It feels like forever ago we saw Peyton Manning go out a winner with the Denver Broncos at Super Bowl 50. The sad truth is though that the game was less than a month ago. Now on to the long road of reality that there will be no football until September. Bummer, I know. In the meantime, die-hard fans search for anything to get excited about for the upcoming season. For the NFL in the spring time, the only excitement comes from free agency and the NFL Draft. Big names like Denver’s Von Miller and Carolina’s Josh Norman will no doubt stay in town with their respective teams even if a deal cannot be done in time. They will simply be franchised to stay on for another year at worst-case scenario. For other impact players looking for a better payday, they will have to look elsewhere to collect. Even with a $12 million increase in the salary cap from last season, it will be tough for most teams to hold onto some of their best talent or teams will choose to opt for younger, cheaper options. Many players and some well-known, are inevitably, going to be cut from their respective teams and testing the free agent market come March 9th. We look at a few of the top names that are almost certain to be on other teams at the start of the 2016 season.
Doug Martin Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFL Free Agency” width=”200″ height=”300″ />Doug Martin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, RB
Something went wrong in Tampa as early reports indicated that the Bucs and Martin were likely to agree to a deal. However, the opposite has been reported lately and it looks like the young running back is on his way out. It was a revitalizing year for Martin after an outstanding rookie year followed by a couple of disastrous ones that left him all but forgotten. However, Martin bounced back in a contract year (conveniently) and finished the year as the No. 2 rusher in the league. At age 27, Martin is entering the prime of his career but the Bucs seem intent to move on and spend their money in other areas. Since he’s a running back, Martin won’t get a max-type contract but expect him to get PAID.
Kelechi Osemele, Baltimore Ravens, G
Good, skilled offensive linemen that excel at run blocking are hard to find in today’s NFL. In today’s pass-happy league, most of their focus is how good they block in the passing game. That’s why when a guy like Kelechi Osemele hits the free agent market, it’s expected that his phone will be ringing off the hook from interested teams. The Ravens are aggressively trying to keep Osemele from reaching free agency but to no avail to this point. Baltimore would like to make him their left tackle of the future since he moved over from guard their last four games of the 2015 season (Baltimore Sun). Osemele knows that he will receive a luxurious contract no matter where he signs and wants to explore all options before making a decision. It’s been reported that the Ravens have already offered to make Osemele their second highest paid player behind quarterback, Joe Flacco, but the undisclosed amount was not enough to get Osemele to re-sign with his current team.
Olivier Vernon NFL Miami Dolphins Free Agency” width=”196″ height=”257″ />Olivier Vernon, Miami Dolphins, DE
The Miami Dolphins have some serious questions to ask themselves going into the 2016 season as to what their priorities are. However, their looming free agents are not going to wait around to find out what the answers are. The biggest questions in free agency coming out of South Florida are whether to re-sign running back, Lamar Miller, or defensive end Olivier Vernon. The Dolphins could strategically keep both but with so many other needs in various positions it’s unlikely. It was once believed that the Dolphins would elect to re-sign Vernon and let Miller walk in free agency but, surprisingly, reports are now surfacing that Miller could be the one to re-sign with the Dolphins. Should Vernon reach free agency, he would become the most sought after pass rusher this off-season. Miami does have the option of re-signing Miller and franchising Vernon should they not come to an agreement but it doesn’t appear that the Dolphins are willing to offer Vernon in the $9 – $12 million range annually that he is looking for (Sun Sentinel). To franchise him would cost the Dolphins about $15 million this season so it wouldn’t make a lot of sense from their end to keep him on in the short-term. Miami would love to keep both of their University of Miami standouts in South Florida but it’s not likely to happen and Vernon is looking more and more like the odd man out.
Matt Forte, Chicago Bears, RB
Matt Forte is the surest bet of players on this list to depart from their respected teams. The Bears are in rebuilding form and can ill afford to pay up for a veteran running back that turned the dirty 30 at the end of last season. Chicago can also feel comfortable with a younger, Jeremy Langford, already in their backfield. That doesn’t mean that Forte doesn’t have what it takes to make an impact anymore in this league. Nothing could be further from the truth. It’s just the business of the sport. Forte has all the tangibles of a great running back albeit not a good pass blocker. However, his ability to catch out of the backfield is, arguably, best among all active running backs. Forte will have an immediate impact in the running and passing game for whoever he decides to sign with. Since he is 30 now, Forte will not receive the biggest contract of his career but could finally play for a legit Super Bowl contender, which is likely more important for Forte at this point of his career.
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Sean Smith NFL Kansas City Chiefs Free Agent” width=”237″ height=”300″ />
Sean Smith, Kansas City Chiefs, CB
The Kansas City Chiefs have a lot of cap room at the moment but it’s in large part because they have a lot of unrestricted free agents as well. The primary concern for the Chiefs is that the majority of their free agents are on the defensive side of the ball where they have dominated the past few seasons. Kansas City likely views safety, Eric Berry, and linebacker, Derrick Johnson, as their top priorities to re-sign with the team. This means that cornerback, Sean Smith, could be on the outside looking in. Sean Smith is one of the best man coverage corners in the NFL. Smith showed what he could from his days in Miami that led him to a deal with Kansas City. Some may think that Sean is getting older but the truth is that he has only entered the prime of his career at 28 years old (NFL). Teams desperate for a lockdown corner will be more than happy to pay up for his services.
Danny Trevathan, Denver Broncos, LB
With names like Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware already on a solid Denver defense, it’s easy for the average fan to not recognize some of the other names that made up the greatest defense of the 2015 season. Danny Trevathan is one of those names that helped Denver capture their 3rd Super Bowl in franchise history and best believe that teams in the NFL have taken notice. Like the Chiefs, the Broncos too have a lot of players on defense headed to free agency. With the focus more on re-signing Von Miller and Malik Jackson, it’s almost guaranteed that Trevathan will be headed elsewhere this off-season. Trevathan is the type of athlete that teams look for in a linebacker. He’s a three-down linebacker that primarily lines up on the inside but can move to the outside as well. With an incredible skill set and ability to cover in the passing game, it’s no surprise that Levathan has been linked to every team searching for a linebacker in free agency. Having already won a ring with a guy like Von Miller running the defense, Trevathan may want to be “the man” on another defense in his quest for another Super Bowl.
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