Who's where?: 2014 edition
The 2014 XML off season gave us a lot to talk about. Whether it was through the draft, trades, or free agency. We'll try to give you all the headlines, and set up what may lie ahead for the league this year. Some big names changed teams, and some familiar faces are in new places. Let's take a look.
The Draft
The No. 1 overall pick was traded from the Buffalo Bills to the Washington Redskins, in a deal that sent star FS DeAires Justice to Buffalo while the Redskins went with the rookie FS Clarence Bucannon. That wasn't the only top 5 pick that was traded either. The No. 2 pick, originally held by the New Orleans Saints, was traded to the Green Bay Packers. The Packers front office had ROLB Leslie Luther as a rare talent on their draft board and felt the need to move up and acquire him. They sent starting HB James Starks and WR Jordy Nelson to New Orleans in the process, but have a defense that looks to improve in '14.
We saw many trades throughout the first round, and second round this year. In the end, all teams ended up with someone they believe in and look forward to having on their squad. Former St. Louis Rams RE Robert Quinn found himself being traded in the first round to the Kansas City Chiefs across state, when the opportunity arose for the Rams to move up.
Trades
QB Joe Flacoo is now a Jacksonville Jaguar. Can he stop the bleeding in Jacksonville? Only time will tell, but the acquisition shows that management is here to win. CB Derrelle Revis was sent to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for ROLB Terrell Suggs, in a block buster move. The Jets weren't satisfied with his production and felt his value was worth acquiring others this off season. The Falcons and Jaguars made a HB swap with that of DeAngelo Williams and Michael Turner. Will this HB swap make much of a difference this year? It certainly could for these two offenses that need improvement this season.
LOLB Ryan Kerrigan found his way to the Buffalo Bills, RE Artez Cousins to the Green Bay Packers, WR Jonathan Baldwin to the Cleveland Browns, QB Cam Newton to the Detroit Lions, QB Mark Sanchez to the St. Louis Rams, among many others across the league show that this year was just another in the recent string of big movement off seasons. Big players being traded across the XML.
Free Agency
This was the year of the tight end in XML free agency. Many of the leagues young talent found their way into the pool. TE Chris Cooley found his way back to the New York Giants, in a home town discount while teams like the New Orleans Saints, San Francisco 49ers, Houston Texans, St. Louis Rams, Kansas City Chiefs, Washington Redskins all went for a tight end early in the free agent process. The impact at tight end as we've seen with teams like New England and San Diego can be an important factor in a teams success.
It'll be interesting to see how these new players on their new teams unfold.
