Saturday, June 6, 2020

Favorite Offseason Additions: AFC

I picked my favorite free agent offseason additions for each of the NFC teams yesterday. Here are my favorite additions for each of the AFC teams.

Baltimore Ravens
Calais Campbell, DL
Other than their practice of often letting home-grown talent leave in exchange for Compensatory Picks, I'm annually a big fan of the moves that the Ravens make. The addition of Calais Campbell is an excellent addition. If Campbell does nothing on the field for the Ravens he'll make an immediate, positive impact on the locker room. He's just a great guy and team leader.

Cincinnati Bengals
D.J. Reader, DT
Has Mike Brown been locked out of the building? The Bengals embraced free agency this year like they rarely have. Perhaps never have. D.J. Reader is literally the biggest of their several signings. He's developed into one of the best nose tackles in the league.

Cleveland Browns
Jack Conklin, OT
The Browns signed free agents in bulk. They had to improve their offensive line. Jack Conklin was the best free agent offensive lineman and one of the better right tackles in the league. Good deal.

Pittsburgh Steelers
Stefen Wisniewski, G
The Steelers haven't been too active in free agency. If the pattern holds, the addition of Stefen Wisniewski should bring another Lombardi to Pittsburgh. He signs with the Eagles-Super Bowl. He signs with the Chiefs-Super Bowl. He's a mercenary and good things happen wherever he goes. Despite never staying in one place very long he's also a very good football player.

Buffalo Bills
Stefon Diggs, WR
The Bills have been active and I like nearly all of their signings. I'll go with the addition that I actually like the least. As a Vikings fan, I hated to see Stefon Diggs go. He's been one of my favorite players since the day that he was drafted. At least the Vikings got a solid return on the trade. On the Bills side of things, Diggs is an outstanding addition to a fast improving team.

Miami Dolphins
Malcolm Perry, WR, Navy
Malcolm Perry was so much fun to watch as Navy's running quarterback. It'll be fun to see what he can do in the NFL. He could play all over the Dolphins' offense.

New England Patriots
Anfernee Jennings, Edge, Alabama
I've heard many talking heads bash the drafting of the New England Patriots. I wonder if it's really because they hate what the Patriots did or if they just hated that they didn't draft a quarterback. I liked several of their picks. I went with Anfernee Jennings over Kyle Dugger and Josh Uche because the more I learned about Jennings the more he intrigued me.

New York Jets
Ashtyn Davis, S, Cal
I gotta go with the Golden Bear. Go Bears!

Houston Texans
Ross Blacklock, DT, TCU
As a Minnesota Vikings fan, I had looked into and grown fond of several defensive tackles through the draft evaluation process. Ross Blacklock, Jordan Elliott, Justin Madubuike, Neville Gallimore. I wanted them all in Minnesota.

Indianapolis Colts
DeForest Buckner, DT
I'll look past the fine signing of Philip Rivers and go with the terrific trade for Deforest Buckner. A single first round pick is a bargain for one of the 2-3 best defensive players in the league. The Colts are building a very intriguing defense.

Jacksonville Jaguars
Joe Schobert, LB
It must be a gas to be a Jaguars fan. They add a boatload of high-end draft talent and expensive free agents, have a blink of success, and then tear the whole thing down. Right now, I tap the Jaguars as the team most likely to be drafting first in the 2021 NFL Draft. As for the signing of Joe Schobert, I really liked him throughout his time in Cleveland. It's interesting that his deal with the Jaguars is for five years. That doesn't happen too often in this era of short-term deals.

Tennessee Titans
Kristian Fulton, CB, LSU
I was certain that Kristian Fulton would be a first round pick. It was a surprise to see the Tennessee Titans snag him at the end of the second round.

Denver Broncos
Jerry Juedy, WR, Alabama
Jerry Juedy was my favorite receiver in the draft. My favorite drafted receiver is now Justin Jefferson. Juedy is still my favorite offseason addition of the Denver Broncos.

Kansas City Chiefs
Clyde Edwards-Helaire, RB, LSU
The Super Bowl champs didn't have many needs. Adding a talented, versatile running back was one of them. With Clyde Edwards-Helaire, a scary offense got scarier.

Las Vegas Raiders
Amik Robertson, CB, Lousiana Tech
Amik Robertson was one of my favorite players in the draft. It only follows that he's my favorite draft pick of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Los Angeles Chargers
Kenneth Murray, LB, Oklahoma
Kenneth Murray was another draft favorite. The Los Angeles Chargers are going to have a fun defense. For a team that "earned" the sixth pick in the draft, the Chargers have a talented roster. Especially on defense.





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