NFL Player News

The Vikings could begin the season with Darnold as the team's starting quarterback despite taking J.J. McCarthy with the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, ESPN reports. "We're not going to rush his development," said general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. "We're just going to do what's best for the Vikings in the short and long term."

Darnold signed a one-year, $10 million contract with the Vikings as a short-term veteran starter or backup. It's hard to handicap when McCarthy may take over the starting job this soon after the draft, but it's notable the Vikings are trying to reduce expectations. Expect the quarterback battle for the Week 1 starting job to commence this summer. Still, odds are Darnold will only be the starter for a few weeks at most if McCarthy is healthy and making progress.

The Raiders signed Bradley as an undrafted free agent Saturday.

Bradley has good size at 6-foot-3 and 213 pounds and spent the final two years of his college career at South Alabama following four years in Toledo's program. He threw for 5,996 yards at South Alabama, amassing 47 touchdowns and 19 interceptions. In Las Vegas, Bradley slides in at the bottom of the depth chart behind Gardner Minshew, Aidan O'Connell and Anthony Brown.

Hartman is slated to sign with the Commanders as an undrafted free agent, Jordan Schultz of BleacherReport.com reports.

Following five years at Wake Forest where he set ACC records, Hartman transferred to Notre Dame for his super-senior season in an effort to prove himself in a pro-style offense. Hartman finished 2024 with a 63.5 percent completion rate for 2,689 yards, 24 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He was unable to replicate his prolific numbers from the previous two years and ultimately didn't hear his name called during the NFL Draft. Standing 6-foot-1 and 211 pounds, Hartman has an average arm but plenty of game experience. He joins a Washington quarterback room that includes No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels, veteran Marcus Mariota, Jeff Driskel and Jake Fromm.

GM Trent Baalke said Saturday that the Jaguars will exercise the fifth-year option on Lawrence's rookie contract, John Shipley of SI.com reports.

Teams need to make such decisions for 2021 first-round picks by Thursday, and Jacksonville intends to exercise those options for both Lawrence and running back Travis Etienne. Lawrence will be working with a familiar backfield of Etienne and Tank Bigsby in 2024, but his receiving corps has been jostled a bit, with WR Calvin Ridley departing for the AFC South rival Titans and rookie second-rounder Brian Thomas and free-agent pickup Gabe Davis replacing him. While Lawrence has tossed for 4,000-plus yards in back-to-back campaigns, he has yet to reach 30 touchdowns through the air in any of his three seasons as a pro.

Slovis intends to sign with the Colts as an undrafted free agent, Jordan Schultz of BleacherReport.com reports.

Slovis started his college career at USC and was named Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year in 2019 before leading the Trojans to a 5-1 record in the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign. Slovis struggled the following year and transferred to Pitt for a year before ending at BYU as a fifth-year senior last season. In Indy, Slovis will head into the offseason behind Anthony Richardson, Joe Flacco and Sam Ehlinger.

Reed is slated to sign with the Bears as an undrafted free agent, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

Reed (6-foot-2, 220 pounds) had a borderline late-round/UDFA draft grade by most analysts, but the sixth-year senior out of Western Kentucky ultimately didn't have his name called Saturday afternoon and will head to Chicago where he'll slide in on the depth chart behind No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams, Tyson Bagent and Brett Rypien. Reed completed 63.2 percent of his college throws for 8,086 yards, 71 touchdowns and 22 interceptions.

The Packers selected Pratt in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL Draft, 245th overall.

The Packers likely wanted to jump in front of the priority undrafted free agent game, locking in the Tulane product with their second to last remaining seventh-round pick. A four-year collegiate starter, Pratt won't be mistaken for a run-first option behind center nor does he have a cannon for an arm, but he's a competitive quarterback who has improved his game significantly after just starting to play football for the first time in high school. It's entirely possible Pratt could push out the incumbent Sean Clifford for the team's backup job behind Jordan Love.

The Ravens selected Leary in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, 218th overall.

Leary showed the ability to produce in both the ACC and SEC as the quarterback for NC State and Kentucky, respectively. His redshirt junior season with the Wolfpack was the best of his career, as he tossed 35 touchdowns and threw for 3,433 yards. Leary has good arm strength and should stick on a roster as a backup -- perhaps to Lamar Jackson -- though he had a concerning dip in accuracy in his final collegiate campaign for Kentucky (56.3 completion percentage).

The Patriots selected Milton in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, 193rd overall.

The Tennessee signal-caller predictably wowed folks with a bazooka of an arm during throwing drills at the NFL Scouting Combine and ran a respectable 4.62-second 40-yard dash time at 6-foot-5, 246 pounds, but he didn't carve out a full-time starting role until his sixth collegiate season in 2023. Even then, Milton failed to put up eye-popping stats in an offense in which Hendon Hooker had been a Heisman Trophy contender one year prior. Milton is the definition of a project at the quarterback position, and if he's unable to beat out Bailey Zappe for the No. 3 spot on the depth chart behind veteran Jacoby Brissett and first-round pick Drake Maye, Milton could be converted to tight end, where he might profile as an interesting prospect thanks to his size and athleticism.

The Jets selected Travis (leg) in the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, 171st overall.

If not for a severe leg injury suffered late in his senior year, Travis may have heard his name called much earlier than the end of the fifth. He was a dynamic, longtime starter at Florida State who progressed each season. He never threw more than six interceptions in any season and left Tallahassee with 65 passing touchdowns in 42 games. He had strong rushing ability that will perhaps return when he's recovered, rushing for 1,682 yards and 28 touchdowns. Tyrod Taylor gives the Jets immediate cover if Aaron Rodgers is to miss any time, but Travis projects as an eventual backup with little likelihood to become a starter.