Future of QBS Rodgers, Jackson clouds free agency
NFL free agency kicks off next week and the biggest questions surround two star quarterbacks who aren’t on the list.
Will Aaron Rodgers retire, return to Green Bay or get traded to the Jets or another team?
Will Lamar Jackson get a contract offer from any team knowing Baltimore can match it?
The league’s legal tampering period opens Monday and plenty of free agents will be on the move when players can officially start signing new deals Wednesday.
Quarterbacks, of course, get the most money and attention.
Derek Carr, Geno Smith and Daniel Jones are already off the market after receiving huge contracts this week.
The Ravens gave Jackson a nonexclusive franchise tag so he can negotiate with other teams. Jackson would make $32.4 million if he plays this season on the nonexclusive tag.
If Baltimore lets him go, it’ll receive two first-round picks. Some teams may be reluctant to pursue Jackson knowing the Ravens could end up keeping the 2019 NFL MVP. But it only takes one team to come up with a contract structured in a way — perhaps more guaranteed money than Baltimore wants to pay — to snatch the dynamic QB.
“We’re always preparing for every contingency,” Ravens general manager Eric Decosta said last week. “We look at every situation — free agency, the draft. We’re talking about any possible situation that might arise with players. In this business, you get surprised daily.”
As for Rodgers, he has two years left on his contract and is due to make about $59.5 million this season. The Packers are waiting on the 39-yearold, four-time MVP to decide his future. He could end up in New York, stay put or hang up his cleats. Until Rodgers tells the Packers what he wants to do, they’re in a holding pattern.
“Free agency’s coming up here. That’s an important part of what we’re doing. So it’d be nice to have some answers before then,” Packers GM Brian
Gutekunst said last week. “But until we have any conversations, we’re still in a good spot.”
The most accomplished quarterback among the unrestricted free agents is Jimmy Garoppolo. He’s 44-19 as a starter, including 4-2 in the playoffs and has been to one Super Bowl and an NFC championship game.
Jacoby Brissett, Gardner Minshew, Taylor Heinicke, Andy Dalton, Jameis Winston, Baker Mayfield, Teddy Bridgewater, Sam Darnold and Carson Wentz are also free agents. A few could get opportunities to start for teams who are grooming a rookie.
Beyond the QBS, the top players available play in the trenches.
Chiefs four-time Pro Bowl left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. headlines the list. Kansas City’s decision not to use the franchise tag on Brown surprised many and now he hits the open market with a huge payday awaiting.
San Francisco right tackle Mike Mcglinchey, Atlanta left tackle Kaleb Mcgary and Jacksonville left tackle Jawann Taylor are also going to get huge deals.
On the defensive line, Eagles tackle Javon Hargrave leads the list. Hargrave had a career-best 11 sacks in 2022. Denver’s Dre’mont Jones and Arizona’s Zach Allen are also top talents.
At defensive end New Orleans’ Marcus Davenport and Kansas City’s Frank Clark lead the way.
Four defensive backs are among the top-tier free agents set to test the market. Buccaneers cornerback Jamel Dean, Eagles cornerback James Bradberry, Bengals safety Jessie Bates III and Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-johnson are among a strong group.
Bobby Wagner, Buffalo’s Tremaine Edwards, Tampa Bay’s Lavonte David and Tennessee’s David Long Jr. are the top linebackers.
The wide receiver and tight end positions are thin. Odell Beckham Jr., who missed last season following ACL surgery, and New England’s Jakobi Meyers should get the biggest deals among wideouts. Dallas’ Dalton Schultz, Miami’s Mike Gesecki and Cincinnati’s Hayden Hurst stand out among tight ends.
Running back is deep despite Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs and Tony Pollard getting the franchise tag. Philadelphia’s Miles Sanders, Detroit’s Jamaal Williams, Chicago’s David Montgomery and Seattle’s Rashaad Penny are among the available runners.
The NFC champion Eagles might be most impacted by free agency. They have 10 starters from the Super Bowl who will be free agents along with several others who played key roles.
“We’re going to prioritize the things that are important to us, that we build our team on,” general manager Howie Roseman said. “We’re going to make sure those areas are strong. Are we going to get all the free agents back? We’re just not. We’re not capable of getting all those guys back, but we also understand we’re in a good situation in terms of picks that we have going forward. We have a lot of guys under contract, not only for this year, but going forward. We’re not going to make excuses for the position we’re in.”
The Bears, Falcons, Texans, Raiders and Bengals have the most salary cap space. The Buccaneers, Saints, Bills, Cowboys and Rams have the least.
The Avs are officially inside of 20 regular-season games remaining, and their record still doesn’t completely show that they’re one of the NHL’S most talented teams.
They’re seven points back of the Central division lead with two games in hand — meaning three points back of Dallas in a best-case scenario.
There’s little to no concern among players in the Avalanche locker room or among hockey watchers in the general public that Colorado is a playoff team with Stanley Cup potential. Yet the Avalanche (35-22-6) are also only five points ahead of Calgary, the first team outside of the Western Conference playoffs.
More alarming than the playoff race itself at this point is what happens once Colorado gets there. The Avs’ recent stretch raised concerns, even with coach Jared Bednar, after four consecutive losses when facing teams in the playoff picture.
“It should bother all of us,” Bednar said bluntly after a 5-2 loss to the Kings on Thursday, questioning the consistency of his team’s motivation. “… We’ve got to want it more than we want it right now.”
Is it just the latest skid, or is Colorado’s year-long sample size worth flagging as a reason to fear the playoffs? It helps to break down the first 63 games by opponent tiers.
The sampling of Western Conference contenders is most important. Barring a completely unexpected surge from Calgary or Nashville, the eight playoff teams from the West seem close to locked in. Colorado’s seven suitors: Dallas, Minnesota, Winnipeg, Vegas, Los Angeles, Seattle and Edmonton. Five games remain against that collection.
The Avs are 10-5-3 (.639) vs. those seven, and the record was a staggering 103-2 before the slump (losses to Dallas, Seattle and L.A.) that prompted Bednar’s comments Thursday. That’s an especially convincing record considering the Avalanche accomplished it while dealing with more injuries than almost any other team in the league. It shows that as inconsistent as this season has been, the weak West is very much within grasp.
But there’s the tier above Western Conference contenders — Eastern Conference juggernauts. They account for the NHL’S four best records and six of the top nine: Boston, Toronto, Carolina, New Jersey, Tampa and New York.
The Avalanche’s 3-6-2 record against those six is a more chilling sign of repeat potential, especially because most of those games were played before the East aggressively bulked up at the March 3 trade deadline. Two of Colorado’s three wins against this tier came in overtime or a shootout. One required a singularly heroic effort by Alexandar
Georgiev, another by Pavel Francouz. Remove the Hurricanes, and the record here is 1-6-2.
One matchup from this tier remains. And it’s the most harrowing litmus test remaining on the schedule, next Wednesday (5 p.m. MT) at the deadline-replenished Maple Leafs.
There are nine teams firmly out of the playoffs. There’s a case for more, but here are the nine who have truly stopped trying: Columbus, San Jose, Chicago, Anaheim, Arizona, Montreal, Philadelphia, Vancouver and St. Louis.
The Avs are weirdly shaky against those nine, a combined 10-7-0, but the good news is that nine of the last 19 regular-season games come from that bottom tier. Colorado gave a hint of what might be to come by smoking San Jose 6-0 on Wednesday. Again, making the postseason is of very little concern.
The six games against the two upper tiers are the ones worth watching closely.
“There’s another level of determination and passion that we can play with if we want to win against the good teams,” Bednar said.