Hie top NFL free agents

Bayou Community Foundation offering grant to non-profits
February 19, 2015
First of 2 free flood risk discussion dinners tonight
February 24, 2015
Bayou Community Foundation offering grant to non-profits
February 19, 2015
First of 2 free flood risk discussion dinners tonight
February 24, 2015

The 2014-15 NFL season was nuts – unpredictable from start to finish.

Whoever thought in the preseason that the Saints would stink, the Cowboys wouldn’t and that a team below .500 would win an NFC South that features quarterbacks like Drew Brees, Matt Ryan and Cam Newton?

The playoffs weren’t any less wild, as the Cowboys both won and lost a game based on rulings made by officials. The team that beat Dallas, the Green Bay Packers, then lost in the NFC Championship game to Seattle, despite holding a 12-point lead with just more than 2 minutes to play in the fourth quarter.


And the Super Bowl? It was one of the most dramatic in history, featuring countless momentum shifts, a 10-point fourth quarter comeback and a game-winning interception at the goal line to seal the game.

Oh yeah, it also featured storylines about air pressure levels in footballs and also the musings of a jerk running back who used his pre-Super Bowl interview time to make a complete fool of himself by saying the same phrase over and over again to reporters.

But for as wild and crazy as the season was, we may have only just begun.


The offseason is officially here in the league – a time where free agents around the league are free to negotiate with and sign contracts to any team in the league.

This year’s free agent crop is thick as pudding – one of the best in recent years across the league.

Making it all better is the likelihood that a lot of the names could change teams – creating a carousel of roster changes that could instantly change the landscape of the league.


Here are the top NFL free agents in my eyes – a list that features Pro Bowl players at multiple positions. Also included is where I predict the listed players will land.

Hooray madness! Hooray NFL free agency!

CASEY’S CORNER TOP NFL FREE AGENTS No. 1 NFL free agent: Dez Bryant Call me a biased Cowboys fan until you’re blue in the face, but I don’t care. Dez Bryant is unquestionably the best free agent in this offseason’s crop. A 26-year-old playmaking receiver, Bryant has been one of the most productive players in the NFL in the past several seasons, combining to score 41 touchdowns in the past three seasons. This past year, Dez showed that some of his perceived character issues were a thing of the past when he emerged as one of the unquestioned leaders on a Dallas team that won the NFC East. There’s abso-


lutely no way possible the Cowboys let Bryant hit the open market. They’ll place the franchise tag on him if unable to agree to terms on a long-term deal. He’ll be a Cowboy next season. You can bet your house on it. Jerry Jones may be a lot of things, but stupid isn’t one of those things. There’s no scenario out there that sees Jones letting Bryant become available to the NFL.

CASEY’S PICK:

Cowboys


No. 2 NFL free agent: Justin Houston

In the first three years of this Chiefs’ linebacker’s career, Houston recorded 26.5 sacks. In the 2014 season alone, Houston nearly matched that with 22. There’s no doubt that 10-12 NFL teams are dying for a chance to bid on Houston’s services in a league where elite pass rushers are in such high demand. Like Bryant, we don’t expect Houston to ever hit the open market. He’s all Chiefs – be it via a long-term deal or the franchise tag. Kansas City just can’t afford to let a dominant player like Houston slip away.

CASEY’S PICK: Chiefs


No. 3 NFL free agent: Ndamukong Suh

OK, now it’s time to have some fun. If someone would have asked me about Suh’s future plans last week, I would have said that the Lions would have been the team most-likely to ink the massive defensive tackle to a long-term deal. But Suh has since come out and said that winning – not money – is his only motivation during discussions. Guess who has a little salary cap space to burn this offseason? The two-time defending NFC Champs. My goodness, how scary would that defense be? They’d stomp everyone – sometimes literally.

CASEY’S PICK:


Seahawks

No. 4 NFL free agent: Devin McCourty

This 27-year-old safety was one of the key cogs in New England’s defensive reformation this past season. But if there’s one thing we know about the Patriots, it’s that they are sometimes unwilling to pay their players high-dollar contracts on the open market. This could be bad news for McCourty when one considers that New England also has decisions to make regarding other players within their Super Bowl-winning core. Often times, players opt for money after winning the ring. If that’s the case for McCourty, we can see him signing with Oakland – a franchise in need of a free safety of the future as Charles Woodson enters his twilight.


CASEY’S PICK: Raiders

No. 5 NFL free agent: DeMarco Murray

After being an oft-injured disappointment throughout the beginning stages of his career, Murray thrived in his contract season, rushing for an NFL-best 1,845 yards this past season. With Dallas’ franchise tag likely being held in reserve for Dez Bryant, there is a high likelihood that Murray hits the open market and becomes free for all 32 teams in the league. But with running back becoming a bit of a dying position in the NFL, we’d be shocked if Murray gets the high-dollar price he expects to receive. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Murray reminds unsigned for several weeks of free agency as teams refuse to cave financially to any NFL halfback. If this happens, the Cowboys will likely move on and ink Adrian Peterson, assuming he is released by the Vikings. That’s a big assumption when once considers that the Vikings have publicy stated that they are standing by their troubled halfback. But I think that as time wears on, Peterson will inform the team that he’d like to start fresh and go to another city. In my eyes, that means the NFL’s rushing champ will have a new team. My eyes point to the Titans, who are in dire need of help at that position, they also have the cap space to make something like this happen.


CASEY’s PICK: Titans

No. 6 NFL free agent: Julius Thomas

The Broncos are arguably the most compelling team in free agency, because they have to make decisions about both tight end Julius Thomas and receiver Demaryius Thomas. Assuming they use their tag on Demaryius Thomas (as Denver media outlets indicate is likely), this will make Julius Thomas free to other teams in the league. While Thomas isn’t the all-around receiver of guys like Jimmy Graham and Rob Gronkowski, he is an elite red-zone threat that could be the best friend to a guy like Cam Newton in Carolina.


CASEY’S PICK:

Panthers

The local pick: Mark Ingram


A big-time enigma throughout his career in New Orleans, Ingram did, indeed, have the best season of his career in 2014-15. But with a crowded backfield and a salary cap situation that is an absolute mess, I see no way scenario that sees the Saints bringing back Ingram for another season. In fact, I’ll go a step further and say that I don’t think he’d even want to be back. I think Ingram will look for a place to be an every-down back for the firsl time in his career. Assuming that the Vikings move on from Adrian Peterson, they’d be an ideal fit for his powerful, bruising running style.

CASEY’S PICK:

Vikings ES


CASEY GISCLAIR

The Times Sports Editor