The Las Vegas Raiders kicked off the start of the new league year by releasing quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and receiver Hunter Renfrow to give the new regime more room to operate under the salary cap.

These decisions had been widely expected, as the Raiders benched the former 49er Garoppolo midway through last season after Antonio Pierce took over for fired coach Josh McDaniels.

The Raiders had signed Garoppolo to a three-year, $72.75 million contract last offseason to take over as quarterback from recently released Derek Carr, but the move backfired almost from the start.

Garoppolo made six starts for Las Vegas, throwing nine interceptions and only seven TDs before getting benched.

The Raiders will start the offseason with a quarterback competition between second-year player Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew, who agreed earlier this week to a two-year, $25 million deal.

A fifth-round pick in 2019, Renfrow emerged as the focal point of the passing game in 2021, when he had 103 catches for 1,038 yards and nine touchdowns to earn a Pro Bowl nod and help lead the Raiders to the playoffs.

• Bobby Wagner is going to the Washington Commanders as they make a major splash in rebuilding their defense.

The six-time All-Pro linebacker has agreed to join the team on a one-year contract worth up to $8.5 million.

Wagner, who turns 34 this summer, led the NFL with 183 tackles last season in his second stint with Seattle after one season with the Rams.

• Wide receiver Calvin Ridley and the Tennessee Titans have agreed on a four-year, $92 million contract.

Ridley started all 17 games for the Jaguars last season — his first after missing most of the previous two years because of a broken foot, a mental health break and a yearlong gambling suspension — and finished with 76 receptions for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns.

• Quarterback Joe Flacco is heading to the Indianapolis Colts after helping the Cleveland Browns reach the playoffs and winning the AP Comeback Player of the Year Award.

Flacco and the Colts agreed on a one-year deal for $4.5 million guaranteed.

• The Buffalo Bills began replenishing their receiver depth by agreeing to sign free agent Mack Hollins.

Hollins has seven seasons of NFL experience, with his most productive year coming in 2021 when he had 57 catches for 690 yards and four touchdowns with the Raiders. Hollins spent last season in Atlanta, where he had 18 catches for 251 yards for the run-focused Falcons.