Ross Tucker: Eagles, Pats, Falcons produce best offseasons of 2009
ross tucker
July 02, 2009
The vast majority of team rosters are set barring an unforeseen injury early in camp. Though there are still some "name" free agents available, like one-time Colts teammates Marvin Harrison and Edgerrin James, most of those players are past their prime and still on the market for a reason. Here's my look at the best and worst offseasons for NFL franchises:
But ...Knowshon Moreno was the draft's most sought-after running back and could thrive under new head coach Josh McDaniels. Kyle Orton is a cerebral quarterback who McDaniels hand-picked, largely because he led the Bears to two winning seasons in the years he was the primary starter. The Broncos signed a host of quality veterans from winning teams like Jabar Gaffney and Correll Buckhalter on offense to Andre Goodman and Brian Dawkins on defense.
WASHINGTON REDSKINS
The Bad ... The Skins salivated over both Cutler and Mark Sanchez and came up empty twice, alienating presumptive starting quarterback Jason Campbell in the process. So much for instilling confidence in your signal caller. They also gave $41 million guaranteed to Albert Haynesworth, who had significant issues playing hard earlier in his career. What exactly is Haynesworth's motivation now? They also overpaid for DeAngelo Hall, considering there was not a large market, given his subpar performance in Oakland. Their top draft choice, Brian Orakpo, has a questionable motor and moving him to the strong-side linebacker position makes him a project as the 13th overall pick.
But ...Derrick Dockery helps inject some relative youth on the offensive line and could return to previous levels of performance now that he is back under the tutelage of Joe Bugel. If you overlook the high percentage that is guaranteed, Washington was able to secure the services of the most dominant interior defense force in the league for a reasonable $12 million a year for the next four seasons should Haynesworth play at the level of 2007-08. Orakpo has as much upside as any player taken in the draft, and now it is up to defensive coordinator Greg Blache to convert potential into production.