NFL Free Agents: 10 Players Who'll Have Major Impact Roles in 2011 Season

Plaxico Burress made a big splash in his New York Jets preseason debut last Sunday, making a couple catches, including a diving grab for a touchdown in the driving rain.

Burress isn't the only Jet who may turn out to be a big steal for his team this season. Here are 10 NFL free agents who will have major roles this year.

Plaxico Burress

Plaxico Burress is returning to the NFL after spending time in prison for possessing an unlicensed firearm. He clearly understands that he’s made a mistake, which caused his family, former teammates and himself direct shame. He’s ready to have a life of restoration by returning to his profession of playing in the NFL and reuniting with his family.

The New York Giants have separated themselves from Burress, but the Super Bowl XLII game-winning catch belongs to him, and that can never be taken away. Burress is ready to prove all doubters wrong and command his inclusion as a top receiver in the NFL at the elder statesman age of 34 years old.

Burress has appeared in 128 NFL games, caught 505 receptions, gained 7,845 yards and scored 55 touchdowns over his career with a high of 12 touchdowns in the 2008 season. He’s coming back into the league with the New York Jets and is really surprising a lot of people who said he wouldn't be able to make a come back so quickly.

Burress will have a breakout year with the Jets and could very possibly have the best season of his career.

Everyone was focused on his 6’5”, 232-pound frame not being ready to play, but Burress has a strong mental focu  and is mentally motivated to return to game as a leader on the field, in the locker room and in the community.

Kevin Kolb

Kevin Kolb has finally made it to the podium and will have an opportunity to show that his brief signs of success with the Philadelphia Eagles weren't a fluke and that Andy Reed’s decision to chose Michael Vick as a starting quarterback was the biggest mistake of his professional coaching career. The Eagles traded Donovan McNabb and promised Kolb the job, only to slap him in the face and name Vick the starter at quarterback

The jury is still out on Kolb as to whether he has the arm strength, mental ability and leadership to take the team to the NFC West title and restore the high-powered passing game that Kurt Warner possessed in leading the Cardinals to the Super Bowl.

Arizona Cardinals head coach Ken Whisenhunt signed Kolb as the captain of the Cardinals ship, and he has the number one receiving target in the NFL in Larry Fitzgerald.

Fitzgerald lobbied for Kolb as the future quarterback, and it was clear that he convinced the Cardinal management team.

The Cardinals were an easy choice for Kolb as the right fit, because they were a starting quarterback away from getting into the playoffs last season. He knew he wouldn’t be competing with anyone for the starting job, but instead he'd be handed the position for a few years of building. After all, the Cardinals traded Pro Bowl cornerback Dominique-Rodgers Cromartie and signed him to a five-year, $62 million contract.

Reggie Bush

Reggie Bush has had plenty of media coverage for all the wrong reasons and made a commitment to the New Orleans Saints after breaking his leg against the San Francisco 49ers.

Bush work worked his way back into game shape with a dedicated work ethic, and many hours of sweat in the training room. However, the Saints drafted a running back in the first round.

While being injury plagued in his first five years and signing a huge $62 million rookie contract with the Saints, it became time for Bush to move on with his career and establish himself with the Miami Dolphins. He chose a new home with the Dolphins and is ready to play at an elite level.

The Dolphins are bringing in Bush to be a full-time running back and not just a third-down specialist. He'll have a role as a game changer who can carry the ball 15-20 times a game. He’s never really possessed the size to be a power runner who runs the ball up the middle and takes the pounding from the linebackers, but he’s not just looking to be used on sweep plays while sharing time with another runner in the backfield.

Bush averaged 13.7 carries a game for the Saints in 2007 and is looking for the same type of duty with the Dolphins. He wants to show everyone that he’s ready to step into the featured-back role and carry the rock.

Matt Hasselbeck

Matt Hasselbeck has been in the NFL 12 years and is a three-time Pro Bowler who also took the Seattle Seahawks to Super Bowl XL. But he’s still not satisfied his journey through the league and has decided it’s time for a change. He’s headed south to be the signal caller for the Tennessee Titans.

Hasselback started his career in Green Bay and then played 10 years in Seattle, amassing totals in passing for 29,579 yards and 176 touchdowns during that span, which included his best year in 2007 in which he threw for 3,966 yards and 28 touchdowns.

The Titans selected University of Washington quarterback Jake Locker with their first-round selection in 2010 and are bringing in Hasselbeck to tutor the rookie quarterback for the future, but he has intentions of sticking around for a while and playing with the fastest running back in the game, Chris Johnson, who is currently holding out for a new contract.

The biggest concern for the Titans will be Hasselback's durability and whether or not his body can take a pounding for a full season. If the team's gamble pays off, they’ll see one of the best quarterbacks in the game playing for them and putting an end to the former head coach Jeff Fisher era.

He will demand respect in the locker room and on the field. Standing 6’4”, 225 pounds at 35 years of age, he’s ready to put the Titans back in contention to win that Lombardi trophy. He’s also learning a new system and working with new a head coach, which isn’t a problem for him after having played last year under first-year coach Pete Carroll.

Donovan McNabb

Donovan McNabb was the heart and soul of the Philadelphia Eagles football team for 11 years, after having been drafted in the first round by the Eagles in 1999.

McNabb has thrown for 36,250 yards and 230 touchdowns during a 13-year period, but had his worst year of his career last year with the Washington Redskins under the direction of head coach Mike Shanahan. He felt he was totally embarrassed when he was benched for not knowing the plays of a two-minute offense, and he felt he was totally mistreated by Redskins organization in the way they handled the situation.

The Minnesota Vikings' new head coach Leslie Frazier jumped at the opportunity to get the veteran signal caller behind the wheel of his offense and convinced McNabb it was time to be a Viking for the 2011 NFL season.

He’ll now be back with a team that has a stable offensive foundation, and he'll be handing the ball off to a featured-down running back in All-Pro Adrian Peterson. He’s a winner who has dealt with a bump in the road during his time with the Redskins, and he is ready to get back to the business of winning division championships with the Vikings in the upcoming season.

McNabb isn’t willing to end his career or destroy his legacy on a down note, and he showed that he’s a class act with the way he handled the situation in Washington. He’s a veteran leader who has won five division titles and made seven playoff appearances throughout his career, and he has one goal in mind going forward: Winning the Super Bowl and restoring his reputation as one of the top quarterbacks in the game.

The Vikings drafted quarterback Christian Ponder with their 2011 first-round pick and have chosen the right man to teach the rookie how to be successful in the NFL.

Braylon Edwards

Braylon Edwards came off a big year with the New York Jets, only to be rejected and told that they were going in a different direction. Plaxico Burress is now in his receiver position, and he has the same jersey number Edwards wore in the 2010 season.

The 49ers had their eyes on Plaxico Burress and Chad Ochocinco for wide receiver, but they may have landed the best of the three receivers in Edwards. He is 6'3" and has a big body that defenders can’t match. To think of the possibility of having Edwards and former first-round draft pick Michael Crabtree on the field at the same time is scary for defensive backs who will attempt man-to-man coverage. Crabtree is currently out with a foot injury and is expected to miss the entire preseason.

Edwards is a “Michigan Man,” and coming from Michigan (alongside Jim Harbaugh) he knows the rules of how to conduct himself and what’s expected of him on and off the field.

He was a first-round draft pick in 2005 for the Cleveland Browns, and his current quarterback, Alex Smith, was the No. 1 pick in that same draft. He’s looking to come in and play a big role for the 49ers, not just go along with the program. He’s wants to be the No. 1 guy in the "West Coast offense."

Edwards has produced career numbers of 326 receptions, 5,142 yards and 39 touchdowns. He will thrive at the chance in the 49er's offensive scheme, because the 49ers haven’t had a receiver with that type of size and ability since Terrell Owens was an 49er.

Edwards has come into camp and made an immediate impact, showing he’s a big body that has the speed and power to make plays down the field.

He’s a true professional that's not going to be happy with just a one-year, $3 million contract with the 49ers.

Chad Ochocinco

Ochocinco produced well for the Cincinnati Bengals, catching 751 balls for 10,783 yards and 66 touchdowns over 10 seasons.

He’s now in a structure that requires him to just focus on football only, and he has an opportunity to work with one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL in Tom Brady.

The Patriots scheme each week is thoroughly responsible for each man doing his job, and Ochocinco will rise to the top of his game in this type of organization. He won’t settle for just being a part of the team because he's a winner and wants that Super Bowl ring. He’s willing to be dedicated toward grasping the offensive system and eventually becoming a leader in the locker room and a playmaker on the field.

Ochocinco knows the Patriots business-like preparation starts in the meeting room, during the walk through sessions and on the practice field. His new teammates are strictly focused on winning, and the focus continues with players having their own meetings and game preparation sessions. This keeps every man on board and focused the entire week, and Ochocinco will follow suit and be a positive asset to the receiving unit.

He’s a true warrior who will show he can get the team back in contention for the Super Bowl, and the Lombardi trophy is within his reach.

 

Willis McGahee

Willis McGahee is a running back with nine lives, and he’s ready to start a new chapter with the Denver Broncos.

McGahee has been injury plagued over the years, but he’s refusing to quit and call it a career. He’s found a new home after having his carries reduced last season by the Baltimore Ravens behind the emergence of running back Ray Rice.

McGahee has carried the ball 1,541 times for 6,167 yards and pounded out 55 touchdowns over his seven years in the NFL with Buffalo and the Ravens. He is looking to continue his tenure with his new team and is not looking to fill the role as a back-p running back after being a salary cap casualty last season.

His role will be easily defined because he’s reuniting with his former running backs coach Eric Studesville. They have a relationship from being together in Buffalo for six years, and Studesville knows the talent and skills McGahee carries in his tool kit.

McGahee's is willing to compete with current back Knowshon Moreno, and he's ready to put his 235-pound frame to work and carry the ball more than the 100 times this season, as he did last year with the Ravens in a reduced role. He’s developed the ability to play with pain and will find the open space to pick up the additional yards crucial game situations.

The Broncos new head coach John Fox is used to using multiple-back systems and he’s found a veteran in McGahee, who’s ready to work and get back in the gameplan of opposing defensive coordinators.

He brings versatility to the backfield and gives the team more options to work with in their system.

McGahee will be an interesting story as the season develops, because he never quits playing the game of football. No matter how much adversity he faces, it seems that he always finds a way to come out of the pack on top.

Nick Barnett

Nick Barnett is back in the fold, signing on with the Buffalo Bills after being released by the Green Bay Packers.

Barnett has been plagued by injuries over his career and missed out on the Packers' Super Bowl run, when a wrist injury sidelined him in Week 4 of the 2010 season. He’s being reunited with Bob Sanders, the former Packers linebackers coach, and can’t wait to get back on the field.

He’ll be an every-down player with the Bills because he can play the pass and the run, and he'll fit in well with their defensive scheme. He’s played in 107 games in his career, which brings leadership to the team, and he’s hungry to get back on the field.

Barnett is joining a defense that gave up an average of 26.5 points per game, and he’ll surely bring that number down. Even though he actually has a Super Bowl ring from the Packers, no player is willing to accept it as a true victory in their heart while their watching the team win from the sidelines.

He was drafted in the first round out of Oregon State and was quickly the heartbeat of the Packers defense. He only knows how to play the game one way, and that’s fast and physical. He possesses a rare talent at the linebacker position, because he has the ability to play pass coverage down the field. This will be an upgrade from former Bills linebacker and free agent Paul Posluszny, who signed a six-year contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Buffalo Bills were 4-12 last season, and head coach Chan Gailey is happy to know that there is a new sheriff in town, one who's holding the handcuffs to the defense and is ready to fill up the jail.

Marion Barber

Marion Barber is finally in a division that plays his type of football, and the Chicago Bears just became a little stronger in the “black and blue” NFC North.

Barber is a downhill runner who packs a punch and delivers a blow to any defender that stands in his way. He’s ready to convince the Bears head coach Lovie Smith that he has the whole package of running, catching and blocking that will provide the Bears that extra punch in the playoffs that they’ve been searching for since last season's loss in the NFC Championship game against Green Bay Packers.

He’s finally getting a fresh start after shared duties with the Dallas Cowboys and just wants a chance to compete and show what he can do if he’s on the field.

The Bears converted 13 of 27 (45 percent) of the third or fourth-and-one situations, which was 27th in the league. Barber has career stats of 66 percent in those same situations and is ready to be a big factor in keeping the drives going in the red zone.

The Bear's now have a running back in Barber who’s hungry to compete and win the physical part of the game.

He will have a major role on the offensive unit, and the added bonus is that he has soft hands coming out of the backfield. This will allow Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz to take advantage of those skills in certain game situations, and Barber is extremely tough to bring down in the open field after catching passes out the backfield.

He’s bringing a physical mentality to the Bears, who have a true runner that only runs north and south and is hungry to get on the field this season.