Five most underrated moves of the NFL offseason
Gardner Minshew.
We’ve reached the point in the NFL offseason where most teams have completed their major roster additions and are preparing for the regular season.
It has been an action-packed offseason, with Philadelphia’s signing of Saquon Barkley and Houston’s trade for Stefon Diggs ranking among the most notable acquisitions. Many underrated moves, though, could be more impactful than you think.
With that in mind, here are five of the most underrated moves from this offseason:
Jets trade the No. 10 overall pick in 2024 NFL Draft to Vikings
The Jets likely never considered selecting a QB in the first round and ultimately capitalized on Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy’s mild draft-day slide by acquiring additional picks without giving up much. As part of the first trade of the draft, New York sent the 10th and 203rd selections for picks No. 11, 129 and 157.
The Jets spent the 11th pick on OT Olu Fashanu, the heir apparent to free-agent signee Tyron Smith, but the way they used the other selections from Minnesota made them one of the bigger winners of the draft.
New York later packaged the 157th pick in a deal with Carolina to select Malachi Corley, a receiver the Jets desperately tried to move up for in the second round, 65th overall.
Then, the Jets traded the 129th selection to San Francisco for picks 173 and 176, which New York used to draft RB Isaiah Davis and CB Qwan’tez Stiggers, respectively. Davis and Stiggers will probably only play special teams in the NFL, but Corley should have an important role on offense as a rookie. That’s quite a haul to get for essentially free.
Raiders sign quarterback Gardner Minshew II to two-year, $25M deal
He’ll have to beat out 2023 fourth-round pick Aidan O’Connell for the starting job, but Minshew is well-positioned to make an impact with the Raiders like Baker Mayfield made in Tampa Bay last season.
After Colts QB Anthony Richardson suffered a season-ending shoulder injury, Minshew posted a 7-6 record as a starter, keeping Indianapolis in playoff contention entering Week 18.
For Las Vegas, Minshew will throw to the best collection of pass-catchers he’s had in his career and have a defense behind him that allowed the fewest points per game (16) after Antonio Pierce’s promotion to interim HC. In the offseason, the defense added Pro Bowl DT Christian Wilkins, giving it another boost for 2024.
Minshew wouldn’t be a top-15 quarterback if we ranked players at the position, though he has proved to be a competent starter, which may be all Las Vegas needs to secure a playoff spot.
Across his 37 career starts, Minshew has thrown for 8,966 yards, 54 touchdowns and 22 interceptions. Only 11 active quarterbacks average more passing yards per game than Minshew’s 242.3-yard average as a starter.
Eagles sign edge-rusher Bryce Huff to three-year, $51.1M deal
Huff might not outperform Haason Reddick — the edge-rusher he’s taking over for — this season, but he was arguably the best and most realistic replacement Philadelphia could’ve hoped for. Regardless of how productive Reddick, a free agent after this season, had been with the Eagles, it wouldn’t have been easy to justify extending him since he turns 30 in September, so they signed Huff, 26.
Huff was one of the most underrated players in the NFL during his breakout 2023 season with the Jets, posting a career-high and team-leading 10 sacks and generating 33 pressures, the 17th most in the league.
The former undrafted free agent also tied Reddick for the sixth-highest pass rush win rate among edge-rushers (22%), according to ESPN Analytics.
As long as Philadelphia’s new-look secondary is more effective than last season’s group, the dropoff from Reddick (now a Jet) to Huff shouldn’t be too noticeable.
Colts draft UCLA edge-rusher Laiatu Latu
Latu, the first defender selected in the 2024 NFL Draft, isn’t an underrated player by any means. However, by this time next year, several teams will be left wondering how he fell to Indianapolis’ 15th overall pick, and those who passed on him will regret their decision.
Of course, a neck issue that forced Latu to medically retire from football while in college contributed to him sliding on draft day. Still, he has been healthy and extremely productive since transferring from Washington to UCLA, racking up 23.5 sacks and 34 tackles for losses over the past two seasons.
The Colts ranked fifth among teams in sacks last season (51), and it wouldn’t be all that surprising if they exceeded that total in 2024.
Although Indianapolis didn’t have a splashy offseason, the team is returning the majority of players from a roster that nearly reached the postseason in 2023 and has added talent at key positions.
If Richardson can take the next step in his development and, more importantly, stay healthy this season, the Colts could be dark-horse playoff contenders.
Titans sign center Lloyd Cushenberry III to four-year, $50M deal
While he might not seem like the most exciting acquisition, the Titans made one of the biggest upgrades of the offseason by signing the former Bronco.
Rather than re-signing former starter Aaron Brewer, who is now with the Dolphins, Tennessee made Cushenberry a top priority in free agency, and for good reason. Not only did Brewer allow 34 pressures last season (which wasn’t even a career high), but he also surrendered the second-most sacks (six) and QB hits (seven) among centers.
Meanwhile, Cushenberry gave up just one sack, four QB hits and 14 total pressures for Denver in 2023.
Additionally, the 26-year-old earned the third-highest pass-blocking grade for a center (76.4) by Pro Football Focus, which is significant considering the Titans ranked 32nd in pass-blocking efficiency last season (74.5).
With Cushenberry and first-round pick JC Latham, a tackle, now on board, Titans QB Will Levis should have plenty of time in the pocket to help him connect with his revamped receiving corps.
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