The biggest waves of NFL Free Agency have obviously come and gone, but there are still some NFL free agents available that could be impact players for teams come September and beyond. Although various players are dealing with injuries, some we know about and some we don’t, it’s interesting to see some of these guys still sitting there waiting to sign with a new team.
Perhaps for some of them, the value of a new contract didn’t match up early on. Maybe the market simply wasn’t there for what they were looking for. Perhaps they came in with such a big asking price that teams moved on to other options, and we’re seeing the fallout of that. Or, perhaps, it’s that these guys have bigger names than game at this point.
Whatever the reasoning behind these guys still sitting there in NFL Free Agency, it’s still slightly shocking they are still available. Let’s take a look at five of the most shocking players who are still NFL Free Agents.
5 NFL free agents shockingly still available
1. Dalton Risner, OG, Denver Broncos
It’s pretty wild to think that Dalton Risner is still sitting out there in NFL Free Agency at this point. The former Denver Broncos left guard has apparently not found the market he would have liked to where many around the Denver Broncos beat figured he could get upwards of $10 million per season on a new contract from some team.
Risner has been the primary starting left guard for the Denver Broncos for the last four years. There have been coaches obviously cycling in and out of Denver the last handful of years, so there are plenty of connections around the league for Risner as well, including places like Minnesota where he has connections to OL coach Chris Kuper and Miami where he has a connection to OL coach Butch Barry.
Risner was a second-round pick in 2019, he’s only 27, and he has a lot of starts under his belt. He was the Broncos’ Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee last year and has always been a tremendous asset in the community. What gives with this one? I’m not sure why Risner is still sitting as one of the available NFL Free Agents other than maybe teams just haven’t liked what they have seen from that Broncos o-line at all the last few years, and the fact that on Christmas, Risner was caught on camera shoving Broncos backup QB Brett Rypien.
He will eventually sign, but for the time being, it’s surprising to see Risner available.
2. Jerick McKinnon, RB, Chiefs
Not many players who had 10 touchdowns last season are sitting in free agency at this point in time. Jerick McKinnon was extremely efficient as one of the primary options out of the backfield and in the passing game for the Kansas City Chiefs last season, even if he fits more in the “positionless” version of offense in today’s game than anything else.
McKinnon has always been known for his ability to make an impact in the passing game. It’s a major reason why he got a big-money contract from the San Francisco 49ers back in 2018 at an average of $7.5 million per year. Obviously, that contract ended up being a bust for the 49ers because McKinnon was, sadly, unable to stay healthy enough to be available consistently.
As a matter of fact, after the 2017 season in which he racked up almost 1,000 yards from scrimmage with the Vikings, McKinnon didn’t even see an NFL field again until the 2020 season with the 49ers. He ran for five touchdowns that season and added another as a receiver, but as of the 2021 season, it seemed like his career was pretty much over with.
That is until the Kansas City Chiefs started utilizing him significantly. He was only given 72 carries in 17 games as a “running back” but McKinnon was targeted 71 times, reeling in 56 passes with a whopping nine receiving touchdowns. He started to really come on in the 2021 playoffs for the Chiefs which sparked his role for 2022.
Like I said, there just aren’t many players with 10 total touchdowns from last season still sitting in NFL Free Agency. McKinnon hasn’t had many issues with injuries the past three seasons. Although he’s an older back, he’s still highly effective in the passing game.
3. Yannick Ngakoue, EDGE, Colts
Although he’s not known for being the best run-defending EDGE player in the NFL, Yannick Ngakoue is pretty impressive if you consider him to be just a “one-trick pony” type of player. His trick of rushing the passer is pretty darn good.
Ngakoue has bounced around the league a handful of times already at this point. He’s played for the Jaguars, Vikings, Ravens, Raiders, and Colts. Again, he’s not known for his run defense, but when you get into the throes of an NFL season, how could you scoff at the chance to add a guy who has averaged more than a QB hit per game played as an NFL player, who has 65 career sacks, and who has 21 career forced fumbles?
Ngakoue is only going to be 28 this coming season, and over the last two years, he’s racked up 19.5 sacks and 39 QB hits along with 16 tackles for loss and three forced fumbles.
It seems like you would want a guy like this on your team who racks up pressures by the dozen. He had 27 pressures last year, and 36 the year before that…He has never had fewer than 26 pressures in a given season over the course of his NFL career.
There are way worse ways to invest $10 million or less than that. Who knows what his value will be this late in the game? His previous contract was worth $13 million per season, and depending on what team he lands on, we could really see him make a massive impact for a discounted price.
4. Shaquill Griffin, CB, Jaguars
Vic Fangio, while he was still the head coach of the Denver Broncos, once spoke some very true words about the cornerback position in the NFL. To paraphrase what he said, he essentially spoke on the fact that there are basically 96 “starting” cornerback spots in the NFL today with how much time teams spend in the nickel, but there aren’t 96 starting-caliber guys floating around the league.
You need to have good cornerbacks in the NFL today, and Shaquill Griffin is a good one.
He only played in five games last season, but Griffin has been a Pro Bowl player in the past and that’s why he was given a big-time contract by the Jacksonville Jaguars a couple of years ago in free agency. As the Jaguars have gotten better, they’ve had to make some tough financial decisions and Griffin was one of them.
Unfortunately, we can see why Griffin’s value might be lower now than it was a couple of years ago. He hasn’t had an interception since he was a member of the Seattle Seahawks, but there is no doubt that Griffin can play and be an asset. He’s only 27 years old going on 28 and he’s always played a pretty physical brand at the cornerback position.
When you look at cornerbacks available in NFL Free Agency who are younger and could contribute on the outside, there aren’t many like Griffin, who also was cut so he doesn’t affect the compensatory draft pick formula.
He should be able to sign a short-term deal somewhere and really prove to be a nice value at this stage and juncture of free agency.
5. Odell Beckham Jr., WR, Rams
It’s completely understandable that Odell Beckham Jr. is still one of the top NFL Free Agents available because of the injury he suffered in the Super Bowl back in February, 2022. Anytime you have to undergo major knee surgery, it’s going to give NFL teams pause, but Beckham Jr. has been taking visits and talking to teams since late last season.
He was supposedly going to be available for a playoff run with some team, but that never happened.
Of course, the rumor mill surrounding Beckham has been running rampant these days, especially after Aaron Rodgers stated he would be interested in playing with Odell as members of the New York Jets together because, how could you not want to play with Odell Beckham Jr.?
Right?
Free agency is always a series of calculated risks. There’s never a guarantee that something is going to work out in NFL Free Agency, regardless if you’re paying a premium price or if you’re trying to sign someone for a bargain deal.
At this stage of NFL free agency, there’s really no reason to not like the possibility of signing Odell Beckham Jr. He has already stated publicly that rumors he would be asking $20 million per year to sign with a new team were unfounded, he just doesn’t want to play for $4 million…
Beckham has been a superstar in the NFL. Regardless of his previous injury history, we saw leading up to and during that Super Bowl run with the Los Angeles Rams that he is still more than capable of being a big-play threat and high-volume, heavily-targeted receiver in an NFL offense.
His health may always be a question mark, but if you can get Odell Beckham Jr. to be at his best for even a majority of this next season, he could end up being one of the best free agent signings any team makes in 2023.