Winners & Losers from Day 2 of Free Agency

Day 2 of free agency is mostly in the books, and I have to say, I’m a bit disappointed there wasn’t more activity. Just one day after big contracts were flying left and right, most of the remaining big names are still sitting there. Danielle Hunter signing for $50 million this evening was the saving grace.

But just because it wasn’t as exciting as yesterday doesn’t mean there aren’t takeaways to be had. Tomorrow marks the start of the new league year and no doubt we will see more and more news come through. We’ll be here at NFLTR to keep you updated and break it all down as we go. Let’s jump right in with today’s winners and losers:

Winner: The Indianapolis Colts Getting The Band Back Together

Through the first two days of free agency, the Colts have signed just one external free agent: DT Raekwon Davis. Instead, they’ve focused on retaining their own free agents, including WR Michael Pittman Jr., CB Kenny Moore II, DT Grover Stewart, DE Tyquan Lewis, LB Zaire Franklin and P Rigoberto Sanchez. All were critical starters over the last few seasons, save Lewis, who has been an important depth piece in Indianapolis.

This follows Colts GM Chris Ballard’s philosophy, who rarely makes splashy plays in free agency. He continually preaches the importance of retaining your own players while highlighting the volatility of the free agent market. The Colts have high expectations in 2024, and bringing back key parts of what’s been a good roster is an important first step.

Indianapolis still has holes to fill at wide receiver and in the secondary, and they’ve been exploring their options for adding an impact edge defender as well. We’ll see where they proceed from here. Ballard tends to be conservative, but the Colts have a lot of cap space to work with and he’s hinted this year might be different. With QB Anthony Richardson on his cost-controlled rookie deal, the time is now to make a splash.

Loser: The Dallas Cowboys

What, exactly, are the Cowboys doing? The only team in the NFL to make zero free agent signings on Day 1 of free agency, and as of this writing on Day 2, they’ve only managed to resign their long snapper. Aside from that, they haven’t resigned any of their own free agents nor brought in anyone new.

For a team reeling from yet another disappointing playoff loss and facing some serious roster issues, it’s bizarre. Dallas doesn’t tend to overspend on the open market, but only signing one player — and that player being a long snapper — is an odd choice for a team in 2024. The Cowboys need help on the offensive line, at receiver, and across the defense. C’mon, Cowboys. Do something.

Winner: Running Backs, Again

Just like on Day 1, Day 2 brought a pile of sizeable running back contracts. As anticipated yesterday, D’Andre Swift’s deal with the Bears gave us a glimpse at what the second tier of running backs would be getting in APY value. Aaron Jones and Derrick Henry both signed good deals in the $7-8 million APY range, with Joe Mixon avoiding getting cut and instead being sent to the Texans, preserving his $6 million compensation.

These aren’t monster contracts resetting the market, but they are still noteworthy because they’re a slight step forward from the contracts handed out last offseason. Perhaps what is widely viewed as a weak running back draft class is influencing the free agent market, as teams are willing to pay up for proven backs rather than take their pickings in an unappealing draft. While the running back value debate will continue to rage on, these backs at least have secured good paydays.

Loser: Justin Fields

Fields’ market just hasn’t been as active as he and the Bears would have hoped. With the Falcons signing Kirk Cousins, that takes the team he was most often linked to out of the quarterback picture. Other teams he’d been connected to also signed other quarterbacks, including the Vikings, Steelers and Raiders.

Fields will end up somewhere, there’s no doubt. The word out of the Combine was it was all but certain the Bears would take Caleb Williams at No. 1 and trade Fields. It was assumed some team would trade for Fields to be their starter, but it’s looking like that may not be the case. He might need to settle for being the backup somewhere, but even then, the backup QB gigs around the league are starting to fill up. Fields and the Bears may be waiting longer than we thought.

Winner: Backup Quarterbacks

If last season taught us anything, it’s just how important backup quarterbacks are. Of the 32 QBs who opened the season as the starters, 16 missed at least one game last season due to injury: Aaron Rodgers, Anthony Richardson, Joe Burrow, Matthew Stafford, Justin Herbert, Geno Smith, Ryan Tannehill, C.J. Stroud, Kenny Pickett, Deshaun Watson, Trevor Lawrence, Jimmy Garoppolo, Justin Fields, Kirk Cousins, Daniel Jones, and Bryce Young. That doesn’t even include Cardinals QB Kyler Murray, who began the season on IR.

The league certainly reacted accordingly, with big names in the backup or bridge QB market signing deals over the last two days. Tyrod Taylor signed with the Jets, Drew Lock with the Giants, Sam Darnold with the Vikings, Gardner Minshew with the Raiders, Marcus Mariota with the Commanders, and more. Many of these names will see extended playing time next season.

Loser: Calvin Ridley

Ridley’s story isn’t over yet. There’s still plenty of time for him to cash in on a big contract as the focal point of a team’s passing attack. But his market just isn’t what he probably hoped for. Only two teams have expressed serious interest, and clearly neither of their offers has been enough to get a deal done.

On the surface, this makes sense. Ridley will turn 30 in December and is coming off a good, but not great, season in Jacksonville. He was an older prospect coming out of college and his best seasons were when he played next to Julio Jones in Atlanta. With this being his first chance to cash in on a big contract, the interest just hasn’t been as strong as anticipated.

For now, it sounds like Jacksonville and New England are his main suitors. It’s possible the Jaguars are simply waiting until the start of the new league year tomorrow afternoon before signing him, so as to avoid upgrading the pick they sent Atlanta for Ridley last year. If not, Ridley might have to wait a little longer.