This was to be expected. Aiyuk has been the subject of trade rumors this offseason, but with the 49ers set to pay him a $22.85 million bonus on April 1 and no trade offers of note currently on the table, the Niners will prepare to keep the star receiver on the roster this upcoming season. Aiyuk suffered a torn ACL and MCL last season and may not even be ready at the start of the season as he continues to rehab. Lynch said Aiyuk did “very well” at his latest check-in with Dr. ElAttrache, whom he has worked with since his injury. With Deebo Samuel now in Washington and Ricky Pearsall entering his second season, Aiyuk should be in line to see plenty of targets once he’s healthy and back in action.

Payton said he expects Sutton to be at the team’s offseason activities once they ramp up in the coming months. Sutton is coming off one of his best seasons as a pro. The soon-to-be eighth-year vet caught 81 passes for 1,081 yards and eight touchdowns, surpassing the 1,000-yard mark for just the second time in his career. Sutton was only given a “bandaid” adjustment last offseason on his contract after missing team activities and assuredly will want a new deal before the season starts.

This aligns with previous reports from earlier in the month that said the Bengals were still hoping to get a new deal done for Hendrickson, who is in the final year of his contract. The Bengals recently gave record-setting deals to Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and have reportedly been working on a deal with Hendrickson for the last few weeks. Hendrickson is one of the premiere pass rushers in the league and has totaled 35 sacks over the last two seasons. If he and the Bengals can’t agree to a new deal, several teams will be lining up to trade for and extend the 30-year-old star.

Javonte Williams is now with the Cowboys, and the duo of Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estime won’t intimidate many defenses. Paton pointed out the strength of this year’s incoming running backs class when speaking with the media at the NFL owner’s meetings and seems more than ready to find a difference-making back to help Sean Payton’s offense this upcoming season. The Broncos hold the No. 20 pick in the draft and could take a shot on a back in that spot, but with several talented backs expected to be available on Day 2, they’ll have plenty of other options available to them if they prefer to spend their top draft capital elsewhere.

Smith is entering the final year of his deal and declined an offer from the Seahawks shortly before the team moved him to Vegas. The desire for the extension is the whole reason Smith is in Las Vegas. The 34-year-old signal-caller will be a lock to start for the Raiders this season, but he could also serve as a reliable bridge to whoever the Raiders add in the draft to be their eventual franchise QB. Keeping Smith in tow for the next few seasons would bode well for both parties in the short and long term.

Stefanski also added, “Kenny Pickett’s a guy that I believe in.” Well then. The Browns still have next month’s draft to address their quarterback situation and may yet take Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders’ with the No. 2 overall pick. There’s a good chance Stefanski is just trying to say the non-confrontational things in front of the cameras as the team continues to iron out its draft plans. For a coach who should very much be on the hot seat entering 2025, it’s hard to imagine Stefanski wanting to enter the season with Pickett as a starter. Cleveland’s quarterback situation remains the one true vacuum as the league heads towards the draft.

It’s a wordy way of saying, “Yes, we would consider a quarterback in round one.” The Steelers have been in quarterback purgatory ever since Ben Roethlisberger retired at the end of the 2021 season. While Tomlin is hoping Aaron Rodgers will get them over the hump in 2025, it goes without saying that the 41-year-old signal-caller isn’t the long-term solution at the position. The Steelers currently hold the No. 21 pick in this year’s draft and may need to make a Kenny Pickett-like reach if they hope to find their franchise quarterback in the first round. It’s no surprise that Tomlin won’t rule out the possibility, but whether the talent on the board is worthy of the pick is another question entirely.

Richardson’s days as the Colts’ QB1 have never felt more numbered. After years of saying reps were the most important thing for Richardson, Steichen has now said Richardson will “have to take advantage of the reps that he gets.” The Colts gave Jones a one-year, $14 million contract this offseason to come in and compete with Richardson, and it’s safe to say he’ll have a good chance to start come Week 1. Jones is getting $13.15 million in guaranteed money on his deal and will have to compete with a third-year quarterback whose 1,814-8-12 line in 2024 was anything but stellar. Richardson will have a chance to win the QB1 battle in camp, but throughout his career, even at his worst, Jones has looked like a far better quarterback than Richardson.

Hill again hinted at a trade over the weekend after nearly two months of silence on the subject. Following the Dolphins’ Week 18 game against the Jets, the veteran receiver strongly suggested he wanted to play elsewhere in 2025, only to have his agent say days later that he was “committed” to the team heading into next year. McDaniel added that he has no reason to believe Hill won’t be on the team, but we’ll see how things progress from here. Hill, 31, continues to come off as a disgruntled player despite McDaniel suggesting everybody is perfectly gruntled. We’ve seen this play before. The Dolphins appear to have too much riding on this year of their core to trade Hill, but as long as he keeps the rumors flowing, his return for the 2025 season will remain an open question.