The NFL Free Agency/ legal tampering period has only been active for a short period, but so far, we have seen huge moves made by multiple teams.
The First thing I wanted to address was the Maxx Crosby situation. Originally, The Raiders agreed to trade him to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for 26’ and 27’ 1st round picks. However, they backed out of the trade before it could go through, and ended up signing Trey Hendrickson instead. Some people are seeing this as a potentially scandalous move made by the Ravens. I believe that the Ravens realized that they were giving up too much and they were also waiting to see if Trey Hendrickson would agree to a contract. Once they had a lock on Hendrickson’s contract, they would redact their offer made to the Raiders. Essentially the trade made prior to the Free Agency Day was made as a fail-safe in case they couldn’t get Hendrickson. In my opinion, it was smart by the Ravens but I didn’t like how they went about things.
One of the more surprising deals was the Chiefs landing Kenneth Walker III, the last Super Bowl MVP. This deal was sort of a surprise as you don’t see Super Bowl MVPs go unsigned by their previous team, as they are usually kept or resigned to their team that they were on. In my opinion, I think the Seahawks, aren’t totally out of line with this deal, as no matter how elite the running back is, they are not worth being paid all of the money they are asking for as there are so many talented running backs in the NFL, and I believe that a lot of teams have realized this including the Seahawks. I think this move will be a lot better for both teams then people realize, but I definitely can’t wait to see how the league shakes with this.
Another signing of the NFL free agency, was the one of if not the best player on the market in Tyler Linderbum to the Raiders, in a deal in which they paid him 81 million dollars for 3 years. Which makes him the highest paid center in NFL history, and it’s not like he isn’t deserving this is just a very big signing from the raiders. But this is a big move for their future, especially the fact that the Raiders are set to draft their future quarterback in this upcoming draft. This deal screams draft rookie quarterback, and give him protection to survive in the pocket. This move will help a lot with that for sure, and I’m excited to see what all will happen with that, especially as they continue to figure out cap space and what they will do with the 1st overall pick.
Another NFL free agency signing that I didn’t see happening, is the Atlanta Falcons signing their new (presumed) Quarterback 1 in Tua Tagovailoa, and I think this signing could be very interesting as Tua plays his best games when he has a good O-line around him to protect him, and actually keep him safe. I think the falcons have a very good team for any productive quarterback to do well, as the amount of weapons is insane. They have Kyle Pitts, Drake London, Bijan Robinson, and a very productive o-line. I think Tua has gone through so much with the dolphins, and I would love to see him win and produce. I wanna see a player like him succeed as he is a talented player, who can do well in this league with help from his teammates.
One other player that I want to succeed in his new home is Kyler Murrary going to the Vikings, as he is an amazing player that has suffered from horrible supporting casts. He is one of the best athletes in the league, and showcases it all the time, and I think with a team like the Vikings, he could be an excellent player once again. As Kevin Occonell’s system works really well with any kind of quarterback, we’ve seen this with Sam Darnold, and the flashes of J.J. McCarthy, as well as the many other quarterbacks that have been in his system. I think Kyler could be an absolutely perfect fit for this, and to get him on a cheaper deal is a very big steal in my eyes.
A player that had a breakout year, and got the money for it is Wandale Robinson, leaving New York after spending the start of his career there to then going to the Tennessee Titans. Cam Wards biggest issue last year was with people that couldn’t catch the balls and make a play with the ball in their hand. Wandale is very good at both, the Titans got themselves a good Wide Receiver for a whole lot cheaper than I thought they would. It’s good to see him be a true WR1 on a team, and I think that him and Cam Ward could easily make some things happen with this team. I’m very excited to see what comes out of this.
One very surprising free agency signing is WR Mike Evans ending his tenure with the Buccaneers, to join the San Francisco 49ers. After 11 years, Mike Evans decided to switch teams and move to San Francisco. Although it’s sad to see him go, I’m excited to see how he plays in this Kyle Shanahan offense. It’s going to be exciting to watch.
One of the teams that I thought won free agency so far is the Las Vegas Raiders. Although they could not execute the Crosby trade with the Ravens, I still see them as the biggest winners. This is a list of their player signings so far; C Tyler Linderbaum, LB Nakobe Dean, LB Quay Walker, Re-signing DE Malcolm Koonce, DE Kwity Paye, Re-signing CB Eric Stokes, as well as signing former Vikings WR Jalen Nailor. Adding Maxx Crosby back into that situation puts the Raiders as a potentially legit team this year, especially after using the #1 overall pick in the draft to get their “Quarterback of the Future” in Indiana Prospect Fernando Mendoza.
In my opinion, the biggest loser of the NFL Free agency is the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles lost some of their key players, with other players wanting bigger contracts. Some of the players that got stolen from them include; LB Nakobe Dean, S Reed Blankenship, and EDGE Jaelan Phillips. People are also talking about a potential AJ Brown trade, but nothing has come from it yet. These players have had very productive careers, and I don’t understand why they let them walk.
This is all our opinion on the Free Agency so far, with other moves still to be made. Thanks for reading.
