Browns LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (neck) out for season

Owusu-Koramoah hasn’t played since getting injured in an Oct. 27 home win over the Baltimore Ravens. He was carted off the field after colliding with Ravens running back Derrick Henry, whose right shoulder barreled into the linebacker’s head and neck area on a 10-yard run.

He was hospitalized overnight and released the next day with movement in all of his extremities.

“While I won’t suit up this season, I’m focused on what I can control — my healing, my mindset, and my faith,” Owusu-Koramoah said in a statement shared on social media.

“The body may rest, but the calling never sleeps. I’ve given my heart to this game. I don’t know what’s next, but I’ll continue trusting my medical team, serving the community, and backing my brothers on the field.”

Prior to the injury, Owusu-Koramoah had started all eight games and had a team-high 61 tackles, including three sacks and 10 tackles for loss. He also recorded four quarterback hits.

The Browns selected Owusu-Koramoah in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Notre Dame. In 49 games (41 starts), he has totaled 308 tackles, 40 tackles for loss, 14 quarterback hits, eight sacks, six forced fumbles and three interceptions.

Owusu-Koramoah, 25, signed a three-year extension worth up to $39 million last August.

“Jeremiah has the full support of our team, and we expect him to continue to be a part of the organization even though he will not return to the field this year,” Browns general manager Andrew Berry said in a statement.

“We will not make any predictions on Jeremiah’s football future at this time, but we do note that he’s in good spirits and will continue to take the advice of the world-class medical experts who will continue to guide his progress and recovery.”

Eagles installed as TD favorite in Cowboys opener

Philadelphia was immediately installed as a consensus touchdown favorite when it was revealed Monday that the Eagles will open their Super Bowl title defense at home against Dallas on Thursday, Sept. 4.

Most regulated sportsbooks have the Eagles as an early 7.0-point favorite. That includes DraftKings, where the opening Over/Under total points line is 46.5. Eagles running back Saquon Barkley opened as the +360 favorite to score the first touchdown of the 2025 season, followed by quarterback Jalen Hurts at +750.

It’s a key Week 1 showdown between the bitter rivals. The Eagles are currently the +650 favorites to repeat as Super Bowl champions while the Cowboys are +6000 longshots. Philadelphia is also the -140 favorite to win the NFC East, followed by Washington (+205), Dallas (+700) and the New York Giants (+2000).

The league announced the game on Monday, with the full NFL schedule to be released on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET.

The Eagles swept the Cowboys last season and have won the last three meetings at home.

The last time the NFC East rivals met in Week 1 was on Sept. 3, 2000, when Andy Reid coached Philadelphia to a 41-14 victory at Texas Stadium.

The Eagles went 14-3 in the 2024 regular season and routed the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22 in Super Bowl LIX.

The Cowboys, who will be marking the debut of new head coach Brian Schottenheimer, finished 7-10 last season under Mike McCarthy.

Trey Hendrickson says Bengals ‘no longer communicating’

Reigning NFL sacks leader Trey Hendrickson appears to have reached “disgruntled” status in his efforts to negotiate a contract extension with the Cincinnati Bengals.

The four-time Pro Bowl defensive end told ESPN on Monday that “no communication has taken place between my camp and the organization” since the April 24-26 draft.

“The offers prior to the draft did not reflect the vision we shared and were promised last offseason if I continued to play at a high level,” Hendrickson said in a statement. “Coaches are aware of these past conversations. Rather than using collaboration to get us to a point to bring me home to the team, THEY are no longer communicating. I have been eagerly awaiting a resolution of this situation, but that’s hard to do when there is no discussion and an evident lack of interest in reaching mutual goals.”

Hendrickson, 30, certainly played at a high level. He led the NFL and matched his career high with 17.5 sacks in 17 starts last season, adding 46 tackles and 36 quarterback hits with two forced fumbles.

He has one year remaining on a contract extension he signed in 2023 with a base salary of $15.8 million for 2025.

ESPN recently reported that Hendrickson is expected to hold out if an agreement isn’t reached by training camp.

The news earlier this offseason out of Cincinnati had been mixed, with both sides initially agreeing to look for a potential trade partner back in early March.

Negotiations reportedly resumed later that month after the Bengals signed wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins to extensions worth $161 million and $115 million, respectively.

Hendrickson’s market value has climbed this offseason with the Las Vegas Raiders signing Maxx Crosby to a three-year, $106.5 million deal and the Cleveland Browns keeping Myles Garrett with a four-year, $160 million contract.

Hendrickson has made the Pro Bowl in each of his four seasons in Cincinnati. He has 77 career sacks in 110 games (81 starts) with the New Orleans Saints (2017-20) and Bengals.

Browns signing veteran S Damontae Kazee

The Cleveland Browns are signing veteran safety Damontae Kazee, multiple outlets reported Monday.

Terms were not reported.

Kazee, 31, adds depth to a safety room that saw the departures of Juan Thornhill (released) and Rodney McLeod (retired) in the offseason. The Browns did not take a safety in last month’s draft.

Kazee played the last three seasons in Pittsburgh. He had an interception and 31 tackles in 15 games (one start) in 2024.

A fifth-round draft pick of Atlanta in 2017, Kazee has 17 career INTs, seven forced fumbles and 363 tackles in 107 career games (63 starts) for the Falcons (2017-20), Dallas Cowboys (2021) and Steelers.

Packers sign rookie Canadian QB Taylor Elgersma

The Green Bay Packers have signed Canadian quarterback Taylor Elgersma, his agent confirmed Monday to NFL Network.

Elgersma, who won Canada’s version of the Heisman Trophy last year, attended a tryout earlier this month during a rookie minicamp.

The Packers had an open spot on the roster so there was no corresponding transaction. Terms were not released by the team or Elgersma’s agent, Craig Schaeffer.

“He’s got a very live arm. We could see that on tape,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur told reporters earlier this month. “He obviously played at the Senior Bowl and (passing-game coordinator Jason) Vrable got to see him there.”

Elgersma, 23, played college football at Wilfrid Laurier in Ontario from 2020-24. He earned the 2024 Hec Crighton Trophy, presented to the most outstanding Canadian football player.

After the season, the 6-foot-4, 216-pound Elgersma became the first Canadian quarterback ever invited to the Senior Bowl.

Elgersma was taken in the second round (18th overall) in the 2025 Canadian Football League draft by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

In addition to starter Jordan Love, the Packers also have quarterbacks Sean Clifford and Malik Willis on the roster.

NFL kicking off season with Cowboys at Eagles

The Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles will host the rival Dallas Cowboys when the NFL kicks off the 2025 regular season on NBC on Thursday, Sept. 4.

The league announced the game on Monday, with the full NFL schedule to be released on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET.

The Eagles swept the Cowboys last season and have won the last three meetings at home.

The last time the NFC East rivals met in Week 1 was on Sept. 3, 2000, when Andy Reid coached Philadelphia to a 41-14 victory at Texas Stadium.

The Eagles went 14-3 in the 2024 regular season and routed the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22 in Super Bowl LIX.

The Cowboys, who will be marking the debut of new head coach Brian Schottenheimer, finished 7-10 last season under Mike McCarthy.

The NFL also confirmed that Peacock will exclusively stream a Saturday night game in Week 17 on Dec. 27. Those teams will be determined at a later date as part of the late-season flex scheduling.

Report: Raiders signing veteran LB Jaylon Smith

Jaylon Smith, a former Pro Bowl linebacker who did not play in 2024, will sign with the Las Vegas Raiders, ESPN reported on Sunday.

Smith, 29, had a tryout over the weekend at the team’s rookie minicamp. He last played in the NFL with the Raiders in 2023, appearing in one game and making two tackles in 25 defensive snaps against the New York Giants in Week 9. He was released on Nov. 22, 2023, and later signed to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ practice squad before his contract expired in January 2024.

The Dallas Cowboys selected Smith in the second round (34th overall) in the 2016 NFL Draft out of Notre Dame. He was voted to the Pro Bowl in 2019, when he made 142 tackles, 2.5 sacks, six tackles for loss and nine passes defended in 16 games.

Smith has 626 career tackles, 11 sacks, 24 tackles for loss, 18 quarterback hits, two interceptions, six forced fumbles and six fumble recoveries in 88 regular-season games (69 starts) for the Cowboys (2017-21), Green Bay Packers (2021), New York Giants (2021-22) and Raiders (2023).

Patrick Mahomes enters high school HOF, partners with Texas schools

Three-time Super Bowl winner Patrick Mahomes was among nine people enshrined in the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame on Saturday — and he left a piece of himself in his home state.

Mahomes played at Whitehouse High School, near Tyler, Texas, and went on to Texas Tech before the Kansas City Chiefs selected him in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft.

Mahomes announced on Instagram after the ceremony that he and his sponsor, Adidas, will be partnering with 15 high schools, including his alma mater.

“Whitehouse, Texas is where it all began,” Mahomes said. “It’s an honor to be inducted into the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame.”

He continued:

“As a part of this recognition, I’m proud to announce that @adidasfballus and I are signing 15 high schools to Team Mahomes that will represent my Gladiator logo on uniform, starting with Whitehouse High School. This is just the beginning.”

Mahomes played football, basketball and baseball at Whitehouse, graduating in 2014. As a senior, he passed for 4,619 yards and 50 touchdowns, and he also ran for 948 yards and 15 scores.

Last summer, Texas Tech signed on to the Gladiator team, becoming the first program to have the logo featured on official collegiate apparel.

Other benefits available to the high school team under the partnership were not announced.

Also enshrined Saturday was Robert Griffin III, the 2011 Heisman Trophy winner. He played at Copperas Cove High School, near Waco, Texas, before enrolling at Baylor in 2008.

Giants coach Brian Daboll: Jaxson Dart came ‘prepared’ for minicamp

The New York Giants have an eclectic mix of players competing for their starting quarterback job, though naturally fans have a great deal of curiosity about the most inexperienced of the bunch, rookie Jaxson Dart.

On Saturday following the first day of Giants rookie minicamp, head coach Brian Daboll offered his positive first impressions of the Giants’ No. 24 overall selection in last month’s NFL Draft.

Speaking about the signal-caller’s poise on Day 1, Daboll said, “There’s nobody rushing him. He did what he was supposed to do. He was prepared. He put a lot of time and effort into it. I got a lot of appreciation for how he’s gone about — in a short amount of time — his business.

“What we’ve asked him to do and how he’s gone about his business as a young pro at that position is important.”

The former Ole Miss star has the advantage of significant collegiate experience, where he played in 45 games over four seasons, including 13 in each of the last three years in Oxford, Miss.

His final year was his most productive. He set career highs in completion percentage (69.3 percent), yards (4,279) and touchdowns (29) while chipping in 495 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.

Dart now has to compete with two former high draft picks and experienced starters in Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston, while the Giants also still have Tommy DeVito, who has started eight games in New York, on the roster too.

Daboll sees some of the qualities in Dart that are necessary to compete, but he also cautions that it’s very early in the process.

“I think he’s got some natural leadership qualities,” Daboll said. “The biggest thing that you usually try to get out of a rookie camp, at least where I’ve been and I’ve worked for is kind of get to know (the players).

“It’s very, very introductory … kind of just starting at the beginning of the alphabet here.”

When asked by reporters about some of the team’s other high-profile rookies, Daboll had no trouble pointing to the positives. He described No. 3 overall pick Abdul Carter as a “good kid” who is conscientious with a good attitude. He added that fourth-round selection Cam Skattebo is conscientious as well.

“I like the young guys we have, and I look forward to working with them,” Daboll said.

Saints QB Derek Carr retiring after 11 seasons

New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr is retiring from the NFL after 11 seasons due to a right shoulder injury.

The Saints said Saturday that Carr had a labral tear and degenerative rotator cuff damage to his right throwing shoulder.

Carr, 34, had been experiencing discomfort in his shoulder since sustaining a left hand injury during a game against the New York Giants on Dec. 8.

“Upon reflection of prayer, and in discussion with (wife) Heather, I’ve decided to retire from the National Football League,” Carr said. “For more than 11 years, we have been incredibly blessed, and we are forever grateful and humbled by this experience. It’s difficult to find the right words to express our thanks to all the teammates, coaches, management, ownership, team officials and especially the fans who made this journey so special. Your unwavering support has meant the world to us.”

The Saints, in their statement, said Carr made the decision after consulting with medical experts.

“Surgery was an option, jeopardizing the entire 2025 season, yet there was no guarantee Derek would return to the level of strength, function and performance of play to which he was accustomed,” the team said.

The Saints selected quarterback Tyler Shough in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft last month. They also have 2024 fifth-round pick Spencer Rattler and 2023 fourth-round selection Jake Haener on the roster.

Carr was 14-13 as the starter in New Orleans over two seasons, although he was limited to 10 games in 2024 due to injuries.

A four-time Pro Bowl selection, Carr has thrown for 41,245 yards and 257 touchdowns against 112 interceptions for the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders (2014-22) and Saints. He was selected by the Raiders in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft out of Fresno State.