Around the NFL: Free Agency Winners and Losers
Now that we’re a week into free agency and most of the big names have either moved on or resigned with their respective teams, it’s time to reflect upon the moves that have been made and grade out the early winners and losers of free agency thus far:
Winners:
Miami Dolphins
Miami followed a “less is more” philosophy this year in free agency, choosing to resign their own rather than pursuing a lot of upgrades. They swapped FS Renaldo Hill (who signed with Denver) for FS Gibril Wilson (who was cut by the Raiders). While some question whether or not Wilson’s skill set is fit for the coverage safety position, he’s played there before and he’s an upgrade over Hill. Miami also signed Oakland Center Jake Grove who at 6-4, 300 lbs is a size increase over incumbent Samson Satele and might be more fit to line up against the behemoth nose tackles in the AFC East. Additionally, the Dolphins let aging but capable starting corner Andre Goodman sign with Denver as well and hosted Arizona CB Eric Green for a visit. Green would be able to start immediately for Miami and is still young enough to develop into a very good football player. Otherwise, Miami wins in free agency because they managed to retain starters SS Yeremiah Bell, RT Vernon Carey, and ILB Channing Crowder. All three were valuable starters last season, and will provide building blocks in the years ahead. The signing of Grove of Carey coupled with last year’s moves in drafting LT Jake Long and RG Donald Thomas, and the free agency addition of LG Justin Smiley ensure that Miami will have one of the strongest offensive lines in the league for several years.
New Orleans Saints
The Saints managed to resign Jonathan Vilma, an ideal 4-3 MLB. Additionally, they kept WR Devery Henderson who has speed to burn but needs to be more consistent in catching the ball. One of the big moves that may go slightly unnoticed is the signing of former Buffalo CB Jabari Greer, a young and talented player who might be able to start right away for the Saints. Greer, along with last year’s rookie Tracy Porter, combined with Randall Gay in the slot create a trifecta of young and talented CB’s for a secondary that has been found wanting in recent years. This signing also frees up the Saints to take the best player available with the 14 th pick rather than gambling on the inconsistent, but very athletic, Vontae Davis, CB, Illinois. Instead, they may be able to take a guy like USC LB Brian Cushing (a huge need) or Mississippi DT Peria Jerry to pair up with last year’s first round pick Sedrick Ellis. They also resigned OT Jon Stinchcomb who’s versatile and reliable if not spectacular, and they signed Heath Evans from New England who can play fullback or he can be that bruising runner needed to complement Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bush. The Saints have made just a couple of moves, protected their own, and improved their roster. With a few good defensive draft choices, the Saints should be able to contend for the NFC South title once again.
New York Jets
It’s no secret that I think highly of Rex Ryan. He’s a great person and a great coach. Additionally, I can’t say that I disagree with any of the moves he’s made thus far. Not bringing back disgruntled WR Laveranues Coles was likely a step in the right direction as far as team chemistry goes, and none of the other players they cut hurt them at all (TE Chris Baker was third on the depth chart, CB David Barrett was never going to be a starter and LB’s Brad Kassell and David Bowens are easy to replace). Brett Favre’s retirement might leave a big whole at the QB position, but I give the Jets credit for not overpaying for someone like Rex Grossman and for not trading away picks for a quick fix. Instead, they made some great signings in ILB Bart Scott and SS Jim Leonhard from the Ravens. It remains to be seen if Leonhard can continue his stellar post-season play into next year, though being beside Kerry Rhodes might be the next best thing to Ed Reed. Bart Scott on the other hand is one of the top young backers in the league and he’s a great signing. He knows Ryan’s system and he’s a passionate player who will bring a lot of fire to the defense. Additionally, getting CB Lito Sheppard from the Eagles for a fifth round pick this year and a conditional pick next year is great value. Sheppard has the talent to start opposite Darrelle Revis and will at the very least be an outstanding nickel back. If the Jets can get any kind of consistency behind center, they could be very good next year.
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Losers:
Denver Broncos
Denver and new coach Josh McDaniels have signed anybody and everybody so far. Just in running backs alone, the Broncos have brought in Correll Buckhalter, J.J. Arrington, and LaMont Jordan. Additionally, they’ve signed WR Jabar Gaffney, two players from Miami’s horrible 2008 secondary in Hill and Goodman, over the hill FS Brian Dawkins, DT Ronnie Fields from San Francisco, DT Darrell Reid from the Colts who can’t stop the run, and disappointing ILB Andre Davis from the Browns. Granted, Dawkins can still be a leader and is still talented so he was a good signing. Arrington can help on special teams and be a good change of pace back. Fields was also a good signing, as he has the skill set to compete for a starting job at the nose. Goodman has to be an upgrade over the disappointing Dre Bly from last year. But still, all these additions amount to very little in team improvement. On top of that, the team supposedly shopped QB Jay Cutler around to try and bring in Matt Cassel. So now you have a star QB who is fighting with the new coach. Great job guys. Oh, and they brought in QB Chris Simms too, a guy who was almost on the verge of almost being good several years ago. Their best signing might have been LS Lonnie Paxton from the Patriots. At least he’s sure to contribute for quite some time as the second highest paid long snapper in the league.
Tampa Bay Bucs
Maybe it isn’t fair to judge the Bucs for their entirely new identity, but it just doesn’t seem like their team was bad enough to be completely gutted. Gone are stalwarts Derrick Brooks, Warrick Dunn, and Cato June. No more WR experience with Joey Galloway and Ike Hilliard gone. They let one of their better CB’s (Phillip Buchanon sign with the Lions). They got rid of QB Jeff Garcia, which is probably okay due to his age, but who are they turning to now, Luke McCown? Come on! Additionally they franchised WR Antonio Bryant who is great… when he wants to be. If they sign him to a long-term deal, don’t expect the same effort he gave last year when he was fighting to stay in the league. If they don’t sign him long term, then expect him to be disgruntled and cause trouble. Oh yeah, and they resigned WR Michael Clayton to a five year deal. Maybe he’ll have one good year during this contract too. They’ll miss DT Jovan Haye too, who the Titans were happy to sign. I do like the signing of Derrick Ward however, so kudos to the Bucs for bringing in a solid back. I still don’t see them doing much this season however. They might be at the bottom of the NFC South in 2009.
Albert Haynesworth, DT, Tennessee – This guy has the Redskins written all over him. While the Titans would like to re-sign him and his agent has stated that no deal has been reached, I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see Dan Snyder make Haynesworth the highest paid defensive player ever in the very beginning hours of free agency.
Washington Redskins
Bringing back OG Derrick Dockery after the Bills cut him was a great move. Cutting an aging Shawn Springs, Shaun Alexander, and even fan favorite Marcus Washington in a cost-cutting move were all good moves. I can’t even argue with cutting Jason Taylor in an effort to promote a team atmosphere. However, the Redskins have two, and possibly three reasons why I think they’re losers in free agency this off-season. The third reason could be if they sign recently released WR Terrell Owens. Owens signing with the Redskins just seems like the most likely scenario, but Owens is a cancer in the locker room and that would be a mistake. The Albert Haynesworth signing was monumental and is the first $100 million dollar contract for a defensive player ever. What it really equates to is a four-year, $48million dollar deal with $41million guaranteed. This is a lot of money to lock into a player who struggles to stay healthy and can only play in about 66% of the snaps when he is healthy. Granted, he’s a game-changer when he’s in the line-up, but he’s a risky investment and his success will be a large determining factor in whether or not this free agency period was a success. Finally, re-signing DeAngelo Hall to such a lucrative deal wasn’t a very good idea at all. Hall got torched in Oakland and proved that he was highly overrated and has more mouth than shutdown ability. While he’s talented and athletic, his attitude and inconsistency will always leave him overrated and will not allow him into the upper echelon of NFL corners. To pay him like one is a mistake, and I’m sure that Daniel Snyder will agree with that a year or two from now.
Who’s Left?
So who am I watching now? I’d say the most intriguing prospect left on the market is CB Leigh Bodden. Bodden was miscast in Detroit’s cover-2 defense last year and struggled because of it. Still, he’s a great man-coverage corner who can excel in just about any other system. Whoever brings him in will have a solid starter. If I were Green Bay, I’d be taking notice of the fact that he left New England without a contract and that he’s still available. Byron Leftwich is still around and will pick up somewhere with a chance to compete for a starting job. His slow release and questionable work ethic/durability will scare some suitors away, but he’s still got the talent to be a starter in this league. Igor Olshansky is a reliable DE in a 3-4 scheme and with so many teams switching, he’ll be a hot commodity.
Keep watching for moves this week and I’ll be back next week with my first mock draft!
By Brandon Niles
ProFootball-fans.com Staff Writer