As you surely know by now, we are mere days away from the official start of the new NFL league year. It begins March 15, and teams will spend the next several months trying to upgrade their rosters so that they can potentially take down the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs next season.
Part of that process, of course, is free agency. With that in mind, we’re going to be taking a look at the players likely available to be signed this offseason. We’re going position by position, beginning this week on the offensive side of the ball. We’ve already covered the running backs and wide receivers, and will continue below with the interior offensive linemen. Instead of ranking the linemen, though, we’re going to break them down by position, and give you an overview of what types of players are available.
Centers
A lot of times, teams with young quarterbacks will go into the free agent market looking for a veteran center with whom to pair him. That player can help handle the calls and protections at the line of scrimmage, allowing the quarterback to focus on every other aspect of his incredibly challenging job. Think of the Bills bringing in Mitch Morse or the Chargers signing Corey Linsley, for example.
There are some quality starters available among this group, though not necessarily any top-flight players. In particular, Brendel, Pocic and McGovern ranked eighth, ninth and 11th in Pro Football Focus’ pass-blocking grades last season, while Pocic ranked fifth, Bradbury ranked ninth, McGovern ranked 10th, and Bozeman ranked 13th in run-blocking grades. Mustipher, a restricted free agent, fared OK in the run game but has badly struggled as a pass-protector throughout his career. Any of them could be a passable option for teams looking to solidify the pivot spot on the offensive line.
Left Guards
There are a bunch of quality starters available here. Powers was one of our top available offensive free agents, and at 27 years old he should still have a bunch of good football ahead of him. Stinnie was in line to start for the Bucs last year until getting injured in preseason. Stafford has been a starter seemingly forever, and though he’s not what he used to be, he can be a solid run-blocker on the interior. If you want to take a shot on a younger player and hope he gets better during the course of his second contract, McGovern and Edwards could make a lot of sense. Risner…
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