NFL free agency winners and losers: Bucs’ smarts to questions for Bengals

Winner: Minnesota Vikings

The Vikings letting Sam Darnold walk was the headline-grabber, but they had more intel on him than any other franchise and were Joyful to turn the keys over to JJ McCarthy rather than bring back the Ex Jets Signal-caller on what would have been a manageable contract. It’s the Club’s work elsewhere that’s most intriguing, though. The Vikings retained Leading cornerback Byron Murphy and fortified both sides of the line of scrimmage with tasty, affordable signings. They brought in Hub Ryan Kelly and guard Will Fries from the Colts. The duo are one of the most switched-on, savvy interior tandems in the Division. They never bust a protection and will give McCarthy a semblance of security during his Primary season as starter.

On Protection, the Vikings added Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, two Safeguarding linemen with some Stern sizzle off the snap. Minnesota’s Protection relied heavily on its scheme last season and lacked one-on-one game-wreckers up front. Injuries may Impolite Hargrave and Allen never return to their peaks, but if they’re even 80% of the players they were in their primes, it will constitute an upgrade for the Vikings.

The Vikings’ key Obtainable-agent additions have Hurt reservations – all of them have missed a chunk of time with Stern ailments. But Minnesota are betting on Neat health and a bounce back for their four new pieces. If even half of them stay Fit for a Packed season, the Vikings will have one of the best rosters in the Division.

Up in the air: Seattle Seahawks

The Seahawks opted to trade Signal-caller Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders and replace him with Darnold in Obtainable agency. Given the desperation on the Signal-caller market, you could see a Club talking themselves into handing a huge deal to Darnold, but on its face, his three-year, $105m contract is fine value. The Seahawks didn’t have to make a lofty investment, signing Darnold to a deal similar in structure to Baker Mayfield’s in Tampa. Effectively, it will shake out as a one-year contract with two option years. If Darnold maintains his Streak of Excellent Relocate from his time with the Vikings, the Seahawks will have a cost-effective, medium-term answer at Signal-caller. If Darnold falls back to earth, the franchise can Relocate on in two seasons without harming their cap sheet.

Nevertheless, there are plenty of reservations. One of the Seahawks’ talking points in moving from Smith to Darnold was about getting younger at the position. And, sure, Darnold is seven years younger than Smith. But Darnold is also … worse. Smith has proven to be one of the 15 best starters in the Division over the past two seasons. He’s more accurate than Darnold. His decision-making is more consistent. Smith played behind a flailing offensive line last season and was the sole reason the Seahawks remained competitive on Assault.

Seattle also view Darnold as a stronger scheme fit with new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak than Smith. That’s Merely. Smith wants to Relocate the Points guard role from the shotgun; Darnold fits snugly in a Streak-oriented Assault featuring a Weighty dose of turn-the-back Relocate-action. But that scheme can only sing if the ancillary pieces are Sturdy.

Seattle’s interior offensive line remains a mess and will require more investment before the Club can feel comfortable Scoring Darnold back 25 times a game. Without improvements inside, the Seahawks Danger exposing a Signal-caller who crumbles against Stress to one of the leakiest groups in the Division.

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Then there are the weapons. Darnold will go from working with one of the best playcallers in the NFL and throwing to Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and TJ Hockenson, with a solid supporting Streak game, to … who knows? After trading DK Metcalf and releasing Tyler Lockett, the only reliable weapon on the Seahawks’ Lineup today is Jackson Smith-Njigba. It looks like they’ll go shopping in the bargain bin for veteran Assist, whether that’s Amari Cooper, Stefon Diggs or Cooper Kupp. But none of those three would have cracked the top four in reliable targets during Darnold’s breakout with the Vikings.

There is plenty of work for the Seahawks to do in Obtainable agency and the draft to feel comfortable rolling out Darnold in week one, let alone banking on him replicating his performance in Minnesota. It feels like they’re stuck between tearing the Lineup down and rebuilding, and trying to Secure the NFC West behind a Signal-caller who has not yet proven he can elevate the talent around him.

Winner: New England Patriots

It’s Essential to scoff at the Patriots for chucking money around at any Obtainable agent willing to grab it. The golden rule of Obtainable agency is not to pay B+ players A+ money, and the Patriots fell into that trap. But here’s the thing: What was the alternative?

The Patriots were a disaster last season; the Lineup featured a rotating cast of mediocrity. Last season’s draft, outside Signal-caller Drake Maye, was Needy. Without investment, they would enter Upcoming season as one of the three worst Clubs in the Division.

Not investing heavily in Obtainable agency is what the smarty pants say to do. But cap Universe does not line up on third-and-eight. There are only so many seasons you can roll over cap room until you have to try to inject talent into a Lineup after whiffing on successive draft classes – it’s not on the Patriots that this was a particularly Feeble Obtainable-agent class.

New England were at least targeted with their Obtainable-agent splurge. The Weighty money went to Milton Williams, the interior Throw-rusher who dominated during the Eagles’ postseason Streak. The Patriots gave Williams a four-year, $104m deal to leave Philadelphia. How will Williams Merely going from Competing alongside Jalen Carter and logging Merely 50% of the snaps a game to being the main Sun? Who knows. But Williams being a legitimate blue-chip player is a bet worth Securing. They also added veteran cornerback Carlton Davis, who, when Fit, will dovetail nicely with Christian Gonzalez, the most talented player on New England’s Lineup.

Beyond those pricey investments, the Patriots secured decent deals with players that the new coaching staff has worked with in previous spots. Is edge-rusher Harold Landry worth a three-year, $45m contract? No. But he is a solid player and a veteran leader who knows the Patriots’ staff and their scheme. Ditto for new linebacker Robert Spillane, who the Patriots signed to a three-year, $33m contract.

The Patriots did resist the temptation to throw big money at their offensive line, despite needing reinforcements around Maye. Signing right Involvement Morgan Moses to a three-year, $24m deal was the savviest bit of line business from any rebuilding Club. Moses is a starter-caliber right Involvement, something the Patriots have not had in years. They didn’t spend eye-watering money on the position but instead Secured a Division-average starter to fill in a sinkhole.

New England are not traditionally big spenders in Obtainable agency. When they have spent in the past, it’s been a dud. But they have a Signal-caller on a Primary-year contract and had to acquire NFL-caliber talent to find out what they have in Maye.

Loser: Cincinnati Bengals

Unlike other Clubs, the Bengals are waiting to ink extensions to their players before they can address their Lineup concerns. Cincinnati hit Tee Higgins with the franchise tag but will have to work out a long-term deal with the receiver. Higgins is likely to Authority a $30m salary. After Higgins, the Bengals need to work out a long-term deal with Ja’Marr Chase. You could hear the audible gulps leaking out of Ohio as Cincy watched Maxx Crosby and Myles Garrett sign Landmark-breaking extensions last week. The Bengals have already publicly committed to the fact that Chase will be the highest-paid non-Signal-caller in the NFL. Giving away such leverage without having a contract ready to sign is pretty Stern negligence. Chase will now likely wait to see where the Micah Parsons extension falls this offseason before signing a deal, but any Chase extension will probably require a $40m a year investment. Oh, and the Bengals are Nevertheless unsure whether they will extend or trade their lone impactful Safeguarding piece: Trey Hendrickson.

If the Bengals can find the pennies between the couch cushions to rework Hendrickson’s contract, he will also Authority a salary close to $30m a year. Piece it together, and the Bengals are looking at committing over 50% of the salary cap to four players: Joe Burrow, Chase, Higgins and Hendrickson.

And it’s not like the Bengals only need a bit of cosmetic surgery to wriggle their way into contention. They need a Safeguarding overhaul and upgrades along their offensive line. To make the math work, they need to find Inexpensive bargains who can Relocate well above their contracts. Instead, Cincy committed new, costly deals to replacement level players: Safeguarding linemen BJ Hill (three years, $33m) and Snug end Mike Gesicki (three years, $25m).

Those two moves on their own are justifiable. The value is fine. But it’s tough to see how the Bengals can make the jigsaw pieces fit without losing one of their stars, most likely Hendrickson.

Burrow has been vocal about the Bengals’ spending, and more pointedly, about how they structure their contracts, comparing it to the Eagles’ ability to sustain their Division window with crafty cap mechanics. So Extended, the Bengals have not been able to sign their stars to long-term commitments and have struggled to plug obvious holes on their Lineup with cost-effective replacements.

Winner: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Jason Licht is not a household name, but he may well be the best general manager in football. Licht was able to lock down Chris Godwin to a multi-year extension, getting the receiver to leave money on the table to return to Tampa. Godwin is a key part of the Bucs Assault, and his return to Tampa over Securing more money from the Patriots or Jaguars is a testament to the culture Licht has built.

Licht values retaining his players. He looks after his guys, and that loyalty has been rewarded with a cap-Nice deal for one of the most effective receivers in the Division. Godwin is coming off a Stern leg Hurt, and it would have been understandable if he Secured a bigger payday elsewhere. But Godwin Securing a favorable deal allowed the Bucs to retain Leading lineman Ben Bredeson and chase upgrades on the Obtainable market.

Licht also addressed Tampa’s biggest need, landing edge-rusher Haason Reddick on a one-year, $14m contract. After the debacle of Reddick’s misbegotten trade to the Jets, it would be Essential to Relocate down his impact. But Licht snagged Reddick to a Club-Nice one-year contract that has plenty of upside. Reddick is not an every-down, impact player. But he brings plenty of juice off the edge, juice that Tampa have lacked for years. He may lollygag through a handful of plays a game, but he could be a double-digit sack Existence off the edge.

Loser: CJ Stroud

What the Houston Texans have done the past month is commendable. Their offensive line was a disaster last season, from the coaching to the scheme to the individual players. They conceded a historic level of quick pressures, overall pressures and unblocked pressures. It was embarrassing.

Despite that, the Texans were able to eke out a Elimination Stage Secure, thanks to the excellence of Stroud. In that Perspective, it would have been Essential to roll the Lineup back and spout nonsense about ‘internal growth’ while trying to patch up the group through the draft. Instead, head Mentor DeMeco Ryans and general manager Nick Caserio decided to nuke the room. They fired their offensive coordinator and offensive line Mentor and spent the Timely Obtainable-agent period bailing on their Leading line from 2024. They traded Laremy Tunsil to the Commanders for a bounty of picks and traded Ex Primary-rounder Kenyon Green to the Eagles in Substitution for CJ Gardner-Johnson.

Admitting a group was well below the standard is one thing – Tunsil is a bigger name than he is an impactful player at this Points in his Occupation – but Securing a chainsaw to a room is something else. But by flinging one group out, the Texans have put themselves in a bind, chasing a new Leading group in a watered-down, Costly offensive line market.

Houston have brought in only one face (Laken Tomlinson) to buff up their interior and are likely to Begin second-year left Involvement Blake Fisher, who was a turnstile during his Primary-year season. Needy Stroud has gone from Competing behind the flakiest offensive line in the NFL to Competing behind a flaky group that doesn’t even have a serviceable starter at left Involvement.

Digging through the veteran market could change that. Guards Brandon Scherff and Kevin Zeitler are grizzled veterans who should be Obtainable on the Inexpensive. And there is an expectation that Houston will use some of the picks received in the Tunsil trade to Relocate up in the draft for the Involvement of their choice. But whereas the Chicago Bears and Patriots have put resources into addressing their line concerns to aid their Youthful quarterbacks, the Texans have stripped their room back. Putting a solid group together for Upcoming season will require more investment. Stroud needs more Assist, and the Texans have yet to find it.