Who Are The Top NFL Free Agents That Are Still Available?
A look at some of the top NFL free agents that need a home and where they may land.
Training camp will begin very soon and some of the NFL’s top players, former Pro Bowlers and All Pro candidates are still looking for homes. Here are some of those guys and where I think they may land.
Two former All Pro pass protectors are still on the street looking for new homes, the only thing holding them back though is their age. David DeCastro and Mitchell Schwartz are like Swiss army knives on the offensive line and are looking to be signed.
For Schwartz, he suffered a back injury that sidelined him for a good chunk of last season and ended up getting surgery so it is uncertain if he’ll come back and be the same player he was. He is an elite pass blocker that will dominate players in the run game as well.
I could see a team like Miami targeting him to add a veteran presence at right tackle to their youthful offensive line. Or maybe even the Pittsburgh Steelers to sign him to help patch up the many holes on their front five.
For DeCastro who was released by the Steelers, he’s still recovering from an ankle injury so much like Schwartz, it is uncertain what he’ll look like next season. One thing is certain though when you talk about DeCastro, he is reliable. He has only allowed six sacks since 2015.
A team that may go after the Stanford alum is the Green Bay Packers who have a pretty big hole at the right guard position. If they sign DeCastro then this could entice Rodgers to stick around a play. I could even see the Panthers making a move on DeCastro to play right guard and help pave the way for Christian McCaffrey.
On the theme of former Steelers looking for new cities to play in, twenty eight year old corner Steven Nelson is still available. Last season, Nelson tallied forty eight tackles and two interceptions.
There is a possibility that Nelson stays in the state of Pennsylvania because Eagles cornerback Darius Slay has been making a hard push for the young corner to sign with the City of Brotherly Love.
Nelson could even find a new home in Detroit if the Lions target him to start on the opposite side of the field as Jeff Okudah, which would make for a pretty sweet cornerback tandem. Whoever lands Nelson is getting a stud with a lot left in the tank.
Staying on the defensive side of the ball, two older edge rushers are still looking for a place to get after the quarterback. Olivier Vernon and Justin Houston are two guys that will boost just about any defensive line with their veteran status and dog mentality.
Last season, the thirty two year old Houston racked up twenty five tackles and eight sacks in sixteen games which would be a boost to most franchises pass rushing cores.
I think that the Ravens would be a good fit for the Georgia alum and it’s a move that Raven fans have been pushing for. He would add great depth behind Derrick Wolfe and Calais Campbell. Another squad that could use Houston is the Tennessee Titans. He would have the same role in Nashville that he’d have in Baltimore as a depth guy that would come in on third and long to get after the quarterback.
For Olivier Vernon, he totaled thirty six tackles to go with a quiet nine sacks in Cleveland last season. Now I would say that a return to Cleveland is still in the picture had they not already signed Clowney.
With that being said, I envision Vernon signing with Kansas City to try and fill the role that the felon Frank Clark played. Losing Clark to the clink is a massive loss but bringing Vernon in isn’t that much of a step backwards.
If Kansas City and the Andy Reid doesn’t jump on Vernon then I could see him signing with the Jaguars to rotate with Taven Bryan and Roy Robertson-Harris. He would be a nice addition to Jacksonvilles young defensive front seven.
The last guy I want to look at is running back Le’Veon Bell who only tallied two touchdowns and three hundred and thirty four yards with the Jets and Chiefs last season. The veteran back has burned a lot of bridges so wherever he lands, it’ll be as a backup or a third down back.
A decent fit for Bell would be back in New York but this time for the Giants as Barkleys backup. Barkley is coming off an ACL injury so his durability is in question. If Barkley did go down again then Bell could take over and be very efficient.
Another squad that would benefit from Bell would be the New Orleans Saints. He would essentially have the same impact in Nola that he would have in the Big Apple as a backup. Kamara gets a lot of touches and to alleviate some of the work load, Bell could step right in.