With NFL free agency kicking off next week, NFL Nation reporters assess how active every team will be.
Each team has been assigned to one of the categories below, based on how active our reporters expect them to be once the new league year begins March 9.
Aggressive
Active but not breaking the bank
Not as active as fans might hope
Standing pat
Let’s start with the teams that will be the most active:
By the time free agency begins, the Jaguars are expected to have more than $70 million in cap space. That’s plenty for new executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin to address the team’s biggest priorities: offensive line and pass rush. Expect the Jaguars to target at least one guard (Kevin Zeitler is regarded as the top one available) and an edge rusher in the first two days. — Mike DiRocco
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The Patriots are arguably in as solid of a position as any defending Super Bowl champion in recent memory. They are flush with salary-cap space and have a young roster to complement the two most important pieces — a top head coach (Bill Belichick, who turns 65 in April) and quarterback (Tom Brady, who turns 40 in August). They have plenty of business to take care of in free agency, mostly with their own players, starting with linebacker Dont’a Hightower and cornerback Malcolm Butler, who’s a restricted free agent. Expect a lot of activity but with this caveat: New England will spend prudently. — Mike Reiss
The Saints are always active in free agency, even when they don’t have salary-cap space. They have nearly $30 million to spend because of the way they structured Drew Brees’ recent contract extension, and general manager Mickey Loomis said they plan to be aggressive with that. Expect a heavy emphasis on defense, where coach Sean Payton said edge rusher and cornerback are two offseason “musts.” It’s unclear if the Saints will target a top-tier free agent because they’ve been burned by blockbuster deals in recent years, but New Orleans will be a spender one way or another. — Mike Triplett
Before free agency even officially begins, the 49ers signed three players. If that’s any indication, this will be a busy offseason by the Bay. The Niners have more salary-cap space than almost every other team in the league, but they also need bodies, and new coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch want to begin rebuilding with players who have strong “football character.” That doesn’t mean they will try to sign all the top names in hopes of a quick fix, but it’s reasonable to think they’ll try to land a couple big-ticket items mixed with some role players capable of establishing that culture. — Nick Wagoner
This doesn’t mean the Redskins will go crazy and spend wildly; it hasn’t been their way for a while. But they will be aggressive pursuing players they like — the draft will not come close to solving all of their issues. The question will be how much they’re willing to pay. A lot depends on what they do with their own free agents: if they let players such as Pierre Garcon and DeSean Jackson exit in free agency, that could signal a desire to spend big on improving their defense. If they keep one or both, they likely will spend on defensive help but maybe not quite as much. A defensive lineman such as Calais Campbell would be a good fit. Redskins general manager Scot McCloughan has been a believer in building more through the draft, and president Bruce Allen has avoided huge contracts, save for Josh Norman. But with approximately $64 million in cap space and a few holes, the Redskins can definitely be active, and they will be aggressive if it means landing the guy they truly want. — John Keim
The Cardinals have 18 unrestricted free agents to potentially start replacing when the calendar flips to March 9. Arizona has shown during the Steve Keim era that it isn’t afraid to spend money in free agency on a specific need (tackle Jared Veldheer and guard Mike Iupati are examples), but the Cardinals have used free agency since 2013 mainly as a way to stock their roster with proven veterans who fill specific needs and aren’t expensive, while using the draft to build the roster for the future. This year should be no different. The Cardinals should be active in signing veterans who can play right away in positions of need: cornerback, inside linebacker and backup safety. — Josh Weinfuss
This has the makings of one of the most critical offseasons in franchise history. The Ravens need to improve after failing to make the playoffs in each of the past two seasons, and they might have to fill as many as seven starting spots due to retirement, free-agent departures and salary-cap cuts. Baltimore has never been known as a big spender in free agency, and general manager Ozzie Newsome’s mantra has always been “right player, right price.” But the Ravens will be busy this offseason and could match last year’s successful free-agency period, in which they signed safety Eric Weddle and wide receiver Mike Wallace. — Jamison Hensley
First, it isn’t general manager Dave Gettleman’s nature to go crazy on spending, so he’ll be cautious, even with more than $50 million in cap space. He’ll also spend much of his cap space on re-signing his own players. He has already given defensive end Mario Addison a three-year, $22.5 million deal, and he used the franchise tag on Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kawann Short. Gettleman will use free agency to fill in gaps on the offensive line and the secondary. He’ll likely look at the second-tier players instead of the top tier at those positions. — David Newton
Chicago is flush with salary-cap space — projected to be in the top five of the league — but general manager Ryan Pace typically takes a measured approach to free agency. The Bears have plenty of needs and therefore should add several veteran free agents. But Chicago typically does not overspend on one player. The Bears can be counted on to use up a good chunk of their available space but not all of it. — Jeff Dickerson
The Browns have gobs of cap room and even more needs, but their plan is to not overspend in free agency to tread water. They want to draft and grow their own young players, with the emphasis on the draft. The Browns might add a few players; it would be surprising if they are big-money signees. — Pat McManamon
The Cowboys don’t believe free agency is the right way to build a team because the production rarely equals the money paid out. They will keep some of their own free agents and sign players to deals at their liking. They will be linked to big-name players simply because they are the Cowboys and because of Jerry Jones’ persona, but it would be hugely surprising to see them set the market on any player at any position. In 2015 and ’16, they signed eight free agents, but none commanded big guarantees. That shouldn’t change this year. — Todd Archer
As folks have learned, the number is the number for executive vice president of football operations/general manager John Elway. The Broncos will have plenty of salary-cap space — more than $40 million worth — and they certainly have plenty of needs in both the offensive and defensive lines. But Elway is looking for value and impact. As such, the Broncos might dive in for a major deal or two, but it will most likely be for players who are headed for their second contracts in the league and are not yet 30. That has been the Broncos’ free-agency profile under Elway, with the rare exceptions being Peyton Manning (2012) and DeMarcus Ware (2014). On those two, Elway said, “I like Hall of Famers with chips on their shoulders.” — Jeff Legwold
The Lions are in the middle of the pack in the league when it comes to available free-agent money, and they have some holes to fill — particularly in the front seven and offensive line. But figure Detroit to do something similar to what it did last year: Make one (or two) big free-agency splashes, depending who ends up being available, and then work the middle of free agency to grab value at a reasonable cost the rest of the way. The Lions might not bring in high-profile names, but they should net decent players who will help them improve. — Michael Rothstein
New general manager Chris Ballard is a big believer in building the roster through the draft. But he’ll have to spend some of the Colts’ $60 million in salary-cap space to fix a defense that has holes on all three levels — line, linebacker and secondary. The Colts are coming off a season in which they finished 30th in the NFL in total defense, and they could have four new starting linebackers in 2017. — Mike Wells
The Rams — with new competition in the market from the Chargers, and a new stadium opening for the 2019 season — don’t want an extended rebuilding window. They want to be competitive as quickly as possible. With only one pick in the first 68 selections of April’s draft, their best way to do that will be through free agency. One problem: The Rams tagged Trumaine Johnson for a second time, paying him nearly $17 million, which would account for nearly half of their salary-cap space. They have somewhere in the neighborhood of $20 million left and a lot of holes, specifically at receiver and on their offensive line. So they can’t splurge much. — Alden Gonzalez
The Dolphins began clearing cap room by releasing or trading former starters Mario Williams, Branden Albert and Earl Mitchell. Those moves alone created about $17 million in cap room. Following a 10-win season, the Dolphins are expected to spend a lot of resources extending their own players, such as receiver Jarvis Landry and safety Reshad Jones. But the Dolphins also have well-defined needs at linebacker, guard and defensive end that can be filled via quality signings in free agency. — James Walker
The Vikings need help on the offensive line, and they’ll likely need to turn to free agency to get it, given that they don’t have a first-round pick in what’s thought to be a thin draft for linemen. They could also pursue a backup quarterback, with 37-year-old Shaun Hill headed for free agency and Teddy Bridgewater’s status for 2017 still uncertain. — Ben Goessling
The Giants don’t have quite as much money to work with as they did last year, when they rebuilt their defense with three massive moves. This year might be more about re-signing some key pieces than overhauling an entire unit and adding several other under-the-radar complimentary signings. The Giants will make enough moves — franchising and eventually signing Jason Pierre-Paul long-term, along with possibly adding a notable offensive lineman — to be relevant, just not among the biggest players in this year’s free agency. — Jordan Raanan
Despite a slew of needs, the Jets won’t go crazy in free agency. Two reasons: General manager Mike Maccagnan says he wants to build through the draft, and the team has cap issues that will prevent extravagant spending. That said, the Jets need a quarterback, left tackle and cornerback … for starters. Tight end, safety and perhaps center are secondary needs. — Rich Cimini
Estimated to have more than $40 million in cap space, the Raiders’ most pressing needs are in-house — as in, re-upping NFL defensive player of the year Khalil Mack and quarterback Derek Carr, who finished in a tie for third in NFL MVP voting. Both players are entering the final years of their rookie contracts. Those would seemingly be priorities 1 and 1A. Plus, the Raiders have 13 unrestricted free agents, and as coach Jack Del Rio made abundantly clear, Oakland needs to improve its interior pass rush after finishing with a league-low 25 sacks. Calais Campbell, anyone? Of course, that would require some deft bookmaking by the NFL executive of the year, general manager Reggie McKenzie, who once said that just because he had a lot of money at his disposal did not mean he was going shopping at Macy’s. Then again, that was during the Reconstruction of the Raiders; these Raiders are ready to contend for a title. — Paul Gutierrez
The Eagles are not in a position to go wild in free agency following last offseason’s spending spree, and they would prefer to build from within moving forward. That said, they have several holes to fill — wide receiver and cornerback are the most glaring — and are led by the aggressive-minded Howie Roseman, the team’s executive vice president of football operations. Expect one big splash and a couple second-wave signings. — Tim McManus
The Bucs will aggressively pursue players they truly feel will help their team, but they won’t go on the type of spending spree they did in 2014, in Lovie Smith and Jason Licht’s first year, when they signed Michael Johnson, Anthony Collins and Alterraun Verner to four- and five-year deals. None finished their contracts, with Johnson and Collins gone after the first year. Josh McCown was also gone after his first year. The Bucs have had far more success with the draft and re-signing their own players. That doesn’t mean that pursuing an impact playmaker such as DeSean Jackson is out of the question, however — far from it. Tampa Bay has just gotten a lot smarter with its spending. — Jenna Laine
They will have no lack of cap room, so maybe the Titans will break the bank for a guy or two. But in his first year as the team’s general manager, Jon Robinson showed a good understanding of finding value. The Titans plucked some productive players at reasonable prices last season, particularly with center Ben Jones and receiver Rishard Matthews. The expectation in Nashville is that they will pursue more players such as those, who can contribute and fit into the team-first, dependable locker room culture they’ve done well to cultivate in just one year of the current regime. — Paul Kuharsky
General manager Thomas Dimitroff previously said the Falcons’ focus is re-signing their own players, so don’t expect any big splashes. Signing players such as Matt Ryan, Desmond Trufant, and Devonta Freeman to extensions appears to be on the docket. The Falcons would be wise to invest in restricted free-agent wide receiver Taylor Gabriel at some point, even if they have to tender him first. Upgrades needed at places such as defensive tackle and offensive guard, as well as depth at safety, can be filled with either bargain free-agent pickups or wise draft choices. But there’s no reason to overspend on outside free agents unless there is a game-changing player available. The Falcons are expected to have between $26 million and $29 million in cap space. — Vaughn McClure
Bengals fans know the drill by now. The team doesn’t believe in building through free agency. The organization would rather develop players through the draft, and with 11 picks in April’s draft, the Bengals won’t have much room to add free agents. The Bengals will likely go after a mid-tier free agent or two, but don’t expect fireworks on day one, especially considering they have their own free agents to re-sign. — Katherine Terrell
Every year around this time, there’s a report that the Packers are planning to make a big splash in free agency, and almost every year, it doesn’t come to fruition. General manager Ted Thompson is not going to change his ways after 12 years on the job. Maybe he’ll add a veteran to bolster the defense, like he did with Julius Peppers three years ago, but like usual, most of what he’ll do will be with his own players. — Rob Demovsky
The Texans have a few needs, including at quarterback and offensive line, but both might need to be addressed through the draft instead of a big free-agent move. The Texans made a huge splash last season by signing quarterback Brock Osweiler to a four-year, $72 million deal, and because of that and other long-term deals Houston has in place, they don’t have the funds to do the same this offseason. And they don’t really need to. Houston finished the regular season with the No. 1 unit in total defense, and that was without three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt, who will be back next season. The Texans might make one free-agent signing — adding a quarterback or re-signing A.J. Bouye — but that’s about it. — Sarah Barshop
Unless they dump salary between now and the start of free agency, the Chiefs won’t have a lot of salary-cap room to spare. Even if they do, they’ll spend more of their resources re-signing some of their own potential free agents than those from other teams. That doesn’t mean the Chiefs won’t do some shopping, but it will likely be more in the bargain aisle. — Adam Teicher
The Chargers have roughly $20 million in cap space, which puts them in the bottom third of the league. Traditionally, general manager Tom Telesco is not a big spender in free agency, choosing a draft-and-develop approach to building a team. With a priority on keeping edge rusher Melvin Ingram, whom the Chargers gave the franchise tag on Monday, expect the Chargers to target one to two mid-level free agents in the second wave of free agency. — Eric D. Williams
Pittsburgh tends to follow the blueprint employed by Green Bay, New England and others to build through the draft and use free agency supplementally. But this team does need help in a few areas, so don’t be surprised if the Steelers commit good money to one key player. They did this in 2016 with tight end Ladarius Green and in 2014 with safety Mike Mitchell. Overall, though, paying Le’Veon Bell will be a bigger priority than exploring the open market. The Steelers already locked up Antonio Brown with a big deal on Monday. — Jeremy Fowler
There will be calls for the Seahawks to spend big on the offensive line, but that seems like a long shot if recent history is any indication. More likely, they will identify options who are willing to sign short-term contracts with little guaranteed money to compete for playing time. Defensively, Seattle will look to add depth across the board. Defensive line (Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril, Ahtyba Rubin) is an area in which they’ve had success through free agency in the past. And backup quarterback is a wild card. Will the Seahawks be comfortable going into next season with Trevone Boykin behind Russell Wilson? Or will they add a veteran? Overall, only one of the Seahawks’ 22 regular starters from last season — linebacker Mike Morgan — is an unrestricted free agent. It’d be surprising if they made a splash in free agency. — Sheil Kapadia
If the Bills release Tyrod Taylor, they will have about $32 million in salary-cap space, but a chunk of that will go toward retaining a portion of their 26 unrestricted and restricted free agents. Otherwise, I would not expect them to be big spenders in what would be a rebuilding year post-Taylor. If Taylor stays, the Bills will have only $19 million in cap space. They will still need to re-sign some of their pending free agents, giving them little cap space to spend elsewhere. — Mike Rodak
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