---

_{By submitting this form, you hereby acknowledge and agree to receive email communications from A to Z Sports. We value your privacy and will handle your information with care. You will have the option to unsubscribe from our emails at any time through a link provided in each correspondence. Please review our Privacy Policy for more details about how we manage your information.}

---

Ranking the top 10 remaining players in NFL free agency

The first wave of free agency may be over, but there are still plenty of quality players that remain unsigned. At this point, most teams will wait until after the 2025 NFL Draft before heading back to the free agency well to round out their rosters before OTA offseason workouts begin.

However, that doesn’t mean that there won’t be any big signings between now and then. Players and teams could currently be in negotiations, but just aren’t in a rush to get a deal done. With all that in mind, let’s take a look at the top 10 remaining free agents who are all likely to be signed at some point before the 2025 season.

1) QB Aaron Rodgers: Love him or hate him, he plays the most important position in football and is still playing at a relatively high level. Rodgers posted a solid stat line of 3,897 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions with a 90.5 QB rating in 2024 with the New York Jets. He finished the season strong with nine TD passes and zero INTs over his final four games. It appears inevitable that he’ll end up with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but the waiting game continues.

2) WR Amari Cooper: He didn’t make quite the impact that the Buffalo Bills hoped when they acquired him from the Cleveland Browns in Week 7 last season, but that happens more often than not with midseason trades. It’s possible that Cooper is slowing down a bit at age 30, but he still caught 85 passes in 2024 and is just one year removed from recording 1,250 receiving yards. There are plenty of teams still in need of a veteran WR, and Cooper is the safest bet out there.

3) RB J.K. Dobbins: Injury issues have been the story of his career, missing the entire 2021 season with an ACL tear, nine games in 2022 with a knee injury, and 16 games in 2023 with a torn Achilles. However, he has continually been productive when healthy. Dobbins started the 2024 season with a bang, racking up 266 rushing yards and two TDs in the first two games. He was solid the rest of the way, but missed four games due to an MCL sprain. Dobbins can’t be trusted to be a workhorse back, but he would be great in a tandem with a reliable RB.

4) DE Za’Darius Smith: Puzzlingly, Smith is now looking to play for his sixth team. After a bit of a slow start to his career, he has done nothing but produce, recording 59 sacks over his past six seasons (not counting 2021 when he missed all but one game with a back injury). Smith is coming off a nine sack campaign with the Detroit Lions and Browns. Three-time Pro Bowl pass rushers don’t grow on trees, and it would be wise for a team who still needs one to sign him pretty quickly.

5) CB Mike Hilton: He’s coming off a bit of a down year with Cincinnati, but has been one of the best slot CBs in the league for the last several seasons. In 123 career games Hilton has posted 520 total tackles, 13 interceptions, 56 passes defensed, 11.5 sacks, and 35 quarterback pressures. Nothing went right for the Bengals’ defense last season, and Hilton could still have some left in the tank in the right scheme.

6) WR Keenan Allen: When you consider that he played in one of the worst offenses in the NFL with the Bears last year, his production was actually pretty good. Allen caught 70 passes for 744 yards and seven touchdowns in 15 games with Chicago, but did have a 10.3 percent drop rate. He will be 33 years old when the regular season begins, but until he has a significant drop off, it’s safe to assume that he’s still a solid short-term option as a slot WR.

7) OLB Von Miller: There’s no debate that he’s past his prime, but Miller posted a stellar six sacks in 13 games with the Bills last season. He could be an x-factor for any defense coming off the bench as a rotational pass rusher, and the experience from a Hall of Fame worthy 13-year career would pay huge dividends for whichever team he ends up with. Miller recently teased having one more run where it all began for him, in Denver with the Broncos.

8) CB Kendall Fuller: He has quietly been one of the better CBs in the league over the past several years. Fuller is still productive nine years into his career, registering 50 total tackles and seven passes defensed in 11 games with the Miami Dolphins in 2024. Something for teams to proceed with caution about him is that he suffered two separate concussions last season. If medicals check out, Fuller will make for a solid veteran addition to most secondaries.

9) CB Asante Samuel Jr.: Whoever ends up with Samuel is going to have to take the bad with the good. He’s a playmaker, recording six interceptions and 35 pass breakups during his first three seasons, but he also allows a ton of big plays. Samuel had an injury-riddled 2024 season, but is still just 25 years old. As a zone coverage specialist, he needs to be in the appropriate scheme. Samuel is certainly worth making a short-term bet on for CB needy teams.

10) LT Tyron Smith: A future Hall of Famer, Smith is looking to make one last run at getting a Super Bowl ring before he retires. He's coming off a one-year tenure with the Jets in which he started 10 games before suffering a season-ending neck injury. Smith isn’t the five-time All-Pro he was once, but should be serviceable, although durability is a concern for the 14-year veteran.

---

Giants add another veteran QB, Patriots get QB Drake Maye a big-time weapon

Two big names who would have made the list above found homes on Tuesday, potentially shaking up the draft.

QB Russell Wilson signs with Giants: Just five days after signing veteran QB Jameis Winston, New York signed Wilson to a one-year contract worth $21 million and $10.5 guaranteed. The folks over at ESPN weren’t too impressed with the decision by the Giants, but nonetheless our Wendell Ferreira doesn’t think that drafting a QB at No. 3 overall is off the table.

Patriots sign WR Stefon Diggs: One of the most important goals for New England to accomplish this offseason was to get Maye a legitimate receiving threat. It now has one in Diggs, who is reportedly ahead of schedule in his rehab from the torn ACL he suffered in Week 8 of last season. The move has garnered mostly positive reviews from major media outlets, though many are surprised over the lucrative three-year, $69 million deal he received.

---

Only A to Z Sports newsletter subscribers get the rest of this email, which has the latest NFL news and more.

Don't miss out on next week's full newsletter: SUBSCRIBE to our FREE weekly NFL newsletter to receive updates on your favorite NFL team and the rest of the league straight to your inbox.

_{By submitting this form, you hereby acknowledge and agree to receive email communications from A to Z Sports. We value your privacy and will handle your information with care. You will have the option to unsubscribe from our emails at any time through a link provided in each correspondence. Please review our Privacy Policy for more details about how we manage your information.}