Check out these photos highlighting Cain Velasquez’s career through the years.
Check out these photos highlighting [autotag]Cain Velasquez[/autotag]’s career through the years.
Hideki Matsuyama lines a putt on the 10th green during the first round of the 2020 The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass – Stadium Course. (Photo: Adam Hagy/USA TODAY Sports)
The veteran quarterback is largely considered to be one of the top free agents available this off-season, not just at the quarterback position but league-wide. But taking a chance on Rivers does not come without a good share of risks, and any team that brings him into the fold needs to be clear about where he currently is as a quarterback. (Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports)
In what is a thin guard market this off-season, Joe Thuney and Scherff seem to be the cream of the crop. Other players, such as Graham Glasgow and Gret Van Roten, are generating interest as free agency beckons. But Thuney and Scherff are going to garner the most attention. According to Sportrac.com, Scherff could be looking at a market value of $12.4 million dollars per year, given recent deals given to guards such as Andrew Norewll, Cordy Glenn, Zack Martin and Trai Turner. But teams should go into such a deal wide-eyed. First up are injury concerns. Scherff missed half of the 2018 season with a torn pectoral muscle, and last year he was placed on injured reserve in December due to shoulder and elbow injuries. Scherff has also allowed 13 sacks over his 65 games played in the NFL. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Henry might very well be the most complete and dynamic tight end available through both free agency and the draft. But he does not come without risk. His second season in the NFL ended early, with a knee injury and a lacerated kidney. He came back for OTAs the next year, but tore his ACL and missed the entire regular season, returning for the Chargers’ Divisional Round meeting with the Patriots. Then last year, Henry suffered a tibia plateau fracture to his left knee and missed the first five games of the season.The team that signs him would be wise not to place all of their eggs in the Henry basket, and sign or draft another tight end as a viable Plan B should Henry miss time in the year ahead. (Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports)
Remember, part of the consideration here is value. Will it be worth paying what some of these players are going to command on the open market, given some of the risk factors or what they bring to the table on the field? Hooper is more of a complementary piece rather than a tight end on par with Kelce, Ertz and others. He is adept at finding soft areas in zone coverage and sitting down, making himself available for his quarterback, but he is not exactly the mismatch type tight end that modern NFL offenses are running their passing games through. (Harrison Barden-USA TODAY Sports)
The Tennessee Titans rode Henry to an AFC Championship Game a year ago, and the running back turned in a career year. In the playoffs? Henry had 182 yards rushing and a touchdown in Tennessee’s upset of the New England Patriots, and 195 yards rushing in Tennessee’s upset of the Baltimore Ravens.
And yet…
Even with those prodigious numbers, Henry was just a part of Tennessee’s offense, and not their entire offense. In terms of Defense-adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA) from Football Outsiders, last year the Titans’ offense had a rushing DVOA of 7.9%, which was fifth in the league. Their passing game? It posted a DVOA of 29.6%.
Passing is king. (Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports)
The fact of the matter is that running backs do not have the value they once did in the modern NFL. In today’s game, where 30 of the 32 teams threw the football more than 51% of the time, wide receivers and quarterbacks have more opportunities to impact the game than running backs do. Gordon’s own offense, the Los Angeles Chargers, threw the football on more than 63% of their offensive snaps. Yes, game script and game situation come into play, but when roughly two-thirds of your offense is focused on the pass, what is the true value of the RB?
(David Banks-USA TODAY Sports)
When it comes to free agency, there are some areas of concern for a team looking to acquire Ryan to bolster their cornerback corps. Last season Ryan notched five interceptions, four coming in the regular season and one in the playoffs, and those numbers would lead you to believe that Ryan is among the game’s elite slot cornerbacks. However, there are other numbers to keep in mind when considering Ryan during free agency. According to PFF’s charting data, he was targeted 114 times this past season, which is most among cornerbacks in the NFL. That might come with the territory, given how often teams target their slot receivers, but he also gave up 80 receptions, again the most in the NFL. On those targets, Ryan surrendered a passer rating of 97.8, and he gave up 11.8 yards per reception – a first down per catch. (AP Photo/Ron Schwane)
The linebacker had a career resurgence last season in New England, as part of the Patriots’ impressive defensive unit. But a team that sign Collins is going to first want to evaluate how he was used in New England and make sure that type of off-ball, athletic linebacker is a needed piece in their defense. And there is another aspect of Collins’ 2019 season to consider. Much like the Patriots themselves, Collins seemed to fade down the stretch. The bulk of his defensive production (six of his sacks, all three interceptions and two of his forced fumbles for example) came in the first half of the season. Was this due to New England’s woes as a team, or is there an underlying issue? Something else to ponder. (Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports)
While Dupree had the highest sack numbers of his career, according to PFF’s charting data he generated pressure on just 10.1% of his pass rushing plays last season, which was not the top number of his career (11.8% back in 2017). That mark of 10.1% tied Dupree for 63rd among the league’s 99 qualifying pass rushers. Dupree’s 28 pressures a season ago placed him behind his teammate T.J. Watt, who led the league in that category, by generating 59 pressures on opposing passers. Dupree benefited a ton from Watt’s presence, and even when teams slid protection towards Watt and left Dupree in a one-on-one situation, he failed to completely capitalize. If you can pair Dupree with another talented edge rusher, like the Steelers were able to do last season, Dupree can perhaps match some of his production from 2019. But if you cannot guarantee that, you will likely not see him match those numbers from a season ago. (Philip G. Pavely-USA TODAY Sports)
This has nothing to do with sack totals, but more with the idea of value.
Clowney notched three sacks last season with the Seattle Seahawks throughout 13 regular season games, but those sacks do not tell the full story. He was battling a core injury, which will require off-season surgery. Still, even with that impediment, he was able to generate 30 pressures, more than Bud Dupree (as just outlined) and more than DeMarcus Lawrence, both of whom appeared in all 16 games for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys, respectively. So, where is the risk? The cost. Clowney has indicated, according to reporting from Bleacher Report, that he is seeking a “market-setting” contract. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
Brady can still play the quarterback position at a solid level. But if he is to move to a new organization, the team that signs him is not getting the quarterback he was a few seasons ago. While it is true that the Patriots struggled to put weapons around him last season, despite their best efforts, Brady did see a dramatic drop in his production in 2019. Plus, he turns 43 in August, and we are in uncharted waters with Brady at this point in his career.
Now, perhaps recent reports are true and the free agency market for Brady is not as strong as it has been made out to be over the past few weeks. But if a team takes the plunge and signs Brady to a short-term, but big-dollar deal when free agency starts, there are some significant risks at play. (Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports)
