2012 NFL Free Agency: Stock Up, Stock Down for Top 25 Available Players

For every NFL player that's playing out the final year of their current contract, they are hopefully putting enough positive reasons on tape that will justify a better contract offer than they currently are receiving.

That's the situation we attempt to identify in this article, who are the top 25 free agents who are currently pending for the 2012 NFL free agency and what's happening to their personal stock.

Is their stock rising coming into the final month of play, or is it dropping?

We will analyze the last month of games and give you a rating of stock rising or stock falling based on what they have done in the last four games.

Some guys are skyrocketing up, while others are trending in the wrong direction, without much time left to change the current perception.

25) Reggie Wayne

From Kerry Collins to Curtis Painter to Dan Orlovsky, it seems like Reggie Wayne has had a strange cast of quarterbacks throwing passes to him this year, in his contract year. As Wayne will be a free agent, how do teams judge him, from what he did in 2010 with Peyton Manning, or what he did with the lesser QBs?

Reggie Wayne has been an incredibly consistent performer over the years. He has seven-straight 1,000-plus yard seasons of receptions for the Colts. Assuming that he plays in the final four games this year, that will mark the 10th straight year that Wayne has played in every game for the Colts, something that he can be proud of.

Durable, productive and someone you can rely on are not easily found all in the same player. His streak of 1,000-yard seasons will probably be broken in 2011, as he currently sits at 707 yards with four games to go. Wayne has 52 catches on the year, which also means his streak of two straight 100-plus catch seasons will come to an end as well.

Free-Agency Stock: Holding steady but remains high

24) Jason Campbell

Jason Campbell was having a solid campaign with the Oakland Raiders until he fractured his collarbone. Campbell was a part of one of the most dynamic offenses that he had ever worked with, so while this could have been his career year, we will never really know for sure. Now that Carson Palmer has arrived on the scene, Campbell will probably have to find a new employer in 2012.

For his career, Campbell has a reasonably favorable ratio of 74 touchdown passes to 50 career interceptions. He has completed 60.8 percent of his career passes and has thrown for over 14,000 yards. Campbell has played in 71 games in his career, so now doubt will be in play when 2012 free agency rolls around.

With a quarterback passer rating of 82.8, teams could do much worse than Jason Campbell. Unfortunately, his injury means that he will have to probably try out for some teams to make sure that the arm and shoulder areas are strong, and his passing arm strength has not been compromised by the injury.

Free-Agency Stock: fairly high but down due to injury

23) Fred Davis

Fred Davis was rolling along in 2011, leading the Washington Redskins as their top receiver, which is not the easiest thing to do as a tight end. But, news came down the pike today from sources such as Redskins Insider Ryan O'Halloran and SI.com, that the NFL has suspended Davis and LT Trent Williams for the final four games of the 2011 season.

O'Halloran reports that SI.com stated that both players have failed three tests for marijuana, which led to the four-game suspension. The next time either player is found to have failed the substance abuse policy, the suspension would be for one year.

That will place a big kibosh on Davis' value in the free-agency market. Too bad, because he was looking like a very attractive tight-end free agent in a slim market.

Free-Agency Stock: In a free fall due to three failed tests for marijuana

22) Paul Soliai

I wonder if the Pittsburgh Steelers could sign Miami Dolphins stud defensive lineman free-agent Paul Soliai. Then on any interception or fumble recovery, they could figure out a way to tuck the football under either Troy Polamalu's hair or under Soliai's beard and run straight into the end zone. Then they magically produce the ball for an easy touchdown? No, well at least I tried to put his assets to work.

Anyway, there are plenty of assets to work with here. Soliai has been a very steady performer for the Dolphins over the years, but he's becoming too expensive for them to keep. He signed a $12.38 million deal for this year, but now that he's priced so high, the Dolphins have no plans to negotiate with him.

He will still earn a very hefty paycheck, but he might need to take a haircut (literally) on his compensation. At 6'4" and weighing 355 pounds, Soliai is a beast to try to move off the defensive line. He doesn't have any sacks this year but has defended two passes.

Free-Agency Stock: High but his price will need to come down

21) Vincent Jackson

Vincent Jackson signed a one-year deal in 2011 to play for the San Diego Chargers that gives you a hint that he will be a very expensive free agent. His 2011 compensation came in at $11.424 million. Granted, 6'5", 230-pound wide receivers that are as talented as Jackson don't grow on trees, but that's the going rate for Jackson.

How many teams are going to be willing to outbid San Diego for his services? Perhaps of even greater importance will be what happens if the Chargers fail to make the playoffs, and there's a clean sweep of management, letting go general manager A.J. Smith and head coach Norv Turner? Then, what's to prevent Jackson from taking his services to the highest bidder?

For his part, Jackson is turning in another solid season. He's Philip River's favorite target and has caught 48 passes for 897 yards, eight touchdowns and is averaging a very strong 18.7 yards per catch. When the 2011 season is all said and done, Jackson could very well set some new career-high marks, which means that he will be one hot ticket when free agency starts in 2012.

Jackson already has 19 catches this year of 20 yards or more, which ranks him No. 2 in the NFL in that category behind only Steve Smith of the Carolina Panthers. For any team that needs somebody to stretch the field, Jackson is the receiver you want to sign.

Free-Agency Stock: high now, could even go up more

20) John Abraham

There are some teams that are really hurting for some defensive ends that can rush the quarterback, the Buffalo Bills are one team that immediately springs to mind. Tampa Bay, Kansas City and San Diego are some other teams that could use some additional sacks to support their defense.

Once again, Abraham is leading the Atlanta Falcons in sacks on the year with five. At 6'4" and 263 pounds, Abraham offers a nice combination of speed, strength and agility to get to the quarterback. He has been doing it for a long time.

This is Abraham's 12th year in the NFL, and he has recorded double digits in sacks six times. In 2010, he came up with 13 sacks on the year, to show that he still has plenty left in the tank.

Free-Agency Stock: Relatively high but no longer in his prime; trending downward

19) Cliff Avril

If you prefer your pass-rusher to be younger than John Abraham, and more life in his legs, then this is the perfect place to insert defensive lineman Cliff Avril of the Detroit Lions.

Avril is leading the Detroit Lions in sacks this year with seven, one ahead of Kyle Vanden Bosch. Avril is only 25 years old, so he still has the majority of his career ahead of him.

At 6'3" and 260 pounds, Avril has the agility and quickness to be effective in pass rush but also the power to overcome tackles. He only earned $2.61 million with the Lions this year, so you know he will be looking for a much bigger pay day.

According to this article in the Detroit Free Press, Avril may be the player that the Lions will stick a franchise tag on, and then pay whatever the going rate is. That would be one way to take Avril off the market, but it would make him an expensive player.

Free-Agency Stock: rising up with every new sack

18) DeSean Jackson

You know that the Philadelphia Eagles fans and the local Philadelphia media is having a field day with all of the shortcomings of DeSean Jackson. But the part you might not be aware of is, how the perception of him as a viable free-agent option is starting to sour on other general managers around the league.

There was an article in Yahoo! Sports' by Jason Cole, where he polled five NFL personnel executives for their potential level of interest in Jackson. The word came back that he was hurting his team by being on the field and didn't belong on the team. They told Cole that it would take a desperate team to want to take a chance on him, which helps to understand why the Eagles haven't signed him up to a new deal yet.

Regarding the 2011 season, Jackson does lead the Eagles in receiving yards, but there's a strange grouping for receptions on the team. Almost as if they were meant to be in order, you have Jeremy Maclin leading with 46 catches, followed by Brent Celek (45), Jason Avant (44), Jackson (43) and LeSean McCoy (42).

Jackson has scored two touchdowns on the year and has 12 catches that are good for at least 20 yards or more.

Free-Agency Stock: Falling with each passing week that he demonstrates poor attitude

17) Cortland Finnegan

I finally got a chance to watch Cortland Finnegan, corner for the Tennessee Titans, play at length on Sunday, as he was squared up with Steve Johnson of the Bills.

Finnegan seemed to be focused on playing football and wasn't caught up in talking smack or trying to get inside the head of Johnson, at least according to what the cameras were able to show.

Perhaps, that means that Finnegan is starting to mature, or the Titans are playing a different brand of football under Mike Munchak, compared to what happened with Jeff Fisher.

Finnegan has been playing a solid brand of corner play this year, and teams are taking notice. If he can continue this level of play and help land the Titans into the playoffs, that would bode well for his future compensation level once free agency hits.

Free-Agency Stock: Rising higher

16) London Fletcher

London Fletcher, inside linebacker for the Washington Redskins, doesn't show the slightest bit of slowing down. Fletcher has now appeared in 220 consecutive games, which is the definition of durability. Not only that, but he's still playing at a high level.

With 124 tackles, Fletcher has 50 more than anyone else on the team. He's fourth on the Redskins with six passes defended and also has two interceptions.

You have to wonder at what point will Fletcher start to slow down or lose a step, but if you watch the Redskins play, you will see him constantly in the thick of things, leading the charge.

Free-Agency Stock: remaining constantly high

15) Jermichael Finley

Due to the announcement today of the substance abuse suspension of Washington Redskins tight end Fred Davis, that suddenly clears up the tight-end free-agent market, leaving Green Bay Packers tight end Jermichael Finley as the best free agent available.

His agent and Finley will have to send a thank you letter to Davis, for however richer Finley's deal will become. The only thing we don't know yet is how effective Finley will be when he's not surrounded by multiple weapons like he's in Green Bay. If he's on a less explosive offense, will he still be as good, if defenses are rotating towards him or focusing their coverages on him?

Finley has a solid season going on in Green Bay, but with Aaron Rodgers throwing to him, how could he not? Finley has caught 42 passes for 600 yards, which is an average of 14.3 yards per catch.

He has scored six touchdowns and also has made 12 catches of at least 20 yards long, which is only one catch behind the team lead in that category.

Free-Agency Stock: Rising on news of Fred Davis suspension

14) Robert Mathis

Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney share the team lead for the most sacks with the Indianapolis Colts with 5.5 each. Mathis and Freeney are like inseparable bookends, but the pair may finally be broken up.

The Colts team appears to be at a crossroads with their whole organization based on the issues with Peyton Manning and the 0-12 start. There's talk about blowing up the whole thing and starting over. Freeney still has one year left on his contract and will see $14.035 million in 2012.

Mathis only wishes he was getting that kind of money, as he only made $3.41 million this year. Mathis is 30 years old, so you would think that he still has a number of years left to compete at a high level.

Mathis is a consistent strong performer. Consider that in six out of the last seven years, he recorded at least 9.5 sacks per season. That shows that he comes to play every year and is able to overcome whatever obstacles offenses are designing to try to slow him down.

If the Colts can't afford to retain Mathis due to all of the money that they might be investing in quarterbacks, Mathis will be a hot commodity on the free-agency market.

Free-Agency Stock: High and staying constant

13) Carlos Rogers

Carlos Rogers is a corner with the San Francisco 49ers, and the two entities may wind up working together for quite some time. Although Rogers is playing at a very high level this year, he's supposedly quite happy playing in San Francisco and told his agent to see if he can work out a long-term deal to stay with the team.

For any team looking for secondary help, that's not the best news, as Rogers is grading out at a level slightly below Darrelle Revis, according to this entry from Rotoworld and Pro Football Focus.

On the season, Rogers leads the 49ers in both interceptions (five) and passes defended (15). Not only that, but he has chipped in with two tackles for a loss, and one of his interception returns went for a touchdown.

Free-Agency Stock: rising

12) Lardarius Webb

Lardarius Webb is a corner with the Baltimore Ravens, and he will be a restricted free agent in 2012. Just like Carlos Rogers, Webb is one of those talented corners that leads his team in both interceptions (four) and passes defended (14).

Webb is 26 years old. He also has forced a fumble and makes a number of tackles (57) which is good enough to rank him tied for fourth overall on the Ravens defense.

Webb isn't physically imposing at 5'10" and weighs 182 pounds. But whatever the Ravens have asked him to do this year, he has done his job plus more.

Free-Agency Stock: continues to rise

11) Carl Nicks

Carl Nicks is a guard for the New Orleans Saints, so he will have to probably wait for the Saints to take care of Drew Brees first, and then come back and take care of their outstanding guard.

Nicks has been a key reason why Brees has so much time to throw in New Orleans, as the Saints boast a solid offensive line.

Nicks is huge at 6'5" and 343 pounds. Nicks is only 26 years old, so most of his career is still ahead of him. Nicks signed a one-year this past offseason, for $2.61 million, so you can figure that he will want to see a long-term deal, and for more money, from whatever team decides to ultimately sign him.

Free-Agency Stock: Relatively high

10) Dwayne Bowe

Dwayne Bowe is a wide receiver for the Kansas City Chiefs, who's leading the Chiefs in receptions and pass yardage this year.

After 12 games, Bowe has amassed 59 catches for 868 yards. It looks like he should be able to top the 1,000-yard mark for the year, unless there's some major meltdown in the Chiefs offense.

The Chiefs certainly have been persistent in trying to get the ball to Bowe, as they have targeted him 108 times, which means that they are only completing a little more than half of their throws to him. In fact, Bowe ranks No. 5 in the NFL for most targets for a wide receiver.

While Bowe is having a solid year, he will not be surpassing the totals he put together in 2010. Last year, Bowe caught 15 touchdown passes; this year he only has four scores for the year.

Free-Agency Stock: Medium

9) Mario Williams

Mario Williams has played defensive end and outside linebacker for the Houston Texans. Even though the Texans were asking Williams to switch to outside linebacker this year, it didn't take him very long to make an impact.

Williams only played in five games this year before going down on the IR list with a torn pectoral. But for the five games that he played in, Williams managed to pick up five sacks and a forced fumble to show that he could be effective from a different position.

That will only help to boost his stock in free agency, that teams are aware he can be a threat from different positions. In six seasons, Williams has 53 sacks. He's 6'6" and weighs 283 pounds and is very difficult to contain due to his size and strength.

Williams should be healthy enough to start going through physicals and routines to prove that he's over his injuries in the early stages of 2012.

Free-Agency Stock: Somewhat hurt by injury but should remain strong.

8) Steve Johnson

Steve Johnson is a wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills. If you happened to catch either of the Bills games versus the New York Jets, the combination of Steve Johnson and Ryan Fitzpatrick is one of the few duos in the league that continually looked to challenge Darrelle Revis in their contests.

Johnson actually fared pretty well against Revis. In the first game, Johnson beat Revis for a 52-yard pass play, which is seldom that somebody beats Revis deep. In the second game, Johnson came back with eight catches for 75 yards and a touchdown. That was the infamous touchdown celebration game, where Johnson was penalized for falling down to the ground.

While Johnson is a talented player, he's also young and keeps thinking he's supposed to try to find ways to have in the NFL. While that's perhaps an ideal to shoot for, it's simply not realistic.

There are too many guys that are literally breaking arms, legs and necks for the chance to earn a living for their family and getting serious concussions that will affect players long after they have retired.

Johnson showed that he learned his lesson when he scored last Sunday against the Titans. He then jogged over to the umpire, handed him the ball and then trotted over to join his team on the sidelines. It was a small step, but it shows that he learned his lesson. There's still hope that Johnson will grow out of all the need for antics and attention. If he grew out of the drops, that would help as well.

Free-Agency Stock: Been rising but big drop and TD celebration giving teams pause

7) Brent Grimes

Brent Grimes is a corner with the Atlanta Falcons, and he's one of those players who does a solid job, but sort of flies under the radar. Well, this year, Grimes has stepped up his play to a higher level, and teams around the league have been paying attention.

Grimes recently came up lame in a game with a knee issue that required the knee to get scoped. He is going to be missing a few games, but if he can return before the season is over and continue to play like he was earlier in the year, it will be a relief to the teams that are going to be targeting him in free agency.

Grimes has turned in a solid year in 2011. He is fourth on the Falcons in tackles (42) and leads the Falcons in passes defended with 12. Grimes has one interception on the year.

Grimes is 5'10" and weighs 181 pounds. Assuming he makes it back for the final few games and shows well in the playoffs, he will be a hot ticket in free agency.

Free-Agency Stock: Had been high, recent knee injury sets him back a bit

6) Ray Rice

Ray Rice is a running back with the Baltimore Ravens. Rice is one of the leading free agents for 2012, as he has been proving that he's a consistent 1,000-yard back, as this will be the third straight year that Rice will top the century mark.

Last week, Rice exploded against the Cleveland Browns for 204 yards on just 29 carries. On the year, Rice has rushed the ball 208 times for 926 yards and an average of 4.5 yards per rush. He has scored a career-high nine touchdowns on rushes this year, now that Willis McGahee is no longer there to vulture his scores.

If that weren't enough, Rice has caught 56 passes for 547 yards and another two touchdowns. Rice is one of the most complete backs in the NFL. While the Ravens will only go as far as Rice and their defense will carry them, it will be interesting to see if any other teams decide to pursue Rice heavily in free agency. 

Free-Agency Stock: Very high and rising

5) Matt Forte

Matt Forte is a running back with the Chicago Bears, who was on his way to his best season, when he unfortunately came up with a knee injury in Week 12 that will force Forte to miss the first games of his career with the Bears.

There's no assurances that Forte will be back in the regular season, but there's an outside chance he could be back for Week 17 and/or the postseason. However, if the Bears keep losing games, there may not be a postseason for them to play in.

Forte has said that he will not jeopardize his future by returning before he's 100 percent healed from the injury. It's hard to blame him, the way that the Bears have treated him over the lack of a contract extension. Now that Forte is hurt, that might give the Bears the upper hand in that Forte is damaged goods, and the offers for him around the league will be depressed.

So, it's actually in Forte's best interests to come back and help the Bears in to the playoffs, which would also help out his own cause in free agency in 2012.

Free-Agency Stock: Was at a very high level but has dropped due to knee injury

4) Mike Wallace

Mike Wallace is a restricted free agent and is only making $480,000 this year with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

While it's not impossible for other teams to go after a restricted free agent, it's unlikely that the Steelers would let him walk. He's one of their core players of the future.

In his third year in the league, Wallace has continued to build on his torrid growth. He topped 1,250 yards last year in receptions and already has 977 this year. Wallace has made 58 catches, has an average of 16.8 yards per catch and is averaging 81.4 receiving yards per game. He has scored eight touchdowns this year.

Another facet of Wallace's game that makes him invaluable is his ability to pick up yards after the catch. Currently, Wallace has picked up 343 yards after catch, which ranks him at No. 14 in the league in that category.

Free-Agency Stock: Rising

3) Arian Foster

Arian Foster is a restricted free-agent running back with the Houston Texans. As the Texans are entering the nitty-gritty part of the regular season to determine who's going to advance to the playoffs and who's going to go home, you see the Texans starting to feed the ball more and more to Foster.

Last week, he saw 31 carries against the Falcons. That goes away from their previous shared workload between Foster and Ben Tate. Foster did come through however, as he gained 111 yards rushing against the Falcons, who hadn't allowed a 100-yard running back against them all season.

For the year, Foster has rushed the ball 224 times for 916 yards and an average of 4.1 yards per rush. Foster has scored 10 touchdowns total this year, eight via the rush and two by receptions. In addition, Foster has caught 41 passes for another 510 yards  to show how versatile a back he is.

The Texans have an interesting core of good young players that they can keep together, so you would expect to take care of Foster, since he's a restricted free agent.

Free-Agency Stock: Rising by the week

2) Wes Welker

Wes Welker, New England Patriots wide receiver is having another one of those phenomenal years that he finds a way to put together. Despite the diminutive size, Welker (5'9" and 185 pounds) is 30 years old but continues to beat cornerbacks routinely with precise route running and quickness that few people can keep up with.

Welker continues to amaze with his consistent performance, and nobody seems to be able to slow him down or stop him. In 2011, Welker has already tied his career high with eight touchdown catches, so will probably set a new career mark. He has already set a career mark in pass yardage, as he gained 1,253 yards on 93 catches for an average of 13.5 yards per catch.

Welker will probably top the 100 receptions level for the fourth time in the last five years. He has already topped the 1,000-yard barrier for the fourth time in the last five years.

Any team looking for an impact receiver should be trying to persuade Wes Welker to leave the Patriots. Whether it happens remains to be seen.

Free-Agency Stock: going through the roof

1) Drew Brees

Drew Brees, the free-agent quarterback of the New Orleans Saints, completes our presentation, as he is the top free agent in the 2012 NFL free-agency market.

Brees continues to play at an amazing level. Brees is not overly tall, at just 6'0" tall, and he only weighs 209 pounds. But Brees has a big heart, is mobile and agile enough to move around in the pocket and create passing lanes that he can distribute the ball to his wide array of targets in New Orleans.

Brees has been on an incredible roll all year. He has thrown 30 touchdown passes to just 11 interceptions. He has been neck-and-neck with Tom Brady for the No. 2 QB passer rating behind Aaron Rodgers, as Brees is at 105.5 while Brady is 105.8.

Brees has been completing 70.4 percent of his passes and has already topped the 4,000-yard mark this year. Five-thousand yards is clearly within sight over the final four weeks of the season.

Brees is averaging 336 passing yards per game, so when you know that you have that much offense each week to look forward to, it makes everything else in the game plan work that much easier.

Teams that are just a stud quarterback away from the playoffs would be well advised to break the bank for Brees or at least to make the Saints pay heavily to retain him.

Free-Agency Stock: As high as it could be