Best Free Agent Fits: Brown, Dean, Davenport, Wagner, Garoppolo

We’re breaking down some potential fits for our top pending 2023 NFL free agents with the start of the league year and free agency coming up soon on March 15. Using our Top 2023 NFL Free Agents list, we’re examining the possible landing spots for the top 50 or so players who are expected to be available this offseason. 

This is based both on reported interest by particular teams and by connecting the dots between team needs, coaching staff connections, scheme fits and available players. 

Keep an eye out this week for the rest of our Free Agent Fits series!

• DJ Chark, Sean Murphy-Bunting, Robert Woods, Taylor Lewan, Marcus Peters
• Rashaad Penny, Damien Harris, Andre Dillard, David Long, Jermaine Eluemunor
• Taylor Rapp, Vonn Bell, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Mike Gesicki, Austin Hooper
• Cameron Sutton, Arden Key, Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, Samson Ebukam, Dalton Schultz
• Isaiah Wynn, Miles Sanders, Ethan Pocic, Isaac Seumalo, Nate Davis
• T.J. Edwards, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Mecole Hardman, Allen Lazard, Emmanuel Moseley

Chiefs LT Orlando Brown Jr.

Best Fit: Bears

The Chiefs like Brown but they and a lot of other evaluators believe he’s a good, not elite, tackle. Brown has been angling to be paid like the best at his position, and the Chiefs have basically dared him to try and find it in free agency rather than use the tag for the second straight year. It’s not too dissimilar from what the Ravens are doing with QB Lamar Jackson actually. 

The catch is teams overpay in free agency all the time, so there’s a decent chance someone is willing to shell out the $20 to $23 million a year Brown has been looking for. Chicago is absolutely flush with cap space and needs to rebuild its offensive line. It’s also worth noting Bears GM Ryan Poles was in Kansas City when they pulled off the trade to bring in Brown. 

Buccaneers CB Jamel Dean

Best Fit: Raiders

At 26 years old and coming off of a strong season, Dean is in all likelihood going to pace the market at the cornerback position this offseason. Elite corners rarely make it to free agency and Dean isn’t an elite player yet. But as a high-end No. 2 or solid No. 1, he should make in the $15-$16 million range. 

The price point will obviously narrow the range of contenders some, and the Raiders’ budget will be impacted by what they decide to do at quarterback. But they’ve indicated adding talent to their defense is a priority this offseason and they are among the current projected leaders in cap space for free agency. Building sustainably has been a big talking point out of Las Vegas, which isn’t usually correlated with spending big in free agency, but Dean is young enough to be a building block piece for the defense. 

Saints DE Marcus Davenport

Best Fit: Falcons

Atlanta has had one of the worst pass rushes in the league over the past few seasons. Fixing that seems to be their top priority this offseason, even more than quarterback. While Davenport hasn’t quite been able to put it all together yet, the physical talent is undeniable. He’s long, quick and is still only 26 years old. New Falcons DC Ryan Nielsen was his position coach in New Orleans and Falcons GM Terry Fontenot was a part of the front office that traded up to draft him. Given the team’s significant available cap space this offseason, this connection is almost too easy. 

49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo

Best Fit: Raiders

Las Vegas has been an obvious link for Garoppolo for a while, as HC Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler have ties to him from their shared time in New England and the Raiders need a new starter. It just depends what the Raiders want to do, as they’re entering a rebuilding era. They have the No. 7 pick and could take a quarterback of the future there. They could also elect to go cheap at the position with Jarrett Stidham and a rookie, whether in the first or later on. 

The other factor is Garoppolo could run out of options in a hurry. The Texans, Jets and Panthers have been mentioned as other teams who could be interested. The best case for Garoppolo is Packers QB Aaron Rodgers not landing in New York, which would make him the Jets’ top option and give him some leverage. That’s looking less and less likely. Carolina seems focused on the draft and while the interest from the Texans might be legitimate, they’re also expected to draft a quarterback of the future. The Buccaneers and Commanders also have unsettled situations but they probably will only get into the mix if Garoppolo’s market bottoms out. 

There have been reports Garoppolo is only seeking $25 million a year or so, which shows his camp understands he’s not necessarily coming into free agency from a position of strength. From a production standpoint, Garoppolo has been solid and is probably inside the top 20 at the position, but there are major questions about his injury history and whether he can succeed outside of an environment in San Francisco that might be the most QB-friendly in the NFL. 

That leads us back to the Raiders. If the two sides can find a middle ground on price, they have the familiarity with Garoppolo to ease some of those concerns. While the Raiders are rebuilding, they’re not burning things to the ground. Like we mentioned above, “building sustainably” has been a major talking point. But the Raiders’ actions over the past year have said they want to straddle the fence and still try to win games while they build. That’s why they’re not openly looking to trade veterans like WR Davante Adams or TE Darren Waller, even though there’d be interest. With that in mind, it’s possible to see how adding Garoppolo on a team-friendly deal might make a lot of sense to the Raiders’ decision-makers. 

Rams LB Bobby Wagner

Best Fit: Seahawks

There are definitely reasons why this might be more of a feel-good thought than a realistic outcome. The two sides didn’t necessarily part on good terms last year, as Wagner didn’t appreciate the way his release was handled after he was such a foundational piece for so long. Seattle felt the time was right to cut Wagner for both financial reasons and to clear the way for other younger players. Wagner also asked for his release from the Rams in part to try and land on a contending team, and it’s not clear if Seattle’s ready for that in 2023. 

Still, there are also plenty of reasons why this could be appealing for both sides. One of the biggest needs for the Seahawks this upcoming season is at linebacker. Cody Barton is a free agent and someone the team would like to upgrade from in an ideal world. Jordyn Brooks tore his ACL in January, so the standard 9-12 month rehab puts the whole 2023 season in doubt.  Reunions are feel-good stories and Wagner played at a strong level in 2022. Seattle also proved last year they’re a team on the rise and ready to put themselves back in the mix sooner than people expected. If the money makes sense for both sides, this could absolutely happen.