Teams to Watch in the Offseason
Browns
1st Round Picks: 31st (Lions)
Key Free Agents: C Ryan Pontbriand, FB Ovie Mughelli, P Chad Stanley, DE La'Roi Glover
The Browns GM is on the hot seat, and I believe the Browns have the most work to do of any team on the hot seat. Their biggest question is what they will do with QB Tim Couch, who continues to anchor this teams chances at improving. His cap hit will be $16.36M, a massive number that prevents the Browns from being able to improve elsewhere. If they are able to get out of his contract, that will help them build around their next QB. They may have trouble finding their next QB, however. They don't have their own 1st rounder as they traded it for DT Shaun Rogers. They were able to get the Lions 1st back in the trade, but they will be picking 31st instead of 4th. They likely won't be able to find a QB worth drafting at that pick, and they likely wouldn't want a rookie starting in a hot seat year anyways. David Greene could be their answer at QB, who they traded for last offseason. I think they could also be a potential suitor to trade for QB Brian Griese, he'd be capable of getting them to at least 6 wins. The Browns are going to have to be aggressive this offseason if they want to improve, they've got a lot of key free agents that they likely want back as well.
Saints
1st Round Picks: 5th (Own)
Key Free Agents: DE Charles Grant, P Mark Haulman, DE Darren Howard, G Ben Sobieski
Of the three teams on the hot seat, the Saints seem to have the easiest path forward. They are in a division that's struggled, outside of the Falcons. While they do have a franchise QB in Ben Roethlisberger, they seem to be interested in moving him. If they are able to upgrade at the position, they have a great chance of being able to compete in their division and improve over their past seasons. They have a few good free agents they will likely want back, with DE Charles Grant likely being the most expensive. They've heavily invested into taller WRs, which hasn't paid off for them yet. They seem to be open to moving some of their WRs, so they may be looking to get faster at the position for Roethlisberger or whoever their next QB is.
Giants
1st Round Picks: 6th (Own)
Key Free Agents: K Matt Bryant, G Vince Manuwai, OT Jeremy Bridges, WR Zuriel Smith
The Giants are in a similar position as the Browns, they've struggled to improve year after year and their GM lands on the hot seat. They've had the worst record in the league over the past four seasons going 17-47 (.266). I do think they have a better foundation than the Browns to rebound next season. They've got a high draft pick that will allow them to add another foundational player, and they have their franchise QB in Tony Romo. Romo missed a part of the season due to an abdominal tear. They're in one of the best divisions in the league which has made it difficult to find any success, but they will likely look to be aggressive this offseason to make that happen. If they can find enough players who can help them right now, they could rebound in a big way next season with the strong foundation they already have in place.
Lions
1st Round Picks: 4th (Browns), 9th (Dolphins)
Key Free Agents: OT George Foster
The Lions had an unfortunate end to their season, QB Donovan McNabb got injured in their conference championship game win against the Seahawks. They still put up a good fight in the Super Bowl, losing a one score game against the Broncos with backup QB Doug Johnson. They are primed to make another run at the Super Bowl with the draft capital they have this offseason, They have the 4th overall pick and the 9th overall pick. They are going to be able to get two great players who can help them right away, or they could trade those picks to acquire veterans who can help them win right now. They have a lot of draft capital that will allow them to be flexible this offseason to try and make another run at a Super Bowl. They also don't have many important players that are upcoming free agents, they will be able to run it back with a very similar team. They should be seen as one of the early favorites to win the Super Bowl.
Broncos
1st Round Picks: None
Key Free Agents: P Brian Moorman, S Hanik Milligan, C Brad Meester, TE Daniel Graham, T Dustin Rykert
The Broncos are the Super Bowl Champions, which is enough of a reason to put them on this list, but there are many other reasons to watch what they do in the offseason. They've got a lot of great free agents who will likely gain a lot of interest, they may end up bringing most or all of them back. If they do hit the market, many teams will likely be interested in bringing in some of their players. The most interested aspect of this teams offseason is the potential trade of QB Peyton Manning. While not confirmed, it seems like they may be trading him to the NFC. If they end up getting a haul for him it will make for an interesting offseason, where they retool their team and try to go for another Super Bowl run. Many teams who win the Super Bowl try to run it back with the same plan, and they end up struggling the next season. The Broncos could try something different which could work out for them.
