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Wednesday in the NFL brought us a little bit of everything. Vita Vea and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ended their contract dilemma, agreeing to a deal that will make the defensive tackle among the highest-paid players at his position. In terms of on-field matters, the Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots had a competitive joint practice just months after the teams agreed to the A.J. Brown trade. There’s also plenty of injury news around the league, with the Houston Texans losing a key contributor on offense for the rest of the season. Here’s what you should know about what happened around the NFL on Wednesday. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and star defensive tackle Vita Vea reached an agreement on a one-year, $30 million extension, our Greg Auman confirmed on Wednesday. The deal keeps the two-time Pro Bowler under contract for the next two seasons while giving him a $6 million raise for 2026, boosting his salary to $24 million this year. The extension is fully guaranteed, locking in $48 million over the next two seasons. Vea had demanded a trade at the onset of training camp, believing he and the Buccaneers were far off from agreeing to an extension. However, Tampa Bay reportedly had no desire to trade him and now has him under contract as it seeks to make the postseason after falling short last season. Vea has established himself as one of the NFL’s premier interior defensive linemen and the centerpiece of head coach Todd Bowles’ defense. Through eight seasons with Tampa Bay, the 347-pound nose tackle has logged 256 total tackles, 35 sacks, and three forced fumbles. He anchored a defense that ranked top-three in total yards allowed from 2019 to 2021 while surrendering just 92.6 rushing yards per game, playing a pivotal role in the Buccaneers’ Super Bowl LV victory. New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye had himself a day against the Philadelphia Eagles’ defense. Maye reportedly finished the day 16 of 19 and completed 13 consecutive passes. Maye reportedly spread the ball amongst his receivers, with receptions from Pop Douglas, Romeo Doubs, Kayshon Boutte, and top offseason acquisition A.J. Brown before orchestrating a crisp two-minute drill that set up a 52-yard field goal from Andy Borregales. Hurts reportedly went 19 of 27 through the air and threw three interceptions and one of those picks was returned for a touchdown by the Patriots’ defense, according to reporters in attendance. Hurts enters a pivotal 2026 season adjusting to offensive coordinator Sean Mannion — his seventh playcaller in seven pro seasons. The quarterback contrast was compounded by Brown, who caught seven total passes from Maye in his first action against his former team. Brown also revealed to reporters following Wednesday’s practice that he hasn’t spoken to Hurts, who is the godfather to his daughter, since he was traded to New England in June. The Seattle Seahawks secondary added more depth on Wednesday. The Seahawks locked in former All-Pro cornerback Trevon Diggs on a one-year deal, first reported by ESPN, giving their defense a high-upside playmaker. Heading into his age-28 season, Diggs is set to play for his third team in less than a year. After spending his first six years with the Dallas Cowboys, Diggs made a brief late-season pit stop with the Green Bay Packers before officially signing with the Seahawks. The Seahawks also reportedly agreed to a deal to add former Detroit Lions cornerback Terrion Arnold, though the move is on hold. Arnold is expected to head straight for the commissioner’s exempt list since he faces eight felony counts of armed robbery and kidnapping. Diggs joins a defense already stacked with talent, pairing him with All-Pro Devon Witherspoon and Josh Jobe at cornerback, while Julian Love and Nick Emmanwori hold down the safety position. His versatility gives them an adaptable weapon to move around the secondary. The Seahawks aren’t new to building their roster around familiar connections and established culture. Diggs was teammates in Dallas with DeMarcus Lawrence, Dante Fowler Jr., and Noah Igbinoghene, and he also shared a secondary at Alabama with Jobe under defensive backs coach Karl Scott. It seems that familiarity played a key role in Diggs’ decision to sign. Under head coach Mike Macdonald, the Seahawks could be the ideal landing spot to revitalize Diggs’ career. He hasn’t reached the same heights since his standout 2021 season with the Cowboys, when he led the league with 11 interceptions. The Houston Texans’ offense was dealt a tough blow on Wednesday. Tests confirmed that wide receiver Jayden Higgins tore his ACL in Tuesday’s joint practice with the Las Vegas Raiders, ending his 2026 season, according to NFL Network. Higgins’ season-ending injury leaves a gaping hole in the Texans’ passing attack as Tank Dell continues to work his way back to full health. Without Higgins, the team will lean heavily on Pro Bowl wide receiver Nico Collins alongside Xavier Hutchinson and Jaylin Noel. The Texans’ 2025 second-round pick put together a strong rookie season. Higgins hauled in 41 receptions for 525 yards and six touchdowns while proving to be a consistent playmaker in the offense. The Pittsburgh Steelers won’t have their projected starting quarterbacks take the field against the New York Jets in their upcoming preseason game. Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph will sit out Friday’s matchup. Instead, quarterbacks Will Howard and third-round pick Drew Allar will get the nod against the Jets. Howard is set to start before giving way to Allar as the two battle for the third-string spot and one of them potentially battling for the backup job down the line. Allar is coming off a strong preseason debut against the Green Bay Packers. After entering in the second half, he completed 10 of 13 passes for 153 yards and accounted for three total touchdowns, highlighted by a 74-yard strike to Kaden Wetjen. Howard, a 2025 sixth-round pick out of Ohio State, finds himself in a tight battle to make the final 53-man roster. Allar has a chance to be the Steelers’ starting quarterback as early as next season and McCarthy has been on record calling Allar a first-round talent. The New Orleans Saints were already signaling a changing of the guard by signing free-agent running back Travis Etienne this offseason. Now, Alvin Kamara is sidelined after suffering an MCL sprain during Tuesday’s joint practice with the Dallas Cowboys, ESPN reported. Kamara is expected to miss at least a month, putting his status for the start of the season in serious doubt. While Etienne steps into the undisputed lead role, Kamara was still expected to play a role in the Saints’ offense. The five-time Pro Bowler has seen his production dip in New Orleans over recent seasons. In 11 games last season, Kamara posted 471 rushing yards and a single touchdown, adding 33 receptions for 186 receiving yards. Kamara’s 3.6 yards per carry last season was the lowest mark of his career. Surprisingly, he has never recorded a 1,000-yard rushing season, which is something Etienne has already accomplished in three of his four years in the league. With Kamara and No. 8 overall pick in wide receiver Jordyn Tyson out to start the year, Chris Olave and Etienne will have to shoulder the load offensively. Head coach Kellen Moore and second-year quarterback Tyler Shough certainly have their work cut out for them.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

WESTFIELD, Ind. — If you didn’t know Daniel Jones was coming off a major injury, there’s nothing that would’ve told you otherwise. That was my big takeaway watching the Colts quarterback at training camp Wednesday, when Indianapolis hosted the first of two joint practices with the Atlanta Falcons. Whether it was dropping back in individual drills or taking snaps under center or in the shotgun in team periods, Jones looked normal. For a quarterback coming off an Achilles tear, the true test of health is scrambling and throwing on the move and evading pressure. Running the ball is a big part of Jones’ game, too. And the 29-year-old checked all those boxes as well. Granted, he didn’t need to move around too much Wednesday against what’s expected to be a bad Falcons pass rush (Jalon Walker is out for the season, and James Pearce Jr. is suspended for the first eight games). Jones looked quite comfortable in the pocket, but he moved around with no issues when he needed to. It confirmed what I’d been hearing around the team about Jones, who’s looking to pick up from what was a spectacular 2025 — for him and the Colts — before his devastating right Achilles tear Dec. 7 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. He’s been impressive throughout training camp. The Colts had issues on the ground on Wednesday, but Jones and the pass game were on fire against an above-average Falcons secondary in team drills. He was feasting in the intermediate portion of the field, hitting receivers Josh Downs and Ashton Dulin often. “I think with any major rehab process, you’re always kind of progressing and getting back and getting used to doing everything, building up the reps on it, building up just your conditioning level,” Jones explained post-practice. “I feel really good and there’s nothing I don’t feel good doing.” And for 2026, that means building off what the Colts were last season when he was healthy. Through 10 weeks in 2025, Indianapolis’ offense led the league in yards, scoring, EPA per play, success rate and DVOA. The Colts boasted a plus-115 point differential, and had four wins of 21-plus points. “I think the offense is very versatile,” Jones told me. “There’s a lot of different components to it. I think we’re able to run the ball well. I think we’re good in the RPO game. We’re good throwing it quick. We can throw the ball down the field.” Other Notes From Colts-Falcons Joint Practice: Falcons standout receiver Drake London had one of the best plays from Wednesday’s practice. On what was by far quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s longest completion of the day, the fifth-year pro Mossed Colts cornerback Justin Walley down the left sideline in team drills. It was an underthrown ball from Tagovailoa, but London managed to stretch out his arms over Walley’s shoulders for the insane grab. Speaking of insane grabs, Robinson had one too. In the full team period at the end of practice, the superstar running back made a one-handed catch with his left hand in stride. It was a low pass that would’ve been incomplete in most situations, but Robinson made the snag near his ankles. It was all the more impressive considering how easy he made it look. The Falcons are going to need a lot of that from Robinson and Drake London this season, as well as from All-Pro tight end Kyle Pitts. Atlanta’s quarterback play is a major concern. Tagovailoa is currently in the lead in the team’s QB competition by default, due to the fact that Michael Penix Jr. has not yet been cleared for 11-on-11 work after his ACL injury last season. And the former Dolphins starter has been uninspiring through two outings against other teams. He looked uncomfortable in last week’s preseason opener against the Denver Broncos. In Wednesday’s practice against the Colts, he had just one long completion (the aforementioned London play) and threw a pick-six to Walley. He lived off check downs and bubble screens. The more touches the likes of Robinson, London and Pitts can get, the better the outlook for the Falcons’ offense this season. Because Atlanta won’t be winning games on the back of its quarterback play. Newly signed Colts receiver Keenan Allen didn’t practice Wednesday. He spent his first official day with Indianapolis in shorts and a T-shirt, watching the offense intently and chopping it up with new teammates. But the Colts are already envisioning how the 13-year veteran can help. “He’s been productive every single year he’s been in the league,” Colts coach Shane Steichen said. “So obviously, we want him to be productive again this year.” One of the best players in Chargers history, Allen adds much-needed depth to what’s currently a thin wide receiver room for Indianapolis. With Michael Pittman Jr. out of the picture (traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers) and new WR1 Alec Pierce sidelined following offseason ankle injury, Josh Downs had been the team’s only proven, starting-caliber wide receiver. Allen, who has familiarity with Steichen from their time together with the Chargers, figures to be a tremendous boost for the Colts as a possession receiver, despite his age (34). The six-time Pro Bowler had a league-high 29 first down conversions on third down last season. Overall, Allen caught 81 passes for 777 yards and four touchdowns in 2025. “Danny’s [Daniel Jones] is a guy who is getting better every year,” Allen said. “Last year he was on a big roll, and I want to be part of that and help him be the safety blanket that I am.” In the last team period, Falcons backup running back Brian Robinson trucked Colts defensive back Jonathan Owens at the end of a nice run down the left side of the field. It happened right in front of Atlanta’s sideline, so naturally the Falcons were amped. Colts star tight end Tyler Warren, who’s been excellent in training camp, sustained an injury early in team drills Wednesday and didn’t rejoin practice. After initially leaving the field with trainers, he returned to the sidelines with a wrap around his right thigh. Warren was diagnosed with a strained abductor muscle and could be back on the field as early as next week. But the Colts plan to be cautious in the hope of having the second-year pro ready for Week 1. Indianapolis cannot afford another significant injury to a pass-catcher. With Pierce already sidelined, Jones’ list of primary targets is shrinking for the time being. It makes the Allen signing all the more timely. Courtesy of Keenan Allen, speaking about Colts coach Steichen: “Genius. He knows what he’s doing and he knows what he’s looking at. He doesn’t just have a coach mindset so to speak. He sees it from a player perspective, from a quarterback perspective.”​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports