Stefon Diggs to be free agent after Patriots release

Add another veteran wide receiver to the list of pendingNFL free agents.

TheNew England Patriotsinformed wide receiverStefon Diggsthat they will release him after the start of the new league year, which is set for March 11.

Diggs, 32, signed a three-year, $63.5 million contract with New England in free agency last offseason. He will end hisPatriotstenure after playing one year on that contract.

"THANK YOU for a hell of a year," Diggswrote in an Instagram story. "We family forever (heart emoji)."

During the 2025 season, Diggs' 11th season in the NFL, he caught 85 passes for 1,013 yards and four touchdowns. His receptions and yardage total, along with his 104 targets, led all Patriots pass-catchers this season.

The Maryland product will have a chance to join a fourth team in four seasons when he becomes a free agent next week after spending 2023 with the Buffalo Bills, 2024 with the Houston Texans and 2025 with New England.

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2. New York Jets – OLB/DE David Bailey, Texas Tech

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 3. Arizona Cardinals – OLB/DE Arvell Reese, Ohio State

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 4. Tennessee Titans – RB Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 5. New York Giants – LB Sonny Styles, Ohio State

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 6. Cleveland Browns – OL Francis Mauigoa, Miami (Fla.)

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 7. Washington Commanders – S Caleb Downs, Ohio State

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 8. New Orleans Saints – WR Carnell Tate, Ohio State

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 9. Kansas City Chiefs – CB Mansoor Delane, LSU

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 10. Cincinnati Bengals – DE Rueben Bain Jr., Miami (Fla.)

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 11. Miami Dolphins – OT Spencer Fano, Utah

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 12. Dallas Cowboys – CB Jermod McCoy, Tennessee

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 13. Los Angeles Rams (from Atlanta Falcons) – WR Denzel Boston, Washington

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 14. Baltimore Ravens – DL Caleb Banks, Florida

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – TE Kenyon Sadiq, Oregon

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 16. New York Jets (from Indianapolis Colts) – WR Makai Lemon, USC

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 17. Detroit Lions – OT Monroe Freeling, Georgia

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 18. Minnesota Vikings – S Dillon Thieneman, Oregon

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 19. Carolina Panthers – DT Peter Woods, Clemson

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 20. Dallas Cowboys (from Green Bay Packers) – OLB/DE T.J. Parker, Clemson

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 21. Pittsburgh Steelers – WR Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 22. Los Angeles Chargers – G Olaivavega Ioane, Penn State

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 23. Philadelphia Eagles – DE/OLB Akheem Mesidor, Miami (Fla.)

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 24. Cleveland Browns (from Jacksonville Jaguars) – WR Omar Cooper Jr., Indiana

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 25. Chicago Bears – S Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, Toledo

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 30. Denver Broncos – WR KC Concepcion, Texas A&M

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 31. New England Patriots – DE Keldric Faulk, Auburn

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />

NFL mock draft: First-round projection after Trent McDuffie trade

Mike Vrabel recently discussed Stefon Diggs' future with the Patriots

At the NFL combine last week, Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel praised Diggs for his contributions on the field as well as his leadership.

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"He worked extremely hard in the time that he was rehabbing from the knee," Vrabel said, referring to Diggs' recovery from the torn ACL he suffered in 2024. "I think he was just a really good presence each and every week."

The Pats' head coach said at the time that he and other members of New England's front office were still evaluating Diggs' future, including how Diggs' legal troubles factored into the decision.

The veteran wide receiver is facing strangulation and assault allegations after a physical altercation with his personal chef in December last year. Diggs was arraigned on Feb. 13, days after the Patriots' loss in Super Bowl 60, and pleaded not guilty to felony strangulation or suffocation and misdemeanor assault and battery.

Vrabel said at the NFL combine that Diggs "or anybody else that has something, have done exactly what they're supposed to do, been where they're supposed to be, communicated with the court when they're supposed to communicate with them. So we're going to let all that take care of itself, and then we'll have to see what the judgments are in those particular cases."

Diggs is due for another pre-trial hearing on April 1.

Stefon Diggs stats

• Games (starts): 17 (17)

• Receptions: 85

• Receiving yards: 1,013

• Yards per reception: 11.9

• Touchdowns: 4

• Games (starts): 161 (153)

• Receptions: 942

• Receiving yards: 11,504

• Yards per reception: 12.2

• Touchdowns: 74

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Patriots to release star WR Stefon Diggs

byCustos Caelorum

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March 04, 2026

Stefon Diggs to be free agent after Patriots release

Add another veteran wide receiver to the list of pendingNFL free agents. TheNew England Patriotsinformed wid...

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Report: Jon Rahm jet carries seven LIV Golf players out of Dubai to Hong Kong tournament

A midnight flight out of bordering Oman on a jet arranged by Jon Rahm brought seven players out of a war zone and into safety 24 hours before the start of LIV Golf Hong Kong, according to Golf.com.

LIV Golf was set to begin play in the annual event in Hong Kong on Thursday and made an attempt to arrange travel from Dubai, which has been struck repeatedly during an escalating conflict involving Iran, Isreal and the United States.

U.S. officials called for American citizens to evacuate 14 Middle East nations, but only after damage had already been done around Dubai International Airport, grounding flights. Several LIV Golf players and caddies live in the United Arab Emirates.

According to the report, Rahm's plan required players to coordinate from different locations in the Middle East to travel toward Oman. The driving distance from downtown Dubai to the border is more than 90 minutes. The usual flight time from Oman to Hong Kong is approximately seven hours.

Golf.com reported Lee Westwood, Anirban Lahiri, Thomas Detry, Sam Horsfield, Tom McKibbin, Adrian Meronk and Caleb Surratt and a caddie traveled in a shuttle van to the Oman border under the cloak of darkness before switching to another shuttle for transportation to an airstrip where the aircraft waited to fly the crew to Hong Kong.

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"It was terrifying," Surratt told Golf.com via text on Tuesday. "But since then, it's been OK. It was bad Sunday and Monday here with missile interceptions, but all day today was fine."

McKibbin and Surratt are teammates on Rahm's Legion XIII.

They landed just before midnight local time and all are expected to participate in the event this weekend.

Multiple reports indicated Laurie Canter, an eighth LIV Golf player who was in Dubai, was not on the flight but was expected to arrive in time for the start of the event. By late Wednesday, a limited opening of the main airports in Dubai and Oman was permitted.

--Field Level Media

byCustos Caelorum

in

March 04, 2026

Report: Jon Rahm jet carries seven LIV Golf players out of Dubai to Hong Kong tournament

A midnight flight out of bordering Oman on a jet arranged by Jon Rahm brought seven players out of a war zone and in...

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Lily Allen's receipt dress features lyrics dissing ex David Harbour

British pop starLily Allenstunned in a sheer black knit dress at "The Hunger Games: On Stage" premiere at the Troubadour Canary Wharf Theatre on Nov. 12, 2025, in London.Allen's record "West End Girl," which ispacked with revelatory lyricsabout the dissolution of her relationship with "Stranger Things" star David Harbour, has been making waves since the album's debut in October 2025.

British pop star Lily Allen stunned in a sheer black knit dress at "The Hunger Games: On Stage" premiere at the Troubadour Canary Wharf Theatre on Nov. 12, 2025, in London.

Allen's record "West End Girl," which is packed with revelatory lyrics about the dissolution of her relationship with "Stranger Things" star David Harbour, has been making waves since the album's debut in October 2025.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Lily Allen in a sheer, black knit John Galliano-designed Dior dress from 1999.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Lily Allen

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Lily Allen

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Lily Allen

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Lily Allen

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />

See Lily Allen's sheer black dress at 'The Hunger Games: On Stage' red carpet

Lily Allendoesn't just keep receipts; she flaunts them on stage.

Proudly showcasing her vulnerability and brutal honesty on stage in true Allen fashion, the "Smile" singer donned a sage green dress that, in the form of a receipt, featured a long train with handwritten lyrics from one of her songs, "4Chan Stan," which allude to the demise of her marriage to "Stranger Things" actorDavid Harbour.

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In that song, Allen sings, "You don't want her thinking that you cheat on your wife."

According toPage Six, the fabric of her dress also included receipts from tequila bars and Bergdorf Goodman. The latter, which is a designer store where Allen, in the track "4Chan Stan," discovers that her husband bought another woman a pricey handbag.

Othersocial media users also speculatedthe receipt dress was a nod to Harbour and his alleged infidelity.

byCustos Caelorum

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March 04, 2026

Lily Allen's receipt dress features lyrics dissing ex David Harbour

British pop starLily Allenstunned in a sheer black knit dress at "The Hunger Games: On Stage" premiere at ...

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'Lanterns' trailer shows Green Lanterns at odds while solving mystery

The Green Lanterns are about to ring in for their appearance onthe new DC Universe's center stage.

In a new teaser trailer, you can see the first action footage ofKyle Chandler("Friday Night Lights") as Hal Jordan, the legendary Green Lantern, andAaron Pierre("Mufasa: The Lion King"), whose John Stewart is a new Lantern recruit, in the upcoming series "Lanterns," scheduled to debut in August on HBO and available to stream on HBO Max.

The two men work together and spar as they investigate a murder in the American heartland – a plot that may sound mundane, but is expected to have repercussions for the new DC Universe, launched last year with"Superman"and 2024's animated series"Creature Commandos."

Another Green Lantern,Nathan Fillion's Guy Gardner, from 2025's "Superman" will also turn up. The events in "Lanterns" play out after season 2 of "Peacemaker," which had an appearance by Gardner and the Justice Gang – including Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi) and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), with whom Gardner also played parts in "Superman." The next DC Universe event? The upcoming"Supergirl"film, starring Milly Alcock, in theaters June 26.

'Game of Thrones':A movie is in the works – Everything we know so far

Two Green Lanterns at work in 'Lanterns'

To many DC Comics fans, Hal Jordan is the Green Lantern they know. The character starred in the comics for more than four decades and was portrayed byRyan Reynolds in the 2011 "Green Lantern" film.

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Some background: Many Green Lanterns exist in DC Comics lore and they are galactic police officers. They wield a powerful ring, from which they can create powerful green-shaped objects and gain the power of flight. Hal Jordan was the first to join the Justice League of America, which also included Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, the Martian Manhunter and Aquaman. John Stewart also appeared in DC Comics starting in the 70s.

But in this teaser trailer for "Lanterns," we see an aging, irritable Hal Jordan (Chandler) training an impatient Stewart (Pierre). When Stewart says he hasn't gotten to wear the ring once in two months of training, Jordan tells him, "Don't get hung up on the jewelry, junior."

We see Jordan find his Green Lantern suit in a closet, wear his ring and take off into the sky. Still, Stewart (Pierre) tells him, "You're old. You're tired. And your time is up."

Watch 'Lanterns' trailer

DC Studios co-CEOJames Gunndescribed "Lanterns" as "almost like 'True Detective' with a couple of Green Lanterns, who are space cops watching over Precinct Earth," in aJanuary 2023 videoabout the developing DC Universe. "In it, they discover a terrifying mystery that ties into our larger story of the DCU," Gunn said.

Contributing: Brian Truitt

Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him atmikegsnider&@mikegsnider.bsky.social&@mikesnider& msnider@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:'Lanterns' trailer shows Green Lanterns solving mystery, butting heads

byCustos Caelorum

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March 04, 2026

'Lanterns' trailer shows Green Lanterns at odds while solving mystery

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Jayson Tatum's return now would be ahead of the norm. Is that a good thing?

It was early December in 2013 when the Los Angeles Lakers' Facebook page posted atwo-minute video of a jersey floating in the wind. Tens of thousands of captivated fans couldn't wait to reshare and comment as dramatic music played over the social media post.

The No. 24 jersey hung in the sky as sunshine pierced through some clouds. Then, over the course of the next 120 seconds, a thunderous storm battered the jersey until it tore in half.

Finally, after a beam of light, the jersey was made whole.

The symbolism relayed the message: Kobe Bryant wasback. "Seasons of Legend. The Lakers announce Kobe's return," the post's caption read. The then 35-year-old Bryant, who had torn his Achilles less than eight months prior, was returning in near-record time, missing just 21 Lakers regular-season games with an injury that infamously had ended NBA careers.

Unfortunately, Bryant's comeback season lasted only six games. Just nine days after his return, Bryant suffered a serious knee injury in the same leg of his torn Achilles, quickly dimming all the excitement over his fast return. His season was over and Bryant's playing abilities were never the same.

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum has idolized Bryant and his Mamba Mentality ever since Tatum was a child. The 28-year-old has said Bryant's story has driven him to become the NBA player he is today. As Tatum nears his own return from an Achilles tear, he should continue to take lessons from Bryant's career. The Lakers star's historic 2013 return offers a cautionary tale about what could happen in a highly anticipated and quick midseason return.

Tatum should also take heed of the rehab schedule of another NBA legend, one that tells the greatest Achilles tear story of all time: Kevin Durant.

Kobe vs. KD: A contrast in Achilles recoveries

Watching Kevin Durant dominate in the year 2026, an uninformed observer would never guess the Houston Rockets All-Star tore his Achilles tendon just as he entered his thirties. Durant's injury occurred in the 2019 NBA Finals while playing for the Golden State Warriors and he took the next season off as he joined his new team, the Brooklyn Nets.

While Bryant struggled to return to his pre-Achilles form, Durant's superstar status hasn't wavered. The 37-year-old is averaging an unthinkable 27.6 points with white-hot efficiency in the six seasons since the longest tendon in the human body snapped in his leg. His post-Achilles-tear résumé, consisting of six All-Star appearances and two All-NBA nominations, shines brighter than most players' entire careers.

To be clear, no two Achilles tears are the same. Different mechanisms of injury, different bodies and all that. Beyond the difference in age between Bryant and Durant at the time of their injuries — Bryant was 34, Durant was 30 — the most interesting dynamic is a contrast of time in another dimension: recovery time.

Durant's absence from NBA games lasted 18 months, more than twice that of Bryant's eight months.

We will never know if Durant would have fared as well in the back nine of his career if he returned midseason in 2019-20. Complicating matters was the COVID-19 pandemic that disrupted everything in March of that season, including Durant's injury rehab process with the Nets. Durant decided not to pursue a comeback in The Bubble when the Nets resumed the season in late July. Instead, he took extra time to get himself ready for the following season, which would begin in December 2020.

In aninterviewwith Andscape's Marc J. Spears, Durant said the decision to not play in the 2019-20 season was made well before the pandemic hit.

"My season is over," Durant said in June 2020. "I don't plan on playing at all. We decided last summer when it first happened that I was just going to wait until the following season. I had no plans of playing at all this season. It's just best for me to wait. I don't think I'm ready to play that type of intensity right now in the next month. It gives me more time to get ready for next season and the rest of my career."

Though Durant missed some time in 2020-21 dealing with various injuries, his play on the floor didn't seem to suffer at all. Leading the Nets in the postseason, the long layoff may have paid dividends. He scored a scorching 34.3 points per game in the playoffs, the most of any player who suited up at least 10 games during that postseason.

Plenty of speculation has surrounded Tatum about when he may return this season, if at all. If Tatum decides to sit out the season, he would give himself about 17 and a half months of a layoff before next season kicks off in mid-October — basically the Durant timeline.

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Should Tatum suit up for the Celtics this week, though, he'd be returning about 10 months after he went down in the closing minutes of Game 4 of last year's Eastern Conference semifinals against the New York Knicks. In this sense, he's given himself two months of a buffer behind Bryant's timeline when the Laker legend got back on the floor in December following his April injury. But it still would be a remarkably quick timetable in the modern era. A 10-month return would mark the shortest post-Achilles absence for a starting player since the 2015-16 season when Rudy Gay came back in under nine months with the Sacramento Kings.

For another comparison, Tatum can look at fellow former All-Star Dejounte Murray.

Achilles recovery timelines are getting longer lately

Last Tuesday, the New Orleans Pelicans guard scored 13 points in a home win over the Warriors, making his return from his Achilles tear suffered in January of the 2024-25 season. Thirteen is also a notable number because it represents the number of months that it took for the former All-Star to get back on the floor.

Murray's timeline is increasingly becoming the norm. According to Yahoo Sports research supported by injury expert Jeff Stotts of Instreetclothes.com, Murray marks the 30th player since 2005-06 to return to playing NBA games after suffering an Achilles tear in the league. The Pelicans guard headlines a growing number of players who are taking longer than a year to return from the major tendon rupture.

In the decade between the 2005-06 and 2014-15 seasons, there were 12 instances of an NBA player returning from an Achilles injury and, on average, those players spent 10.4 months away from the game. Bryant took only eight months. Same went for Elton Brand and Mehmet Okur, who barely took eight months to hit the hardwood again following their Achilles tears. In 2015, Wes Matthews took 7.7 months to return from his Achilles tear and still enjoyed an impactful nine-year post-Achilles run in the NBA while playing for several playoff teams until he was 37 years old.

At the time of Brandon Jennings' Achilles tear, he was averaging 15.4 points as a 25-year-old with the Detroit Pistons. As one of the more talented young players in the game, Jennings took a little over 11 months to return, getting back on the floor in December. The Pistons moved him later that season and, after bouncing around the league for three years, he never averaged double-digit points again.

Lately, the timelines have gotten longer. In the Achilles ruptures from 2015-16 to 2024-25, the timeline stretched from 10.4 months on average to 13.6 months. In that sample, only two of the 18 players (Rudy Gay and Dru Smith) returned well ahead of the 10-month mark, something that happened with regularity in the previous decade.

Klay Thompson spent nearly 14 months away from the NBA floor after he tore his Achilles in November 2020, perhaps delayed because of his earlier ACL injury. More recently, Brandon Clarke and Thanasis Antetokounmpo also saw more than 12 months pass before they took the floor again.

It's not as simple as to say that longer is always better. DeMarcus Cousins, who was a four-time All-Star before he tore his Achilles in January 2018 with the Pelicans, came back the following January with the Warriors. He needed 12 months to get back onto the court, but never regained his All-Star status and was out of the league by 2022.

Recovery timelines don't always lend themselves to perfect apples-to-apples comparisons. Nothing about injury data is squeaky clean. A return to play could be artificially delayed because the player is waiting for the start of the season. COVID and lockout-shortened seasons could also affect an NBA player's recovery time in ways out of his control. But in general, as we await Tatum's return, it does seem that players are taking longer to get back onto the court.

Tatum and Boston's ticking clock

For Tatum, there are positive signs that he's on track to a full recovery. Because his surgeon, Dr. Martin O'Malley, was in New York at the time of the injury in a game that happened to be at Madison Square Garden, Tatum was able to have his Achilles stitched in quick order. According to Tatum'sdocumentary seriesaired on NBC, O'Malley had an opening in his calendar at 3 p.m. the next day and made time for Tatum.

"There's pretty strong data," O'Malley said, "that if you do [Achilles surgery] within 24 hours [of injury], patients have better outcomes."

In O'Malley's view, Tatum's recovery was headed in the right direction early on. "I don't think I've seen a person's calf look as strong as his,"he said in September."At six or eight weeks he was doing double heel rises. He worked his calf so hard that the side effect of loss of strength, I don't think he's going to have any."

The Celtics have been tight-lipped about possible return dates. The team confirmed he has been practicing with the team and the G League Maine Red Claws when the opportunity arises.

While other players could decide to return in 12 or 13 months, Tatum may not have that luxury. The Celtics' season could be over by then. There are 21 games left in Boston's regular season, which ends in a little over a month on April 12. That would mark 11 months since the injury. As the No. 2 seed in the East, the Celtics are expected to make a deep playoff run that could reach the NBA Finals in June. But if they're a first-round out, a 12-month timetable for Tatum goes out the window, with his return rolling over to October. It's worth noting that of the 30 Achilles returns to play since 2005, none came during the playoffs when gradual ramp-ups aren't as easy.

If the Durant plan is in place, Tatum would eye next season for his debut. But if Tatum and his medical team believe he's ready to go now, he wouldn't be copying KD. Or Kobe. He'd be writing his own story.

byCustos Caelorum

in

March 04, 2026

Jayson Tatum's return now would be ahead of the norm. Is that a good thing?

It was early December in 2013 when the Los Angeles Lakers' Facebook page posted atwo-minute video of a jersey floati...

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Aaron Rodgers says Steelers haven't given him deadline to make decision about playing in 2026

It's the first week of March, and Aaron Rodgers is in no hurry.

The 42-year-old Rodgerstold "The Pat McAfee Show"on Wednesday that the Pittsburgh Steelers haven't given him a deadline to decide if he wants to play next season, what would be his 22nd in the NFL.

"I want to say that anybody on here who's expecting me to make some big decision, just turn it off now. Just leave," Rodgers said bluntly.

Host Pat McAfee then said that he understands the weight of the call Rodgers has to make on his NFL future, but McAfee also noted that he imagines the four-time league MVP has done some daydreaming about what another chapter with current Steelers and former Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy could look like.

While Rodgers praised McCarthy, and the Steelers for hiring him, the veteran quarterback didn't tip his hand about his plans for a potential reunion during the 2026 season.

"We're sitting here, it's March 4th. Free agency starts in a week," Rodgers explained.

"I've been spending a lot of time with my wife. We went on a ski trip, just been laying low. ... But I've talked to Mike, I've talked to [general manager] Omar [Khan]. There's been no deadline that's been put in front of me. There's no contract offer or anything, so there's nothing that I'm having to debate between.

"I'm a free agent. And, again, I'm enjoying my time with my wife and enjoying this part of the offseason, and I think there's conversations to be had down the line, but right now there hasn't been any progressive conversations."

Aftercontemplating retirement last offseason, Rodgers signed aone-year dealahead of Steelers minicamp.

He went on to lead Pittsburgh to an AFC North title — the franchise's first since 2020 — but the Steelers once again went one-and-done in the playoffs. They're still searching for their first postseason win since the 2016 season.

Mike Tomlin stepped down from his post as head coach, and the Steelers filled his vacancy with McCarthy, who overlapped with Rodgers from 2006-18 before coaching the Dallas Cowboys for five seasons. The pair won a Super Bowl together during the 2010 season, ironically against the Steelers.

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During McCarthy's introductory news conference in January,he told reporters that he "definitely" wants Rodgers back.

Then, in early February,NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported that the "odds are increasing" Rodgers comes back to play for the Steelers in 2026.

​​[Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Baseball league for the 2026 MLB season]

Later that month, at the NFL scouting combine,Khan said at the podium that Rodgers would be welcomed back next season. He also indicated that Rodgers' decision wouldn't drag on like it did a year ago.

But with free agency looming, and a thin quarterback draft class on the horizon, it's fair to wonder just how long the Steelers will be willing to wait this time around.

Rodgers had plenty of good things to say about McCarthy

Rodgers emphasized that, at the moment, he's spending a lot of time with his wife, whose identity is still undisclosed. The two got married last offseason.

He spoke about her Wednesday, but he also effused about McCarthy.

"Yeah, Mike's one of the great guys in the league," Rodgers said on "The Pat McAfee Show." "Just an absolutely exceptional human being with a huge heart. We had a lot of great years together, a lot of fun. He really cares about the players, but he also holds guys accountable and creates a lot of structure and details in the process."

The Steelers bringing in McCarthy bucked their trend of hiring 30-something-year-old defensive coaches to lead the franchise. Plus, on a league-wide scale, the decision went against the grain, in terms of an NFL pattern established in recent coaching cycles.

Rodgers believes the league is cyclical and thinks football lifers like McCarthy remain valuable.

"I don't give a s*** about how old he is, how long he's been in the league or the trend of the new young play-caller who's been on the staff of one of the Shanahan disciples," Rodgers said. "It seems like that's kind of the hot thing. I get that. There's a lot of great scheme in there, but there's something to an old-school organization ... bringing in a guy not only who brings accountability in a program that's proven to work at multiple places now, but he's a f***ing yinzer."

Rodgers added: "Mike bleeds Pittsburgh, Pa."

byCustos Caelorum

in

March 04, 2026

Aaron Rodgers says Steelers haven't given him deadline to make decision about playing in 2026

It's the first week of March, and Aaron Rodgers is in no hurry. The 42-year-old Rodgerstold "The Pa...

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