2024 free agency – Page 15 – Syndication Server

Bears dubbed potential landing spot for free agent WR Calvin Ridley

The Bears need to address wide receiver this offseason. Would Calvin Ridley be a good fit?

The Chicago Bears have some important needs to address this offseason, including wide receiver.

While the addition of DJ Moore, acquired in a trade last offseason, has done wonders for Chicago’s offense, the team lacked an impact contributor at receiver opposite him. Darnell Mooney, set to hit the open market, underwhelmed last season, and the Bears need to build this receivers room around Mooney.

Outside of Moore, Tyler Scott is the only viable receiver on the roster. Chicago will need to sign several wideouts this offseason, be it through free agency and/or the NFL draft.

One option could be Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Calvin Ridley, who was dubbed a potential fit for the Bears by Pro Football Focus.

With D.J. Moore in place, Chicago could get two players who are interchangeable as X-receivers up on the line and as good move/Z-receivers with alignment versatility. Both can create separation vertically, but Ridley could take the top off defenses even more and let Moore utilize his high-end after-the-catch abilities at the short and intermediate levels.

In 2023, Ridley had 76 receptions for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns in 17 games as Trevor Lawrence’s top target. A potential Moore-Ridley pairing would allow both wideouts opportunities to shine as downfield playmakers.

The only question is who will be throwing them the ball: Justin Fields or Caleb Williams.

20 free agent targets for Bears in AFC, NFC championships

Here are some pending free agents the Bears could target from the AFC and NFC Championship Games.

We’ve reached Championship Sunday during the NFL postseason, where the Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs, San Francisco 49ers and Detroit Lions will battle it out for a chance to play in Super Bowl 58.

The Bears are slated to have around $50.8 million in salary cap space in 2024, per OverTheCap, which is the eighth most in the NFL. It’ll give GM Ryan Poles plenty to work with as he looks to continue to add to the roster (and perhaps re-sign some in-house free agents).

Here are some pending free agents for Bears fans to keep an eye on during championship Sunday:

NFL execs believe Bears will land Chase Young in free agency

Could there be a Montez Sweat-Chase Young reunion with the Bears? Some NFL execs certainly think so.

The Chicago Bears have some needs to address this offseason, including edge rusher. While Chicago acquired stud Montez Sweat in a trade with the Washington Commanders, they’re still in need of a power rusher opposite him.

If the Bears address edge rusher in free agency, there are some big names slated to hit the open market — including Brian Burns, Josh Allen, Danielle Hunter and Chase Young.

Young played with Sweat for four years in Washington, and the duo were a potent 1-2 punch off the edge. Could a Sweat-Young reunion be in the cards for Chicago? Some NFL execs certainly believe so.

ESPN spoke to a number of NFL executives, scouts and personnel figures, and they believe the Bears will sign Young in free agency.

Washington traded its star defensive line bookends at the 2023 trade deadline, with Sweat then thriving as the Chicago Bears’ lead rusher and Young now competing for a Super Bowl with the San Francisco 49ers.

Chicago, in its efforts to bolster its pass rush, evaluated both Young and Sweat in the months leading up to the deadline. Sweat landed a four-year, $98 million extension with the Bears, who could spend more money in free agency to sign a pass-rusher such as Young.

Young, like Sweat, was traded at the trade deadline. He landed with the San Francisco 49ers, where he totaled 2.5 sacks (on top of 5.0 with the Commanders).

Sweat made a significant impact on the Bears defense when he arrived in November. He had a career year with 12.5 sacks, earning his first Pro Bowl nod. Outside of his production, Sweat’s presence elevated the play of those around him. Sweat became the first player in NFL history to lead two teams in sacks in a season — Bears (6.0) and Commanders (6.5).

We’ll see if Young ultimately reunites with his former Commanders teammate, which would give Chicago a formidable edge rushing duo.

2 Broncos make PFF’s list of the Top 100 NFL free agents

Broncos C Lloyd Cushenberry (57) and LB Josey Jewell (78) were named on PFF’s list of the top 100 upcoming NFL free agents.

Two Denver Broncos players have been named by Pro Football Focus on a list of the top 100 pending free agents in 2024.

Linebacker Josey Jewell (No. 78) and center Lloyd Cushenberry (No. 57) were the only Broncos named on the list. Both have proven to be extremely successful players on their respective sides of the ball.

Cushenberry was the starting center for all 17 games in 2023, and is a force against the pass and run. “Cushenberry uses heavy hands and a good anchor to win against a growing list of quality pass-rushers on the interior, bolstering his value more each year,” Brad Spielberger wrote on PFF’s website. “He may be served better in a gap-heavy rushing scheme, but any limitations as a run blocker in space are vastly outweighed by his pass-blocking strength.”

Jewell has over 100 tackles in each of the past two seasons, and alongside fellow linebacker Alex Singleton, has been an effective one-two punch in the middle of the field. “Jewell may not be great in any one facet of linebacker play, but he’s good in all of them,” Spielberger wrote.” And a well-rounded linebacker is an asset to any defense. Jewell covers well in zone, with good spacial awareness to get proper depth, and has the ability to come forward and blitz up the middle on occasion.”

According to PFF, Cushenberry could draw a four-year contract worth approximately $57 million, while Jewell could sign a projected two-year, $12.5 million deal. Denver general manager George Paton has made it a point to sign internal role players before targeting outside free agents, so it remains to be seen if he will continue to follow that pattern.

Jewell and Cushenberry are among the team’s most notable looming free agents. NFL free agency is set to begin in March.

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6 Dolphins make PFF’s top 150 free agents for 2024

Miami has some of the best pending free agents in the league, according to PFF.

The Miami Dolphins have a ton of work to do prior to the start of the 2024 league year, and while they may currently be over the cap, they still have plenty of pending free agents that they may want to consider re-signing.

Pro Football Focus recently released their list of the top 150 free agents for 2024, and the Dolphins had six of their 29 pending free agents that made the cut.

Here’s a look at who they were and where they ranked on PFF’s list:

40 free agent targets for Bears in divisional round playoffs

Here are some pending free agents the Bears could target from the NFL 2024 divisional playoffs.

The NFL 2024 postseason continues Saturday with the divisional round, which will feature four games over the next two days. And there are a number of pending free agents on those squads who could find new homes this offseason.

Here are some pending free agents for Bears fans to keep an eye on during the divisional playoffs.

4 soon-to-be free agents Saints should scout in Lions vs. Rams

Here are four soon-to-be free agents the Saints should be scouting in Lions vs. Rams, including a couple of experienced receivers:

It’s always tough to watch other teams compete in the playoffs while the New Orleans Saints are stuck watching from the couch, but these postseason games are a great opportunity to get a preview on the upcoming class of free agents. And the Saints are always creative in working around the salary cap to ensure they’ll sign some players in the spring.

With that in mind, here are some pending free agents we’d like to see in New Orleans, who are hitting the field in Sunday night’s game between the Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams:

60 free agent targets for Bears in wild-card playoffs

Here are some pending free agents the Bears could target from the NFL 2024 wild-card playoffs.

The NFL 2024 postseason begins Saturday with Super Wild Card Weekend, which will feature six games that will span three days. And there are a number of pending free agents on those squads who could find new homes this offseason.

Here are some pending free agents for Bears fans to keep an eye on this wild card weekend:

Bryce Huff not giving Jets hometown discount

The Jets will have to pony up if they want to keep Bryce Huff this offseason.

Jets defensive end Bryce Huff wrapped up a terrific season, one in which he reached double-digit sacks for the first time in his career. Huff finished with 10.5 sacks after getting to Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe in Sunday’s 17-3 win in the season finale. Was that Huff’s closing act with the Jets?

Huff is set to become a free agent and should be a priority, if not the priority free agent for the Jets this offseason. But after a stellar season, Huff is not going to come cheap and he is not going to give the Jets leeway when it comes to financials.

“I’m not giving any discount,” Huff said, in regards to giving the Jets any sort of hometown discount (hat tip to the New York Post). “I worked so hard. I feel like I owe it to myself and my family and the people around me to maximize my earnings. I’m definitely open to every scenario and every team. I just want to do what’s best for me at the end of the day.”

Huff started gradually earning more of a role on defense over his four seasons since joining the team as an undrafted free agent out of Memphis in 2020. He culminated that with leading the team in sacks in 2023.

Spotrac currently projects Huff to land a contract worth over $36 million over four years. The Jets are currently projected to have about $16 million in cap space for 2024, including $6 million in rollover money from 2023. Moves will be made to free up space. The bottom line is the Jets will have to pony up now if they want to retain the services of Huff.

Predicting Patriots 2024 free agent contracts and destinations

Where will the Patriots’ pending 2024 free agents land and for what kind of contracts?

As the season wraps up, regardless of who is in charge, pending unrestricted free agents will be trying to put as much good tape out there as possible.

They’ll be looking to earn as much money as possible on their future deal, along with setting themselves up with the best possible fit for them to continue producing.

The Patriots are expected to have around $100 million in cap space to spend in 2024, and they will likely want to add some outside talent to help fix one of the league’s worst offensive rosters.

Given their age and position, I have assumed Matthew Slater and Cody Davis will both retire. It’s also worth noting the Patriots will need to actually spend real dollars at the start of a new three-year period, per league rules. They can spend money now, in 2025 or 2026. But they need to spend real cap dollars to be compliant.

Here are each of the Patriots’ unrestricted free agents, and where I think they’ll land, as well as for how much.