The most puzzling move each NFL team made this offseason
Following an exciting NFL offseason, a few decisions are still puzzling. These are the teams’ most perplexing offseason moves from 2024.
For the second consecutive season in 2023, Arizona’s defense was among the worst in the league, but it’s unclear if Jones will be the solution. It’s unclear if the former Bear’s influence justifies the $30 million contract he signed, which has a three-year guarantee of about $20 million.
Selecting Penix with the eighth overall pick in the NFL Draft after signing Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract with $100 million guaranteed, Atlanta made one of the most surprising moves in draft history. With a history of injuries, Penix was among the oldest quarterback prospects available; he will now likely spend the next two years on the bench.
Since Baltimore selected him 27th overall in the 2021 draft, Bateman has had difficulty staying on the field. In response, the team selected Zach Flowers and signed Odell Beckham Jr. to a one-year contract for the 2018 season. In an attempt to give him more time, the organization extended Bateman’s contract for two years; nonetheless, this is a significant gamble for the team to make.
It’s possible that Diggs was dissatisfied with the Bills or a distraction, but supporters who want to play for a Super Bowl in 2024 will find it difficult to accept his move. Buffalo’s cap picture is improved, but since the team will be depending on rookie Keon Coleman and Curtis Samuel to fill in for Diggs, the offense may suffer.
Clowney brought his career back to life in Baltimore last season, setting his career high with 9.5 sacks, following several underwhelming seasons. In order to essentially replace former star Brian Burns, the desperate Panthers signed Clowney to a two-year, $20 million contract, buying high.
With the addition of Swift, the running back position in Chicago remains vacant, as it has been recently. Swift’s ability to stay healthy was questioned by the Lions prior to him doing so in Philly the previous season, but the Bears are continuing to place a significant wager on it by inking him to a three-year, $24 million contract. The return of Roschon Johnson and Khalil Herbert meant that the position wasn’t precisely the team’s most pressing necessity.
After losing DJ Reader, Cincinnati has a huge hole to fill on the defensive line, but it’s not certain if Rankins can fill it. Rankins, 30, is currently on his fourth team in five seasons, after receiving a two-year, $26 million contract from the organization.
It wasn’t too expensive for Cleveland to get Jeudy with fifth and sixth round picks, but it was a different story when they extended their contract with the former first-round pick. With $41 million guaranteed, Jeudy was given $58 million spread over three years. For a wide receiver who has had trouble staying healthy and hasn’t recorded a 1,000-yard receiving season in four years, that’s a significant amount.
Although Zimmer was one of the best defensive coordinators in the league, his Minnesota teams struggled at the end of his head coaching career. At the age of 68, Zimmer returns to the NFL sideline following two years as an assistant in college. Zimmer will be under pressure to replace Dan Quinn, but this isn’t the most secure appointment made.
Wilson will benefit from his trip to Denver, but will the Broncos benefit as well? The former first-round pick didn’t seem to know how to play and isn’t the most reliable backup for youngster Bo Nix. Wilson would likely fit in better behind an experienced player, but Denver hardly gave up anything to acquire him.
This offseason, Detroit needed to add a pass rusher, and it’s unclear if Davenport is the right guy. He was a bust for the Saints the prior season and missed the majority of the previous season in Minnesota due to injuries, but he is expected to play a significant part with his new squad.
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Bill Belchick’s successor plan for the Patriots promoted Mayo from defensive assistant. While the team’s decision to promote from within is commendable, given the franchise’s recent troubles under Belichick and the track record of failure of Belichick’s previous assistants, they might have been better served looking outside the organization for fresh talent.
Rattler’s draft position of fifth round surprised a lot of people, but maybe the Saints thought his talent was too good to pass up. For a team that needs as many contributors as possible after battling cap constraints over the offseason, it might have been a wasted decision nonetheless. The Saints signed veterans Nathan Peterman and Kellen Mond, plus they developed 2023 fourth-round selection Jake Haener, so they didn’t need another quarterback.
It wasn’t so much that Nabers, a top receiving talent, was chosen by New York. Rather, the wideout was chosen to replace Daniel Jones rather than a quarterback. The Giants are making up for their oversight in extending Jones’ contract over the previous offseason. Although Jones’ injuries kept him out of action for the majority of 2023, he was a 1-5 starter with 2/6 TD/INT and has a history of turning the ball over in his five NFL seasons. The team passed on all of its quarterback picks from this year’s excellent draft.
Without a doubt, the Jets needed to improve their offensive line over the summer, and Smith possessed the greatest potential of any lineman on the market.
Nevertheless, it would be foolish to hold out hope for improved health following Smith’s one-year, potentially $20 million contract, given that the 33-year-old has similarly struggled to remain healthy for four straight seasons. Thankfully, Olu Fashanu, the Jets’ eventual replacement, was drafted by them.
It’s odd that the Eagles decided to bring out the Brink’s truck for Barkley when they have demonstrated that they can have a successful running game even with inexpensive running backs. It was a big thing for the typically inexpensive position that the former Giant received a three-year, $37.75 million contract with $25.5 million guaranteed. Although Barkley has largely overcome his reputation for suffering injuries—he has missed eight games in the last three seasons—he only managed to average 3.9 yards per carry last season.
It was noteworthy to see Pittsburgh let go of Johnson without making a significant effort to acquire his replacement, given wide receiver was one of the team’s top needs coming into the offseason. The team’s new quarterbacks, outside from George Pickens and Pat Freiermuth, will have little support going into 2024 since the former 1,000-yard receiver only finished with 717 yards over 13 games last season.
With the addition of Leonard Floyd, Maliek Collins, Jordan Elliott, Kevin Givens, and Gross-Matos this offseason, San Francisco demonstrated once more how seriously they take their defensive line. Despite the defensive end missing five games in his previous season and playing few snaps in his rookie campaign, Gross-Matos was given a two-year, $18 million contract by the 49ers, indicating that they believe he has more potential than what he demonstrated in four seasons with the Panthers.
Fant was regarded as a terrific receiver when Denver selected him in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft, but he hasn’t lived up to the high expectations. Since Seattle acquired him in 2022, he has also significantly regressed; in the previous season, he had just 32 catches for 414 yards and no touchdowns. It’s noteworthy, then, that the Seahawks re-signed Fant for a two-year contract worth $21 million in spite of his lackluster play.
Not having a starting quarterback under contract this offseason put the Bucs in a difficult situation. when signing Mayfield as a bridge quarterback the previous season, the team decided to re-sign him for three years and $100 million, with half of that money guaranteed, when he performed better than anticipated. Mayfield was once selected first overall in the draft.
The decision could backfire given Mayfield’s patchy performance, which even led to his release from Carolina in 2022, and the loss of coordinator Dave Canales.
Teams with starting quarterbacks on rookie contracts are increasingly choosing to pay much on their weapons. Although Tennessee should be commended for surrounding Will Levis with such weapons, Ridley’s $92 million, four-year contract with a $50 million guarantee is exorbitant. Despite his production not being worthy of the deal—especially since he turns 30 in December—the payout places Ridley among the top 10 wideouts.
