6 Trades, Free-agency Decisions and Teams That Could Define 2025 NFL Offseason

The 2025 NFL offseason hasn't heated up yet, but you know fire is coming. The league almost never disappoints, especially in March and April.

Now, we have a chance to use some of the clues in place to predict what stories, players and narratives will shape this particular offseason.

Here are six themes we're looking at.

Will a Myles Garrett Trade Go Down?

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A deal involving a four-time first-team All-Pro and potential Hall of Famer in his prime at a premium position could shake up the Super Bowl picture in 2025. 

Myles Garrett has requested a trade from the Cleveland Browns. The 2023 Defensive Player of the Year unsurprisingly wants to go to a contender.

The Browns aren’t giving in for now, but we’ve seen that many times early on in situations like these. That can change in due time.

It's not clear if the Browns can get Garrett to change his mind by giving him more money. He's already the seventh-highest-paid defensive player in the NFL, and Cleveland is in salary-cap hell with a quarterback void to fill. 

The end result could have Garrett land somewhere like Detroit or Washington, or with the Los Angeles Chargers or San Francisco 49ers. That would greatly impact any of those teams' Super Bowl odds.

Musical Chairs with Darnold, Wilson, Fields, Cousins and Carr?

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The quarterback carousel is primed for another fascinating and eventful spin. 

Sam Darnold, the league's sixth-highest-rated passer from this past season, is slated to hit free agency, as is future Hall of Famer Russell Wilson. Both quarterbacks could get away from their incumbent teams due to the presence of younger, intriguing signal-callers in Minnesota (2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy) and Pittsburgh (2021 first-round pick Justin Fields). 

However, Fields is also an impending free agent for the Steelers. Further wrenches could come via veterans Kirk Cousins (who may be one-and-done in Atlanta) and Derek Carr (who could be a victim of a long-overdue rebuild in New Orleans). 

Throw in projected top-five draft picks Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders, and you have as many as eight quarterbacks auditioning for roles in Minnesota, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, Tennessee, Cleveland, Las Vegas, New York (both the Jets and Giants) and possibly even Los Angeles if Matthew Stafford doesn't return to the Rams.

My February prediction? The Vikes let Darnold get away in favor of McCarthy. The Steelers stick with Wilson. Cousins goes to the Raiders, Darnold goes back to the Jets in place of Aaron Rodgers, Carr becomes a bridge in Cleveland, the Titans and Giants draft Ward and Sanders, respectively, and Fields is left fighting for opportunities in a place like Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Cleveland, Las Vegas or New Orleans. 

Shedeur Sanders and the Raiders

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The Raiders have also been linked to Shedeur Sanders. They've been desperate for a franchise quarterback for the last few years, and they could trade up for one of the draft's top two QB prospects, as they hold the No. 6 pick as well as an extra third-rounder. 

Could this be the year they take a quarterback in Round 1 for the first time since JaMarcus Russell in 2007? 

Sanders certainly has an enticing resume. The reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year has the ingredients to become a star. 

"Sanders' natural and pure passing abilities are the strength of his game," B/R NFL Scout Dame Parson wrote in his scouting report for Sanders. "He is capable of winning from clean pockets and out of structure. Sanders will pick defenses apart with his quick release and accuracy, especially if he's kept clean. He is a high-floor prospect with a good enough ceiling to buy into. With his experience and the challenges he has faced, he is worth betting on."

What better place for that bet to come from than Vegas? And because the Raiders have some talent already in the trenches as well as more than $95 million in projected cap space, they have the ability to support their shiny new quarterback from the get go.

Where Will Tee Higgins Land?

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While it's entirely possible that the Browns trade Myles Garrett or Kirk Cousins and Derek Carr hit the open market, they aren't impending free agents at the moment. That leaves Tee Higgins at the top of most 2025 free-agent rankings.

Th 26-year-old scored a career-high 10 touchdowns in only 12 games in 2024. He could potentially become an elite No. 1 receiver outside of the shadow of Ja’Marr Chase, so he'll likely get paid huge dollars if he gets away from Cincinnati. 

That’s a big "if," as the Bengals are projected to own nearly $50 million in cap space and have the franchise tag in their back pocket. The problem is that Chase is heading into the final year of his rookie deal, and it might be hard for the organization to justify committing more than $60 million to two non-quarterbacks, especially considering that the defense needs help. 

My money's on the Bengals swallowing hard to keep Higgins while extending Chase, mainly because it's apparent that the key to redemption for this team is via Joe Burrow and his two standout receivers.

Will the Patriots Complete Their Rebuild Now?

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It would be so Patriot-like, wouldn't it? For this horseshoe-up-their-beyond of a franchise to return to contender status after only two lowly four-win seasons? The path just might be there, even if the roster needs plenty of work. 

The Patriots currently possess more than $120 million in estimated salary-cap space—by far the most in the league. They also hold the No. 4 overall pick, along with an extra third-rounder via the Matthew Judon trade. 

That’s a lot of cap and draft capital for a franchise that already appears to have its long-term answer at quarterback in Drake Maye, who flashed as a woefully under-supported rookie in 2024. 

The Pats could easily end up with the top player on their draft board (Colorado cornerback/receiver Travis Hunter?). But even prior to that, they could drastically bolster their support for Maye with a star receiver like Tee Higgins and/or a top-notch offensive lineman like Trey Smith, Ronnie Stanley or Alaric Jackson. 

The point is, this rebuild could happen quickly.

Can the Chiefs Keep Their Heads Above Water?

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Trey Smith could leave in free agency to sign with a cap-rich team like the Patriots, but it doesn't stop there for the defending AFC champions. The Chiefs have been hemorrhaging talent for several years, and it's hard to imagine them hanging on much longer.

Starters Charles Omenihu, Justin Reid and Nick Bolton are also slated to join Smith on the open market, as well as Marquise Brown, DeAndre Hopkins, Tershawn Wharton and Josh Uche. 

For a team with limited cap space and draft capital, that could be a problem. 

The Chiefs were lucky to land in the Super Bowl despite a mediocre offense and disappointing season from Patrick Mahomes in 2024. Accomplishing that required them to be perfect in 12 one-score regular-season and playoff games.

But with the aforementioned circumstances plaguing them entering this offseason, and with the Bills, Ravens, Bengals, Broncos and Chargers coming on in the AFC, we may be about to witness the fall of an empire.