At this time last year, the New York Giants decided that Saquon Barkley was not worth the payment he wanted, and the Philadelphia Eagles were quietly waiting to put out.
Few NFL free agent moves directly affect Super Bowl champions like this one. But when free agents officially start on March 12, there will be a lot of team spending and trying to fill holes, hoping that these moves will even be as close as Barkley vs. the Hawks.
Here are the top 10 storylines that track free agents:
This is an opportunity for Bengali people to distance themselves from cheap reputations. Keep the t-shirt while expanding Ja'marr Chase and Trey Hendrickson, but the Bengals shuffle, now that will cost them more than they should have. If Higgins lands in free agency, he will receive a large-scale contract. Recipients of his talent level and age do not frequently enter the market. It's not easy to pay Higgins and Chase, maybe Hendrickson, but it can be done. What will the Bangladeshis do?
The jets won't bring Rogers back, and Rogers, now 41, has a lot of problems. Does he want to play? If he does, he will have a job if he wants. Later last season, he was doing well, and perhaps with his health he scored 97 in the last 10 games. The starting quarterback in Week 1 will be worse than Rodgers. But, does he want to settle down in order to continue the game less than ideal? Not many attractions offer Rodgers a real chance to compete for a championship or even a playoff spot. He was a big domino during the offseason.
If Darnold could pull a "black man" and erase the memories of the NFL general manager of his last two games last season, he could name his price. Despite his late struggles, he will still be paid because he was 27 and had a very good season with the Vikings. Supply and demand are real. However, there should be more fear and honest assessments about what went wrong in the last two games. Which team will seize the opportunity?
The Patriots have about $120 million in cap space (Spotrac is priced at $121 million, while CAP is more than $119.8 million). The exact number doesn't matter; the Patriots have nearly $30 million more than any other team and can afford to anyone they want. No team in the NFL should be more eager to inject talent. The Patriots should be the player of every high-end offensive winger and receiver.
In mid-February, the difference between the Patriots' hat space and the Saints hat space was $181 million. Wow. According to Spotrac, the saints' salaries are over $60 million. Here is the fork on the road: whether they keep doing enough to limit the hats and push bigger hits into the future so they can keep the aging and mediocre roster together, or tear it all off and swallow it will What is one or two bad seasons? How the saints find out the hat is an interesting puzzle.
Russell Wilson and Justin Fields are free agents and they will be watching closely. The Steelers are on the quarterback Hamster wheels, still looking for high-end quarterbacks that can take them back to the next level. Is someone like Aaron Rodgers really that player? Do they have another answer? They got offseason creativity at the arena and Wilson for a cheap price, and now let's see what they think this year.
The bill rented Amari Cooper in a year walk, but the deal didn't meet hope. Billing requires a differential receiver and is not easy to obtain. Maybe they brought Cooper back, who has been good and may be a good choice. Buffalo doesn't have a lot of hat room. However, there should be a lot of pressing upgrades for the bill, which can be upgraded around MVP Josh Allen. It's time to get creative.
The biggest advantage of the champion is depth, which will be tested every offseason. Josh Sweat and Milton Williams both have the dominant Super Bowl on the Hawks’ defensive line, but he has to know, he has to know, every free agent’s Prices are rising in every sack. The Eagles can't afford to everyone. All-Pro linebacker Zack Baun is another free agent who can be cashed in. Who will prioritize Philadelphia?
QB Carousel will have some big losers. There are more teams that need quarterbacks than quarterbacks. Can Tom Brady work hard for his charm? Brady's influence as a limited owner of the Raiders may have been exaggerated. Free agents don't want to sign with Brady because he's an NFL legend and they want to get paid. What the Raiders do will be interesting, whether it's Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins, Russell Wilson, all with their sixth draft NFL draft or whatever Some mysterious solutions pray for the preferred quarterback.
It is difficult to keep the dynasty moving forward. Just because the Chiefs lost a Super Bowl doesn't mean the dynasty is done, but after the Eagles handled them, they seem to be more vulnerable. There are some serious free agent issues now. Defender Trey Smith will be one of the highest paid free agents, and Kansas City already has offensive line problems. Recipients Deandre Hopkins and Hollywood Brown can test the market. Defender Nick Bolton and security Justin Reid are two major members of the Department of Defense, whose contracts have risen. It may be inevitable that the Chiefs lose some good players. Every AFC contender wants this.