2012 NFL Free Agency: Ranking the 5 Most Overrated Free Agents

Aside from the 2012 NFL Draft the free agent market is sure to be an interesting period, as it should be.

The question is whether team's are willing to risk drafting a player and trying to mold them or should they sign a free agent, who has NFL experience but is concerning since they have underachieved.

To that end, signing these players isn't by any means a wrong decision, however, they are overrated because of either inconsistency, lack of production and/or durability.

5. Harry Douglas: WR, Falcons

It's definitely easy to look at Atlanta's Harry Douglas and say with reasonable suspect that his production was low because of Matt Ryan targeting other great players such as Roddy White, Julio Jones and Tony Gonzalez.

However, before Jones even came along, Douglas did not reach expectations.

Obviously it's tough to expect anything from him as a rookie (2008) since the Falcons were rebuilding at the time, but still they reached the postseason.

As for Douglas, he was injured for all of 2009 and when he returned 2010, he was expected to make significant strides. Also, No. 2 wide receiver Michael Jenkins (now with the Vikings) was injured for half the year and Douglas' numbers still were nit impressive.

22 receptions for 294 yards and one touchdown that season, it gave the Falcons good reason to trade up for Julio Jones in the 2011 draft. Had Douglas produced with Jenkins out, he'd be their No. 2 receiver right now.

4. Quentin Groves: LB, Raiders

A linebacker with great size at 6'3", 265 pounds, Oakland's Quentin Groves had a lot of potential as a rookie with Jacksonville in 2008.

Unfortunately, Groves never really impressed and he was later traded for a fifth-round pick. But he hasn't done much more in Oakland.

Not to mention the Jaguars defense has make great strides the past few seasons while the Raiders have struggled (most notably in 2011 where they ranked No. 29 in the league, allowing 387.6 total yards per game.)

As for Groves, there's definitely still time for him to develop, he'll only be 28 years old before 2012 kicks off. However, he does have a lot of work to do.

The most games he's started, thus far, is 12, which was for Oakland in 2010. There, Groves recorded 40 tackles and an interception, so there were increased expectations for 2011. But that didn't happen and Groves only started three games and Aaron Curry was brought in by mid-October.

Oakland could definitely use him for depth purposes as he does have experience, so it'll be interesting to see if he's given more time to develop.

3. Cedric Benson: RB, Bengals

Before joining the Cincinnati Bengals in 2009, Cedric Benson had only played in 37 games for the Chicago Bears from 2005-2007.

Since moving to Cincy, Benson has no doubt improved his career, however, it's still not overly impressive.

In 2011, Cedric rushed for 1,067 yards and scored six touchdowns, but 331 of those yards came in the Bengals' two games against Cleveland and in their home game versus Buffalo.

That's 31 percent of his yards against teams who are weak at defending the run. But in six games against teams with better rush defenses such as Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Denver and San Francisco Benson compiled just 324 yards, an average of only 54 yards per game.

Not to mention Cincinnati ranked No. 19 in rush offense and Benson has yet to earn a Pro Bowl selection. Considering that he'll be 30 years old by the end of the 2012 season, there's not much time left for him to reach the next level.

With that being said, expect the Bengals to hang on to him. But don't be surprised when his production drops next fall.

2. Max Starks: OT, Steelers

Whether it's because of injuries or lack of production, Pittsburgh's Max Starks has never fully developed into a consistently reliable offensive lineman.

He's only started two full seasons (2005, 2009) and has played in just 19 games between 2010 and 2011.

Starks has never been selected to the Pro Bowl despite starting in 75 career games, which comes as no surprise because if there's one weakness on the Steelers since Ben Roethlisberger has been under center, it' his pass protection.

And with Starks being a tackle who stands at 6'8", 345 pounds, you'd expect more from a guy that size. In addition, the Steelers offensive line has allowed an average 47 sacks a season since 2006.

Although we can't put all that one Starks, it's clear that he's been just as much of an issue as anyone else for Pittsburgh's inability to pass block.

1. Brandon McDonald: CB, Lions

When he was with the Cleveland Browns, Brandon McDonald was a solid corner who was overachieved as a fifth-round selection.

In three seasons with Cleveland, McDonald has recorded eight picks (five in 2008), 37 deflected passes and 154 tackles.

However, the Browns cut him before 2010 because he still couldn't prevent the deep ball from being aired over top of him. He was then picked up by Arizona, briefly, before moving to the "Motor City" where his inability to drop back in cover-3 and blanket in man coverage has continued.

Between 2010 and 2011, McDonald has recorded just 38 tackles and three defended passes in 19 games played. The Lions ranked No. 22 in pass defense, allowing almost 240 pass yards per game, a weakness that ultimately ended their season in New Orleans.

Luckily for McDonald, he's only going to be 27 years old when 2012 begins, so if the Lions are willing to give him a chance, improvement and development is quite possible. But until McDonald proves his value, he'll be overrated.

John Rozum on Twitter.