The Kansas City Chiefs are set to sign Super Bowl MVP-winning running back Kenneth Walker III as much-needed help for Patrick Mahomes and his offense.
Walker starred with 161 yards from scrimmage to help guide the Seattle Seahawks to a 29-13 victory over the New England Patriots at Super Bowl 60 in Santa Clara in February.
In doing so he became the first running back since Terrell Davis in 1998 to win Super Bowl MVP, and will now spearhead a Kansas City rushing attack that ranked eighth-worst in the league last season.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on Monday that Walker is set to sign a three-year $45m deal with the Chiefs, the news arriving on the same day it was announced tight end Travis Kelce will delay retirement to play a 14th season at Arrowhead.
The introduction of Walker comes as a major boost to quarterback Patrick Mahomes as he continues his recovery from a torn ACL suffered in December last year.
Mahomes himself notably recorded 422 rushing yards last year as the Chiefs stuttered on the ground behind Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco, the latter of whom was hindered by injury.
Walker was instrumental for Seattle on their path to Super Bowl glory, posting 313 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground in three playoff outings.
He had produced 1,027 rushing yards and five touchdowns at a career-high 4.6 yards per carry during the regular season, sharing the workload with Zach Charbonnet before becoming a focal point in the wake of his teammate's injury late in the campaign.
The Seahawks drafted Walker out of Michigan State in the second round in 2022, before he managed 1,050 rushing yards and a career-high nine touchdowns in his rookie campaign.
The San Francisco 49ers added a proven pass catcher for quarterback Brock Purdy, agreeing to a three-year contract with Mike Evans.
Evans is coming off an injury-filled 2025 season when he only played eight games and failed to reach the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his 12-year career with Tampa Bay.
The Buccaneers issued a statement thanking Evans and said the team will honour him in the future.
"Saying goodbye to a legend such as Mike Evans is never easy, but today we are filled with appreciation and gratitude for all that he did during his extraordinary 12-year career as a Buccaneer," the team's owners, the Glazer family, said in a statement.
"Our goal was always to ensure that Mike would play his entire career as a Buccaneer, but as we got further in the process it became clear he was looking for a new challenge."
The Niners needed a proven receiver with the team planning to release Brandon Aiyuk on Wednesday after placing him on the reserve/left squad list last season after he stopped showing up to rehabilitate a knee injury that had sidelined him since October 2024. Aiyuk had signed a four-year, $120m extension before the 2024 season but the $27m that was guaranteed for the 2026 season had been voided.
Evans joins a receiving group that features 2024 first-round pick Ricky Pearsall, veteran Demarcus Robinson and unproven young players Jacob Cowing and Jordan Watkins. Jauan Jennings, who was the team's top wideout last season, is set to be a free agent.
Evans became the first player in NFL history to have at least 1,000 yards receiving in each of his first 11 seasons when he hit the mark in the 2024 season finale.
Running back Travis Etienne is set to sign with the New Orleans Saints after five seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Etienne, who was born in Louisiana, was a first-round pick out of Clemson in 2021 and has since managed 3,798 rushing yards and 25 touchdowns in four seasons, having missed his entire rookie year through injury.
He joins Alvin Kamara in the Saints backfield on a four-year $52m deal as support for promising second-year quarterback Tyler Shough.
Etienne finished the 2025 campaign with 1,107 rushing yards and seven touchdowns alongside six receiving touchdowns as the Jags reached the playoffs under first-year head coach Liam Coen.
