The "Offseason Report Card" has been a feature of the magazine since 1993. It didn't make it into this year's edition, but we'll be offering that content here at the website.
We'll post it in sections over the next couple of weeks, then string it all together in one document for those who want to have it all in one place.
INTRODUCTION
NFL teams appear more willing to punt away a season than they used to be. At one time most every franchise paid lip service to the idea of competing for a championship, year in and year out. But today it’s not hard to see a handful of teams each offseason that are blowing things up to lose – in hopes of winning a year or two down the road.
The Dolphins are the poster child for this new reality. In 2019 they traded or cut a lot of starters, dumping salaries, stockpiling draft picks and going 5-11. This year they handed out $200 million worth of contracts on the first day of free agency, then drafted four players in the top 40 picks. They’re not the first team to operate that way (Cleveland behaved similarly in 2018-2019) and won’t be the last.
While losing to win doesn’t always work, that approach looks better than that of teams that seem to have a foot in both worlds. When you see a team both shipping off established talent and also burning money and draft picks for aging players, as the Bears and Texans have done in recent years, it’s less clear if they’re hoping to win now, or in the future. They’ll probably do neither. Better to embrace one approach than waffle between both.
The Cardinals, Dolphins and Buccaneers seemed to gain the most this offseason. The Panthers, Patriots and Rams seemed to shed the most talent. Some of the improving teams had nowhere to go but up, but respectability shouldn’t be too far off for of a couple of them.
In the following team-by-team sections, the grades aren’t fantasy specific, but instead reflect the difference in each team’s overall level of talent. No credit is given for re-signing players or gaining future draft picks, nor are teams penalized for overpaying players. Instead, the grades simply weigh the quality of the new players versus the quality of the players lost.
A – Team significantly better.
B – Team somewhat improved.
C – Level of talent essentially unchanged.
D – Team lost some ground.
F – Team severely damaged.
ARIZONA CARDINALS
Key gains: WR DeAndre Hopkins (trade), DT Jordan Phillips (Buff.), LB Isaiah Simmons (1st), LB DeVondre Campbell (Atl.), LB Devon Kennard (Det.).
Key losses: RB David Johnson (trade), C A.Q. Shipley, TE Charles Clay.
Grade: A
Hopkins was an offseason coup, one of the game’s best wideouts acquired for just a second-round pick and a running back with an awful contract. He’ll pay immediate dividends. … The three defensive free agent additions aren’t household names, but Phillips comes off his best season (9.5 sacks) in Buffalo, and this team was weak at linebacker last year. All three players will likely start and look like upgrades for a defense that needed lots of help. ... Simmons is a linebacker/safety hybrid who could be moved around the defense as the team decides how best to use him. They'll find a way to take advantage of his athleticism.
ATLANTA FALCONS
Key gains: RB Todd Gurley (LAR), DE Dante Fowler (LAR), TE Hayden Hurst (trade), CB AJ Terrell (1st).
Key losses: TE Austin Hooper (Clev.), RB Devonta Freeman (cut), CB Desmond Trufant (cut), LB DeVondre Campbell (Ariz.), DE Vic Beasley (Tenn.).
Grade: B-
Cap concerns factored into some departures, including Hooper and Trufant. It’s a slight gamble at tight end, but Hurst is a former first-round pick who flashed potential before losing out to Mark Andrews. The Falcons might not lose much there at all. Atlanta liked him enough to part with a second-round pick. … The running back swap should be an upgrade, if Gurley’s knee is right. It’s a concern, though, that the team that knew him best didn’t want him back. … Atlanta will pay Fowler $16 million a year, coming off a career season (11.5 sacks). He’ll be an upgrade from Beasley, a disappointment the last three seasons.
BALTIMORE RAVENS
Key gains: DE Calais Campbell (Jac.), LB Patrick Queen (1st), DE Derek Wolfe (Den.).
Key losses: OG Marshal Yanda (retired), LB Patrick Onwuasor (NYJ), NT Michael Pierce (Minn.), CB Brandon Carr, S Tony Jefferson, TE Hayden Hurst (trade).
Grade: B
Upset by Derrick Henry and the Titans in January, Baltimore remade its defensive line with two big acquisitions. Campbell was swiped from the cap-strapped Jaguars for just a fifth-round pick; he averaged 10.5 sacks the last three years. Wolfe comes off a career-high 7 sacks in 12 games. He was actually Plan B after a Michael Brockers deal fell through. Together, they’ll strengthen the defensive front. … Baltimore didn’t want any of its defensive departures back, while Hurst was a luxury behind starter Mark Andrews. Only Yanda seems likely to be missed.
BUFFALO BILLS
Key gains: WR Stefon Diggs (trade), DE Mario Addison (Car.), DT Vernon Butler (Car.), CB Josh Norman (Wash.), DE A.J. Epenesa (2nd), RB Zack Moss (3rd), DE Quinton Jefferson (Sea.), OT Daryl Williams (Car.).
Key losses: DE Shaq Lawson (Mia.), DT Jordan Phillips (Ariz.), RB Frank Gore.
Grade: B+
Diggs was the key offensive addition, giving the offense a nice trio of wideouts (with John Brown and Cole Beasley). If Josh Allen doesn’t take another step forward, it won’t be for lack of quality pass catchers. … Moss will likely get a share of the backfield quickly, maybe getting some goal-line chances. He had 36 touchdowns the last three seasons at Utah. … The Bills also added to their defense, with the key signings players familiar to Sean McDermott from Carolina. Addison has at least 9 sacks in each of the last four seasons. Butler comes off a career-high 6. Norman struggled last year but will make $6 million, so the team is confident a change of scenery will get him back on track. The money was similar with departures Lawson and Phillips, so those exchanges might be a wash.
CAROLINA PANTHERS
Key gains: QB Teddy Bridgewater (N.O.), WR Robby Anderson (NYJ), LT Russell Okung (trade), LB Tahir Whitehead (L.V.), DT Derrick Brown (1st).
Key losses: QB Cam Newton (cut), QB Kyle Allen (trade), LB Luke Kuechly (retired), CB James Bradberry (NYG), RG Trai Turner (trade), DE Marion Addison (Buf.), DT Vernon Butler (Buf.), DT Gerald McCoy (Dall.), DT Dontari Poe (Dall.), S Eric Reid (cut), TE Greg Olsen (cut), OT Daryl Williams (Buff.).
Grade: D
Carolina spent big on Bridgewater (3 years, $63 million) and Anderson (2 years, $20 million). There’s some potential for both players in the Matt Rhule/Joe Brady offense. Bridgewater may not be better than a healthy Newton, but should be an upgrade over Allen. … The other moves, however, suggest a full-on rebuild. Especially on defense, where the team parted with seven veteran starters, many of whom signed big contracts elsewhere, and then used all seven draft picks on that side of the ball. With a limited preseason, there will be growing pains. … The Turner-Okung swap was cap-driven. That looks like a net loss for the offensive line, especially given Okung's history of injuries.
CHICAGO BEARS
Key gains: DE Robert Quinn (Dall.), QB Nick Foles (trade), TE Jimmy Graham (G.B.), OL Germain Ifedi (Sea.), TE Cole Kmet (2nd), S Tashaun Gipson (Hou.), WR Ted Ginn (N.O.).
Key losses: LB Leonard Floyd (LAR), LB Nick Kwiatkoski (L.V.), RG Kyle Long (retired), DT Nick Williams (Det.), S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix (Dall.). Cut: WR Taylor Gabriel, TE Trey Burton, CB Prince Amukamara.
Grade: D
GM Ryan Pace made a couple of highly questionable offseason moves. One was trading a fourth-round pick for Foles, who flopped in Jacksonville and is saddled with a bad contract. He'll probably move ahead of Mitchell Trubisky, but he doesn’t move the needle much. The other was giving Graham $16 million for 2 years, with $9 million guaranteed. He looked washed up in Green Bay the last two years and was released. Hard to believe both players couldn’t have come cheaper. ... Kmet might be the future but shouldn't have a big rookie impact. … The pass rush should be better with Quinn, who comes off an 11.5-sack season in Dallas. But again, Pace spent big (5 years, $70 million) on a guy who’s now with his fourth team in four seasons. … Long has missed more games (34) than he’s played in (30) the last four seasons.
CINCINNATI BENGALS
Key gains: QB Joe Burrow (1st), DT D.J. Reader (Hou.), CB Trae Waynes (Minn.), S Vonn Bell (N.O.), WR Tee Higgins (2nd), CB Mackensie Alexander (Minn.).
Key losses: Cut: QB Andy Dalton, OT Cordy Glenn, CB Dre Kirkpatrick. LB Nick Vigil (LAC), TE Tyler Eifert (Jac.), OL John Jerry.
Grade: A
Ultimately the offseason will be judged by how the draft’s top quarterback turns out. If Burrow develops into a franchise passer, everyone will be happy. With Dalton released, it’s virtually certain Burrow will be a Week 1 starter. … The Bengals were surprisingly – atypically – active in free agency, bringing in three pricey additions in Reader, Waynes and Bell, all of whom should start. The defense looks to be improved (Vigil might be missed). … Higgins, drafted 33rd overall, has No. 1 wideout potential, though he might be only the No. 3 this season. … A.J. Green and Jonah Williams (their first-round pick last year) could both also be listed as “gains”, since neither actually played at all last year.
CLEVELAND BROWNS
Key gains: TE Austin Hooper (Atl.), RT Jack Conklin (Tenn.), OT Jedrick Wills (1st), S Karl Joseph (L.V.).
Key losses: LB Joe Schobert (Jac.), LB Christian Kirksey (cut), DB Damarious Randall (L.V.), TE Demetrius Harris (Chi.), TE Ricky Seals-Jones (K.C.).
Grade: B
Hooper and Conklin were the top free agents on the market at their positions. Maybe Cleveland overpaid, but no question both will be better than what the team put on the field in those spots a year ago. ... Cleveland’s tackle play couldn’t possibly be worse than it was last season. Wills was one of the draft’s top prospects, and should join Conklin as immediate starters. … On defense, there are questions, especially at linebacker. Schobert led the team in tackles last year, and Randall was a productive safety. Joseph should adequately replace Randall, but the front seven doesn't look as good.
NEXT: Dallas through Kansas City.
--Andy Richardson