Another day, another wave of activity around the NFL. While most of the league’s premier free agents reached splashy new deals earlier this week, a handful of others just came to terms with new clubs — or found new homes via trade — on Thursday. Remember that sometimes the best bargains of the offseason come after the initial rush of big-name movement, when prices are lower but rosters get filled out.
Among the most notable happenings Thursday: The Houston Texans and Minnesota Vikings shuffled their offensive lines once more, the Las Vegas Raiders added a former Pro Bowl playmaker, and the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles took a flyer on some pass-rushing help, days after losing key defensive starters like Josh Sweat, Milton Williams and C.J. Gardner-Johnson.
Which of the latest deals register as positive moves? Which ones fail to move the needle, either for player-value or team-fit purposes? Here’s how we’d grade some of the most notable transactions from Day 4 of free agency (using the start of this year’s negotiating period as the kickoff):
Houston only surrendered a 2026 sixth-round pick to add a young guard with experience, but Kenyon Green, the young guard the Texans just shipped to the Eagles, apparently graded even better as a one-on-one pass blocker, despite overt struggles. Again, the cost isn’t great, but if the Texans’ grand plan to protect C.J. Stroud in the middle is going from Green to the demoted Ingram, well, buckle your seat belts.
Grade: C-
With Alexander Mattison and Ameer Abdullah out the door, Las Vegas needed to add to the backfield. Mostert is 32, coming off the most inefficient season of his career, so the wheels may be creaky. He’s also just two years removed from a 1,000-yard, 18-touchdown cruise with the Miami Dolphins. At the very least, on a one-year deal for backup money, he should provide the Geno Smith-led offense with rotational speed.
Grade: B-
A true assessment of this move kind of depends on what else happens — or doesn’t happen — under center, where Pittsburgh is still angling for a bona fide starter after letting Justin Fields take his upside elsewhere. Rudolph knows the city and the system, and he’s shown grit in spot starts before. He’s also been repeatedly replaced and overlooked by the Steelers for a reason, registering as a so-so No. 2.
Grade: C
Eagles adding Joshua Uche
This free agency was seemingly always going to be about sacrifice in Philadelphia, with the Eagles preserving longer-term salary after their Super Bowl LIX domination. So Uche is a classic low-risk, medium-reward bet off the edge. He’s never been a full-timer, and his one double-digit sack campaign with the New England Patriots is an outlier, but at 26, he’s got room to grow under Vic Fangio.
Grade: C+
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Author: Cody Benjamin
March 13, 2025 | 5:05 pm
