The third day of free agency was very similar to the second day in that there weren’t many, if any at all, top tier free agents signing deals. Thursday was a day we saw a lot of the second tier players being taken off the market and even more of them traveling around the country visiting different teams. Here’s a look at how Thursday shaped up:
The Philadelphia Eagles made the biggest splash once again when they double dipped at the running back position. They brought Ryan Mathews into the building with an agreed upon contract and all of a sudden DeMarco Murray was on his way to the building too. Murray ended up getting his deal done first but the Eagles were still able to get a deal done with Mathews as well.
In another weird happening of free agency, tight end Jordan Cameron had been reported to be re-signing with the Cleveland Browns and a few hours later it was reported that he was actually in Miami in the middle of signing a deal to join the Dolphins. While the Dolphins were working on wooing Cameron, the Washington Redskins were getting a deal done with defensive lineman Terrance Knighton so they could improve their front seven. The Broncos picked up defensive end Vance Walker. Late Thursday evening, Akeem Ayers was signed by the Rams as well, making their front seven even more impressive moving forward.
The Atlanta Falcons were another busy team on Thursday. They were able to sign rotational pass rusher O’Brien Schofield, defensive lineman Adrian Clayborn, and cornerback Phillip Adams. The Falcons are making it abundantly clear this offseason that they felt their defense was something that needed to be greatly improved upon.
In a run of free agents in the secondary, the Houston Texans were able to land one of the top free agent safeties in Rahim Moore. The Jets brought back the old crew when they signed Antonio Cromartie to team up with Darrelle Revis once again. And in one of the more interesting and head scratching signings of the day, the New Orleans Saints decided to bring Brandon Browner on board. Speaking of the Saints, they were also able to ship out offensive guard Ben Grubbs to Kansas City for the Chiefs’ fifth round pick in 2015.
The Ravens decided to re-sign Justin Forsett while the Raiders brought in former Eagle safety Nate Allen. In Tampa Bay Lovie Smith improved his defense by adding Henry Melton and Chris Conte. With the addition of Conte it is being widely speculated that the Bucs will soon release Dashon Goldson.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, there were players being released once again making room for potential free agents. After days of speculation, the 49ers finally made it official and released wide receiver Stevie Johnson. Their division rival, the Arizona Cardinals, released offensive lineman Lyle Sendlein as well.
Once the Colts brought Frank Gore to Indianapolis, it became painfully obvious that the Colts would release running back Trent Richardson, speculation that became official today. Another obvious release everyone had been waiting for was the Chiefs releasing wide receiver Dwayne Bowe. The Jaguars also made some room on their roster by releasing defensive lineman Red Bryant.
Thursday was another wild day. Between everything constantly going on in Philadelphia and all the free agents visiting all different teams and news breaking seemingly every five minutes, it can feel impossible to keep up. Friday will be another crazy day for sure and some more key players will surely be added to rosters. While you might not be familiar with some of the names now, make sure you pay attention to the names because you might be getting familiar with some of these players come January and February.