NFL Player News

The Commanders selected Williams in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 71st overall.

Williams primarily operated as an inside receiver during his four-year college career at Clemson. He was limited to just 10 games during his senior year due to a hamstring injury, but his 2024 campaign was his best, when he was named to the All-ACC First-Team with 75 catches for 904 yards and 11 touchdowns over 14 games, though he also recorded eight drops. Williams was one of the speedier receivers available in the draft, which translates to all three levels of the field, and he also has experience as a punt returner which could help him with his snap count as a rookie. Terry McLaurin leads the Commanders' wide receiver room, but with a strong offseason and training camp, Williams has a chance to win the WR2 job, considering his main competition comes from Luke McCaffrey (collarbone), Treylon Burks and Dyami Brown at the moment.

The Steelers selected Bernard in the second round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 47th overall.

Bernard spent the last two seasons of his four-year college career at Alabama, where he operated mostly as the team's Z receiver and finished the 2025 campaign with 64 catches for 862 yards and seven touchdowns across 14 games. He posted the fastest three-cone time at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine (6.71 seconds), and he has the overall athleticism and skill set that should allow him to serve as an immediate contributor for the Steelers, whether it's Aaron Rodgers or another quarterback throwing passes to him. Bernard figures to slide in as the team's WR3 behind veterans DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman and ahead of 2024 third-rounder Roman Wilson.

The Browns selected Boston in the second round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 39th overall.

Boston (6-foot-4, 212 pounds) has the build to impose physicality and reach from the boundary, where he did big damage especially as a downfield and red-zone jump-ball target at Washington. That Boston declined to run a 40-yard dash before the draft invites the suspicion that he might lack the long speed to regularly push downfield at the NFL level, but if he can keep winning on jump balls in the intermediate and end zone then that might be enough for Boston to prove a quality WR2 in the NFL. It might not be easy for Boston to immediately displace Cedric Tillman as the primary big wideout in Cleveland, but in the long term it's expected that Boston and 24th overall pick KC Concepcion should top the Browns' depth chart at wideout.

The 49ers selected Stribling in the second round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 33rd overall.

The 49ers made Stribling the first selection of the second round, which is considerably higher than where Stribling was projected before the draft. Perhaps it was an unexpected selection, but it's easily justifiable given Stribling's quality production at Washington State, Oklahoma State and, most recently, Mississippi. At 6-foot-2, 207 pounds, Stribling has the build to hold up on the boundary, and his 4.36-second 40 at the combine showed he has the wheels to threaten downfield. The 49ers feature Mike Evans and Ricky Pearsall as their projected starters, and Jauan Jennings remains a free agent, but if Stribling sees snaps there's reason to believe he can capitalize.

Reed has agreed to a three-year contract extension with the Packers, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

Per Schefter, Reed's extension with Green Bay is worth $50.25 million in new money, including $20 million guaranteed. As the coming season approaches, Reed is entrenched as a key component of a Packers WR corps that also features Christian Watson and Matthew Golden, following the offseason departures of Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks. In seven regular-season contests in 2025, the 2023 second-rounder recorded a 19-207-1 line on 22 targets. Health permitting, a bounce-back season is plausible for Reed in 2026, with the vacated targets of Doubs and Wicks up for grabs.

The Eagles' selection of WR Makai Lemon with the No. 20 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft provides further indication that the team is preparing to move on from Brown, Tim McManus of ESPN.com and Zach Berman of The Athletic report.

McManus notes that Adam Schefter of ESPN previously suggested Brown appears likely to be traded to the Patriots on or after June 1, and the addition of Lemon to a Philadelphia wideout corps that has already brought in Hollywood Brown, Dontayvion Wicks and Elijah Moore this offseason is another sign pointing to such an outcome. Meanwhile, the Patriots opted to bolster their offensive line depth in Round 1 rather than add a high-profile rookie WR by selecting offensive tackle Caleb Lomu 28th overall. For his part, however, Eagles GM Howie Roseman remains reluctant to tip his hand regarding the team's plans for Brown, stating Thursday, "For us, A.J. is a member of the Eagles. ... We don't have any trades that have been made or that are done. And I think for us, we're taking this one day at a time."

Ridley will face competition for targets from Carnell Tate, whom the Titans drafted fourth overall Thursday, Nick Suss of The Tennessean reports.

Ridley led the Titans with 43 receiving yards per game in 2025 but was limited to seven appearances before a fractured fibula ended his season. Tennessee subsequently signed Wan'Dale Robinson in free agency and used a top-five draft choice on Tate out of Ohio State to bolster its wide receiver room. Ridley likely has the inside track on a starting role opposite Tate once the veteran wide receiver regains health, as Robinson operates primarily out of the slot. In addition to health and target competition, questionable quarterback play also clouds Ridley's fantasy outlook, as 2025 first overall pick Cam Ward ranked last among qualified passers with 5.9 yards per pass attempt during the quarterback's rookie season.

Wilson (knee) could see increased competition for targets but also less attention from defenses after the Jets drafted tight end Kenyon Sadiq and wide receiver Omar Cooper, respectively, with the 16th and 30th picks Thursday, Mitch Sherman and Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic report.

Wilson should remain the top target in a new-look Jets offense quarterbacked by offseason acquisition Geno Smith. Despite being limited to seven appearances in 2025 by a knee injury, Wilson still led the team with 395 receiving yards. The 10th overall pick in the 2022 Draft has averaged over nine targets per game through 58 regular-season NFL appearances. The addition of two more talented pass catchers may actually prove to be a net positive for Wilson, as he should retain a hefty target share once healthy while potentially getting more scoring opportunities if the Jets offense improves as a unit. Wilson has 18 touchdown receptions through four seasons.

The Jets selected Cooper in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 30th overall.

Cooper (6-feet, 199 pounds) was a productive player in his fourth season at Indiana, though less so in the prior three years. Cooper's 4.42-second 40-yard dash verified that he has real NFL speed to leverage his otherwise standout ability after the catch. The Jets pass-catcher rotation is suddenly somewhat crowded after adding Cooper and TE Kenyon Sadiq, so it's not clear how many targets will be left after Garrett Wilson and Adonai Mitchell get their reps.

The Browns selected Concepcion in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 24th overall.

Concepcion began his career at North Carolina State, where he posted one of the most productive true freshman seasons of all time (71 receptions for 839 yards and 10 touchdowns on 106 targets, 41 carries for 320 yards), putting himself on the national map as a big-play open-field menace. His sophomore season was less successful, but Concepcion bounced back as a junior after transferring to Texas A&M in 2025. At 6-feet, 196 pounds Concepcion is just big enough to project for two-wide sets and thus avoid the dreaded 'Slot Specialist' label, but his game will still probably center mostly on the underneath and intermediate portion of the field due to questions with his hands and downfield route-running ability. Concepcion's ability to stop, start and change direction is memorable and should make him a dangerous YAC threat if nothing else. A March knee scope is believed to be a non-issue in the long term, with the wideout indicating that he should be a go for the Browns' rookie minicamp May 8-10, Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.