Brian Flores addressed recent reports tying the Miami Dolphins to a potential trade for Deshaun Watson, telling his players and staff that Tua Tagovailoa is "our quarterback" in a brief but poignant message.

Steve Ross has not shown any interest in trading for Watson, contrary to other reports Tuesday.

The Dolphins selected Tagovailoa with the fifth overall pick in the 2020 draft.

The New England Patriots have released Cam Newton.

Mac Jones will begin the season as the starting quarterback for the Patriots.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have traded cornerback Sidney Jones to the Seattle Seahawks.

Seattle sent Jacksonville a 2022 sixth-round pick in the deal.

The Seahawks also traded for cornerback John Reid from the Houston Texans recently. In that deal, they sent out a conditional seventh-rounder.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are working to restructure the contract of Mike Evans, according to sources.

Tampa Bay wants to create more cap space.

Evans has the highest cap hit on the team at $16.637 million. The 28-year-old has three years left on a five-year, $82.5 million extension.

The latest NFL Players Association salary-cap report lists the Buccaneers with $270,339 in cap space.

The NFL Players Association has accepted the NFL's proposal to increase COVID-19 testing for fully vaccinated players amid the ongoing Delta variant surge.

Increased testing was one of several tweaks the sides made Monday to their joint protocols as the regular season approaches.

Fully vaccinated players will now be tested at least once every seven days, up from once every 14 days. They will be offered the option of testing twice a week.

The NFLPA has been pushing for daily testing for all players since the start of training camp.

As of late last week, 93% of players on training camp rosters were at least partially vaccinated.

The New Orleans Saints are making Dallas their temporary home after Hurricane Ida devastated southern Louisiana on Sunday.

Sean Payton said he was unaware of any significant damage to the team's practice facility in Metairie, Louisiana. However, he expects the Saints to practice away from home next week because of widespread power outages and other damage throughout the region.

The Saints are scheduled to host the Green Bay Packers on Sept. 12 in their Week 1 home opener.

"It's too early to determine if we can play the game or not, but from an infrastructure standpoint, we can play a football game," Doug Thornton, the vice president of stadiums for ASM Global, which manages the stadium for the state, said. "We've got two weeks to work with, and we'll have options with the staff. As long as we can get power and water pressure, we'll play a football game [Sept. 12]. We're going to find a way."

The Minnesota Vikings and Harrison Smith have agreed to a four-year, $64 million contract extension.

It makes Smith the second-highest paid safety in the NFL.

Smith said all offseason that his goal was to remain in Minnesota. He was heading into the final year of the five-year extension he signed with the team in 2016.

A report emerged on Saturday pinpointing the Miami Dolphins as the favorites to land Deshaun Watson in a trade.

That was followed by another report that the Dolphins balked at what the Houston Texans wanted for Watson.

After Sunday's preseason game, Brian Flores said "reports, speculation are not things we really get into" and that any discussions the team has about personnel will remain internal.

Flores also reaffirmed his belief in Tua Tagovailoa.

"I am very confident in Tua," Flores said. "He has done a lot of good things. He has played well. My conversations with a player are going to remain between me and that player."

The Detroit Lions have released Breshad Perriman, according to a source.

Perriman signed a one-year, $3 million deal in March and was expected to play a significant role with the team.

The move comes despite the Lions guaranteeing $2 million on the wide receiver's contract.

Bill Belichick isn't ready to name a starting quarterback as the New England Patriots prepare to open the season on Sept. 12 against the Miami Dolphins.

"No, we still have a lot of decisions to make," Belichick said after Sunday's preseason finale against the New York Giants.

Cam Newton started on Sunday and played two series, all with the starters. Mac Jones relieved him and played deep into the third quarter, all with the backups.