Tag: 2023 NFL free agency

Report: Eagles CB James Bradberry open to returning to Giants in free agency

James Bradberry is set to participate in the #SuperBowl with the Eagles, but could the talented cornerback potentially return to the Giants in free agency?

James Bradberry has been in the NFL for seven years now, and prior to this Super Bowl run with the Eagles, the talented cornerback had appeared in one postseason contest.

Bradberry joined the Eagles on a one-year, $7.5 million deal that included almost $3 million in incentives.

Paired up with Darius Slay, Bradberry turned the one-year deal into an All-Pro season, ranking 14th in Pro Football Focus’ cornerback ratings, including landing as the seventh highest-graded cornerback in coverage.

Bradberry might not land a long-term contract in free agency, but he’ll definitely get paid and according to Bob Brookover, that payday could come from the Giants.

Bradberry says he’s open to a return up the New Jersey Turnpike, and a major reason is his relationship with defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson.

Philadelphia has 18+ unrestricted free agents set to hit the open market and the team will likely covet retaining C.J. Gardner-Johnson over his older counterpart at cornerback.

With two first-round picks, the Eagles could look to reload the defensive holes via the draft and undrafted free agency.

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Stay or Go: Predicting the fates of Vikings free agents in 2023

The Vikings have 22 players set to be free agents. Who will re-sign and who will find a new home?

The Minnesota Vikings have a lot of needs heading into the 2023 season and one of the ways they can address those is by re-signing their own free agents.

The Vikings have 22 free agents that haven’t signed a futures contract. WR Dan Chisena (Steelers) and OL Kyle Hinton (Falcons) chose to go elsewhere while DT T.J. Smith chose to stay in Minnesota.

We’re predicting whether the Vikings’ free agents will come back with the team or leave come March.

Derek Carr would meet Texans’ QB need and free up draft obligations

The Houston Texans would be able to address other roster needs if they acquired Derek Carr ahead of the 2023 NFL draft.

The Houston Texans may have two first-round picks, six selections in the top-103, and tied for the most choices of the three-day event with 12, but their highest-valued commodity is already committed.

The Texans need an upgrade at quarterback, and the 2023 NFL draft offers a quartet of fascinating signal callers in Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson, and Will Levis. This means the Texans’ No. 2 overall pick in Round 1 is virtually committed to taking a quarterback.

What if the Texans just didn’t take a quarterback with that selection and were thus unbound from shoring up the position in April? What if Houston addressed quarterback much sooner in the offseason?

According to the scouting department at the 33rd Team, the Texans trade with the Las Vegas Raiders ahead of the draft in their latest mock and have field general squared away with Derek Carr. Houston then uses that selection to give new coach DeMeco Ryans a weapon on the edge.

In a surprising turn of events, the Texans pivot off of drafting a young quarterback, land Derek Carr in a trade with the Raiders prior to the draft and build their defense by landing talented Alabama pass rusher Will Anderson.

The Texans give Carr a young weapon in TCU wideout Quentin Johnston at No. 12 overall (Round 1).

Carr will be 32 years old when the 2023 season starts. Houston would be getting a known product in David Carr’s younger brother, which is is positive and negative. Houston would have an idea of what Carr can do and also what he can’t. The Texans would need to ensure they build a roster that can accommodate for the things Carr can’t do.

Stroud goes atop the draft to the Indianapolis Colts, who make a deal with the Chicago Bears. Young ends up going No. 5 overall to the Seattle Seahawks. The Carolina Panthers trade up with the Detroit Lions to take Levis at No. 6. Richardson goes No. 16 overall to Washington.

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Lions mock offseason v2.0: Post-Senior Bowl edition

The mock offseason covers not just a mock draft, but also personnel decisions on existing Lions free agents, potential roster cuts, outside free agent signings and the draft.

Now that the 2023 Senior Bowl and the slate of postseason exhibition games have ended, it’s time for the second installment of this year’s Detroit Lions mock offseason.

The mock offseason covers not just a mock draft, but also personnel decisions on existing Lions free agents, potential roster cuts, outside free agent signings and (of course) the draft.

Lions mock offseason v1.0: Kicking off the offseason options

As with last year’s series, each mock offseason represents a potential path Lions GM Brad Holmes and the team can follow, not a recommendation or endorsement of any course of action. It’s not a prediction either, just a look at how the Lions might approach the offseason.

Which Washington Commanders are in the PFF Top 100 free agents?

Where is Daron Payne ranked? And are there any other Commanders ranked?

According to Pro Football Focus, who are the top 100 NFL players that are set to now enter free agency?

In addition, where does Pro Football Focus rank the Washington Commanders players entering free agency?

Daron Payne is certainly the leading Commander entering free agency. Payne, who made $8.529 million in 2022, has made no secret that his chief desire this offseason is to get what he feels is due him. PFF ranked Payne as the No. 9 player entering free agency in 2023.

Interestingly enough, not a single Washington Commanders player (other than Payne) was considered by PFF to be in the top 100 NFL free agents for this upcoming cycle.

Though Washington had a 5-3-1 record in games started by quarterback Taylor Henicke, PFF apparently was not overly impressed with Heinicke’s play in 2022.

Safety Jeremy Reaves was voted to be the special teams Pro Bowler, yet, PFF does not assess Reaves as one worthy of the top 100 2023 free agents either.

The only other Commanders free agent that I thought might have a chance of breaking into the top 100 but did not was linebacker Cole Holcomb. The former Tar Heel is only age 26 and was a four-year starter (2019-22). However, this past season Holcomb was only able to play and start in seven games, his last game being the home win over the Green Bay Packers.

Holcomb injured his foot and sat out a few weeks; however, there was not sufficient progress in healing, and it was determined surgery was his best option, which then ended his 2022 season.

Here is the PFF top ten 2023 Free Agents

  1. Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens
  2. Geno Smith, QB, Seattle Seahawks
  3. Javon Hargrave, DT, Philadelphia Eagles
  4. Jessie Bates, S, Cincinnati Bengals
  5. Jamel Dean, CB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  6. Lavonte David, LB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  7. Jakobi Meyers, WR, New England Patriots
  8. Orlando Brown, OT, Kansas City Chiefs
  9. Daron Payne, DT, Washington Commanders
  10. Mike McGlinchey, OT, San Francisco 49ers

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Stay or go: Predicting the fates of Bengals free agents in 2023

Will the Bengals re-sign or let go their key free agents?

The Cincinnati Bengals enter one of the most important offseasons in franchise history with the task of keeping the contention window open as wide as possible.

Easier said than done when the team has some urgency to get Joe Burrow’s contract extension done and a massive list of important free agents.

Armed with roughly $35.7 million in cap space (before any potential moves that could free up more), the front office has to carefully navigate an impending free agents list that includes several starters and one of the best players in the league at his position.

Here’s a rundown of all the team’s free agents and predictions for how we see things playing out.

DJ Chark: Going back to Detroit as a free agent ‘would be great’

Chark told Amon-Ra St. Brown on The 33rd Team podcast that a return to Detroit would be great and also why he chose the Lions in 2022

The Detroit Lions didn’t spend a lot in 2022 to lure outside free agents to the team. One of the few big splashes in free agency a year ago, wide receiver DJ Chark, is once again a free agent.

In an interview with Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown and his brother, Equanimeous, Chark talked about the process of being a free agent for the first time last season. The discussion on The 33rd Team’s podcast talked about why Chark chose Detroit and also why he might make the same choice as a free agent in 2023.

“I was expecting the people in them articles (media speculation) that this team was going to call, that team was going to call. That’s what I was expecting. But the teams I was linked to never really called.”

The Lions put on an impressive pitch for Chark,

“Detroit being one that I felt was the most serious about bringing me in. I had another team that had a pretty good offer, honestly. But it didn’t really feel like the right fit. Then I looked at the Lions and I saw JG (QB Jared Goff) who I thought was pretty solid.”

Chark went on to praise the coaches, teammates and the front office in Detroit for making him welcome.

As for 2023 and where he might sign as a free agent?

“I’m trying to not even worry about how it’s going to happen. I feel like I’m going to be where I’m supposed to be. If that’s Detroit that would be great, because I’ve got some real good friendships and I like it there.”

Chark left the door open to leave, however.

“It’s a business, you never know,” Chark said with a shrug. “So we’ll see how that goes.”

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Bengals boast 3 free agents in ESPN’s top 50 list

Three big names for the Bengals to potentially re-sign in free agency.

The Cincinnati Bengals face a key offseason when it comes to retaining their own free agents.

That means they have multiple names on free agency lists everywhere and guys that will garner the eyeballs of potentially 31 other front offices.

ESPN’s Matt Bowen compiled his top 50 free agents this offseason and ended up with three Bengals on the list, headlined by safety Jessie Bates at 10th overall:

“With post and split-field range over the top and a history of creating on-the-ball production (14 career picks), Bates is an easy fit as a versatile defender in both single-high and two-deep schemes. He had four interceptions, eight pass breakups and 38 solo tackles this season. He allowed 15 catches on 30 targets for 243 yards, according to NFL Next Gen Stats, ranking third in the league among safeties who played at least 250 coverage snaps. Bates, who played on the franchise tag, will be coveted if he hits free agency.”

It’s a little easy to forget just how good Bates is because it seems a forgone conclusion he’s leaving the team with Dax Hill ready to step into the role, so the write-up is pretty interesting.

The two others? Safety Vonn Bell at No. 45 and linebacker Germaine Pratt at No. 50, two guys the Bengals would probably like to get back at the right price.

Based on free agency contract projections from Pro Football Focus, both might fall into affordable range. So too might tight end Hayden Hurst, who didn’t make the top 50 here.

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CBS Sports sees S Jonathan Owens as Texans’ free agent they ‘can’t afford to lose’

Jonathan Owens has been a staple in the Houston Texans’ secondary, and CBS Sports believes they can’t afford to lose him in free agency.

There have been very few constants for the Houston Texans since 2019, but one of them has been Jonathan Owens.

The former 2018 undrafted safety has played 31 games for Houston over the past four seasons, starting in 19 contests. The 5-11, 210-pound defensive back had his most productive year in 2022 with 125 combined tackles, 1.0 sack, one quarterback hit, and four pass breakups through 17 starts.

According to Cody Benjamin from CBS Sports, Owens is the one impending free agent the Texans can’t afford to let go.

The Texans have been shuffling spare parts with all their cap space ever since Nick Caserio took over, so it’s no surprise they don’t even have premium pieces to retain. Owens, 27, is an intriguing low-risk, high-reward safety, however, after a fifth-year breakout as a full-time starter. His 125 tackles ranked second on a young but occasionally feisty defense.

The challenge for Owens would be whether or not he could fit in with new coach DeMeco Ryans’ system. However, Owens went through a few changes in defenses with the Texans. In 2020, he went from playing Romeo Crennel’s style of 3-4 defense to new defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver’s attacking style modeled after Rex Ryan’s schemes with the Baltimore Ravens and New York Jets in the 2000s. In 2021, Owens went from the 3-4 to Lovie Smith’s Tampa 2, which the Texans played for the past two years and at least gave Owens some consistency.

If Owens was able to adapt to those changes, then it shouldn’t be too much of an issue for him to adjust to Ryans’ system.

What may convince Houston to let Owens walk is if they believe he could stop the progress of any young safeties on the roster, or if the Texans believe they need to draft a younger, blue-chip prospect to pair with Jalen Pitre.

Owens has utility as a special teamer with 253 such snaps over his career. Despite playing 971 defensive snaps, Owens still found a way to contribute in the transition phase of the game with 71 special teams snaps.

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Bengals look great in free-agency contract projections from PFF

The Bengals will keep some of their own free agents if these projections end up true.

The Cincinnati Bengals have a tall task in front of them when it comes to free agency this offseason with several key starters slated to hit the open market.

At the same time, the team will want to juggle cap space well while adding outside free agents, fitting a new draft class under the cap and working on the urgent Joe Burrow extension.

A staple of the offseason process is market projections for the top players set to hit free agency from Pro Football Focus’ Brad Spielberger. This year, his list of top 100 players set to hit the market features four Bengals players:

  • 4. Jessie Bates: Five years, $75 million ($15M per year); $40 million total guaranteed
  • 45. Vonn Bell: Three years, $22 million ($7.33M per year); $13.25 million total guaranteed
  • 51. Germaine Pratt: Three years, $24.75 million ($8.25M per year); $14.75 million total guaranteed
  • 74. Hayden Hurst: Three years, $28.5 million ($9.5M per year); $17 million total guaranteed

More notable than the rankings are the actual projections, which annually shake out to be pretty accurate.

And if those projections are accurate — the Bengals are in a really good spot. It’s generally accepted the front office will try to get back two or three of the above names.

At those price ranges, Bell and Pratt are very affordable. Hurst is probably a little more expensive than they would prefer, but the market tends to over-inflate pass-catching weapons right now.

Bates, of course, is the big conversation. It’s hard to imagine the front office would invest so much cash in safety after using a first-rounder on Dax Hill last year. But…that contract projection isn’t too expensive either, which makes things pretty interesting.

These projections don’t change the idea the team will only get back two to three of the above names. But it does provide an interesting guideline to work from as the team gets ready to put its ample cap space to use.

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