2023 NFL free agency – Page 89

Daron Payne makes it clear what he’s looking for this offseason

Payne is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent in 2023.

The Washington Commanders selected Alabama defensive tackle Daron Payne No. 13 overall in the 2018 NFL draft. This was one year after Washington selected Payne’s former teammate and fellow defensive tackle, Jonathan Allen, in the first round.

Allen quickly emerged as a standout, finally making the Pro Bowl in 2021 after signing a four-year extension in July 2021 to remain in Washington.

Now, it’s Payne’s turn.

And Payne couldn’t have chosen a better time to become a free agent. He established career highs in tackles, sacks [11.5] and tackles for loss [18.] He was third in the NFL in TFLs, two ahead of Allen, who missed the final game.

Last offseason, instead of working on an extension with Payne, rumors swirled that the Commanders would not offer him an extension. With Allen signed and defensive ends Montez Sweat and Chase Young coming up in the following years, Washington wouldn’t be able to pay everyone. And while Payne was good throughout his first four seasons, he hadn’t necessarily shown he was worth $20 million or more per season.

That’s changed with Payne’s breakout season, and head coach Ron Rivera has made it clear at every turn how much Washington wants Payne back. General manager Martin Mayhew echoed those sentiments Tuesday.

“It’d be difficult to move forward without him, obviously,” Mayhew said. “We have a plan, and we definitely wanna get him back.”

Payne was in the Washington locker room Monday for locker cleanout day, and reporters were able to speak with him, albeit briefly. Payne was dressed in green.

Payne was asked if he was emotional, knowing it was the end of his contract and it could be his last time in the Washington locker room.

“I really don’t have any emotions right now; I’m trying to clean out my locker and get home,” Payne said.

What does Payne want this offseason?

“You know what I want, man; it’s self-explanatory,” Payne said with a smile. “Oh yeah,” responded when a reporter asked Payne if he knew he’d be getting paid.

Does it matter where Payne plays?

“I just want what I earned,” he said.

Payne has never said definitively he wants to return. Those close to him believe he wants to return, but as of now, he’s in full business mode.

In an appearance on the “Sports Junkies” on 106.7 The Fan this week, his longtime teammate and friend, Jonathan Allen, discussed Payne’s impending free agency.

“He would like to come back,” Allen said. “I told him, ‘I would love for you to come back, bro, but you gotta do what’s best for your family.'” Allen stressed that playing in Washington is what he wanted because it’s his hometown, but everyone is different, and at the end of the day, they must make decisions based on what is best for them and their family.

Does he think Payne will come back?

“I would bet that he would come back,” Allen responded when pressed. Let’s make it clear, Allen is not necessarily making that prediction, but just a hunch. And Allen said his response was more because he was hopeful.

Ultimately, Washington holds the cards this offseason, as the franchise tag can be applied to Payne next month. So if the Commanders want to re-sign Payne, they should probably get to work soon. Washington fans know how the franchise tag works, and it rarely ever benefits the Commanders.

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4 Lions free agents the team must re-sign

4 Lions free agents the team must re-sign in 2023

There are 18 players who ended the 2022 season as Detroit Lions who will become unrestricted free agents once the league year ends. Many of them played key roles in the team’s 9-8 finish, the first winning season for the Lions since 2017.

Figuring out which ones to keep and how much to value them, both intrinsically and monetarily, is one of the many key decisions for Lions GM Brad Holmes and his staff.

Here are four pending free agents the Lions need to bring back at any (realistic) cost:

20 Commanders players who will hit free agency this offseason

A look at all of Washington’s upcoming free agents.

The 2022 season is over for the Washington Commanders, who finished with an 8-8-1 record. It was a disappointing finish for Washington as the Commanders sat at 7-5 on Nov. 27 and in a comfortable position to make the NFC playoffs.

However, Washington went winless over its next four games and was eliminated from playoff contention in Week 17 before dominating the Dallas Cowboys in the season finale to finish .500.

The Commanders face a critical offseason that could feature an ownership change and another likely quarterback search. But before the Commanders worry about acquiring new players, they have 20 free agents of their own that they must make decisions on.

Here’s a look at all of Washington’s upcoming free agents, which we’ve separated by their individual free-agent designation.

UFA: Unrestricted free agent

RFA: Restricted free agent

ERFA: Exclusive-rights free agent

Ranking Raiders 2023 free agent re-sign priorities

Raiders have a few free agents worth re-signing. We ranked them.

Before the team can really get into what free agents they may wish to add this offseason, they must first think about which of their own free agent to bring back and which to allow to hit the market.

Here are all their free agents in order of how much they should prioritize trying to re-sign them.

High

RB Josh Jacobs

He’d still be under contract for another season had the team exercised the fifth year option on his rookie contract. But they didn’t, and he went out and won the rushing title. He may ultimately command more money than the Raiders can offer, but offer they must because he is currently the best back in the league.

LB Denzel Perryman

Perryman is a year removed from a Pro Bowl season. Injuries caused him to miss five games this season, but he’s clearly one of the best inside linebackers in the league and the Raiders defense is markedly better when he is on the field than when he is not. He just turned 30, so he has good years left.

WR Mack Hollins

It was a career year for Hollins, catching 57 passes for 690 yards and four touchdowns. He also is a fine blocker and special teams gunner. He had his lapses in being on the same page as the QB, but you’d have to figure a full year under his best in this system would help with that.

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Lions offseason: Listing all of Detroit’s pending unrestricted free agents

Full list of pending unrestricted free agents for the Lions in 2023

The Detroit Lions have 18 players under contract who will become unrestricted free agents once the NFL season ends following the playoffs.

Aside from using the franchise or transition tags to secure a player’s services for one more season, all of these players are free to sign with any other team without any recourse or recompense for Detroit. None of the 18 pending free agents appear worthy of tagging, however.

This list only features unrestricted free agents. Detroit also has seven players who are exclusive rights free agents and three restricted free agents.

Players are listed in order of 2022 total snaps percentage played.

Editor’s note–the original list omitted DJ Chark, who has a void contract. Lions Wire regrets the error.

John Cominsky makes it clear he wants to return to Detroit in 2023

Cominsky’s caption on his Instagram post basically begged the Lions to bring him back in 2023

John Cominsky quickly proved to be one of the best moves made by the Detroit Lions in the past offseason. Discarded by the Atlanta Falcons after three underwhelming seasons where the Falcons never quite figured out how to use the defensive lineman, the Lions claimed Cominsky off waivers and gave him a shot at redemption.

Mission accomplished. Cominsky proved to be an invaluable member of the Detroit defense. Capable of playing every spot but nose tackle, Cominsky’s hard-driving effort and blend of quickness and power made him the ideal set-up man for rookie Aidan Hutchinson as well as someone who could do strong things on his own.

Now Cominsky is a pending free agent. Even though he can sign anywhere, and perhaps command more money elsewhere, Cominsky made it abundantly clear he wants to be back in Detroit in 2023.

In an Instagram post, Cominsky all but begged the Lions to bring him back for another season. Check Cominsky’s top caption,

Exit meeting 2021-22 season:
“Can I please get released?”
.
Exit meeting 2022-2023 season:
“Can you please bring me back?”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CnPiwIWuhLd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Sure sounds like someone who has no intention of testing the free agent market if the Lions want him back. It reinforces what Cominsky expressed to Justin Rogers of the Detroit News earlier this week. For their part, the Lions have shown strong signs they’re willing to keep Cominsky in the den.

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These Colts are set to be free agents in 2023

These Colts are set to be free agents this offseason.

The Indianapolis Colts wrapped up the 2022 regular season Sunday and now turn their attention to the offseason, which includes several big names set to hit free agency in 2023.

According to Over the Cap, the Colts are expected to have around $29.46 million in salary-cap space, which is 11th-most in the NFL. They will likely restructure some contracts, and cut or trade some players, to free up some space.

But before we get into to all of that, here are the Colts who are set to be unrestricted free agents in 2023:

Taylor Heinicke will head into the offseason with an uncertain future in Washington

But he will have interest from around the NFL.

Whether some want to admit it or not, Washington Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke made himself a lot of money in 2022. In leading Washington to a 5-3-1 record in his nine starts, Heinicke proved yet again that he could lead an NFL offense.

Now, this isn’t about whether Heinicke is Washington’s future quarterback. It’s clear he isn’t. Heinicke has limitations that will always keep him from being a permanent starting quarterback. Still, for an NFL team looking for a bridge QB, insurance for a young quarterback, or a high-quality backup, he will have multiple options.

The question is, are the Commanders an option for Heinicke in 2023?

Heinicke replaced Carson Wentz in the starting lineup in Week 7 and energized the offense. However, much like last season, the offense sputtered, and this time around, head coach Ron Rivera turned back to Wentz once he was healthy. While Rivera’s reasoning made sense, it proved to be a bad move as Wentz had perhaps the NFL’s worst quarterback performance this season in a playoff-eliminating loss to the Browns. The fans at FedEx Field were chanting for Heinicke after Wentz’s second pass attempt — which was intercepted.

Rivera was going to turn back to Heinicke for the season finale against the Cowboys, but after a talk with Heinicke and others, Rivera gave rookie Sam Howell the start. Rivera indicated he planned to start Heinicke and let Howell play in the second half.

According to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, it was Heinicke who suggested to Rivera to give Howell the entire game.

That’s a smart move from Heinicke, who will be an unrestricted free agent in March. There’s no need for him to play again this season.

What is his future in Washington?

Reporters asked Rivera about Heinicke’s long-term options with the Commanders.

“Well, we’ll get into what we want to do going forward with personnel once the season’s over,” Rivera said. “But my conversation with him was terrific. He’s a heck of a young man, and he really helped me through this in terms of decision-making.”

Heinicke is beloved in Washington. Not only is he popular with his teammates, but the coaches and fans, too. Heinicke’s story is a good one, and he is probably the most relatable NFL player you’ll ever see.

What does Heinicke think about his future with the Commanders?

“I haven’t really thought about it lately, but if it is the last game, it’s going to be a little emotional,” Heinicke said, per Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post. “It’s been a hard-fought 2½ years here, and I made some great memories. Unfortunately, we didn’t come out on top with the things we wanted to do. But there was lots of good to look back at.”

It seems at times that Rivera has almost taken Heinicke for granted. Could you imagine Washington’s record without Heinicke over the past two seasons?

Does Heinicke want to return? Only he knows that, and he may be ready to move on, especially after being benched for Wentz and the team turning back to him only after Wentz failed miserably.

The Commanders should want Heinicke back. They need to address the quarterback position — again — but you know what you have in Heinicke. A terrific backup who can win you multiple games and is a strong presence in the locker room. Culture, right?

There’s one school of thought that Heinicke’s popularity with fans will always be a problem. There’s truth in that, but Rivera and management cannot allow fans to dictate roster management. If you go out and acquire a veteran like Derek Carr or Jimmy Garoppolo, you should let Heinicke walk. However, if you plan on bringing in a rookie or want Howell to compete for the position in 2023, Heinicke should be re-signed.

Defensive tackle Daron Payne is the most significant free agent, but Heinicke’s situation will be the most intriguing storyline of the offseason outside of a potential new owner.

Regardless of the outcome, Heinicke has earned himself a payday. If Chase Daniel can make millions in the NFL, Heinicke can — and will.

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Josh McDaniels: ‘Definitely not going to be patient’ fixing Raiders defense

Raiders defense has issues. To which Josh McDaniels says he’s ‘Definitely not going to be patient’ fixing it this offseason

Despite what you might hear if you get in a twitter argument (something I would never advise you do), you might think that one person or one area is the problem with the team. Some will say the problem is Josh McDaniels, others will argue it was Derek Carr, while some will say it was on the defense.

The real answer is all of the above. But fresh off a game in which Jarrett Stidham led the offense to 34 points against the league’s top ranked defense only to lose in OT 37-34, the discussion naturally turns to the defense as being a big issue.

With few exceptions, there have been issues with the defense much of the season. They rank 25th in points allowed and 26th in yards allowed this season. While being 31st in takeaways.

How to fix it may not be an easy answer.

How much blame falls on new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham? Or do they give him a reprieve and see how his defense can perform with an influx of talent? We could soon get our answer.

“Defensively do we want to have some things we’re going to try to improve? No question,” said McDaniels.

“We’re definitely not going to be patient in that regard. Those evaluations after the season will be very important to us. Kind of lay a blueprint for what do we try to do with the guys that are coming back to make sure that they can take a step forward and improve and then what do we need to address somehow someway to acquisitions in the offseason. We’ll be hard at work at that after this next game.”

The Raiders will face the Chiefs on Saturday to close out their season. They were officially eliminated from the playoffs Sunday with that OT loss to the 49ers. So, the final game is just to try to play spoiler against a division rival. Otherwise, the game is just something to get out of the way as they head for the offseason.

Next up will be free agency in March and then the draft in April. This time with picks in the first two rounds — something they didn’t have in McDaniels and Ziegler’s first draft with the Davante Adams trade.

Currently the Raiders’ spending is severely lopsided toward the offense. They devoted $107 million of the cap to the offense with just $60 million spent on defense.

The departure of Derek Carr and his contract will give the team a chance to even things up a bit in that regard. Whether they do it or not will depend on whether they turn around and simply hand big money to another QB in free agency or if they pass on any big names (cough-Tom-Brady-cough-cough) and look to the draft instead.

The primary areas on the defense that could use some attention are the interior defensive line and the secondary. And, of course. they must decide if Graham gets another shot to see what he can do with some more players he handpicked.

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What does the Commanders’ 2023 salary cap look like at the bye week?

Looking ahead at Washington’s 2023 salary cap and where the Commanders currently stand.

The Washington Commanders are 7-5-1 with four games remaining in the 2022 NFL season. Washington, winners of six of its last eight games, hosts the New York Giants on Sunday Night Football in Week 15.

Before we prepare for Washington’s stretch run to a potential playoff berth, let’s look at the Commanders’ salary-cap situation for 2023. Washington fans should expect another busy offseason with players such as Daron Payne, Taylor Heinicke and Cole Holcomb slated for free agency. There’s also the quarterback situation, which always seems to linger over Washington’s offseason.

We’ll go over potential quarterback options at a later time, but let’s look at where the Commanders stand currently. As of Week 14, Washington has $19.3 million in available cap space for 2023, which is No. 15 in the NFL. The Commanders have $14.2 million in dead money for 2023, thanks to the trade of William Jackson III and the release of Landon Collins.

Washington’s cap space includes quarterback Carson Wentz’s $26.2 million cap hit for 2023. If Washington moves on from Wentz, there is no penalty, and that adds to the team’s available cap space for 2023.

The expectation is the Commanders will move on from Wentz. While head coach Ron Rivera is interested in Wentz’s potential upside, he would likely only return on a reduced cap figure in 2023.

The biggest free-agent domino is Payne. The fifth-year defensive tackle is tied for second in the NFL — with teammate Jonathan Allen — with 15 tackles for loss. Payne has already set a career-high in sacks with 8.5.

If Washington places the franchise tag on Payne, he will cost $18.1 million against the cap. However, if the Commanders agree to a long-term deal with Payne, his cap charge will be significantly smaller in the first year of a new deal.

There are other cap hits on Washington’s roster that could either be restructured or released.

Regardless, general manager Martin Mayhew and Rivera will have the money to re-sign key players and fill some holes along the offensive line.

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