How 3 different NFL teams aced free agency
How 3 different NFL teams aced free agency
One is rebuilding, one is trying to get to the playoffs, and the other has its eye on the Super Bowl.
Each year during free agency, some teams can’t stop making moves. Others stay mostly quiet until April.
Usually, there are various reasons to explain a franchise’s activity or lack thereof: what kind of improvements it needs to make, how much cap space is available, how many draft picks it has, etc.
Sometimes, the busiest teams are in rebuilding mode. Other times, they’re trying to push themselves from pretender to contender.
I decided to take a look at three teams, all in different stages, that have done an excellent job of adding talent the last couple of weeks. Each one has taken its own approach to free agency, but the end result is the same: They’ve aced it!
Rebuilding phase: Chicago Bears
The Bears’ most pivotal move was trading the No. 1 pick to the Panthers, in exchange for D.J. Moore, a second-round pick this year, a first-round pick next year, and another second-round pick two years from now.
That’s exactly what a team in the middle of a rebuild should be doing, especially one that doesn’t need a quarterback. The Bears, with plenty of cap space this offseason, have also been able to lure a bunch of solid free agents to Chicago. Even if the names don’t wow you, Justin Fields will, at long last, have more of a legitimate supporting cast:
Moore led all Panthers receivers in his first five seasons in the league, despite a revolving door of mediocre quarterbacks throwing him the ball. In 2022, his receptions (63) and receiving yards (888) totals were the lowest since his rookie year, though he snagged a career-high seven touchdowns. He’s not in the upper tier of receivers in the NFL, but he can still be the WR1 that Fields has lacked.
On defense, the Bears shored up the linebacker position after trading Roquan Smith in October. They signed both Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards — neither of whom is as good as Smith, mind you. Edmunds is only 24, though, and is a great fit for Matt Eberflus’ defense. The 26-year-old Edwards is coming off a career year, recording a team-high 159 tackles with the Eagles.
What’s next: The Bears have 10 draft picks this spring, including four in the first three rounds. They could use the No. 9 pick on one of the areas of need they didn’t address much in free agency — specifically, the OL and DL (cornerback is also a possibility). Chicago did sign guard Nate Davis, another young player who makes the team better. Yet Northwestern's Peter Skoronski and Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr., both of whom can play multiple positions, should be available if GM Ryan Poles decides to use his first pick on more protection for Fields.
The Bears brought in two veteran defensive linemen: DE DeMarcus Walker (a career-best seven sacks in 2022) and DT Andrew Billings (a good run stopper). They need so much more help than that, considering how bad the DL was this past season. While Bama’s Will Anderson will be long gone by the time the Bears are on the clock, an edge rusher like Texas Tech’s Tyree Wilson will be an option. Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter could be too, if Chicago’s front office feels comfortable drafting him.
Competing phase: Detroit Lions
I’ll be honest: I wasn’t very happy with the Lions at the start of free agency. They opted to sign David Montgomery over the delightful Jamaal Williams, who rushed for an NFL-high 17 touchdowns in 2022 and had his first 1,000-yard season. I have nothing against Montgomery, who is younger than Williams and was a consistent producer for bad Bears offenses, but I believe the Lions should have shown Williams more respect and probably shouldn’t have handed out such a large contract to a running back in the year 2023.
Nevertheless, Detroit still has a strong RB group and will, other than Williams, bring back most of its top performers from an offense that ranked No. 5 in DVOA.
Where the Lions really won me over this past week was on the other side of the ball. Their secondary in particular needed reinforcements — and they cleaned up in that department. First, Detroit brought in cornerbacks Emmanuel Moseley and Cameron Sutton, instantly making that position one of the most improved groups in the NFL.
In his last season with the Steelers, the versatile Sutton came up with a career-high three interceptions and allowed just a 65.3 passer rating when targeted. Moseley, who is 26 and a former college teammate of Sutton’s, is a potential steal on a $6 million contract. Although he appeared in just 16 games in the past two seasons, Moseley did not surrender a touchdown while in pass coverage, per Pro Football Reference. If he bounces back from a torn ACL — the reason the Lions nabbed him for so cheap — then Detroit will have a skilled cover corner who has given up a passer rating of 82.8 throughout his career.
Then over the weekend, the Lions landed the highest-rated remaining free agent when they agreed to an affordable $8 million deal with C.J. Gardner-Johnson. I don’t know the real reason(s) why he didn’t command more money. Maybe it was a question of position, but he has made plays wherever he’s lined up. The former Eagles safety led the league with six interceptions, even though he appeared in just 12 games during the regular season and was starting at a different position. Before 2022, Gardner-Johnson mostly played nickel corner for the Saints. His defensive backs coach for his first two seasons was Aaron Glenn, now Detroit’s defensive coordinator. So if there are actual concerns about Gardner-Johnson’s maturity, then Glenn can keep him in check.
At his introductory presser, Gardner-Johnson raised eyebrows when he said he thought the Lions’ current roster was better than the Eagles’ NFC champion one, but he’s not the only one who’s been impressed by what Detroit is putting together. Maybe this isn’t a Super Bowl team yet, though it should definitely be a playoff team:
What’s next: Now that they’ve bolstered the secondary, the Lions have some wiggle room with their two first-round picks. They could take a “best player available” approach. They could trade down and acquire more picks. They could still decide to draft a corner, especially if one as talented as Illinois’ Devon Witherspoon is available. But they could also throw a wrench into other teams’ plans and decide to get the quarterback of the future with the No. 6 pick, if — perhaps a big if — one of the top four prospects remains on the board.
Most likely, Detroit will set its sights on an edge rusher in the first round, either with one or both picks. It worked out last year when the team selected Aidan Hutchinson. Tyree Wilson and Clemson’s Myles Murphy will be there at No. 6, while Georgia’s Nolan Smith could be tempting at No. 18 (but might not be a good fit for the defense).
Super Bowl phase: Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins nearly upset the Bills in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs, despite being forced to start rookie seventh-round quarterback Skylar Thompson. They probably could have finished the job with Tua Tagovailoa, who led the NFL in several categories in 2022, including TD percentage, adjusted yards per throw, and passer rating.
If Tagovailoa can stay healthy this coming season, the Dolphins are poised to take another step forward. After a little dawdling, Miami finally picked up Tua’s fifth-year option. Now he has a new backup: Mike White, who should be able to adjust to Mike McDaniel’s offense pretty easily.
The defensive side is where the Dolphins struggled most, though. The pass defense ranked No. 25 in DVOA (two spots worse than the Lions) and desperately needed to give Xavien Howard more support. So Miami went out and hired Vic Fangio as its defensive coordinator and then traded for perennial Pro Bowler Jalen Ramsey — for just a third-round pick and a tight end I’ve never heard of!
Ramsey was a bit hot and cold in 2022, but put him in Fangio’s scheme alongside Howard and he could very well return to his All-Pro ways (not that those ways ever completely disappeared).
As always, Ramsey is feeling confident:
While Ramsey-Howard might not be the No. 1 CB tandem in the NFL, they’re at least up there.
If the Dolphins had simply brought Fangio and Ramsey on board, they still would have had a good offseason. Instead, they decided to have a great offseason. Free agent addition David Long Jr. is an aggressive linebacker who should thrive within Fangio’s defense. Long is a beast against the run and can handle himself against the pass, too.
The biggest concern with Long is his health, but it’s why the Dolphins were able to get him on a relatively inexpensive contract.
Fangio will also reunite with linebacker Malik Reed, who had his most productive seasons as a pass rusher in Fangio’s final two seasons in Denver. Reed registered 13 sacks and 25 QB hits in those two seasons, then saw a dropoff last year in Pittsburgh (1 sack, 4 QB hits). At 26 years old, Reed has a decent chance to rebound in Miami.
The Dolphins haven’t won a playoff game since the year 20001. That can and should change 23 years later, thanks to a number of savvy moves this offseason designed to take advantage of having a QB who is still on a rookie deal.
What’s next: Although the Dolphins signed guard Dan Feeney and tackle Kendall Lamm as depth pieces, they could use more offensive line help. The problem is they only have four picks in the upcoming draft, the first of which is in the second round. Fortunately, they could find a starting-caliber right tackle or left guard in that spot — like NDSU’s Cody Mauch, aka the guy who’s missing a couple teeth — but they shouldn’t stop looking on the free agent market either. After all, Tua’s well-being needs to be a main priority.
I can’t type that without singing “in the year 2000” in my head.