The cupboard is mostly bare if you’re an NFL team looking for veteran help this summer. The typical free agent frenzy in March, followed by the low-simmer of pre-draft additions, has left a barren marketplace for teams in need of proven contributors.
That doesn’t mean there aren’t some good players still looking for jobs. Teams in need of an edge rusher can find a 28-year-old coming off a 9.5-sack season. Offenses in search of a powerhouse out of the backfield have their pick of former 1,000-yard rushers. And, since we can’t count him out after last year, a 45-year-old Tom Brady merely *says* he’s retired.
We’ll leave Brady off this list since he’s already doubled the length of his last retirement. Otherwise, these are the 12 best remaining players still looking for homes for the 2023 NFL season.
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1
EDGE Leonard Floyd
2022 team: Los Angeles Rams
Since moving from the Bears to the Rams, Floyd’s accumulated 29 sacks and 59 quarterbacks hits across three seasons — two numbers that paint him as a top-15 pass rusher, at the very least. That left the soon-to-be 31-year-old with no place in Los Angeles’ looming rebuild, but it should make him a valuable addition elsewhere. Floyd thrives as a second-level pass rusher capable of playing almost every down for his new team (he totalled at least 900 snaps in each of his years with the Rams). While age is a minor concern, he hasn’t missed a start in any of the last five seasons.
2
EDGE Yannick Ngakoue
2022 team: Indianapolis Colts
Ngakoue has had at least eight sacks in every one of his seven seasons as a pro. He’s never played fewer than 15 games in a season. But he’s languished in free agency as a somewhat one-dimensional pass rusher who needs to be in a 4-3 setup in order to do his best work. That makes him a tough sell for a lot of teams, but someone out there is gonna get a plug-and-play defensive end capable of consistently making quarterbacks uncomfortable — and likely at a bargain price.
3
QB Teddy Bridgewater
2022 team: Miami Dolphins
The pickings are predictably slim at quarterback at this stage. The best of an underwhelming bunch for teams in need of a valuable backup is Bridgewater, who dealt with injury concerns of his own that forced the Dolphins to start a third-string, seventh-round rookie in the playoffs last January. His single season with Miami also unraveled one of his selling points thanks to a career-worst 5.1 percent interception rate (due in part to Mike McDaniel pushing him for deeper targets). Even so, he’s still capable of running a low octane offense and keeping his unit on schedule with short, low-risk throws.
4
S John Johnson III
2022 team: Cleveland Browns
An effective and reliable over the top safety, Johnson has toiled with the Browns the past two seasons and been unable to stand out among a group whose raw talent exceeded its actual production. Still, the 27-year-old can track the ball all over the field and last year’s 82.8 passer rating allowed was the highest of his career. Bringing down ballcarriers after the catch is a concern, but getting to the spot is not.
5
EDGE Markus Golden
2022 team: Arizona Cardinals
Golden is an effective, if one-dimensional, pass rusher capable of getting to the quarterback. Sometimes that results in big numbers (19 quarterback hits, 11 sacks in 2021) and sometimes it does not (20 quarterback hits, 2.5 sacks in 2022). At 32 years old he’s likely to slow down, but his size and strength suggest he can retain a rotational role effectively in 2023 and beyond.
6
EDGE Dawuane Smoot
2022 team: Jacksonville Jaguars
If Golden is too old, teams can opt for a younger version in the 28-year-old former Jaguar. Smoot offered steady production as a pass rusher, though that’s often all Jacksonville asked him to handle. He’s recorded at least five sacks and five tackles for loss in each of the last four seasons but only played more than 60 percent of the team’s defensive snaps in one of those.
7
G Dalton Risner
2022 team: Denver Broncos
Risner is a workhorse interior blocker. The former second round pick is only 27 years old and capable of being the kind of anonymous presence that sets the tone for a solid offensive line. That’s not the kind of sexy addition most fans would want, but he’s a workable starting guard who can bring consistency — especially in the run game.
8
S Duron Harmon
2022 team: Las Vegas Raiders
Harmon’s production took a hit in 2022 playing in the Raiders’ cursed secondary. It’s fair to wonder if that’s a sign of an age-based decline going into his age-32 season. That could hamper the positional flexibility that’s made him so useful in the NFL, but even if he’s stuck in a free safety role he’s a worthy last line of defense whose tracking and tackling brings value — even if it’s in a reserve role.
9
OT Taylor Lewan
2022 team: Tennessee Titans
Which Lewan are you getting at this stage? The firebrand who made three straight Pro Bowls from 2016-2018 or the aging liability who played only 20 games the last three seasons? Tennessee deemed its veteran left tackle too expensive to retain in a salary cap crunch. A solid 2021 over 13 games suggests there’s still gas in his tank at a soon-to-be 32 years old — even if it’ll come attached to some truly stupid penalties. But with a recently introduced lawsuit pending over an allegedly botched knee surgery in 2020, it’s also possible he sits out the upcoming season.
10
CB Anthony Brown
2022 team: Dallas Cowboys
Brown isn’t the kind of signing that will excite fans, but it will make a secondary better. The 5-foot-11 corner was picked on throughout the last two seasons as teams tried to avoid Trevon Diggs, but allowed just 53.1 percent of his targets to be caught over that stretch. He’s liable to give up some big plays, but he’s a useful veteran piece who can hold his own along the sideline.
11
RB Leonard Fournette
2022 team: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Fournette’s career has seen him alternate good years and bad years. And last season was a bad year, so …
The former top four pick struggled behind a patchwork offensive line in Tampa and his yards after contact fell to a career-low 1.5 — seventh-worst among all full-time tailbacks. But he’s also only 28 years old and his 1,132 career regular season carries, while not a small amount, is still roughly 750 fewer than fellow high profile veteran Ezekiel Elliott. Of course, Fournette’s -67 rushing yards over expected (RYOE) was also the second-worst number in the league, so caveat emptor.
12
RB Ezekiel Elliott
2022 team: Dallas Cowboys
Elliott’s 3.8 yards per carry were a career low and his 1.5 yards after contact per carry matched Fournette as the Cowboys prepped for his ouster. Like Fournette, he’ll only be 28 years old this season and clocks in as a 228-pound pile pusher capable of bringing value to short-yardage situations. And like Fournette he posted a bottom-four RYOE number (-58), so it’s possible that anything other than a modest investment would be a mistake.
