NFL Free Agency: Top Five Karlos Dansby Destinations

Dec. 23, 2012; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Dolphins middle linebacker Karlos Dansby (58) during the first half against the Buffalo Bills at Sun Life Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

We are a little under a month away from the NFL draft and free agency is still going strong. So far we have seen players go to division rivals, by either being signed or traded.

Now in his 10 years in the National Football League, Karlos Dansby has never been named to a Pro Bowl even though he has put up decent numbers in each of his seasons besides his rookie year.

He has started nearly every game with both the Arizona Cardinals (drafted him back in 2004) and the Miami Dolphins. So he has shown he can stay healthy, or at least when he isn’t he hasn’t missed much time as he has only missed 8 games in his career.

With Brian Urlacher, Dwight Freeney, James Harrison, Nick Barnett, Shaun Phillips and Bart Scott, just to name a handful, we still free agents and asking price should be about even, if not a little more.

In his 10 years in the league, Dansby has racked up 885 total tackles, 31.5 sacks, 49 passes deflected, 11 interceptions and 2 touchdowns. For both the Arizona Cardinals and Miami Dolphins, he was a captain of their defenses.

His last season with the Miami Dolphins, Karlos Dansby recorded a career high 134 total tackles which included 33 assists and 9 passes deflected, which was also a career high.

Being only 31 years old, turning 32 on November 3rd, Dansby should be on some teams radar if they can’t come through with a deal with either linebackers I listed earlier in the article. Picking up Dansby for a decent price would be a plus for any team that could pull it out. So who should approach him? Well, you came to the right place, let’s get things rolling and see where this 10 year veteran could possibly land.

1. Atlanta Falcons – They upgraded their defense by adding former New York Giant and 2x Pro Bowl/Super Bowl Champion defensive end Osi Umenyiora to a 2 year deal. So they could possibly grab Karlos Dansby for an equal or less contract, maybe around 2-3 years himself. They lost some pieces but have bounced back beautifully and brought in upgrades in spots they needed filled. This team is bringing back Tony Gonzalez and he has made it perfectly clear that he wants to win, bad. So this team could go deep in the playoffs depending on health, since we know Atlanta will be an NFC favorite to represent the conference in the Super Bowl. They have the right idea with the signings they have made, but need to keep adding talent like this if they want to get by the Seattle Seahawks again and finally through the San Francisco 49ers as this may be another rematch for the NFC Championship.

2. Baltimore Ravens – Ellerbe is gone, Kruger is gone, Ed Reed is gone and Ray Lewis has retired. The Ravens bounced back from these losses and brought in replacement talent who could potentially fill in these holes nicely. They brought in Elvis Dumervil whose contract wasn’t submitted before a set deadline and was forced to be released due to this error. Though it may be a long shot, considering that veteran and future hall of fame linebacker Brian Urlacher is still on the market and could possibly land in Baltimore, Dansby could be a long term pick up as Urlacher is at the tail end of his career. Defending Super Bowl Champions are stitching up their wounds and letting them heal nicely with the talent they have brought in, so maybe they aren’t in that bad of shape as I thought they were a month ago. Either would fit perfectly in Baltimore, but if you are looking for a healthy, younger inside linebacker who could eventually lead your team to another Super Bowl, then you go the Karlos Dansby route. I love Brian Urlacher, but he hasn’t been healthy in the last few seasons and we all know he will probably spend only 1 seasons where ever he signs.

3. New York Jets – The team has $13 million dollars and cap space and could sign Karlos Dansby if he does indeed have a cheap price tag. This squad definitely needs help on both ends of the ball, but some spots on the roster could cost more than others. Comedian and colleague of mine, Josh Carter happens to be a New York Jets fan and said he could be a 2013 Jason Taylor and I agree. The man has stayed healthy, he is a team leader and is a guy you could build a defense around. Darelle Revis is still on the roster but nobody knows how long. With the release of Bart Scott, who spent 4 seasons, this leaves a hole in the middle of this defense and Karlos Dansby could be their guy to step up and take over.

4. Buffalo Bills – A team who could swoop in under the radar and grab this linebacker for more than what other teams would offer, are the Buffalo Bills. This team is in desperate need of leadership and a solid core player for their defense. I mentioned in my Top Five for Brian Urlacher Destionations that he would be a good fit in Buffalo too, but again you have to look at where he is in his career and the health problems he has had. Just like the Baltimore Ravens slot, if you are looking to get a younger linebacker who is a leader and possibly a long term player for your franchise, then Karlos Dansby SHOULD be your man. This city wants something to cheer about, it’s about time you bring in someone you could build around. If all goes well, Dansby could play around the same age as Brian Urlacher, even Ray Lewis, which is plenty of time to bring in younger talent that could learn something from a veteran like Karlos Dansby.

5. Jacksonville Jaguars – Why not? He has spent his last 3 seasons in the league in Miami, so why not stay in Florida but take more than what you are asking from other teams. Right now they are in talks with former Dallas Cowboys corner-backer Mike Jenkins, who only started 2 games last season. Last season they finished 2-14 but have some good pieces that could help them in the future. They have a long ways to go but could get a lot of production if they decided to bring in the inside linebacker to help improve their defense. They have the NFL Draft to look forward too as they have the #2 pick overall in the draft and I have them going after Damontre Moore out of Texas A&M. So having a guy like Dansby could help Moore out as he looks to make a name for himself in his rookie season.