The first word of an NFL free agent agreeing to terms with a new team broke moments after the negotiating window opened at noon on Monday and news of impending deals kept coming throughout the rest of the day.
Guard Alex Cappa accounted for that initial move as he agreed to leave the Bucs for a four-year deal with the Bengals. Cappa was on PFT’s list of the top 100 free agents in the league — the list grew to 102 after the Monday releases of Za’Darius Smith and Jarvis Landry — and he had plenty of company before the day was out.
Whether through franchise tags, deals with current teams, or agreements with new ones, 39 of the players on our initial list are now attached to teams for the 2022 season. That includes cornerback J.C. Jackson, who was the top player on our list to avoid the franchise tag and who will be moving from New England to the Chargers.
Six of the top 10 players and 12 of the top 25 are included in those numbers. Tackle Terron Armstead, linebacker Von Miller, edge rusher Chandler Jones, and linebacker Bobby Wagner are the unattached players in the top 10.
None of the deals with new teams can become official until Wednesday outside of guard Rodger Saffold‘s pact with the Bills. Saffold was released by the Titans last week, which left him eligible to sign ahead of the start of the new league year. Tuesday promises to bring more deals that leaves a reduced number of the top free agents available for the official signing period.
First day of negotiations ends with 39 of top 100 free agents attached to teams originally appeared on Pro Football Talk