5 Roster Moves That Need To Be Made Amid 2026 NFL OTAs

OTAs may not be the most exciting part of the 2026 NFL offseason, but these practice sessions are the first glimpse we'll get at how teams could fare during the upcoming campaign.

There was a frenzy of player movement to open the offseason, with a myriad of free-agent signings and hundreds of prospects joining the league through the draft. Although many of these transactions helped fill weak points on rosters around the league, this influx of talent also led to some positional logjams that need to be cleared.  

While a logjam can be tough to address, there are teams that would prefer to have too many capable players to fill a single roster spot. These clubs are in the opposite situation, still having some rough patches in the lineup that need be smoothed over this summer they hope to contend in the fall.

These logjams and roster voids have become especially apparent during OTAs, with teams struggling to find players to fill them or playing time for all their standout pieces. With that in mind, here's a look at five of the most impactful roster moves that need to be made.

Chicago Bears Need to Add Joey Bosa

The Chicago Bears proved to be a plucky upstart in the first year of the head coach Ben Johnson era, but the roster needs to improve this offseason if they are going to finally end a four-decade Super Bowl drought.

The Bears entered the 2026 offseason needing to bolster the defense and largely accomplished that by adding several solid pieces to the linebacking corps and secondary. The edge hasn't seen any key reinforcements, however, and that needs to change if Chicago is going to contend with the talented quarterbacks it will assuredly come up against in the playoffs.

Given the Bears recorded a meager 35 sacks all last season while ranking a concerning No. 29 in total defense and falling in the bottom half of the league in both scoring and pass defense, it's a touch concerning that the team didn't bring in an elite edge rusher through free agency or the draft.

While Montez Sweat is a game-changer who racked up 10 sacks in 2025, he was Chicago's only true threat on the edge for opposing QBs to contend with last year. Fellow defensive ends Austin Booker, Dominique Robinson, Grady Jarrett, Tanoh Kpassagnon and Dayo Odeyingbo failed to tally 10 sacks combined.

Fortunately for Chicago, there are a surprising amount of quality free-agent edge rushers lingering on the open market. Joey Bosa is arguably the best of the bunch after his strong campaign with the Buffalo Bills last year.

Bosa managed to stay healthy for a second consecutive season, tallying 29 tackles, five sacks and a league-high five forced fumbles last year.  Pro Football Focus credited the pass-rusher with 47 total pressures, 30 hurries, 12 QB hits and two batted passes.

Although he's in the final act of his decorated career, Bosa proved he could still handle being a key piece on a contending defense. Bosa was on the field for 64 percent of Buffalo's defensive snaps—his highest share since 2021—and can assume a similar role within Chicago's edge rotation during an upcoming age 31 campaign.

Cleveland Browns Need to Move on from Dillon Gabriel

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The Cleveland Browns turned their quarterback position into a sideshow during last year's training camp. The organization had multiple veterans and rookies all vying for the starting job, leaving precious few snaps to go around and hindering each hopeful signal-caller's chance at succeeding in the QB1 role.

That strategy was clearly a mistake, with Cleveland cycling through three different starting passers—bringing the count up to 42 different starters since returning to the league in 1999—during a trying 5-12 campaign.

New head coach Todd Monken should learn from his predecessor's missteps and ensure that this year's quarterback battle involves just two contenders: Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson. That leaves Dillon Gabriel, who underwhelmed as a rookie third-rounder last year, as the odd man out.

Gabriel failed to move the needle once he was handed the starting job in Week 5, completing a meager 59.5 percent of his passes for 937 yards and seven touchdowns across six starts. While he kept his turnovers under control—tossing just two picks on the year—Gabriel only spurred the Browns to victory in a single contest.

With Sanders making the team far more competitive in his seven starts and even earning a Pro Bowl nod for his efforts, the incumbent should get a fair shake at retaining his QB1 job this offseason. Watson, entering the final year of his albatross five-year, $230 million contract, is still a three-time Pro Bowler with far more upside than either of the second-year signal-callers set to challenge him in training camp.

Gabriel's best chance of sticking around will be as a third-stringer, but Cleveland added a promising sixth-round rookie in Taylen Green who makes more sense to develop in that role. Cleveland should instead look to recoup some capital and ship Gabriel off to a less crowded quarterbacks room.

Philadelphia Eagles Need to Trade A.J. Brown

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It's time the Philadelphia Eagles move on from A.J. Brown.

While Brown still has Pro Bowl-caliber upside, he created unwelcome distractions last season, including making concerning comments about the state of the team's offense and getting into a game-day altercation with head coach Nick Sirianni. These issues coincided with Brown having arguably his worst season as an Eagle.

Although he still finished 2025 with a respectable 1,003 receiving yards and seven touchdowns on 78 receptions, Brown tended to disappear for long stretches. He recorded fewer than 50 receiving yards in seven of his 15 regular season appearances and only mustered three catches for 25 yards in Philadelphia's Wild Card round defeat.  

The Eagles spent the offseason overhauling their receiver's room, bringing in a trio of capable veterans in Hollywood Brown, Elijah Moore and Dontayvion Wicks along with a prized first-round prospect in Makai Lemon. This foursome, along with incumbent star DeVonta Smith, still gives Philadelphia one of the NFL's deepest receiving corps without Brown in the picture.

Now that Brown has skipped out on OTAs, the Eagles shouldn't hesitate to finalize a trade that sends the disgruntled 28-year-old out in exchange for whatever early-round draft capital they can get in return. With June 1 nearly here—the date when it becomes fiscally responsible to part with Brown—it would be a surprise if the wideout remains on the roster much longer.

Pittsburgh Steelers Need to Sign Stefon Diggs

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The Pittsburgh Steelers are officially running it back with Aaron Rodgers after the star quarterback signed another one-year deal with the club last week. While the team won the AFC North crown during Rodgers' lone season, Pittsburgh needs to surround the future Hall of Famer with more firepower to avoid yet another early playoff exit.

The Steelers began loading up on receiver talent at the start of the offseason, acquiring Michael Pittman Jr. from the Indianapolis Colts in exchange for a late-round pick swap.

While Pittman has the potential to be an excellent option across from incumbent star DK Metcalf, he's coming off two consecutive underwhelming seasons, failing to break the 1,000-yard receiving mark in either. He may not be the same player he was in 2023 when he posted a stellar 109/1,152/4 line, although the Steelers will need him to return to that level if they can't make a splash on the open market.

Even if Pittman does return to elite form, the remainder of Pittsburgh's receiving corps leaves something to be desired. A pair of rookies in Germie Bernard and Kaden Wetjen are untested, while veterans Ben Skowronek and Roman Wilson can't be counted on for anything beyond sporadic production.

Adding a proven piece like Stefon Diggs would provide a massive boost to Pittsburgh's passing offense. Diggs is coming off a bounce-back season, one in which he reeled in 85 balls for 1,013 yards and four touchdowns while serving as the No. 1 WR on a New England Patriots team that made a Super Bowl run.

With his injury woes and legal troubles now in the rear-view, Diggs is the perfect candidate to join a Steelers squad all-in on winning a Super Bowl before their window with Rodgers is slammed shut.

Tennessee Titans Need to Bring Back Kevin Zeitler

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The Tennessee Titans are hoping to become the latest in a string of teams to make a worst-to-first leap. The new regime helmed by head coach Robert Saleh and offensive coordinator Brian Daboll has built up a promising roster, but there is work to be done in the offensive trenches to make a stunning turnaround more achievable.

The Titans made several high-profile acquisitions this offseason, but an offensive line that gave up a concerning 56 sacks last year wasn't prioritized. Austin Schlottman and Cordell Volson were Tennessee's only notable OL free-agent additions, while rookies Fernando Carmona and Pat Coogan were both Day 3 picks in the 2026 draft.

While these newcomers will help, the potential loss of Kevin Zeitler could set the Titans back significantly.

Zeitler was one of the only standouts on Tennessee's o-line last year. The aging guard rated as one of the best players at his position in the league, earning a strong 74.5 overall grade from Pro Football Focus that ranked No. 13 out of 81 qualifying guards.

Zeitler was especially strong in pass protection, allowing just two sacks and 16 pressures across nearly 600 pass-blocking snaps in 2025. His 75.4 PFF pass-block grade rated top-10 in the NFL, proving Zeitler still has plenty of tread left on his tires at the age of 36.

The Titans need that type of high-level pass protection from the interior of their offensive line if Cam Ward is going to make a major leap in Year 2. Tennessee brought in plenty of weapons for the young signal-caller to leverage—including No. 4 overall pick Carnell Tate and veteran Wan'Dale Robinson—but this offense won't reach its full potential if the line can't hold up.

Zeitler's return would represent a massive upgrade to the left guard position that Volson is currently projected to assume.

Volson missed all of 2025 with a shoulder injury and largely underwhelmed when he was in the Cincinnati Bengals' starting lineup between 2022-24. Installing Zeitler as the starter and keeping Volson on the bench as a top reserve would be the ideal situation for the Titans as they push for their first playoff berth in a half-decade.