The Houston Texans have signed fourth-round rookie running back Woody Marks to a four-year, $5.2 million deal. Houston traded up to acquire the rights to the USC alum, sending a future third-rounder to the Miami Dolphins. Marks was a four-year player at Mississippi State and a prolific pass-catcher, particularly in his first two collegiate seasons when he totaled 143 receptions, 770 yards, and three touchdowns. He slowed down from there, but still caught at least 47 balls in two of his final three campaigns, including his last at USC. The 24-year-old isn't a burner, but don't confuse him with an early-down thumper. He's a decisive runner who trusts his blocking and possesses enough burst and shake to get to and through the second level consistently. Teammate Joe Mixon is the unquestioned RB1 in Houston, but there's little reason to think Marks couldn't challenge for backup duties. Due to his prowess as a receiver out of the backfield, seeing him garner snaps in those situations early on wouldn't be surprising.

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Former Tennessee Titans defensive lineman Isaiah Iton has agreed to terms on a one-year, $840,000 contract with the New England Patriots. The Houston native signed as an undrafted free agent with Tennessee following the 2024 NFL Draft, but did not make the team's active roster. Instead, he spent the entirety of last season on the Titans' practice squad. Iton spent his three collegiate seasons with two schools, transferring to Rutgers to complete his senior year after two campaigns with Ole Miss. Over 36 games at the college level, the 23-year-old amassed an unremarkable 62 tackles, one sack, and five tackles for loss. He'll compete for snaps on the Patriots' defensive front and is currently listed third at right-defensive end (unofficially) behind teammates Christian Barmore and Joshua Farmer.

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Free agent linebacker Jaylon Smith has agreed to terms on an undisclosed contract with the Las Vegas Raiders. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the news. The soon-to-be 30-year-old last suited up briefly with the Raiders back in 2023, but was released after one appearance and found no new work in 2024. In an attempt to restart his career, Smith was held on a tryout basis during Las Vegas' minicamp over the weekend and made a good enough impression to get a shot at the team. The Notre Dame product was a productive player during his last full season (2020), racking up 154 tackles in 16 games, and more recently accruing 88 takedowns over 13 contests as a Giant in 2022. A veteran presence in the Raiders' linebacker room would be a welcome addition, but there's no telling what kind of condition he'll be in after nearly two years off. He likely operates in a depth role on defense, with the opportunity for more depending on his performance.

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Tennessee Titans rookie running back Kalel Mullings (abdomen) is recovering from offseason core-muscle surgery and will be limited at the team's rookie minicamp, according to the Nashville Post's John Glennon. Additionally, rookie safety Kevin Winston Jr. (knee) is not participating at minicamp, although he's getting closer to a return from his knee injury. The 22-year-old Mullings was taken in the sixth round of this year's NFL draft. When he's cleared from his injury, he will compete for the RB3 role in Tennessee in his first year in the league behind running backs Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears. Mullings won't have any redraft fantasy value in 2025 unless one of Pollard or Spears miss time with injury. Winston, who was taken in the third round, is recovering from a torn right ACL that caused him to miss most of the 2024 season at Penn State.

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New Orleans Saints rookie fourth-round cornerback Quincy Riley (undisclosed) is recovering from an undisclosed surgery and did not take part in drills at rookie minicamp on Saturday, according to The New Orleans Times-Picayune's Matthew Paras. Head coach Kellen Moore said that Riley's surgery was not related to the ankle injury that he dealt with in college at Louisville. The young defensive back is missing valuable reps with the rest of the team's rookies, and it remains to be seen if he'll be ready for on-field work during organized team activities in late May. Hopefully, Riley will at least be ready for the start of training camp at the end of July. Even if Riley is ready to go for OTAs later this month and mandatory minicamp in June, he'll be competing for a depth role with the Saints as he heads into his first year in the NFL.

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The Pittsburgh Steelers signed free-agent running back Trey Sermon to an undisclosed one-year deal on Sunday, sources told FOX Sports' Jordan Schultz. Sermon will head to the AFC North after spending the last two seasons with the Indianapolis Colts as a backup to Jonathan Taylor, where he saw 91 carries for 319 yards (3.5 yards per carry) and two touchdowns on the ground in 31 games (three starts). He added 19 receptions on 25 targets for 112 yards through the air. The 26-year-old former third-rounder (88th overall) by the San Francisco 49ers in 2021 out of Ohio State will now join a crowded backfield in Pittsburgh that includes rookie third-rounder Kaleb Johnson, Jaylen Warren and free-agent acquisition Kenneth Gainwell. Sermon only averaged 2.8 yards a carry in 2024 and will likely need an injury or two to resurface on the fantasy radar in the Steel City.

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In the wake of quarterback Derek Carr's (shoulder) retirement on Saturday, New Orleans Saints head coach Kellen Moore said that the team will rotation all of their quarterbacks -- rookie second-rounder Tyler Shough, second-year man Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener -- to give them all opportunities as they look to win the starting job heading into the 2025 season. "We're going to let all three of these guys roll," Moore said. Shough is already 25 years old and has plenty of collegiate experience, giving him the initial leg up as the favorite to take over for Carr this year. However, Rattler, a fifth-round pick in 2024, did play in seven games (six starts) in his rookie campaign, completing just 57% of his 228 pass attempts for 1,317 yards, four touchdowns and five interceptions. Haener has thrown only 39 NFL passes. Whoever wins the job in New Orleans will be considered a low-end QB2 for those in superflex fantasy formats.

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The Denver Broncos have intentionally been getting rookie second-round running back RJ Harvey pass-catching reps in rookie minicamp. General manager George Paton said that Harvey might have the best vision of any RB in this year's NFL draft. The young runner set Central Florida's all-time touchdown record and led the Big 12 in rushing touchdowns in his final season in 2024. He also became the second player in school history to record consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. Harvey caught only 20 passes at UCF last season, but head coach Sean Payton said Harvey will have the ability to play on third down -- in addition to first and second own -- because of a variety of protection options. It sounds like Payton plans on using Harvey more as a pass-catcher at the next level, and he has the skills to become a three-down back sooner than later for the Broncos in 2025.

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Chicago Bears rookie second-round wide receiver Luther Burden III still feels disrespected that he wasn't selected in the first round of this year's NFL draft. "I feel like teams that passed up on me are going to regret it," Burden said. "I just want to make everybody pay." Burden has been impressive in the early portions of rookie minicamp after being a first-team All-SEC selection the last two years. He caught 192 passes for 2,263 yards and 21 touchdowns in three college seasons at Missouri. The 21-year-old will join first-round rookie tight end Colston Loveland in an offense that already features pass-catchers DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, Cole Kmet and Olamide Zaccheaus. The 6-foot, 206-pound Burden will initially be competing with Zaccheaus this summer for the WR3 role in Chicago. Volume will be an issue, but Burden certainly has intriguing after-the-catch abilities.

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Per the team's transaction log, the Cleveland Browns have signed fourth-round running back Dylan Sampson and second-round linebacker Carson Schwesinger to their rookie contracts. Schwesinger will make $11.8 million over his four-year deal, while Sampson is set to make $5.13 million over his. Sampson, 20, broke out in his final season at Tennessee with a stellar 1,491 yards and 22 TDs over 258 carries, adding another 20 catches and 143 yards through the air. He took home SEC Offensive Player of the Year honors. Schwesinger, on the other hand, was a Butkus Award finalist (nation's best linebacker) and ranked third in the FBS with 136 total tackles. Sampson's path to playing time is a little murkier than Schwesinger's, as the latter should push for immediate snaps in the Browns' linebacker room. Still, both players stand to make an impact on a rebuilding Cleveland roster in 2025.

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Per the team's transcript on Thursday, San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak noted that wide receiver Jauan Jennings still views himself as the No.1 guy in San Francisco. Specifically, Kubiak was asked if Jennings would resume WR1 duties for the team with uncertainty surrounding teammate Brandon Aiyuk's (knee) status. "I think, if you ask Jauan, he says 'I'm No. 1," he replied. "And that's his mindset, and that's why we love Jauan." The 27-year-old was an afterthought in fantasy drafts last summer, but injuries opened up opportunity, and the former seventh-round pick ran with it. Jennings led all 49ers pass-catchers not named George Kittle in receptions (77), yards (975), and touchdowns (six). He may have to stave off a second-year ascension from fellow wideout Ricky Pearsall, but Jennings should again have a shot to be productive in 2025.

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Buffalo Bills rookie fourth-round defensive tackle Deone Walker (back) is feeling great despite playing last year with a back injury, but the Bills are playing it safe and easing him into rookie minicamp. "I had a pars defect in my back," Walker said. "I didn't know about it until after the season, really until the combine. We didn't really know what it was, but I feel a 100% right now." While the former Kentucky product wasn't always on the field with his fellow rookie teammates, he said he got in a lot of drill work and was putting in the mental reps while learning the playbook. The 21-year-old is a beast of a human being at 6-foot-7, 331 pounds. He was much more productive for the Wildcats when he was fully healthy in 2023, and he's expected to begin his NFL career as more of a rotational interior defensive lineman in Buffalo.

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Now that quarterback Derek Carr (shoulder) has announced his retirement, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport writes that it sets the stage for rookie second-round quarterback Tyler Shough to be the team's eventual starter in 2025. Shough's stock for his rookie campaign was already rising with Carr's availability in question for 2025 due to a shoulder injury, but now Carr is out of the picture completely. The 25-year-old Shough will be competing primarily with Spencer Rattler, who completed just 57% of his passes while throwing four touchdowns and five interceptions in his rookie season in 2024. Even if the Saints give Shough a little more time to develop and name Rattler the starter for Week 1, it seems likely that Shough will be starting games in the Big Easy sooner than later in 2025. Shough is old for a rookie and has plenty of experience, making him the current favorite over Rattler for QB1 duties.

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The New Orleans Saints announced on Saturday that quarterback Derek Carr (shoulder) is retiring. Carr experienced pain in his right shoulder in March while ramping up his preparation for the 2025 season, and medical scans showed that he was dealing with a labral tear and also had significant degenerative changes to his rotator cuff. Surgery was an option, which would have knocked him out for all of 2025, but there still wasn't a guarantee that he'd return to the same level of strength, function and performance. After discussing with his wife, Heather, Carr has decided to hang up his cleats after 11 seasons in the NFL. In 169 regular-season starts, Carr made four Pro Bowls and threw for 41,245 yards, 257 touchdowns and 112 interceptions, with all but two of his seasons coming with the Raiders. With Carr now out of the picture in the Big Easy, second-round rookie Tyler Shough and Spencer Rattler will battle for the starting gig in training camp.

From RotoBaller

New Orleans Saints QB Derek Carr officially announced his retirement from the NFL Saturday, May 10, according to a press release from the team.

Fantasy Spin: Carr had been in jeopardy of missing the upcoming season after experiencing pain in his right shoulder while throwing in late March, on the heels of having had his 2024 campaign cut short due to a concussion and left hand injury. Eventually, it was revealed that Carr had a torn labrum and had significant degenerative changes to his rotator cuff. Surgery had been under consideration but there was no guarantee that the 34-year-old veteran would have been the same caliber of player if he had chosen to continue his career. QBs Spencer Rattler, Jake Haener and rookie Tyler Shough will battle for the Saints' starting job but none of these options should be considered as anything more than low-end QB2 options in deeper fantasy leagues at this point.

From TheHuddle

The San Francisco 49ers signed offensive lineman Andre Dillard, cornerback Dallis Flowers and offensive lineman Nicholas Petit-Frere to undisclosed one-year deals on Friday, according to NBC Sports Bay Area's Jennifer Lee Chan. Dillard appeared in 10 games (no starts) for the Green Bay Packers in 2024 but was unable to play in the wild-card playoff loss to the Philadelphia Eagles due to a concussion. The 29-year-old offensive lineman was the 22nd overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft by the Eagles out of Washington State, but he'll now compete for a reserve tackle role in the Bay Area for the 2025 campaign. Dillard spent the first three years of his NFL career in Philadelphia before joining the Tennessee Titans in 2023 and the Packers a season ago.

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The San Francisco 49ers waived former second-round defensive end Drake Jackson (knee) with a failed-physical designation on Friday, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter. Jackson continues to rehab a knee injury but is expected to be cleared by the start of training camp this summer. The Niners also waived offensive lineman Jalen McKenzie and cornerback Tre Tomlinson after signing offensive linemen Andre Dillard and Nicholas Petit-Frere and cornerback Dallis Flowers. Jackson, 24, the 61st overall pick in 2022 out of USC, missed the final 12 games of the 2023 season, including the postseason, and all of the 2024 campaign due to his knee injury. In his first two seasons before the injury, he had only 21 tackles (12 solo), six sacks, five tackles for loss, nine QB hits, an interception and nine pass breakups in 23 games (no starts).

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Former Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants linebacker Jaylon Smith, who last played in the NFL in 2023, is taking part in the Las Vegas Raiders' minicamp this weekend on a tryout basis, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Smith was a second-round selection (34th overall) in 2016 out of Notre Dame and had 100-plus total tackles in three of his first four NFL seasons with Dallas, earning his lone Pro Bowl selection in 2019. He has bounced around the league and dealt with injuries since leaving the Cowboys, but he did have 88 total tackles (46 solo) and a sack in 13 games (11 starts) with the Giants in 2022. He only played in one game with Vegas in 2023 and was briefly on the Pittsburgh Steelers' practice squad last year, but he didn't see any action. The 29-year-old would give the Raiders some additional linebacker depth if he reunites with them.

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The Pittsburgh Steelers announced on Friday that they signed third-round rookie running back Kale Johnson to his four-year deal. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The Steelers took Johnson out of the University of Iowa with the 83rd overall pick. "Really explosive running back that we spent some time with on a 30 visit here," said offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. "One of the more instinctive backs that I've watched in a couple of years coming out of the draft." In 35 career games (22 starts) for the Hawkeyes, Johnson had 508 carries for 2,779 yards and 30 touchdowns, adding 29 catches for 240 yards and two touchdowns. The 21-year-old stands at 6-foot-1, 224 pounds and is a big bruising back with plenty of big-play potential. Johnson figures to eventually supplant Najee Harris as the Steelers' lead back after Harris left in free agency this offseason.

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The Atlanta Falcons signed rookie first-round linebacker Jalon Walker to his four-year deal on Friday, the team announced. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it's estimated to be $20.56 million in total value. He would carry salary cap number of $3.74 million this year before topping out at $6.54 million in 2028. In addition to Walker, rookie safety Xavier Watts, defensive back Billy Bowman Jr. and offensive tackle Jack Nelson signed their rookie deals. Atlanta took Walker with the 15th overall pick in this year's draft out of Georgia. It remains to be seen if the Falcons will use the 6-foot-1, 243-pounder as an inside linebacker or as a pass-rushing outside linebacker in his first year in the NFL. In 11 starts with the Bulldogs in 2024, the 21-year-old had 60 tackles (10.5 for loss), 6.5 sacks and two pass breakups.

From RotoBaller