Winners and Losers of Free Agency: Bears on the Rise, Seahawks Rebuilding?

Written by Ben Slavin

The Eagles' Philadelphia-burning Super Bowl win was the product of savvy free agency moves and aggressive trades. This league is full of copycats and no one has been able to replicate the New England dynasty, so the next best thing is trying to follow the Philly plan. The lack of a quality free agents available and the widespread cash to spend mean that everyone is getting overpaid and trading for veterans is becoming a necessity. That all led to one of the most chaotic free agency periods in a while.

Winners

Los Angeles Rams

No team tried harder to replicate the big moves made by the Eagles last year than the Rams. They had to make a tough decision in letting Trumaine Johnson go, but traded for Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib -- two players whose combined 2018 salaries are far lower than Johnson’s alone. Instead of franchising Johnson for the third straight year, they elected to keep versatile Lamarcus Joyner via the tag. Not settling with those moves, the Rams were the winners of the Ndamukong Suh sweepstakes, signing the potential Hall-of-Famer to a one-year deal. The three players they acquired (and the one they kept) this offseason are great fits for defensive coordinator Wade Phillips’ scheme. In order to recoup some of the picks they lost in the trades for Peters and Talib, they traded away two talented players who did not fit the scheme in Alec Ogletree and Robert Quinn. Losing Sammy Watkins hurts, but the massive contract he received and the players they acquired soften the blow a lot. Don’t be surprised if the Rams new thug squad steals the Lombardi Trophy next year.

Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles found themselves in both an enviable and unenviable position heading into free agency. On one hand, they were coming off one of the most emotional Super Bowl wins ever and sitting on top of the league. On the other, though, multiple key cogs of that Super Bowl win were heading to free agency and the Eagles were considerably over the cap. 2017 Executive of the Year Howie Roseman came out swinging early with a trade for Michael Bennett in exchange for a swap of late-round picks and a seldom-used wide receiver. This made the release of Vinny Curry a whole lot less painful. Then they signed Haloti Ngata to take their defensive line from terrifying to nightmare-inducing. The trade of Torrey Smith for a recent 3rd-round cornerback that saved millions in cap room was just the icing on the cake. Mike Wallace, who might just be outright better than Smith, came aboard for half the price tag. The Eagles could have easily found themselves in the losers section, but Roseman killed it once again.

Chicago Bears

Chicago seems eerily similar to the Eagles of a year ago. Both have a sophomore quarterback who was better as a rookie than casual fans give him credit for. Both had to sign big free agent wideouts to bolster porous receiver corps. Each had a strong front seven with a suspect secondary. Each would head into the season with a huge strength at running back and a strong o-line that makes the backs look even better. Each had a newer head coach who got the job after success as the Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator. The Bears even signed the passer from the infamous Philly Special play that was instrumental to getting Philadelphia a Super Bowl. That was the biggest play of Trey Burton’s career, but he flashed in a role behind Zach Ertz. Allen Robinson is coming off an ACL tear and received a lot of money, but often looked dominant with awful quarterback play. Taylor Gabriel is fast, like really fast. Sound anything like Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith. The similarities are striking and the Bears’ signings are enough to make the end result a possibility.

Honorable Mention: Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers, Tennessee Titans, Houston Texans

Losers

Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins faced one of the worst cap situations in the league despite winning only six games in 2017. To combat this, they parted ways with three of their most talented players in Suh, Mike Pouncey, and Jarvis Landry. Suh and Pouncey were overpaid and Landry is about to follow suit. That doesn’t mean, however, that those were necessarily good moves for a team as generally devoid of talent as Miami. The Landry trade netted them two picks, but a fourth-rounder in a shallow draft and a seventh-rounder in next year’s draft probably won’t amount to much. The Dolphins also felt the need to add Albert Wilson and Danny Amendola on overly-lucrative deals to an already overcrowded wide-receiver room. Neither is a bad player, but is that really justification enough for 6-8 million dollars a year? It shouldn’t be, but the Dolphins appear committed to upholding their dysfunctional label.

Seattle Seahawks

The Seahawks have decided to completely dismantle their defense -- the same defense that carried them to two Super Bowls -- this offseason. Cliff Avril and Kam Chancellor may never return from their neck injuries. Richard Sherman was cut, Sheldon Richardson was allowed to leave, Michael Bennett was traded for almost nothing, and Earl Thomas is being heavily-shopped. Instead of putting the new-found money towards helping Russell Wilson, they let three of his best weapons leave. Jimmy Graham, Paul Richardson, and Luke Willson will all be suiting up for new teams next year. It’s unfortunate that Russell Wilson will never allow Seattle to be bad enough where they get a top pick because they seem to be in for another long, draft-fueled rebuild.

Oakland Raiders

Besides signing a coach who hasn’t been in the league in nearly a decade, the Raiders decided to get players who haven’t been good in nearly a decade. Clearly Jon Gruden really does want to “throw the game back to 1998” based on his signings. He signed 29-year-old Tank Carradine, whose best season was 5 years ago when he was in college, Jordy Nelson, who has seen an obvious decline the last couple of years despite having Aaron Rodgers as a quarterback, and Doug Martin, who has been one of the worst running backs in the league since his 2015 All-Pro season. Those are just the old players who have actually done something noteworthy in their careers. The Nelson signing even came at the expense of Michael Crabtree, a player of similar age with better recent production. Gruden last won a Super Bowl in 2003, but he has the Raiders as front-runners to win the 2013 edition.

(Dis)Honorable Mention: Washington Redskins, New England Patriots


Works Cited

Hoge, Adam. “Hoge's 10 Bears Things: Patience Required With Trubisky, Run-Heavy Offense.” WGN Radio - 720 AM, 19 Oct. 2017, wgnradio.com/2017/10/18/hoges-10-bears-things-patience-required-with-trubisky-run-heavy-offense/.

“Photos: Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills, Week 16.” Palmbeachpost, www.palmbeachpost.com/sports/football/photos-miami-dolphins-buffalo-bills-week/QHU3PTrjMHsNys2Rn6h0RN/.

Stites, Adam. “Seahawks Fined $100,000 for Not Following NFL Concussion Protocol with Russell Wilson.” SBNation.com, SBNation.com, 21 Dec. 2017, www.sbnation.com/2017/12/21/16638572/russell-wilson-seattle-seahawks-concussion-protocol.