NFL Player News

Coach Sean Payton said Thursday that Nix (ankle) is expected to practice at mandatory minicamp next week, Zac Stevens of TheDNVR.com reports.

Nix suffered a fracture in his right ankle near the ned of the Broncos' divisional-round win against the Bills and missed the AFC Championship Game loss to the Patriots. After undergoing surgery in late January, he was facing a 12-week recovery, but his on-field work during the offseason program was delayed due to a clean-up procedure that he had in late April. Payton noted Thursday that Nix participated in the walkthrough prior to Thursday's OTA, while adding that he believes Nix will be "completely clean, mobility-wise," once he's back to full health, according to Stevens. The dual threat has combined for 7,706 passing yards and 786 rushing yards in 34 regular-season games since he was selected 12th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Coach Shane Steichen said this week that Jones (Achilles) is expected to participate in 11-on-11 drills when training camp begins next month, James Boyd of The Athletic reports.

Jones, who suffered an Achilles' tear Dec. 7 last year, has been been working in the seven-on-seven portions of practice, and per Boyd, the QB asked about about moving on to 11-on-11's during the team's minicamp this week. On that topic, coach Shane Steichen noted, "we want to be super smart with him...I mean, could he potentially do it (11-on-11)? Yeah, probably. He probably could, but we're not going to do that right now." In any case, Jones' recovery remains on track, and assuming no setbacks this summer, he'll continue to work toward being ready to go for the Colts' Sept. 13 regular-season opener against the Ravens, with the signal-caller's eventual participation in team drills representing a major milestone toward that.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Thursday that Mahomes (knee) should "be able to do some things in camp," Nate Taylor of ESPN.com reports.

Reid also said Mahomes is "on course to get ready for camp", though "the healing process has to keep taking place." It's mostly coach-speak, but overwhelmingly positive, which meshes with previous favorable reports on Mahomes' rehab from mid-December surgery to repair ACL and LCL tears. He's been limited to individual drills and 7-on-7s at OTAs, allowing Justin Fields to take first-team reps.

Mahomes (ACL) and Kansas City agreed to terms Wednesday on a deal that amends two additional years to his contract, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Mahomes' new deal keeps him under contract with the Chiefs through the 2033 season and carries a total value of $504.75 million, providing the 30-year-old quarterback an average salary of $64 million per season, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. Per Pete Sweeney of the Kansas City Star, Mahomes continued to participate in 7-on-7 drills at mandatory minicamp this week while rehabbing from a torn ACL and LCL suffered in Week 15 of last season, but he remained sidelined during 11-on-11 drills. It remains to be seen when Mahomes will be cleared to resume handling full-team reps, but by all accounts his offseason recovery continues to proceed on schedule.

Klubnik is dealing with back tightness and won't practice Wednesday, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports.

It appears as if Klubnik avoided a serious back injury, as head coach Aaron Glenn told reporters Wednesday that he expects the rookie quarterback to return for the Jets' minicamp next week. During his final collegiate season at Clemson, Klubnik threw for 2,943 yards, 16 touchdowns and six interceptions while adding 94 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. He's expected to compete for New York's No. 2 QB spot as the offseason progresses.

Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur declined Wednesday to name a starting quarterback, though Brissett reported for the start of mandatory minicamp on Monday, Bo Brack of GoPHNX.com reports.

LaFleur's lack of an answer when asked about Arizona's starting quarterback may partially be posturing, after Brissett held out of voluntary workouts earlier in the offseason due to dissatisfaction with his current contract. It wouldn't be out of the question, however, for the Cardinals to host a competition that includes backup Gardner Minshew and rookie third-rounder Carson Beck if the team suspects Brissett will enact a "hold in" as the offseason progresses. Brissett is heading into the final season of his two-year deal and is slated to carry a $4.88 million salary in 2026. Earlier in the offseason, Josh Weinfuss of ESPN reports that Arizona informed Brissett (who was in attendance for Tuesday's minicamp practice but did not participate) he would be the team's starter for 2026.

McCarthy and free-agent addition Kyler Murray shared QB reps during Tuesday's mandatory minicamp practice, Lindsey Young of the Vikings' official site reports.

Fellow signal callers Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer remain in the reserve mix, while Kevin Seifert of ESPN relays that Murray was on the field for the first QB snaps during team drills Tuesday, after which McCarthy took about an equal number of snaps with the starters -- as was the trend during the media-access portions of Minnesota's OTAs. Per Seifert, Murray is viewed as the favorite to win the the team's ongoing quarterback competition, but at this stage the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft continues his transition to a new offensive system while splitting work with McCarthy, the 10th overall pick in 2024, who is coming off a 2025 campaign in which he threw for 1,632 yards with an 11:12 TD:INT in 10 regular-season starts.

Sanders and Deshaun Watson are slated to continue splitting first-team QB reps during the Browns' mandatory minicamp, Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Sanders took first-team reps Tuesday, while Watson will get them Wednesday. The two are then in line to split those reps Thursday. Coach Todd Monken had hoped to have established a pecking order by now, but he acknowledged Tuesday that he's unlikely to name a starter by the end of the minicamp. Watson appeared to have the advantage early this offseason, but Sanders seems to have closed the gap. Per Monken, "they both played well enough to earn out the right to compete to start," and as a result this is a job battle that figures to carry over into training camp.

Murray was on the field for the first snaps of team drills during Tuesday's mandatory minicamp session, Kevin Seifert of ESPN reports.

Though Murray was out there first Tuesday, J.J. McCarthy took about an equal number of snaps with the starters, which was also the case during the media-access portions of the Vikings' OTAs. At this stage, a decision on the team's starting quarterback doesn't appear imminent, with Murray acknowledging that sharing reps with McCarthy has been challenging as he adjusts to a new offensive system. Murray remains the favorite to win the top job, but McCarthy -- who Minnesota took 10th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft -- still has time to change that narrative ahead of Week 1.

Coach Todd Monken acknowledged Tuesday that he's unlikely to name either Watson or Shedeur Sanders as his starting quarterback by the conclusion of minicamp, Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Monken had hoped to have a better idea of the pecking order by then, but it looks like the competition will carry over into training camp. With that in mind, the new head coach said that Watson and Sanders have "both played well enough to earn out the right to compete to start." While Sanders took all the Browns' first-team QB reps during Tuesday's practice, Watson will take them Wednesday, and on Thursday the two will split those reps.