PITTSBURGH — Mike Tomlin is not afraid to put up a smokescreen or two during the pre-draft process to keep the other 31 teams guessing. Remember his flirtation with Malik Willis a few years ago, when he had the football world convinced the Steelers were going to take the quarterback out of Liberty University? Or his willingness last Tuesday to...Read more

MIAMI — Shedeur Sanders showed up to the “2Legendary” draft day party he was hosting in a white Bentley, but not the one he purchased/leased and was being driven around in during college, and had a diamond-encrusted dollar sign necklace the size of a paper plate around his neck.

The Colorado quarterback had a musical artist, dancehall’s...Read more

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Kirk Cousins would rather be playing elsewhere so he has a realistic chance to start at quarterback. The Falcons are open to trading Cousins if they could get some value for their backup.

Neither party can get what they want right now — they are stuck together unless the trade market changes.

It doesn’t look strong ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Remember Adrian Klemm?

He got the chance of a lifetime back in 2021 when he was promoted to offensive line coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Then, suddenly, 15 games into the season, he left. In the middle of a playoff run.

The Steelers and their apologists told us there was nothing to see here. Hey, the guy was offered an ...Read more

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The sigh was audible.

Before Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich read a statement and answered questions Wednesday in the media room of team headquarters, he let out a weighty sigh that said as much about his state of mind as anything he said in the roughly four minutes after it. It seemed to speak of contrition, ...Read more

ATLANTA — The NFL fined the Falcons $250,000 and Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich $100,000 for “failing to prevent the disclosure of confidential information distributed to the club in advance of the NFL Draft,” the league office confirmed to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday.

The Falcons issued a statement on Sunday...Read more

NEW YORK — Following the 2025 NFL draft, in which the Jets did not select a quarterback, general manager Darren Mougey was asked about the status of Jordan Travis.

Mougey said he wouldn’t speak publicly on any players who had medical issues coming into the season.

Less than a week later, the 24-year-old quarterback has informed the Jets ...Read more

ATLANTA — The Falcons played hardball with Kirk Cousins. At least from the perspective at this point of the offseason, the strategy appears to have been successful.

After the high-priced quarterback was supplanted by then-rookie Michael Penix Jr. at the end of last season and Cousins clearly wanted out so he could be a starter elsewhere, they...Read more

When it came to George Kittle, the 49ers couldn’t bring themselves to play contract hardball.

Kittle was justly rewarded with a contract extension that should enable him to end his career with the team that made him a fifth-round draft pick in 2017 with a first-time head coach in Kyle Shanahan and a first-time general manager in John Lynch.

...Read more

NEW YORK — Eli Manning has his sights on the Giants.

The two-time Super Bowl winning quarterback is putting together an ownership group to bid for a piece of the Giants, according to Bloomberg.

The report comes months after the Giants announced it was looking to sell up to 10% of the team.

Manning, 44, has spoken to individual investors, ...Read more

NEW YORK — The Giants went 3-14 and still found their way to the White House with the Super Bowl champion Eagles on Monday.

President Donald Trump claimed during the Eagles’ visit — which did not include quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts — that he told the Giants not to let Saquon Barkley leave in free agency last offseason.

�...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Vikings players came back to the team’s practice facility in Eagan for the start of offseason workouts on April 21. Soon after Jonathan Greenard returned to the Vikings’ locker room, he was greeted by a face that had been around the TCO Performance Center for months.

“A lot of people are just saying, ‘How you doing?,’ ...Read more

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — George Kittle’s days as the most prolific tight end in 49ers history are now numbered ... through at least 2029.

Kittle has signed a four-year extension on his contract, which was set to expire after the 2025 season.

The $76.4 million deal averages $19.1 million per year and makes Kittle the NFL’s highest-paid tight...Read more

FORT WORTH, Texas — The old Yiddish saying goes, “Man Plans, and God Laughs,” and there’s another one somewhere that says, “Quarterback Dads Make Plans, and the NFL Laughs Much Harder.”

For the first time in his life, having Deion Sanders as his father worked against Shedeur Sanders.

For the first time since he was a freshman at ...Read more

Which teams fared the best this past weekend in Green Bay, Wis., and which teams missed an opportunity to get better? Here are my draft grades for 2025:

AFC WEST

Denver

— Grade: A

— Draft picks: Round 1 (20 overall) Jahdae Barron, CB, Texas; 2 (60) RJ Harvey, RB, UCF; 3 (74) Pat Bryant, WR, Illinois; 3 (101) Sai’vion Jones, DL, LSU; ...Read more

CHICAGO — Cleveland Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said it best when addressing the story of the defensive coordinator’s 21-year-old son who pranked quarterback Shedeur Sanders on draft day by pretending to be an NFL general manager.

“People are morons,” Stefanski said. “It’s sad.”

Confirmed. Seldom has that been as evident as it ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Eagles’ campaign to prevent the Tush Push from getting banned is getting a boost from President Donald Trump.

At the Super Bowl ceremony on the White House steps leading out to the South Lawn on Monday, Trump touted the iteration of the quarterback sneak that the Eagles have popularized in recent years, which is currently ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Steelers safety Ryan Watts is stepping away from football due to the neck injury that ended his rookie season before it began.

Watts injured his neck during a preseason game against the Lions last summer and spent his rookie season on injured reserve.

"After consulting with our medical team, our medical experts, and Ryan's ...Read more

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts will miss the team’s visit to the White House and meeting with President Trump on Monday.

Hurts and other Eagles players missing the trip have “scheduling conflicts,” the White House told NBC News.

The Eagles’ White House visit, a tradition for all Super Bowl champions, has been hotly debated...Read more