The 2021 NFL offseason is in full swing, as the majority of free agents have found their homes for this season. More signings, trades, the draft and possible holdouts are on the horizon, but teams have made their first claims on what their team will look like as they take on the 2021 season.
To gauge where each team is so far this offseason, we’ll take you through each division to see how every team has started in their quest for a championship.
NFC North
Dallas Cowboys
Free agents added/retained
QB Dak Prescott
S Keanu Neal
CB Jourdan Lewis
Free agents lost
QB Andy Dalton
CB Chidobe Awuzie
LG Cameron Erving
There’s no doubt that the Cowboys offense was lost without Dak Prescott last season. Yes, the Cowboys didn’t have a winning record when Prescott went down with a season-ending injury, but nobody in their right mind can say the offense didn’t take a huge step back with him gone. Getting Prescott signed was the priority and they got it done.
The addition of Keanu Neal is a good one and he should be ready to go with his old coach Dan Quinn now his new coach in Dallas. How he’ll be used is still up in the air, but he’ll help a below average Cowboys defense.
They still have holes to fill, but Prescott should continue to give them a competitive team in the division.
Grade: B
Washington Football Team
Free agents added/retained
QB Ryan Fitzpatrick
WR Curtis Samuel
CB William Jackson
RG Brandon Scherff
WR Cam Sims
K Dustin Hopkins
Free agents lost
CB Ronald Darby
LB Kevin Pierre-Louis
Washington has made a pretty big splash in free agency so far, with Ryan Fitzpatrick likely taking over as the starting quarterback and Curtis Samuel starting at wide receiver. Whatever you think of Fitzpatrick, he put up good numbers with the Dolphins last season and now has a strong set of offensive players in Terry McLaurin, Samuel, Antonio Gibson and Logan Thomas. Their offense will not be dull.
Defensively they replaced Ronald Darby With William Jackson and already have one of the best defensive lines going. They need to keep adding help on the offensive line, at linebacker and in the secondary, but they’ve given their fans some hope for a winning season and shot at the playoffs.
Grade: A
New York Giants
Free agents added/retained
WR Kenny Golladay
WR John Ross
TE Kyle Rudolph
DE Ifeadi Odenigbo
DL Leonard Williams
DL Austin Johnson
Free agents lost
DL Dalvin Tomlinson
RG Kevin Zeitler
The Giants offense needed a wide receiver and Kenny Golladay was the best on the market. He’s good, but he’ll need to stay healthy and be consistently great to pay off. But it was the right move, as the Giants look to build around Daniel Jones. If Jones is the right quarterback to build around is a question for another time.
Retaining Leonard Williams at the core of the Giants defense is another move that was needed. He proved himself last season and should be able to anchor that defense for the near future.
Grade: B+
Philadelphia Eagles
Free agents added/retained
S Anthony Harris
C Jason Kelce
S Andrew Adams
Free agents lost
QB Carson Wentz
S Jalen Mills
The Eagles are likely in rebuilding mode after letting their franchise quarterback go, so making a splash in free agency doesn’t seem to be their offseason approach. Signing Anthony Harris is a good football move, but doesn’t quite fit with that rebuilding motif. Of course, you can’t have only young guys with potential.
With Jalen Hurts showing dome upside last season, it will be interesting to see what the team does at quarterback before the season starts, but for now, it appears the team is willing to go into 2021 with Hurts under center. They could be worse off.
Grade: C