NFL Rumors: Possible Chiefs reunion, Vikings' Darnold pivot, Matthew Stafford dark horse

Whether it's what the Kansas City Chiefs are doing this offseason to recover from their Super Bowl embarrassment, what the Minnesota Vikings are going to do with Sam Darnold, J.J. McCarthy and their quarterback room, or what the hell could happen with Matthew Stafford amid trade buzz, the weeks before the NFL Combine and the start of free agency always bring flurries of NFL Rumors.

We're going to dive into some of the latest and how things could shake out specifically in those three situations as the league ramps up for what could be an overall hectic offseason.

Raiders can't be ruled out in Matthew Stafford trade sweepstakes

Some of the teams who have been mentioned as fits for current Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who has been granted permission to seek a trade while LA still hopes to retain the Super Bowl-winner's services, are obvious. The New York Giants, the Pittsburgh Steelers and even the New York Jets are all obvious. But now, a sleeper who might be just as obvious could be joining the party: the Las Vegas Raiders.

According to Vic Tafur of The Athletic ($), as the Raiders weigh considerations regarding Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders in the draft or even someone like Sam Darnold or Kirk Cousins, that Stafford is someone to keep an eye on for Las Vegas:

"Will the Raiders sign a QB and draft one? Sam Darnold likely is the best free-agent QB available, but there will be other veterans for the new regime of Tom Brady, Pete Carroll and John Spytek to consider. Kirk Cousins? Meh. The name to watch is Matthew Stafford if the Rams trade him."

Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal furthered that sentiment by connecting it to Tom Brady and his ability as part of the ownership group as a recruiter. Given that Stafford and his representation are actively looking for a trade, that should be considered a real factor in this.

Stafford could make a great deal of sense for the Raiders, though. With the arrival of Pete Carroll, this is a win-now situation — I have a hard time believing Carroll would return to coaching without that mentality. There are also already some nice pieces in place with money and draft capital to add to that quickly. Quarterback is the missing piece and Stafford is the type of player with the pedigree to truly level-up the Raiders with haste.

Vikings bringing back Daniel Jones instead of Sam Darnold still on the table

What the Minnesota Vikings do this offseason at quarterback has long seemed obvious on my end but has been hotly debated throughout the league among analysts and insiders. J.J. McCarthy will return from the injury that ended his rookie year prematurely but Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones, the latter signed following his Giants release, are both set for free agency. The discussion has been whether or not to bring back Darnold on a deal potentially four times as expensive in AAV because he won 14 games last season at the helm of the offense.

To me, though, the value of Darnold was first Kevin O'Connell's ability to guide him but secondly the price. When that price goes up, whether on the franchise tag or a new deal, he's a less valuable commodity — especially when there's a first-round quarterback, McCarthy, still on the roster. However, some people might've forgotten about Jones in this equation when they really shouldn't.

Appearing on SportsCenter in the past week, ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler that, amid all the uncertainty in the Twin Cities right now at QB, Jones remains "on the table as an option."

Jones, while he might be the butt of many jokes for how his career played out with the G-Men, makes way more sense for the Vikings. Minnesota overachieved in many ways in the 2024 season beyond just the quarterback position. Now, they have extremely limited draft capital in the 2025 offseason, making free agency and trades that much more important. Committing substantially less to Jones to be a backup behind the handpicked McCarthy simply fits the best-laid plan for Kwesi Adofo Mensah.

That doesn't mean that Jones returning is a formality or that we have any concrete idea what the Vikings will do at QB. Frankly, the reports and rumors are quite mixed as this point. This, however, is a good reminder to factor Jones into that math if you're trying to map out where we go from here.

Chiefs set up for potential reunion with Juan Thornhill following DB's release

We know quite a bit about the trials that the Chiefs could face this offseason in trying to exact Super Bowl revenge, with most of that focusing on the lingering questions at left tackle and wide receiver, the futures of star offensive guard Trey Smith and linebacker Nick Bolton, and even Travis Kelce's retirement decision. However, that may have led us to slightly overlook the secondary a bit.

Trent McDuffie and several corners aren't going anywhere but both Justin Reid and Nazeeh Johnson could be on the move. Reid is an unrestricted free agent this offseason while Johnson is restricted. Still, it's another question mark for this team, especially considering that Reid, in particular, played more than 90% of the defensive snaps last year.

Maybe Kansas City retains Reid but they now have another option with a familiar face: Juan Thornhill. The veteran safety who signed with the Cleveland Browns following his Chiefs tenure was informed of his release on Monday, per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.

Thornhill had an up-and-down couple of seasons in Cleveland but remains an above-average coverage player on the back end. Given that the Chiefs need a bit more of that, a reunion would make sense and should come cheap considering the Browns cut him with only $7 million left on his deal.

With Steve Spagnuolo's familiarity with the safety combined with the financical constraints that Kansas City will face this offseason, reuniting with Thornhill would make too much sense at this point.