NFL free agency is well underway, and it’s been a doozy. Huge names have headed to new homes, with the likes of Kirk Cousins, Derrick Henry, Russel Wilson and Saquon Barkley arriving on new teams. Some teams have completely rebuilt their rosters, and others have allowed once-promising squads to fall into disrepair. For others, they’ve filled in much-needed holes, and others still have let the opportunity to improve pass them right by.
We’re ranking every NFL team’s free agency so far.
32. Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings let arguably their two most important players walk. Kirk Cousins, their franchise QB, is gone. Danielle Hunter, their monstrous sack machine is also out the door. Jefferson is still in town, but trade rumors are already swirling. The replacement for Cousins is Sam Darnold. Ouch. The Vikings have gone from a routine playoff team to a disaster in the blink of an eye.
31. Denver Broncos
The Broncos have decided to pay Russell Wilson $85MM in dead cap while letting him play for the Steelers. That’s a whole mess on its own, and will essentially set the team back two years. They also cut Justin Simmons, one of the best safeties in the NFL to save a couple of bucks. Without a viable QB they’ll have to pick one this year, and with Jerry Jeudy traded, he won’t have anyone to throw to either. The Broncos are in a tough spot right now.
30. Dallas Cowboys
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After another disappointing first-round exit, the Cowboys should have been ready to rock and reload the roster to compete for a Super Bowl. Instead, they did absolutely nothing and have lost some of their best players to other teams. To be fair, they didn’t have much cap room, but losing Tony Pollard, Tyron Smith, Stephon Gilmore, Tyler Biadasz, and Leighton Vander Esch will make the team significantly worse next year.
29. Buffalo Bills
The Bills had no cap room, but essentially lost half of their defensive starters because of it. With Poyer, Hyde, Floyd, Jackson, and Lawson gone, the defense will look very different next year. On top of this, they lost Gabe Davis and Mitch Morse on offense. When a third of your starting team is out the door, the results can’t be pretty. It’s an especially big problem when the closest thing to a replacement for any of them is Curtis Samuel for Davis. We’ll see how the Bills can compete this year.
28. New England Patriots
The Pats have come down to Earth after the Brady era, and free agency isn’t going to save them either. Trading Mac Jones, they’ve signaled they will roll the dice on a new franchise QB in the draft. However, losing CB J.C. Jackson, DT Lawrence Guy, and O-Linemen Trent Brown and James Ferentz is a big blow to the team. Antonio Gibson and Austin Hooper aren’t exactly world-beating weapons for the new QB either. Patriots fans will get another dose of reality this season.
27. New Orleans Saints
The Saints had no cap space, so they really were only able to add Willie Gay and Chase Young. However, they’re more likely to fix their issues in the draft than free agency. The Saints came in second on a tie-breaker in a weak division, so not making any big moves is pretty brutal.
26. Carolina Panthers
The Panthers need help and didn’t really get it this off-season. They did fill in the offensive line with Damien Lewis and Robert Hunt and got Diontae Johnson for Bryce Young to throw to, but beyond that didn’t really go over the top. Trading away the dynamic Brian Burns is tough, and losing Frankie Luvu, Jeremy Chinn and Donte Jackson (in the Johnson trade) on top of it means the defense is depleted. Unless Bryce Young takes a big step forward it should be another tough season.
25. Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks brought in a defensive head coach and then lost most of their best defensive players. Bobby Wagner, the perpetual All-Pro, is out. In fact, their entire LB core is out with Jordyn Brooks and Devin Bush gone as well. Their starting safeties are gone too, both Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs. Only Sheldon Richardson is coming back. They filled some of those defensive gaps but have a long way to go. With a questionable Geno Smith under center, they spent multiple draft picks to bring in Sam Howell, which is a bit of a head-scratcher. The Seahawks don’t look like they’re going to be better than they did last year at this point
24. Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins lost key offensive lineman Connor Williams and Robert Hunt, and that’s just the start of their problems, though an already battered Tua can’t really take a worse offensive line. Key defensive losses include DT Christian Wilkins, CB Xavien Howard, pass rusher Andrew Van Ginkel and CB Eli Apple. The Dolphins have been unable to replace most of these pieces with comparable talent, and that means a worse outlook for the next season unless they can pull a rabbit out of the hat in the draft.
23. Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers have essentially lost all of their offensive skill players. Keenan Allen was traded, Mike Williams went to the Jets, and Austin Ekeler went to the Commanders. While Bosa and Mack remain on the team, Justin Herbert will have a whale of a time succeeding without any of his former favorite targets.
22. Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals are purely rebuilding so it’s hard to be too critical of their lack of real movies. They added some defense with CB Sean Murphy-Bunting and DT Bilal Nichols. They let Marquise Brown walk and traded Rondale Moore to bring in Desmond Ritter as a backup. Their off-season will be much more defined by the draft where they have seven of the first 104 picks.
21. Chicago Bears
The Bears are all in on Caleb Williams as the first pick. They’ve added D’Andre Swift and Gerald Everett and traded for Keenan Allen to give him all the tools he needs to succeed in the NFL. They also got additional draft ammo for former QB Justin Fields. Caleb Williams will save the team if the team is going to be saved.
20. New York Giants
The Giants lost the face of their franchise to the rival Eagles. They lost Xavier McKinney, one of the best young safeties in the league to the Packers. At his age and price, it’s a bit strange they didn’t put up more of a fight to keep him. Trading for Brian Burnes is easily the best move of the off-season for the G-Men. With Daniel Jones clearly not the answer at the QB, the Giants are probably treading water for another season.
19. Indianapolis Colts
The Colts really didn’t go for any big players outside of their organization, re-signing guys like WR Michael Pittman Jr., CB Kenny Moore and DT Grover Stewart. They brought in Joe Flacco as a backup in case Anthony Richardson goes and gets himself knocked out for the season again since Gardener Minshew is out. Keeping their roster stable was the best move since the team nearly made the playoffs without their promising young QB.
18. Los Angeles Rams
The biggest news for the Rams this off-season was the retirement of Aaron Donald. That’s impossible to replace, and they haven’t even signed a defensive lineman to do it yet. However, they did add offensive lineman Jonah Jackson and re-signed guard Kevin Dotson to try and keep Matthew Stafford safe. Van Jefferson is gone to the Steelers and Gerald Everett to the Bears, so some work will need to be done in the draft to get the offense to the same place it was last year.
17. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jags’ biggest move was franchise-tagging a player completely worthy of the term, Josh Allen. They brought in former UCF WR Gabe Davis back to Florida and beefed up the secondary with Darnell Savage and Ronald Darby. If Trevor Lawrence can finally break through to the top class of quarterbacks, the Jags should be in a good place.
16. Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders made two huge free agency moves, they brought in monster DT Christian Wilkins on a major four-year $110 MM deal and made Gardener Minshew their starting QB. However, they did lose Josh Jacobs and stud guard Greg Van-Roten. Hunter Renfrow was also cut for cap concerns, leaving Minshew with fewer weapons. The Raiders look to be in a better place than the struggling squad of 2023, but we’ll see how much.
15. Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals dealt former Pro Bowl RB Joe Mixon and replaced him with unproven piece Zach Moss. They also lost some of their vaunted wide receiver depth with Tyler Boyd gone. Tee Higgins was franchise tagged but is looking for a trade out, and could become a holdout issue. They lost their star CB Awuzie and DT DJ Reader. Adding Geno Stone does fill in their safety issue. The replacement of Reader with Sheldon Rankins isn’t bad, but we’ll see how Moss can replace Mixon, and who can fill in for Awuzie. The Bengals need Joe Burrow to be healthy more than any free agent signing to succeed this season.
14. New York Jets
The Jets went out with limited cap space and got protection and a weapon for Aaron Rodgers. Guard John Simpson and stud tackle Tyron Smith joined the squad. Mike Williams will line up with Garrett Wilson in the wide receiver position, a huge need for the Jets. The only major loss for the Jets was Bryce Huff, who had 10 sacks last year. However, Huff may have been a product of Saleh’s system and someone like Will MacDonald could fill right in. Like the Bengals, the Jets need healthy QB play more than anything else.
13. Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens signed a big name in Derrick Henry. If they can balance his workload that could be a huge gain for a team that loves to run the ball. However, their biggest signing was probably the re-signing of Justin Madubuike, their destructive DT. Losing Patrick Queen and Ronald Darby does hurt, though. The Ravens should be ready for another good season.
12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Bucs brought back Mike Evans and Baker Mayfield on big deals. These are huge moves that will keep the team in the hunt for the playoffs in a weak division. They also reunited with Jordan Whitehead to keep the secondary strong. However, the loss of Shaq Barrett and Devin White at the edge and linebacker position is pretty significant for the defense. We’ll see how it all shakes out for the Buccaneers.
11. Tennessee Titans
The Titans lost Derrick Henry but got Tony Pollard to replace him. A younger back with a completely different playstyle, it’ll be interesting to see how he fits into the run-heavy offense. Calvin Ridley joins DeAndre Hopkins in the WR room and Awuzie comes in to shut down opposing wideouts. Unfortunately, their QB situation is still largely up in the air, so these moves may not be worth as much as they would be for a team with a better player under center.
10. Philadelphia Eagles
The run-focused Eagles brought in a huge name in Saquon Barkley. With a better O-Line, Barkley should be able to recapture some of his old magic after a year where he failed to average four yards a carry last season. Bryce Huff brings another weapon for the pass rush, and Devin White gives the Eagles a frightening LB core. Jason Kelce and Fletcher Cox’s retirements are much more significant losses than any player in free agency. The Eagles need to shake off whatever funk crept over them in the second half of last year and have the roster for another playoff run.
9. Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs filled their two biggest needs this off-season. Re-signing Chris Jones and getting a solid WR. Jones is back on a massive five-year, $160 MM deal. Marquise Brown is in the building as a deep threat and companion to Travis Kelce. Keeping L’Jarius Sneed and Deon Bush in the secondary is also big. They did lose some offensive line talent in Donovan Smith and Nick Allegretti, but that is likely where they’ll turn their eyes in the draft. Chiefs are ready to make another run at the Super Bowl.
8. San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers have all of their offensive ducks in a row, so they focused on defense this off-season. Specifically, they took their pass rush to the next level. Leonard Floyd has come onboard, one of the best pass rushers in the sport. They also took a flier on Yetur Gross-Matos, hoping he can get to his prospect potential. The Niners brought in players to destroy the quarterback because Mahomes destroyed them in the Super Bowl.
7. Cleveland Browns
The Browns made the big re-signing of Zadarius Smith to keep the duo of Smith and Garrett together. They also got Richard Jefferson (no relation), to further strengthen the defensive line. Devin Bush also makes their LB core that much better, as does the trade for Jerry Jeudy in the WR room. The Browns are re-tooled and ready to make a playoff run.
6. Green Bay Packers
The Packers got a defensive lynchpin in Xavier McKinney, one of the best safeties in the sport, playing in his age-25 season in 2024. Bringing in Josh Jacobs to tandem with the re-signed AJ Dillon gives them the best RB duo in the NFL. Their biggest issue is the loss of a few O-Linemans like Bakhtiari and Runyan. However, overall the team has improved and is looking for another playoff run.
5. Detroit Lions
The Lions had serious defensive needs and filled them. DJ Reader is a terrific DT. Marcus Davenport should come back from injury to do some damage off the edge. Amik Robertson and Carlton Davis will hopefully sure up the secondary. The Lions’ offense is set (though losing Josh Reynolds is tough), now they need the D to back them up so they can push their Super Bowl hopes.
4. Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers brought in a Hall of Famer to play QB. Russell Wilson. They also got Justin Fields for a fourth-rounder in case Wilson doesn’t work out. Patrick Queen gives them one of the best LB cores in the NFL. Van Jefferson keeps the wide receiver room strong. Donte Jackson gives another good piece for the secondary. The Steelers are looking to stop being a ~.500 team and return to their previous heights.
3. Washington Commanders
The Commanders had money to spend and spent it. They brought in Austin Ekeler to pair with Brian Robinson at RB. They beefed up the O-Line with Tyler Biadasz and Nick Allegretti. They brought in Frankie Luvu and Bobby Wagner to strengthen the LB core. Jeremy Chin gives them improved safety as well. Zach Ertz gives them a strong TE too. Since they’ll have to draft a QB, they’ve set up a team to perform around whoever they get. The future looks pretty good for the Commanders.
2. Houston Texans
The Texans had a shocking run to the playoffs last year on the back of CJ Stroud and are just looking to get better. They brought in monster DE Danielle Hunter to wreck opposing quarterbacks. They traded for Joe Mixon to give Stroud a reliable running back. They got Jeff Okudah to lock up opposing wide receivers. Dalton Shultz stays in town and remains a top TE option for their young QB. Blake Cashman and Sheldon Rankins are tough departures, but overall the Texans are in a good spot for 2024.
1. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons objectively gave the biggest boost to their team by adding Kirk Cousins. With loaded offensive skill players like Bijan Robinson, Drake London and Kyle Pitts, all they needed was a QB. This addition is all that really matters, with no serious losses besides, some older but still solid guys like Calais Campell and Bud Dupree. Kirk immediately makes them the favorite in a weak NFC South.
As the draft approaches, we wish all these teams the best. We also hope all un-signed players find the perfect team to join.
