Let's Talk About the 2021 Offseason Needs for... the NFC + AFC West - 2/19/21
Remember last week when I said that the North and West divisions cap space would be reflective of a new number approx $5M higher than the East and South divisions numbers? Well, on Thursday, the NFL sent out a memo that the Cap would be no lower than $180M (the number I am using for the North and West). That's good news for the articles, but also good news for all NFL teams especially those like the Saints, who are in cap hell right now. It could still increase and some people think $185M is where the number will fall. We shall see. This is the final instalment of this series and I hope you did enjoy it. They were a bear for me to write and get the motivation to do, but I know it's good information for myself and also a good opportunity for you all to get to know the teams a little better.
My point in this 4-week series is to get into the nitty-gritty of what teams want (where they want to upgrade) vs what teams need. I will look through the lenses of ideal roster construction, available cap space, players that I do or do not believe will be resigned, and more. I will be using these 4 articles as a base for my mock drafts. If you would like to read the article on the East Divisions, click here. If you would like to read the article on the South Divisions, click here. And finally, if you would like to read the article on the North divisions, click here. I won't update the articles after teams cut, franchise, or trade players, but I will be changing team needs in the mock drafts as teams change. With all of that being said... Let's Talk About the 2021 Offseason Needs for the NFC + AFC West.
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NFC West Team Needs
There are few teams outside of California (sorry Chargers) that had worse injury luck than the 49ers in 2020. Blame the Metlife turf, blame Jimmy G (I will), or just plain old bad luck, but injuries are a part of the game. This 49ers team is one completed pass to Emmanuel Sanders away from being a Super Bowl Champion team just over a year ago. How do they get back?
As I mentioned, getting their injured players back in 2021 will be huge for them. They lost a lot of their top players at important positions for more than half of the season like; EDGE Nick Bosa, QB Jimmy Garoppolo, TE George Kittle, EDGE Dee Ford, CB Richard Sherman, EDGE Solomon Thomas, RB Raheem Mostert, and WR Deebo Samuel among others that missed shorter spurts of time. Sherman won't be returning in 2021, per Richard Sherman, Solomon Thomas is an impending FA too, and Jimmy G has been the rumor of trade talks or a potential cap casualty this offseason. The rest, outside of Dee Ford, should be ready for the 2021 season in September. Dee has missed 20 games in his 2 seasons in San Fran due to injuries, including 15 last season with a back/neck issue. In his postseason presser, John Lynch wasn't sure when he would be back to playing shape. Dee has a $20M cap hit this season and clearly hasn't lived up to the hype when he was acquired for a 2nd round pick and then given a huge extension. I don't expect they move on from him, but they would save $6M off the cap if they did.
Speaking of the cap, the 49ers are in decent shape with $13M in cap space available and a large chunk of their roster already under contract. I mentioned Sherman and Thomas already. I'm not sure of SF's opinion on bringing back Thomas (their former #3 overall selection with the Trubisky trade back), but he has not lived up to expectations. His 5th-year option was declined last year, which is why he is a FA now. The big, and I mean big, priority for the 49ers is resigning LT Trent Williams, who they acquired for a 3rd and 4th Rd pick last year from Washington. He played at an All-Pro level again despite his age and a holdout-inspired year off. Trent may look to try to cash in one last time for his career and go to a cap rich team like IND, JAX, or CIN, but outside of Indy, those teams aren't winning any time soon. He is 33 and it'll be interesting to see what he does. They have a few other players that are impending FAs that deem mentioning... FB Kyle Juszczyk (yes that is how you spell it), FS Jaquiski Tartt (the names get easier I promise), G Tom Compton, C Ben Garland, CB Jason Verrett, and both backup QBs, as well as a lot of depth players at CB (9 total CBs are impending FAs). Of those players, Verrett is a great player but has had injuries that have derailed his career. He was healthy in 2020 and it showed. There are few teams that utilize a FB, but the 49ers are the team that does it the most and Kyle is the best FB in the NFL. I think he comes back. Tartt is an underrated FS that deserves a little bit of a payday. Though, I don't know if that comes from SF. Compton and Garland both played significant snaps over the last few years, but both are over 30 and the Center position has been given to another man. Going cheaper at guard makes sense, but that means they need a new starter.
Who could be considered the most costly person they are losing to FA is DC Robert Saleh, the new Jets HC. Saleh had a vigorous defense in his tenure with Seattle and then in San Fran. Demeco Ryans, a former player and the LB coach under Saleh, is now the new DC and it will be interesting to see how much he changes as the 49ers played a lot of 4-3 Under, which has 5 men on the DL (2 DEs, 2 DTs, 1 OLB) and then the other 2 LBs only a few yards off the line. This is a popular scheme to help stop the run and pressure the passer because you don't know who blitzing vs who is dropping back. Each of the front 7 players have their own gap to fill for run stops, so it makes it much easier to stop the run. They also played a lot of zone coverage in SF and without Saleh (and Sherman), that may change. This formation had a ton of success when coached by Saleh in both SEA and SF, but Seattle's defense hasn't lived up to it since he has left.
If I was to rate this team, even with all of their impending FAs, I would say they are a QB away from contending again. Their injuries really hurt them in 2020, but I have seen enough from JimmyG to know is he a trailer and cannot truck this team to victory. He is along for the ride and without Saleh as their Defensive leader, they need a truck more than ever.
Team Needs: LT, G, CB, Backup QB, FS
Team Wants: FB, CB Depth, Starting QB, Backup RB, EDGE
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I'm going to start at the top and tell you why the Cardinals won't be a true contender in 2021. Kliff Kingsbury is bad. Not good at coaching. Kliff was 35-40 as the Texas Tech head coach over 6 seasons and he had 2 seasons of Patrick Mahomes... cmon man. He was FIRED in 2018 from Texas Tech. He then had a weird thing where he went to USC as the OC, but then NFL teams wanted to interview him for HC jobs. USC said no, so then Kliff quit so he could interview. Somehow Kliff went from FIRED with a below-average record at a below-average school in a below-average conference... to a HC for one of 32 NFL teams in 2 months. It doesn't make sense. Kliff has made countless poor decisions when it comes to time management. He has proven that he doesn't have the ability to make good decisions in game-winning situations like running out the clock. Kyler Murray is so fantastic that he is masking Kliff's failures and similar to Zac Taylor in Cincy, if Kyler is performing I don't think Kliff will be let go. Also, he has the house of a criminal mastermind... just putting that out there.
Alright now that I'm done with my per team tangent... The Cardinals are in a similar situation to SF where they have $11M in cap space and a lot of players under contract. Also, like the 49ers, they have some significant impending free agents and one veteran CB that is almost certain not to return. CB Patrick Peterson has been a long-time Pro Bowl corner in AZ, but it seems he has played his final down as a Card, according to sources around the league. The Cardinals were already talent-deficient at corner (on top of losing 2 other vets to FA), so they will need to significantly address this position in the offseason.
Elsewhere on defense, the Cardinals top two pass rushers in 2020, OLB Markus Golden and OLB Haason Reddick are both free agents. Reddick was drafted in the 1st round 4 years ago as a "tweener" (can play multiple positions) and never really put it together because the Cardinals didn't know where to play him (DE/EDGE/OLB/ILB). He finally settled in as an OLB and put it all together. Ironically, the Cards selected "tweener" Isaiah Simmons in the 1st round last year and he struggled all season at LB. Reddick is deserving of a 1-year prove-it deal for around $10M or so, but if he wants more they should let him walk. In 2021, they will get back their best defensive player, EDGE Chandler Jones, and he will re-take over as the best pass rusher on the team. Depending on where they align Simmons, in 2021, will tell me where they need to upgrade the defense. Simmons can play safety, NCB, ILB, or OLB. But wherever he doesn't play needs to be upgraded. I am going to list all of them in the want category.
WR Larry "Legend" Fitzgerald, RB Kenyan Drake, G JR Sweezy, and TE Dan Arnold are all offensive starters that have no current contract. Sadly, I think Larry either needs to retire or move on from AZ if he wants to win a title. As much as I hate to think about it... how awesome would it be to see him with Tom Brady at QB, let's make it happen. The Cards used the transition tag on Drake last year that paid him just shy of $10M. Having seen Drake for 3.5 seasons up close, I know he is not a franchise RB. He can lead a team in carries but he needs a #2. He isn't meant to be a goal-line back, as he is in AZ either. His strengths are getting him in space and catching the ball out of the backfield. Two things he didn't do a lot of in 2020. I'm not sure if he will be back. Sweezy is 32 and now is a good time to get younger at the position as he is JAG. As far as the TEs go, Kliff has never used them and I don't expect he will in the future. It's a position that should be upgraded, but I'm not sure if it will be.
There are a lot of very young, cheap contracts on this team alongside 3 very large contracts. This is probably the last year before they extend Kyler Murray to a massive deal, so they need to do some good work this offseason.
Team Needs: CBx2, RB, G, EDGE
Team Wants: TE, NCB, SS, ILB, OLB
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Team Wants: RT, TE, DT
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To finish out the NFC... the Super Bowl Contenders Los Angeles Rams. Putting it out into the world. Matthew Stafford will make that much of a difference for a team that was a QB away for a long time.
While I think their roster is ready to win today... they actually aren't. They are currently $26M over the cap and will need to make some concessions. So let's do it for them!
*Look at Rams current salaries with little to no dead cap* OK so I don't want to do it for them. Honestly, this is going to be painful for the Rams to try to navigate. I can't really find too many good options for cap casualties. Maybe RT Rob Havenstein or LT Andrew Whitworth where they just try to upgrade cheaper in the draft. But the Rams don't have a 1st rounder because of the Ramsey deal. I think their best option is to screw their future cap (there will likely be higher caps in the future because of new TV deals and more fans in attendance so it's not a terrible strategy) by restructuring the players they know will be around for the long haul. Restructuring a players contract is basically turning the base salary into a guaranteed signing bonus spread out over future years left on the contract. WR Robert Woods would save over $9M by restructuring. DT Aaron Donald would save the team $14M and CB Jalen Ramsey would save them $13M. That is $36M in space created without cutting anyone for their Super Bowl window. Now they just have to continue to hit with some of these draft picks and address future and current needs.
I mentioned the two offensive tackles earlier. Havenstein is a pretty decent player and his contract isn't too crazy. But Andrew Whitworth is turning 40 years old this year. He is still playing OK, but this is a position that needs to be addressed to protect this Super Bowl window. The offensive line is losing a talented player this offseason though. G/C Austin Blythe has been a revelation for them after being a 7th round pick. This will be a big loss. On offense, the other position that could use an upgrade is at TE. TE Tyler Higbee was recently given a nice extension, but that left TE Gerald Everett out to dry as he enters FA this year. They don't use their TEs all the time as they run a lot of 11 personnel (1 RB, 1 TE, 3 WRs), but another pass-catcher could be useful.
The Rams were the #1 ranked defense in 2020. However, there is going to be some gaps that they need to fill this offseason. First, they lost their DC Brandon Staley to their neighbors the Chargers. He brought in a Vic Fangio style of defense that will be going away with Raheem Morris in town. Raheem has been an offensive and defensive coach in his time and will gain the respect of his players, but whether the insane production will continue is a question to be answered. Additionally, the Rams will be losing EDGE Leonard Floyd, NCB Troy Hill, and SS John Johnson this offseason, and I don't see any way they can afford to bring them back. These were all significant snap-takers/playmakers and will get paid well on the open market. All of these positions need to be refilled with young talent, but they may have a young safety in Terrell Burgess to replace Johnson.
The last few things that I need to mention is that while Jalen Ramsey is a fantastic corner, they could use an upgrade at the opposite corner. Troy Hill as a nickel was great in 2020, but losing him will unmask this corner group for everyone behind Jalen. Finally, the Rams have no semblance of an ILB. I'm not sure if there is even one on the field ever for them because Donald and Ramsey are what everything orbits around. If they could get a react-and-go player here, that would help keep this defense near the top.
Team Needs: LT, EDGE, NCB, G/C, ILB
Team Wants: TE, CB
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AFC West Team Needs
This intro paragraph is brought to you by John Elway. The Broncos have had 2 of the greatest QBs to ever play the game: John Elway and Peyton Manning. They've also had Brock Osweiler, Kyle Orton, Tim Tebow, Mark Sanchez, Paxton Lynch, Trevor Siemian, Case Keenum, and Drew Lock start games since 2011. In Peyton's 4 seasons in Denver, they made the Super Bowl twice. In the 5 drafts since, they have had a top 10 draft order 3 times. They had the defense that was ready to win championships and it didn't disappear when Manning retired. But their ability to draft or acquire a QB has.
This is going to be a very important offseason for Denver. Do they move on from Lock after 2 incomplete seasons? Do they move on from OLB Von Miller, their long time franchise player, because he has a team option $22M cap hit? If they move on from Von, it will save the team $18M. SS Kareem Jackson also has a team option for $12M or they can move on and save $10M. DT Jurell Casey was acquired from the Titans last year and has 2 years left on his deal, but they could also cut him and save $11M. All of these defensive players are in their 30s and if Denver wants to really compete for these top FAs, they may need to shed some of these contracts.
One player they will contend for is their impending FA FS Justin Simmons, who is JAS (just a stud). I would be shocked if they allow him to hit the open market without giving him a top-end contract offer. They may also franchise tag him. The good news is they already have $30M in cap space and can create a lot more if needed. I previously mentioned DT Jurrell Casey as a way to save money. However, they also may be losing starting DT Shelby Harris as an impending FA. Both of these players are very good DTs and I would advise keeping them, if possible. However, Von I am not so sure will be around next season. We need an EDGE opposite ascending talent OLB Bradley Chubb, if Von does not get his option picked up.
Lastly on defense, the ILBs could use an upgrade. They have a few younger players there, but are losing a starter in AJ Johnson and could use a good presence in the middle of the field. Corner was already a need and then the team went and cut CB AJ Bouye. The great Denver defenses have featured Champ Bailey and Aqib Talib and now it is a wasteland. QB or CB have to be the pick in the 1st round of the draft.
Let's discuss QB and the offense then. To me, Drew Lock isn't it. I like some of what he offers, but he isn't a true difference-maker. He doesn't present the defense with a challenge. Even someone who is less mobile can make up for it mentally to create challenges. Lock hasn't shown he can do that yet. I don't think he will be given the time either as John Elway has had a very short fuse with his QBs. Luckily for him, the Broncos hired a new GM to make those decisions now. The GM will also have to make a decision on resigning RB Phillip Lindsay, who is a restricted FA. I would assume Lindsay will receive an offer, but it will be interesting to see if other teams attempt to match the offer and steal Lindsay away. The good news for any QB in Denver is that he will have a well-above-average OL (RT Ja'Waun James could be upgraded) and plenty of offensive weapons like WRs Jerry Jeudy, KJ Hamler, Tim Patrick, Courtland Sutton, TE Noah Fant, and RB Melvin Gordon. The offense is ready. Just needs a QB.
Team Needs: QB, EDGE, FS, ILB, CBx2
Team Wants: ILB, RT
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I think I am the only person on this train... but can we slow down on crowning Justin Herbert as the next Messiah? He had a ton of yards and a ton of TDs, I get it. He was also forced to throw the ball a ton because his team was down and his starting RB was out for a good portion of the year. Also, I am not saying wins are a QB stat (probably will explain this in a future article), but Herbert could not push his team over the edge to get wins. His team had injuries as they always do. I want to see him do it again at that level, and then I will be ready. The kid was playing with his hair on fire the whole year. What happens when he has to be composed and go win a tough road game to make the playoffs? One thing I'll give him... he looks damn good in those jerseys.
Let's keep with the offense. Justin came into a pretty good situation as far as weapons go in 2020. RB Austin Ekeler is a top 3 pass-catching RB. WR Keenan Allen is one of the best route runners in the game. WR Mike Williams is great at going up and catching it. TE Hunter Henry is a big RZ threat. The bad news is that Henry is a FA this year after being tagged last season. I don't know if the Chargers will pay $12-15M per season to keep him around or not. Also, Mike Williams is in the last year of his contract and hasn't lived up to his top 10 draft status at all. I don't think he will return in 2022. So Herb needs more weapons around him. The OL could use some help too. C Mike Pouncey just announced his retirement, so that position needs to be filled and I would hope they get a veteran in there who can help Justin with identifying defenses. The LT spot also has been a bit of a trap door of late. They had LT Russell Okung but then traded him for a better RG in Trai Turner. And finally, the LG position has been attacked with draft picks. LG Forrest Lamp just wasn't cutting it and is an impending FA. He won't be back. The Chargers have $21M in cap space. Could they use it to sign some big named big guys?
Or will they use it to resign EDGE Melvin Ingram or OLB Denzel Perryman? Probably not... but it is a possibility for these impending FAs. Ingram is expected to seek other opportunities and Perryman is a very underrated LB, but LB Kenneth Murray was drafted in the 1st round last year to be the new leader of that room. Also, Derwin James can play in the box and will help fill the void of Perryman when he is gone. The only other impending FA to note is QB Tyrod Taylor who will 100% not be "sticking" around. You'll only get the joke... if you get the joke.
This team is ready to make a big leap if Herbert is. The few positions I could see needing an upgrade (besides those already mentioned) are cornerback because Chris Harris is really best as NCB and then you have Casey Heyward as your outside guy. Need at least one more outside CB, in my opinion. Also, can we please get these guys a good special teams unit? How many times did they miss a FG or have an awful punt or terrible kick coverage? Too many to count the last few years. That needs to be fixed.
Team Needs: LT, C, TE, LG, EDGE
Team Wants: WR, OLB, Backup QB, CB, Special Teams Overhaul
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The Raiders are the epitome of mediocre. There are some teams like Miami who have been like 6-10 to 10-6 for forever. That at least has some highs and lows. The Raiders are always like 6-10 to 8-8. Never the highs. Never bad enough to be picking in the top 5. Just always mediocre. Hey, at least their late owner has a great saying.
I don't think Derek Carr is a bad QB by any means. But I also don't think he is capable of greatness. If that is the case... shouldn't the plan be to move on and try to get that QB? I can see the Raiders being heavily involved in the Watson trade, but who knows anything about that tbh. One thing the Raiders do have that is great is a beefy OL and a RB who can do it all. The OL is mean and will smack you right in the mouth. RT Trent Brown, RG Gabe Jackson, C Rodney Hudson, LG Richie Incognito (FA next year, upgrade?), and LT Kolton Miller average over 6'4 and 320lbs. These guys will literally and figuratively bully you. Again... if you get the joke... you get it. RB Josh Jacobs could be an All-Pro... but Jon Gruden just doesn't give him the ball enough. He splits way too many carries and isn't given the ability to get or stay hot. As a fantasy owner, it is infuriating, but it also just makes me dislike Gruden. I want your team to have offensive success. Why don't you? Can an 'offseason want' be to get rid of the remaining RBs so Jacobs touches the ball more?
The Raiders also have an All-Pro talent at TE. Darren Waller may never reach the media fame that Travis Kelce has, but it won't be his own fault. Waller is a baller and proves it every Sunday, even if his team doesn't make the playoffs. This is where things get tricky though. Carr has a cannon of an arm and WR Nelson Agoholor, of all players, showed out this season catching from that cannon. Nelson is a FA again, the team is cutting deep threat WR Tyrell Williams and now all that is left is 1st round rookie WR Henry Ruggs. Henry is a burner, but I don't necessarily want him running across the middle for those tough 15-yard completions. They do have another young kid WR Bryan Edwards who could show some promise, but we need another man or two here.
The Raiders are currently over the cap by $18M, but they have already announced they will be releasing Williams, as I noted. That will save them $11M so they really are at about $7M over. There are quite a few players they can cut with no dead cap charge like RB Jalen Richard (backup, pls), SS Jeff Heath (backup), and QB Marcus Mariota (backup). Marcus is very interesting because he had a nice game filling in for Carr in Week 15. I could see teams like New England, or whoever else gets caught out of the QB Carousel, calling them to see what it would take for a trade. I don't know if LV wants to pay him $10M to sit on the bench.
Here is where the fun really begins. This defense is awful. It is built poorly and the players that play in it aren't that talented, which is a shame because they have put significant resources into it. In 2019, the Raiders drafted SS Johnathan Abram and EDGE Clelin Ferrell. Abram has been hurt multiple times already and missed more games than he has played. While Clelin was a shocking top 5 selection and has proved the shocked notation correct. In 2020, they drafted CB Damon Arnette in the 1st Rd, signed LB Nick Kwiatkoski and LB Cory Littleton, and traded for LB Raekwon McMillan. The LB corps is possibly worse off now than it was and Damon Arnette very much struggled as a rookie. I shouldn't have high expectations for rookie CBs, but he was also "overdrafted" and is considered an older rookie. It's rough out there.
The one bright spot on this defense has been DE Maxx Crosby. He is Max to the Xtreme so he gets another X. DT Maurice Hurst is a PFF darling, but he doesn't make impact plays. PFF credits him because he apparently makes plays possible for other players... yet no one on this defense makes plays. If I am trying to find nice things to say about this defense, Abram has looked good when he is healthy and Lamarcus Joyner is a fun safety, as well.
I need to wrap up this defense. They are losing some players on this side of the ball, but no one notable enough to mention. One of them is a DT, so we need to pair another with Hurst. Maxx is an EDGE, but he needs a running mate since Clelin hasn't shown enough yet. We need at least 2 LBs here and then when Nick can be cut next year, get another one. The safety group is actually good to go when healthy, but the corners need help. I'll give Arnette another full year, but they still need at least one CB because CB Traveyon Mullen has been torched after a good career at Clemson.
Oh also, I mentioned this last year in all of my mocks and I should here as well. Mike Mayock and Jon Gruden love players that love football and winning above all else. They normally target players from winning programs in college and I assume the same would be for FAs. Keep that in mind this offseason.
Team Needs: WR, LBx2, EDGE, DT, CBx2
Team Wants: Less RBs, QB, LG
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The last team in this series... The Kansas City Chiefs. THANK GOD! Blah blah blah... Patrick Mahomes is good.. blah blah. OK done! Wooh!
Everyone knows the Chiefs and Mahomes are good. Back to back Super Bowls. You know the deal. But by no means are they bulletproof, and the Bucs helped expose their weaknesses on the grandest of stages. The Weeknd's stage.
Quick note... you know what is crazy to me? Mahomes isn't the highest cap hit this upcoming season. EDGE Frank Clark (wayyyyy overrated and overpaid) is. Though, he will have that distinction many times so it's not a big deal. I just thought it was interesting. Let's start with the facts. The Chiefs are $23M over the cap today. OK done with the facts... onto the bullshit.
Everyone is talking about the Chiefs OL, and specifically tackles, as the obvious needs for upgrades. Well, their two tackles missed the Super Bowl. LT Eric Fisher tore his achilles in January and I don't think he will suit up in 2021. That is also the last year on his contract, so if I am the Chiefs I am going into this offseason saying I need a LT for the long run. Also, I'm not sure how much smaller Eric Fisher's current $15M cap hit will be if he misses the entire season. I know he will get the guarantees and restructure he is due, but I would assume he misses the base salary and workout bonus. While losing their LT isn't a good thing... it does save them a bit of money. RT Mitchell Schwartz battled injuries all season long and was expected to be back by the playoffs but continued to miss games. There are rumblings he might be released, which would save $7M. OK, but is there anyone we can cut that will help us get under the cap line that isn't a good player when healthy? *Checks list* No. Good thing they drafted T Lucas Niang last season. He may be able to fill one of those spots. But he opted out in 2020 so who knows.
Another important offensive lineman is G (and medical professional) Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, who also opted out of the 2020 season to fight COVID on the front lines in a Canadian hospital. Who knows if he will be back in 2021 or not, so I cannot assume anything and the Chiefs can't either. Let's look for an upgrade. As if we couldn't talk more about the big uglies, Starting C Austin Reiter is an impending FA and I don't expect they will be able to magically come up with money like they did for Mahomes and DT Chris Jones. He will be walking. Need a new center. Backups G/T Mike Remmers and G Kelechi Osemele are also FAs. If the Chiefs only drafted OL this offseason, I think it would be ok.
I'm done with the OL, I swear. WR Sammy Watkins is a FA, but I'm not sure he is so important to the efficiency of this offense. They seem to move just fine without him and I don't know if he even needs to be replaced. Maybe they could use a bigger guy... but that is exactly what Kelce is.
DEFENSE! When healthy, there are some really really good players on this defense that just don't get the recognition because they don't score touchdowns. S/NCB/Everything Tyrann Mathieu is a do-it-all player and he truly does do it all at a high level. FS Juan Thornhill is a great center-fielder. DT Chris Jones is a top 3 DT with Kenny Clark and Aaron Donald. And they have some decent players like L'Jarious Sneed and Brashaud Breeland at CB. I previously mentioned EDGE Frank Clark and frankly, he is ok. He isn't a $20M player by any means. He is barely a $10M player in my mind, but I probably wouldn't be able to afford any talented EDGE players then. Outside of him, there is not too much depth. The interior pressure created by Chris Jones allows a lot of cleanup sacks and pressures for the EDGE guys, so they just need some depth there. Also, the LBs in this defense seem to always be out of position. Maybe it is just the scheme or something, but I never hear them making plays. It is always Sorenson or Mathieu coming up from the safety spot to stop a guy. They need an impact LB who can stop the run and cover the backs and TEs. They are bottom 5 in both TE receiving yards defense and RB receiving yards defense.
As far as getting under the cap, I'm really not sure what they are going to do. My guess is they will restructure some contracts to give them enough space to sign a draft class and a few veteran minimum FAs and that's it. Though I expect a lot of cap stricken teams will be doing the same thing. Thanks for following along with this series!
Team Needs: LT, C, G, EDGE, LB
Team Wants: G, RT, WR
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