Grading Free Agency

A

Kelechi Osemele – Oakland Raiders – An absolute monster in the trenches.  The Raiders have the option of playing Osemele all over the line as he has the athleticism and strength to do so. 

B

Alex Mack – Atlanta Falcons – Atlanta desperately needed a center and grabbed perhaps the best one out there.

Richie Incognito – Buffalo Bills – He sets the tone for the offensive line and is a leader.  Smart to keep him around.

Charles Johnson – Carolina Panthers – Fantastic deal for the Panthers.  Signing a still somewhat competent 4-3 DE for $3 million is a steal, especially considering what other DEs got on the market today.

Danny Trevathan – Chicago Bears – Great pickup for the Bears.  They needed a linebacker and got one with experience.

Lamar Miller – Houston Texans – I liked Miller a lot and I love the value the Texans got for this deal.  $6.5 million per year to help newly acquired Brock Osweiler get settled into Houston is a fantastic call.

Tashaun Gipson – Jacksonville Jaguars – This pick would be an A for me if Gipson can remain healthy (even though that’s always in doubt in the NFL).  Gipson is a ball hawk that Bradley can trust to play center field in his defense.  Oh and he’s only 25 years old.

Malik Jackson – Jacksonville Jaguars – Well, there you go Jag fans.  You got the guy you wanted.  May have overpaid him a little bit but that’s what you have to do to get marquee guys.  The interior pass rush is now MUCH improved.

Tamba Hali – Kansas City Chiefs – Hali’s play may have tapered off a little bit the past few years but he is still a leader on defense and a fan favorite.

Mitchell Schwartz – Kansas City Chiefs – Andy Reid might be able to clear a phone book with how high he is jumping after the Browns idiotically let Schwartz walk out the door.  He’s never missed a game and is a bookend right tackle.

Derrick Johnson – Kansas City Chiefs – Hanging onto the heart and soul of your defense is always a nice thing, especially at a reasonable price.

Jaye Howard – Kansas City Chiefs – Good solid price for a good solid player.

Alex Boone – Minnesota Vikings – Teddy B and AP must be ecstatic.  Boone is an athletic monster that can push defensive linemen straight back.  Great get.

Coby Fleener – New Orleans Saints – Hold your horses on trying to compare Fleener to previous Saints tight end Jimmy Graham.  Fleener was the better of the two Indy TEs but he does have a lower ceiling than Graham.

Damon Harrison – New York Giants – With a nickname like “Snacks”, I am sure there is nobody happier to get paid.  Harrison is a great run stuffer and will eat up two defenders while leaving JPP and Olivier Vernon with one on one matchups on the outside to wreak havoc. 

Jason Pierre Paul – New York Giants – JPP looked as though he was headed to Dallas but free agents have had a tendency to walk away from there (cough Mark Cuban).  A decent deal for the Giants who desperately need pass rushers.  As long as they sign another edge guy, JPP will play well.

Olivier Vernon – New York Giants – Great pickup for the Giants but that is a lot of guaranteed money for Vernon.  Hopefully Jerry Reese frontloaded the contract as much as possible.

Bruce Irvin – Oakland Raiders – Khalil Mack and Irvin rushing off the edge in a division that has no young franchise quarterback.  The Raiders are the front-runners for the AFC West.

Rodney McLeod – Philadelphia Eagles – Good average deal for the Eagles who have vastly improved their entire team in only a few hours.  McLeod and Malcom Jenkins make a pretty damn good safety tandem.

LaDarius Green – San Diego Chargers – Despite being overshadowed by Antonio Gates for his entire career, Green looks to fill the shoes of another team’s beloved player.

C

Adam Jones – Cincinnati Bengals – With Jones sitting out those two years for suspensions, he still has a relatively fresh body at the ripe age of 32.  He can still compete.

George Iloka – Cincinnati Bengals  - An above average safety that signed a pretty good deal to remain with his team.  Smart move by Iloka.

Haloti Ngata – Detroit Lions – Ngata must really like living in Detroit.  The Lions must love the depth that Ngata provides.

Mario Williams – Miami Dolphins – This grade really came down to the contract.  2 years for $16 million is actually a steal for Williams.  He still probably has a decent amount left in the tank and might find newfound motivation.  But Mario is still the same lazy Mario.

Janoris Jenkins – New York Giants – This is a lot of money for a cornerback with some history of troubles in the city that never sleeps.  Jenkins is now the 2^nd highest paid CB in the league?  C’mon man.

Matt Forte – New York Jets – An interesting pick for the Jets.  They definitely needed a running back.  As long as this is a platoon system with another added running back, I can appreciate this signing.

Travis Benjamin – San Diego Chargers – Cleveland is letting any player with some talent leave.  Philip Rivers has to be moderately excited for another weapon.

Antonio Gates – San Diego Chargers – Despite the future hall of fame tight end being 35 years old, he can still be quite productive as the Chargers begin to usher in new young talent.

Doug Martin – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – A five-year deal for a running back with a lot of miles on his legs?  Come on.  Martin might have a few good years left in him.

D

Brock Osweiler – Houston Texans – I am not a fan of Brock.  Never have been.  But the Texans desperately needed a quarterback. 

Chris Ivory – Jacksonville Jaguars – Jacksonville threw a lot of money at an older running back.  Hopefully he can help down in the red zone as long as he’s healthy.

Chase Daniel – Philadelphia Eagles – A somewhat baffling move (contract wise) but his current head coach knows him best.  One of those three QBs will have to be cut/ traded and it most likely won’t be Daniel.

Marvin Jones – Detroit Lions – Wait, since when is an average wide receiver worth $8 million a year?  Matthew Stafford must be weep texting Calvin and begging him to come back now.

Massive F

Dwayne Allen – Indianapolis Colts – Hahahahaha.  I love when the Colts do stupid things.  Excluding his rookie year, Allen has 46 catches for 524 yards.  Is that really worthy of a 4 year $29.5 million?  Absolutely not.  You’re my favorite Ryan Grigson.