Category: 2022 NFL Free Agency

Mitchell Trubisky to Giants gaining more and more steam

The Mitchell Trubisky to New York Giants rumors continue to gain momentum as free agency rapidly approaches.

Are the New York Giants going to overpay for a backup quarterback? Are they going to spend upwards of $20 million at the position despite being over the salary cap a week prior to the new league year?

You wouldn’t think the answer to either of those questions would be “yes,” but the idea of Mitchell Trubisky landing in East Rutherford is beginning to smoke like a chimney.

Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports has been checking in on the Trubisky rumors and found a team who genuinely believes he’ll end up with the Giants.

It’s just one team and for now, they’ll remain anonymous. However, there seems to be a growing sentiment that general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll will hedge their bets with a guy they’re familiar with — it’s all about that trust factor.

Still, it’s important to remember that it’s lying season in the NFL. With free agency a week away and team’s desperate to get the most out of the NFL draft in April, stories will be planted all over. Some of it is genuine, but much of it is not.

That’s not to say the Trubisky rumors lack substance. There’s a lot of smoke there and the connections dating back to Buffalo are obvious. Still, it all boils down to salary cap space plus need versus value. The Giants have a ton of needs and adding a high-priced backup isn’t necessarily solving any of those problems.

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4 free agent guards the Texans should consider

The Houston Texans have decisions to make across the roster. Here are four free agent guards who could help the offensive line.

The Houston Texans have many needs to consider as they upgrade their roster for the 2022 season.

New offensive line coach George Warhop seeks to get the Texans’ yards per carry up. Houston generated 3.4 yards per carry last season, the lowest in the NFL.

“The one thing that you’re always going to look at, I’m going to look at is what is our yards per carry,” Warhop told reporters on Feb. 22. “I want that to be above 4.3, 4.4, somewhere in there.”

Here are four free agent guards who could help the Texans improve along the interior of their offensive line. All contract figures are according to Spotrac.

Report: Texans to re-sign C Jimmy Morrissey, WR Davion Davis

The Houston Texans intend to re-sign center Jimmy Morrissey and receiver Davion Davis when the new league year and free agency begins.

The Houston Texans liked what they saw from youngsters at the bottom of the roster and want to give them another shot to progress with the organization in 2022.

According to Aaron Wilson of the Pro Football Network, the Texans intend to re-sign center Jimmy Morrissey and receiver Davion Davis once the new league year starts at 3:00 p.m. Central Time on March 16.

Morrissey was active for five games in 2021 with four starts. Morrissey played 258 snaps on offense and six special teams snaps. Houston signed the former 2021 seventh-round pick off the Las Vegas Raiders’ practice squad in mid-October as starter Justin Britt battled with a knee injury.

Davis was active for two games, starting in one of them. The former Sam Houston State and Hutto High School product caught a pass for 17 yards. Davis saw 21 snaps on offense and five on special teams.

Texans should target Patriots CB J.C. Jackson in free agency

The Houston Texans could add talent immediately to their secondary with the signing of New England Patriots cornerback J.C. Jackson.

The Houston Texans have decent role players on the defense, but they lack a playmaker.

If the Texans wanted a playmaker in the secondary, and also a player who could carry over the Patriot Way, they ought to consider New England cornerback J.C. Jackson.

According to Doug Farrar from the Touchdown Wire, Jackson is the top free agent on defense for the 2022 free agency class:

The question remains: Would you have given up a second-round pick and signed Jackson to a high-level cornerback deal before he gave up 54 catches on 103 targets for 724 yards, 253 yards after the catch, three touchdowns, eight interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 52.4? And would you have done that knowing that his 25 interceptions over the last four seasons leads the NFL?

Jackson has been more proficient in man coverage throughout his career, but he’s also kept things together as the Patriots have moved from a more man-heavy set of concepts in 2019. He should be the most sought-after free agent in this class unless the Patriots decide to give him that long-term deal, or apply the franchise tag. There should be no question at this point regarding his ability to clamp down without help.

Adding Jackson to Lovie Smith’s defense would give the Texans a cornerback who could make plays on the ball, which fits in with the new coach’s philosophy of cultivating takeaways.

General manager Nick Caserio, who was with the Patriots organization from 2001-20, would have the best idea on whether or not Jackson could fit in culturally with Houston. Given that Jackson was an undrafted free agent in 2018, Caserio is very familiar with how Jackson operates inside the facility.

Houston’s defense finished with 25 takeaways, tied for the 10th-most in the NFL last year, and were the only team with a losing record to crack the top-10. However, Houston’s defense doesn’t have players that offensive coordinator have to account for on a weekly basis. Adding Jackson would give the Texans that opportunity.

According to Over The Cap, the New Orleans Saints’ Marshon Lattimore made over $27.4 million in 2021. The Texans would have to look at a similar annual salary when pursuing Jackson.

The NFL’s 60 best free agents for the 2022 season

NFL free agency is right around the corner, and Touchdown Wire’s Mark Schofield and Doug Farrar have assembled their list of the best impending free agents.

NFL coaches and executives (well, most NFL coaches and executives) are going to converge on the city of Indianapolis for the scouting combine through the first week of March. But as much as the focus will be on interviewing and evaluating draft prospects there, the equivalent view will be on those current NFL players who will hit the open market at 4:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 16 when the new league year begins.

Teams are already able to apply franchise tenders to those impending free agents they don’t want to lose, and deals can be done in that context. The legal tampering period begins on Monday, March 14 at 12:00 p.m. ET, when teams can negotiate with players who will be free agents two days later. Players and teams can agree to deals before the March 16 deadline, but no deals can be made official until the new league year begins.

With all this in mind, Touchdown Wire’s Mark Schofield and Doug Farrar have assembled their list of the NFL’s top 60 impending free agents, with Mark covering offense, and Doug on defense. These are the best players who will be on the open market once the new league year begins, and can do the most to improve their next — or possibly current — teams.

(All advanced metrics courtesy of Football Outsiders, Pro Football Focus, and Sports Info Solutions unless otherwise indicated).

The NFL’s top 30 defensive free agents

With NFL free agency right around the corner, Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar drops his top 30 impending free agents on the defensive side of the ball.

NFL coaches and executives are going to converge on the city of Indianapolis for the scouting combine through the first week of March. But as much as the focus will be on interviewing and evaluating draft prospects there, the equivalent view will be on those current NFL players who will hit the open market at 4:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 16 when the new league year begins.

Teams are already able to apply franchise tenders to those impending free agents they don’t want to lose, and deals can be done in that context. The legal tampering period begins on Monday, March 14 at 12:00 p.m. ET, when teams can negotiate with players who will be free agents two days later. Players and teams can agree to deals before the March 16 deadline, but no deals can be made official until the new league year begins.

With all this in mind, here are our top 30 defensive free agents — the players who will be on the open market once the new league year begins, and can do the most to improve the defenses of their new — or old — teams.

(All advanced metrics courtesy of Football Outsiders, Pro Football Focus, and Sports Info Solutions unless otherwise indicated).

The NFL’s top 30 offensive free agents

Are you a fan of an NFL team that needs help on offense? You can start here, with the top offensive free agents in the NFL.

The “packaged hope” portion of the NFL season kicks off in a few days, as NFL free agency gets underway as the NFL Scouting Combine draws to a close. The beauty of this part of the calendar is that fans of all 32 teams can talk themselves into being on the verge of putting together a Super Bowl roster.

Hence the idea of packaged hope.

How the next few weeks play out will go a long way towards shaping not only the 2022 NFL draft, but the entire 2022 NFL season. Last year saw teams like the New England Patriots spend heavily in free agency, and that culminated in a return to the postseason for Bill Belichick and the Patriots. Can another team put together a similar turnaround?

Those looking for help on the offensive side of the football might start here. Here are the Top 30 offensive free agents.

Best fits for the NFL’s top free-agent wide receivers

Touchdown Wire’s Laurie Fitzpatrick breaks down game film to uncover the best landing spots for the NFL’s top free-agent receivers.

The 2022 NFL calendar begins the day the free agency market opens, March 16.

This year there are several starting wide receivers across the league who may get a franchise tag, but the way the cap space is looking, these guys might walk. If teams are looking to improve their roster in order to take their offense to the next level, free agency is where they should start. In the next few weeks there will be several wide receivers to choose from, and today we will cover a few: Davante Adams, Chris Godwin, Allen Robinson II and Michael Gallup.

Let’s look at these marquee free agents and see which offense they would pair with best.

Texans re-sign linebacker Tae Davis

The Houston Texans have re-signed linebacker Tae Davis.

The Houston Texans are quietly adding depth to their linebacking corps.

The Texans have re-signed linebacker Tae Davis, according to Davis’ representative, David Canter.

Houston originally signed Davis in the 2021 free agency period, but did not make the final roster at the end of preseason. The Texans placed Davis on injured reserve.

Davis’ last extended action came in 2020 with the Cleveland Browns where he played 13 games and collected seven tackles. The former 2018 undrafted free agent from Chattanooga played 18 games for the New York Giants from 2018-19 before joining the Brown in 2019.

Through his 40-game career, Davis has collected 52 combined tackles, two tackles for loss, five quarterback hits, and five pass breakups.

Texans should sign S Malik Hooker regardless of their draft plans

Regardless of what the Houston Texans do at safety in the draft, the club should sign Malik Hooker to bolster their depth.

Safety is a position of need for the Houston Texans in 2022, but it is also a position where the club adds young talent.

Some mock drafts have Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton going to the Texans with the No. 3 overall pick, and it can be argued that the versatile defensive back’s utility in Houston’s backend would elevate the defense.

Whether the Texans go with Hamilton at No. 3 overall or go somewhere else, Houston needs to bolster their safety depth with another veteran, and Malik Hooker would fit that bill.

According to Ben Linsey from Pro Football Focus, Hooker is a “buy-low candidate” at safety during the upcoming free agency wave.

Hooker delivered some strong performances for Dallas in his return from a torn Achilles injury that ended his 2020 season early. He has an intriguing combination of range in coverage with a willingness to add on in run support when playing closer to the line of scrimmage. Yet to turn 26 years old, Hooker will likely be forced to sign another one-year contract on the cheaper side this offseason, but there’s some upside for Hooker as a potential starter in that situation.

The Texans have familiarity with Hooker as he was a former 2017 first-round pick for the Indianapolis Colts. Hooker generated 124 combined tackles, a tackle for loss, seven interceptions, 11 pass breakups, and three forced fumbles through 36 games, all but one he didn’t start through the 2020 season.

With the Cowboys, Hooker was able to get his feet under him with 15 games that included 44 combined tackles, a tackle for loss, two pass breakups, and an interception. The former Ohio State Buckeye wasn’t tasked with a great deal and was able to recover from his Achilles injury.

According to Spotrac, Hooker made $920,000 on a one-year contract with the Cowboys in 2021. Houston could sign him to a similar deal and have depth at safety regardless of how they ultimately address the position.