The offseason in PML is one of the more uniquely, optimistically enjoyable times that any person can have video gaming. The offseason occurs after all the winning and losing is done. After a champion is crowned, the chokers choke, the underachievers under achieve, the Cinderella’s lose their shoe, and the non-playoff teams can begin to look forward to more losing, we first have to face the offseason. For some in PML the offseason is their time to shine, its a time to make deals, make a splash with trades, and do the unthinkable to land the big fish in the draft. Now that it’s all said and done, I wanted to take some time to recognize and acknowledge those who I consider to be the Winner’s and Loser’s of this past offseason.
Chicago Bears – A+ Winner – After finishing 2nd in the NFC North coach Jefe was able to lead his team all the way to the NFC Conference Championship game where they fell to the eventual Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams. At the end of the season the weaknesses of this team were apparent. They needed to get stronger in their front 7. This was addressed perfectly pre-draft via Free agency and trades. They brought in Joey Bosa via a deal with the LA Chargers while grabbing Danielle Hunter and Grover Stewart in FA. With the #2 pick acquired from Carolina the previous offseason they grabbed the 2nd best player available in Marvin Harrison Jr. Every piece brought in since the end of last season will surely have an impact on thie Bears team and that’s why they are among the biggest winners of the offseason.
Cincinnati Bengals – C – Uneventful is the word I’d say best describes the Bengals activities this offseason. Not much was done to improve the team via free agency, and although they traded back out of the first round to acquire several draft assets from the Texans, I’m very unimpressed with what the Bengals did with the draft. Malik Nabers was their 1st pick, WR out of LSU who doesn’t jump off the page at you.l, same with Isaiah Davis, a RB out of South Dakota Stste that was a waste of a pick in the second round. Their best picks came on defense in the form of Korey Foreman and Cedric Gray, the same type of player, one at DE the other at OLB who, while talented, weren’t even positions of need for this team
Buffalo Bills – C- Lost more than gained – After losing in the AFC Championship game the Buffalo Bills headed into an offseason shrouded in aging Free agents and limited money to go around. In a move that didn’t make much sense economically the Bills retained both Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer after both regressed significantly. They then traded away Tre White to the Cowboys Von Miller to the Giants, and Dion Dawkins to the Colts in exchange for draft capital. They then flipped the draft pieces over to Carolina for the services of Jaycee Horn, while they drafted a LT put of Penn State, linebackers and D Lineman that are more athletes than skilled players. Overall I guess it could be said that these Bills have gotten younger, but there’s no arguing that they’ve gotten worse.
Denver Broncos – D+ No offseason action – Having traded away their top 3 picks in this year’s drsft, while being strapped for cash due to Russell Wilson’s contract, the Broncos dusky have much flexibility this offseason. They signed Zeke Elliot and Gerald Everett, traded for a regressed Mike Williams and drafted 2 DE’s that most likely won’t start. The offense should be better but not much can be celebrated in Denver.
Cleveland Browns – B Cap Space Wizardry – I don’t know how they did it but the Browns managed to create cap space while keeping all of their stars on the team. With the space they loaded up on speed first linebackers, acquired a Nick Chubb running mate/potential replacement in Miles Sanders, while also adding QB Sam Hartman in the draft. When we will ever learn to make it hard on these guys? I don’t know but clearly the answer is not, NOW.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – C+ Addition by Subtraction – Facing a hellacious cap situation the Buccaneers took the approach of cutting ties with veterans Mike Evans and Levonte David while shipping out Antoine Winfield Jr. to the Jags in exchange for draft capital. They reached in later rounds for potential Evans replacements but neither Roc Taylor or Roman Wilson seem promising. While on defense Payton Wilson may replace David and Rod Moore will have a tough task filling the spot Windfield departed from. On the d-line they added weight room warriors but only time will tell if that strength translates onto the field.
Arizona Cardinals – B- Much addo about Nothing – The Cardinals did a fine job of raping the Giants repeatedly this offseason in a series of trades that resulted in acquiring DT Alim McNeil and positioned the Cardinals to have back to back picks in the first round. With picks 5 and 6 the Cardinals could’ve grabbed 2 once in a generation talents in Brock Bowers and Kool Aid McKinstry but instead reached for SS James Williams and WR Xavier Worthy. Foot all wise the picks didn’t make the most sense but when you like your cheese with extra cheddar like Que, I get it.
Los Angeles Chargers – D+ Dumb, Dumb, Dumb, Dumb – After stacking their roster with SS last season, a failure in the first round of the playoffs caused the Chargers to reverse course for the offseason. Rather than playing out the season with the stars they had, a bold course was charted to save the team money in the future, which resulted in Joey Bosa, Austin Ekeler, and Mike Williams being traded away. The draft capital that these players hauled in wasn’t really allocated properly as many of the players acquired were reaches at best and at worst were wasted picks. This roster is still formidable but a far cry worse than what they were to start last season, all as a result of poor management.
Kansas City Chiefs – B Draft Studs – A bug decision to move on from perennial game wrecker Chris Jones paid off for the Chiefs as they were able to take advantage of their scouting department to bring in several players via the draft that can be day 1 starters. Michael Pierce is a temporary stop gap at DT, while Calen Bullock SS and Danny Stutsman OLB are impressive on paper. Keon Coleman and Tory Herton provide Mahomes with big fast targets in the passing game. While their moved weren’t very loud this offseason they may prove to be efficient.
Indianapolis Colts – A Slow and Steady wins the race – the offseason was very quiet for the Colts. Some under the radar moves were made in FA picking up Super Bowl winners Matthew Stafford and Cam Akers to back up their young stars. The trade for Dion Dawkins coupled with the pick ups of JC Latham RT and Dalin Holker TE has bolstered this offensive unit. While on defense adding Kool Aid McKinstry CB, DeShawn Pace OLB and Sébastien Joseph Day DT adds depth, this Colts media silence bodes well for the upcoming season.
Washington Commanders – B+ A new Commander in town – This offseason for the Commanders began with the introduction of Coach Capitan aka Miles taking over for the departed coach Vet. Set on establishing his own identity Miles quickly shipped off Sam Howell and for the second time in as many seasons Washington returned to the NC trough, drafting QB Drake Maye to take over the signal calling duties. In the 2nd round they reached to draft RB Treveyon Henderson from Ohio State, adding TE Oronde Gadsen II out of Syracuse in the 3rd. They’re hoping Kamren Kinchens can be the 2nd coming of Sean Taylor, while they lean on their front 4 to continue to show down opponents run game. Mike Geisicki TE and Mykal Walker OLB were key FA picks up, while the secondary unit went largely unaddressed.
Dallas Cowboys – A- Wheeling and Dealing in Big D – At the start of last season the Cowboys were facing cap h*** coming into the off-season. Some foresight and solid financial planning by coach Drama put the Cowboys in a position to succeed for many seasons going forward. After 60 immersion tasks towards the 1 more year option the Cowboys are able to extend Dak Prescott an additional season while only adding 5 total mil to his contract. The allowed for Dak’s 60 mil cap hit this season to be spread out to next year. This resulted in an additional 30 mil in cap for the Cowboys which enabled them to acquire SS Tre White in a trade, resign SS Tyron Smith on a franchise tag, while also securing Tony Pollard for 4 more seasons. With 4 picks in the draft the Cowboys didn’t go for the best player available but rather acquired players at positions of need. There were some miscues by the scouting department in the draft but all in all the Cowboys had a great offseason.
Miami Dolphins – D- Someone’s sniffing the M-I-Yayo – After a controversial decision to ship off Jaylon Waddle to the Atlanta Falcons, and being the only team in the AFC East to miss the playoffs, alot was riding on this offseason, particularly the draft to establish this team as a force for the seasons to come. Unfortunately the scouting department in Miami may be one of the worst in the league as many of their draft picks were huge reaches that did not pay off at all. Their most solid picks came in the 1st and 7th rounds as Kingsley Suamataia RT, and Gabriel Murphy can be Impact players from Day 1. However two linebackers taken out of Clemson don’t possess the size or the speed to have the impact you’d want out of such high picks. For the players that they passed up, taking WR Emeka Egbuka out of Ohio State leaves a lot to be desired for Tua and this hope of a passing game that this team has going forward.
Philadelphia Eagles – C- Bald Eagles – The best thing that could’ve happened for the Eagles occurred after the Super Bowl when Derrick Henry retained all his abilities from the previous season. After Jason Kelce retired, Darius Slay, and Haason Reddick regressed, the Eagles knew what moves they needed to make. Unfortunately, after shipping off Reddick to the Jets for draft capital the Eagles failed to secure any players that were needed to make an immediate impact for this team. A center was acquired in a trade with the Panthers and FS Cooper Dejean was drafted out of Iowa, but overall the Eagles offseason left much to be desired.
Atlanta Falcons – D+ Dirty Dirty Birds – After trading away 2 firsts and a 2nd to acquire Jaylen Waddle, the Falcons underachieved and missed the playoffs. With very little in terms of drsft capital they failed to draft any players that’ll see the field during opening week. The only improvement comes in the form of the aging, regressed Khalil Mack. In a division that saw everyone improve, this offseason may prove to be costly to the Falcons.
San Francisco 49ers – B Building in the Bay – After their season ended in the divisional round of the playoffs at home to the Chicago Bears, the 49ers had some soul searching to do during this offseason. With not much money to spend in FA, and most of their players still locked under contract to improve their roster. They did just that targeting players that will be able to make an immediate impact in key positions on the field. Amarius Mims picked in the 1st round out of Georgia seeks to replace retired LT Trent Williams, while 6th round pick Logan Brown RT looks to anchor the other side of the line. Ja’Corey Brooks WR was snagged in the 3rd round to provide another weapon for Brock Purdy. The defense picked up what they hope to be future stars to replace some aging vets at DT with Tyleik Williams out of Ohio State, and at CB with the addition of Josh Newton, & Max Melton. All in all this 49ers offseason has proved that they have the managerial staff in place to deal with the inevitable loss of aging stars.
New York Giants – G for the G-men – For a team that struggled all last season throwing the ball, and defending against the pass it seemed like the Giants had a clear blueprint for what needed to be addressed in the off-season. A series of trades left many fans scratching their heads as the Giants made a series of trades to acquire Von Miller, BJ Ojulari, and Chandler Jones to rush the passer. They also moved down in the 1st round from pick 6 to 11, just to drsft Quinn Ewers at QB while still retaining Daniel Jones at the price tag of 147 million over the next 3 seasons. A couple of drsft picks were used to build up the secondary but no one they picked up will make an impact anytime soon. When we get a chance to look back on this offseason it may be argued that the Giants had the biggest blunder of the cycle.
Jacksonville Jaguars – A- OffSeason W for team representing Duval – One of the better drafts were had this year by the Jags. They addressed positions of need, drafting Kalen King to start at CB, Adonai Mitchell to replace Calvin Ridley at WR, Joe Alt to start at RT, Tommy Eichenburg at MLB and Joshua Karty to be the team’s Kicker. The addition of Antoine Winfield JR, and progression of Andre Cisco may be enough to sure up a secondary that was often torched last season. This was a great offseason for the Jags of Duval County.
New York Jets – D Why, just why? A controversial move ended up landing Coach Greeny and the Jets the gem of the draft in #1 overall pick Caleb Williams out of USC. A player that cost the Jets their current 1st, a future 1st, and best CB in the league Sauce Gardner, was a worthy acquisition for any team except for this one. With Aaron Rodgers still on the roster it didn’t make much sense for the Jets to sell the farm for a QB. Especially considering they are a run heavy team who’s weakness last season was defending against the pass, and moving the ball through the air themselves. Rather than keep their defense intact and maybe add some talent at WR or TE, and then bring in some one who could cover the middle of the field, the Jets gave up their linchpin in the secondary and never addressed their other needs on offense. Sure they made a big splash, and acquiring the #1 pick carries weight. It just afraid it’ll end up amounting to a Pyrric victory when all is said and done.
Detroit Lions – A- Detroit 1 – World 0 – Another team that had a sneaky great offseason were the Luons. Coach Fallen placed an emphasis on defense by first acquiring X-Factor DT Chris Jones from the Chiefs after adding Leonard Williams earlier in the year. They snagged a few pearls in the draft like Ja’Markis Weston OLB, and Keon Zipperer TE, and shored up their secondary by acquiring Kendall Fuller in FA. With the Bears and Packers making noise running the ball last season, the Lions have put themselves in a position to compete for the division.
Green Bay Packers – B+ Living up to the cheese head moniker – After getting bounced in the first round by the LA Rams the Packers felt that this offseason was the time to bolster their defense. A trade with the Patriots brought over Jabril Peppers, while the draft delivered Justin Flowe OLB, Ruke Orhurhuro DT, and Karene Reid OLB, all of whom may be day 1 starters. They also grabbed Donovan Jackson, arguably the best Lineman of the class to start on their offensive line. This Packers team is poised for a comeback season 2.
Carolina Panthers – B- Draft All-Stars – As is always the case the Panthers came into the draft with more picks than any other team in the league. Following an abysmal season which saw them finish 3-14 the Panthers had only one direction they could go. Sending away Miles Sanders cleared the way for them to expend more finances in free agency and gsve them more assest to blow in the draft. They traded for Austin Ekeler, drafted Braelon Allen, reached for 5 WR in the draft, picked up 2 TE in FA, 2 RT’s, 4 D Lineman, 4 linebackers and 4 Defensive Backs. I don’t know what that all will amount to but it was a busy offseason for the Panthers.
New England Patriots – A+ To infinite and beyond – After making it all the way to the Super Bowl with a roster that many doubted had the weapons to get it done, the Patriots entered the offseason playing with a loaded deck. With a plethora of cap space and picks galore the Patriots ensured the future success of their franchise by adding pieces at every position on both sides of the ball, that’ll have an impact not only this season, but in many more to come. Can’t say many teams had a better offseason than the Pats.
Las Vegas Raiders – C+ The house doesn’t always win – After a lackluster season 1 the Raiders had some areas of need that should’ve been addressed early in the offseason but seems to have been ignored altogether. The Raiders went WR with their first pick grabbing Romeo Odunze from Washington to pair with QB Jayden Daneils who they took early in the 2nd. Jalen Catalon SS was selected later in the 2nd round and whie he provides some versatility in the secondary the Raiders failed to address the CB position during the draft, returning this season with a unit that underperformed last year.
Los Angeles Rams – A+ Fame and Fortune – At this point I think it’s safe to say Cookieboy is just toying with us all. After winning the Super Bowl the Rams replaced QB Matthew Stafford with Jameis Winston. In the 5th round he drafted Jaylen Henderson from Texas A&M who could be the day 1 starter. Any perceived holes that were there have been plugged by vets in FA and the youth brought in via the draft will ensure this team doesn’t miss a beat as they look to defend their title this upcoming season.
Baltimore Ravens – F Just Stupid – I’ve wasted all the time I care to invest talking about the horrible GM job being done in Baltimore. Trading the #1 pick, attempting to trade pick 19 for a 1 year rental, trading various players and picks to move back up to #4 just to fail to draft a player who deserved to be taken at the spot, etc. Horrible season resulted in a 2-15 record, an equally disappointing offseason almost guarantees this season will be no better. Madden Bros 4 life but the truth is the truth Gang.
New Orleans Saints – B- Sometimes your best isn’t good enough – Considering how cash strapped they were to start last season the Saints made some noteworthy sacrifices to ensure that the future of their team wasn’t as bleak as it could have been. After trading away Marshon Lattimore losing Demario Davis to retirement, the Saints did an excellent job finding replacements for all their lost and aging veterans. Their scouting department earned their coins this offseason as the Saints enter year two in a far more advantageous position than anyone could have imagined this time a season ago.
Seattle Seahawks – B+ All Hail the 12 – After winning the NFC West last season the Seahawks season was halted in the 1st round by the Chicago Bears. Several areas of concern needed to be addressed in order for the Seahawks to bounce back stronger than last season. The first step was to trade with the Washingon Commanders for QB Sam Howell. Securing the future of the franchise going forward beyond Geno Smith was paramount and more insurance was added to.the roster with the drafting of Bo Nix QB out of Oregon. The addition of Damien Harris and Aiden Robbins will aid the offense in the event of another Kenneth Walker injury. There were many reaches on the defensive side of the ball in the draft, with the only piece that mattered being Maason Smith DT taken in the first round.
Pittsburgh Steelers – B+ Closing the Steel Curtain – After falling to the New England Patriots in the Divisional round, Coach Curt and the Steelers seemed to be content with their offense and determined to add more weapons to the defense. They accomplished this via trades with the Houston Texans and LA Chargers which brought over MLB Henry To’oto’o, DT Christian Barmore, and CB Marcus Jones. Not much was accomplished during the draft but the main unit that led to their success has been strengthened this off-season.
Houston Texans – A+ Everything is bigger is Texas – As was expected coach Ke made a huge splash during the off-season, adding huge upgrades on both sides of the ball, improving a roster that previously went 13-4 facing their demise in the 1st round vs the Buffalo Bills. In FA the Texans acquired Veteran WR Mike Evans, RB JK Dobbins, MLB Levonte David, CB Stephon Gilmore, CB Jeff Okudah, SS Harrison Smith, and OLB Shaq Barrett. As if that wasn’t enough the Texans vis trade acquired draft capital that resulted in them taking TE Brock Bowers out of Georgia, WR Malik Benson from Alabama, and FS Kendal Daniels. With a given track record of building young talent, there is no doubt that the ultimate winners of this year’s off-season are the Houston Texans.
Tennessee Titans – A- Titan Up – One of the most efficient draft classes belong to Coach Lloyd and hus staff. Each pick was high quality, addressed a dire need on the roster, and makes this team better in positions where their impact can be quickly felt. J.T. Tuimoloau DE, Blake Corum RB, Troy Franklin WR, Matthew Jones RG, and Kris Abrams-Draine CB should all see the field day 1. FA primarily resulted in bringing back players who didn’t resign during the season, but after a tumultuous turnover season 1, these Titans are ready to battle for the AFC South again.
Minnesota Vikings – C+ The Halls of Valhalla – The biggest need the Vikings had heading into the off-season was QB. Kirk Cousins was unable to get the job done last season and Kellen Mond filling in didn’t fare any better. Unfortunately for the Vikings several teams before them in the draft snatched up the top prospects and so they settled for Joe Milton III in the 4th round. Dallas Turner OLB was their prized pick in the 1st round out of Alabama and Mike Hall Jr was their 2nd pick taken from Ohio State. FA is where most of the holes on this team were filled, adding Odell Beckham Jr WR, Dalton Schultz TE, and Kamren Curl SS. With much turnover from season 1, the key to this teams success still remains with the quality of play they get out of the QB position.
