As the philadelphia eagles Y Kansas City Chiefs In preparing for Super Bowl LVII, the 30 teams that won’t play in the Big Game are gearing up for the 2023 season. The league still has one more game to go before the NFL offseason madness begins, especially with free agency in less than two months and the draft in less than three months.
The NFL offseason won’t be short of drama either, especially after last year’s free agent frenzy. Teams will try to up their ante to improve their roster to make it to the Super Bowl and compete with the Eagles and Chiefs in the future. This free agent season will no doubt be focused on quarterbacks, as there may be significant movement among signal callers across the league.
With the offseason just weeks away, here are the top stories to watch for going forward:
For the third time in the last four offseasons, the world of the NFL will revolve around Tom Brady and what he decides to do next season. Brady, who will soon turn 46, has a few options to consider, including retiring and accepting the 10-year, $375 million contract with Fox.
Brady retired last season, but that lasted 40 days and he decided to return to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Returning to Tampa Bay seems unlikely for Brady, so there will be some options available. what about the las vegas raiders, san francisco 49ers Prayed miami dolphins? Are those franchises enough to entice Brady to play another season, or two?
This offseason will be crucial for Brady and the franchises that are one quarterback away from being a Super Bowl contender. Any team that gets Brady will get multiple players with him.
Aaron Rodgers and the Packers have been playing the dance for the past two offseasons, leading to Rodgers being the highest-paid quarterback in the league and the Packers trading their top pass catcher in Davante Adams. With the Packers having Jordan Love entering the final year of his rookie contract, will Green Bay and Rodgers finally decide to part ways?
Tea new york jets he hired Nathaniel Hackett as his offensive coordinator in an attempt to woo Rodgers, and the Las Vegas Raiders have Adams in case Rodgers wants to reunite with him. There’s certainly going to be a bidding war for Rodgers on the trade market, especially since he has two years left on that three-year, $150 million deal.
3. Will he ravens sign a long-term contract with Lamar Jackson?
Lamar Jackson’s future with the Ravens is about as uncertain as it seems, especially since both sides were unable to reach a long-term deal before the quarterback’s self-imposed pre-season deadline. The Ravens can certainly franchise Jackson this offseason and try to work out a long-term deal, but does Jackson want to be in Baltimore right now?
The Ravens certainly didn’t help Jackson by providing him with pass catchers this season, playing to Jackson’s strengths with a run-first offense his entire tenure with the Ravens. As a result, Baltimore left offensive coordinator Greg Roman behind and will seek Jackson’s input on finding a new offensive coordinator.
Jackson’s near-term future in Baltimore seems secure unless the Ravens decide not to pay him the lucrative extension he wants and move on. Then things get interesting regarding Jackson, regarding where he wants to play, how much he wants and how much Baltimore can get for him.
4. Where will Derek Carr end up?
The Raiders will drop Derek Carr this offseason, but which team will Carr go to? Will Carr be the consolation prize after the fates of Brady, Rodgers and Jackson are decided, or will Carr be the first domino to fall?
Since Carr has been with the Raiders, the franchise has had the worst scoring defense in the NFL. With Carr getting a second chance with a new franchise, will a more competent defense get the better of him? Carr was the Raiders’ missing franchise quarterback since Rich Gannon, but he couldn’t give the Raiders a playoff win even though they were respectable.
How much is Carr worth too? How much will the teams be willing to pay you? With Carr on the market, it will be interesting to find out which teams make the jump to him first.
5. Can the NFC champion Eagles keep all of their free agents?
The Eagles arguably have the best roster in the NFL, crushing their opponents throughout the regular season and playoffs to advance to the Super Bowl. Not all of these players are guaranteed to return for the 2023 season, as several key players are free agents.
James Bradberry, Javon Hargrave, CJ Gardner-Johnson, Miles Sanders, Fletcher Cox, TJ Edwards, Isaac Seumalo and Marcus Epps are the key starters set to be free agents next March. That’s a lot of good players the Eagles would have to keep, and Philly can’t keep all of them with the available salary-cap space.
The Eagles will have to get creative again with the salary cap and retain players who are part of the future for the long term. This team will definitely not be the same as the NFC champion team.
6. Who will be the quarterback for the 49ers next season?
San Francisco basically made their decision on Jimmy Garoppolo before the season when the 49ers decided to go with Trey Lance in camp. They reworked Garoppolo’s contract for 2022, allowing him to enter free agency in 2023. Garoppolo essentially took the job after Lance was injured and missed the season, only to be injured mid-season and replaced by Brock Purdy.
Purdy was injured by UCL in the NFC Championship Game, a blowout that showed the 49ers can be a superstar quarterback far from winning the Super Bowl. With Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk in tow, it’s important for the 49ers to maximize all of the player skills at their disposal.
Does San Francisco think Purdy is the answer for 2023, or do the 49ers double down on Lance? With Brady and the other free agency quarterbacks available, would it be tempting enough to pass on both?
San Francisco has a tough decision to make, one that will make the difference between winning the Super Bowl or failing in the postseason.
Saquon Barkley is the cream of the crop among the loaded running class in free agency, but how much will he ask of the Giants? Barkley has said he doesn’t want to set the market for running backs, though he will be the standard after his best season since his rookie year.
While Barkley isn’t the same player he was five years ago, he’s still a player opposing defenses have to take advantage of. The Giants’ offense was lost without Barkley at times in 2022, but New York will pay $10 million or more for its best offensive player. The Giants have cap space, but they have other pressing issues to address on offense.
Barkley doesn’t have to be the first domino to fall, but he will be in high demand.
8. How much will the quarterback class of 2020 make from the extensions?
Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert and Jalen Hurts will receive lucrative extensions next offseason, especially with Burrow and Herbert exercising fifth-year options this year. Hurts doesn’t have a fifth-year option since he was a second-round pick, which means his extension from the Eagles may come sooner rather than later.
Aaron Rodgers earns the highest average annual salary for a quarterback at $50,271,667, which is sure to be broken after Russell Wilson received $49 million and Kyler Murray received $46.1 million in the previous offseason.
Burrow and Herbert are ready to reset the market, and Hurts won’t be far behind. Tua Tagovailoa will also be in the mix for an extension, with an incoming fifth-year option.
The quarterback market will be reset with this talented class.
9. Will teams pay any of these running backs in this deep free agent class?
There are plenty of talented running backs ready to hit the open market, but how much are these players worth? Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs, Miles Sanders, Tony Pollard, Kareem Hunt, Rashaad Penny, Jamaal Williams, Raheem Mostert, D’Onta Foreman, Devin Singletary, Samaje Perine and Jerick McKinnon are the notable names set to be free agents.
There are plenty of good players available for teams, but will these franchises get into a bidding war for some of these players? Will teams drop some of these running backs and let the market play out until the draft, or after the draft?
Teams are going to look for running backs they want, but running backs are proving to be a better value on a rookie deal than paying a player big money on his second contract.
Will the same happen this offseason? There are many good players available.