The NFL Free Agency was wild as some big names have landed in different cities. The theme of these trades and signings seemed to running backs and veteran quarterbacks; it is also weird to see some players joining rival teams, stirring up some hate from their former fanbases.
Towards the start of free agency, the first big news we heard was the retirement of Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, a 13-year veteran who won one Superbowl during his career. Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald also retired after a 10-year career in which he also won a Superbowl.
The three most active and aggressive teams were the Chicago Bears, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers. With the Bears having the number one overall pick in this year’s draft, they have the opportunity to select USC quarterback Caleb Williams who is almost a lock to get picked first. The Bears started things off by signing two Eagles players, safety Kevin Byard along with runningback D’andre Swift. The Bears also traded for Los Angeles Chargers veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen.
The Bears’ most recent move was the trade of their quarterback Justin Fields to the Steelers for a sixth-round pick that could end up being a fourth-rounder. Fields was selected 11th overall in the 2021 NFL draft after having a great college career. The Steelers also added Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson on a 1-year $1.21 million deal. The Steelers made a major improvement to their defense with the addition of Baltimore Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen.
The Eagles lost a few key players either to other teams or retirement but they made sure to hang on to defensive end Brandon Graham along with offensive lineman Landon Dickerson. The Eagles added New York Jets defensive end Bryce Huff, Detroit Lions defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Devin White and the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett to be the backup.
However, the Eagle’s largest signing was with the New York Giants running back, Saquan Barkley. Barkley was selected second overall in the 2018 NFL draft, that same year he won Offensive Rookie of the Year and made the Pro Bowl. When Barkley told his daughter he was going to the Eagles she asked him “Does this mean we are going to win now?” Giants fans are mad at him for going to their biggest rival even though they were the ones not willing to pay him what he is worth.
This year, running backs were moved around as Austin Ekeler left the Los Angeles Chargers and headed to the Washington Commanders, the Chargers went and picked up Baltimore Ravens running back Gus Edwards causing the Ravens to replace him with the Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry and the Dallas Cowboys lost Tony Pollard to the Titans, leaving them with only their back up as they haven’t made many moves this offseason.
This upcoming season will be interesting with familiar faces in new places. It seemed like a lot of the contracts were short-term; there weren’t many instances where a player was signed for more than 8 years, this only means that the coming seasons could get interesting with players possibly changing teams again.
