7 Cap Casualties from 2025 NFL Free Agency that Teams Will Regret

NFL teams make mistakes every year. Front offices cut players too soon, and general managers reflect on what they could have done to retain key veterans who succeed elsewhere.

While most of the cuts before and during free agency make sense for cost-saving reasons, clubs will miss player production in some areas.

Amid all the transactions at the start of the new league year, let's go through seven roster cap casualties who will make their former teams regret cutting them.

The selections below do not include players involved in trades. The compensation in return (draft capital) is a significant factor in those deals, and salary-cap space may not influence the team that deals a player elsewhere. 

DT Maliek Collins

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DT Maliek Collins

The San Francisco 49ers hit the reset button on their roster. They've traded, released or haven't re-signed several starters and key players this offseason. While most of the 49ers' departures make sense from a cap-saving perspective, they should've kept Maliek Collins under contract.

The 49ers released their top two defensive tackles, leaving the interior of the front line without a high-end playmaker.

In January, general manager John Lynch told reporters the team would release Javon Hargrave, who's coming off a down year because of a partially torn triceps. While the 49ers justifiably moved on from a 32-year-old defensive tackle coming off an injury-marred campaign, they went too far in cutting Collins following one of his most productive seasons.

Last offseason, San Francisco made a shrewd move in flipping a seventh-round pick for Collins. He recorded 33 tackles, five for loss, five sacks and 20 pressures in 2024. 

The 49ers turned a solid investment into a cost-cutting mistake. Their 29th-ranked defense needed a new play-caller (and they hired Robert Saleh), but the front office should have retained one of the unit's productive contributors.

TE Evan Engram

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TE Evan Engram

Evan Engram developed a strong rapport with quarterback Trevor Lawrence and put together his most productive seasons as a playmaking pass-catcher in the Jacksonville Jaguars offense. In his 2023 Pro Bowl year, he recorded career highs in catches (114) and receiving yards (963).

Though it's fair to acknowledge that Engram missed eight games because of injury last season, and tight end Brenton Strange has shown flashes as a potential replacement, the Jaguars should have retained their lead receiver in catches from the 2023 campaign.

Entering his age-31 term, Engram still has more optimal years left in his career. He will likely become an integral part of the Denver Broncos' passing attack for the next couple of years.

On Wednesday, the Broncos signed Engram to a two-year, $23 million contract, which includes $16.5 million in guarantees. 

Jacksonville's new regime may regret letting go of Lawrence's proven safety blanket to save $6 million in cap space.

EDGE Leonard Floyd

Like the San Francisco 49ers' mistake at the defensive tackle position, they released a consistent playmaker on the edge.

In 2024, Leonard Floyd finished second on the team in sacks (nine) and tackles for loss (eight). San Francisco was plagued with injuries, and yet Floyd suited up for all 17 games. 

Furthermore, Floyd has aged well, recording at least 8.5 sacks and 21 pressures in five consecutive campaigns. With Maliek Collins and Javon Hargrave on the way out, San Francisco will regret releasing a reliable edge-rusher.

Unless cheaper options are on their way to San Francisco, the team will be heavily reliant on Nick Bosa staying healthy and 2022 second-rounder Drake Jackson's development to field a respectable pass rush.

WR Cooper Kupp

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Rams WR Cooper Kupp

The Los Angeles Rams let Cooper Kupp know they would release him well before signing Davante Adams. So, the team didn't release Kupp to make room for Adams.

Based on Kupp's post about the Rams' decision to part ways with him, he wanted to stay with the team. Perhaps the front office could have worked out a restructured contract to lower the oft-injured receiver's cap number to a tenable rate.

The Rams didn't find a trade partner willing to acquire Kupp on his current deal, so they will take on a significant amount of dead money. Los Angeles will save far less cap space than it holds in dead cap this year for releasing him.

Despite the swirling trade rumors surrounding Kupp before the 2024 deadline, the Rams didn't move him. He had a few big games in November and December, helping Los Angeles beat the Seattle Seahawks in overtime, stave off an upset loss to the New England Patriots and knock off the Buffalo Bills in a high-scoring matchup.

At 31 and with an extensive injury history, Kupp has to pick his spots. Nonetheless, in a trio that would have included Puka Nacua and Adams, Kupp would have been part of an elite passing attack.

EDGE Harold Landry

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EDGE Harold Landry

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Harold Landry requested a trade in February. So, in fairness to the Tennessee Titans, he did push for his departure.

That said, Landry had no guaranteed money left on his contract. The Titans may have been able to salvage that relationship if they offered him a new deal. Tennessee might have seen the 29-year-old pass-rusher as expendable with its sights on the top pass-rushing prospect in the 2025 draft, Abdul Carter.

Regardless, the Titans should have exhausted all their efforts to retain Landry. Because of his release, Tennessee will take on $13.1 million in dead cap and save about $11 million in cap space.

One can make the case that Landry deserved a new contract.

After a 12-sack Pro Bowl 2021 season, Landry tore his ACL and missed the entire 2022 campaign. However, he bounced back nicely, logging 19.5 sacks and 29 tackles for loss over the last two seasons. The eighth-year veteran led the Titans in both defensive stat categories last year.

Landry signed with the New England Patriots, reuniting with his former head coach Mike Vrabel. He will continue to produce at a high level as one of the league's most underrated edge defenders.

EDGE Za'Darius Smith

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EDGE Za'Darius Smith

The Detroit Lions re-signed the wrong edge-rusher. They retained oft-injured Marcus Davenport and released Za'Darius Smith.

Before the 2024 trade deadline, Detroit acquired Smith from the Cleveland Browns, and he helped fill a void in the team's pass rush while Aidan Hutchinson sat out with a fractured tibia and fibula.

In eight contests with the Lions, Smith recorded 15 pressures, four sacks and 10 quarterback hits, proving he can be a game-wrecker at 32.

Davenport has suited up for six games over the last two years and has never played through an entire season. The Lions signed him to a bargain-bin one-year deal, but with more than $55 million in cap space, they could have re-signed Smith, too.

Hutchinson should bounce back from injury, but the Lions don't have a reliable secondary pass-rusher to complement him. Detroit still needs Smith.

DT Dalvin Tomlinson

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DT Dalvin Tomlinson

The Cleveland Browns made a minor mistake in releasing Dalvin Tomlinson. They will miss his presence on the interior. At 6'3", 325 pounds, the massive defensive tackle has been a solid run defender and can also push the pocket.

In 2024, Tomlinson recorded 26 tackles, six for loss, three sacks and 20 pressures. He's also durable, missing multiple games in a season just once in eight pro years.

With Tomlinson in the middle, Cleveland ranked 20th and 21st in yards allowed per carry and rushing yards allowed per game, respectively. So, the Browns may feel he's expendable in favor of a better pass-rusher, which may explain their Maliek Collins signing.

However, Cleveland's run defense could further regress without Tomlinson, which isn't ideal in a division with Derrick Henry still running wild for the Baltimore Ravens. The big-bodied interior defender will help the Arizona Cardinals win at the line of scrimmage.

Maurice Moton covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @MoeMoton.