NFL offseason begins: A look at important league dates, possible moves

• The Philadelphia Eagles have been crowned champions, and now the NFL offseason is underway. Who will challenge the Birds in 2025?
• The college scouting combine is the first of several events between February and April.
• The moves made in free agency and the draft will go a long way toward building a contender.

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Now that the Philadelphia Eagles have been crowned champions, it’s time for the NFL offseason. These days, however, there isn’t really an “offseason” –– there are a slew of news-making dates and upcoming moves.

In two weeks, the league will converge on Indianapolis for the college scouting combine. A week after that event ends, negotiations with free agents can begin. From there, it’s full speed ahead with the league meetings in Palm Beach, Florida, and in late April, the NFL Draft in Green Bay. In mid-May, the NFL will release its full regular season schedule, which has become its own event.

In late July, training camps will kick off. The many moves teams make between now and then will separate the pretenders from the contenders.

For instance, there is already big news in San Francisco where the 49ers are allowing star wide receiver Deebo Samuel to seek a trade. The Rams, an NFC West rival, are also looking to shop their older, higher-paid receiver, Cooper Kupp.

The two teams who just battled in the Super Bowl both have some big-time free agents pending, including Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Zach Baun and Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton. Will they return to run it back?

The New York Jets, under new leadership, have decided they do not want Aaron Rodgers to be their quarterback. Rodgers knew it was a possibility on New Year’s Day.

“If I’m a part of the change, then I just want to make sure everybody knows that I have nothing but gratitude for my time here,” Rodgers said. “It’s been a great experience all around, and again, I’m disappointed about the performance of both myself and as a team, but really thankful for the opportunity.”

Will Rodgers play a 21st season somewhere else? Speaking of quarterbacks, where will the Seattle Seahawks’ Russell Wilson and the Minnesota Vikings’ Sam Darnold wind up?

Meanwhile, the NFL Draft will bring some new talent to the league with several questions to answer. Will the Tennessee Titans take a quarterback with the top pick, or will they trade that pick for several others?

Six of the top 10 teams in the draft have new coaches, and four of them have new general managers. That includes John Spytek in Las Vegas, who said during his opening press conference everything is on the table when it comes to building a contender.

“We will literally go anywhere in the country, anywhere in Canada, to find a good football player,” Spytek said. “I’m always reminded the way that they started in Seattle, at the quarterback position in particular. They just kept taking shots and shots and shots, they traded, they drafted guys high, they find their way to Russell [Wilson]. I mean, what an unbelievable move that was.”