NFL coaches and executives (well, most NFL coaches and executives) are going to converge on the city of Indianapolis for the scouting combine through the first week of March. But as much as the focus will be on interviewing and evaluating draft prospects there, the equivalent view will be on those current NFL players who will hit the open market at 4:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 16 when the new league year begins.
Teams are already able to apply franchise tenders to those impending free agents they don’t want to lose, and deals can be done in that context. The legal tampering period begins on Monday, March 14 at 12:00 p.m. ET, when teams can negotiate with players who will be free agents two days later. Players and teams can agree to deals before the March 16 deadline, but no deals can be made official until the new league year begins.
With all this in mind, Touchdown Wire’s Mark Schofield and Doug Farrar have assembled their list of the NFL’s top 60 impending free agents, with Mark covering offense, and Doug on defense. These are the best players who will be on the open market once the new league year begins, and can do the most to improve their next — or possibly current — teams.
(All advanced metrics courtesy of Football Outsiders, Pro Football Focus, and Sports Info Solutions unless otherwise indicated).
