NFL Top 10: Most Desirable Free Agency Scraps

There’s not a whole lot of value left in the 2009 NFL Free Agent talent market, but certainly, teams looking to improve at one or two positions have plently of intriguing names to throw a contract at.  Perhaps the strongest position in the FA market would be at wide receiver, where established veteran talent mixes with younger talent with flaws.  We take a look at players who could help out teams in 2009.

10.  K Matt Stover/K John Kasay, ages 41, 39
No excuse to have inaccurate kicking inside of 40 yards with two of the more accurate guys in NFL history for hire.  Kasay can still boot it into the endzone on kickoffs, while Stover doesn’t miss from inside 35 yards.  Obviously, a team with Stover needs to roster another kicker, so his value is limited, but Kasay should be signed, either back to the Panthers, or over to the Giants or someone.

9.  LB Marcus Washington, age 31
A strong-side LB who can still get it done in a 4-3 defense.  Has the ability to get after the QB from multiple angles, is a sure tackler, and is a smart player in coverage, though his ability to run sideline to sideline and vertically has diminished significantly.  Is a huge injury concern, but doesn’t expect to make much more than a million dollars in 2009, so the risk/reward ratio is heavily in the favor of whoever wins his services.

8.  CB Daven Holly, age 27
Holly, who ripped up his knee in OTA’s with the Browns last June, is not receiving a sniff in free agency despite incredibly impressive cover skills in which the Browns felt confident trading CB Leigh Bodden to Detroit.  Holly is going to end up signing a one-year, no-guarantee, minimum value contract, and if his knee allows him to play well next year, he could be in line for a big pay day in 2010, CBA permitting.

7.  OT Jon Runyan, age 35
Last time we saw Runyan, he was still playing at a very high level.  He’s a right tackle almost exclusively, so he’s going to be out on the market until an injury to a current starter forces a team to go make a move, at which point, Runyan is capable of bringing a veteran presence to a starting lineup for the 2009 season, which is likely his NFL swan song anyway.

6.  WR Marvin Harrison, age 37
Speaking of swan songs, Harrison still has the stuff of a No. 2 receiver, but surprisingly, has received no interest in free agency.  No doubt a lot of the worries about Harrison have to do with the perception that his speed is completely gone, but remember that Jerry Rice was an effective target in this league through his age-40 season.  Harrison’s career is more comparable to Rice’s than one would think, so as a No. 2 target, you’d think he would have at least two seasons remaining as a starting WR.  Look for Oakland to make a move here, if Javon Walker doesn’t look a whole lot healthier in August.

5.  LB Pisa Tinoisamoa, age 28
Cut from the Rams coming off two very productive seasons as their leading tackler, Tinoisamoa is a LB in the prime of his career who figures to make an instant impact for someone next year, specifically in a cover-two scheme.  He’s very undersized, but that has not hampered his production even in one of the league’s weakest defense the last two years.  He’ll have a job in the next two weeks.

4.  G Pete Kendall, age 36
Kendall wants to keep playing at his age, but currently has received only league minimum, one year offers.  He’s coming off a fantastic age-35 campaign in Washington, and could start for pretty much any team at LG in 2009.  I think he’s got about two effective years left in his body, but we really won’t know how he will react to signing somewhere to play as a backup; Kendall might opt for retirement instead.  He’s likely to get a solid offer from someone once camp injuries start rolling in.

3.  S Mike Brown, age 31
Brown finds a way to get injured every year, which is why he’s still out here, but he’s a game-breaking safety when he’s in the lineup, and he’s worthy of a multiple year contract with a very minisucle signing bonus.  In fact, the reservation of teams to extend guarenteed money to an injury prone player is likely why Brown has yet to sign anywhere yet, but he absolutely wants to play another year, and will be in camp with somebody come late July.

2.  OT Levi Jones, age 30
Jones has missed part of the last three season with injuries (see a trend developing with this list?), but he’s a game-ready left tackle with plenty of seasons left if he can just stay on the field.  Of course, like Brown, Jones is holding out for a multi-year contract with a solid signing bonus, and he’s going to have to wait around for an injury if he wants that kind of money.  Jones will have plenty of one and two year offers to be in someone’s starting lineup by training camp, if he so chooses.

1.  WR Plaxico Burress, age 32
Within the next month, it’s likely that Plaxico Burress will be able to sort out his legal issues to get back in the NFL labor market.  It’s possible he may avoid jail time altogether, but he’s expected to plea guilty to lesser charges related to the gun-in-sweatpants charges from last November.  When he does get back on the field, Buress will be the league’s most sought after player because of the dynamic abilities he can bring to the offense.  The Jets are reportedly interested, and I wouldn’t rule out a return the Giants either, although he’s not going to get much of a contract from them after all the dead salary cap money he is owed from last year’s 5-year extension.  If Burress is available to play, and the commissioner opts not to make an example out of him, he’ll find his way back into an NFL starting lineup this fall.

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Don’t Sleep On
CB Rodrick Hood
WR DJ Hackett
WR Amani Toomer
WR Ike Hilliard
TE Eric Johnson
C Jeremy Newberry
DE Kevin Carter
CB Chris McAlister