Overlooked Veterans Every Team Must Prioritize in 2026 NFL Free Agency

The 2026 offseason is underway, and while the NFL Scouting Combine is next up on the schedule, we're also only a month away from the most exciting and chaotic event on the offseason calendar: free agency.

Starting on March 9 with the legal tampering period, scores of players will find new homes. Millions of dollars in guarantees will be handed out. Some players will hit the jackpot, but most will receive modest raises or sign one-year "prove it" deals.

The players who reap those windfall megadeals will drive the news cycle, but it's that second group that determines which teams have the most success in free agency.

If a megadeal backfires, it can set a franchise back for years. But the teams that flesh out and fill gaps in the roster with "value" veterans who win free agency.

And the following under-the-radar veterans have the potential to be just those sort of values.

RB Kenneth Gainwell

AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar

Running back isn't considered a premium position in the NFL. There won't be any free-agent backs who land massive paydays, although the likes of Travis Etienne Jr., Breece Hall and Kenneth Walker III should secure nice raises from their teams or on the open market.

However, running back is a spot where teams often look for solid production at a discount. And franchises searching for that bargain back should look no farther than Pittsburgh's Kenneth Gainwell.

After four seasons as a role player in Philadelphia, Gainwell saw the most action of his career in his first year with the Steelers in 2025. He had 187 total touches last season, including a team-leading 73 receptions. He eclipsed 1,000 total yards, averaged a career-high 4.7 yards per carry, and found the end zone eight times.

At just 5'9" and 200 pounds, Gainwell is on the small side for an every-down back. But more NFL teams than not are using backfield committees now anyway, and he offers teams a versatile player who has proved he can produce who should be available for a reasonable cost.

Potential Fits: Kansas City Chiefs, New Orleans Saints

WR Christian Kirk

AP Photo/Greg M. Cooper

There was a time when Christian Kirk was anything but overlooked.

The 29-year-old surpassed 1,100 yards in his first season in Jacksonville in 2022. He made a robust $16.3 million last year in the final season of a four-year extension he got from the Jags before that big year.

Kirk didn't offer a lot of return on investment for the Texans in 2025, catching just 28 passes for 239 yards in the regular season. But the veteran showed he still has something left in the tank in the postseason.

He found the end zone in both playoff games for the Texans, including a career-high 144 yards in the blowout win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

ESPN's Bill Barnwell expects there will be some interest in Kirk's services once free agency opens:

"As a 29-year-old receiver mostly limited to slot work, Kirk won't have a huge market in free agency. But he's a well-regarded teammate and has an 1,108-yard season on his résumé, so he should find some guaranteed money as a third wideout on a receiver-needy team in 2026."

Players such as Alec Pierce and Wan'Dale Robinson are going to drive the market at wideout this spring, but Kirk is an experienced receiver with a history of producing and should be available for significantly less money.

Potential Fits: Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers

TE Isaiah Likely

AP Photo/Nick Wass

There was a time when the notion of calling Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely "overlooked" would have seemed almost laughable.

The 6'4", 245-pounder looked the part of the athletic, field-stretching tight end NFL teams covet. He appeared to be the future at the position for the Ravens.

But his contract year was marred by injury, and his 36 targets, 27 catches, 307 receiving yards and one touchdown were all career lows. With the Ravens signing Mark Andrews to a big extension, Likely's time in Baltimore appears to be over.

While speaking to reporters, Likely acknowledged he isn't sure what the future holds:

"I really just leave it to my agent. I feel like everybody says a vanilla answer like that, but it's honestly my first time ever not knowing. So, just really just keeping one foot in front of the other. Blessed to be getting out of the season healthy, being able to just put everything I do on tape and really just going from there."

There are bigger names and more proven options available at tight end this year in the likes of Dallas Goedert and David Njoku, but Likely has shown flashes of the talent to be that sort of high-end offensive weapon.

If he realizes that potential, he will be viewed as the best value at the position in this year's free-agent class.

Potential Fits: Cincinnati Bengals, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

OC Luke Fortner

AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman

When the New Orleans Saints traded for center Luke Fortner prior to the 2025 season, it was a move that didn't make a lot of waves. Fortner was just a depth piece who would likely spend most of the season watching Erik McCoy play.

But then McCoy went down with a season-ending injury, and just like that the fourth-year pro was thrust into the starting lineup in the middle of the Saints' offensive line.

The Saints may not have had an especially successful season, and Pro Football Focus ranked the offensive line in New Orleans 25th in the NFL for the season. But Fortner quietly posted a solid season—three sacks allowed and three penalties committed in 678 snaps per PFF.

Fortner played well enough that he likely wants an opportunity to start in his fifth season—an opportunity not likely to happen in the Big Easy if McCoy is healthy. There are some much bigger names available this year in free agency in Tyler Linderbaum of the Baltimore Ravens and Connor McGovern of the Buffalo Bills.

Fortner doesn't have the notoriety or resume of those linemen. But he's also not going to cost well over $10 million a season.

Getting solid starters at a reasonable cost is how free agency is "won."

Potential Fits: Carolina Panthers, Houston Texans

Edge Joseph Ossai

AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez

As we just saw in Super Bowl LX, having an excellent pass rush can make all the difference in the world. Given that reality, the bigger names at the position tend to clean up in free agency.

Trey Hendrickson of the Cincinnati Bengals is about to get paid. So is Odafe Oweh of the Los Angeles Chargers.

Hendrickson isn't the only Bengals' edge-rusher set to hit the open market. Joseph Ossai's rookie contract is about to expire after back-to-back seasons with five sacks and over 40 tackles.

The 25-year-old told reporters he's excited to see what the future holds:

"I think I did all right for myself. I'm very critical of myself, so there's definitely a lot more that I wanted to do, a lot more I could have done. Easier said than done, obviously, but that will happen. Whatever it is, like I said, I'm lucky that we get paid so much to do what we do. This is fun for me. This is what I dream about."

Ossai hasn't posted gaudy stats over his four seasons in the Queen City. But his playing time has increased in recent years, and he has shown the ability to both set the edge and get after opposing quarterbacks—he has 45 pressures and 27 quarterback hits over the past two years.

Ossai is entering the prime of his career, and among edge-rushers who aren't going to command a big contract in 2026, he is the best bet to have a coming-out party in a new home.

Potential Fits: Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers

LB Christian Rozeboom

AP Photo/Erik Verduzco

For most NFL teams, off-ball linebackers are the quarterbacks of the defense. They may not make as much as edge-rushers or cornerbacks, but they relay the defensive signals and are a critical part of a great defense.

Christian Rozeboom of the Carolina Panthers is hardly a household name at the position, but two years ago he posted 135 total tackles in 17 games and 11 starts for the Los Angeles Rams. That got him a one-year deal with the Panthers, where he wore the green dot helmet communicator and paced the team with 122 total stops.

Panthers safety Nick Scott told reporters that most casual fans just don't realize how good a player the 29-year-old is:

"I don't think the common fan really knows much about anybody unless you're a household name. So, they're always gonna shrug their shoulders at a guy like Rozeboom, who comes in undrafted. But every time he's had an opportunity to play on defense he's done well and held his own."

Rozeboom isn't a star or wildly athletic, but he's an experienced linebacker who would stabilize a number of NFL defenses for a reasonable cost.

Potential Fits: Cincinnati Bengals, Minnesota Vikings

CB Rasul Douglas

AP Photo/Doug Murray

After spending the 2025 season with the Miami Dolphins, veteran cornerback Rasul Douglas has officially hit journeyman status.

The 31-year-old has spent nine years in the league playing with five different teams. Given all that moving around, one might think he wasn't an especially good cornerback. Many of his career numbers say otherwise.

Douglas has intercepted five passes in a season twice in his career. In two of the past three seasons, he has posted a passer rating against south of 75, including a 73.0 passer rating against in 2025. Last year, he set career bests in completion percentage against (54.5) and yards per completion allowed (10.2).

Long story short, Douglas is a proven, capable veteran cornerback who has started 93 NFL games. He was a major stabilizing force for the Dolphins secondary in 2025, and it's not like that was the first time he has helped solidify an NFL secondary.

The West Virginia product is likely going to get a raise in 2026—he made less than $2 million in Miami a year ago. But he's still going to be available for a reasonable price.

And proven defensive backs on the cheap (relatively speaking) should appeal to all 32 NFL teams.

Potential Fits: Las Vegas Raiders, New England Patriots

S Andrew Wingard

AP Photo/Doug Murray

It took Jacksonville Jaguars safety Andrew Wingard a while to truly blossom in the NFL. After starting 15 games and logging 88 total tackles in 2021, he made just seven starts over the next three years combined.

However, last year the 29-year-old got a second chance to be more than a part-time player. He started 16 games and played a career-high 961 snaps. He made the most of those opportunities, recording 84 total tackles, intercepting a pass and logging a career-best nine passes defensed.

Wingard is more box safety than deep safety, but he's not a liability in coverage. He posted a respectable passer rating against of 80.5 in 2025 and has a career completion percentage against less than 60.

Like all the veteran players on this list, Wingard isn't a star. But he's a physical safety who can hold his own against the pass who just held down the back end of the defense capably for a 13-win Jaguars team.

Splash signings are great. But there are only so many elite names in each free agent class, and only so many teams have the salary cap space to be big spenders on the open market.

Finding a solid starter who won't cost a lot is one of the keys to free agency, whether they are just filling a hole or two or revamping the roster.

Those teams should take a look at Wingard.

Potential Fits: New York Jets, Washington Commanders