The first day of the NFL’s 2023 free agent signing period began slowly, ramped up after lunch time, then … seemed to pause for an Aaron Rodgers trade that never happened. But while a deal for the four-time MVP never materialized, several other impact players agreed to contracts that will shape the race to Super Bowl 57.
The Las Vegas Raiders made the move from Derek Carr to Jimmy Garoppolo at quarterback, opting to trade in one slightly underwhelming veteran for another. The Chicago Bears revamped their linebacker corps with T.J. Edwards and Tremaine Edmunds. The market for offensive tackles shot up so high that former Eagles first round pick Andre Dillard was able to command a shade under $10 million per year despite zero starts in 2022.
There were plenty of good deals that flashed across our timelines before fizzling out like fireworks. Here are the four I liked the most.
1
San Francisco 49ers sign DT Javon Hargrave to a four year, $84 million contract ($40 million guaranteed)
The 49ers lost their veteran quarterback safety net when Jimmy Garoppolo’s contract expired. Signing Hargrave to a massive contract while signing Sam Darnold at a fraction of that price was GM John Lynch flying a flag that told the rest of the NFL “nah, we’re not worried about our passing game.”
There are two ways you can view Hargrave’s $21 million salary. The first is that San Francisco is comfortable with making, at most, a minor addition to its QB room this offseason. After all, the two players under contract at the time of the Hargrave deal — for a modest $10.2 million between them — were a player Lynch liked enough to trade three first round picks to acquire and a rookie who was undefeated as a starter before his elbow exploded.
The other is that, in a league dominated by star quarterbacks, the Niners are opting out. They’re going to win without a dynamic passing threat and instead invest all their skill points in:
a) playmakers capable of making shaky quarterbacks look so much better, and
b) a smothering defense capable of winning games even if said quarterbacks implode.
The second option makes sense, particularly for a team that’s made it to the NFL’s final four in three of the last four seasons with Garoppolo as primary quarterback. Hargrave is thoroughly capable of keeping that string alive whether it’s Trey Lance, Brock Purdy or the newly signed Sam Darnold (right?) behind center.
Hargrave was good in his first four seasons in the league as a Pittsburgh Steeler, then unlocked his potential in the middle of a stacked Philadelphia defensive front. Playing alongside veteran havoc sommeliers like Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham and Haason Reddick created room for him to thrive. The run-snuffing presence in the middle of the line remained, but now Hargrave used an increase in one-on-one blocking to emerge as a violent pass rushing threat.
Hargrave had 19 sacks and 30 quarterback hits in his five five seasons in the pros. In his last two he’s recorded 18.5 and 34. On top of that, his missed tackle rate in 2022 was 1.6 percent — a career low.
Now he goes from Cox, Graham and Reddick to Nick Bosa, Arik Armstead and Drake Jackson (assuming Samson Ebukam and Charles Omenihu leave in free agency). That’s not quite the murderers row he was surrounded by in Philly, but it’s still pretty, pretty, prett-ay good. It’s fair to expect he’ll retain his pass rushing chops, but even if he doesn’t he’s the kind of problem-making interior lineman who’ll serve as a deterrent against the run.
San Francisco has its defensive front in good shape. Re-signing Tashaun Gipson will help keep a top five secondary together. This once again looks like an elite defense — and if that’s the case, it might not matter who wins a starting QB battle between Lance, Purdy and Darnold.
Honestly? That feels like the way head coach Kyle Shanahan would prefer things.
2
Detroit Lions sign CB Cameron Sutton to a three year, $33 million contract ($22.5 million guaranteed)
The Lions surprised all but their staunchest believers last year by rallying from 1-6 to 9-8. More impressively, they did this despite a defense that ranked 28th in overall DVOA, 30th in yards allowed per carry and 31st in net yards per pass allowed.
Needless to say, this made defensive upgrades a priority. But with only a moderate amount of cap space — roughly $8.9 million in effective spending room, 19th-best in the NFL per Over the Cap — and several needs to fill, the Lions had to spend carefully.
Sutton isn’t a top-of-the-market addition like Jamel Dean or James Bradberry, but he’s a solid, competent cornerback. $33 million is a modest bet on a player with only two years of starting experience in his six seasons as a pro, but the 28-year-old’s dramatic 2022 improvement made this a smart wager. Sutton is getting paid mid-tier starter money when his numbers suggest he played closer to a Pro Bowl level last fall.
Per Pro Football Reference, Sutton went from one of the worst cornerbacks to make at least 10 starts in 2021 to one of the best a year later. After playing as a rotational piece as a slot corner, he kicked outside, struggled in his first year as a starter and then proved himself as someone capable of tracking long routes. While the depth of his average rose from 9.8 yards to 11.2 last season, his yards allowed per target dropped significantly from 8.6 to 5.3.
This gives the Lions a capable bookend to Jeff Okudah, the former third overall pick who began to live up to his potential last fall. It also provides positional depth and versatility, as Sutton has proven he can work inside and cover wideouts from the slot when needed.
So if, say, head coach Dan Campbell falls in love with Christian Gonzalez or Devon Witherspoon this spring he could still take either cornerback prospect with the sixth overall pick in this year’s draft. Or, if someone like Will Anderson or Jalen Carter (depending on the circumstances related to his arrest for street racing on the night a teammate and a UGA staffer were killed in a car crash) fall, Campbell can shore up his front seven with fewer concerns about his secondary.
Either way, Sutton is worth $11 million annually and possibly more if he can continue to grow as an outside cornerback. This was a big need for Detroit, but its relatively low cost and Sutton’s versatility keeps the team’s plans for the rest of free agency and the draft fluid. The Lions got better with this signing but didn’t hamstring themselves in the process, and that’s a big win.
Cameron Sutton allowed just 32 receptions on 72 targets in 2022. His 44.4% completion percentage allowed was tied for the 4th-lowest in a season since 2016 (min. 50 targets).
Sutton will join a Lions secondary that allowed the highest CPOE (+1.5%) in the NFL in 2022.#OnePride https://t.co/p5ko1Fflkr pic.twitter.com/jij4CkNZXg
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) March 13, 2023
3
New England Patriots re-sign CB Jonathan Jones to a two-year, $19 million contract ($13 million guaranteed)
The Patriots missed out on a very Bill Belichick-esque deal when Jalen Ramsey went to the Miami Dolphins for a pittance. But New England may not have wanted to tie up its cap space with the former Ram’s $35.5 million in guarantees over the next two seasons.
Instead, Belichick opted to keep his own very good (but not on Ramsey’s level) cornerback in town for significantly less money. Jones had his best season in his first full year as a starter, notching a career high in interceptions (four) and career lows in completion rate allowed (52.7 percent) and passer rating allowed (73.0). Those numbers aren’t elite, but they’re very good — and for that, the Patriots are paying him roughly as much per year as Kendall Fuller or Darious Williams.
Like Sutton, Jones’ promotion to the starting lineup came with the caveat he’d have to move from the slot to the sideline. Despite having size concerns at 5-foot-10 he still managed to be extremely effective in Belichick’s defense. But he’s not only a solid man corner split wide, but capable of moving back to the slot when circumstances dictate. The Patriots weren’t shy about returning him to his original position in order in the name of in-game adjustments.
After Myles Bryant got picked off for a big play on 3rd down late in Q3, the Patriots bumped Jon Jones to the slot in man coverages and had Jack Jones shadow Justin Jefferson.
All of these snaps came on early downs in Q4 vs under-center looks. Could pop up again vs BUF pic.twitter.com/8yduBJWgED
— Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) November 30, 2022
That’s important! New England is loaded with young playmaking defensive backs who will suffer through mistakes. Marcus Jones plays like electric current come to life, but if Belichick wants someone more polished to slide inside and track Stefon Diggs or whomever then he can turn to his veteran. Same goes for Jack Jones, who flashed similar big play ability alongside regular rookie inconsistency.
The Patriots are also only locked to Jones for two seasons, insulating the team should his skills decline in his early 30s and setting the stage for last year’s rookies to grab the torch he passes down. While this move does keep New England flush with cornerbacks who clock in at 5-foot-9 or shorter (all three Joneses), it retains the team’s versatility in the secondary at a reasonable price.
It also frees up resources to chase free agents at other positions of need like safety or wide receiver. New England also needs offensive line help, but given the cost of starters in this year’s market it seems unlikely the team springs for a big name.
4
Cleveland Browns sign EDGE Ogbonnia Okoronkwo for three years, up to $22 million ($12.5 million guaranteed)
The Browns drastically need to improve and need to do so inexpensively now that Deshaun Watson, who wasn’t very good following his 11-game suspension stemming from more than 20 accusations of sexual misconduct and what the NFL described as “predatory behavior,” will account for cap hits of just under $64 million for each of the next three seasons. Normally that’s something the team could address through the draft, but Cleveland won’t have its own first round pick until 2025 thanks to the trade that shipped the disgraced quarterback north.
That means general manager Andrew Berry will have to find players on the free agent marketplace capable of outperforming modest contracts. Okoronkwo is a great place to start. The fifth-year player went from a reserve linebacker in Los Angeles to a starter at defensive end in Houston, supplanting Rasheem Green up front roughly halfway through the season. From there, he proved he can operate in a 4-3 front despite less-than-ideal size at 6-foot-1 and 250 pounds.
Okoronkwo, between Weeks 10 and 17, tallied five sacks, eight quarterback hits and nine tackles for loss — a full season pace that would have propped him up as a top 20 edge rusher. Granted, that’s a small sample size and it came amidst the low expectations of a Texans team better served by losses than wins, but it’s still impressive.
Ogbonnia Okoronkwo broke out in his first season as a full-time player in 2022, generating the 3rd-highest pressure rate in the NFL (16.4%, min. 200 pass rushes).
The Browns now have 2 of the top 5 pressure rate leaders from 2022 (Myles Garrett: 16.3%, 4th).#Browns https://t.co/PABWrDJMUE pic.twitter.com/4Wk7H6KzF8
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) March 13, 2023
The going rate for a veteran edge rusher with double-digit sack upside is somewhere around $12 million per year. Berry got Okoronkwo at roughly half that amount, considering the base value of the deal is $19 million. Even if he remains a rotational piece who plays roughly half the team’s defensive snaps, that’s solid value at a position of need.
The hope in northeastern Ohio is that he becomes more than that. Myles Garrett’s presence should help push panicked quarterbacks into his path. Fellow 2023 addition Dalvin Tomlinson can eat up space from the inside and prevent quarterbacks from easily stepping up in the pocket. Okoronkwo isn’t not established enough to keep the Browns from looking at other edge rushing options, but he has the talent to justify reps as a starter.
More free agent tape…
Some potential targets for Matt Eberflus’ defense in Chicago.
• DE Ogbonnia Okoronkwo (HOU)
• LB Bobby Okereke (IND)
• DT Sheldon Rankins (NYJ)
• DE Samson Ebukam (SF) #Bears pic.twitter.com/wf4b0Uxaa1— Matt Bowen (@MattBowen41) February 25, 2023
This all suggests a low risk acquisition with a high enough floor for Okoronkwo to justify his salary and the potential to significantly outplay it. He patches a glaring hole in Cleveland while retaining cap flexibility for a roster that badly needs it. This is a common sense, easy signing for a franchise perpetually committed to living every season in the NFL on hard mode. The Browns still have a ton of work to do, but a low-cost flier on a player who’s been productive when given an opportunity is a great way to begin.
