The new football season is nearly upon us and as a result the free agent moves will be inbound shortly. A few major deals are already rumored to be happening such as the Demarco Murray to Titans move. Another shocking move was the Texans move regarding Arian Foster and where he may land. Finally, on the defensive end the Eagles have reportedly traded safety Byron Maxwell and linebacker Kiko Alonso to the Dolphins. The offseason moves are underway and there will be plenty more on the way.
Eagles Cut Ties with Key Players
Huge deals have been made in the city of brotherly love, Demarco Murray, Kiko Alonso, and Byron Maxwell are all leaving Philadelphia. Murray will be heading to Tennessee where he will join the likes of Marcus Mariota, Delanie Walker, and keeping in mind the Titans have the first overall draft selection, this offense could be one of the more devastating ones. Once this trade is finalized (2016 season officially commences Wednesday 3/9) Murray will be out of the offense that arguably destroyed his reputation. After leading the league in rushing yards in 2014 with 1800+ yards, Murray severely went downhill only accumulating 702 yards in 2015. The Eagles missed the playoffs for the second straight year and Chip Kelly would ultimately leave Philadelphia.
Also departing from Philadelphia are safety Byron Maxwell and linebacker Kiko Alonso. Both of these players joined the Eagles last offseason and had significantly bad seasons. In Alonso’s case he simply could not stay healthy after starting off with a great first game. Maxwell struggled on the field after being hyped up as one of the best safeties on the free agent market in 2015. Maxwell did not look remotely close to what he was with the Seahawks. Whether this be from the fast paced offense (more time on the field), or simply the defense around him was not as good no longer matters, Maxwell is heading to Miami. This again begs the question that many asked last offseason: are the Dolphins an elite defense? We all very well remember the moves the Dolphins made last season, targeting the likes of Ndamukong Suh. Suh did not play very well with the Dolphins last year but with more around him the question again becomes whether or not the Dolphins defense will become elite. In my opinion I believe they may be slightly improved but will not keep up with the top tier defenses. Denver, Seattle, Houston and Kansas City are in my opinion levels above Miami after these trades.
Also departing from Philadelphia are safety Byron Maxwell and linebacker Kiko Alonso. Both of these players joined the Eagles last offseason and had significantly bad seasons. In Alonso’s case he simply could not stay healthy after starting off with a great first game. Maxwell struggled on the field after being hyped up as one of the best safeties on the free agent market in 2015. Maxwell did not look remotely close to what he was with the Seahawks. Whether this be from the fast paced offense (more time on the field), or simply the defense around him was not as good no longer matters, Maxwell is heading to Miami. This again begs the question that many asked last offseason: are the Dolphins an elite defense? We all very well remember the moves the Dolphins made last season, targeting the likes of Ndamukong Suh. Suh did not play very well with the Dolphins last year but with more around him the question again becomes whether or not the Dolphins defense will become elite. In my opinion I believe they may be slightly improved but will not keep up with the top tier defenses. Denver, Seattle, Houston and Kansas City are in my opinion levels above Miami after these trades.
Texans Bold Move
Arian Foster has been injury prone for most of his career and last season truly summarized this huge drawback from Foster. If a player can not stay on the field, the value to the team decreases drastically. Houston made a bold move, outright cutting the 2010 rushing champion and two time rushing touchdown champion. There is no doubt that Foster’s best days are well behind him but he still played decently well in his limited time in 2015. The Texans now look to running back Alfred Blue as the new number one running back for the 2016 season. Blue was a middle of the line back in his time in 2015 and generally had very average games. The potential landing spots for Foster are endless, some rumored landing places for Foster include: Seattle, New England, Jacksonville, San Diego. The most likely of these four are probably in order: 1. Jacksonville 2. New England 3. Seattle 4. San Diego. San Diego was a long shot to land Foster but still allegedly expressed interest in this aged running back. Jacksonville has plenty of Cap room available and can easily sign Foster if they are looking for a veteran running back going forward. If I had to guess as of now, I can see Foster in either a Patriots or Jags jersey next season due to the hole in the New England offense at running back or Jacksonville due to the huge cap space present.
Retirements
Peyton Manning announced his retirement yesterday, ending as a champion. Personally it was very fun to watch Manning play from his time as a young player in Indianapolis, to his late peak in Denver, Manning is a first ballot hall of famer. The Broncos now are looking for a quarterback. With the franchise tag being placed on Von Miller, Brock Osweiler will become a free agent and is reportedly “going to get paid” if he goes on the market. If Osweiler does not resign with the Broncos they may look to draft a quarterback later in the draft but they still need to improve their offense. CJ Anderson and Ronnie Hillman are also liable to leave the team putting more holes in an already diminished offense. The questions hovering over the Broncos are numerous and could prevent the Super Bowl 50 champions from having a chance to repeat in 2016.
Another potential retirement comes in the form of Lions great, Calvin Johnson. Johnson has not announced his retirement at this time but it is expected that he will call it a career. Johnson in my opinion still has a few more years in the tank and can be an elite receiver if used correctly. Detroit failed to get Johnson the ball downfield on various occasions in 2015 and I would not be surprised if Johnson retired for this reason alone. Being the team's major target and failing to see the ball going his way may have been discouraging for Johnson. Additionally Johnson’s health has been diminishing in recent seasons and has not been able to play a full season in recent years. Despite diminishing health, Johnson had 1214 yards and 9 touchdowns in 2015 over the course of 16 games (he did not finish multiple games). Calvin Johnson clearly still has the capability to play at an elite level the question is simply whether or not he wants to return to the NFL.
Another potential retirement comes in the form of Lions great, Calvin Johnson. Johnson has not announced his retirement at this time but it is expected that he will call it a career. Johnson in my opinion still has a few more years in the tank and can be an elite receiver if used correctly. Detroit failed to get Johnson the ball downfield on various occasions in 2015 and I would not be surprised if Johnson retired for this reason alone. Being the team's major target and failing to see the ball going his way may have been discouraging for Johnson. Additionally Johnson’s health has been diminishing in recent seasons and has not been able to play a full season in recent years. Despite diminishing health, Johnson had 1214 yards and 9 touchdowns in 2015 over the course of 16 games (he did not finish multiple games). Calvin Johnson clearly still has the capability to play at an elite level the question is simply whether or not he wants to return to the NFL.
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