What I loved, liked and hated in free agency

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Here is what I loved, liked and hated in free agency.

❤️ Cincinnati Bengals

I love the Bengals being selective and attacking their needs. Stealing Geno Stone from the Ravens was a great move, and not only bolsters their biggest weakness but also allows Lou Anarumo to maximize the flexibility of Dax Hill. Sheldon Rankins gives Cincinnati an interior pass rush option they desperately needed. Mike Gesicki gives this offense an option to run the “11.5” personnel look that Buffalo ran with so much success using Dalton Kincaid. Getting rid of Joe Mixon frees the offense of one of the worst backs in the league after first contact. The Bengals are setting up to be the top contender with Kansas City in the AFC.

❤️ Detroit Lions

I love the Lions turning their weakness into a strength. In late February, Deashea Townsend was hired as the secondary coach. The staff raved about this hire because Townsend is a hell of a coach. He took the Jaguars from 31st to 9th in EPA/Dropback allowed in just two seasons. Now he gets to work on the Lions, who finished 25th last season. Brad Holmes gave him ammo too. Amik Robertson and Carlton Davis. Robertson is a versatile, underrated 25-year-old corner. Davis is one of the top man cover corners in the league. The Lions still have plenty of draft capital to add on further on the back end. I can see this being a top 15 defense against the pass in 2024.

🤬 Tennessee Titans

I hate how the new Titans staff approached free agency. This should have been a full reset. Vrabel, the defensive-minded hard-nosed head coach, is out. Callahan, the young, offensive-minded head coach, is in. Ground and pound, heavy personnel out, 3 wide receivers from the shotgun in. Instead, Carthon and Callahan spent big on Tony Pollard and Calvin Ridley, who both underperformed and underachieved last season. They re-signed Westbrook-Ikinhe, who has yet to break 500 yards in a season. Cushenberry is a nice upgrade at center, but Henry is gone, and Spears (the best back on the roster) now has competition. Kenneth Walker and Chidobe Awuzie were added on defense. Two more guys off underwhelming 2023 seasons and careers. This should have been a clean house and hit the draft, not overpaying for mediocrity.

🤷‍♂️ Atlanta Falcons

I love what the Falcons did in getting Kirk Cousins and stabilizing the quarterback position, but I don’t love the rest of their moves. I like what Darnell Mooney and Ronale Moore could become…but I am just underwhelmed and disappointed. Mooney is one-dimensional and can’t beat press. Moore is great after the catch but has just 1,200 yards in 3 seasons. Zac Robinson comes from the Rams, who run 3 wide receiver sets at the highest rate in the league. It is clear he wants more depth at wide receiver. But, after such a big splash getting Cousins at QB, banking on Mooney and Moore to have career seasons to move the needle for this offense seems like a stretch. They can still find a true Z receiver in the draft with the #8 pick, but they also need a pass rusher too.

🤷‍♂️ Minnesota Vikings

I love that Kwesi Adofo-Mensah continues to give Brian Flores pieces to build this defense that fit his aggressive nature. Losing Hunter was painful, but the team made up for it. Jonathan Grennard is off a career season, as is Andrew Van Ginkel. Flores loves to dial up pressure, and the two of them combined for 106 in 2023. These are both great additions. Blake Cashman is a great fit for this defense at LB and graded out 8th best in the league last season. He is a sneaky good roster add. However, I hate the moves on offense. Losing Cousins was a killer, and if Darnold is the Week 1 starter, his accuracy will need to take a huge leap to work in this system. Aaron Jones at 30 feels like a waste of Ty Chandler behind him, who was emerging as a breakout candidate this season. (Trade made early Friday morning after this was written which is presumably to try go up for a QB, could change this.)

❤️ Kansas City Chiefs

It is easy to love a team that puts themselves in a position to win multiple Super Bowls and then retain the talent that won them the title. That is what the Kansas City Chiefs have done. Every key piece of the roster that won the championship is still here! That is not only amazing but a testament to how far ahead of the league this staff is in team building. What is more incredible is that after doing that, the Chiefs were able to go out and continue to strengthen their biggest weakness - wide receiver. Marquise Brown is a premier deep threat and gives Patrick Mahomes a speed option comparable (key word in speed, not prolific receiving) to Tyreek Hill. With so much young defensive depth, the Chiefs may not be done adding on offense; they have Sneed as a trade option and draft capital to use to bolster receiver and offensive line.

🤬 Baltimore Ravens

I hate that the Ravens put themselves in a position to lose this much of their roster and force a mini rebuild. Compare this to the team above! The Ravens were the one seed and lost the AFC title game at home to Kansas City. The Chiefs kept everyone. The Ravens have lost more than 6,000 combined snaps from 2023 between Edwards, Duvernay, Beckham Jr, Simpson, Queen, Stone, and Darby. The exits might not be closed yet either! There are still questions about Zeitler, Clowney, and Van Noy. What did the Ravens do to fill the void? They added 30-year-old running back Derrick Henry. Don’t get me wrong, the idea of Lamar and Henry causing havoc on opposing linebackers is amazing, but the list of 30+ year-old backs making an impact is short. Even if the Ravens nail the draft, this is a team - especially the defense - taking a step back in 2024.

🤷‍♂️ Los Angeles Rams

I like that the Rams are finally invested in the offensive line. For the majority of the McVay tenure, the Rams got away with budget options on the offensive line because his scheme worked around it. In the last two seasons the league has adjusted, and it is a much bigger need. The Rams re-signed RG Kevin Dotson, added LG Jonah Jackson. They cut Brian Allen and Coleman Shelton then announced the move of Steve Avila (drafted in 2023) to center. This adjustment means the Rams now have 980 pounds of man protecting Matthew Stafford at guard and center! The priority to get bigger on the interior to keep Stafford clean, and open up the run game, is a nice and well-needed change of pace for this McVay offense.

🤬 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

I hate that the Buccaneers are celebrating that they settled. General Manager Jason Licht called this “the greatest free agency haul in franchise history!” What did the “haul” include? Baker Mayfield, Mike Evans, Lavonte David, Antoine Winfield, and Jordan Whitehead. In other words, the team is going to look very similar to what they were in 2023. The problem I have is that they overachieved in a horrible division to back into the playoffs. They finished 12th on offense and 18th on defense in EPA/play. That is their ceiling! I can’t help but think the decision to keep the core of the team intact is fuelled by the win vs the Eagles, and had it gone the other way, this is a full tear down.

❤️ Houston Texans

I love that Houston is going all in, unlike another team in Texas. This is a staff taking full advantage of a star on a rookie quarterback deal. This is drafting well paying off in a big way. The addition of Danielle Hunter to the defensive line with Will Anderson gives Houston arguably the top pass rush duo in football. Denico Autry has 107 pressures and 17 sacks the last two seasons will play in-between them. What a dominant trio. Azeez Al-Shaair has worked with Ryans in the past and is a top run stopping linebacker. This defense finished 15th last season in EPA/play allowed, and has top 5 potential in 2024. Resigning Dalton Schultz is quietly a huge deal considering the connection he had with Stroud last season, and how well he blocks in the run game for Slowik’s scheme. In addition to all the big names, Houston resigned seven other players from 2023. This is a loaded roster.