Every year, the NFL-free agency starts hot. The first week of the signing period is often when the biggest, most groundbreaking deals are handed out, and this year was nothing else. We’ve seen Trent Williams and Leonard Williams get big bucks to re-sign with the 49ers and Giants respectively, and Bud Dupree and Joe Thuney are getting substantial deals to join the Titans and Chiefs.
But while the first week of free agency usually brings the best signings, it’s usually the second and third week where NFL teams find the best bargains. That is why we are here today. In the space below, we’re going to look at the best second-wave negotiations, where teams found upgrades without breaking the bank.
While Robert Saleh took over, the Jets needed two things to play his style of defense properly: a versatile edge rusher who could hold the run and the pace, and an intruder who could do the same. They got the latter in Carl Lawson last week, and the latter in Rankins this week. Rankins has had some injury problems and is having one of his less effective seasons, but he has shown a peak of production that is rare for a player his age (26) signing a contract of sale.
Alex Mack played for Kyle Shanahan in Cleveland and Atlanta and now joins San Francisco. There are few centers that can perform better that need to be done exactly within Shanahan’s offense, and now Mack will once again be in the spotlight for a unit that needs his offensive line to work at a high level to keep him on the to achieve best efficiency. Ebukam, meanwhile, is just an underrated player. He can both push the passer off the edge and lose coverage, and he needs to benefit from playing on a defensive line that is chock full of talent.
These are just absolutely classic Patriots. New England traded at Van Noy’s highest value in 2017, transforming him into a tremendous, versatile player. He worked as an inside of the lineout, an edge rusher and an inside line, and everything in between. He signed a huge contract with the Dolphins last season and made the Pats a compensatory choice in next month’s draft. He was then released by the Dolphins earlier this season, and now he is back in New England. The Pats literally just did this exact thing with Jamie Collins. Now they did it again. Unbelievable.
Fuller will miss Week 1 of the 2021 season as he fulfills the rest of his six-match suspension for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy, but the Dolphins bringing him on a $ 14 million one-year deal of my favorite off-season moves. He is a perfect addition on the field for DeVante Parker and Mike Gesicki, putting Tua Tagovailoa in a much better position to succeed than last season. Deshaun Watson was always at his best when he had Fuller across from DeAndre Hopkins, and the Dolphins can hope the same goes for Tua (or which quarter they take at number 3). If he sticks out ball, they can sign him for a long-term deal or get a compensatory choice if he signs a bigger deal elsewhere in the off-season, when the cap rises back to a normal point.
In its first season, Reddick picked up 12.5 bags as a pure roster. Now he will go to the quarterback while working opposite Brian Burns and next to Derrick Brown. On a $ 8 million one-year deal, he’s a tremendous value to the Panthers, who did not even have to commit to a long-term contract to take a chance on the upside he flashed last season. As his relationship with Matt Rhule goes back to their days in Temple, Carolina should have a good chance of signing him again if things go well.
The movements of the Bengals in the secondary series (Chidobe Awuzie and Mike Hilton) got more attention, but I think it was my favorite signature for them. Ogunjobi is overshadowed by Myles Garrett, Olivier Vernon and Sheldon Richardson in Cleveland, but he’s a good player. He’s coming off the season a bit in 2020, but in 2018 and 2019 he has 11 bags, 20 tackles for loss and 28 quarterback hits from his place in the inland. He’s obviously not a one-on-one replacement for Geno Atkins, but on a one-year deal with a maximum value of about $ 6.2 million, he’s a bargain.
The Cowboys have been plagued by weak defense for several years now. Both of these players need help with that. Neal has extensive experience with new defense coordinator Dan Quinn from their days together in Atlanta, and his ability to play safety in base defense and linebacker in nickel packages should both provide an extra versatility that the team lacks, and should release the Cowboys from it. to trust Jaylon Smith in the coverage. Urban is one of those guys who keeps bouncing in the league and only plays very well against the run-up for a few years, and then goes to his next stop. He needs to fit right into Dallas’ defensive pack rotation.
The Seahawks lost Shaquill Griffin against a big money deal to the Jaguars and replaced him with a corner that was very well suited (Witherspoon played in a very similar system in San Francisco) and cost about a third of the price. No one has more confidence in his ability to train defensive backs than Pete Carroll, and I would not be surprised if the decline from Griffin to Witherspoon was not even so great.
Hollister did quite well with the small number of opportunities he got during his time in the league. Over the past two seasons in Seattle, he has scored 66 of 99 passes for 558 yards and six touchdowns. He sometimes showed the ability to move out into the slot. He’s basically the same size as Dawson Knox, giving the Bills two great body athletes that they can throw to teams if they want to use heavier staff and still throw the ball, just like they used to.
Is Reynolds as good as Corey Davis? Probably not. But he did pretty well as an injury in his first three years in Los Angeles, and had a nice season in a more extensive role last year, despite the general battle of the offense. In addition to AJ Brown, he works well, even though his ceiling is not that high. It helps that he knows the system, is a good blocker and is not afraid to go over the middle with play-action shots, which will all fit well in Tennessee.