The first day of the 2014 NFL league year was about as crazy as it could possibly get.
If you think it was a whirlwind just trying to keep up with the news, now imagine trying to cover it. Anyway, the landscape around the league changed a great deal on Monday, as 40-plus players switched teams.
This also means that certain NFL draft team' needs may have changed a lot. Let's take a look at some of the biggest signings and what it means for the upcoming draft.
Andre Roberts, Wide Receiver, Washington Redskins
We didn't have Washington going wide receiver in the three-round mock we did here at eDraft last week. This doesn't mean that wide receiver wasn't a need for the Redskins. Despite the fact that they retained veteran Santana Moss, there was definitely a need to bring in a starter-caliber pass catcher opposite Pierre Garcon in free agency or the draft.
After inking Roberts to a team-friendly four-year, $16 million contract on Modnay, wide receiver will be pushed down Washington's list of draft needs. The former third-round pick of the Arizona Cardinals is coming off his worst season since he was embedded deep in Arizona's depth chart as a rookie back in 2010.He recorded just 43 catches for less than 500 yards and two touchdowns. Most of that had to do with the emergence of Michael Floyd opposite Larry Fitzgerald in the starting lineup. Roberts topped out at 64 receptions, for 759 yards and five touchdowns back in 2012. Those are quality No. 2 wide receiver numbers right there.
Branden Albert, Offensive Tackle, Miami Dolphins
Even when Jonathan Martin was in the mix at left tackle last season, the Dolphins struggled protecting Ryan Tannehill. He was sacked a league-high 58 times on the season.
Overall, the third-year quarterback has been brought to the ground 93 times in two seasons. That's just not sustainable, especially when you are looking for your young quarterback to progress.
Enter into the equation, a Pro Bowl left tackle in the form of Albert, who is one year removed from grading out as the ninth-best pass-blocking left tackle in the NFL according to Pro Football Focus' official grading metrics. That's a dramatic upgrade over anyone this team has had since Jake Long before his injury-plagued years.
We did have Miami going offensive line with both of their first-round picks, which isn't going to happen after this signing. We still do, however, expect it to look for a guard in either Day 1 or Day 2 to replace Richie Incognito.
Jared Veldheer, Offensive Tackle, Arizona Cardinals
We didn't slot Arizona in at tackle in any of the first three rounds of our mock simply because we figured that it was going to upgrade at left tackle. That's exactly what one of the most surprising teams in the NFL from the 2013 season did on Monday.
They were able to nab Veldheer away from the Oakland Raiders in one of the most underrated moves of the day. This solid young pass-protecting left tackle in the form of this fifth-year player. Despite missing 11 games due to injury in 2013, Veldheer has been great when he's seen action on the field.
He will now team up with 2013 first-round pick Jonathan Cooper, who missed all of last season, to form a vastly improved left side of the offensive line. He also enables the Cardinals to look in another direction come May.
Michael Johnson, Defensive End, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Some may look at Johnson's 3.5 sacks last season and wonder why the Buccaneers gave him a ridiculous five-year, $43.75 million deal. What they won't look at is the 11.5 sacks he recorded in 2012 and the fact that he hurried the quarterback a total of 40 times in 2013. Sometimes pressure is all you need to get in order to force mistakes. This is something that Tampa Bay has been lacking a great deal as of late.
Interstingly enough, we didn't mock defensive end to the Buccaneers at all in our three-round version last week. With that said, most experts around the league were drawing an ultimate conclusion that Tampa Bay would go after Khalil Mack if he did fall on to their laps at No. 7. While still a possibility, it's less likely at this point.
Lamarr Houston, Defensive End, Chicago Bears
Goodbye, Mr. Julius Peppers. The veteran defensive end was released a mere hours after Chicago inked Houston to a five-year, $35 million contract. This doesn't necessarily change our opinion of what the Bears are going to do in the upcoming draft. We had them pegged to look for interior defensive line and safety help above everything else. Actually, the signing of Ryan Mundy may push safety down just a tad and have more of an impact than this signing.
Either way you put it, Houston adds a young pass-rush threat to this rebuilt defense. Chicago could make the decision to double down at defensive end should someone fall to them in the first round. If not, we are still looking defensive tackle with that selection.
Aqib Talib, Cornerback, Denver Broncos
To say that the Broncos are going all in for the 2014 season would be a gross understatement. They added T.J. Ward as well as one of the top free agent cornerbacks on the market. All things equal, Talib might be one of the top-five cornerbacks in the NFL. Off-field issues forced the veteran to sign a small one-year, $5 million contract with the New England Patriots last season.
He's now hit the bank.
For the Broncos, they get a true shutdown guy on the outside, which is only going to help a vastly improved defense from a season ago. We had Denver going cornerback in the second round of the 2014 NFL draft. This signing likely changes that.
Antoine Bethea, Safety, San Francisco 49ers
Literally minutes after Donte Whitner bolted for the Cleveland Browns on a 4Y-$28 million contract Monday, San Francisco found a replacement in the form of this two-time Pro Bowler. While Bethea has seen his game drop off a tad since he earned his last trip to Hawaii, the veteran is a cheaper option than Whitner and fits San Francisco's defensive scheme to a T.
He can play a variey of roles in the 49ers' secondary, including his natural strong safety position. He can move to free safety when the 49ers want to push Eric Reid into the box. Heck, Bethea can play in the slot, if need be.
This deal, however surprising it might have been, doesn't change a whole lot in terms of draft needs. Bethea is 29 years old, and despite signing a four-year contract, isn't going to see the final two years of that deal unless he restructures or performs at an elite level.
San Francisco still needs to find a long-term replacement. What this does change is where the 49ers might look to draft said replacement. We had them going Deone Bucannon in the second round of the our mock. While still a strong possibility, the 49ers could easily hold off a round or two.