The NFL free agency period is quickly approaching. Teams are maneuvering to come into compliance with the higher-than-expected salary cap so they can fill out their rosters starting next week.
At CBSSports.com, we’re covering free agency from every angle possible, with our top 10 positions, team needs and more. Over the next few days, we’ll play matchmaker, identifying an outside free agent (i.e. not on their team last year) that every team in the league should try to sign.
We’ll start with NFC. Without delay …
Is this one going to happen? Probably not! The Cowboys don’t really spend money on outside free agents anymore. But they themselves want to have bigger bodies at linebacker after hiring Mike Zimmer to replace the departed Dan Quinn as defensive coordinator, and Luvu has the type of pass-rushing ability that Zimmer can use heavily from this post.
New York desperately needs help along the offensive line, and especially on the interior. It seems unlikely that Jackson will be retained by Detroit given the Lions’ spending elsewhere on the front, and he is a quality starter who would be a big help at a position where the Giants badly need him.
The Eagles don’t typically invest a lot of resources at safety, but perhaps that will change with a new defensive coordinator in Vic Fangio. Stone was pushed into more action than expected last season in Baltimore and played very well, and his versatility could be a plus on the back end of Philly’s defense.
Washington’s offensive line is in really rough shape, and after cutting ties with Charles Leno, the Commanders need a new left tackle. Williams played better on the left side of the line before the Bengals moved him to the right following the signing of Orlando Brown last offseason, and Washington could use a long-term answer at that spot.
Much has been made of the fact that the Falcons are poised to struggle because they are only one quarterback away from being good. If you’re one quarterback away, you’re not really that close; because it’s the one thing you can’t win without, as we saw in Atlanta last year. But if the Falcons land Cousins, things get a lot more interesting.
We previously had Michael Pittman Jr. at this spot, but the Colts used their franchise tag on him earlier this week. Instead, we’ll pivot to give the Panthers a formidable safety in Simmons, who would reunite with his old defensive coordinator in Ejiro Evero. The Panthers have Vonn Bell and Xavier Woods, Simmons is a better and more versatile player than both and Evero uses a lot of three-safety looks anyway.
The Saints will once again need to create plenty of space to recruit Fuller, but with Tyrann Mathieu approaching 30 and many safeties deep on the roster ready to enter free agency, they may need some youth at the position.
Both of Tampa’s starting safeties are free agents this offseason. They would be smart to make re-signing Antoine Winfield Jr. a priority, and Curl would be a good fit alongside him. (They already used the franchise tag on Winfield.)
The Bears have plenty of space and they need to fortify the group in front of whoever sits behind center for them next season. Many teams have had success pairing veteran centers with young signal-callers to handle some of the protection up front, and Williams’ move from guard in Dallas to center in Miami has allowed him to play his best football. He’s coming off a torn ACL and there are other, healthier center options (Tennessee’s Aaron Brewer might be a good fit), but he’s the best player in the group.
Detroit Lions
Detroit spent money to improve its secondary last offseason. It worked for a few weeks, but over the second half of the year, the Lions regressed against the pass. Fuller is a very good, experienced corner who can play on the perimeter and give Aaron Glenn a solid duo alongside Cam Sutton, with CJ Gardner-Johnson and Brian Branch rotating inside as safeties who can handle the slot.
The Packers have Darnell Savage, Rudy Ford, Keisean Nixon, Jonathan Owens and Corey Ballentine in free agency this offseason. If the season started tomorrow, they would be without each of their top three goalies from last year. Blackmon is coming off what might have been his best season, and one in which he showed versatility allowing him to play more often in the box, as well as being a deep safety and occasionally in the slot .
Brian Flores massively overhauled his defense last year in Minnesota, blitzing more often than almost any coordinator ever has and playing area behind him most often. The defensive backs held up much better than expected, but if the Vikes can land more talented corners, that would allow Flores to get more creative on the back end. Williams was PFF’s No. 5 cover corner last season, allowing just a 69.6 passer rating with four interceptions and 15 assists compared to just two touchdowns on throws his way.
Head coach Jonathan Gannon, the former Eagles defensive coordinator, had a lot of success in Philadelphia by taking underutilized edge rushers and turning them into premier players. (Like Haason Reddick.) He can try to do the same with Huff, who has always been very productive in limited opportunities.
LA released starting center Brian Allen earlier this offseason, as did an opening in the middle of the line. Cushenberry is a player on the rise, and with Denver potentially taking a huge blow by parting ways with Russell Wilson, there should be an opportunity for another team to swoop in and land him.
The Niners love nothing more than recruiting flexible veteran defensive linemen and getting the most out of them. Campbell can still play both on the sidelines and inside, and joining a Super Bowl contender could give him the opportunity to put a feather in his eventual Hall of Fame case.
New Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald got the most out of Clowney last season in Baltimore, and you can never have too many flex players. This would give a good fit. (Plus, Clowney previously played in Seattle.)