NFL free agency and the NFL draft are two of the most exciting events of the offseason. But before that, we kick things off with the franchise tag period.
Eight players have received a tag thus far, including Kyle Dugger's transition tag. Click here to view in-depth analysis, contract projections and more for all of PFF's top free agents.
WR Michael Pittman Jr., Indianapolis Colts
PFF Free-Agent Rank: 11
Plenty of holes can be poked in Pittman's game, with some athletic limitations keeping his average depth of target down, especially compared to predominantly outside wide receivers. Nonetheless, Pittman is as reliable a possession receiver as there is in the NFL, and it's also fair to wonder if a carousel at quarterback in Indianapolis has limited his production. Pittman earned a career-best receiving grade with 100-plus catches and 1,000-plus receiving yards, and that gets a player paid even if there is a perceived ceiling to his game.
S Kyle Dugger, New England Patriots (transition tag)
PFF Free-Agent Rank: 21
Dugger is in the mold of the safety-linebacker hybrid that former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick loved as more teams shifted to dime packages and big dime looks with three safeties. Dugger fits in the run game as well as any defensive back in football, and he’s not a total liability in coverage, particularly against bigger slot receivers and tight ends, but it’s not exactly a strength.
CB Jaylon Johnson, Chicago Bears
PFF Free-Agent Rank: 9
Johnson wasn’t quite able to have the third-year breakout in 2022 he hoped for as nagging injuries kept him off the field for several stretches, and he and the team were unable to find common ground on an early extension. Johnson continued to push for a new deal right up to requesting a trade at the deadline this year, but after conversations with other teams, Chicago elected to keep him around. Now, with edge defender Montez Sweat extended and the franchise tag placed on Johnson, another negotiation looks to be on the horizon.
The physical, technically sound wide cornerback boasts ball production and lockdown coverage abilities that prevent targets as well as anyone, never allowing a 60% completion rate in any NFL season thus far.
EDGE Josh Allen, Jacksonville Jaguars
PFF Free-Agent Rank: 3
Allen backed up a strong 2022 with an extraordinary 2023 season, racking up career highs in quarterback pressures (90) and sacks (19), coupled with a 20.5% pass-rush win rate that was among the league’s best.
S Antoine Winfield Jr. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
PFF Free-Agent Rank: 8
Winfield can line up in the box, take on receivers in the slot and play as a roaming deep-third free safety, finding success in single-high and two-high coverage shells. The former second-round pick is a difference-maker on the backend, and his remarkable versatility carries value at a position that appreciates it more than perhaps any other.
DI Justin Madubuike, Baltimore Ravens
PFF Free-Agent Rank: 6
Madubuike has a strong case for being the player to have earned himself the most money this offseason. With at least half a sack in 13 of 17 games this season, Madubuike more than doubled his prior season high. He also exactly doubled his total pressure output. His effort and intensity on backside pursuit plays have always been there, and now an improved arsenal of moves with a more explosive first step has Madubuike set to cash in big time on a long-term deal.
EDGE Brian Burns, Carolina Panthers
PFF Free-Agent Rank: 5
Burns cannot seem to escape Carolina as the team turns down trade offers and consistently loses football games, but he put together a strong second half of the 2023 season. He posted his fourth straight pass-rush grade above 70.0, keeping his stock high amid the chaos.
CB L'Jarius Sneed, Kansas City Chiefs
PFF Free-Agent Rank: 10
Sneed was a fixture out wide in 2023 after lining up primarily in the slot over his first three seasons, and he held up quite well in several tough matchups. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo asks a lot of his cornerbacks, and Sneed is sticky in coverage, getting into receivers' hip pockets and becoming very hard to shake with lateral movement or in the air at the catch point.
Sneed could stand to cut down on penalties, but his aggressive nature and inside-outside versatility are plus attributes.
WR Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals
PFF Free-Agent Rank: 4
Injuries hampered almost the entire 2023 season for Higgins after his second consecutive 1,000-yard season in 2022 with a receiving grade above 75.0. A franchise tag already seemed likely heading into the season, and with little new data to impact the negotiation either way, it was inevitable. The field-stretching, jump-ball receiver should have the chance to bounce back in 2024 along with the entire Bengals team following a disappointing campaign.
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