Free Agency Bombs

Winners & Losers of NFL Free Agency

We are only a couple of days into the official offseason with free agency just opening up, and it is not disappointing. The best way to describe it would be how Jets CB Sauce Gardner described it.

I’m going to give my two cents and go through some of the winners and losers of the offseason period so far. I will mainly be focusing on teams who made big signings with star players to keep it interesting.

Winners

Philidelphia Eagles

Yes, their HOF center Jason Kelce and most likely HOF DT Fletcher Cox did retire but they have made great signings to make up for it. Saquon Barkley, the star running back of the New York Giants signed with the Philidelphia Eagles. He signed a 3-year 37 million dollar deal with them and he brings better legs in the backfield to assist Jalen Hurts. Another signing I liked was the return of Safety CJ Gardner Johnson. He is a high-energy secondary player and I like his game. He just needs to stay healthy. They added DeVante Parker who is kind of mediocre, but he is better than 90-year-old Julio Jones who was their WR3 late last year. Finally, they brought in defensive end Bryce Huff from the Jets who had 10 sacks and 21 quarterback hits last season. He will compliment Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, and Haason Reddick if he resigns. Eagles, you are looking good for next year…I give them an A-

Houston Texans

After a very surprising year under rookie sensation CJ Stroud, the Texans look to add more talent to a young and great core they already have going. After a down season from Dameon Pierce, the Texans decided to bring in Joe Mixon from Cincinnati. All it cost them was a single seventh-round pick. having a good veteran who has 4 1000 yard seasons under his belt is going to benefit the young offense greatly. The other big splash they made was the signing of Danielle Hunter of the Minnesota Vikings. Pairing him with DROY Will Anderson Jr. is going to wreak havoc on opposing backfields. With a career-high 16.5 sacks last year, he is going to help a defensive-minded coach like Demeco Ryans more than he knows. I give Houston an A.

Losers

Carolina Panthers

This has been a sad few days as a Panthers fan. They lost some of their best defensive players Frankie Luvu, Jeremy Chinn, Brian Burns, Yetur Gross-Matos, Vonn Bell, and Donte Jackson. Luvu and Chinn both signed in Washington but Burns was traded to the Giants. The return…a 2nd and 5th-round pick😐. To think that they declined a trade of 2 firsts from the Rams a couple of seasons ago to now getting this back is heartbreaking. One bright spot on defense is the signing of Josey Sewell. On the offensive side, they did make good moves that I think will help Bryce Young have a good second season. They brought in guards Robert Hunt (yes a slight overpay) and Damien Lewis, tackle A’Shawn Robinson, and traded for wide receiver Dionte Johnson. The offense looks a lot better already, but the pretty solid defense is going to be relying a lot on Jaycee Horn and Derrick Brown next season. I give them a C+.

Buffalo Bills

The salary cap did the Bills dirty this offseason. They had to release many of their players to get under the cap. The list of names who were let go includes safety Jordan Poyer, center Mitch Morse, defensive back Siran Neal, wide receiver Deonte Harty, running back Nyheim Hines, and 2-time Pro Bowl Cornerback Tre’Davious White. Although most of these guys were injury-prone recently, it still hurts to see these guys leave the way they did. On top of that, wide receiver Gabe Davis left for the Jacksonville Jaguars where he will take the role of Calvin Ridley if he decides to leave. I give the Bills a C-.

Honorable Mentions

Las Vegas Raiders

The Raiders would probably be a winner in my list as they signed Christian Wilkins to a 4-year deal worth $110 million. Wilkins is one of the best D Linemen in the league and the combination of him and Maxx Crosby is going to be lethal. They did lose star running back Josh Jacobs to the Packers but I think the running back position can be replaced. They now look for a Quarterback other than Gardner Minshew to help them. there are Justin Fields rumors about landing him in Sin City but as of right now, the QB room is holding them back. Shoutout my man Johnathan because I know he is happy. Raiders would get a B+.

Chicago Bears

Other than the amazing draft capital they have for April’s draft, they are losers to me so far. They signed D’Andre Swift who I love, but he struggles to stay on the field. The main loss they had was not a move at all. The market for Justin Fields has dropped drastically after the Bears made it clear that they are taking Caleb Williams in the draft. With that knowledge, teams can “lowball” them with trade offers and not give up more than they want to for him. I would like to see him in Vegas though.