2012 NFL Free Agent Target of the Day for Every NFC North Team

While the start of free agency is under a month away, teams already have ideas of not just what their needs are at any given position, but also whether or not picking up veterans to meet those needs is the most intelligent course of action.

Other teams don't have as much spare cash lying around and have to spend their limited cap space on locking down their own impending free agents to long-term deals.

Either way, each team in the NFC North has a position, and perhaps a player, they are targeting in free agency, and here, I examine those players.

Chicago Bears: QB Chad Henne

The 2011 season posed a number of examples of what can happen to a team when the starting quarterback is lost to injury. Some teams, like the Houston Texans, were able to manage the loss of both Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart, while others, like the Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears, saw their seasons in trouble upon losing Peyton Manning and Jay Cutler, respectively.

For the Bears, having Cutler sidelined with a broken thumb on his throwing arm meant Caleb Hanie had to take over as starter. To say Hanie struggled would be an understatement—in his six starts, Hanie completed only 50 percent of his passes for 613 yards, three touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Hanie is set to be an unrestricted free agent in March, and there's no chance the Bears will try to keep him around. Behind Cutler is only Nate Enderle, a fifth-round pick in 2011 who shouldn't start 2012 as Cutler's primary backup.

The Bears are projected to have anywhere between $20 and $28 million in cap space this offseason, more than enough to snag a free-agent quarterback to back up Cutler, and the best value-for-talent ratio might be provided by Chad Henne, most recently of the Miami Dolphins.

Though Henne is likely looking for a chance to start somewhere, he could earn a solid salary behind Cutler. Should an injury sideline Cutler in 2012, the Bears will have in Henne a truly competent backup, one who knows what it takes to play and win in the NFL.

Green Bay Packers: TE Jermichael Finley

The Green Bay Packers don't have a lot of cap room to work with—in fact, without restructuring or releasing either or both wide receiver Donald Driver and offensive tackle Chad Clifton, they have around $5 million or so in space with which to work.

Chances are, Driver will either restructure his contract or be released, while Clifton could retire. Losing both of them would add about $11 million to the Packers' cap.

Either way, whatever extra money the team can come up with is most likely to go to one of their own free agents, specifically tight end Jermichael Finley.

It's not a foregone conclusion that the Packers won't franchise Finley in order to make a long-term deal with fellow free agent, center Scott Wells, who would command a too-expensive $8.4 million with the tag. But the goal clearly is to lock down Finley to a longer-term deal that both he and the organization can agree upon.

Look for negotiations between the Packers and Finley (as well as Wells and cornerback/special teams player Jarrett Bush) to begin in earnest at this week's scouting combine. Between the three free agents, Finley would be the most likely to be franchised, but that's not the ideal situation for either party.

Minnesota Vikings: WR Marques Colston

A lot is still up in the air when it comes to the New Orleans Saints' free agency situation. The team is still negotiating a long-term deal with quarterback Drew Brees, but if it doesn't pan out by March 5, they will have to use the franchise tag on him.

If they can avoid franchising Brees, however, it's starting to look more and more likely the Saints will choose to use the franchise tag on guard Carl Nicks, meaning that wide receiver Marques Colston would likely hit the open market.

Marques Colston, 2011

G	Rec	Yds	Catch%	100+	TDs
14	80	1,143	75%	4	8

The Saints have around $9.6 million in cap space—certainly not enough room to lock down all three players, even with restructuring and making a few cuts. While it seemed, just a week ago, that Colston would stay while fellow receiver Devery Henderson will walk, Colston's chances to hit the open market have increased exponentially since.

There are quite a few wide receivers set to be available in free agency, and it's likely that the Vikings will target some of them and end up with one. Colston would be a significant upgrade, and his price tag wouldn't be out of the Vikings' reach.

Detroit Lions: DE Cliff Avril

Much like the Green Bay Packers, the Detroit Lions don't have a lot of money with which to pick up free-agent veterans, instead using their limited available cap space to keep their own free agents with the team.

The Lions have a number of priorities this offseason: left tackle Jeff Backus, running back Kevin Smith, middle linebacker Stephen Tulloch, cornerback Eric Wright and of course, defensive end Cliff Avril.

That means the Lions are about to make some hard decisions. Avril has already intimated that holding out could be a possibility for him if the team chooses to place the franchise tag on him, which doesn't help his chances of sticking around at all.

As Bleacher Report's Eric Vincent points out, Tulloch is, dollar-for-dollar, the more valuable player to the Lions at this time despite Avril clearly heading into the prime of his career.

Though Detroit would greatly benefit from keeping both men around, Avril will need to backtrack from his holdout threats and accept the franchise tag if they choose to use it on him. Clearly, the next two weeks will be fraught with some serious decision making for the Lions.

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