Re-Grading 10 Biggest NFL Free Agent Signings of the Last 10 Years
The NFL's current version of free agency was established in 1993 and it's safe to say that it has significantly changed the way teams have approached roster building.
Players are making more money than ever as front offices are routinely willing to give one guy a triple-digit contract in pursuit of a Lombardi trophy. That's led to some big names swapping jerseys over the last three decades, and some teams have received a high return on their investment(s) while others are still trying to recover financially.
Here, we'll dive into both ends of the spectrum by re-grading a few of the biggest free-agent signings over the last 10 years. Of course, "biggest" can be subjective as the transactions selected either involve big names, big money or had a big significance on how the signing impacted the market moving forward.
The free-agent signings discussed are listed in chronological order and not ranked in terms of significance.
2015: Miami Dolphins, Ndamukong Suh
1 of 10
After being the No. 2 overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft and racking up 36 sacks and 66 TFL to go along with the Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, and four All-Pro and Pro Bowl selections in five years for the Detroit Lions, Ndamukong Suh hit the free-agent market in 2015.
Suh's free agency was significant because not only was he one of the league's best defensive players at the time, but he was upfront that he was going to sign with the highest bidder. The defensive tackle famously said he would let his agent pick his next team, which had undoubtedly happened before, but most players weren't/aren't as direct about it.
Literally, that strategy paid off as Suh received a six-year, $114.4 million (nearly $60 million guaranteed) contract with the Miami Dolphins. At the time, that was the most money a defensive player had received in league history.
However, his tenure in Miami didn't live up to expectations.
While Suh was a second-team All-Pro and Pro Bowler in 2016, that was the only year he earned postseason honors with the Dolphins and saw a dip in production with 15.5 sacks and 37 TFL in three years. So, he only played out half of the contract before being let go in 2018 and the team made the playoffs just once while he was on the roster.
Grade: C
2017: New England Patriots Sign Stephon Gilmore
2 of 10
The Buffalo Bills learned the hard way about letting Bill Belichick swoop up one of their best players.
Stephon Gilmore was the 10th overall pick in the 2012 NFL draft and while he only made one Pro Bowl appearance in five years with the Bills, he had good ball production with 14 interceptions and 62 passes defended.
His lone All-Star appearance came during his final year in Buffalo where he had five picks. However, new (and current) head coach Sean McDermott opted to let the corner walk in free agency where a division rival was lurking in the shadows.
Gilmore signed a five-year, $65 million ($31 million guaranteed) contract with the New England Patriots in 2017. His first season in New England was underwhelming but the next three included three Pro Bowl appearances and two first-team All-Pro selections.
On top of that, the South Carolina product won a Super Bowl in 2018 and led the league with six interceptions and 20 passes defended the following year, earning the Defensive Player of the Year Award. In total, he spent four years with the club and racked up 11 interceptions and 52 PBUs before getting traded ahead of the 2021 campaign.
To rub more salt in the Bills' wounds, New England was 6-0 against Buffalo in games that Gilmore played in.
Grade: A+
2018: San Francisco 49ers Sign Richard Sherman
3 of 10
As an original member of the 'Legion of Boom', Richard Sherman is a significant piece of the NFL's and the Seattle Seahawks' histories as a member of one of the best secondaries in recent memory.
In his prime, Sherman was widely considered the cornerback in the league. He racked up 32 interceptions and 99 passes defended while making four All-Pro and Pro Bowl teams in seven years with the Seahawks.
The corner's most famous PBU cemented his legacy in Seattle's rivalry with the San Francisco 49ers, breaking up a pass intended for Michael Crabtree in the NFC Championship. That led to the Seahawks' lone Super Bowl win.
However, heading into the 2018 offseason, the organization parted ways with Sherman as he was coming off a torn Achilles and about to turn 30 years old. So, he hit free agency in a unique way, opting to represent himself instead of using an agent, and flipped sides of the rivalry on a three-year, $27.15 million ($3 million guaranteed) contract.
The Stanford product returned to the Bay Area and had a rather pedestrian first season with the 49ers, recording no interceptions and just four passes defended in 14 games. The following year he returned to form, logging three picks and 11 PBUs to earn second-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl selections, guiding San Franciso to a Super Bowl appearance.
Sherman suffered another injury in 2020, limiting him to just five games, but he proved to be a valuable asset for the 49ers during his three years there.
Grade: B-
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2018: Minnesota Vikings Sign Kirk Cousins
4 of 10
From the moment he was drafted, Kirk Cousins has had an interesting NFL career.
Washington selected him in the fourth round after using the No. 2 overall pick on Robert Griffin III, so Cousins was never expected to become the team's starting quarterback. However, Griffin's injuries paved the way for the Michigan State product to take over and he put together a strong campaign in 2015, his first as a full-time starter.
That was also a contract year which led to the organization using the franchise tag on him. After making the Pro Bowl for the first time the following season, Cousins was adamant about receiving a fully guaranteed contract and became one of the few players in league history to get tagged in consecutive years.
The next offseason, the quarterback finally got the big money deal he was looking for via a three-year, fully guaranteed $84 million contract from the Minnesota Vikings.
In six years with the Vikings, after a couple of contract extensions, Cousins put up some impressive numbers with a 67.9 completion percentage, over 23,000 yards and 171 touchdowns while compiling a 50-37-1 record and making two playoff appearances.
Cousins was also a three-time Pro Bowler in Minnesota, but his struggles in big games with only one postseason win for the Vikings somewhat overshadowed his success.
Grade: B+
2019: Baltimore Ravens Sign Earl Thomas
5 of 10
In the same vein as Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas has a strong legacy in the NFL and, more specifically, with the Seattle Seahawks.
Thomas was another key member of the 'Legion of Boom', compiling 28 interceptions, 67 passes defended, five All-Pro selections and six Pro Bowls in nine seasons with the Seahawks. However, similar to Sherman, the safety's tenure in Seattle came to an ugly end due to injuries and his age.
Plus, there was the infamous signal he gave the team's bench while getting carted off with a broken leg...
That led to Seattle's brass letting Thomas walk in free agency during the 2019 offseason, and he signed a four-year, $55 million ($32 million) contract with the Baltimore Ravens. He was expected to join the Ravens' long list of quality defenders and safeties, and while he did earn another Pro Bowl bid that fall, it's safe to say he didn't live up to expectations.
During training camp the following year, Thomas punched teammate Chuck Clark and was eventually released by Baltimore. Later, a story from The Athletic revealed that head coach John Harbaugh asked the team's leaders if they wanted the safety to return to the team after the incident and only one player said 'yes'.
The article also revealed that the veteran had become "uncoachable" and had several locker room issues during his brief time with the Ravens. So, Thomas goes down as a rare miss in free agency by the organization.
Grade: D
2019: New York Jets Sign Le'Veon Bell
6 of 10
Le'Veon Bell's path to the New York Jets is one of the most significant case studies in NFL free agency as it still is brought up and serves as a cautionary tale for players wanting a new contract five years later.
During his first five seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Bell had become one of the best running backs and most dynamic offensive weapons in the league. He totaled over 1,200 yards from scrimmage and at least eight touchdowns in four out of his first five years, the lone exception being in 2015 when he suffered a knee injury six games into the campaign.
The running back was seeking a long-term and lucrative contract after his rookie deal expired ahead of the 2017 season but couldn't reach an agreement with the Steelers, leading to the team using the franchise tag on him. The following offseason was more of the same where Pittsburgh again applied the one-year tender on the back.
This time, Bell opted to pull a power move and decided to sit out the corresponding regular season and test free agency in the spring.
At first, it seemed like that decision had paid off as the Jets brought him in on a four-year, $52.5 million ($27 million guaranteed) contract. However, New York released him just a year and a half later after failing to find a mid-season trade partner.
That year off seemingly led to Bell going from one of the best players at his position to an NFL journeyman who played for three teams in two years after getting let go by the Jets.
Grade: F
2020: Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sign Tom Brady
7 of 10
To a certain degree, Tom Brady signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers cemented his legacy as the G.O.A.T.
Between his countless individual awards and six Super Bowl wins during his 20 years with the New England Patriots, Brady had already put together a Hall of Fame-caliber career. However, there was one narrative that he wouldn't be able to shake in New England; that he couldn't win without Bill Belichick.
So, as the ultimate competitor, the then-43-year-old quarterback headed to Tampa Bay during the 2020 offseason after inking a two-year, fully guaranteed $50 million contract in free agency.
The move immediately paid off for the Bucs as it lured tight end Rob Gronkowski out of retirement and led to several other players wanting to play for the team, resulting in the organization's second Lombardi Trophy.
Brady ended up playing two more years in Tampa, throwing for over 14,500 yards and 108 touchdown passes during the regular season and making the playoffs every season he was with the Bucs.
Meanwhile, the Patriots have made just one postseason appearance, a first-round exit in 2021, and have had several different starting quarterbacks over the last four seasons. Also, Belichick is now out of the league with a 29-38 record since the G.O.A.T. left.
Grade: A+
2021: New York Giants Sign Kenny Golladay
8 of 10
Compared to the other players included on this list, Kenny Golladay is by far the least recognizable name. However, at one point, he was widely considered one of the NFL's up-and-coming wide receivers.
As a third-round pick by the Detroit Lions in 2017, the Northern Illinois product made some noise as a rookie with 477 yards and three touchdowns while making only five starts and receiving just 48 targets. That led to back-to-back 1,000-yard campaigns and 16 touchdowns the following seasons combined, including a league-leading 11 scores in 2019.
Golladay suffered a few injuries that kept him to just five games during his last season in Detroit. However, he was still one of the most coveted free-agent-wideouts during the 2021 offseason, listed as the fourth player overall on Pro Football Focus' rankings and the top receiver who didn't get franchised-tagged.
That led to the New York Giants giving him a four-year, $72 million ($28 million guaranteed) contract in the offseason. At the time, that was tied with Tyreek Hill and Odell Beckham Jr. for the sixth-richest contract at the position on a dollar-per-year basis. However, it's safe to say Golladay didn't live up to expectations in the Big Apple.
His first season with the Giants was a bust, hauling in just 37 passes for 521 yards while being kept out of the end zone in 14 games. The following year was even worse with just six grabs and 81 yards after getting benched with just four starts in 12 contests.
Golladay's tenure in New York came to a comedic ending when he scored his lone touchdown with the club during his final game.
Grade: F
2021: Arizona Cardinals Sign J.J. Watt
9 of 10
J.J. Watt's Hall of Fame-caliber career career will be most fondly remembered for his decade-long run with the Houston Texans. That's where he became one of three players in league history to win the Defensive Player of the Year Award three times, was a five-time first-team All-Pro and racked up 101 sacks, almost double the amount of any other Texan.
However, Houston struggled to have postseason success during Watts' tenure, never reaching an AFC Championship game and routinely getting knocked out in the first round. So, when the team went 4-12 in 2020 toward the end of the defensive end's career, he wasn't interested in being part of another rebuild and asked the organization to release him.
The then-32-year-old became a free agent for the first time and ended up inking a two-year, $28 million ($20 million guaranteed) contract with the Arizona Cardinals.
Unfortunately, Watt's tenure in Arizona was highlighted more by injuries than impact plays. He had just one sack in 2021 after being limited to seven regular-season games after suffering a shoulder injury. Granted, he did return for the team's playoff game, a 34-11 Wild Card loss to the eventual Super Bowl Champions, the Los Angeles Rams.
The defensive end battled heart issues the following year, and while he did finish with 12.5 sacks, the Cardinals went just 4-13 in what ended up being Watt's final NFL season.
Grade: C-
2022: Buffalo Bills Sign Von Miller
10 of 10
Much like J.J. Watt, Von Miller's Hall of Fame-caliber career will be more remembered for what he did before signing with his current club.
The 2011 No. 2 overall pick will go down as one of the best players in the Denver Broncos' history. He left as the franchise sack leader with 110.5 over 10 years, made seven All-Pro teams and eight Pro Bowls while winning a Super Bowl and being named the game's MVP.
That led to an emotional exit from Denver via a mid-season trade to the Los Angeles Rams and his second Super Bowl ring. The reason why the Broncos were willing to give up Miller was because his contract was going to expire and the team's playoff hopes were low at the time.
So, some had hopes that the pass-rusher would return to the Mile High City in free agency, however, he signed with the Buffalo Bills instead.
The Bills' decision to sign a 33-year-old to a six-year, $120 million ($45 million guaranteed) contract was head-scratching at the time and hasn't paid off. Miller got off to a hot start in Buffalo, racking up eight sacks in 11 games, but a torn ACL on Thanksgiving cut his season short and forced him to miss the team's playoff run.
The injury also resulted in Miller missing the beginning of the 2023 campaign as he participated in 12 games with zero starts, compiling just three total tackles and no sacks for the first time in his career. Heading into this season and his mid-30s, the 13-year pro projects to be an expensive situational pass-rusher.
Grade: C
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