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Will Pro Day performance of Tennessee CB Jermod McCoy throw a wrench into 1st round draft expectations?

· Yahoo Sports

Tennessee defensive back Jermod McCoy (3) yells while carrying a deflated gator after defeating Florida during a NCAA football game between Tennessee and Florida in Neyland Stadium, in Knoxville, Tenn., Oct. 12, 2024. | Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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NFL Draft Profile: WR Jordyn Tyson

One of the biggest debates I’ve seen doing the rounds among the Commanders fanbase is that of wide receiver prospect Carnell Tate vs fellow wide receiver prospect Jordyn Tyson. While it’s not quite as heated as the Jayden Daniels vs Drake Maye debate of 2024, it’s clearly divided a chunk of the fans as each have a strong preference of one over the other. Yesterday, I broke down Tate’s game, but today it’s the turn of Arizona State receiver Jordyn Tyson.

Visit afsport.lat for more information.

At 6-foot-2, 203 pounds, Tyson is a big, athletic receiver with a lot of upside. Personally, I think he’s still a little bit raw when compared to Tate, who is very polished. But you can certainly see the potential for Tyson to develop into a very good receiver in his own right. One of the things that stands out right away with Tyson is the shiftiness in his route running. He can be a little inconsistent and perhaps doesn’t have the same variety of moves as Tate does, but the moves he does have are very effective when he gets them right.

Commanders Roundtable

Makai Lemon Scouting Report: USC Star the ideal Commanders WR2?

The need is pretty evident. The Commanders need a major influx of offensive talent to complement Terry McLaurin and to help ease his transition as he moves away from the team’s primary receiver. Terry has carried the weight of the passing game for years, but he has never been a “target monster” by volume, and the offense would benefit from a player who can soak up 100+ targets. With Treylon Burks and Dyami Brown currently serving as role players, the depth chart lacks a reliable, high-ceiling WR2.

Lemon would provide Jayden Daniels with a premier safety valve in the mold of Amon-Ra St. Brown or a “Puka Nacua-lite.” While he lacks Nacua’s size, he offers that same “target hound” mentality in the middle of the field. He is a reliable chain-mover for second-and-long and a high-IQ zone buster who gives Daniels a consistent outlet under pressure.

His skill set perfectly complements McLaurin, who excels as a linear runner taking shots downfield. Lemon would be the most talented slot receiver in DC since Jamison Crowder, pairing with Chig Okonkwo to give Washington two legitimate threats who can dominate the intermediate areas and generate yards after contact.

Although he may be “rich” for the number seven overall selection, the Commanders could seek his services in a trade back situation. 

A to Z Sports

Commanders are showing a strong interest in WR De’Zhaun Stribling

The Washington Commanders could take the best player available in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft and wait to land a top WR with their remaining picks

I personally like Stribling more than Ted Hurst, Ja’Kobi Lane, and Bryce Lance, who are all projected to go notably higher than him. Stribling is a big-body WR at 6-2, 207 pounds, but he is also much faster than expected after he ran a 4.36 40-yard dash. He has strong, reliable hands with just a 1.8% drop rate in 2025, and he can go up and catch any ball.

Stribling has elite body control and brings a competitive toughness to win contested catches or by running over defenders with his blocking skills. He would be the perfect fit for the Commanders on the outside and has the upside as a high-end WR2 in the NFL.

Commanders Roundtable

Washington Commanders sign former Giants defensive lineman DJ Davidson

Davidson, a former fifth round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, adds depth to the nose tackle rotation after becoming a rotational piece in New York over the last three years. His first career start came in week 12 of the 2023 season against the New England Patriots before starting again in week 16 against the Philadelphia Eagles, finishing the season with 13 total tackles including six solo. Davidson also notched his first career sack in week three of the 2023 season against the San Francisco 49ers.

His best season came in 2024 when he notched 12 solo tackles and 23 total tackles while playing in 35% of the Giants’ defensive staffs, while he drew at least 30% of snaps in all four seasons in New York. He notched two sacks in week five against the Seattle Seahawks, also proving to be his last sack after finishing the 2025 season without one.

Davidson was also placed on injured reserve in the final week of the 2025 regular season after suffering a neck injury and concussion, ending the year with nine total tackles and one pass deflection in 15 appearances.

Still, Davidson arrives bolstering the front seven with Settle offering versatility as either a nose or defensive tackle, while the Commanders moved quickly to address the edge rushers by signing Odafe Oweh, K’Lavon Chaisson and Charles Omenihu during the first week, signings that have helped address key positions as the Commanders look to generate more pressure consistently after a lackluster showing in 2025. Washington also re-signed several pieces in the trenches with Shy Tuttle, Deatrich Wise Jr and Drake Jackson with Dorance Armstrong also set to return as new defensive line coach Eric Henderson takes over the unit after being announced last month.

NFL.com

2026 NFL Draft: Projecting win-win trades teams SHOULD make in Round 1

My first proposed deal might be the biggest stretch of the lot, but rest assured, I did my best to find trades that had purpose and relative balance for all parties. Oh, and please be sure to let me know how angry these suggestions make you.

First off, I don’t think LaPorta will be traded. But it wouldn’t totally floor me if he was. LaPorta has been great, and losing him hurts Detroit’s offense, but the big picture must be considered: LaPorta is entering the final year of his rookie deal and is coming off back surgery.

It’s not hard to imagine why the Commanders would want LaPorta, especially with David Blough (who was on Detroit’s practice squad LaPorta’s rookie season) calling plays. Washington should still find a receiver or defensive help readily at No. 17.

Why would Detroit move up to seven? I suspect to acquire a foundational left tackle. That position is their biggest remaining worry, and their guy might not last until 17. It would be a big risk, but a potentially smart one financially and football-wise, and Brad Holmes has never shied away from making waves in Round 1.

ESPN

2026 NFL annual league meeting: Latest buzz from Phoenix

A lingering question for Washington: Who will be the receiver opposite Terry McLaurin?

The Commanders have improved their depth at the position after re-signing Trey Burks and bringing back Dyami Brown to pair with Luke McCaffrey and Jaylin Lane. However, they can still use another high-end talent.

“Terry’s a No. 1 receiver. I think [Burks has] another level to go to,” GM Adam Peters said. “He showed us a lot at practice and in the games. … I like the room right now, but I think just like everywhere, we have a lot of time to add before we play in September.”

Or, as coach Dan Quinn said, “it can also be combinations and the sum is greater than an individual part.”

Washington could draft a receiver at No. 7 — possibly Carnell Tate. Adding picks will be difficult as Peters said enticing another team to trade up will be tough without another quarterback expected to go in the top 10.

But Brandon Aiyuk remains a possibility. The Commanders won’t trade for him, knowing the 49ers likely will cut him at some point. But multiple Commanders sources made it clear they’re not going to just wait on him and bypass other potential options.

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Most Valuable 2026 NFL Draft Prospects & OROY Predictions | Get Loud | Washington Commanders

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Bleeding Green Nation

Philadelphia must find a way to get right up front

The Eagles paid a price for winning Super Bowl LIX—a beat up offensive line that opened holes for Saquon Barkley’s NFL-record 2024 season (for most rushing yards in a single season with 2,504). It meant playing more games, taking more punishment, and having less time to recover and rebuild from the previous season. It is the cost the NFL exacts for winning.

Regrettably, the Eagles’ offensive line deteriorated in 2025. Left tackle Jordan Mailata, left guard Landon Dickerson, and center Cam Jurgens had poor seasons—by their standards. According to Pro Football Focus, the Eagles went from the No. 1 offensive line in football in 2024 to No. 7 in 2025. Mailata went from the No. 1 left tackle in the NFL to No. 6 (dropping from a 95.8 grade to 88.1), Dickerson took the most precipitous fall, going from No. 9 to No. 30 (79.2 dropped to 67.5), Jurgens fell from No. 13 to No. 19 (67.1 dropped to 66.0) and future Hall of Famer, right tackle Lane Johnson, went No. 7 to No. 18 (85.4 dropped to 77.4).

A major reason for their demise is that Johnson, who will turn 36 in May, Dickerson and Jurgens all played hurt last year.

Johnson suffered a Lisfranc ligament sprain in his left foot during the November 16, 2025, game against the Detroit Lions, forcing him to miss seven games and taking just 450 snaps, the fewest snaps he took since the 2020 season, when he took 404 snaps in a season derailed by an ankle injury playing in just seven game. At 36, how much longer can Johnson be counted on or expected to play 12 games or more in a season?

Dickerson was contemplating retirement this offseason, after taking a career-low 836 snaps in 2025, down for the second-straight year (2023: 1,046; 2024: 996) after battling a meniscus injury in training camp and with back and ankle problems in 2025. Jurgens went from 1,068 snaps in 2024 to a career-low 801 in 2025 recovering from offseason back surgery. He went public recently on a podcast explaining that he had a herniated disk in the 2024 Super Bowl playoff run and then went further to say the disc broke off and wrapped around his sciatic nerve in his lower back. The pain was so great, Jurgens said, he could barely walk. He says he feels fine now.

The Eagles’ offensive line last year was held together by bubble gum and duct tape. They just could not block anyone.

Jason Kelce, who compensated for Jalen Hurts and knew where the call MIKE linebacker was when defenses switched the number count on motion plays.

It is a reason why Kevin Patullo ran basic stuff last season, because Jurgens and Hurts sometimes could not pick that up. Patullo may have been blamed for more than he was actually responsible for. Part of the Eagles’ offensive inefficiency may have been Hurts going off script.

Mannion’s offense will also require Hurts to be under center more and put his back to the field on play-action plays, something Hurts does not like doing. We’ll see if that changes under Mannion. Hurts also likes to throw in open windows if a receiver is absolutely open, not timing routes hitting receivers in stride.

[T]here are issues here. Serious problems that could scuttle the upcoming 2026 season.

ESPN

Inside Eagles’ 2025 friction as Jalen Hurts stands at crossroads

The Philadelphia Eagles were teetering, poised for a Jenga-like collapse in front of a fatalistic home crowd scarred from a challenging 2025 season of offensive football.

With 43 seconds left in a wild-card playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers, offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo fiddled with his red pen, scanning the play sheet. Quarterback Jalen Hurts stood in front of him, speaking to his playcaller over Hurts’ left shoulder. Coach Nick Sirianni was nearby, listening to the chatter. A few assistants and backup Tanner McKee were within earshot.

Patullo addressed Hurts and Sirianni directly, suggesting what appeared to be a playcall for a game-deciding fourth down. Sirianni made eye contact with Patullo, then looked at Hurts as if he was open to input.

A brief deliberation resulted in the simplest of football plans: a play known as “four verts,” which the Eagles had just run on the previous play. But this time, the 49ers were all over it, with three defenders collapsing on tight end Dallas Goedert over the middle for a failed attempt to then win and recapture their own playoff magic.

As one team source recalled, Hurts was the one who recommended four verts. A separate source with knowledge of the situation says that though the Eagles’ quarterback did suggest it, he was simply responding to a question about his preferences.

Either way, not everyone with the offense was thrilled.

“I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is not happening,'” the team source said. “We can’t run four verts.”

Though it’s unclear what other plays were considered, if any, Sirianni ultimately approved Hurts’ suggestion. Within seconds, the plan — and a premature offseason vacation — was in motion.

The failed play accentuates the crossroads that awaits Hurts and the Eagles’ coaching staff in 2026. The passing operation has fallen into deep ruts over the past several seasons, forcing the most expensive offensive roster in football to become overly reliant on the success of Saquon Barkley and the ground game. It has been an ongoing source of angst for some internally — most publicly expressed by star receiver A.J. Brown, the subject of trade talks this offseason. Some of that growing frustration in 2025 was directed at Hurts, team sources said, including by Brown, whose longstanding relationship with the quarterback has been tested over their four years in Philadelphia.

ESPN interviewed more than a dozen sources to pull back the curtain on what’s ailing an Eagles offense full of notable talent, including at quarterback.

Hurts will change plays when he sees fit. Though many established quarterbacks have such freedom, especially at the line of scrimmage when noticing a defensive tendency, some within the team consider his changes excessive at times. A key example came in the closing seconds of a 10-7 win against the Green Bay Packers in November. Sirianni’s questionable decision to go for it on fourth-and-6 from Green Bay’s 35-yard line with 33 seconds left, holding a three-point lead on a Packers team that was out of timeouts, was exacerbated by the play choice — a deep shot to Brown down the left sideline that fell incomplete.

Sirianni covered for them, but cameras caught him mouthing “Why?” following the long pass. Smith acknowledged to ESPN afterward that “1 and 11” — Hurts and Brown — made the decision to go for the kill shot.

Eagles offensive players know Hurts isn’t afraid to change plays he doesn’t like and must adjust accordingly, a team source said. Added a separate team source, “You never know what play is coming out of the huddle” when Hurts is leading it, and in the past he has been known to signal a route that hadn’t been installed by coaches.

Blogging the Boys

The NFL draft is exciting, but so is undrafted free agency

If you’re a college free agent, one of the better teams to sign with is Dallas. Everybody knows how the Cowboys developed UDFAs like Tony Romo and Miles Austin into NFL superstars, but there are many more UDFAs on the roster in Dallas. Last year alone:

  • Eight former UDFAs started at least one game for the Cowboys: Terence Steele (17 starts), Brevyn Spann-Ford (5), Hunter Luepke (5), T.J. Bass (5), Juanyeh Thomas (3), Markquese Bell (3), KaVontae Turpin (2), and Alijah Clark (1) all started at least one game for the Cowboys
  • Eight former UDFAs (Brandon Aubrey, Malik Davis, Josh Butler, Princeton Fant, Jalen Moreno-Cropper, Isaiah Land, Zion Childress, Justin Barron) all saw playing time

And it’s not just playing time these UDFAs get, some of them have translated their original UDFA contract into multi-million extensions in Dallas or elsewhere. Just from the rookie classes since 2020, six players have signed such contracts: KaVontae Turpin (DAL: 3-yr, $13.5 million), Brandon Aubrey (DAL: 1-yr, $5.8 million), Terence Steele (DAL: 5-yr, $82.5 million), Rico Dowdle (CAR: 1-yr, $2.7 million, PIT: 2-yr, $12.3 million), Markquese Bell (DAL: 3-yr, $9.0 million), Hunter Luepke (DAL: 2-yr, $7.0 million).

The Cowboys’ history with UDFAs is not just a bit of nice-to-know trivia shared with you on a lazy morning. It’s an argument the Cowboys actively use when competing for the players available immediately after the draft, as Will McClay explained to The Athletic:

“We’re looking at guys and it’s a competition,” Cowboys vice president of player personnel Will McClay said after the draft. “It’s almost a free market. We’re talking to guys about opportunities and the best chance for them to get on the field. We talk about our history with free agents and guys making the roster.”

The Cowboys’ success with college free agents is more than simple luck. One of the reasons for their success with UDFAs is that Chris Hall doesn’t allow his scouts to “come off grade”. If they had a grade on a guy before the draft, they have to stick with it after the draft. Which means that after the draft, they try and sign every guy still left on their draft board, as the Cowboys feel those players effectively amount to extra draft picks.

After the 2024 draft, Stephen Jones said Dallas had about 10 players left on their board that they were trying to sign as free agents. Of those 10, the Cowboys say they ended up landing half.

But with just over $200K to work with, it’s hard to provide a significant financial incentive for a prospective UDFA to sign with your team, so over the last 10 or so years, some particularly enterprising teams have figured out that the best way to work with the UDFA signing bonus cap is to work around it – just like most teams are doing with the salary cap.

In 2015, for example, the Cowboys stunned the NFL when they signed La’El Collins to a standard 3-year UDFA contract, but guaranteed the entire contract of then $1.7 million.

Pro Football Talk

Odell Beckham met with John Harbaugh at league meeting in Arizona

Free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and Giants head coach John Harbaugh sat down together at this week’s league meeting in Arizona.

No deal is imminent but the Giants do have interest in bringing Beckham back, according to ESPN.

Harbaugh, who coached Beckham in 2023 on the Ravens, said at the league meeting that he and Beckham have remained in touch, and that he considers Beckham one of his favorite people in the world.

Beckham didn’t play at all last season, and Giants General Manager Joe Schoen said the Giants would need to work him out before they’d sign him.

“Somebody that hasn’t played, in this instance you’re talking about Odell hasn’t played in a year, you’d certainly want to see him work out,” Schoen said.

Beckham hasn’t gained even 600 receiving yards in a season since 2019, so he’s long past the days when he was one of the best wide receivers in the NFL.

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Articles

ESPN

Are owners worried about contingency plan for replacement refs?

I asked multiple head coaches, general managers and owners on and off the record about the league’s proposed accountability measures to improve officiating and the league’s contingency plan in case of a lockout, and hit a bunch of brick walls, with most declining to comment out of respect for the negotiating process.

League sources familiar with the negotiations told ESPN on Monday that they are preparing to hire replacement officials in the event of a work stoppage, and will start that process May 1. On Tuesday, owners voted to approve a rules proposal that allows the officiating department to correct clear and obvious mistakes for one year in the event of a work stoppage. I didn’t get the sense that there was anxiety from coaches or owners about this contingency plan, which surprised me, considering how much of a disaster the 2012 lockout was.

“I trust the league,” San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York told me on Monday, when I asked him if he thought the contingency plan was a valid option.

Another club owner who requested anonymity told me Monday: “We have to be prepared for everything.”

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones addressed the topic in more depth than any other owner: “Everybody’s been striving, that’s nothing new, to try to get better,” he said. “But it’s our job to put the incentives in place and demands in place to get better. Fans deserve that.” — Kalyn Kahler

NFL.com

NFL approves 1-year rule allowing replay center to correct mistakes by potential replacement refs

The NFL’s competition committee approved a one-year rule for the upcoming season that would allow the replay center in New York to correct “clear and obvious mistakes made by on-field officials that impact the game” in case of a work stoppage involving the NFL Referees Association.

It was one of multiple rules changes announced Tuesday at the Annual League Meeting.

The league and the NFL Referees Association have been negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement since the summer of 2024. The current CBA expires May 31.

Another rule change approved Tuesday allows the replay center in New York to consult with on-field officials when considering ejections for both flagrant football acts and non-football acts that weren’t called on the field.

The change comes after Pittsburgh receiver DK Metcalf wasn’t ejected from a game at Detroit last season when he got into an altercation with a heckling fan. Because the on-field officials didn’t see when Metcalf swiped at the fan and so didn’t throw a flag, the replay center was unable to eject Metcalf.

The league did suspend him for two games, but he was able to remain in the game at the time.

There were also three rules that affect kickoffs, including one that permits the kicking team to declare an onside kick at any time during the game, regardless of the score. Previously, only the trailing team could attempt an onside kick.

NFL Draft

ESPN

Solak’s favorite NFL draft prospects to watch at every position: the best tape in this class

Wide receiver: Germie Bernard, Alabama

Consider the list of ridiculous athletes at wide receiver to graduate from Alabama. Pass over the classics (Julio Jones, Amari Cooper, etc.) and just look at recent history: Jaylen Waddle, DeVonta Smith, Jerry Jeudy and Jameson Williams. Bernard is … not in that group.

That isn’t to say Bernard is a bad athlete. He’s solid all across the board, with a 4.48-second 40-yard dash, 10-foot-5 broad jump, 32½-inch vertical jump and 6.71-second three-cone drill, all at 6-1 and 206 pounds. But Bernard’s athleticism does not jump off the film. He isn’t leaving corners in the dust or dropping highlight-reel jukes.

But he does everything well — and I mean everything. Bernard will dig out a linebacker to spring a handoff on one play, stretch a safety to open another route on the next play, grind out some tough YAC on an RPO on another play, and then cut up a mean route to separate downfield on the next play. Look at the stopping power and upfield displacement he gets on this block against Oklahoma in the College Football Playoff. This matters for light personnel teams that need their wide receivers to contribute in the running game.

Bernard is unlikely to become a volume-dominant WR1 at the NFL level, nor will he fill the ever important WR2/WR3 role of big-play merchant. But for those teams that want to field three receivers, Bernard’s dirty work will maximize the wideouts who are in those roles. Because he has good hands and runs good routes, he still can punish defenses who forget about him. Bernard led the Tide in receptions in each of the past two seasons — his only two with the team after transferring in from Washington — which speaks to his reliability and QB friendliness.

Think about what Jauan Jennings has been for the 49ers over the past few seasons. That’s the sort of role Bernard can fill right away, with the potential to become a Jakobi Meyers-esque stick mover over time.

Center: Sam Hecht, Kansas State

It’s a loaded class for experienced centers. We have Logan Jones out of Iowa, Connor Lew out of Auburn, Pat Coogan out of Indiana and Jake Slaughter from Florida. For my money, the best of the lot is Hecht. He’s not the heaviest center at 303 pounds, but he carries a ton of mass in his lower half and can exchange power for power with nose tackles 30 pounds his superior. He gave more trouble to my interior defensive lineman pick for the All-Film team than anyone else last season. (See below.)

Hecht doesn’t have the length to be late on blocks, so he’s an urgent and springy mover with scheme versatility. His feet never die on contact, and he has clearly poured hours into the technical side of the position. Hecht has teach-tape footwork when getting out on pulls and climbs, and the variety of punches and hand placements he uses to bait out rush moves or create torque in the running game is impressive. He rarely needs to reset his hands, as his first strike is so reliably sound — the hallmark of a technician.

In build and in play style, Hecht is cut from the cloth of Creed Humphrey. But he lacks Humphrey’s raw power and ridiculous explosiveness, so he takes a lot of plays to stalemates instead of emphatic wins. Still, on a shotgun- or RPO-heavy team that asks its center to wear a lot of hats, Hecht can be a plus starter, especially if he’s insulated by supersize guards.

Hecht is a fringe Day 2 prospect probably more likely to go on Day 3, but I’d take him comfortably in the third round, and I’d place a lot of marbles on him outplaying a few centers who ultimately get selected above him.

Running back: Jadarian Price, Notre Dame

For the first time in NFL draft history, an RB2 is the RB2. Price is projected as a Round 2 pick, and if he is indeed the second running back selected after Fighting Irish teammate Jeremiyah Love, it will mark the first time teammates have been the first two running backs taken off the board.

Though Price was unquestionably the second fiddle behind Love, he still had 233 carries over the past two seasons to Love’s 362, thanks in large part to the high volume at which Notre Dame ran the football. That 233-carry sample is more than enough on which to base an evaluation. Bills running back James Cook III had only 230 career carries over four seasons before he was drafted in the second round out of Georgia, and new Commanders back Rachaad White had 224 carries at the Power 5 level before he went to the Bucs in the third round out of Arizona State.

And Price’s 233 carries are good. A loose athlete at 5-11 and 203 pounds, he’s a more creative runner with quicker eyes and decision-making than Love. Price reliably puts the first would-be tackler in bad positions by manipulating tempo and activating his off hand, creating a ton of yardage after first contact. Love is the superior prospect for his receiving ability and explosive open-field speed, while Price is more of a tricky projection to the NFL. He’s not a high-impact pass protector or pass catcher, so he needs to find a home as an early-down, high-volume, ground-and-pound ball carrier. Those roles don’t open up often.

But teams that already have a receiving back that they want to protect from 300-plus carries over the course of a season should prioritize Price.

For Discussion

The Athletic (paywall)

Frank Ragnow repaying bonus not good optics for Lions — and a familiar position

“This is interesting,” Kelce wrote on X. “It feels like it’s obvious that Frank retired because he was physically fighting through injuries and pain, and it got to a point that he no longer could play the game in an enjoyable, effective, or healthy way. … What makes this interesting is that Frank likely retired “voluntarily,” meaning, he wasn’t declared medically unfit to play by a doctor, which allows the team to ask for a prorated amount of his signing bonus back. Had he been medically deemed unfit to play football by a doctor before he retired, the team wouldn’t be able to recoup part of the signing bonus.

“Let me say this first, if a player truly just retires without reason, or because they’ve lost the desire to play, I completely get and acknowledge teams should be able to recoup compensation when players don’t fulfill their contractual obligations and agreements. However, Frank was known for being hurt and playing through injuries most players wouldn’t play through constantly. … His body clearly had deteriorated to a degree that made football no longer a viable option, physically, and probably mentally. In my opinion, the signing bonus is supposed to protect players from future physical ailments limiting their availability on the field, that’s one of the reasons you want more guaranteed money upfront. While I get that the team has a right to ask for money back, in the spirit of the agreement, I think it’s bulls––– Frank is being asked to return money.”

What a cap expert had to say

Jason Fitzgerald, founder of Over the Cap, shared his thoughts on the Ragnow situation earlier Tuesday. In 2021, Ragnow signed a four-year, $54 million extension with two years remaining on his rookie contract, essentially turning it into a six-year contract through the 2026 season. He was given a $6 million signing bonus as part of the new deal. Ragnow played out four of the six years, but because he retired in 2025, a portion of the bonus was subject to forfeiture.

Here’s what Fitzgerald wrote:

“To chase after a signing bonus, when there is only one year left that you can chase after the bonus, and after 67 percent of a long-term contract has been honored, is petty on the part of a team. This was not a blindside situation. He had been contemplating retirement and it was very clear that the team knew this since he announced his retirement on June 2, which was the day the Lions could place him on the retired list and split his dead money across two years. He didn’t belittle the team, demand more money, or anything else. In fact, he tried to come out of retirement during the year and it didn’t work out. I don’t think any other team in the NFL would have done this, to be honest, even though it is their right.”

Lions president Rod Wood, set to retire after 11 years in the role, told the Detroit Free Press this week that the Lions sought a portion of Frank Ragnow’s prorated signing bonus back, after the former All-Pro center retired abruptly last June at the age of 29. Ragnow suffered a number of serious injuries in his career and cited a desire to prioritize his health in his retirement announcement, after years of putting his body on the line for his teammates. An attempted comeback in November when the Lions needed center help was further proof of that, but a failed physical revealed he’d suffered a grade 3 hamstring strain — a complete tear. The Lions signed former Panthers center Cade Mays to a three-year deal in free agency, signaling a new era at the position.

And yet, this headline reads as more of the same from the franchise.

Not long after Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders retired three years into a six-year contract, he was ordered by an arbitrator to pay back a portion of his signing bonus. The relationship between player and team was strained for years, before a reconciliation occurred years later — only for the Lions to have another falling out with one of their own. The organization asked Hall of Fame wide receiver Calvin Johnson to repay $1.6 million of his signing bonus when he retired in 2016. Johnson was publicly critical of the organization and the relationship deteriorated. However, the Lions and Johnson were eventually able to smooth things over and are now on good terms.

All this to say, the Lions have a habit of asking their stars for their money back.

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