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Welcome to the Thursday edition of the Pick Six newsletter! 

It’s been a wild 24 hours around the NFL and if this is what things are going to be like between now and the start of free agency, we might need to start sending out four newsletters per day to keep up. 

From DK Metcalf’s trade request to Joey Bosa getting cut to Maxx Crosby landing a record-setting contract, a lot has happened over the past 24 hours and we’re going to cover it all now. 

As always, here’s your daily reminder to tell all your friends to sign up for the newsletter. To get them signed up, all you have to do is click here. 

1. Prisco’s Top 100 free agents: Predicting the landing spots for the top players on the list

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Although the start of free agency isn’t until next week, we couldn’t wait that long to see where everyone is going to end up, so we made some predictions. Garrett Podell went through some of the top names on Pete Prisco’s list of his top 100 free agents and he predicted a landing spot for each player. 

Let’s check out three players on his list: 

• QB Sam Darnold: Signs with Raiders. “Las Vegas has the second-most effective cap space in the entire NFL ($88.6 million), per OverTheCap.com, and the Raiders give Darnold an offer he cannot refuse in order to have some stability at the quarterback position.”
• DE Josh Sweat: Signs with Cardinals. “Arizona has the third-most effective cap space in the NFL ($74.5 million), per OverTheCap.com, and Sweat has already played for Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon in Philadelphia. This signing fills a major need for the Cardinals.”
• LT Ronnie Stanley: Signs with Titans. “Tennessee continues its offensive line overhaul and moves 2024 first-round pick JC Latham back to his collegiate position of right tackle.”

If you want to know where the rest of Prisco’s top free agents end up, you can check out Garrett’s full list of predictions here. 

2. NFC matchmaker: One free agent that makes sense for each NFC team

The NFL calendar says that free agency starts on March 12, but it technically starts on March 10 with the tampering period, which means we have to cram as many free agency prediction stories into this newsletter between now and then. So yes, you’re getting more predictions. 

This time around, we had Jared Dubin go through every team in the NFC and come up with one free agent who they should sign. Let’s take a look at a few of the names on his list. 

• Rams: WR Davante Adams. “I debated between giving Adams or Chris Godwin to the Rams with the theory being that the latter could slide easily into Cooper Kupp’s old role. But the Rams probably want to have Puka Nacua do more of that stuff, and getting someone who has more inside-outside versatility (and a better track record of health, given the health concerns they already have with Nacua) might make more sense. Either way, giving Matthew Stafford two elite receivers is always fun, so let’s do it again.”
• Commanders: LB Khalil Mack. “Dan Quinn can scheme up a pass rush with the best of them, but it’s better if he doesn’t need to. Give him some more talented players coming off the edge and he can do even better than he did a year ago. Mack also brings elite run defense to the table, which would be of major benefit to the Commanders.”
• Giants: OL Mekhi Becton. “For seemingly the millionth straight year, the Giants need help along the offensive line. Becton is coming off the best season of his career after kicking inside to guard in Philadelphia, but his ability to play either guard or tackle would make him a good fit here, as the Giants really need to throw bodies at their offensive line issue.”

You can read Dubin’s full list here, and just in case you’re wondering, we will be doing an AFC matchmaker tomorrow.

3. Joey Bosa landing spots: Teams that could look into signing the former Chargers star

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For the first time in his career, Joey Bosa is going be a free agent. The five-time Pro Bowler was released on Wednesday night in a cost-cutting move that will free up $25.3 million in salary cap space for the Chargers. 

After spending his entire nine-year career with the Chargers, Bosa will be suiting up for someone else in 2025. Let’s check out three possible landing spots for the five-time Pro Bowler: 

• 49ers. This is the most obvious one and that’s mostly because it would pair him up with his brother, Nick. The two brothers have never played together in the NFL (or college) and this might be there only shot.
• Lions. The Lions don’t really have any pass-rushers outside of Aidan Hutchinson and that became a problem after Hutchinson went down with a season-ending injury in October. To give you an idea of how bad things were for the Lions: Hutchinson led the team in sacks last season even though he only played in FIVE games. … With Marcus Davenport set to hit free agency, the Lions could use some pass-rushing help and at the right price, Bosa would make some sense for Detroit.
• Saints. The Saints just hired a new defensive coordinator in Brandon Staley, who just happens to have been Bosa’s head coach with the Chargers for three seasons. Not only is there some familiarity there, but the Saints will likely also be in the market for some pass-rushing help with Chase young and Payton Turner both set to hit free agency.

I came up with SEVEN possible landing spots for Bosa, and you can check out the full list here. 

4. DK Metcalf requests a trade: Full details and possible landing spots

It seems like every week we have someone new request a trade in the NFL, and this week, that someone is DK Metcalf. The Seahawks receiver wants out of Seattle. 

Here’s what you need to know:

• Seahawks’ asking price. Any team that wants Metcalf is going to have to pay big. According to The Athletic, the Seahawks are looking to get a first-round pick AND a third-round pick in return for their receiver. That’s a steep asking price and it’s hard to see a situation where the Seahawks get that. You can read more about the potential trade compensation here. 
• Metcalf is headed into the final year of his deal. Metcalf signed a three-year, $72 million extension in 2022 and that contract is set to expire after the 2025 season. The contract situation is one reason why Seattle’s asking price seems high: Not only would a team have to give up two high draft picks, but they also would have to give Metcalf a new contract and he’s looking for a deal that pays him at least $30 million per year. 
• Seahawks set to lose two of their top three receivers from 2024. Not only could Metcalf be on his way out of Seattle, but Tyler Lockett definitely won’t be returning. The veteran receiver was released on Wednesday after spending his entire 10-year career in Seattle. Lockett finished with 600 receiving yards last season, which ranked third on the team behind Metcalf (992) and Jaxson Smith-Njigba (1130). If Metcalf gets traded, that means the Seahawks offense will be losing two key receivers. 

Metcalf joins a long list of receivers who could be playing for a new team next year, so Bryan DeArdo decided to put together a some landing spots for each player. Let’s check out a few of them: 

• Best landing spot for DK Metcalf: Bills. “We’ll keep this short and sweet. Metcalf wants to play for a contender, and the Bills need a receiver who can help them get past the Chiefs and the rest of the AFC.”
• Best landing spot for Tyler Lockett: Raiders. “We have Lockett reuniting with former Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll in Las Vegas. Carroll has reportedly been a longtime fan of Lockett, so it makes perfect since for Carroll to have him on his first Raiders squad.”
• Best landing spot for Christian Kirk: Steelers. “The Steelers were reportedly close to acquiring Kirk before last year’s trade deadline, but Kirk broke his collarbone just before the deadline, prematurely ending his season after just 12 games. If he is healthy, it’s safe to assume that the Steelers would still be interested in acquiring the 28-year-old.”

DeArdo covered a few more landing spots and you can check those out here. 

5. Raiders have a busy day: Maxx Crosby lands historic deal, plus one Las Vegas QB gets cut

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It’s been a busy 24 hours for the Las Vegas Raiders. They made multiple moves on Wednesday, which included agreeing to a record-setting extension with Maxx Crosby. 

Here’s what you need to know about the Raiders’ day: 

• Crosby lands record-setting deal. The Raiders’ star signed a three-year, $106.5 million contract extension that includes $91.5 million in guaranteed money. The deal is worth an average of $35.5 million per year, which makes Crosby the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL. That title previously belonged to Justin Jefferson, who’s making $35 million per year. 
• Bengals and Cowboys will likely be checking out the details of the deal. Maxx Crosby likely won’t hold the title of “Highest paid non-QB in NFL history” for very long and that’s because Micah Parsons and Ja’Marr Chase are both aiming to take the title from him. With Crosby getting his deal, that drives up the price for what the Cowboys and Bengals might have to pay to Parsons and Chase. 
• Raiders sign Super Bowl-winning offensive lineman. The Raiders made another move on Wednesday by signing Alex Cappa. The offensive guard was released by the Bengals on Monday after three years with the team. The 30-year-old Cappa started his career in Tampa Bay and won a Super Bowl with the Buccaneers in 2020. 
• Raiders cut a starting QB. The Raiders still don’t know who their starting QB will be in 2025, but it definitely won’t be Gardner Minshew. The veteran quarterback has been informed that he’s going to be released at the start of free agency next week. You can read more about Minshew here. The 28-year-old Minshew started nine games in 2024, going 2-7 while throwing more interceptions (10) than touchdowns (9). 

If you’re wondering who might eventually start at QB for the Raiders, we recently ranked their QB options, and you can check that out here. 

6. Extra points: Bears pull off another big trade

It’s been a busy 24 hours in the NFL, and since it’s nearly impossible to keep track of everything that happened, I went ahead and put together a roundup for you. 

• Bears acquire Joe Thuney from the Chiefs. The Bears had one of the worst offensive lines in football last season and they’re doing their best to fix that for 2025. Not only did the team make a trade for Jonah Jackson on Tuesday, but less than 24 hours later, they added Thuney in a deal with the Chiefs. We graded the Thuney trade and you can check out those grades here. 
• Cowboys restructure Dak Prescott’s contract. The Cowboys added $36.6 million in salary cap space on Wednesday after restructuring Dak Prescott’s contract (If you want to know how they were able to free up that much space, we’ve got the details here). The Cowboys also restructured CeeDee Lamb’s deal earlier this week, which means they’ve now created $56.6 million in cap space since Monday. Going into the week, the Cowboys weren’t salary cap compliant, but now, they have $54 million in cap space, which is the eighth most in the NFL, according to OverTheCap. That could give them the space they need to get a long-term deal done with Micah Parsons. 
• Browns restructure Deshaun Watson’s contract. The Cowboys weren’t the only team to restructure a quarterback’s contract. The Browns did the same thing with Watson’s contract on Thursday in a move that frees up $35.8 million in salary cap space. The Browns were previously over the cap, but they now have more than $10 million in space after making the move with Watson. You can read more about the restructuring here. 
• Zack Baun gets three-year deal from Eagles. The Eagles have several key players set to hit free agency next week, but at least one of them will be staying in Philadelphia. Zack Baun agreed to terms on a three-year, $51 million deal that includes $36 million in guaranteed money. Baun was a key part of the Eagles’ defense during their Super Bowl-winning season, and now, he’ll be returning to Philadelphia for three more years. You can read more about his deal here. 
• Jaguars set to release Christian Kirk. After three seasons, the Jaguars have decided to move on from Christian Kirk. The team is set to cut Kirk in a move that will save $10.4 million against the salary cap. Kirk was on the trade block in 2024 before suffering a season-ending collarbone injury in October. You can read more about the Jags’ decision here.