The 2023 NFL fiscal year once again starts in mid-March. So which five franchises could be the busiest once the free-agent market is open for business?
The restructuring of player contracts and salary-cap cuts have begun. Six players have been given the “franchise” tag. The preparation for the 2023 NFL is well underway. The league’s new fiscal year begins officially at 4:00 PM ET on March 15th. Over the next few days, clubs will be looking to retain their own potential unrestricted free agents.
On Monday, March 13th, the “legal tampering” begins as teams can reach out to potential free agents from other clubs. Of course, all 32 clubs must be under the salary cap, which is set at $224.8 million this year. As of this writing, a little under half of the teams in the league was looking to get to that number.
So begins the fourth decade of free agency. It says here that these five franchises are worth keeping an eye on over the next few months for any number of reasons.
NOTE: All financial information is provided by Spotrac.
5 teams to keep an eye on in 2023 NFL Free Agency
5. Atlanta Falcons
It’s been a rough stretch for a team that not too long ago reached the Super Bowl and followed that up with a playoff appearance. From 2016-17, the Atlanta Falcons owned a combined 21-11 regular-season win-loss record and actually came up with three postseason victories.
Since 2018, the club is a combined 32-50 and has finished with a losing record in five consecutive seasons. This past year, the Falcons were far more competitive than in Arthur Smith’s first season as head coach. Still, the NFC South will have a lot of new faces this season, especially at quarterback.
In 2022, Marcus Mariota was the team’s primary starter but he has been released by the organization. Desmond Ridder started the final four games of the season and made subtle strides each week. Former Saints’ assistant Ryan Nielsen is the club’s new defensive coordinator. The Falcons have plenty of decisions to make when it comes to re-signing their own players.
4. Las Vegas Raiders
It is almost an offseason tradition to see the Silver and Black on such a list. The Las Vegas Raiders were big players a year ago when it came to improving their team via free agency and trade. They added wide receiver Davante Adams via the Green Bay Packers and he responded with a monster year, catching 100 passes for 1,516 yards and 14 touchdowns.
New general manager Dave Ziegler gave standout pass-rusher Chandler Jones big money a year ago. He proved to be a big disappointment with a mere 4.5 sacks. However, he did come up with one of the biggest plays in the NFL in 2022 when he turned a misguided pitch from Patriots’ wideout Jakobi Meyers into a game-winning 48-yard fumble return in a 30-24 win over New England in Week 15.
All told, there was a new regime running the show, but these Raiders proved to be a major disappointment with a 6-11 finish after reaching the playoffs the previous year.
A big positive was running back Josh Jacobs, who received the franchise tag this month after leading the NFL in rushing yards. The bigger news was the end of the Derek Carr Era with the club. As usual, this team has plenty of salary-cap room. Will the Silver and Black make the most of that “Gold?”
3. Green Bay Packers
First things first. The elephant in the room called “Titletown” is veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers. As of this writing, he was still a member of the Green Bay Packers. However, the four-time NFL MVP and Super Bowl XLV champion was still mulling his future. The talented signal-caller is being courted heavily by the New York Jets and it will be intriguing to see what the end result is.
When it comes to the rest of the franchise, it’s been interesting to note the work that general manager Brian Gutekunst and the Packers front office has put into restructuring contracts this offseason. The team has revamped its deals with running back Aaron Jones, cornerback Jaire Alexander, linebacker Preston Smith, defensive lineman Kenny Clark and left tackle David Bakhtiari. Green Bay has slowly but surely opened up cap room over the last two-plus weeks.
Of course, Matt LaFleur’s team is coming off a forgettable season. After winning three consecutive NFC North titles and forging a 39-10 regular-season record during his first three seasons at the helm, the Pack was not back when it came to the playoffs. The club stumbled to 8-9 and third place in the division standings.
This is a team that traditionally isn’t very busy when it comes to adding experienced players. There was that exception in 2019. Could Gutekunst and LaFleur be primed to make some noise in free agency?
2. Houston Texans
From 2011-19, the Houston Texans won a total of six division titles in a nine-year span. Playoff success has eluded this franchise as the club has won some postseason games but has never advanced to the conference championship round.
Obviously, there has been no advancement whatsoever over these past three seasons. The team owns a combined 11-38-1 this decade. Former San Francisco 49ers’ defensive coordinator and one-time Texans’ Pro Bowl linebacker DeMeco Ryans becomes the team’s fifth head coach in four years. Talk about a daunting task. Houston finished next-to-last in the league in total offense and 30th in the NFL in total defense. Only the Denver Broncos scored fewer points per game than the Texans.
Texans’ general manager Nick Caserio certainly has some money to spend (via Spotrac). The franchise also has 11 selections in April’s draft, including the second and 12th overall picks. The club also has the second choice in the second round and a pair of picks in the third round.
There is an obvious need at quarterback and it will be intriguing to see how Caserio addresses it, be it in the draft or free agency. This past season, only the rival Colts (34) committed more turnovers than the Texans (28). Davis Mills was a second-year disappointment and totaled 18 of those miscues.
1. Chicago Bears
It was quite the unexpected 2022 season in the Windy City. Some felt that quarterback Justin Fields didn’t have what it took to be a standout player. The hiring of former Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus as the newest head coach of the Chicago Bears figured to make his side of the football better when it came to this team.
Instead, Fields set an NFL record for rushing yards by a quarterback in a season (1,143), to go along with eight touchdowns. The second-year pro put up respectable numbers as a passer, throwing for 2,242 yards and 17 scores. He was picked off 11 times and absorbed 55 sacks while losing only two of his 16 fumbles. Yes, there is plenty of room for improvement.
That would be an understatement when it comes to the Chicago defense. The Bears allowed the most points in the league, and finished 29th in the NFL in total defense. Only the Houston Texans were easier to run the ball against this past season.
General manager Ryan Poles has plenty of money to spend in free agency. The franchise has already been aggressive when it comes to adding veteran players. On Friday, he made a deal (which won’t be official until March 15 at 4:00 pm ET) with the Carolina Panthers to acquire wide receiver D.J. Moore and four draft picks for the first overall selection in April (via ESPN’s Adam Schefter).
The Bears will take a 10-game losing streak into their first game of 2023, but there’s already some excitement in the Windy City.