Free Agency Preview & Predictions, Big Name Busts

Offenses end up looking as we head into the new year. There are players now, let me just throw a random situation out there. Zay Jones, okay? Wide receiver for Buffalo. Five of his seven touchdowns over the last five weeks last year. Dynasty by type of character. Everything changes for Zay Jones and everything we say about him.

If Buffalo makes a big splash in free agency or in the trade market, right? The nice thing is they can't. I mean, I guess in the trade market. Well, they have $83 million. But your point is that there aren't names out there that make you... At the wide receiver position, there's names in free agency that are very big, but more so in running backs. When it comes to wide receivers, this year is just...

There are definitely no... There's not like one particular elite guy. We can hark it back. You already brought him up. But Vincent Jackson the year when he went to Tampa Bay. That was like, holy crap. There's a big time free agent wide receiver who still has years left. But there are still good players in here. I think there's enough... It's a year to be a free agent wide receiver. Yes, it is. In a middling level or perceived...

Above average, but not great, right? Would it be fair to say that there are no elite or great wide receivers available this free agent class? Yes, I would say that without any hesitation. Because Golden Tate, John Brown. See, I think he's great. I think he's great. I think Golden Tate is a great wide receiver. I think Golden Tate was a great wide receiver. Right. I mean, he's the cream of the crop, right? He's the wide receiver.

win in free agency. And I would not say he's elite at this point in his career. John Brown's had his ups and downs. Tyrell Williams, who really knows how much volume and what he can really add to a team. So at the wide receiver position, you're right. And we're going to break him down. We're going to give you our predictions of some solid fits. Let's give a lay of the land first, guys. From a cap space perspective,

You know, we've talked a lot about, like we talked about Lev Bell in the last show, and, you know, the Jets were a team that we brought up as a possible destination because their cap space is ridiculous. Yeah, they have the second most projected. Do you want to break down restricted, unrestricted free agency a little bit? Yep, so we're going to talk about free agents. Restricted means that your team can either put certain tags on you. I mean, basically think about it.

Restricted means that the original team has every chance to get that player back. Unrestricted is the player gets to go do whatever they want and no one can stop them. Unless you get franchise taxed. Yeah. So, you know, examples of a restricted free agent situation would have been what's like C.J. Anderson a couple of years ago with Denver where Miami offered him an offer sheet. Denver matched the offer sheet. Where he was a restricted free agent. And therefore they. And I forgot about that. Yeah.

Yeah. So let's start, though, at the quarterback position and talk about the best available free agent right now is Nick Foles. He bought his free agency from the Philadelphia Eagles. I hope it works out. It will. And then there are some names. You guys both think he won't work out. Oh, wait, whoa, whoa, whoa. It'll work out for him financially. That's what I'm talking about. That's all I mean. Oh, yeah, that'll work out for him. I don't think it'll work out for him.

Success-wise. Nick Foles is 30 years old. We've seen him Super Bowl MVP. Came on last season. It was a boon to that offense towards the end of the year. Ryan Tannehill, Blake Bortles are not free agents. Both are potential cuts by the respective organizations. I don't think anybody expects Ryan Tannahill back in Miami. And then Blake Bortles, the odds are still very low. You have the company line out there. He's the quarterback right now. That's what Tom Coughlin said.

because it is factually accurate information. But let's start with Nick Foles teams that we think could be possible destinations. Because, Mike, you know, when I look at your roster on a dynasty in our Dynasty League, and I have, I need some depth behind Patrick Mahomes, I look at Nick Foles and I say, hey, I want to go trade for him because he's at least a starter type of player. I mean, he theoretically, he should be a starter. What's hard what I was throwing out, I hope it works out for him, one, because he was going to make a,

lot of money if he had just stayed in Philadelphia for another year, but he would have been a backup, of course. $20 million. But it's definitely a softer market for free agent types of quarterbacks because the top two spots that we can think of, right, are Jacksonville and Miami, but they still have quarterbacks and they would have to make a really big decision. Like Jacksonville to cut Blake Bortles, you're eating $16.5 million to you.

towards your cat i would like to eat 16 and a half million dollars i don't think you would feel very good afterwards that's a lot of dirty can you spend it in your tummy after you've eaten it probably not can you spend it yeah i would imagine that you could get a good amount of it out and clean it up oh

That is literally dirty money. That is dirty money. There's a new, you know, the will it blend? Uh, will it pass? I thought you were going to say, will it spin? Will it, will it pass? You might want to wash your hands. Um, at the grocery store. Look, Jackson, to your point, though, regardless of the decision they make Jacksonville drafts at seven. Miami drafts at 13. Yeah, and they also have that available. Both can make, um, make decisions with rookies.

I do think Nick Foles finds a job. For me, the destination is Jacksonville. I think Nick Foles ends up in Jacksonville. I, you know, I think they want to bring in somebody that they view as, and I understand it's all subjective, but someone they view as experienced and more of a stable presence. Presence. And a leader. You know, Nick Foles gets heralded. Say what you want.

for him on the field, but people like playing with him. There's an intangible effect that has happened in Philadelphia over the last two years, and he wants to lead a team. Being a leader is what he wants to do. Jacksonville needs that. Bortles hasn't been that to date or at least been capable of giving consistent performances to back it up, right? You can be a leader. If you stink, it doesn't really land very well. Right. But I think Jacksonville is my prediction for Nick Fools. I'm going to stick with that one. And I've got Miami.

Because I believe of the two between Ryan Tannenhill and Blake Bortles, Tannenhill is the most likely to get cut. Honestly, I think they both probably do. But if I'm playing the odds of probability, Tannenhill will go first. And so I think that Foles would be a big win for Miami. I'm going to throw out a more surprising destination that of the New York Giants. I think that the...

The Giants know. I mean, all the jokes aside about, you know, oh, E-Ly's our guy, Gettleman. No, I know. He doesn't know. Look, I realize that the fantasy football Twitter community hates Gettleman for taking Seekwon over. And look, if I was on the clock there, if I was on the clock there, there's no chance I wouldn't have taken Sam Darnold. But the point is, Gettlement is not as bad as he has made out to be. That is my belief. And I think that.

He knows he's got to replace Eli Manning. He's either doing that in the draft or doing it in free agency. And his only option of free agency, I believe, unless he wants to take a gamble on a Teddy Bridgewater or something, is going to be Nick Full. So I think that that's a possible destination. You think that the numbers work makes sense, though? Because Nick Foles is going to be out there looking from a good contract. He is going to be looking for a good contract. He could have gotten $20 million to be the backup. And if he signs to the Giants right now,

He's signing to be the backup. Look, whenever you're talking about... He won't sign to be a backup. No, he will not do it. He will not sign with someone to be a backup. He would have already stayed and been happy where he was. So you think Eli gets cut? I think they would be willing to replace Eli with Foles and say this is the future. They'd pay for that. And then you're in a major market. I mean, Foles is smart enough to realize he's going to make a lot more money.

if you're the starting quarterback for the New York Giants. Would you do that to the Eagles? Yeah, no, I think, I mean, that's another thing. You're in division. There's an advantage. I'm just tearing, slowly tearing apart your argument. Nick Foles has been in a position where he has thought about hanging it up before. The only thing he wants to go do is lead a team for a couple of years. I don't think he represents a long term solution for the Giants. It's interesting. It certainly would be.

the ultimate play by the Giants to kind of take your quarterback and use them against you. So the other quarterbacks, you know, I think it's more likely that a player like Ryan Tannehill or Blake Bortles gets a starting job than I do Teddy Bridgewater. Now, Teddy Bridgewater is 26 years old. To me, the destination you just brought up, New York, I think the Giants are a perfect home for Teddy Bridgewater because if you need to pull the plug.

on Eli Manning in game four, game six, or game eight, or game one. You would have the option to do that with a player that has led an offense that is multiple years removed from his major injury and would not cost you a lot to stash him back behind Eli Manning. So my prediction for Teddy is to head to New York. But again, I think Blake Bortles and Ryan Taney will have a better shot at a starting job, not that there are very many out there. That's what I'm saying. There's not really many starting.

jobs available. I think for all the reasons you were talking about for Teddy, I think he makes great sense as well for Washington. They need a stopgap guy. They're not sure if Alex Smith is going to be back or not. At this point, they at least have to plan for 2019 that they don't have someone. And Teddy, I don't think we'll command. He won't command Nick Foles. No. Level of a contract. Yeah, I've got Teddy resigning with the Saints. I think.

look, he could be the replacement to Drew Breeze. And even if he's saying, if he's going to sign somewhere to be a backup, might as well sign for the team he's with. Sure. You know, he's a super, you know, they're Super Bowl contenders with an aging quarterback that obviously is not going to be playing five years from now. So, you know, it would make sense to me if I was Teddy to stay in New Orleans. As far as Tannenhill goes, I could see a couple of different homes for him. It makes sense to me for him to, you know, somebody like Cincinnati.

as an insurance policy for the Dalton experience, and then someplace like where he could step in due to injury. I mean, he's probably going to be a backup. Bortles is probably going to be a backup, like you said, and you still have the rookie class. It's more likely that Murray and Haskins end up being starters this year than those two guys. You know, Dalton, so I don't think Tanna Hill, you know, would come in and be the replacement, but Dalton could get cut.

I was just going to say that the dark horse here is the Cincinnati Bengals for any of these quarterbacks because Dalton can be cut for a $0 dead cap. They can just move on. And he's right now is, I mean, he's a lame duck quarterback. You have a new coaching staff coming in. He's on the last year of his contract. You could easily move on from him. I think you're a year removed from that process. You may be in a Blake Bortle situation this year that Jacksonville was in last year.

But the problem with that is then Andy Dalton is just good enough to keep the gray clouds away. And then you go, oh, well, maybe this can be the guy. Then you've got to figure out a contract and then you're stuck. Well, I just think you end up drafting somebody this year and then using this as your evaluation year on Dalton. I mean, Zach Taylor, my concern is that Zach Taylor. Where are the Bengals drafting? Same place all the other teams are drafting.

Nice. Cincinnati does not have a first round pick. Cincinnati is drafting 11th. Oh, yes, they do. I have them at nine. That escalated quickly. Oh, I was looking at the cap room. That's what I was looking at. I apologize. All right. But Zach Taylor has come out and said all the right thing. Says he's a perfect fit for the offense. He's been endorsing Andy Dalton. And let's be honest, when you look out there at the free agent landscape, I don't want Ryan Tanlon. I don't think him coming in.

running my offense is going to be different than Andy Dalton. I'm talking about Foles. Sure, but I don't think Foles is an upgrade on Dalton. I was going to say if Andy Dalton was a free agent, if they cut him today and before free agency, you know, opens up, you can start talking to free agents on the 11th. Andy Dalton would be my number one quarterback on the market. If I'm Jacksonville, I'd go after Dalton. If they cut him, he'd be the best fit for Cincinnati. That's what we're saying. It's like when the Cowboys lost Des Bryant.

The list of teams that really could use as Brian definitely included Dallas. All right, we're going to move on to running back before we do that. I do want to remind everybody a few days left to take advantage of the monster pre-order bonus situation. Talking about the ultimate draft kit. It's available for pre-order, Mike, you wanted to say the word bonus. I did. Let me talk about it. It didn't feel right. Hey, if you pre-order at ultimate draft kit.com before March 1st. What happens? You get.