While two NFL teams are thinking about the biggest stage in sports next weekend, the other 30 are preparing for next season. Every team is likely to attempt what the Eagles and general manager Howie Roseman did last offseason, when the Birds shored up the weak spots on their roster by adding two All-Pros and a handful of other valuable contributors.
One way to do that? Acquire players off the league's best rosters. A year ago, Sam Darnold was preparing for Super Bowl LVIII as the backup to Brock Purdy in San Francisco. He ended up winning 14 games for the Vikings this season. On the other side of the ball, Nick Allegretti quietly put together a solid game for the Chiefs as Joe Thuney's replacement at guard, showing enough to become one of the many free agents who joined the Commanders in free agency. Allegretti shockingly came within one game of making it back to the title game with his new team.
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Let's run through the intriguing free agency and cut decisions for the Chiefs, Eagles and the other 12 playoff teams (in order of seeding in both conferences) and try to figure out which players might be joining other organizations this offseason. I'll touch on the top priority for each team and the potential veterans who could be released or otherwise moved on for cap reasons. It seems natural to start with the Eagles, who did an incredible job of retooling after they fell apart in the second half of last season. Saquon Barkley isn't going anywhere, but can Roseman keep his other All-Pro addition?
Jump to a team:
Bills | Bucs | Broncos
Chargers | Chiefs | Commanders
Eagles | Lions | Packers | Rams
Ravens | Steelers | Texans | Vikings
AFC playoff teams
Kansas City Chiefs (1)
Projected cap space: $16.3 million (23rd in the league)
Notable unrestricted free agents: LB Nick Bolton, WR Marquise Brown, WR Mecole Hardman, RB Kareem Hunt, WR DeAndre Hopkins, OT D.J. Humphries, DT Derrick Nnadi, DE Charles Omenihu, RB Samaje Perine, S Justin Reid, G Trey Smith, WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR Justin Watson, QB Carson Wentz, DL Tershawn Wharton
Top priority: Smith. The 2021 sixth-round pick is a great run blocker who made his first Pro Bowl this season, but the Chiefs have a tough decision to make about how much they want to invest in positions they might not classify as essential. General manager Brett Veach handed center Creed Humphrey a four-year, $72 million deal last August, a market resetting contract at a position where the prior high-water mark was $13.5 million per year. Star guard Joe Thuney is entering the final year of his five-year, $80 million contract, and right tackle Jawaan Taylor has one year of guaranteed money left on his four-year, $80 million pact.