New Orleans Saints tight end Foster Moreau participated in the first day of organized team activities on Tuesday, roughly two months after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Moreau told reporters that his treatment was complete and expressed gratitude that the Saints and general manager Mickey Loomis remained interested in signing him as a free agent after his diagnosis.

“I’m just sitting there with (Saints team doctor) Dr. John Amoss, and he just starts to describe to me the different symptoms that I’m showing,” Moreau said. “Obviously, that primary symptom of having an enlarged lymph node in my left clavicle … I went home, cried. It was a really tough moment.

“It was so much stress that it kind of built up through the entire free-agency process, and then all that melted away into a completely different mountain that now had to be climbed. But we got over it and watched the film and decided to get better.”

Moreau had a rare and slow-moving form of Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and treatment included receiving a drip infusion “for about six to eight hours, (for) one day, probably a month and a half ago.” He then received medication via shots.

“The day after the diagnosis, the day after the physical, my agent got a call from Mickey Loomis and he said, ‘We’re still interested in him. We still value him as a player and even more as a person,'” Moreau said.

“That was so comforting for me, knowing that regardless of where I went through this process, there was a real good chance I wind up here.”

It was also comforting because Moreau is a New Orleans native who played his college ball at LSU. A fourth-round pick of the Raiders in 2019, Moreau also got to follow his former Las Vegas teammate Derek Carr to New Orleans.

“I don’t want to undersell what that man just walked through,” Carr said of Moreau. “It’s pretty scary news and a pretty scary thing to go through and for him to be out there already, I’m not going to get into his business but it’s pretty miraculous. I know he’s thankful.”

Moreau did not want too much attention for what he went through, implying most cancer patients have it much rougher than he did.

“My quality of life did not change,” Moreau said. “I’ll continue to fight this as long as I need to and as many times as I need to fight this and then go back into remission I will, and that’ll be a life sentence for me. But in terms of the struggle that I had to face, was more mental than anything.

“The real heroes are the kids in the children’s hospitals that are really fighting with real chemotherapy, real radiation. Those are the strong ones.”

In four seasons with the Raiders, Moreau played in 61 games (34 starts) and caught 91 passes for 1,107 yards and 12 touchdowns. He had career highs of 33 receptions and 420 yards in 2022, with two touchdowns.

–Field Level Media

The Denver Broncos added depth to their defensive line by signing former Green Bay Packers nose tackle Tyler Lancaster on Tuesday.

Terms of the deal were not revealed.

Lancaster signed nearly one year after inking a free-agent contract with the Las Vegas Raiders last May. After being hurt last summer, Lancaster was initially placed on injured reserve before being cut via undisclosed injury settlement with the team. He ultimately missed the entire 2022 season.

Lancaster, 28, played the previous four seasons in Green Bay, posting 110 tackles in 59 career games (21 starts) for the Packers, who signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2018 out of Northwestern.

The Broncos ranked seventh in the NFL in total defense in 2022, allowing 320 total yards per game, while finishing last in the AFC West at 5-12.

–Field Level Media

The New York Giants finished signing their entire 2023 draft class, announcing Tuesday that they signed center John Michael Schmitz to his rookie contract.

Schmitz, selected with the team’s second-round pick (No. 57 overall), inked the customary four-year contract based on his draft slot. His contract will run through the 2026 season, as will all of New York’s class except cornerback Deonte Banks, whose first-round deal will include the mandated fifth-year team option.

Schmitz, 24, is the expected favorite this season to start in the middle of the Giants’ oft-challenged offensive line with both Jon Feliciano (San Francisco 49ers) and Nick Gates (Washington Commanders) having signed elsewhere this offseason.

The former Minnesota Golden Gophers stalwart started 35 games in college, including the final 31 of his career, and was named to the first-team All-American and All-Big Ten teams in 2022.

Last season, the Giants went 9-7-1 and made their first postseason trip since 2016, ranking fourth in the NFL in rushing by averaging 148.2 yards per game. But they also allowed 49 sacks in the regular season, fifth-most in the league.

–Field Level Media

Dangerous talent assessments are often made when players are in shorts and T-shirts during NFL offseason practices, but Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles saw some fine work from new quarterback Baker Mayfield in a polo.

“He’s a good golfer,” Bowles said after Tuesday’s organized team activity session in Tampa. “Everything else, I kind of knew. I’ve known him for a couple years now so everything else is not a surprise to me.”

Mayfield signed with the Buccaneers and is competing with Kyle Trask to start in 2023. Tampa Bay won the NFC South but Tom Brady retired in February.

Mayfield is on his fourth NFL team. The former No. 1 pick of the Cleveland Browns was traded to the Carolina Panthers prior to last season, and joined the Los Angeles Rams upon being waived.

Not much about on-field performance will be evident this month, but Bowles said he knows Mayfield is getting his rounds of golf in right now.

“He’s better than me, so that makes him a great golfer. I’m not a very good golfer, so it doesn’t take much – the bar is low. But I think he’s a very good golfer,” Bowles said, adding Mayfield played golf with Bruce Arians and others have told the team about his strong tee-to-green game. “I have not experienced that myself – I am not a great golfer. I don’t golf with those types. I golf with kind of the scrubs and we kind of just have fun and go from there.”

Mayfield said he won’t react to outside perspective of the move or arbitrary opinions such as a set of preseason power rankings that listed the Buccaneers No. 30.

“It’s May,” Mayfield said Tuesday of his reaction to the rankings.

Bowles said the strongest endorsement of Mayfield will come from teammates. So far, the signs are positive.

“He’s eager to learn,” Bowles said. “He’s got a bunch of energy every day. Guys gravitate towards him. He’s learning the system just like Kyle is and they’re helping each other out.”

Wide receiver Chris Godwin doesn’t see a leader in the clubhouse on the QB competition. He was one of several players to note a lot is different without Brady and offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, who was fired.

“Honestly, it’s just different. Any time you have a new quarterback, it’s different,” Godwin said. “Obviously, we don’t know who that guy is going to be yet but it doesn’t feel weird – it just feels like you’re getting reps with a bunch of guys. I get to work on my own skill development, get to work with the receivers and then for us, we have to handle our business regardless of who’s throwing the ball. We kind of discuss those things – let’s make the play when the ball comes our way, let’s make the play. I think Kyle and Baker have both done a great job so far – it’s a friendly competition, there’s no animosity.”

–Field Level Media

Aaron Rodgers was feeling right at home with the New York Jets before he tweaked his right calf at the start of organized team activities on Tuesday.

The injury is minor, and Rodgers said he shifted to taking a “vet day” but remained on the field for the workouts to watch backup Zach Wilson operate the offense.

“I just tweaked my calf in a little pre-practice conditioning,” Rodgers said with an ear-to-ear grin. “I don’t know. I don’t think it’s too serious.”

A momentary setback in the grand scheme, Rodgers said he’s feeling more confident and comfortable with his decision to join the Jets in a trade last month from the Green Bay Packers.

“I have an excitement about coming down Jets Drive. Every day, there’s been something that’s been a special sign that reminds me I’m in the right place,” Rodgers said Tuesday afternoon.

Rodgers hasn’t participated in OTAs in three years, spending offseasons away from Green Bay to train and dabble in other activities.

He said he felt it was important to attend this week to assist first-year offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett’s installation of the offense. Rodgers played in the system with the Packers, where Hackett was an assistant coach.

Rodgers said he’s enjoying his exposure to head coach Robert Saleh.

“I’ve been telling friends of mine when they ask what it’s like, I really enjoy the freedom of expression. Guys are themselves all the time,” Rodgers said. “He allows for the silliness at times. The latitude of that personal expression, which is so important … he does a good job balancing the accountability with the freedom for guys to be themselves.

“It’s simple too. This game can get complicated by the gurus who often believe they’ve made up football. There’s a lot of them around the league. They’re all good-hearted people. But at its core, this is a simple game. Rob does a good job of keeping things simple with us.”

–Field Level Media