The NFL New League Year is now less than a week away, and there's plenty of chatter around players slated to hit free agency.
ESPN staff recently delved into a number of free agency topics, from top players available to sleeper picks and expectations.
Matt Bowen ranked his top free agents, from one to 10, respectively: T Ronnie Stanley, CB D.J. Reed, WR Chris Godwin, QB Sam Darnold, EDGE Josh Sweat, DT Milton Williams, LB Khalil Mack, CB Charvarius Ward, S Jevon Holland and EDGE Joey Bosa.
Also noted was that only two teams used the franchise tag this year: The Kansas City Chiefs tagged guard Trey Smith, and the Bengals used the franchise tag on receiver Tee Higgins for the second straight spring.
Mike Clay said cornerback "stands out" as the deepest free agent class.
There are several good, every-down starters in their prime (led by D.J. Reed, Carlton Davis III, Byron Murphy Jr., Paulson Adebo, Charvarius Ward, Kendall Fuller and Asante Samuel Jr.), plus a few seasoned vets (Darius Slay, Jr. and Stephon Gilmore) and standout slot specialists (Mike Hilton, Nate Hobbs and Jourdan Lewis). Teams had three or more corners on the field 65% of the time last season, so this deep pool of corners will generate plenty of interest.
While Bowen listed the top names available, another category looked at free agent "sleepers" who have flown a little more under the radar but could upgrade a team with the right fit: OL Patrick Mekari, EDGE Dayo Odeyingbo, WR Darius Slayton and LB Robert Spillane.
NFL analyst Aaron Schatz wrote the following:
Spillane is almost never talked about as one of the league's top off-ball linebackers, but he was involved in 19.2% of Las Vegas' defensive plays last season, third in the NFL behind Budda Baker and Zaire Franklin for their respective teams. Spillane was sixth in the NFL with 29 defeats (a stat that combines turnovers, tackles for loss and tackles to prevent third- and fourth-down conversions). He also was one of the top linebackers in my coverage DVOA metric.
Under "bold predictions," ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky and NFL analyst Mike Tannenbaum opined where Darnold could end up in 2024.
Orlovsky believes Darnold will sign with the Raiders, whereas Tannenbaum sees a scenario where he joins the Giants.
This gives the Giants a much-needed starter at quarterback and reduces any potential risk of going into the draft without this critical position solidified. They could then draft a blue-chip player at the top of the first round.
Click here to read ESPN's full breakdown.
Star Tribune writers weigh in on Vikings free agency
Looking ahead, Minnesota has several defensive players due to hit free agency.
The Star Tribune asked its Vikings beat reporters to each select one player they believe Minnesota should target on the defensive side of the ball — either outside of their current roster or by re-signing one of their own, as they did Thursday by extending Theo Jackson.
Only one writer took the latter approach, with Mark Craig saying the Vikings should prioritize bringing back CB Byron Murphy, Jr.
He'll be expensive, but he'd be money well spent on an ascending core defender at a vital position of tremendous need.
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And not doing the deal means the Vikings — dangerously thin at corner — will have to take big gambles on probably two other free-agent cornerbacks, neither of whom are likely to be as young or as good as Murphy.
Ben Goessling and Andrew Krammer also pointed at cornerbacks, albeit selecting fresh faces.
Goessling said current Lions CB Carlton Davis III "could be just the kind of physical presence they need at outside corner."
His ball skills also could make him a fit in Minnesota; he led the NFL in pass breakups in both 2019 and 2020. If the Vikings could get Davis and re-sign Murphy, they'd have the foundation of a strong secondary with Metellus for the next several years.
Krammer opted for Jets CB D.J. Reed, though he noted he initially hesitated because Reed stands just 5-foot-9.
But then I stopped overthinking. Reed, 28, has produced just as much as those guys (42 deflections since 2021) and has been one of the best cover corners for one of the NFL's best defenses in New York.
And last but not least, Emily Leiker said Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams would be a great addition to the Vikings front seven.
Williams is one of, if not the best, free agent available at his position, coming off a career-best six-sack regular season and having never played more than 50% of defensive snaps through his four seasons in the league. He's also only 25.
