Biggest winners, losers from NFC West in opening days of NFL free agency
Looking for the teams pushing all their chips in with big-money free agent deals? Well, the NFC West division is not that place.
While three of the four teams within the division had enough salary cap space to make some big deals, the Cardinals, Rams, 49ers and Seahawks mainly focused on more sensible signings and retaining their own players.
The Cardinals were the most active, signing six outside free agents, including four on the defensive side of the ball. The Rams wisely invested in bolstering their offensive line to protect aging quarterback Matthew Stafford.
And the Seahawks, with president of football operations John Schneider the prime decision-maker for the first time, were mostly quiet. The team's splashiest move was re-signing a major piece to new head coach Mike Macdonald's defense in interior defensive lineman Leonard Williams.
Here's a look at the winners and losers in the NFC West during the first wave of free agency.
Winners
L.A.'s 36-year-old signal-caller had a bounce-back year in 2023, throwing for 3,965 yards, with 24 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Most importantly, Stafford was sacked just 30 times — one fewer than the 29 times he hit the turf in an injury-shortened 2022 season. Stafford played just nine games that year due to a bruised spinal cord.
Rams coach Sean McVay hopes to keep Stafford healthy and upright by signing former Lions left guard Jonah Jackson to a three-year, $51 million contract that includes $34 million in guaranteed money, along with retaining right guard Kevin Dotson on a similar deal.
The Jackson signing allows the Rams to kick second-year pro Steven Avila inside to center. It also allows them to keep building on an improved running game led by last year's breakout performer in Pro Bowl back Kyren Williams.
Los Angeles also brought back playmaking cornerback Darious Williams on a three-year deal. With Tyler Higbee recovering from a knee injury suffered in the postseason, Los Angeles found his replacement in free-agent tight end Colby Parkinson.
With 11 draft picks next month, including a first-round pick for the first time since 2016, the Rams appear poised to chase the 49ers for the NFC West crown.
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The 49ers spent most of last season trying to find a bookend defensive end to complement perennial Pro Bowler Nick Bosa. They cycled through Drake Jackson. Clelin Ferrell, Randy Gregory and Chase Young with mixed results. Those four combined for 11.5 sacks last season. Bosa led San Francisco with 10.5 sacks.
San Francisco found an answer by signing Leonard Floyd to a two-year, $20 million deal. In the past four seasons with the Bills and Rams, Floyd has 39.5 sacks. He has not missed a game since 2017. And he's a solid run defender on the edge. The 49ers struggled to stop outside runs in the postseason.
General manager Monti Ossenfort continues to make shrewd moves in building the Cardinals into a contender in the NFC West. Armed with salary cap space after moving on from veteran players DeAndre Hopkins and Zach Allen last year, Ossenfort focused on the defensive side of the ball with some solid signings.
The Cardinals added interior pass rushers in Justin Jones and Bilal Nichols, a run-and-chase linebacker in Mack Wilson Sr. and a veteran cover corner in Sean Murphy-Bunting.
Arizona released injured veteran left tackle D.J. Humphries and signed former Bengals tackle Jonah Williams as a replacement on offense. The Cardinals also added a change-of-pace back and return man from within the division in former Seahawks playmaker Deejay Dallas.
Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon has created a roster of grinders who bring toughness to the field, and these signings appear to continue in that mold.
While they were not super active in free agency, the Seahawks secured their top priority and a key piece of their defense in re-signing Williams to a three-year deal that will pay him $21.5 million annually, making Williams one of the highest-paid defensive tackles in the NFL.
Williams is one of the top interior pass rushers in the game. Macdonald should heat up the pass rush by combining him with Uchenna Nwosu, returning from injury, along with Boye Mafe and Darrell Taylor.
Seattle also added safety Rayshawn Jenkins to a secondary that already has cornerbacks Devon Witherspoon and Tariq Woolen, along with safety Julian Love. So defending the pass shouldn't be an issue in Seattle.
To be determined
Congrats to Darnold for turning a one-year stint sitting behind Niners QB Brock Purdy into another chance at a starting job. Darnold signed a one-year deal that could max out at $10 million as the Minnesota Vikings' answer to Kirk Cousins moving on to the Atlanta Falcons.
Kevin O'Connell's scheme is similar to Kyle Shanahan's in San Francisco, so Darnold's transition should be seamless. And at 26 years old, the USC product still has some gas left in the tank. However, Darnold is 21-35 with 56 interceptions in six NFL seasons, so let's wait and see how this works out in Minnesota.
Where did all the free-agent QBs wind up?
The former Seahawk signed a four-year, $53 million deal with Carolina, taking advantage of the cash raining down on big guys in general and the offensive guard position specifically in the first few days of free agency. Lewis reunites with former Seahawks quarterbacks coach Dave Canales, now the head coach of the Panthers.
Lewis should be lauded for earning his new riches. But now comes the hard part, protecting former No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young, who was sacked 62 times in his rookie season. Only Sam Howell was sacked more (65 sacks). Lewis didn't exactly set the world on fire last season trying to protect Geno Smith in Seattle, allowing three sacks and 29 pressures, according to Pro Football Focus. The Seahawks also struggled to run the football, averaging just 92.9 rushing yards a contest, No. 28 in the NFL.
The foundational piece in the middle of San Francisco's defense was due to make $18.4 million in 2024. The 49ers released him in a salary cap move in favor of trading for defensive tackle Maliek Collins from the Texans for a seventh-round pick.
It took only a day for Armstead to find a new team, signing with the Jaguars for three years and $51 million on Thursday. At 30 years old, the 6-foot-7, 300-pound Armstead is still a good player, but his better days are behind him. This offseason he's also having surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his knee. His goal is to be back for training camp.
Losers
Yes, Purdy played at an MVP level last season, not missing a game due to injury after returning from major shoulder surgery in the offseason. However, the 49ers haven't done much in free agency to protect their prime asset.
San Francisco did re-sign right tackle Colton McKivitz to a one-year extension, along with backup offensive lineman Ben Bartch. However, according to ESPN Analytics, the 49ers were No. 20 in pass block win rate and No. 23 in run block win rate.
Left tackle Trent Williams turns 36 years old in July and can't play forever. Everyone remembers the missed block that allowed Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones to wreck the game for San Francisco in the Super Bowl. Although they have limited cap space, the 49ers need to figure out how to add some big bodies up front to protect Purdy. San Francisco could look to the draft, which has a bounty of talented, highly rated offensive linemen available.
Purdy did have some good news this week as the Iowa State product married his college sweetheart, Jenna Brandt, in Iowa.
Cam Newton calls Brock Purdy "10th-best player on the 49ers"
We never really got to see Adams at his best in Seattle because of injuries. He had his best season a year after the trade from the New York Jets, finishing with a team-high 9.5 sacks in 2020. But Adams could not consistently stay healthy after that.
He missed 33 games in four seasons with Seattle due to various injuries. He was released in a roster purge by Seattle along with fellow safety Quandre Diggs, defensive tackle Bryan Mone and tight end Will Dissly. The Seahawks also let linebackers Jordyn Brooks and Bobby Wagner go in free agency, along with running back DeeJay Dallas, tight end Colby Parkinson and Lewis.
Adams is still young at 28 years old. He can restart his career and show he has gas left in the tank with another team in 2024.
Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.
