NFL Player News

Cunningham, a restricted free agent, is visiting with the Patriots on Thursday, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports.

With Dion Lewis (knee) recovering from a mid-season ACL tear, the Patriots are interested in adding a cheap passing-down back to provide insurance. Cunningham has never displayed much running ability, but he did a solid job in his third-down role with the Rams the past two seasons.

Anderson is visiting with the Dolphins on Thursday, NFL.com's Ian Rapoport reports.

The Broncos only extended Anderson an original-round tender, which means the team won't receive any draft compensation if the running back signs with a new team. However, Denver still has the right to match any contract, as Anderson is a restricted free agent. Even if hopes for Jay Ajayi are high, the Dolphins will likely try to sign a veteran running back after losing Lamar Miller to the Texans.

Rodgers re-signed with the Bears, inking a one-year deal, the Bears official website reports.

Rodgers missed most of the 2015 season, as he was placed on injured-reserve with a broken arm. During the five games he played last year, he had 14 carries for 41 yards along with one reception for 10 yards. He'll likely provide backfield depth behind Jeremy Langford and Ka'Deem Carey.

Michael was not given a qualifying offer by the Seahawks and is an unrestricted free agent, the Seattle Times reports.

Michael played for three teams last season, beginning and ending the year with the Seahawks. His second go with the Seahawks was a bit more promising. He could end up back in Seattle this season.

The Bucs have signed Martin to a five-year deal worth in excess of $35 million, Ian Rappaport of NFL.com reports.

The signing comes two hours shy of Martin hitting the open market as a 27-year-old tailback coming off a 1,400-yard season, preventing Tampa from having to scour free agency or invest a high draft pick on a new tailback. As per Rappaport, the deal contains $15 million in guaranteed money, and averages $7.25 million over the first three seasons, with a maximum overall value of $42.5 million. Although the courtship between Martin and the Bucs looked somewhat shaky at times this offseason, he ultimately made good on his previously-stated preference to remain in Tampa, and secured a contract that would have been highly improbable a year ago at this time. His retention preserves a potentially potent young nucleus of Jameis Winston, Charles Sims, Mike Evans, Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Martin, and frees the Bucs up to address other needs in free agency and the upcoming draft.

Grimes will be a free agent once the market opens Wednesday at 4 PM ET, Rand Getlin of NFL Network reports.

Entering the offseason as a restricted free agent, Grimes and the Texans were unable to settle at an amenable price. In three seasons with the club, he notched 116 carries for 508 yards (4.4 YPC), 38 receptions (on 45 targets) for 335 yards, and three total touchdowns in 32 games. Considering the workload, another reserve role is likely the best-case scenario on his next squad.

The Ravens have placed an exclusive rights tender on West, Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun reports.

A third-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, West caught on with the Ravens midway through last season, following unimpressive stints with the Browns and Titans. He'll likely have to fight for one of the final roster spots in 2016, as Justin Forsett (arm) and Javorius Allen are expected to compete for the starting job.

Anderson is expected to receive a low-round tender offer from the Broncos, the Denver Post reports.

Anderson's tender will peg his salary with the Broncos at $1.7 million for the upcoming season, while giving Denver the right to match any offer sheet he signs with another team. A breakout performer during the second half of the 2014 season, Anderson rushed for 720 yards and five touchdowns this past year, when he split time with free agent Ronnie Hillman. Although he fell short of the lofty expectations placed upon him going into last season, it'll be interesting to monitor the kind of interest and potential offers the 25-year-old Anderson garners from other teams.

The Charges released Brown on Thursday, Eric Williams of ESPN.com reports.

In an injury-plagued backfield, Brown managed to pick up just 10 percent of the offensive snaps, which equated to 59 carries for 229 yards, eight receptions (on 10 targets) for 88 yards, and one touchdown. As he enters his age-29 offseason, he may find difficulty find further employment.

As expected, the Bucs opted not to use their franchise tag on free agent running back Doug Martin, Roy Cummings of the Tampa Bay Tribune reports.

The non-move fulfills the widely-held expectation that Martin will only return to Tampa on a mutually agreeable multi-year deal, as opposed to the onerous $11.789 million salary for 2016 that the franchise designation would have carried. Cummings reports that the Bucs continue to work towards cementing a deal with fifth-year pro, ideally before free agency opens in earnest on March 9. If Martin does indeed land elsewhere, third-year all-purpose back Charles Sims and a 2016 draft pick or a free-agent signee would figure to share tailback duties in Tampa in 2016.