- Denver took risks on high-upside additions: Broncos general manager George Paton made a splash by adding Talanoa Hufanga and Dre Greenlaw to an already strong defense. While both players bring high upside, their signings come with risk, as each has dealt with significant injuries in recent years.
- Minnesota surrounded its young QB with talent: With the money that would have gone to QB Sam Darnold, Minnesota instead invested in the offensive line, adding two key interior blockers in Will Fries and Ryan Kelly. Their presence should elevate a unit that already boasts strong performers at tackle.
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Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes
The legal tampering period marks the unofficial start of NFL free agency, allowing teams and players to negotiate future contracts. Some teams capitalized on the early frenzy, while others stumbled. While these moves won’t become official until the new league year begins, here are some of the best moves so far in the 2025 NFL free-agency period.
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WINNERS
Washington Commanders
In a free-agent class that lacked top-tier talent, an innovative approach was needed to acquire elite playmakers. Commanders general manager Adam Peters did just that, completing two marquee trades for Deebo Samuel and Laremy Tunsil — two of the highest-graded players to change teams this offseason.
Samuel, a dominant force after the catch, will immediately elevate an offense led by 2024 Rookie of the Year Jayden Daniels. Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, known for his screen-heavy scheme, is an ideal coach to maximize Samuel’s versatility. Over his six NFL seasons, Samuel has earned a stellar 97.5 PFF receiving grade on targeted screens, making him the perfect fit to help take Washington’s offense to the next level.
Tunsil’s departure from Houston came as a surprise, but he remains one of the NFL’s elite pass protectors. In 2024, he earned an 88.6 PFF pass-blocking grade — fourth among eligible tackles — while allowing just two sacks and a 3.0% pressure rate. His veteran presence on the Commanders' offensive line will be crucial in helping Jayden Daniels continue his development as the league’s next great quarterback.
Chicago Bears
General manager Ryan Poles has built a reputation as one of the NFL’s more aggressive roster architects, a trend that continued this offseason. The Bears wasted no time addressing their offensive line, trading for Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson to shore up the guard positions, an instant upgrade for a unit that allowed a league-high 37 sacks last season.
But Chicago didn’t stop there. They solidified their interior further by signing center Drew Dalman, who reportedly took less money to join new head coach Ben Johnson. Since entering the league in 2021, Dalman has been one of the NFL’s top run-blocking centers, earning an 87.5 PFF grade, the sixth-highest over that span.
The Bears also reinforced their defensive front, adding Dayo Odeyingbo and Grady Jarrett to improve a pass rush that ranked 20th in total pressures last season.
Minnesota Vikings
Although much of the Vikings' free agency focus revolved around the quarterback decision—retain Sam Darnold on a significant contract or move forward with J.J. McCarthy—Minnesota ultimately chose the latter. In response, they made an aggressive push in free agency to surround their young signal-caller with the necessary support.
With the money that would have gone to Darnold, the Vikings bolstered their offensive line by adding two key interior blockers, Will Fries and Ryan Kelly, to complement an already strong tackle duo. They also retained Aaron Jones, who rushed for over 1,100 yards in his first season with the team and earned a 77.6 PFF rushing grade.
Defensively, Minnesota made several impactful additions. Up front, they secured deals with veterans Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, both of whom became cap casualties this offseason. In the secondary, they extended 27-year-old cornerback Byron Murphy Jr., who posted a career-high 73.5 PFF coverage grade in 2024.
With key reinforcements on both sides of the ball, the Vikings have positioned themselves well for McCarthy’s transition into the starting role.
Denver Broncos
While the Broncos weren’t among the most aggressive teams during the legal tampering period, general manager George Paton still made a splash with two high-upside defensive signings in Talanoa Hufanga and Dre Greenlaw. However, both additions come with risk, as injuries have hampered them in recent years.
Hufanga profiles as a clear upgrade over P.J. Locke, who had been the weak link in a secondary featuring two of the NFL’s highest-graded coverage defenders—Pat Surtain II, the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year, and Brandon Jones. In his last full season (2022), Hufanga earned a career-best 72.1 PFF grade, excelling in coverage with four interceptions and a 12.7% forced incompletion rate.
Greenlaw, who played just 34 snaps in 2024 while recovering from a torn Achilles, may have the most upside of any player in this free-agent class. He has been one of the league’s best coverage linebackers when healthy. Over his last two full seasons (2022 and 2023), Greenlaw earned an 88.9 PFF coverage grade—the third-highest among linebackers in that span.
LOSERS
Green Bay Packers
Green Bay’s front office isn’t known for handing out big contracts to free agents — a key aspect of modern roster construction — which led to limited movement during the legal tampering period. However, the few moves they did raise questions about the value, given the significant money spent.
The most notable signing, Aaron Banks, raised eyebrows after the 27-year-old agreed to a four-year, $77 million deal — $12 million above PFF’s projected contract value. Banks has logged over 3,000 snaps at left guard, a position already occupied by standout Elgton Jenkins, who earned the highest pass-blocking grade (81.6) among qualifying guards in 2024. With a need at center, either Banks or Jenkins will likely have to shift inside, a transition that is far from seamless.
The signing of Nate Hobbs fills a clear need at cornerback, but committing a four-year deal—the longest among free-agent corners this cycle—at an average of $12 million per year raises concerns. While Hobbs has shown flashes of talent, inconsistency and injuries have plagued his career, making his long-term deal a risky investment.
San Francisco 49ers
With a lucrative extension for quarterback Brock Purdy on the horizon, the 49ers largely had to sit out free agency, watching from the sidelines. As of this writing, their biggest signing has been tight end Luke Farrell, who agreed to a three-year deal worth up to $20.25 million.
That doesn’t even account for the roster moves San Francisco had to make just to put itself in a position to extend Purdy. The team parted ways with key contributors, including Deebo Samuel — who was traded to Washington — along with Javon Hargrave, Maliek Collins, Leonard Floyd and fan-favorite Kyle Juszczyk.
After a disappointing 2024 season, convincing the locker room that Purdy’s contract is worth sacrificing roster depth and addressing key needs could be a tough sell.
Houston Texans
It was no surprise that the Texans aimed to bolster their offensive line, but the approach they took caught everyone off guard. Rather than adding proven veterans to reinforce the interior, Houston instead dealt away its most reliable lineman, Laremy Tunsil.
While the trade netted a package of picks, it’s fair to argue that the unit as a whole is now in worse shape. With C.J. Stroud still on a rookie deal, the window to capitalize on cap flexibility is shrinking by the day. The moves away from Kenyon Green and Shaq Mason were expected, but adding Laken Tomlinson as the lone reinforcement up front raises serious concerns about the team's ability to protect Stroud in 2025.
That said, the Texans did make some positive moves, trading for C.J. Gardner-Johnson to strengthen an already formidable coverage unit and acquiring Christian Kirk to provide much-needed depth at receiver while Tank Dell recovers from his knee injury.
New Orleans Saints
The Saints’ placement on this list is largely a result of years of poor cap management, as they continually kick the financial burden down the road. Heading into the legal tampering period, New Orleans had the least available cap space in the NFL, sitting more than $47 million over the cap.
Through some creative restructuring, the Saints freed up marginal cap space but once again deferred the financial consequences to future years. They reworked several veteran contracts, including those of Derek Carr and Carl Granderson, to create some breathing room.
With that money, New Orleans opted to maintain the status quo, re-signing Chase Young and Juwan Johnson — two players at positions that happen to be particularly deep in this year’s draft class. Their most redeeming move came late Tuesday with the signing of Eric Reid. The Saints landed the veteran safety on a three-year, $31.5 million deal, well below his projected $46.5 million value over the same span.
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