The 2026 offseason still has room for another jolt, and a few AFC teams already have players who could be staring at the door once training camp opens. Some are veterans on rosters that are changing fast.
Others are younger players who haven’t quite stuck. Either way, these are the names worth watching as the 90-man camps get rolling.
For the Las Vegas Raiders, the obvious headline is Maxx Crosby, the defensive end whose name has kept popping up in trade chatter even after the deal with the Baltimore Ravens was cancelled earlier this offseason. There’s still no guarantee anything happens before the 2026 season starts, or even during it, but the interest figures to be there the moment Crosby is healthy and back looking like himself. At that point, teams hunting for edge help are expected to be calling Raiders GM John Spytek, and the asking price likely won’t have softened much with the season so close.
In New York, Mazi Smith looks like the kind of player who could be squeezed out by the numbers. The Jets picked him up from the Dallas Cowboys as part of the Quinnen Williams trade last year, essentially as a throw-in, after Dallas had already moved on from the former first-round pick out of Michigan.
Smith appeared in just three games for the Jets, and he’s now in a contract year in 2026. If New York feels its defensive line rotation is set without him, another team might decide to take one more swing on a player it liked in the 2023 class.
The problem is the clock is ticking, and his career production still sits at just two sacks in 42 games.
Tennessee has a different kind of situation going on under new head coach Robert Saleh, who replaced Brian Callahan and immediately brought in familiar faces from his past. Jermaine Johnson, John Franklin-Myers, and Solomon Thomas are already in the building, part of a broader youth movement that could leave Cody Barton vulnerable.
Barton signed with the Titans last offseason, but with Cedric Gray and Anthony Hill Jr. on the roster and Mohamoud Diabate also in the mix, his spot is far from secure. His experience could still make him useful to a linebacker-needy team if Tennessee decides to move on.
Cleveland’s quarterback room makes Dillon Gabriel the most obvious odd man out. The Browns are set to run a quarterback competition between Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders for the starting job, which leaves Gabriel looking like the clear outsider.
He’s already had to give up his jersey number to Jared Verse, and Cleveland also used a sixth-round pick on Taylen Green, a prospect described as a potentially intriguing weapon for the offense. Gabriel may not draw the biggest market, but he’s the kind of player who could end up available if the Browns keep reshuffling the depth chart.
In Other News...
Titans Camp Battle Could Quietly Decide Robert Salehs Defense
Training camp is about to sort out more than just the Titans depth chart. Under Robert Saleh, the competition at right guard has become one of the quieter but more consequential battles on the roster, with Jackson Slater and Cordell Volson both in the mix as the team tries to stabilize the interior and keep the offense on schedule. It is the kind of job fight that can shape how a line functions long before the regular season starts.
The same is true on the edge, where the spot opposite Jermaine Johnson II is expected to draw real attention once camp gets rolling. Femi Oladejo and Jacob Martin headline that group, with rookie Keldric Faulk also expected to factor in, and the way Saleh parcels out those snaps should tell a lot about how he sees the front seven taking shape. For a defense built on pressure and rotation, those decisions may end up carrying more weight than they first appear. [Read more 🡒]
Former Titans Star Left Stunned By Travis Kelce Friendship Snub
The celebrity-heavy wedding scene around Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift had plenty of NFL representation, with names like George Kittle and Matthew Stafford showing up with family in tow. For former Titans lineman Taylor Lewan and ex-Titans linebacker Will Compton, though, the guest list brought a different kind of attention, since both had long considered themselves part of Kelces circle and expected to be in the mix for a day that blended football fame with pop-star spectacle.
Lewan sounded genuinely taken aback when the invitations didnt come his way, openly questioning what he might be doing wrong after seeing who was there. Compton had a similar reaction, saying he was flabbergasted while reacting to the photos and even noting Dean Blandinos presence, a reminder that the guest list was full of surprises even before the Titans duo realized they were on the outside looking in. [Read more 🡒]
Titans May Finally Have The Camp Battle Their Secondary Needed
The Titans added another piece to their secondary on March 12, signing Joshua Williams to a two-year contract after four seasons with the Chiefs. For a cornerback room that has spent too much time shuffling bodies because of injuries, Williams arrives as the kind of steady, experienced depth every defense wants but not every defense can find.
What makes him especially relevant in Tennessee is the role he can fill behind Alontae Taylor and Cor'Dale Flott at boundary corner. Williams brings size, special teams value and the sort of flexibility that can help a coaching staff keep its options open if the camp competition gets tight, and the Titans will be watching closely to see whether he can turn that backup job into something more meaningful. [Read more 🡒]