^ I was thinking possibly Spiller, but I hear the Saints are making a big push for him. Oakland and Jags may well still throw big bucks at a RB. Both were after Murray. That's the most interesting FA position remaining because there's a lot of talent and money left (and it makes the biggest fantasy impact of the remaining positions). DE is the position I'm monitoring the closest, but that's just wishful thinking that the f***ing Falcons would go grab someone....ANYONE to help that s***ty pass rush. All their additions so far have been players who are backups and injury prone, at least they're all cheap.
^Spiller is considering The Bayou so he could be out. Ridley is injury prone. Peterson would be a monster with that line...though Minny is adamant in not giving him up...or at least that's the impression their giving.
Shows you just how little value RBs have now. Forsett, who I thought there would be a bigger market for, re-upped with the Ravens for $3m a year for 3 years. Saints are having a firesale. Everyone's up for grabs but Cooks and Brees. Good news for Atlanta. Cromartie and Revis are officially teaming back up. I bet Rex is pissed now.
^If the Jets had a capable signal caller or an offense they would be a serious threat. They just let Chris Johnson go and I do not know what is up with Geno Smith. There are still talks of them taking Marriota even if there are concerns of him adapting to a pro-style set. New England also lost Vereen to the G-Men. He was one of Brady's main targets out of the backfield as a mismatch against slower linebackers.
I think Fitz easily overtakes Geno as the starter. Ftiz, Marshall, Revis, and Cromartie...pretty good off-season for the Jets. The Pats certainly will have their hands full this year. I'm wondering if they're going to try to make a splashy move of any sorts. Their entire division is getting better and they're losing players. I thought Andre Johnson might have gone there before he chose Indy.
^Bowles has learned much under Arians in handling a team and personalities. He's highly respected and does not suffer fools on his watch. New England always finds players that fit their philosophies. They're still the favorite but it could be a trying season given their personnel losses as you mentioned. Fitzpatrick is very good...he can click with Marshall but it is not the same firepower he had in Houston with Foster, Johnson and Daniels. The Jets will be solid if not overwhelming...
Still out there... QBs Matt Moore, Miami Dolphins Christian Ponder, Minnesota Vikings Tarvaris Jackson, Seattle Seahawks *Michael Vick, New York Jets Colt McCoy, Washington Redskins ? RBs *Steven Jackson, Atlanta Falcons *Knowshon Moreno, Miami Dolphins Stevan Ridley, New England Patriots ? Jacquizz Rodgers, Atlanta Falcons [Chip Kelly should be calling?] *Pierre Thomas, New Orleans Saints Ahmad Bradshaw, Indianapolis Colts ? *Trent Richardson, Indianapolis Colts Ben Tate, Pittsburgh Steelers Chris Johnson, New York Jets WRs Stevie Johnson, San Francisco 49ers Michael Crabtree, San Francisco 49ers Cecil Shorts III, Jacksonville Jaguars *Hakeem Nicks, Indianapolis Colts Reggie Wayne, Indianapolis Colts ? *Dwayne Bowe, Kansas City Chiefs Denarius Moore, Oakland Raiders ? TEs James Casey, Philadelphia Eagles *Zach Miller, Seattle Seahawks Scott Chandler, Buffalo Bills Jermaine Gresham, Cincinnati Bengals OL C: Stefen Wisniewski, Oakland Raiders ? C: Chris Myers, Houston Texans OT: Jake Long, St. Louis Rams OG: Justin Blalock, Atlanta Falcons C: Brian De La Puente, Chicago Bears ? OT: Anthony Collins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers OT: Joe Barksdale, St. Louis Rams OT: Byron Bell, Carolina Panthers OG: Rob Sims, Detroit Lions C: Scott Wells, St. Louis Rams DL Randy Starks, Miami Dolphins C.J. Mosley, Detroit Lions ? Kenrick Ellis, New York Jets Barry Cofield, Washington Redskins ? *Vince Wilfork, New England Patriots Chris Canty, Baltimore Ravens *B.J. Raji, Green Bay Packers Kevin Williams, Seattle Seahawks ? EDGE Greg Hardy, Carolina Panthers Derrick Morgan, Tennessee Titans Michael Johnson, Tampa Bay Buccaneers *Dwight Freeney, San Diego Chargers James Harrison, Pittsburgh Steelers [should retire as a Steeler] Anthony Spencer, Dallas Cowboys ? George Selvie, Dallas Cowboys Akeem Ayers, New England Patriots *John Abraham, Arizona Cardinals Kroy Biermann, Atlanta Falcons Mathias Kiwanuka, New York Giants LB Rolando McClain, Dallas Cowboys [eventual police blotter] Brandon Spikes, Buffalo Bills Lance Briggs, Chicago Bears ? Mason Foster, Tampa Bay Buccaneers CB Tramon Williams, Green Bay Packers ? Rashean Mathis, Detroit Lions Sterling Moore, Dallas Cowboys Perrish Cox, San Francisco 49ers Bradley Fletcher, Philadelphia Eagles ? Patrick Robinson, New Orleans Saints *Terence Newman, Cincinnati Bengals Tarell Brown, Oakland Raiders S Dawan Landry, New York Jets Dwight Lowery, Atlanta Falcons Kendrick Lewis, Houston Texans Louis Delmas, Miami Dolphins Bolded the ones I like, asterisks on past their primes and ? on the FA's that can be intriguing to take flyers on... Loads of runners and a dearth on safeties...
Damn the Browns for keeping Cameron around, I thought he wanted nothing more to do with that "franchise." I was hoping the Falcons would actually spend some cash. He'd thrive with Ryan tossing him the ball. At least we added a couple DEs today (Adrian Clayborn and O'Briem Schofield), neither are worth a damn but it's better than what we had last year. Guess bargain bin shopping of guys who haven't played last year is our new target group.
Marriota "underwhelmed" in his Oregon pro-day work out. What does that mean? Probably nothing... Looks like his stock is dropping. I'd still take him over Counterfeit seven days a week, twice on Sundays. Murray is now an Eagle. The 2015 Dallas-Philly tilts are taking on an extra dimension. It is speculated that Kelly traded for Bradford because he ran a similar spread offense in Oklahoma. Now if they can only keep him upright. If they can get a playmaking wide receiver to complement Murray, Cooper and Celek...it is not the apocalypse Eagle fans are thinking right now.
Pot Roast to be served in Washington...for one year only however. RB Ryan Matthews inks with Philly. Don't mind seeing our AFC West rivals being weakened.
Withe McFadden going to Dallas, I think that all but guarantees they draft a RB early, Gordon or Gurley early.
I was hoping the Colts would get one of them, but now they've got Gore they'll probably opt for a couple O-Linemen which they desperately need.
Read Jones' statement about the parting...he mentioned that they had other needs to address especially on the defensive side of the ball. He mentioned that if there was no cap he would not have had an issue paying Murray what he asked for but it was not reality. McFadden behind that massive, power blocking O-Line could possibly have a renaissance. The question is how long his body will hold up. He still has those quick bursts from the limited action I've seen of him but that extra gear, that explosion, to further separate himself from defenders has been far and few in between.
WR Kenny Stills traded from the Saints to the Fins... He was their most promising receiver. Who is Brees going to throw to now? Are they going to draft wide-outs exclusively in the draft? Craziest NFL offseason I've ever seen...
Word is Brees wasn't a fan. Guess he'll be throwing to Cooks and Spiller out of the backfield. Not sure what they're doing. They're not rebuilding, because they're still going after guys like Spiller. They're just having a complete shuffle. Maybe a midlife crisis? I get a need to shake things up because they hit a bit of a wall and weren't going to win the division (thankfully) with what they had. But I'm unsure of the direction. If they move Brees, then I get the direction. Till then, it's a bit of a head scratcher.
I forgot about Cooks... He is a keeper. Stills was their deep threat though plus they resigned or still have Ingram to tote the rock. The biggest let down for them last season was their defense. Given the movement, I'd put my early dibs on the Falcons to win that South Division as I like Quinn. Matty Ice is still there with his wide-outs. Looks like New Orleans is in flux. Tampa Bay hasn't really done much but their defense have some notable signings. Carolina has stood pat... Then again it may well be another toss-up between all four.
Big key for the Falcons is health and how quickly the players can produce in Quinn's defensive schemes. I'm not expecting much from the D, the talent just isn't there and they haven't done much to address that with starters during FA. But it has to be better than last year's abomination. On offense, we need a couple home runs in the draft (after a pass rusher at 8). I'm not sold on the RB core being enough, they're good depth, but aren't close to resembling an every down back. And a TE who can do more than block is needed to bail Matty out in the red zone. I expect a better season and the division is so awful right now, we should be able to be first in the NFC South. Still not a good enough squad to get a playoff win.
What was it two seasons ago when they won the division with a gaudy 11-5 record? I so wanted them to win the NFC crown so that Gonzalez can go to the Super Bowl. He returned for one more but did not turn out so well. Fins will have Stills and they just signed TE Cameron away from Cleveland? Holy hell...that AFC East just turned into a big war zone. Yep, keep bumping that Pats' strength of schedule up from 15.
Don' think the Chargers lost much with Mathews. Talented, but he was injured wayyy too often. I like what they did with the O-line though. Oliver did well last year his rookie season, he was very Sproles-like, perhaps stronger. And we also should have Woodhead back next season.
