Free agency is a very tough topic every year. This can make or break a team season before the season even starts. If a team doesn’t keep up, doesn’t make any new signings, or loses players, their season could be over before it even starts.
This 2026 offseason’s free agency has already been pretty crazy. We have Super Bowl LX winning running back, Kenneth Walker, signing with the Kansas City Chiefs. This is crazy because Kenneth Walker is coming out of probably his best season ever. Another blockbuster trade was the Ravens trading two first-round picks in the 2027 NFL draft for Max Crosby. Max Crosby is also one of the best defensive players in the entire league.
Once Max Crosby got to the Ravens facility and did a physical, the Ravens then backed out of the trade and Max Crosby is now back with the Las Vegas Raiders.
“I didn’t even know that was possible, to trade someone and then them not being able to be traded,” freshman Hunter Walton said.
The controversial Max Crosby trade shows how each (NFL) team has its ups and downs. Free agency can be great for teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers, who got Michael Pittman Jr, and many more players to help build up their lineup. However, it can be bad for teams because when losing players, the team is going to lose chemistry, and most of the time, the team ends up having a worse record the next season.
For example, most Super Bowl winners will only have one year to win the Super Bowl. In order to winl, you have to be the best team in the NFL. Sometimes, in this case, you might only get one year where everything is perfect. Now, there are some upsides to free agency.
“I think [free agency] is good [because] it makes [the teams] more [competitive],” freshman Benjamin Barbosa said.
No one wants to have one team be good for years or decades on end. That’s why there’s a salary cap because if a team gets too many star players, they have to let some players go because they don’t have enough money to have them all. This is good because this then evens out the league and gives the team that are below others a chance to build on that player and get better.
Free agency and trading is a controversial topic. If teams use it in the right way, it is great and can give you a chance to make a play to win the Super Bowl. However, it can also be bad because when a team wins the Super Bowl, their players then ask for more money, and they will most likely trade themselves or be traded to another team.
You never know what is going to happen during NFL free agency. One day your team could look like a Super Bowl winning team. The next day it might look like you might not even make the playoffs. But this is what makes the NFL exciting.
