NFL Free Agency 2015: Grades for Friday Signings and Trades

Everything must GO!

It's the rallying cry of hundreds of cheesy TV commercials—and apparently the 2015 New Orleans Saints.

There's hasn't been a bigger mover and shaker in free agency this year than Mickey Loomis and the Saints. Whereas Chip Kelly and the Philadelphia Eagles have been all about buying, for the Saints it's been a fire sale.

Friday marked the third straight day that the Saints traded away a 2015 starter and the second time the Saints dealt one of Drew Brees' top targets in the passing game.

It's that fire sale in the Big Easy that kicks off Friday's look at the wheeling and dealing across the NFL, but it was hardly the only action taking place.

Who got a bargain? Who got ripped off?

Read on and find out!

Trade: Kenny Stills to Dolphins for Dannell Ellerbe and a 3rd-Round Pick

Gerald Herbert/Associated Press

That's an appropriate picture of New Orleans wideout Kenny Stills.

Because the Saints are in the midst of a fire sale.

Friday, Mad Mickey Loomis showed Stills the door. As Mike Triplett of ESPN.com reports, the Saints sent him to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for linebacker Dannell Ellerbe and a third-round pick in the 2015 draft.

In the opinion of Larry Holder of The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune, the move makes sense:

"

I understand the team's logic in trading Stills to Miami on Friday for the Dolphins' 2015 third-round pick and linebacker Dannell Ellerbe, who was a hot commodity during free agency in 2013.

The Saints lost a productive, young wide receiver. But they also gained another NFL draft pick, giving them five selections in the first three rounds for what promises to be a deep pool of rookie wide receivers.

"

With all due respect to Holder, who is a fine sportswriter, maybe all the bombshells in the Big Easy this week have left him shell-shocked.

Stills took major steps forward in 2014, catching 63 passes for more than 900 yards and three scores. Better yet, he carries a salary of all of $634,000 in 2015.

Meanwhile, Ellerbe was a massive disappointment in two years with the Dolphins. In 2013, he graded as the sixth-worst inside linebacker in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus. He missed nearly the entire 2014 season with a hip injury.

In return for a promising wide receiver with a low salary, the Saints got a third-round pick and a linebacker who was hurt and lousy the past two years.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins addressed the loss of Brian Hartline and by some miracle got out from under Ellerbe's onerous contract.

Gee? I wonder who came out on top?

Dolphins: B+

Saints: D

Trade: Mike Wallace and 7th-Round Pick to Vikings for 5th-Round Pick

Paul Sancya/Associated Press

It's tradeapalooza!

If the first week of NFL free agency was any indication, this year's draft is going to be utter chaos, because the trades are flying fast and furious.

After picking up Kenny Stills on Friday, the Miami Dolphins weren't done. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Dolphins sent wide receiver Mike Wallace and a seventh-round pick to the Minnesota Vikings for a fifth-round pick.

It's a classic salary dump. After literally quitting on the Dolphins last year, Wallace's days in Florida were numbered. Given the addition of Stills, a salary of nearly $10 million and a $3 million roster bonus that was due this weekend, that number quickly became zero.

The Vikings, on the other hand, gave up little to acquire a 28-year-old speedster who (headcase or no) caught 10 touchdown passes a year ago. In theory at least, Wallace's skill set should meld well with Norv Turner's vertical passing offense.

For the price, it's worth the risk.

Dolphins: C+

Vikings: B

C.J. Spiller to Saints: 4 Years, $18 Million, $9 Million Guaranteed

Gary Wiepert/Associated Press

Of course, amidst all the departures from the Big Easy, there's been an arrival or two as well.

As Mike Garafalo of Fox Sports reported, the Saints agreed to terms with running back C.J. Spiller on a four-year, $18 million contract. Half that money is guaranteed.

Holder called the signing "by far New Orleans Saints' best offseason move:"

"

Filling the third-down back spot became a priority for the Saints once they released Pierre Thomas. Targeting and landing Spiller with a four-year deal Friday was probably the shrewdest transaction of the offseason for New Orleans. Spiller was the best option, even given the nostalgia of potentially bringing back Reggie Bush.

The Saints landed two of the better backs in free agency by adding Spiller and retaining Mark Ingram. Both bring different and necessary strengths for the Saints' offense to become more potent in 2015. Spiller and Ingram each signed a four-year deal, essentially tying them together in the Saints' backfield for the foreseeable future.

"

Holder has a point. If Spiller can stay healthy, he's more than capable of filling the void left by Thomas' departure. The 27-year-old Spiller topped 1,700 total yards for the Buffalo Bills back in 2012.

Of course, if frogs had wings they wouldn't bump their butts when they hop.

Spiller has made it through 16 games only twice in five seasons. He missed seven games a year ago.

Also, back when Graham was traded, Loomis told SiriusXM Radio (via Triplett) part of the reasoning was to use the resources the deal would free up to improve the defense:

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I think at the end of the day, it comes down to this. We've had a good offensive team for a number of years. ... We feel like we do well on that side of the ball, but we've got to improve ourselves on defense. And there's three ways to get players in our league. That's through free agency, through the draft, and then trades. We kind of believe in using all avenues.

So we took one of our assets on offense and turned it into some resources hopefully we can improve our defense with.

"

I can't wait to hear how giving Spiller as much in guarantees as Justin Forsett got overall helps make that happen.

Grade: C

DeAngelo Williams to Steelers: 2 Years, $4 Million

Mike McCarn/Associated Press

After releasing LeGarrette Blount last season, the Steelers were left with little depth at running back behind Le'Veon Bell. When Bell injured his knee at the end of the season, that lack of depth cost the Steelers dearly.

Pittsburgh took steps to ensure there won't be a repeat of that disaster in 2015. According to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, the Steelers have signed veteran tailback DeAngelo Williams to a two-year, $4 million pact.

For his part, the 31-year-old Williams told Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette he's willing to do whatever it takes to help the team win:

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I want to come in and help them be productive on offense. Whether that means me coming off the bench, giving the offensive line water, making sure Ben Roethlisberger’s towel is dry so he can wipe his hands and throw the ball better – whatever it takes for us to win a Super Bowl, I’m willing and able to do it.

"

Granted, Williams is far from the player he once was. He hasn't topped 1,000 yards on the ground since 2009, and last year's 219 yards on the ground was a career low.

Still, we are talking about a player with almost 7,000 career rushing yards who as recently as 2013 topped 1,100 total yards for the Carolina Panthers.

As veteran depth behind Bell at a minimal cost (per La Canfora, it's essentially a one-year deal) the Steelers could have done a lot worse.

Grade: B+

Derrick Morgan (4 Years/$30 Million), Brian Orakpo (4 Years/$32 Million) to Titans

James Kenney/Associated Press

It was a long year for the Tennessee Titans in 2014, and in the hopes of washing away some of the stink from last year's two-win season, they poured over $60 million into their pass rush on Friday.

As Kevin Patra of NFL.com reports, the Titans reached deals with a pair of young pass-rushers. The team brought back Derrick Morgan on a four-year, $30 million contract and then added a piece by acquiring Brian Orakpo on a four-year, $32 million deal that includes $13.5 million in guarantees.

Morgan, 26, has yet to fulfill the promise the Titans saw when they made him a first-round pick in 2010. However, he Morgan has yet to amass more than 6.5 sacks in a season, he quietly played well in his first season as a 3-4 outside linebacker in 2014 (to the tune of ranking eighth in that regard at Pro Football Focus).

The story with Orakpo has always been injuries. In the four seasons where he has played in at least 15 games, the 28-year-old has hit double-digits in sacks twice and never had fewer than 8.5.

The problem is that in the other two seasons a pair of pectoral tears cost Orakpo 23 games.

The Washington Redskins thought enough of Orakpo to assign him the franchise tag last year, but the second pectoral tear brought about an end to his days in the nation's capital.

Handing that sort of guaranteed money to that big an injury risk is always going to be, well, risky. But the fact is if the Titans didn't hand Orakpo a big check, someone else was going to.

Pass-rushers get paid, especially ones with a track record of producing.

The Morgan deal is even better—a reasonable amount to keep a key defensive contributor in the fold.

Right now, Titans defensive end Jurrell Casey is a happy man.

Orakpo: B-

Morgan: A-

Chris Culliver to Redskins: 4 Years, $32 Million, $16 Million Guaranteed

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

You think pass-rushers get paid?

They're peasants compared to the money that even serviceable cornerbacks are getting on the open market.

On Friday, it was Chris Culliver's turn. As ESPN.com's John Keim reports, the Redskins signed Culliver, who spent the past four seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, to a four-year, $30 million deal. The deal contains $16 million in guarantees.

As Keim wrote, the excitement over Culliver's addition was a fever pitch in D.C.:

"

Culliver is a solid corner. At 6-foot-0 and 190 pounds, he has good size and speed. When I’ve asked around, no one has considered him a budding Pro Bowl candidate, but nobody has said he’s bad, either. One former NFL coach wasn’t impressed by his instincts. But for the most part, he can play. He did have a torn ACL in 2013, and you wonder how much that had an impact on him last season -- and if it will lead to improved play this season. You could do worse than Culliver; you could do better. But he's an improvement.

"

Can you feel that? I have tingles.

There's no denying that Washington needed help in the secondary, and Culliver quietly ranked inside the NFL's top 15 cornerbacks in 2014, per Pro Football Focus.

However, the year before that, he missed the entire season with an ACL tear. The year before that, he was barely inside the top 30 at PFF.

Is Culliver a good corner? Yes. Is he a great one? No.

Did Washington fall victim to a cornerback market that so far appears tilted heavily in the players' favor?

Oh yeah.

Grade: C

Darren McFadden to Cowboys: 2 Years, $3 Million

Ben Margot/Associated Press

They say desperate times call for desperate measures.

Even then, Bleacher Report NFL National Lead Writer Michael Schottey found himself at a loss Friday trying to figure out why the Dallas Cowboys signed free-agent tailback Darren McFadden:

"

At McFadden's best—at his absolute best—he's never been a suitable replacement for Murray, but (again) that's not the point here. The point is that this move makes zero sense unless one knows the words of the Arkansas fight song by heart, or one is completely unaware of the current landscape of the NFL running back market.

This move just strains credibility. It's not the sort of back-of-roster padding that a back the caliber of McFadden deserves at this stage of his career, and it reeks of desperation thanks to the timing of the signing and the fervor with which the Cowboys reached out to McFadden.

"

According to ESPN's Todd Archer, the deal is for two years and could be worth up to $5.85 million.

Granted, the Cowboys were left with a massive hole in the backfield when DeMarco Murray bailed for Philadelphia, and McFadden at least played in all 16 games in 2014 for the first time in his seven-year career.

Of course, he also averaged all of 3.4 yards per carry. It's the third straight season in which he has failed to average even 3.5 yards per tote.

Yes, McFadden topped 1,600 total yards for the Oakland Raiders back in 2010. Since then he's essentially been Trent Richardson if Trent Richardson got hurt a lot.

However, Schottey's article came before the full details of McFadden's contract were released. As Archer reports, unless McFadden morphs into a combination of Jim Brown and Barry Sanders (causing the earth to collapse in on itself) the base value of his deal is closer to $3 million than the $5.85 million originally reported.

That makes what looked like a terrible move simply a boring one.

Grade: C

Nick Fairley to Rams: 1 Year, $5 Million

Carlos Osorio/Associated Press

As if the St. Louis Rams defensive line wasn't already scary enough.

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, the Rams signed defensive tackle Nick Fairley to a one-year, $5 million contract. The deal could be worth up to $7.5 million with incentives.

As Frank Schwab of Yahoo Sports reports, it's a signing that brings up memories of the Rams' "Fearsome Foursome" front of the '60s and '70s:

"

The St. Louis Rams are banking on a dominant defensive line getting them back to the playoffs. The Rams, who already have Robert Quinn and Chris Long at end and Michael Brockers and Aaron Donald at tackle, signed Fairley. Fairley spent his first four seasons with the Detroit Lions. He was the 13th overall pick of the 2011 NFL draft, meaning each of the Rams' top five defensive linemen was selected in the first half of the first round. The Rams have also signed linebacker Akeem Ayers this offseason, adding to an impressive front seven.

"

Fairley battled weight issues during four years in Detroit, but in adding him the Rams should be able to rotate their tackles frequently. That's good news for Fairley, Brockers and Donald. And bad news for opposing quarterbacks.

As with most one-year deals, it's hard to find something not to like about this deal. Compare it to some of the contracts other free-agent defensive tackles have signed this week, and it looks even better.

And that's if Fairley hits the escalators and makes the full $7.5 million.

For his part, he told the team's website, "I'm here to help this team win."

The Rams certainly did on Friday.

Grade: A

Kenny Britt to Rams: 2 Years, $14 Million, $4.3 Million Guaranteed

Tom Gannam/Associated Press

And they were doing so well.

On Tuesday, the St. Louis Rams somehow extricated themselves from the unending nightmare that is Sam Bradford. On Friday, they added Fairley on a team-friendly deal.

I guess nothing good can last forever.

The Rams made another move on Friday, re-upping wide receiver Kenny Britt, according to Ian "The Terminator" Rapoport of NFL.com. The deal will pay Britt, who had 748 receiving yards and three scores for the Rams in 2014, a maximum of $14 million over the next two years, with $4.3 million guaranteed.

As Rapoport said—wow.

Sure, Britt was decent for the Rams last year, and the franchise has been in need of wide receiver help seemingly since the halcyon days of "The Greatest Show on Turf."

But still, we're talking about a player in Britt who has never topped 1,000 receiving yards in a season. He's hit 750 yards all of once. 2014 marked only the second time in six seasons that Britt has played a 16-game season.

That sound like $7 million per year with $4 million in guarantees to you?

Me neither.

Grade: D

Shelley Smith to Broncos: 2 Years, $5.65 Million

Paul Sancya/Associated Press

Even before the Denver Broncos got unceremoniously dumped from the playoffs last year, something unsettling was becoming apparent.

The offensive line was slipping, from great to really good to when coaches and fans start subconsciously squeezing things too tightly.

The departure of Orlando Franklin didn't help matters in that regard, but on Friday the Broncos took their first step toward bolstering their offensive front.

As Mike Klis of The Denver Post reported, the Broncos agreed to terms on a two-year, $5.65 million contract with Shelley Smith, who played in 11 games (with three starts) for the Miami Dolphins in 2014.

Granted, it's hard to get too excited about a 27-year-old journeyman who is already on team No. 4. In 360 snaps with the Dolphins last year, Smith allowed three sacks and ranked 58th among guards at Pro Football Focus.

I'll grant you that the idea of Smith starting 16 games doesn't exactly inspire the warm and fuzzies.

At least we know Peyton Manning has good insurance.

However, there's no such thing as too much offensive line depth in the NFL, and at the very least the Broncos got some of that (in a player with 11 career starts) for less than $3 million per season.

It's not a great deal but certainly not a horrible one either.

Grade: B-