With the NFL season at a close, we move towards a scary time for many devout fans: Free Agency. Many questions arise from this time about how some of the key players will be available to everyone unless the original team decides to pay out. This is hard when some teams have come into a great class of people that they did not expect to have pan out as well as they had thought. This season, many key players will be going on the market: DeMarco Murray, Julius Thomas, Randall Cobb. But here, we are looking at the top 5 player able to become free agents this year.
1. Justin Houston - OLB - Kansas City Chiefs
With stats like Houston's over the past 4 seasons, it is hard to not sign him. With 198 solo tackles and 48.5 sacks over his tenure with the Chiefs, Houston has made his mark in Kansas City. But with him being that the end of his 4th year, the Chiefs are going to have to find a way to keep their 3-time Pro Bowl Linebacker. With not many other players that will need to be signed this year, Houston should look to be either franchise-tagged or get the payment he deserves following his best season, finishing as the season leader with 22 sacks.
But there is one problem: cap space. Ever since the start of the NFL cap era, teams have been subject to only allowing people to spend so much on players. The Chiefs are $1.6 million dollars over their mark. If the Chiefs want to sign Houston back for what he is actually worth, they will need to let go of some 2nd and 3rd-string players and restructure some of their bigger contracts with players like QB Alex Smith and MLB Tamba Hali.
2. Ndamakong Suh - DT - Detroit Lions
The only man in sports that could rival Mark Cuban with the amount of fines he's been given in 5 years. Since being drafted in 2010, Suh has been the most feared player in the NFL. Coming off of his second best seasons (best being his rookie year), Suh has 8.5 sacks and 13 tackles for a loss. The good news is that the Lions have a little over $15 million in cap room at the end of this year. The bad news? The Lions also have their other DT Nick Farley going to free agency this year. With two players off of their line, Detroit needs to make the decision of who they want more.
Recently, Suh has expressed interest in signing with Seattle for the future of his career. With Seattle having over $23 million in cap space and 2 major players to sign (QB Russell Wilson and CB Brian Maxwell), it is not out of the realm of possibilities, but still highly unlikely. I would expect to see Suh still wearing the King of the Jungle on the side of his helmet next year.
3. Dez Bryant - WR - Dallas Cowboys
This might be one of the biggest predicaments in this offseason. Dez is coming off his best season since being drafted in 2011 with 1,320 yards and 16 TDs (Dallas Record). Bryant has earned his keep as being a top 5 receiver in the NFL today. So what's the problem. Many Dallas players are coming off of their best season and are entering a signing year. Players like RB DeMarco Murray (NFL Leading Rusher) and OG Doug Free. With $8 million in cap room, Dallas is going to have to do some major tweaking of contracts in order to keep some of their star players. With players like QB Tony Romo and OT Tyron Smith set to make at least $12 million this year, Dallas may be at the mercy of their own players to be able to sign everyone they need to this year.
Look for Bryant to be franchise tagged this spring so that Bryant and Jerry can sit down again and talk about his future wearing the Dallas Star.
4. Demaryius Thomas - WR - Denver Broncos
Another one of the top players in this free agency is Thomas. After being drafted in 2010, Thomas has worked with 2 of the most talked about QBs: Tim Tebow and Payton Manning. Having been seen in the league for 4 years, Thomas took off after his sophomore season and has not turned back. Coming off of a 1,600 yards season, Thomas was a top target for Manning and fantasy owners. With his contract up, the Broncos have some tough decisions to make. With $26.6 million in cap space and a slue of other star players to resign like TE Julius Thomas and DT Terrance Knighton, one of these players could be left out of the mix for the upcoming season.
The only way this could possibly be remedied is if the NFL sees the retirement of QB Payton Manning, who is owed almost $40 million over the next 2 seasons. If Manning were to retire, I would expect all of these players to resign immediately due to the large sub they could have access to over the next few seasons.
5. Darrelle Revis - CB - New England Patriots
After his 8th season in the NFL, Revis finally has his ring. He also has a choice. Revis signed a deal with the Patriots giving him an option to return for the 2015 season. Having the highest salary on the team ($12 million), I would expect Revis to sign for one more year, but with a restructured amount. With other signees like CB Devin McCourty and LB Akeem Ayers, and the Patriots being over $4 million dollars over the cap, look for one of these guys to be let go.
Revis is coming off of his best season with the Patriots with over 40 tackles, 2 Ints, and a forced fumble.
So the questions remain: Who will get signed? Where will they get signed? How much will the stars get? How will the cap affect who can sign?
This Wednesday, I will discuss the top games for FSU in their upcoming 2015 campaign of going back to the title.
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