The most notable signings from free agency so far
The 2021 offseason went from crazy to absolutely wild this week. On Monday the legal tampering period opened up and it was almost immediately that signings started rolling in. The teams who have been doing the most are the New England Patriots and the Jacksonville Jaguars. But with so much happening, what signings have been the biggest either in cost or meaning for both the team and the player?
The Patriots have been spending money. That’s the sentence. The Patriots are already second all time in giving guaranteed money in a single offseason with $137.5 million. Some notable names they’ve signed as a result of this are TE Jonnu Smith, TE Hunter Henry, WR Nelson Agholor, WR Kendrick Bourne, LB Matthew Judon, and CB Jalen Mills. With all eight players returning to the team after opting out in 2020 like Patrick Chung and Marcus Cannon, the Patriots will be loaded with talent going into the 2021 season. Bill has dished out the cash this offseason and the league will certainly take notice during the regular season.
The Jaguars’ situation is slightly different than the Patriots’ yet it is still similar. The Jags have a new head coach and a completely new staff, led by their new head coach Urban Meyer and GM Trent Baalke. They came into free agency with one of the largest budgets and have been spending as well. Some notable names include WR Phillip Dorsett, RB Carlos Hyde, CB Shaquill Griffin, WR Marvin Jones, and former 32nd overall pick DT Malcolm Brown. The past three days have changed the look of the Jaguars and the past several poor years seem to have been worth it considering how positive the situation currently is for the team. The Jaguars will pick 1st overall in the draft next month and are poised to select Trevor Lawrence out of Clemson with that selection, and Urban Meyer will navigate this team through the lackluster AFC south. In summary, the Jags are our dark horse pick to win the AFC south, and don’t be surprised when they win a playoff game.
There have also been a couple other signings that deserve some mentioning. In the wee hours of Wednesday morning, the San Francisco 49ers signed Trent Williams to six year deal worth $138 million, completely deserved and completely necessary considering the division the niners are in. Just a couple hours ago the Arizona Cardinals signed AJ Green to a one year deal with up to $8.5 million, an incredible deal for both sides. A low risk high reward contract, this one is, and it gives AJ a chance to show that he can still play, and he certainly will while lining up across from Deandre Hopkins with Kyler slinging it in the backfield. The Buccaneers locked up Shaq Barret with a four year, $72 million deal, and also brought back Gronk on a single year, $10 million deal, almost completely securing the team that won them the Super Bowl just over a month ago. Washington signed Ryan Fitzpatrick to a one year deal worth up to $12 million, the Raiders cut Rodney Hudson, the Chiefs signed Joe Thuney to a five year deal worth $80 million, and the Titans signed Bud Dupree to a monstrous five year $82.5 million deal, just to name a few.
With the new league year starting officially at 4 p.m. EST., there is certainly going to be a flood of deals happening tonight and throughout the rest of the week. Names like Patrick Peterson, Rodney Hudson, Juju, Jadeveon Clowney, Antonio Brown and Richard Sherman will likely all be announcing their new teams in the coming days. Teams will be dropping loads of cash as well, as they will legally be able to spend money over their cap limit. So much will be going down, from now up until the draft on April 29th, so stay tuned for more!