent) inside the 20, which tied for fourth most in the NFL. Cooke has spent his entire career with the Jaguars, who drafted him in the seventh round in 2018.
The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reports the Falcons expect Kirk Cousins to report to mandatory minicamp.
The 13-year veteran quarterback did not attend the Falcons voluntary OTAs in May, but did work out with the team in April. The team has repeatedly committed to Michael Penix as the Week 1 starter, even suggesting they could keep Cousins — scheduled to make $40 million in 2025 — as Penix’s backup. Cousins, who will be 37 at the start of the 2025 season, threw for 3508-18-16 in 14 games last season and had an abysmal five-game stretch in which he threw just one touchdown to nine interceptions, which ultimately led to his benching. The Falcons remain open to trading Cousins for the right price but that has not been met by any teams who have shown interest.
Dolphins RB Jaylen Wright said he’s in better shape than he was as a rookie.
Fantasy managers taking late-round stabs on Wright this season will be happy to hear this. The speedy second-year back said he “lost a lot of body fat” this offseason while gaining “a lot of muscle” and estimating that he’s put on roughly six pounds. It’s a marginal increase, but one that Wright clearly hopes will help him better manage his second year in the pros as he’s expected to take on a bigger role with Raheem Mostert now out of the way. Wright rushed 68 times for 249 scoreless yards last season and posted a 9-6-0 rushing line over his final five games of the season. It was disappointing, to say the least. Wright will hopefully have more value as a handcuff to De’Von Achane this season, but any stand alone value will likely be dependent on Achane’s availability.
Bengals released LB Germaine Pratt.
A six-year vet of the league and 2024 team captain, Pratt, 29, now hits the open market. Coming off a season in which he amassed a career-high 143 tackles and two interceptions, Pratt is a stat sheet stuffer who was entering the final year of his deal and clearly not considered to be worth the $8.183 million he was set to earn in 2025. His release saved the Bengals $5.850 million against the cap this season.
KPRC'2 Aaron Wilson reports the Texans met with free agent CB Damon Arnette.
Arnette is a former first-round pick of the Raiders, drafted in 2020, and has struggled to stay in the league due to poor play and legal issues. His last NFL stint was in 2022 with the Chiefs, but he was released after being arrested for assault, gun, and drug charges. Now with the UFL’s Houston Roughnecks, Arnette, 28, has totaled one interception and 18 tackles in six games, and could draw some NFL interest after he “significantly reordered his life and has matured,” per Wilson. Whether it’s with the Texans or another team, Arnette would likely have to battle for a spot on a 53-man roster in camp.