Russell Wilson leaves the NFL to take a job at CBS Sports, plus five players who could be traded next

Welcome to the Thursday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!

With the NFL about to hit the dead part of the offseason, you might be wondering what we're going to be talking about in this newsletter for the next six weeks, and although I have no idea, I promise you, it will be exciting, and I know that because NFL news never sleeps. The NFL news cycle is the Energizer Bunny of news cycles; it just keeps going and going and going and going. Nine billion years from now, when the universe implodes on itself, the NFL news cycle will somehow still be going.

We got a taste of that this week. Not only did we see two big trades, but Russell Wilson also made a huge announcement on Wednesday night and we'll be covering that today. 

As always, here's your reminder to tell your friends to sign up for the newsletter. It makes the perfect graduation gift, mostly because it's free. Alright, let's get to the rundown.

1. Russell Wilson leaving the NFL to take a job with CBS Sports: Everything you need to know

If you're wondering where Russell Wilson is going to be signing this offseason, we finally have the answer: He's leaving the NFL and heading to CBS Sports. That's right, Wilson announced the move in a three-minute video that he released on Wednesday night. The video is definitely worth watching and you can check it out here. 

Wilson didn't say it in the video, but I'm assuming the chance to work at the same company as me was an opportunity that was too good to pass up.

Wilson had one of the most underappreciated careers in NFL history and now that he's almost certainly done for good, let's take a look at some of his most impressive feats. 

• One of a kind. Wilson finished his career with 46,966 passing yards and 5,568 rushing yards. His passing total is the third-highest ever for a QB taken in the third round or later, behind only Tom Brady and Fran Tarkenton, while his rushing total is the fourth-highest by a QB in NFL history. Wilson is the only NFL quarterback ever to top 40,000 passing yards and at least 5,000 rushing yards in his career. Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson might join him in that club someday, but to put in perspective how difficult it is to reach those two numbers, just consider this: Jackson still needs about 18,000 passing yards while Allen needs roughly 10,000 passing yards and 279 rushing yards. 
• He had a decorated career, especially in Seattle. In 14 seasons, he made the Pro Bowl 10 times and he went to the Super Bowl twice. He won his lone title in 2014 after leading the Seahawks to a 43-8 win over the Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII. He's leaving football as the Seahawks' all-time leader in passing yards (37,059), passing touchdowns (292) and wins (104). His career passing TD total of 353 is the 12th-best in NFL history. Wilson also threw 292 TD passes in his first 10 seasons, which is the second-most in NFL history, behind only Peyton Manning, who threw 306. 
• Wilson's playoff success. Wilson led the Seahawks to at least one playoff win in each of his first five seasons, which is something that has only been accomplished by two other quarterbacks in NFL history (Joe Flacco, Otto Graham). When the Seahawks won Super Bowl XLVII, he became the fourth youngest QB to win a Super Bowl and one of just four quarterbacks to win a Super Bowl in their second season, joining Kurt Warner, Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger (No rookie QB has ever won a Super Bowl). 

Wilson will now be headed to "The NFL Today" to serve as a studio analyst for our signature pregame show here at CBS Sports. Here's what you need to know about that: 

• Wilson is one of two former players joining the studio show this year. Our iconic pregame show will have a slightly different look this year. Not only is Wilson joining the cast, but former Bears offensive lineman Kyle Long is also joining the show. Wilson and Long will join Nate Burleson, Bill Cowher and host James Brown, all returning. 
• Wilson has previous experience at CBS Sports. Wilson has actually already done some studio work for CBS. The first time was during Super Bowl LV, when he made a pregame appearance to break down the Buccaneers' win over Kansas City. Wilson also spent a Sunday with us last season, serving as a guest studio analyst during his Week 14 bye while playing with the Giants. "Throughout his career, Russell Wilson has been a winner, both on and off the field," Harold Bryant, CBS Sports executive producer and executive vice president of production, said of Ryan's arrival to the network. "We're thrilled to add a Super Bowl champion and one of the NFL's best quarterbacks to our roster. Russell's preparation and leadership set him apart and we look forward to the perspective and insight he will bring to the studio straight from the field."
• Long is a familiar face at CBS Sports. Long has actually been at CBS Sports since 2020 and over the past six years, he's filled various roles. He's appeared on CBS Sports HQ, "The NFL Today," and "That Other Pregame Show," among other shows. And now, he's making the move to the top of the totem pole. "Kyle brings an infectious energy, relentless passion and deep knowledge of the game and is not shy about sharing his opinions. He has earned this opportunity and we're proud to elevate him to a full-time role on 'The NFL Today,'" Bryant said. 

Not that you needed another reason to watch CBS Sports, but now you have two with the hirings of Wilson and Long.

2. Five NFL stars who could be traded next

In just a few hours on Monday, we saw not one but TWO huge trades go down. First, the Rams pulled off the biggest shocker of the offseason by acquiring Myles Garrett from the Browns. After that, we saw the least surprising trade of the offseason with the Patriots making a deal with the Eagles for A.J. Brown.

The crazy part is that there's always a chance that we could see a few more surprising trades go down. With that in mind, Bryan DeArdo came up with a list of five players who might get dealt before the start of the season. 

Let's check out three names on his list: 

• Saints RB Alvin Kamara. New Orleans' recent youth movement and the signing of running back Travis Etienne have intensified rumors of a possible trade of Kamara. Based on his previous comments, it appears that Kamara has no interest in playing anywhere else. But while Kamara may want to stay put, the Saints may still choose to move on from him while saving $14 million in salary cap space. 
• Cardinals EDGE Josh Sweat. One reason Sweat chose to sign in Arizona last season was Jonathan Gannon, who served as Sweat's defensive coordinator in Philadelphia before becoming the Cardinals' head coach. But with Gannon now in Green Bay following his dismissal from Arizona, rumors have been circulating regarding Sweat's future with the Cardinals. There are rumblings that the Packers are a legitimate threat to land Sweat should the Cardinals decide to trade him, which makes sense given Sweat's connection with Gannon and Parsons' ongoing recovery from ACL surgery that could sideline him for the first part of the 2026 season.
• Cowboys WR George Pickens. Dallas already said that Pickens will play under the franchise tag, which appears to be a recipe for disaster given his history of self-sabotage when things don't go his way. If the Cowboys want to avoid another drama-filled season, they would be better served either giving Pickens a long-term deal or trading him to a team that will.   

If you want to see DeArdo's full list of players who could get traded, DeArdo has that here.

3. Ranking the NFL's 12 new coach-QB duos for 2026

I'm not sure how it's possible, but nearly 40% of NFL teams will have a new coach-QB combination in 2026. 

The turnover has been so crazy this year that there are actually 12 new QB-coach duos. Since we have so many new duos this year, Jared Dubin decided to rank all of them based on how successful they might be in 2026.

Let's take a look at the bottom three combos on Dubin's list:

10. Cardinals: Jacoby Brissett and Mike LeFleur. Brissett put up some explosive numbers, mostly because he was allowed to drop back 39.2 times per game. But he's still a career backup who seemingly played well above his head during that span. And the last time we saw LaFleur truly at the controls of an offense during his time as the Jets' offensive coordinator, things did not go well.
11. Jets: Geno Smith and Aaron Glenn. Smith is coming off the worst season of his career since his first stint with the Jets over a decade ago. He led the NFL in interceptions and looked inept for most of the season. He'll be 36 this season, an age at which most quarterbacks prior to this recent era have been pretty washed. (And it's only been the best of the best that have been able to avoid that fate.)
12. Browns: Deshaun Watson and Todd Monken. The last time Watson took the field, he was the worst quarterback in the NFL. (He finished dead last in expected points added per dropback among the 38 quarterbacks with 250-plus dropbacks, per Tru Media.) He has since torn his Achilles not once, but twice. And yet, he is reportedly the favorite to start under center for the Browns. Not even hiring Monken, who is an excellent pass-game architect, can save this from being a disaster.

If you want to know where QB-coaching duos like Josh Allen (with Joe Brady), Kyler Murray (with Kevin O'Connell) and Lamar Jackson (with Jesse Minter) ended up, you can check out Dubin's full list here.

4. Madden cover unveiled: Why Caleb Williams might now be cursed

For the first time in franchise history, the Bears have a player on the cover of "Madden," and that player is Caleb Williams 

Look, I'm not going to sit here and say that Williams might have just thrown away Chicago's season by agreeing to be on the "Madden" cover, but Williams might have just thrown away the Bears' season before it even starts. The problem with being on the cover of "Madden" is that it possibly comes with a curse. 

There have been 11 different quarterbacks to make the Madden cover over the past 25 years and you could argue that seven of them ended up getting cursed. Zach Pereles broke down the full list, and if you're a Bears fan, you might not want to read this. 

Here's a short breakdown of what happened to several quarterbacks who made the cover (When reading this, remember that "Madden" is always one year ahead. For instance, this year's game is "Madden 27" but it's being released for the 2026 season)

• "Madden 2002" (2001 season): Daunte Culpepper. After leading the Vikings to an 11-5 record as a first-time starter in 2000, Culpepper landed on the Madden cover and immediately took a nosedive. Not only did he miss six games in 2001, but he fumbled 16 times, he threw 13 interceptions, and he went just 4-7 as the starter. 
• "Madden 2008" (2007 season): Vince Young. Young was voted Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2006, but then he landed on the Madden cover and you can probably guess what happened in 2007, yup, he got cursed. He got benched in a preseason game for violating a team rule, and things only went downhill after that. Young had a nightmare season in 2007, throwing just nine touchdown passes compared to 17 interceptions. After 2007, he would only start 22 more games in his entire career. 
• "Madden 2009" (2008 season): Brett Favre. For the 20th anniversary of the game, EA Sports decided to put Favre on the cover and let's just say that things didn't work out so well. For one, the cover was originally supposed to depict Favre in a Packers uniform, but then he came out of retirement and Green Bay ended up trading him to the Jets. Favre went 9-6 as the Jets' starter, but he totally melted down over the final five weeks of the season with nine interceptions and just two TD passes over New York's final five games. Overall, he led the league in interceptions with 22. To add insult to injury, Favre played part of the year with a torn biceps tendon. 

Of course, not every QB has fallen victim to the curse and if you want to see the list of guys who have been able to beat it, Zach's got that here. 

5. AFC West win totals: Chiefs rebound with big season

After zooming through the first three divisions in the AFC, Jordan Dajani is again to break down the win totals for the one division that we still haven't covered: The AFC West.  

If you haven't read the newsletter over the past two weeks -- shame on you -- Jordan has been taking a look at the best over/under bets in the AFC and we're now down to our final four teams: The Raiders, Chiefs, Chargers and Broncos. 

Let's check out his thoughts on the Chiefs and Raiders: 

Kansas City Chiefs

• Odds: Over 10.5 (+115) / Under 10.5 (-110)

Dajani's take: The Chiefs went from three straight Super Bowl appearances and seven straight AFC Championship appearances to missing the playoffs completely at 6-11. Who saw that coming? Believe it or not, Kansas City exceeded its preseason win total in 10 of 13 seasons with Andy Reid. Reid has not gone below his preseason win total in back-to-back seasons since 2012, when he was with the Eagles. History indicates that Over at plus money is a solid bet.

Dajani's lean: Over 10.5 (+115)

Las Vegas Raiders

• Odds: Over 5.5 (-145) / Under 5.5 (+120)

Dajani's take: When you look at what the Raiders accomplished, they certainly got better. Tyler Linderbaum broke financial records at the center position, Georgia linebackers Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker reunited, and the quarterback room is improved with Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza. Despite the offseason wins, there are still reasons to be pessimistic about the Raiders. I'm low on Mendoza's wide receiving corps, and the defense has to prove it can keep up with the loaded AFC West. If I'm relatively high on this division as a whole in 2026, that means the worst team in the group could struggle to reach 6-10. Especially when that team is playing a top-seven toughest schedule like the Raiders are.

Dajani's lean: Under 5.5 (-145)

If you want to see how Dajani feels about the Chargers and Broncos, you can get his take on those two teams here. 

6. Extra points: Christian Watson lands massive $110 million extension

It's been a busy few days in the NFL, and since it's nearly impossible to keep track of everything, I put together a quick roundup for you.

• The Packers have given Christian Watson a four-year extension. The Packers receiver has agreed to terms on a four-year, $110.5 million extension that includes $31 million in guaranteed money, according to ESPN. Watson signed a one-year, $13.25 million extension of his rookie deal last year, and the Packers were clearly happy enough with his production in 2025 to give him another, much bigger extension. Watson has battled injuries throughout his career, including last season, when he missed seven games, but the Packers apparently now feel good about his ability to stay on the field. 
• Micah Parsons is expected to miss the first month of the season. Not only did Parsons tear his ACL back in December, but he also revealed that the week he suffered some damage to his meniscus, and because of that, he's going to be out slightly longer than expected. Parsons admitted on Wednesday that he doesn't expect to be back on the field until October. "The goal for me is to complete the season -- not no relapse -- and playoffs and pushing towards a championship," Parsons said. "The goal isn't for me to go out there and rehurt myself trying to force myself to get back the first few games. The goal has always been [to be available for the] playoffs, and I think we're all on the same page." If Parsons misses September, that means he'll miss games against the Vikings, Jets and Falcons.  
• Steelers sign Aaron Rodgers' former teammate. The Steelers have signed Robert Tonyan to a one-year deal, according to ESPN. This is notable mostly because Tonyan spent five seasons with Rodgers in Green Bay, so the two have a strong connection. During Rodgers' MVP-winning season in 2020, Tonyan caught a career-high 11 TD passes. Tonyan's first year with the Packers was 2018, Mike McCarthy's final year, so he also has some familiarity with McCarthy's offense. The 32-year-old tight end only has one catch over the past two seasons, so it will be interesting to see if he has anything left in the tank. 
• Aaron Donald is contemplating an NFL return. The former Rams' star is actually giving some serious thought to coming out of retirement. Even though he's been out of football for two years, Donald is now open to the idea of a return after watching the Rams acquire Myles Garrett. "I'm for sure flirting with the idea," Donald said of a possible return. "Helluva an opportunity with the Super Bowl in SoFi this year. If I can find the fire, it's a possibility." You can read more about the situation here. 
• Did the Rams give up too much in the Myles Garrett trade? When you acquire the best defensive player in football, that sounds like a win, but Ryan Wilson isn't so sure. Most pass-rushers start to see a massive drop-off after hitting age 30 and that's where Garrett is now. The Rams also gave up one of the top young pass-rushers in the game in Jared Verse. Wilson has a full breakdown of why the Rams might have given up too much and you can check it out here. 
• Police issue an arrest warrant for Brandon Aiyuk. Police in California have issued an arrest warrant for 49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk on a misdemeanor charge of exhibition of speeding. The warrant stems from an incident in December when Aiyuk shared a video of himself on social media speeding in front of Levi's Stadium. His car has a digital speedometer, and in the video it was clear he reached about 104 mph. Aiyuk didn't play a single snap for the 49ers last year and he hasn't played in the NFL since tearing his ACL, MCL and Meniscus in October 2024. He'll likely never suit up for the 49ers again and at the rate things are going, he might not ever play in the NFL again.