Welcome to the offseason: What you need to know about key dates, biggest questions

The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday, so the NFL hype train is now in the midst of a 13-day break before jumping back into the spotlight with the NFL combine.

By Feb. 23, league and team officials will begin descending on Indianapolis for a week of scouting and interviewing draft-eligible players. That will kick off a blitz of news -- from franchise tags to free agency to the NFL draft -- that will take us right into spring practices and other organized team activities (OTAs).

With the offseason now under way, let's set the table by looking at the biggest storylines across the NFL.

Who will sign free agent quarterback Sam Darnold? Will the Cincinnati Bengals hold on to a core group of players, including receivers Tee Higgins and Ja'Marr Chase? Will Cleveland Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett be traded? Who will be the top player of the 2025 NFL draft? And what about league questions, such as an 18-game season, a flag football league and using technology to assist referees?

Here's a look at what we know:

Which quarterbacks will be on the move?

At least six teams have unsettled quarterback dynamics for the 2025 season: the Browns, New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers, Tennessee Titans, Las Vegas Raiders and New York Giants. Three others -- the Minnesota Vikings (Darnold), New Orleans Saints (Derek Carr) and Los Angeles Rams (Matthew Stafford) -- will spend the next few weeks determining whether their incumbents will return.

In some years, many of those teams could address their needs in the draft. In 2024, for example, six of the first 12 picks were quarterbacks. But the 2025 draft class is much thinner at the position, putting more value on the list of veterans expected to be available in free agency.

In other words, many around the league are expecting there to be a few empty chairs when the music stops playing.

Where will Stafford and Darnold be in 2025?

Stafford and Darnold should be the first free agent dominoes to fall.

Stafford, 37, is signed through 2026 but has no guaranteed money left on his contract. Assuming he decides to play next season, the Rams could adjust his contract, trade him or release him.

Darnold, a pending unrestricted free agent, is a natural fit to replace Stafford in Los Angeles after spending 2024 in Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell's offense, which is derived from Rams coach Sean McVay's scheme. The Raiders could also emerge as a Darnold suitor, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. That's assuming the Vikings decide not to bring back Darnold, as they have 2024 No. 10 draft pick J.J. McCarthy waiting in the wings. They could sign Darnold to a multiyear contract or use the franchise tag.

Other available passers could include Aaron Rodgers (Jets), Russell Wilson (Steelers), Justin Fields (Steelers) and Jameis Winston (Browns).

Are there any QB solutions via the 2025 NFL draft?

In his latest rankings, ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller assessed that two quarterbacks -- Miami's Cam Ward and Colorado's Shedeur Sanders -- are of first-round value. It's not out of the question that Ole Miss' Jaxson Dart could sneak into the first round, but that would still leave short supply relative to demand.

It's not impossible to find a long-term starter after the first round, but history shows it's difficult. Of the 23 seemingly settled starting quarterbacks for 2025, 19 were drafted in the first round; two were drafted after the second: the Dallas Cowboys' Dak Prescott (Round 4) and San Francisco 49ers' Brock Purdy (Round 7).

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Why Field Yates has Travis Hunter as No. 1 overall in latest mock draft

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Extensions for Bengals' Chase, Higgins, Hendrickson?

Cincinnati faces arguably the most significant set of high-profile decisions anywhere in the league. Receiver Tee Higgins played 2024 on the franchise tag and is currently ESPN Matt Bowen's top pending free agent. The Bengals could let him reach free agency, re-sign him or use a second tag worth about $26 million.

Fellow receiver Ja'Marr Chase has one year left on his contract, raising the urgency to sign him to a long-term deal, and pass rusher Trey Hendrickson, who led the NFL with 17.5 sacks, is seeking a contract extension or trade. At least part of the free agent market hinges on the availability of Higgins and/or Hendrickson.

Who are the top NFL free agents?

As always, any current list of pending free agents must be viewed with the context of future decisions on the franchise tag and long-term deals. At the moment, Bowen ranks Kansas City Chiefs guard Trey Smith as the second-best free agent available. Would the Chiefs really allow a 26-year-old, 321-pound guard to leave?

The rest of the top 10 includes two cornerbacks (Jets' D.J. Reed, 49ers' Charvarius Ward), three defensive line/edge players (Los Angeles Chargers' Khalil Mack, Philadelphia Eagles' Josh Sweat, Cowboys' Osa Odighizuwa), Baltimore Ravens offensive lineman Ronnie Stanley, Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver Chris Godwin, Higgins and Darnold.

A lackluster 2025 draft class?

The lack of elite quarterback prospects will grab headlines, but early evaluations of the draft class as a whole have generated similar lackluster assessments.

The best overall prospect, according to ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr., is Colorado's Travis Hunter -- and it's not yet clear whether Hunter will play receiver or cornerback in the NFL. Otherwise, there is a notable lack of impact players at premium positions, including offensive tackle and quarterback.

Some teams anticipate giving first-round grades to roughly half the number of players they historically have assigned them to, according to ESPN's Matt Miller. With that said, Miller spoke with scouts who believe running back and edge rusher are relatively deep groups. The top running back is Boise State's Ashton Jeanty. Kiper has five edge players in his top 25 prospects: Penn State's Abdul Carter, Georgia's Jalon Walker, Texas A&M's Shemar Stewart, Georgia's Mykel Williams and Marshall's Mike Green.

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Who might be traded during the offseason?

For all the excitement NFL trade talks bring, they are often anticlimactic. When it's known a player is available, teams often decline to make an offer and the player ends up being released, leaving him a free agent and the original team without compensation. That could be the case for some players reported to be on the trade market this spring, including Rams receiver Cooper Kupp and 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel Sr.

But there are two elite pass rushers to keep an eye on: the Browns' Myles Garrett and Cowboys' Micah Parsons.

Garrett has already requested a trade, which probably would prompt a new contract, and there are rumors of Parsons' potential availability because he is set to enter the final year of his rookie contract. But Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said in December that trading Parsons has "never been uttered in this organization." With that said, Garrett and Parsons are both franchise-changing talents that most teams in the league would at least consider acquiring.

Will Brock Purdy get his big payday from the 49ers?

For three years, Purdy has been arguably the best value in the NFL. He has started 36 games for the 49ers on a contract based on being "Mr. Irrelevant," the last player selected in the 2022 draft. As a result, Purdy's earnings have been limited to $2.9 million, even though he has led the 49ers to a 23-13 record as a starter. During that period, he has ranked No. 4 in the NFL in QBR (70.1).

He is eligible for a contract extension, and while 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan has said repeatedly he wants to build the team around Purdy, the real question is the terms of a new deal. Are the 49ers prepared to give him a market-level deal that would exceed $50 million annually? Or do they need to conserve salary cap space to maintain a strong team around him?

Will the NFL expand replay assist?

The NFL has never appeared interested in adding a "sky judge," in essence an eighth official who would sit in an elevated suite with the full authority of an on-field official. Instead, it has slowly added responsibilities to the existing replay official, typically seated in or near the press box. The replay official can use broadcast replays to assist the on-field referee on a specified suite of calls in real time.

This system works more quickly than formal challenges and will continue to be used to solve officiating concerns. Commissioner Roger Goodell and Walt Anderson, the NFL's officiating rules analyst, have strongly suggested the league will add facemask penalties and perhaps others to the replay assist program after a number of missed calls in 2024 that happened when referees were blocked from view.

What's next for the NFL kickoff rules?

The new kickoff rules for 2024 accomplished the NFL's baseline goals by boosting the return rate from 21.8% in 2023 to 32.8% and, according to the league, reducing the concussion rate by 43%. But that return rate was still the NFL's second lowest since at least 2000 and a long way from the 80% rate of 2010. They also haven't resurrected the onside kick. The recovery rate was 6% in 2024, 4.9% in 2023 and 5.4% in 2022.

This spring, owners must decide whether to make the new kickoff rules permanent, as they were approved only for the 2024 season, then determine whether to make any adjustments that could result in more returns in 2025. Those possibilities include moving touchbacks from the 30 to the 35-yard line, moving the kicking spot from the 35 to the 30, and developing an onside kick alternative. But owners are aware that concussion totals will rise in proportion to a higher return rate.

Will the NFL use more technology to help referees?

During the 2024 preseason, the NFL tested Hawk-Eye technology to measure first downs. That system uses dedicated cameras to locate the ball after it is placed by an official. The league decided it wasn't ready for implementation for the regular season, pushing a decision off to 2025.

If the league decides to use it, the technology would replace the traditional chain gang but wouldn't add any additional accuracy. Officials would still be responsible for determining where the ball is spotted, based on where the ball carrier is ruled down or has his forward progress stopped.

The primary benefit would be faster measurements, when requested, as the UFL demonstrated last spring. Using technology to spot the ball does not appear imminent.

What is the timetable for an 18-game season?

Goodell has begun speaking in more certain terms about the inevitability of an 18-game regular season, although as a matter of collective bargaining, it would need approval from the NFL Players Association. Under the likely plan, the preseason would be reduced from three to two games. Over the next few months, league officials will try to get a better handle on a potential timetable.

NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell Jr. said on Feb. 5 that "no one" in the union wants to play 18 games, but that's not the same as saying they won't. Negotiations could prompt related discussions, such as increasing roster size and adding a second bye week.

"We know that fans love football," Goodell said. "They want more football, but we have to be incredibly sensitive and smart about the balance and how we deal with that."

Will the NFL establish a flag football league?

After years of promoting flag football as a league-adjacent pursuit, and starting a campaign to make it a girls' varsity sport in all 50 states, the NFL appears ready to get into the business of flag football ahead of its 2028 Olympic debut.

Goodell said on Feb. 3 the league has been working through details of a pro league for both men and women that would supercharge the league's involvement in what it believes is a domestic growth area and a pathway to international connections. The league estimates that 20 million people play flag football in 100 countries.

It's no secret the NFL wants to increase its worldwide scope as it expands to eight international games in 2025 and works toward what Goodell said would eventually be 16.

How will the league address safety rules?

NFL officials did not throw a single flag during the 2024 season for violations of the league's new prohibition on hip-drop tackles, which its research has shown can lead to knee and ankle injuries. Instead, the league fined or sent warning letters to roughly 30 players after postgame video reviews.

Officials initially found the foul difficult to see in real time, prompting the lack of flags, and now the NFL must decide whether it will be enforceable on the field or if it will follow other safety rules that are punished with postgame fines rather than flags.

Meanwhile, NFL executive vice president Troy Vincent has indicated a desire to ban all low blocks and eliminate the current exceptions that allow them in certain situations.