The Super Bowl is still in the rear-view mirror, but the 2016 NFL offseason is already heating up. Free agency kicks off in three weeks and the draft is only 10 weeks away. With that in mind, here’s a look at top priorities for every team.
Arizona Cardinals: Shore up the pass rush
When the Arizona pass rush was clicking in 2015, there wasn’t a better team in football. But the Cards had just 36 sacks and a subpar sack rate of 5.9. Dwight Freeney, who led the team with eight sacks but is about to turn 36, told me last month that he still hadn’t decided whether he’d come back in 2016.
“The biggest key is getting some edge presence, getting a dominant force off the edge,” safety Tyrann Mathieu said last week. “Markus Golden has grown up; I think he had a hell of a season as a rookie, stepped up and played a big role for us. I think we need someone to complement his style of play. He’s furious, he’s a competitor, has a high motor, and I think if we can find something like that in the draft or free agency I think it will really help our defense.”
Atlanta Falcons: Add starting-caliber linebackers
This isn’t sexy, but they’ve invested heavily everywhere else and have plenty of young talent in the secondary and along the defensive line. A giant sad face emoticon is taking up all three linebacker spots on the depth chart right now.
Baltimore Ravens: Get Joe Flacco more weapons
Breshad Perriman remains on a milk carton, Steve Smith can’t be relied upon and Justin Forsett turns 31 this year. The Ravens would also certainly like to bring back offensive lineman Kelechi Osemele, but the line is already in fine shape and they might not have the money to re-sign Osemele.
Buffalo Bills: Re-sign Richie Incognito
The Bills have all of the key pieces in place at the skill positions, but both Incognito and left tackle Cordy Glenn are scheduled to become unrestricted free agents. Guards very rarely get tagged, so the key for Buffalo will be to wrap up the 32-year-old Incognito to a long-term deal, enabling them to take their time with Glenn and the franchise tag.
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Carolina Panthers: Re-sign Josh Norman
I mean, some of these are duh. Norman is a first-team All-Pro cornerback in his prime.
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Chicago Bears: Sign or trade for a star-caliber receiver
If the Bears want to keep rolling after a career year from Jay Cutler, they can’t afford to take a step backward at the receiver position for the second straight offseason. They missed Brandon Marshall in 2015 and will miss Alshon Jeffery in 2016, unless they find a way to re-sign Jeffery or trade for a top-of-the-line wideout.
Cincinnati Bengals: Put together the secondary they want
Going a little vague here, but the Bengals have four key defensive backs — safeties George Iloka and Reggie Nelson and cornerbacks Leon Hall and Adam Jones — slated to become unrestricted free agents. But Cincinnati also has two former first-round picks — Dre Fitzpatrick and Darqueze Dennard — at corner, and it is projected to have close to $40 million in salary cap space.
If the Bengals so choose, they can trade in UFAs above for guys like Eric Berry, Sean Smith, Casey Hayward, Eric Weddle, Janoris Jenkins, Prince Amukamara, Trumaine Johnson, maybe even Josh Norman. The Bengals secondary was pretty solid in 2015, but it can be better and there aren’t many weak spots elsewhere. Now’s the time to attempt to upgrade.
Cleveland Browns: Find a franchise quarterback
It’s that simple! Now the question is whether Cleveland will use the No. 2 overall pick on a top prospect or try to land Brock Osweiler, Kirk Cousins, Ryan Fitzpatrick or Sam Bradford. There’s no right answer pre-hindsight, but they have to keep swinging the bat.
Dallas Cowboys: Find a running back
Replacing DeMarco Murray was never going to be easy, but I don’t think they can expect to rely on Darren McFadden throughout the 2016 season. The pass rush could also use a boost, especially with Greg Hardy reportedly as good as gone, but the top priority has to be getting the aging Tony Romo more support from him running game.
Denver Broncos: Re-sign Von Miller
Yes, bringing back quarterback Brock Osweiler should also be a priority for Denver, since it looks as though Peyton Manning is as good as gone and Osweiler is the closest thing to a potential franchise quarterback available. But the Broncos proved in 2015 that they’re good enough defensively to win despite mediocre quarterback play. If they lose the reigning Super Bowl MVP, their chances of repeating will drop substantially.
Even if the two parties can’t get a deal done before the start of the new league year, expect Denver to hit Miller with the franchise tag. But in a perfect world they sign him to a long-term contract in order to become more flexible with Osweiler and key impending free-agent defenders Malik Jackson and Danny Trevathan.
Detroit Lions: Replace Calvin Johnson
The Lions are in desperate need of depth at cornerback, but Matthew Stafford and the Detroit offense would basically be screwed with Golden Tate as the primary option in the passing game. You can’t replace Johnson with one dude, but guys like Jeffery, Marvin Jones and Travis Benjamin have to be considered, and I’d be shocked if Detroit didn’t spend at least one high-end draft pick on a wideout.
Of course, this all changes if Megatron has second thoughts on retirement.
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