- The Rams attacked their biggest weakness: Cornerback Jaylen Watson brings the size and coverage-matching traits that Los Angeles lacked on the outside. He generated a top-10 mark in passer rating allowed (69.0) in coverage while recording a pair of interceptions in 2025.
- The Panthers locked down an All-Pro linebacker at a reasonable price point: Devin Lloyd closed out a career year in 2025 by ranking above the 90th percentile in PFF coverage grade (78.9), PFF run-defense grade (85.2) and PFF pass-rush grade (81.8) and will play for $15 million per year over three years.
- 2026 NFL Draft season is here: Try the best-in-class PFF Mock Draft Simulator and learn about 2026’s top prospects while trading and drafting for your favorite NFL team.
EDGE Trey Hendrickson signs with Baltimore Ravens
Contract: 4 years, $112 million
Backtracking on the Maxx Crosby trade left the Ravens — and the Raiders, for that matter — in a precarious position. With a lingering need to bolster a pass-rush unit that ranked 29th in PFF pass-rush grade (62.1) in 2025, the Ravens went all-in to acquire the next best option. And it didn’t cost a pair of first-round picks.
The aggressive move to sign Hendrickson is a win-win for both the player and the team. On the Ravens’ front, adding Hendrickson gives the defense an upper-echelon pass rusher off the edge. He is one of six edge rushers to record a pass-rush win-rate above 20% over the past three seasons, and he also places in the 96th percentile in PFF pass-rush grade on true pass sets.
Trey Hendrickson’s Stable Pass-Rush Metrics (2023-2025)
For Hendrickson, the deal, on its surface, looks like a discount on the $30 million-plus per-year average his camp was rumored to be looking for. Depending on the contract’s structure, $60 million in guarantees will likely bring Hendrickson closer to that threshold over the first two seasons. Adding in the prospect of playing his former team twice a year pours more fuel onto the fire.
CB Jaylen Watson signs with the Los Angeles Rams
Contract: 4 years, $51 million
After the Rams’ coverage play fell apart down the stretch — the team ranked 19th in team PFF coverage grade (57.1) from Week 13 through the end of the season — the front office meticulously addressed that need. The efforts began by re-signing safety Kamren Curl (three years, $36 million), followed by trading for former Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie. The Rams took major steps to improve the unit, but they weren’t finished yet.
Los Angeles snagged another former Chiefs cornerback in Jaylen Watson to put a bow on the secondary overhaul. Watson brings the size and coverage-matching traits that Los Angeles lacked on the outside. He generated a top-10 mark in passer rating allowed (69.0) in coverage while recording a pair of interceptions in 2025.
That move addressed the Rams’ only glaring roster need. Still armed with the 13th overall pick (via the Falcons), Los Angeles has the freedom to attack the draft in several ways.
The long and short of the Rams’ situation: The rich get richer.
LB Devin Lloyd signs with the Carolina Panthers
Contract: 3 years, $45 million
The Panthers made a massive push to overhaul their defense, headlined by the deal to acquire second-team All-Pro Devin Lloyd, the third-highest-graded linebacker in the NFL in 2025.
Lloyd is an every-down weapon at the position, capable of making plays in each facet on defense. He closed out a career year in 2025 by ranking above the 90th percentile in PFF coverage grade (78.9), PFF run-defense grade (85.2) and PFF pass-rush grade (81.8). It was his third consecutive season with a PFF overall grade above 76.0.
Lloyd provides Carolina’s defense with a leader at linebacker, a void the team desperately needed to address after its showing last season. The move to acquire Christian Rozeboom last offseason amounted to little, as no Panthers linebacker eclipsed a 55.0 PFF overall grade in 2025.
On top of Lloyd’s strong fit, the money is team-friendly. Lloyd’s $15 million per-year average comes in just shy of his PFF projection of $16 million annually but well under the estimated $20 million mark some outlets were suggesting he may reach.
Colts receive: 2026 sixth-round pick
Steelers receive: Michael Pittman Jr. and 2026 seventh-round pick
Contract: 3 years, $59 million
The Colts shelled out $116 million ($29 million average annual value), with $84 million guaranteed, to wide receiver Alec Pierce, leaving Michael Pittman Jr. as the odd man out in Indianapolis. For the price of a late-round pick swap, the Steelers were able to acquire the 28-year-old receiver.
Even at over $19.6 million per year on average, the deal looks like a discount compared to Pierce’s contract and the receiver market as a whole. In terms of average annual value, Pittman’s new deal places him just inside the top 25 among wide receivers.
The move provides the Steelers with a proven second option behind D.K. Metcalf, as well as a complementary skill set. Pittman is a chain-moving possession receiver, ranking in the top 20 in first-down receptions (135) over the past three seasons while posting a 93.8% catch rate on catchable passes. Pittsburgh gets a consistent performer in the receiving game, with Pittman producing a 70.0-plus PFF receiving grade in five of his six NFL seasons.
S Bryan Cook signs with the Cincinnati Bengals
Contract: 3 years, $40.25 million
For roughly the price it would have cost to retain Trey Hendrickson, the Bengals were able to address two levels of the defense.
Cincinnati locked up the former Chiefs safety on a three-year deal, bolstering a secondary that finished dead last in explosive pass percentage allowed in 2025. Equally as important, the Bengals didn’t break the bank to do so, with Cook’s per-year average contract value pushing just over $13 million, a rate that places him in the top 12 among safeties in average annual value.
Cook profiled as the top safety in the PFF Free Agency Rankings after earning the fourth-highest PFF overall grade at the position this past season. By comparison, the Bengals‘ safety group ranked 25th in the NFL in that area. Cook project to improve the unit through his play and leadership skills. The 26-year-old safety had grown into an indispensable leader for Kansas City, taking over coverage and alignment checks, a skill set that Al Golden’s defense has desperately needed.
