I’m back home after Super Bowl LX, and we have a lot of questions to get to. So here we go …
Buffalo Bills
From Ryan (@RJNYY0): What do the Bills do to address the WR room? Could a draft trade up be in the cards?
Ryan, at this point, I presume the Cowboys will tag George Pickens. That leaves two players who would top my list, if I were a contending team like the Bills looking for receiver help in free agency.
One would be 27-year-old Seahawks receiver Rashid Shaheed, who may be a match made in heaven for Josh Allen—a deep threat who could weaponize Allen’s ability to push the ball downfield. Shaheed’s never had a season with 60 catches or 750 yards, but the potential tied to his game-breaking ability is tantalizing. And until he joined the Seahawks midseason this year, he never had much stability at quarterback.
The other would be 25-year-old Colts receiver Alec Pierce, who had 47 catches, 1,003 yards (that’s a 21.3-yard average) and six touchdowns this year in 15 games. That was after a 37-catch, 824-yard (22.3-yard average), seven-touchdown season in 2025, with a really challenging quarterback situation. Add Pierce’s 6'3", 211-pound frame to the equation, and how he would fit alongside Khalil Shakir and Dalton Kincaid, and he’d be the one for me.
We’ll see what happens, but add Pierce to Shakir, Kincaid, Keon Coleman, Dawson Knox and James Cook, and I think Allen would be positioned for a real run.
Atlanta Falcons
From Rahtid (@bloodclaat416): What happens with James Pierce Jr. next year? Do the Falcons keep Kyle Pitts? Where does Tyler Allgeier end up? Does Kevin Stefanski bring David Njoku to ATL?????
Rahtid, the details of Pierce’s arrest are awful. He’ll have his day in court, of course, but given the information we have now on his five felony charges, I think the Falcons have to operate as if they won’t have him for quite some time. And while we haven’t had the chance to hear his account, Pierce was off a lot of teams’ boards last April due to a slew of character questions, which is part of why the Falcons picked squeaky-clean Jalon Walker before him.
Kyle Pitts had a terrific, breakout season—going for 928 yards and five scores on 88 catches—that very few people saw coming. There will be teams after him. He could be a nice replacement for Travis Kelce in Kansas City if the veteran tight end retires. The Giants could bring him in as a gift to Jaxson Dart, and that Kelce role would exist for him in Matt Nagy’s offense. The Buccaneers could be an interesting destination as well, with ex-Atlanta OC Zac Robinson now there. And if Pitts gets too pricey, then, sure, David Njoku would be an option.
As for Tyler Allgeier, I’m presuming he’s gone and will get a nice payday somewhere. And it’s not that the Falcons don’t like Allgeier, but there’s a megacontract on the horizon for Bijan Robinson. I think it’s difficult to forecast a landing spot for him, though, because I’d put him behind Breece Hall and Kenneth Walker III in the free-agent running back pecking order.
New York Giants
From Spinal (@GucciSpinal): how much pressure is on John Harbaugh to fix the Giants’ offense immediately with Jaxson Dart?
Spinal, I don’t think it’s an unheard of amount of pressure. He isn’t the guy who picked Dart, so there’s a little leeway there. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to develop Dart, or that Dart hitting wouldn’t be best for him. He does, and it would be. It’s just that it’s a bit different when the player wasn’t your pick.
I do like how the staff that will work to develop the young quarterback is coming together. There is pressure on Matt Nagy as a play-caller, of course. But his pass-game expertise, combined with what ex-Titans coach Brian Callahan will bring to the table, and Greg Roman’s run game, there’s potential for some pretty cool stuff. To get an idea of what this will look like, you could check out Alex Smith and the 2017 Chiefs.
My guess would be that Dart has a nice sophomore year.
Los Angeles Chargers
From M (@MattOfTheSouth): Rashawn Slater’s injury was a notorious one to come back from, what do we think his chances are of coming back at his best and will he be ready for training camp?
First of all, M, yes, a ruptured patellar tendon is a bad injury for a big man. It affects your power, explosiveness and ability to push off the leg. So it’s not just coming back, but getting all the way back that will be the question for Slater. Chiefs rookie Josh Simmons had a pretty unbelievable comeback from the injury last year. He incurred the injury in mid-October of his final year at Ohio State, then did not miss a day of training camp before starting Week 1, but he was considered an outlier. It generally takes a full year for guys to come back from this one.
The good news is that Slater’s injury happened so early on—he went down on Aug. 7 of last summer—that he should have a chance to be at or near full strength for camp. So with respect for how serious the injury is, it’s alright to be cautiously optimistic that the Chargers will have a fully healthy tackle tandem of Slater and Joe Alt ready for opening day.
Cincinnati Bengals
From George Hiotis (@Hiotis4Life): What do you expect the Bengals to do with Trey Hendrickson and will they go after tier 1 free agents on defense?
George, I’d be pretty surprised if Hendrickson ended up back in Cincinnati next year. The Bengals gave him a big raise, up to $29 million last year, and only got seven games out of him, and there were real questions on how much he did to push through injuries. (Particularly when juxtaposed with how maniacal Joe Burrow was in trying to return from his toe injury ahead of schedule.)
And yes, I could see the Bengals aggressively pursuing free agents on defense. Should Hendrickson depart, landing someone like Eagles free-agent Jaelan Phillips would make a lot of sense. A free-agent safety, like Seattle’s Coby Bryant or Kansas City’s Bryan Cook, would, too. We’ll see if they get the commitment from ownership to spend to add to a unit with some promising young pieces (Shemar Stewart, DJ Turner II and Demetrius Knight Jr.).
Pittsburgh Steelers
From Burghie (@houseofburgh412): What does the Steelers’ offseason look like?
I’d say the first thing the Steelers need to do is to determine their overall course and whether it’s time to start the teardown. Some took the hiring of Mike McCarthy as a sign that the Rooneys don’t want to undergo a rebuild, or at least not one now, which would color decisions on their raft of older players, and perhaps create some urgency in how they put together the 2026 team.
Along those lines, the first order of business for Pittsburgh will be getting a decision from Aaron Rodgers on his plans for this year. If he’s not returning, finding a quarterback is obviously at the top of the list. If he is, it might make sense for the Steelers to land a running back like Hall or Walker, and maybe a corner.
Las Vegas Raiders
From Raiders Got Fernando (@Raidersareback2): Raiders coaching staff names?
On offense, my guess is that Klint Kubiak will bring Seahawks quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko with him. Janocko has been the QBs coach at all three of Kubiak’s stops as an offensive coordinator, and has earned his shot to be an OC. The only thing I see preventing that move is if Mike Macdonald offered Janocko the chance to call plays in Seattle. In that case, my guess is Kubiak would turn to Seahawks line coach John Benton to be his coordinator in Vegas.
It’s a little more complicated on the defensive side of the ball. The Raiders have sniffed around on Jim Schwartz, but it seems Schwartz might be content to sit out a year, with the possibility that Vic Fangio retires after 2026, which would open the Eagles’ DC job in ’27.
Assuming Schwartz isn’t available, Chiefs defensive line coach Joe Cullen, Seahawks pass-game coordinator Karl Scott, Browns linebackers coach Jason Tarver and Vegas’s own defensive backs coach Joe Woods (whom I’ve heard is likely to stay in some capacity) are DC names on Kubiak’s radar.
Texans secondary coach Dino Vasso was on the list, too, before signing a new deal in Houston.
From BurnieWilliams (@BurnieWilliams): I don’t want to trade Maxx Crosby but if he wants out wouldn’t the Rams make the most sense? Maxx for pick No. 13 and 61? Rams would keep pick No. 29. Rams trying to make one last run with Matt Stafford. Maxx has built his dream home in Vegas and going to L.A. would keep him close.
I’m not sure the Rams make sense. They have a decision to make on paying Byron Young this year. He had 12 sacks, is headed into his fourth year and he plays opposite star edge rusher Jared Verse, who’ll be eligible to do a massive second deal with the Rams in a year. So while you never say never, I’d guess the Rams have other areas (like corner) that they want to attack first.
That said, there are a lot of teams that make sense as Crosby suitors. Including both Super Bowl teams. And you’re right to think he’ll cost a first-rounder and then some.
Chicago Bears
From BunchaNumbers (@Gusdabearzfan): Who starts at left tackle for the Bears next year?
Buncha, it’s pretty complicated. Do you re-sign Braxton Jones? Do you make a run at someone like Rasheed Walker in free agency? The unfortunate thing is that Ozzy Trapilo should be the easy answer to the question. The 2025 rookie performed well enough that he could at least have been penciled in as the placeholder, and maybe even the long-term answer at left tackle, before rupturing his patellar tendon.
Now? Well, you can refer back to what we said above about Slater. That injury is a tough one, and, since he was hurt in January, it’d be tough to count on getting a lot from Trapilo in his second season.
Given all this, the Bears’ best bet may be finding a left tackle with the 25th pick in the draft.
Washington Commanders
From brandon (@JayDanielsMVP): Do you see the Commanders being aggressive spenders in free agency considering they want to get younger?
Yes, Brandon, I expect the Commanders to be active. They have a lot of free agents, plenty of older players who could be on the way out, Jayden Daniels is midway through his rookie contract and there’s pressure on a coaching staff that went through a lot of turnover at the end of the 2025 season.
The defense, with new coordinator Daronte Jones aboard and a lot of key players up, will likely look markedly different.
New York Jets
From Paul Andrew Esden Jr (@BoyGreen25): Is a Derek Carr–Bill Musgrave reunion with the Jets on the table? If so, what would NYJ have to give up in trade compensation to acquire him? What’s the timeline for this potential thing?
I don’t know what the trade comp would be, but it would probably happen between now and the beginning of the new league year in March. Carr’s leverage in forcing a trade would be that his return from retirement would have serious cap implications, and that alone, I think, would force the Saints to play ball with him on a move.
I also don’t think Carr will do it for just any team. Getting him to go to the Jets might take some convincing, though he was right there at the top of the Jets’ list in 2023 and might have gone there had Rodgers not.
New England Patriots
From Dave Del Rio (@CelticsBeam): Will NE move Will Campbell to LG, draft or sign a new LT and move Jared Wilson to C?
I think Wilson is probably moving to center. I also think the Patriots will move forward with Campbell at left tackle, though my guess is they’ll stay loose on any potential options at the position. Campbell’s a good player, but the reality is a lot of people have seen him as a guard dating back to before last year’s draft. Can he be a Jake Matthews type of left tackle? Sure. And that gives New England some flexibility.
They can move forward with Campbell there and upgrade at guard. Or they can go big-game hunting and get a left tackle, and move Campbell inside (and a lot of those folks who think he’s a guard believe he has All-Pro potential at that position).
My guess is how they go long-term will be dictated by what opportunities they’re presented with. Which is the right way to approach it.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Albert Breer’s Mailbag: How the Bills Can Help Josh Allen in Free Agency .
