NFL Free Agency 2020: 5 Best, 5 worst deals handed out so far
We aren’t out of the legal tampering period of 2020 NFL free agency but it’s already been hectic. These are the best and worst deals handed out so far.
Tom Brady is heading to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Philip Rivers will be a member of the Indianapolis Colts, Amari Cooper is staying with the Dallas Cowboys, DeAndre Hopkins and Stefon Diggs have both been traded and the new league year hasn’t even begun. Welcome to 2020 NFL free agency where the train was never on the rails to begin with.
From the moment that the legal tampering period began at Noon ET on Monday, March 16, the league has been moving furiously and in major ways. While big-name players such as Jadeveon Clowney, Jameis Winston, Chris Harris Jr. and many others are still on the market, many of the big names in 2020 NFL free agency have agreed to new deals. And that’s not counting the massive trades that have gone down.
Though it’s only been two days, we’re going to take an overhead look at what has transpired already in NFL free agency by picking the five best and five worst deals that have been done. To keep things more focused, we won’t be considering the Hopkins trade between the Cardinals and Texans, the Diggs trade between the Vikings and Bills or the DeForest Buckner trade from the 49ers to the Colts.
Additionally, we won’t be talking about Brady going to the Buccaneers here. Yes, it’s a franchise-altering move that puts Tampa Bay in Super Bowl conversations immediately. But if we’re being honest, Brady has been in his own tier in free agency throughout the whole process. So just know that he’s the best move and then carry on.
This is all about the rest of the deals that have been agreed to, the best and worst of them, in NFL free agency. But first, let’s look at some deals worth mentioning that didn’t quite make the top five on either end of the spectrum.
Honorable Mentions
It’s hard to not like what the Miami Dolphins have done. Yes, they handed out expensive contracts to Byron Jones, Kyle Van Noy and Shaq Lawson. But all three of those players will tremendously help a largely barren defense and they had the most cap space in the NFL. Speaking of expensive, the Dallas Cowboys also re-signed Amari Cooper to a five-year, $100 million deal and, while rich, bringing him back was absolutely critical.
Some other deals that were nice were Bryan Bulaga (three-year, $30 million) to the Chargers, Marcus Mariota to the Raiders, the Packers signing both Christian Kirksey and Rick Wagner on cheap deals, Vic Beasley Jr. to the Titans, Jimmie Ward to the 49ers and even Joe Schobert to the Jaguars on a rich deal.
Contrary to those deals but not quite as bad as others, George Fant getting a three-year deal worth up to $30 million from the Jets is laughable. And the majority of the deals the Giants handed out were head-scratchers as well. As for the Dolphins, they weren’t perfect as betting on Ereck Flowers would never be on my to-do list for the offseason.
(Editor’s Note: Best moves will be labeled “B” with worst moves labeled “W”.)