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In 2017, Antonio Brown was making millions as a dominant wide receiver, and bottomless shrimp was back at Red Lobster.
As Bob Dylan once sang, “the times they are a-changing.” This week, Brown filed for bankruptcy, as did the restaurant chain. As for the NFL, today’s update includes:
- 📽 First-rounders at OTAs
- ⏱ Brandon Aiyuk: Still absent
- 🛡 Caleb Williams’ first challenge
- 🌎 Choosing international games
OTA Sights, Sounds: Early report on first-round pass catchers
Last year’s group of first-round wide receivers — Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Quentin Johnston, Zay Flowers and Jordan Addison — were all overshadowed by pick No. 177, who The Athletic reported first stood out during OTAs last May.
That was Puka Nacua, who went on to have the best rookie season of any receiver in NFL history for the Rams, breaking a rookie receiving yards mark that had stood for over 60 years.
Could Nacua’s 1,486 yards be topped by a member of this year’s rookie class? Here’s the scoop on each of the first-round pass-catchers so far:
Marvin Harrison Jr., Cardinals: The No. 4 pick out of Ohio State signed his rookie contract yesterday, meaning his jersey will now be available. On the field, we haven’t seen much besides a few videos of Harrison catching passes from Kyler Murray.
- Harrison said he’s glad he skipped the combine to rest and train for football this offseason: “Hopefully, come December and January, and then hopefully playoff time, I’m playing my best football because I got the rest I needed.”
Malik Nabers, Giants: The explosiveness from the No. 6 pick was on full display yesterday as he was open on “almost every 11-on-11 route he ran,” and made the play of the day on a double-move for a 50-yard touchdown.
- Nabers joined Isaiah Hodgins and Wan’Dale Robinson with the first-team offense in what could be the best receiving core of Daniel Jones’ career (which isn’t saying much, but still). Also: HC Brian Daboll will be calling plays for New York’s offense. Read up on how Nabers wants to “destroy you.” 👀
Rome Odunze, Bears: The No. 9 pick tweaked his hamstring last week and has only been seen stretching and doing light work since. He was not participating in yesterday’s session, but is expected to return to practice next week. Yesterday, we saw inside the Bears war room and how happy they were to draft Odunze.
- HC Matt Eberflus: “Rome’s starting to work out there … We’re hopeful that he’ll be starting to ramp back in there next week during the OTAs that we have next week.” A positive sign after a forgettable practice for the Bears offense (more on that, below).
Brock Bowers, Raiders: The first player to win back to back Mackey awards as the most outstanding tight end in college football, Bowers landing with the Raiders at No. 13 surprised many. Recall: In 2023, the Raiders traded up to No. 35 for TE Michael Mayer, who is impressing during OTAs.
- In a Raiders’ hype video, we see Bowers taking handoffs, which could add a new element to the Raiders attack. At Georgia, Bowers averaged 10.2 yards per carry and scored five touchdowns on 19 rushing attempts.
Brian Thomas Jr., Jaguars: The No. 23 pick with 4.33 speed is having an offseason you’d hope from a rookie in Jacksonville: catching passes from Trevor Lawrence and receiving praise from HC Doug Pederson.
Xavier Worthy, Chiefs: The No. 28 pick tweaked one of his hamstrings during Tuesday’s practice and was held out Wednesday as a precaution. Positive side? Prior to Tuesday, Worthy’s performance improved each day. (Remember: 4.21 40 time here.)
Ricky Pearsall, 49ers: Despite having one target knocked down, “[the No. 31 pick] still had an impressive session that included a pair of catches,” per The Athletic’s Matt Barrows. Brock Purdy said Pearsall has “done everything right.”
Xavier Legette, Panthers: He’s covering ground like you’re not used to seeing,” Panthers coach Dave Canales said of the No. 32 pick, who is focused on improving as a route runner. For Bryce Young, whose WR1 last season was 33-year-old Adam Thielen, the combination of size, speed and explosiveness of Legette is “something [to] get used to.”
And while Ricky Pearsall gets extra reps in San Francisco, his one-time college teammate at Arizona State remains absent. Dianna explains.
What Dianna’s Hearing: Aiyuk’s absence continues
49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk is not attending the team’s voluntary offseason program as he seeks a new contract. The wide receiver — who was on the trade block around the NFL Draft — is set to earn a little over than $14 million on the fifth-year option of his rookie contract.
The 49ers have made an offer to Aiyuk in the range of $26 million per year, but the two sides remain without a deal. As we have seen over the last month, Philadelphia’s A.J. Brown ($32 million per year) and Devonta Smith ($25 million per year) and Detroit’s Amon-Ra St. Brown ($30 million) helped reset the wide receiver market with long-term extensions, a topic The Athletic’s Randy Mueller examined earlier this week.
Back to you, Jacob.
OTA Sights, Sounds Pt. II: Caleb Williams’ first challenge
Yesterday marked the inaugural set of organized team activities in Chicago that were open to the media, leading to the inevitable, internet-law-mandated overreaction about how the rookie quarterback performed. It wasn’t positive. (It’s also May.)
Jon Greenberg captured it perfectly: “Williams spent most of [Thursday’s practice] looking like a familiar-yet-chilling NFL player: a Bears quarterback.”
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What happened? “We’re going to give him everything that we have every day,” said DC Eric Washington, whose defense limited Williams to just three completions during their 7-on-7 period. CB Jaylon Johnson nearly had an interception, and Williams regularly held onto the ball for too long.
Is this concerning? No. Again, this was the first day open to the media, and safety Kevin Byard said Williams and the offense actually got the better of the defense on the first day of OTAs. Odunze, who we highlighted above, and Keenan Allen were also absent during yesterday’s 7-on-7s. Kevin Fishbain has 10 takeaways from Bears’ OTAs, which includes his early impressions of newcomers D’Andre Swift and Gerald Everett.
How it works: Deciding international games
The number of international NFL games continue to rise, jumping to five this season before a record eight in 2025. On his podcast earlier this week, Adam Schefter said he thinks we’ll “eventually have one international game for EVERY TEAM, PER YEAR.”
This morning, The Athletic’s Mike Jones examined how the international selection process works. Did you have flag football participation as a consideration? The league does have a position focused on just that.
Around the NFL
In his Packers mailbag, Matt Schneidman answers a question many fantasy football players want to know: Which receiver leads the team in yards? “Give me Christian Watson for receiving yards and Romeo Doubs for touchdown catches.”
Alec Lewis answered Vikings fans, who asked about how J.J. McCarthy is being reported on. Alec’s answer: “If you’ve read this space, then you know what you need to know: McCarthy can hum the football. The Vikings have established an environment where he’s comfortable with trial and error so that he can develop consistent layering.”
WR Jameson Williams has been the Lion’s most improved player this offseason, according to Dan Campbell: “He’s a man on a mission. I”m just going to leave it at that.” Remember, this is a player who was taken at No. 12 overall.
Tee Higgins’ situation look familiar? As Paul Dehner Jr. noted, this is play-for-play of what went down with former Bengals S Jessie Bates two years ago. That situation: Higgins has yet to sign the franchise tag, something Bates eventually did.
Ravens OC Todd Monken on Derrick Henry‘s workload: “Well, if he carries it 300 times, we’re having a helluva year … We want him to be the closer. But first and foremost, we want him to make it through the season. It’s a long season — 17 games.”
Jacob’s Picks
📕 Don’t sleep on these rookies. NFL Draft analyst Nick Baumgardner reviews the Day 3 rookies who have either a path to playing time or are perfect fits in their new homes. (The Athletic)
📺 Most upvoted reddit NFL post of all time? The Stefon Diggs catch against the Saints. It’s worth rewatching today (for everyone outside of New Orleans). (YouTube)
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