Top NFL Free Agents

Written By: Ronny Dhillon

With the NFL season now over it’s time to take a look at some of the top free agents this off-season and their possible destinations.

Julius Peppers
Ever since being drafted in 2002, Peppers has been a model of consistency in Charlotte. In his first seven seasons he’s had 70.5 sacks and been named to the Pro Bowl four times. But after another disappointing season Julius Peppers made it clear he wanted to part ways with the Panthers.

Possible Destinations: Kansas City, Green Bay, Denver, New England, Arizona

Prediction: Denver Broncos
The Broncos ranked 29th in yards given up in 2008 and an instant fix to that would be Peppers. Elvis Dumervil has been okay at defensive end but the same can’t be said about 2007 first round pick Jarvis Moss. The Broncos haven’t had a lot of luck at drafting players on the defensive side of the ball of late so Peppers would be a great fit. Denver is $31.5 Million under the cap.


Albert Haynesworth
After a slow start to his career with 9.5 sacks in his first five years, Haynesworth has resurrected his career in ’07 & ’08 with a combined 14.5 sacks and coming close to winning the Defensive Player of the Year this past season. Now the big question is, will Tennessee fork up a lot of money for a player who could just be a “Contract Year” guy?

Possible Destinations: Tennessee, Indianapolis, New England, Philadelphia, Tampa Bay

Prediction: Indianapolis Colts
It’s been rumored that Peyton Manning has been recruiting Haynesworth to Indy. Can you blame him? The Colts run defence has been horrendous the past few years. If Big Al and Dwight Freeney are lined up side by side, they’ll be a deadly combo for years to come.


Ray Lewis
When his career is all said and done, Ray Lewis will go down as one of the greatest and most feared defender of all-time. But don’t tell this 34 year old he’s on a decline. In his past three season’s the kid from Miami had racked up 341 tackles, 10.5 sacks, 7 INT’s and three straight Pro Bowl appearances. Lewis still have a lot of good years in him and will want to go to a contender.

Possible Destinations: Baltimore, New York Jets, Dallas Cowboys, Miami Dolphins

Prediction: Dallas Cowboys
Although it would be tempting for Lewis to return home to Miami and play for the Dolphins, they’re still a few playmakers away from a serious title run. “Ray Ray” has said he’d be interested in the Jets because of former defensive coordinator and new head coach Rex Ryan but only if Brett Favre is along as his quarterback. Seeing how Favre likes to take his sweet time making decisions, we’ll rule this one out too. The there’s Baltimore, a place Lewis has called home since 1996. Personally, I think his tenure as a Raven is over because they’ll have to think about the future of their team and re-sign Bart Scott and Terrell Suggs. So that leaves “America’s Team,” the Dallas Cowboys. Jerry Jones has never shied away from signing big names with even bigger personalities. With Lewis, maybe the Cowboys locker room will have someone to shut up T.O.


T.J Houshmandzadeh
For year Houshmandzadeh was overshadowed by his flamboyant teammate Chad Johnson but for the last few seasons he’s emerged as a legitimate super star in Cincinnati. Even with back-up quarterbacks Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jordan Palmer, Housh put up great numbers: 92 receptions, 904 yards, and four TD’s.

Possible Destinations: Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago, Minnesota

Predication: Philadelphia
It’s pretty clear that T.J wants to play in Philly. He was on ESPN radio a few days ago and said when his Bengals played the Eagles and he said 12 receptions, it was actually an interview for Andy Reid. Now Philly has to address their o-line this offseason but with them being $36.5 Million under the cap, Houshmandzadeh seems like a great fit for the Eagles. Remember the last time McNabb had an actual #1 receiver? They went to the Super Bowl.


Nnamdi Asomugha
Here’s a guy that’s been the lone bright spot for the Oakland Raiders. Asomugha’s breakout year came back in 2006 when he has eight interceptions. Every since then, opposing QB’s have learned that he’s a premier corner who’s been buried in Oakland’s misery.

Possible Destinations: Oakland, Houston, Kansas City, Tampa Bay

Prediction: Oakland
There’s no way Al Davis won’t re-sign his best player. After picking up DeAngelo Hall late in ’08, the Raiders only ended up releasing him because Hall couldn’t live up to his billing. So keeping Asomugha is priority #1. Then again it’s Al Davis, the same guy who re-signed Tommy Kelly to a 7 year $50.5 Million contract.


Darren Sproles
We all knew the 5’6 Sproles was drafted by the Chargers back in 2005 because of his superb kick return skills but it was they he stepped in for LT in the backfield that has G.M’s buzzing about Sproles this offseason. In week 17 when San Diego had to beat Denver to clinch the division, Darren Sproles had a monster game, tallying up 115 yards on the ground and two TD’s. In the Wild Card game vs. Indy he impressed even more when he ran for 105 yards and had the game winning TD in overtime.

Possible Destinations: San Diego, Detroit, New York Giants, Cleveland, Cincinnati

Prediction: San Diego
Chargers General Manager A.J Smith is probably still losing sleep over not re-signing Michael Turner and watching him lead Atlanta to the playoffs, so you can image how important inking up Sproles will be. No one still knows how the saga between Smith and LaDanian Tomlinson will end but we do know that LT is on a bit of a decline. So many teams have gone with the 1-2 punch in the backfield and San Diego has a great tandem if they can keep Tomlinson and Sproles together for a few more years.


Some other key free agents:

Kurt Warner: Arizona is the only team he’ll go to if he decides to come back.
Devery Henderson: He’s coming off of a monster year where he racked up 793 yards.
Jordan Gross: A very reliable o-lineman who made the Pro Bowl this season.
Bertrand Berry: Played a key role in helping Arizona to their first Super Bowl.
Brian Dawkins: Can still be an elite safety for a few more years.
Terrell Suggs: One of the elite young linebackers in the NFL.

Here is a breakdown of cap space available for NFL teams in 2009:

Buccaneers: $55m
Chiefs: $45.75m
Cardinals: $37m
Eagles: $36.5m
Packers: $34.25m
Lions: $34m
Dolphins: $32m
Broncos: $31.5m
Titans: $29.75m
Bengals: $29.75m
Falcons: $27.25m
Ravens: $26m
Bills: $25m
Steelers: $23.5m
Texans: $23.5m
Patriots: $22.5m
Vikings: $21.5m
Chargers: $18.75m
Bears: $17.75m
Browns: $16.25m
49ers: $16m
Jaguars: $15.5m
Rams: $15m
Giants: $14.5m
Colts: $12m
Panthers: $10.5m
Seahawks: $9m
Raiders: $8.75m
Saints: $4.5m
Cowboys: $2.75m
Jets: $1.5m
Redskins: $0