2015 NFL Free Agents: Rumors and Predictions for First Weekend of Free Agency

The 2015 NFL free-agency period kicked off with a frenzy of activity on Tuesday. Key players were signed, big-money contracts were handed out and some very surprising trades took place. 

Even though the initial flurry of moves is over and the action is starting to slow down a bit, there is still plenty of free-agency excitement to be had. After watching former Pro Bowl tight end Jordan Cameron reportedly agree to return to the Cleveland Browns, only to wind up a Miami Dolphin a few hours later on Thursday night, one thing is clear.

The insanity is far from over. 

Though most of the top talent is now off the market, there is a very good chance that the NFL landscape will still look a lot different at the end of the coming weekend. Let's take a look at some of the rumors surrounding the remaining impact free agents. 

DE Michael Johnson

Defensive end Michael Johnson didn't begin free agency as a big-ticket item, mainly because he was still under contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when things kicked off at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday. However, Johnson was scheduled to see another $7 million of his contract become guaranteed on the third day of the new league year.

Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com reported before free agency even began that the Cincinnati Bengals would be interested in reacquiring Johnson if he were to be released by the Buccaneers:

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The Bengals, who employed Johnson for five years through 2013 as a franchise player, are ready to try to lure him back to Cincinnati.  And for good reason; the Bengals finished 30th in the NFL with only 23 sacks this season. 

Johnson signed a five-year, $43.875 million deal with $23 million guaranteed in 2014.  Of that figure, another $7 million will become fully guaranteed as of the third day of the 2015 league year.  That’s the deadline for the Bucs.

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The Buccaneers did indeed terminate Johnson's contract on Wednesday, releasing the pass-rusher into the free-agent pool. With 19 sacks over the past three seasons, Johnson should draw quite a bit of interest around the league.

According to CBS Sports and NFL Network analyst Solomon Wilcots (via Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press), Johnson is likely to provide his services to either the Bengals or the Minnesota Vikings.

Johnson's ties to both teams are obvious. He spent the first five years of his career with the Bengals, while his defensive coordinator in Cincinnati, Mike Zimmer, is now Minnesota's head coach.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Johnson will visit with the Vikings first:

If Minnesota cannot lock up Johnson during his visit, expect a trip to Cincinnati to immediately follow.

TE Charles Clay

The Miami Dolphins made their first big splash of free agency on Tuesday, landing defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh with a massive six-year, $114.3 million deal. Their second big move came on Thursday, when the team snagged pass-catching tight end Jordan Cameron out from underneath the Browns.

Cameron is due to earn $15 million over the next two seasons. One might think that this means the Dolphins are ready to move away from tight end Charles Clay, who was given a $7 million transition tag at the beginning of the month.

Yet it appears that Miami has no intention of removing the transition tag, as reported by ESPN's James Walker Thursday night:

According to Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News, the Dolphins would like to keep Clay in their plans.

The problem for Miami is that keeping Clay without negotiating a long-term deal may prove very difficult. Since the team used the transition tag, any NFL team can submit a contract offer sheet, and the Dolphins will receive no compensation if they decide not to match.

According to Carucci, the Buffalo Bills are prepared to submit an offer to Clay if the tag remains. The Browns are also reportedly high on Clay, but Cleveland is not a serious threat to land the tight end.

If Miami decides to eventually remove the transition tag, Clay will become an unrestricted free agent and will be free to sign with any team. My best guess here is that news regarding the Bills' offer sheet will surface over the next couple of days. 

WRs Dwayne Bowe and Stevie Johnson

A couple of seasons ago, having both Dwayne Bowe and Stevie Johnson on the open market would have been a huge deal. However, the pair had relatively down years in 2014, making them more of an afterthought in this year's star-studded group.

Bowe had 60 receptions for 754 yards and zero touchdowns with the Kansas City Chiefs. Johnson had just 35 receptions for 435 yards and three scores in his lone season with the San Francisco 49ers. Now both are available.

The 49ers made Johnson's release official on Wednesday, via Taylor Price of 49ers.com. The news came on the same day the team announced it's five-year deal with free-agent wide receiver Torrey Smith.

The Chiefs, who added free-agent receiver Jeremy Maclin, made the release of Bowe official on Thursday, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter:

Though neither receiver has logged more than 800 yards since 2011, both should draw at least a fair amount of interest in today's pass-driven NFL.

According to CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora, interest in both players could come from Cleveland:

Cleveland's top receiver in 2014 was 5'7" wideout Andrew Hawkins, and the team just lost their starting tight end to Miami. Adding to their receiving corps in free agency only makes sense. With Cleveland apparently happy to take a conservative approach to free agency, signing a value guy like Johnson or Bowe makes even more sense.

At this point, it appears that Bowe is the most likely to end up in Cleveland. According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, there is mutual interest between the 30-year-old wideout and the Browns. The team's interest was confirmed by Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer:

I would expect the Browns to set up a meeting with Bowe over the weekend, with Johnson as their primary fallback option.