There has been a ton of speculation about the upcoming draft and who the Chiefs should pick, but free agency is coming up February 27 and we have money to spend! There are some good looking free agents out there that are about to hit the market. By having some good free agent pick-ups, the less we will need to rely on the draft. Let’s take a look at who’s out there.
Quarterback:
Patrick Ramsey, UFA, Denver Broncos
Charlie Batch, UFA, Pittsburgh Steelers
Kyle Boller, UFA, Baltimore Ravens
Matt Cassel, Franchised, New England Patriots
Rex Grossman, UFA, Chicago Bears
Byron Leftwich, UFA, Pittsburgh Steelers
J.P. Losman, UFA, Buffalo Bills
Kyle Orton, UFA, Chicago Bears
Kurt Warner, UFA, Arizona Cardinals
Jeff Garcia, UFA, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Charlie Frye UFA Seattle Seahawks
Brooks Bollinger UFA Dallas Cowboys
Chris Simms UFA Tennessee Titans
J.T. O’Sullivan UFA San Francisco 49ers
Matt Gutierrez UFA New England Patriots
Gibran Hamdan UFA Buffalo Bills
Luke McCown UFA Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Brock Berlin RFA St Louis Rams
Shane Boyd RFA Houston Texans
Overview:
The quarterback position is a major need for us. Tyler Thigpen has shown a lot of flash but he is by no means proven. There are a couple of quality QBs out there. My favorite pick would be Matt Cassel. The Patriots have franchised Cassel but technically we can still grab him. He would come at a great cost but the Chiefs would have the QB position locked down for years. Is it worth it? I say yes. Other than Matt Cassel I could see the Chiefs going with a J.P. Losman or Chris Simms. Two young guys that have some talent and would create some great QB competition for us. Some “experts” say the Chiefs should go after Kurt Warner. This would be a bad move. Don’t get me wrong, Kurt was awesome last year but the last thing this team needs is a QB on his way out and that will probably only play for one more year. Then we would be in the same position next year as we are in now. The Chiefs need the man that is going to be our QB for years, right now.
Running Back:
J.J. Arrington, UFA, Arizona Cardinals
Correll Buckhalter, UFA, Philadelphia Eagles
Jesse Chatman, UFA, New York Jets
Heath Evans, UFA, New England Patriots
Brandon Jacobs, Franchised, New York Giants
Kevin Jones, UFA, Chicago Bears
Ryan Moats, UFA, Philadelphia Eagles
Maurice Morris, UFA, Seattle Seahawks
Darren Sproles, UFA, San Diego Chargers
Aaron Stecker, UFA, New Orleans Saints
Jesse Chatman UFA New York Jets
Kenneth Darby RFA Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Carey Davis RFA Pittsburgh Steelers
Kyle Eckel RFA New England Patriots
Freddie Jackson RFA Buffalo Bills
Terrelle Smith UFA Arizona Cardinals
Jason Wright UFA Cleveland Browns
Overview:
Jamaal Charles is looking good and Kolby Smith was doing decent until he got injured but who knows how he will return next season. Larry Johnson is more than likely gone and the Chiefs need to add another legit running back to their stable. Darren Sproles is a great talent but I’m not sure how having three speed backs and no powerbacks will work out. I wouldn’t mind having Sproles in our line-up. Correll Buckhalter would also be another good addition to our roster.
Wide Receiver:
Hank Baskett, RFA, Philadelphia Eagles
Bobby Engram, UFA, Seattle Seahawks
Jabar Gaffney, UFA, New England Patriots
Dante’ Hall, UFA, St. Louis Rams
Devery Henderson, UFA, New Orleans Saints
T.J. Houshmandzadeh, UFA, Cincinnati Bengals
Sam Hurd, UFA, Dallas Cowboys
Brandon Jones, UFA, Tennessee Titans
Ashley Lelie, UFA, Denver Broncos
Shaun McDonald, UFA, Detroit Lions
Koren Robinson, UFA, Seattle Seahawks
Amani Toomer, UFA, New York Giants
Miles Austin RFA Dallas Cowboys
Dane Looker UFA St Louis Rams
Overview:
This is a position that the Chiefs could use a veteran to teach our young receivers a thing or two. T.J. Houshmandzadeh could fill this role and everyone knows he consistently produces year after year. Some other good pick ups would be Jabar Gaffney or Devery Henderson. That would give us awesome depth at the wide receiver position.
Tight End:
Desmond Clark, UFA, Chicago Bears
Will Heller, UFA, Seattle Seahawks
Jeff King, RFA, Carolina Panthers
Jim Kleinsasser, UFA, Minnesota Vikings
Leonard Pope, UFA, Arizona Cardinals
Daniel Wilcox, UFA, Baltimore Ravens
Eric Johnson, UFA, New Orleans Saints
Mark Campbell UFA New Orleans Saints
Ben Patrick ERFA Arizona Cardinals
Justin Peelle UFA Atlanta Falcons
Overview:
Hopefully we can work something out with Tony Gonzalez to make him happy and want to stay in Kansas City because there isn’t much for us in free agency. I think the Chiefs still need to draft a tight end regardless of whether Tony stays.
Place Kicker:
Shayne Graham, UFA, Cincinnati Bengals
Jason Hanson, UFA, Detroit Lions
John Kasay, UFA, Carolina Panthers
Mike Nugent, UFA, New York Jets
Matt Stover, UFA, Baltimore Ravens
Overview:
Connor Barth actually didn’t look to bad last year but I don’t think he was tested enough. Mike Nugent would be a legit acquisition to the roster IF the Todd decides to not retain Connor Barth.
Punter:
Craig Hentrich, UFA, Tennessee Titans
Shane Lechler, UFA, Oakland Raiders
Overview:
Doesn’t get much better than Dustin Colquitt!
Offensive Line:
Jahri Evans, UFA, New Orleans Saints
Stacy Andrews, UFA, Cincinnati Bengals
Matt Birk, UFA, Minnesota Vikings
Jordan Black, UFA, Houston Texans
Vernon Carey, UFA, Miami Dolphins
George Foster, UFA, Detroit Lions
Mike Goff, UFA, San Diego Chargers
Chris Gray, UFA, Seattle Seahawks
Jordan Gross, UFA, Carolina Panthers
Pete Kendall, UFA, Washington Redskins
Seth McKinney, UFA, Cleveland Browns
Jon Runyan, UFA, Philadelphia Eagles
Mark Tauscher, UFA, Green Bay Packers
Tra Thomas, UFA, Philadelphia Eagles
Fred Weary, UFA, Houston Texans
John Welbourn, UFA, Kansas City Chiefs
Kirk Chambers UFA Buffalo Bills
Duke Preston UFA Buffalo Bills
Overview:
The Chiefs have our LT position set but we could use another guard or center ( I think we will address our RT position through the draft). Mike Goff is an awesome guard who is very expierienced and would be a good pick-up for us, but I think we would be better off with the better younger player in Jahri Evans. Jahri is an awesome talent who can also play center. Having him on our roster would improve our O-line instantly.
Defensive Line:
Jonathan Babineaux, UFA, Atlanta Falcons
Bertrand Berry, UFA, Arizona Cardinals
Kevin Carter, UFA, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Shaun Cody, UFA, Detroit Lions
Albert Haynesworth, UFA, Tennessee Titans
Tank Johnson, UFA, Dallas Cowboys
Julius Peppers, UFA, Carolina Panthers
Terrell Suggs, UFA, Baltimore Ravens
John Thornton, UFA, Cincinnati Bengals
Marcus Tubbs, UFA, Seattle Seahawks
Victor Adeyanju RFA St Louis Rams
La’Roi Glover UFA St Louis Rams
Jerome McDougle UFA New York Giants
Overview:
Here is where I could see us spending a big chunk of our money. Albert Haynesworth would be amazing but highly unlikely. The more realistic bet would be Julius Peppers or Terrell Suggs. Both of these men are absolute monsters for quarterbacks and above all, they are proven. I personally would rather have Terrell Suggs but Peppers would be awesome too. If we can address this position before the draft, it will take a great amount of pressure off of us.
Linebacker:
Eric Barton, UFA, New York Jets
Jordan Beck, UFA, Denver Broncos
Monty Beisel, UFA, Arizona Cardinals
Channing Crowder, UFA, Miami Dolphins
Karlos Dansby, UFA, Arizona Cardinals
Tyjuan Hagler, UFA, Indianapolis Colts
Ray Lewis, UFA, Baltimore Ravens
Willie McGinest, UFA, Cleveland Browns
Mike Peterson, UFA, Jacksonville Jaguars
Carlos Polk, UFA, San Diego Chargers
Bart Scott, UFA, Baltimore Ravens
Terrell Suggs, UFA, Baltimore Ravens
Jonathan Vilma, UFA, New Orleans Saints
Sam Williams, UFA, Oakland Raiders
John DiGiorgio RFA Buffalo Bills
Keith Ellison RFA Buffalo Bills
Buster Davis ERFA Detroit Lions
Larry Izzo UFA New England Patriots
Zach Thomas UFA Dallas Cowboys
Overview:
Bart Scott and Karlos Dansby are at the top of my list at this position. Either of these men would be great to add to our roster and would give us instant credibility at the LB position. With one of these guys lining up next to DJ, with a solid LB draft pick, I think we would be alright.
Defensive Back:
Nnamdi Asomugha, UFA, Oakland Raiders
Tyron Brackenridge, UFA, Kansas City Chiefs
Mike Brown, UFA, Chicago Bears
Phillip Buchanon, UFA, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Brian Dawkins, UFA, Philadelphia Eagles
Chris Gamble, UFA, Carolina Panthers
Jabari Greer, UFA, Buffalo Bills
Rodney Harrison, UFA, New England Patriots
Kelvin Hayden, UFA, Indianapolis Colts
Renaldo Hill, UFA, Miami Dolphins
Daven Holly, UFA, Cleveland Browns
Dawan Landry, RFA, Baltimore Ravens
Bryant McFadden, UFA, Pittsburgh Steelers
R.W. McQuarters, UFA, New York Giants
Justin Miller, UFA, New York Jets
Lawyer Milloy, UFA, Atlanta Falcons
Jarrad Page, UFA, Kansas City Chiefs
Dunta Robinson, UFA, Houston Texans
Allen Rossum, UFA, San Francisco 49ers
Darren Sharper, UFA,Minnesota Vikings
Will Allen UFA Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Mike Adams UFA Cleveland Browns
Rashad Baker UFA Oakland Raiders
Jason Craft UFA St Louis Rams
Reed Doughty RFA Washington Redskins
Demarcus Faggins UFA Houston Texans
Sean Jones UFA Cleveland Browns
Jermaine Phillips UFA Tampa Bay Buccaneers
James Sanders UFA New England Patriots
George Wilson UFA Buffalo Bills
Overview:
Our defensive backs are looking alright so far, especially for how young they are. If anything I say we go after a safety. I do think we need to re-sign Jarrad Page as well. Some people aren’t a fan of his but I like his ability and he will only get better. DaJuan Morgan is still a mystery, so we could use a proven safety. Jermaine Phillips out of Tampa would do good things for us and would give some experience and leadership to go at that position.
OVERALL:
The Chiefs have many holes to fill on our roster and we are in the perfect position to do it. We are well under the cap and we have super scout Scott Pioli heading our decisions. Scott will pick up some good players in free agency and he will put us in a position to win now. It is very important we do well in free agency to take some pressure of us in the draft.