There is NO reason to not spend cap space

[patman52]

Lets say from 2022 to 2023 you rollover 20M (numbers made up)

In 2023 you have X cap space +20m

Now from 2023 to 2024 you not only have the 20M you rollover, but you spent X-20M cap space (so 40M in total of remaining cap space)

In 2024 you do not have 40M rollover cap space. They are not additive. So you still have your 20M extra

And this is applied only for one year. So lets assume we use this 40M to extend Maye in 2023

If everything remains the same for 2024, you are actually over 20M in cap, because you didnt roll over the cap, since Maye took it.

Rollover cap is a crutch for short term decisions, to benefit less spending team. You dont build around it long term

so your saying you can only roll over one year of unspent cap space? As if a team only spent to the min reqd every year it will not roll over to the 3rd year?

 

[JayNM]

so your saying you can only roll over one year of unspent cap space? As if a team only spent to the min reqd every year it will not roll over to the 3rd year?

Im pretty sure, not additive like that

 

[PatsFanInVa]

It begins My revolt against Kraft is brewing This thread is simple, with thousands of others about cap sapce. Let it reverb around the globe within the forum, grow roots and became omniscient. it benefits NO ONE. BUT KRAFT. To have CONTINUOSLY large amount of unused cap space in Professional Football Not financially for the team Not for short term production Not for long term sustainance Not for creating marketing Not for fans of the team Not for Maye to improve ONLY. KRAFT. IS. GAINING. Get your **** together you old pervert or any and all of your fans will burn

I wonder if he is turning into NEM.

Damn that guy had staying power. When was he last here?

 

[imahobgoblin]

Damn that guy had staying power. When was he last here?

Oh man that is going way back. 20 years? I have no idea.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Oh man that is going way back. 20 years? I have no idea.

Sounds right, 15-20 at least

 

[Ring 6]

Lets say from 2022 to 2023 you rollover 20M (numbers made up)

In 2023 you have X cap space +20m

Now from 2023 to 2024 you not only have the 20M you rollover, but you spent X-20M cap space (so 40M in total of remaining cap space)

In 2024 you do not have 40M rollover cap space. They are not additive. So you still have your 20M extra

And this is applied only for one year. So lets assume we use this 40M to extend Maye in 2023

If everything remains the same for 2024, you are actually over 20M in cap, because you didnt roll over the cap, since Maye took it.

Rollover cap is a crutch for short term decisions, to benefit less spending team. You dont build around it long term

This is wrong.
You rollover what you have left. Those specific funds are not segregated, they are just part of the cap.
If you are 20 mill under in 2022 your 2023 cap number increases by 20 mill

Whatever amount you are over in 2023, 20 mill, more than 20 mill, less than 20 mill rolls over. What rolled over before has no impact on what rolls over later.

 

[Ring 6]

so your saying you can only roll over one year of unspent cap space? As if a team only spent to the min reqd every year it will not roll over to the 3rd year?

No that is not correct

 

[Ring 6]

Here is a reason to not spend to the cap: balancing cap hits.

Williams, Davis, Diggs, Spillane, Landry, Bradbury, Moses, Gibbens have cap hits in 2025 of a combined 61,050,000
Their combined cap hit in 2026 is 118,400,000

Free agents have low first year cap hits because they receive the signing bonus in year 1. So the salary is low and increase through the contract. If the salary were level you would have many more players complaining about being under paid. You would also have less flexibility under the cap to convert salary to signing bonus and reduce the hit.

BUT when you have a lot of cap space and sign a lot of free agents you have a huge increase in cap cost coming.
Had the Patriots signed these players with equal year 1 and 2 cap hits, this years hit would have been about 30,000,000 higher and next years 30,000,000 lower.
So if we end up 30 mill under (which looks like a good guess) we are simply giving back what we borrowed from the future.
This is sound cap management.


Right now we are 64.2 mill under.
Bentley being cut adds 3.6 so 67.8 under.
Miguel uses 26 mill for draft, 52/53, practice squad, in season signings, etc
So our effective cap space is 41.8.
I think we still have a number of depth guys we will sign at 2-5 mill (which will take up 1-4 mill after rule of 51)
So I expect around 10 mill eaten up that way, and 30 to carry over.

Next year we have
Diggs, Onwenu, Dugger, Henry taking up a combined 79.5 and would save a combined 50 milll if cut. They could also be extended and save a lot of that.

It looks as if we not only dramatically improved the roster with 8-9 new starters but have put ourselves in a good call management position.

 

[BobDigital]

Here is a reason to not spend to the cap: balancing cap hits.

Williams, Davis, Diggs, Spillane, Landry, Bradbury, Moses, Gibbens have cap hits in 2025 of a combined 61,050,000
Their combined cap hit in 2026 is 118,400,000

Free agents have low first year cap hits because they receive the signing bonus in year 1. So the salary is low and increase through the contract. If the salary were level you would have many more players complaining about being under paid. You would also have less flexibility under the cap to convert salary to signing bonus and reduce the hit.

BUT when you have a lot of cap space and sign a lot of free agents you have a huge increase in cap cost coming.
Had the Patriots signed these players with equal year 1 and 2 cap hits, this years hit would have been about 30,000,000 higher and next years 30,000,000 lower.
So if we end up 30 mill under (which looks like a good guess) we are simply giving back what we borrowed from the future.
This is sound cap management.


Right now we are 64.2 mill under.
Bentley being cut adds 3.6 so 67.8 under.
Miguel uses 26 mill for draft, 52/53, practice squad, in season signings, etc
So our effective cap space is 41.8.
I think we still have a number of depth guys we will sign at 2-5 mill (which will take up 1-4 mill after rule of 51)
So I expect around 10 mill eaten up that way, and 30 to carry over.

Next year we have
Diggs, Onwenu, Dugger, Henry taking up a combined 79.5 and would save a combined 50 milll if cut. They could also be extended and save a lot of that.

It looks as if we not only dramatically improved the roster with 8-9 new starters but have put ourselves in a good call management position.

Obviously at this point we will need to carry some over for next year as cutting all those guys you listed isn't good business typically. While i like to save money having basically 30M in dead cap is bad management IMO and the kind of thing which should be avoided typically, at least at that level. Part of dead cap these days is just the cost of doing business, but that doesn't mean you should allow it to grow to an unreasonable level of your cap.

While we will need to roll over some cap for next year at this point clearly, i agree we can afford to spend 10 more. But i don't want it on any depth guys. We are drafting 9 players, all of which should make the roster. I was looking over our roster and by my guess we have about 37 who should be relatively safe and are worthy of being starters or depth. 40 if you count our 3 Specialist. So 9 more give us 49. Most of the spots we need to fill are OL spots at this point which needs starts not depth... and we need 2 more NFL quality RBs, but that can be had easily later in the draft.

The only spots IMO truly worthy of a mid level depth signing are DL or Edge... but we probably want to draft those anyway and most FAs we'd want there are probably going to be very expensive at this point relative to their value as there are a lot of big names who don't produce nearly as much anymore... but the name tends to demand a premium.

 

[Ring 6]

Obviously at this point we will need to carry some over for next year as cutting all those guys you listed isn't good good business typically. While i like to save money have basically 30M in dead cap is bad management IMO and the kind of thing which should be avoided typically, at least at that level. Part of dead cap these days is just the cost of doing business, but that doesn't mean you should allow it to grow to an unreasonable level of your cap.

While we will need to roll over some cap for next year at this point clearly, i agree we can afford to spend 10 more. But i don't want it on any depth guys. We are drafting 9 players, all of which should make the roster. I was looking over our roster and by my guess we have about 37 who should be relatively safe and are worthy of being starters or depth. 40 if you could our 3 Specialist. So 9 more give us 49. Most of the spots we need to fill are OL spots at this point... that and we need 2 more NFL quality RBs, but that be had easily later in the draft.

The only spots IMO truly worthy of a mid level depth signing are DL or Edge... but we probably want to draft those anyway and anyone there is probably going to be very expensive at this point as there are a lot of big names who don't produce nearly as much anymore... but the name tends to demand a premium.

My point wasn’t that we want to cut those guys but if they underperform we can, or they can be extended, so that is additional flexibility. In other words if Diggs flames out we have and additional 18 mill to replace him with.
We need a starter at

LT
K

We need better depth at
IOL
RB
WR
DT
DE
EDGE
CB


and could use more at
LB
TE
OT
additional DL and DB

That’s between 9 and 15
All 9 draft choices won’t make the team

Veteran signings could be
CB
RB
DT/DE
K
IOL

As of now who is playing corner if one of Gonzo, Davis, Marcus jones is injured? They are starters
Who is playing DT is Barmore can’t go? Tonga isn’t a full time answer and we have no one else capable at the position.
We have Landry at edge in one side and mediocrity behind him.
If we have a rb injury Jennings is playing major snaps.
Who is the depth at IOL? Schweitzer can’t be counted on.



I’m not sure who the 40 you counted are but certainly they can be upgraded or have competition

 

[mgteich]

The only spots IMO truly worthy of a mid level depth signing are DL or Edge... but we probably want to draft those anyway and most FAs we'd want there are probably going to be very expensive at this point relative to their value as there are a lot of big names who don't produce nearly as much anymore... but the name tends to demand a premium.

A RB is well worth signing at present free market prices for RB's.

 

[Ring 6]

Obviously at this point we will need to carry some over for next year as cutting all those guys you listed isn't good business typically. While i like to save money having basically 30M in dead cap is bad management IMO and the kind of thing which should be avoided typically, at least at that level. Part of dead cap these days is just the cost of doing business, but that doesn't mean you should allow it to grow to an unreasonable level of your cap.

While we will need to roll over some cap for next year at this point clearly, i agree we can afford to spend 10 more. But i don't want it on any depth guys. We are drafting 9 players, all of which should make the roster. I was looking over our roster and by my guess we have about 37 who should be relatively safe and are worthy of being starters or depth. 40 if you count our 3 Specialist. So 9 more give us 49. Most of the spots we need to fill are OL spots at this point which needs starts not depth... and we need 2 more NFL quality RBs, but that can be had easily later in the draft.

The only spots IMO truly worthy of a mid level depth signing are DL or Edge... but we probably want to draft those anyway and most FAs we'd want there are probably going to be very expensive at this point relative to their value as there are a lot of big names who don't produce nearly as much anymore... but the name tends to demand a premium.

Good post by the way

Here is how I see it.

Qb. All 3 are set. 3 locks
Rb. Stevenson Gibson. 2 locks. 1 or 2 openings
Wr. Diggs Douglas 2 locks 3 openings 2 of them probably here
Hollins, Boutte could be locks but could be upgraded
Bourne, Polk, Baker hopefully we do better than

We have Wr1 and WR3. I do not like anyone we have as WR2. Assuming that comes in the draft I’d like to see competition for wr4 and 5.
I accept that they are probably fine with wr4/5 competition now
TE Henry and Hooper. 2 locks 1 opening
Really need a future guy for this position.

OL
Starters 4 locks 1 opening
Strange Bradbury Onwenu Moses
LT must come in the draft
Depth 1 lock
Wallace is a lock
We need competition for the other 3-4 reserve spots and nominee we have is a lock.

DT Williams Barmore Tonga. 3 locks 2 openings
No one in our depth should be a guy we aren’t trying hard to upgrade.

DE White. 1 lock
We have absolutely no depth behind him. This is the 3-4 DE role playing over the T, a guy who is a big DE/small DT tweeener
Huge depth need.

LB Spillane, Gibbens, Tavai, Ellis. Look set here.
—Jennings can play here too and Mapu may be moved here.
Edge. Landry Jennings Chaisson 3 locks
Not a strong group and depth is needed

Cb Gonzo, Davis, M Jones. 3 locks 3 openings
Austin should stick but I’d feel better with him at the 5 and a veteran as first off the bench. Would draft here too.

S Duggar, Peppers, Epps. 3 locks 1 opening
None of the S4 candidates are worth much. Should be upgraded, good spot for a draft choice.

K big need

P. BARRINGER a lock

 

[BobDigital]

Here is how i see the current break down

QB - 3 - Maye Dobbs Milton - Keep as is or trade Milton and pick up an UDFA

TE - 2 - Henry Hooper - We need a draft pick here for the future.

WR - 5 - Diggs Douglas, Boutte, Hollins Polk - I think all 5 are pretty much locks. Hollins due to his contract being almost fully on the books. Boutte and Douglas are just really good deals and young and would fit well in the 4 and 5 slots. I don't think unless we sign another FA we find a better option than either. Even if we draft 2 more guys we can carry all of these ones. Polk is a 2nd year 37th overall pick. He would cost 4M more to cut than keep. Unless he absolutely sucks it up in camp i don't see them parting ways yet. And it have to be an epic suck up. When is the last time a team gave up on a guy after 1 season and 2 camps without a criminal record being an issue, just play?

OT - 2 Moses, Lowe - Right now Lowe is our starting LT. Not good enough. I like him as a 3rd or 4th back up though so we can keep him. We need to draft a guy for OT long term but also sign another FA imo. I like either Smith or Beachum for a 1 year rental. But we need to use a pick here no later than day 2. But it should be mention Lowe is 100% cuttable due to his contract.

G - 3 - Onwenu, Wes, Strange - I think Wes is a lock for sure. He backs up a bunch of spots and is there to be the flexible back up IOL man across the board. Is Strange a lock? Only due to his cap situation. In any case we need to draft 1 interior OL for the future... Ideally a guy who can both play G and C so depending on how things go in year 2 we can move him to any spot along the interior to start. I wouldn't mind adding Scheffer for this year though.

C - 1 - Bradburry - Brown ain't a lock at all.

RB - 2 - Stevenson, Gibson - Need 2 more guys... maybe 3 idk. I'm okay getting them as UDFA unless someone really worth the pick falls on day 3.

Offense - 18 locks IMO

DT - 4 - Milton, Barmore, Tonga, Pharms - I don't think Pharms is is much danger of getting cut, though he could be if we add guys and things fall against him. But as a 4th option he's okay. As a 5th he's actually pretty good. Tonga is getting downplayed by some but he's a big body we need and frankly decent. Not starter level but a solid back up. Not a particularly good back up but solid enough. We could use either a draft pick or FA here to be the 3rd guy and move Tonga and Pharms down.

EDGE - 4 - Landry, White, Chaisson, Jennings - White is a good pass rusher and besides his contract makes him cut proof. Same for Chaisson. Could Jennings be cut? Unlikely. it would cost 3M and save only 2. Besides he's if he's our 5th guy we'd have a better 5th guy than most NFL teams by a lot. They could add 1 more guy here. Probably better off drafting to get young blood in.

LB - 4 - Spillane Gibbens, Elliss, Tavai - Tavai is a lock due to his contract, also he isn't a bad back up option. Everyone else is making it obviously. We need another body here but i could see them keeping Spillane, Gibbens and Ellis for a while. Elliss is only on a 1 year deal but i could see them upping him next year. That's your core 3 and not a bad one.

CB - 4 -Gonzo, Carlton, M. Jones, Austin - Austin is a solid 4th option. Probably better off drafting a 5th than FA.

S - 4 - Dugger, Epps, Peppers, Hawkins - Hawkins played okay for a backup last year but could be cut. For now i think he's safe as 1/3rd of his contract is already paid out. But he's definitely on the line.

Joker - 1 - Mapu - Mapu is a bit like Hawkins. He probably makes it but and his contract makes him a bit of a hard but not impossible cut. Unlike Hawkins though he fills a niche no one else really does. But do we need a 225 lb S/LB hybrid?

So i guess i have them keeping 21 defensive players.. but Hawkins and Mapu are included and both are not true 100% locks but likely.

Then our 3 specialist... honestly don't care all that much : P Cardona, Romo Baringer? All seem NFL quality to me going by how they've kicked and snap previous... if someone truly special falls in the draft maybe... but i don't see the point of spending draft picks upgrading any right now nor using us FA $ on it when they are all servicable IMO and we have bigger needs. Make them compete with UDFAs... but i think all are fairly safe.

I know some people think Kicker is a big need. Romo made 11/12 kicks last year and 7/8 XP. That's fine. Also for his longer kicks he made 4/5 between 40-49 and 1 from 50+. Seems like a solid start to me. Let's see what he can do. Missing an XP isn't great, but these days most guys miss 1 or 2 a year since moving it back. I think these sample is in line with most NFL kickers.

 

[Uptown]

 

[mgteich]

Here is how i see the current break down

QB - 3 - Maye Dobbs Milton - Keep as is or trade Milton and pick up an UDFA

TE - 2 - Henry Hooper - We need a draft pick here for the future.

WR - 4 - Diggs Douglas, Boutte, Hollins - I think all 4 are pretty much locks. Hollins due to his contract being almost fully on the books. Boutte and Douglas are just really good deals and young and would fit well in the 4 and 5 slots. I don't think unless we sign another FA we find a better option than either. Even if we draft 2 more guys we can carry all of these ones.

OT - 2 Moses, Lowe - Right now Lowe is our starting LT. Not good enough. I like him as a 3rd or 4th back up though so we can keep him. We need to draft a guy for OT long term but also sign another FA imo. I like Smith either Beachum for a 1 year rental. But we need to use a pick here no later than day 2. But it should be mention Lowe is 100% cuttable due to his contract.

G - 3 - Onwenu, Wes, Strange - I think Wes is a lock for sure. He backs up a bunch of spots and is there to be the flexible back up IOL man across the board. Is Strange a lock? Only due to his cap situation. In any case we need to draft 1 interior OL for the future... Ideally a guy who can both play G and C so depending on how things go in year 2 we can move him to any spot along the interior to start. I wouldn't mind adding Scheffer for this year though.

C - 1 - Bradburry - Brown ain't a lock at all. But i think draft a guy

RB - 2 - Stevenson, Gibson - Need 2 more guys... maybe 3 idk. I'm okay getting them as UDFA unless someone really worth the pick falls on day 3.

Offense - 17 locks IMO

DT - 4 - Milton, Barmore, Tonga, Pharms - I don't think Pharms is is much danger of getting cut, though he could be if we add guys and things fall against him. But as a 4th option he's okay. As a 5th he's actually pretty good. Tonga is getting downplayed by some but he's a big body we need and frankly decent. Not starter level but a solid back up. Not a particularly good back up but solid enough. We could use either a draft pick or FA here to be the 3rd guy and move Tonga and Pharms down.

EDGE - 4 - Landry, White, Chaisson, Jennings - White is a good pass rusher and besides his contract makes him cut proof. Same for Chaisson. Could Jennings be cut? Unlikely. it would cost 3M and save only 2. Besides he's if he's our 5th guy we'd have a better 5th guy than most NFL teams by a lot. They could add 1 more guy here. Probably better off drafting to get young blood in.

LB - 4 - Spillane Gibbens, Elliss, Tavai - Tavai is a lock due to his contract, also he isn't a bad back up option. Everyone else is making it obviously. We need another body here but i could see them keeping Spillane, Gibbens and Ellis for a while. Elliss is only on a 1 year deal but i could see them upping him next year. That's your core 3 and not a back one.

CB - 4 -Gonzo, Carlton, M. Jones, Austin - Austin is a solid 4th option. Probably better off drafting a 5th than FA.

S - 4 - Dugger, Epps, Peppers, Hawkins - Hawkins played okay for a backup last year but could be cut. For now i think he's safe as 1/3rd of his contract is already paid out. But he's definitely on the line.

Joker - 1 - Mapu - Mapu is a bit like Hawkins. He probably makes it but and his contract makes him a bit of a hard but not impossible cut. Unlike Hawkins though he fills a niche no one else really does. But do we need a 225 lb S/LB hybrid?

So i guess i have them keeping 21 defensive players.. but Hawkins and Mapu are included and both are not true 100% locks but likely.

Then our 3 specialist... honestly don't care all that much : P Cardona, Romo Baringer? All seem NFL quality to me going by how they've kicked and snap previous... if someone truly special falls in the draft maybe... but i don't see the point of spending draft picks upgrading any right now nor using us FA $ on it when they are all servicable IMO and we have bigger needs. Make them compete with UDFAs... but i think all are fairly safe.

I know some people think Kicker is a big need. Romo made 11/12 kicks last year and 7/8 XP. That's fine. Also for his longer kicks he made 4/5 between 40-49 and 1 from 50+. Seems like a solid start to me. Let's see what he can do. Missing an XP isn't great, but these days most guys miss 1 or 2 a year since moving it back. I think these sample is in line with most NFL kickers.

Congrats to Vrabel that we have an impressive number of near-locks so early (42!)
I would put the top 4 needs at OT, OT, DT and RB. I see us signing a free agent running back. Also, we have a long list of current players who are non-locks who could win a roster spot.
=======
ST (4) - I would add Schooler to your 3
============
DEFENSE (21) plus 3
DT
EDGE
CB - we need a 5th
=======
OFFENSE (17) plus 9
OT
OT
C
OG
TE
RB
RB
WR
WR

 

[BobDigital]

Congrats to Vrabel that we have an impressive number of near-locks so early (42!)
I would put the top 4 needs at OT, OT, DT and RB. I see us signing a free agent running back. Also, we have a long list of current players who are non-locks who could win a roster spot.
=======
ST (4) - I would add Schooler to your 3
============
DEFENSE (21) plus 3
DT
EDGE
CB - we need a 5th
=======
OFFENSE (17) plus 9
OT
OT
C
OG
TE
RB
RB
WR
WR

Not to throw water on the whole thing, but a few of these guys are only locks due to their contracts, not ability. Hollins for instance is only a lock due to his contract. Of course Vrabel gave him that contract cause he values what he brings. Cultural, STs, Leadership on a Roster full of young guys. Also i forgot to include Polk. I don't see how they cut him. It's more expensive than keeping him and he was a high pick so i don't see them giving up on him after 1 year. Unless he has one of the worst camps of all time to follow his recent stinker of a year he's on the roster.

 

[JayNM]

This is wrong.
You rollover what you have left. Those specific funds are not segregated, they are just part of the cap.
If you are 20 mill under in 2022 your 2023 cap number increases by 20 mill

Whatever amount you are over in 2023, 20 mill, more than 20 mill, less than 20 mill rolls over. What rolled over before has no impact on what rolls over later.

Cool bruh, im sure trusting ya AJ

 

[Ring 6]

Cool bruh, im sure trusting ya AJ

If you don’t then do your own research. It is literally the rules.

 

[JayNM]

If you don’t then do your own research. It is literally the rules.

 

[Ring 6]

Here is how i see the current break down

QB - 3 - Maye Dobbs Milton - Keep as is or trade Milton and pick up an UDFA

TE - 2 - Henry Hooper - We need a draft pick here for the future.

WR - 5 - Diggs Douglas, Boutte, Hollins Polk - I think all 5 are pretty much locks. Hollins due to his contract being almost fully on the books. Boutte and Douglas are just really good deals and young and would fit well in the 4 and 5 slots. I don't think unless we sign another FA we find a better option than either. Even if we draft 2 more guys we can carry all of these ones. Polk is a 2nd year 37th overall pick. He would cost 4M more to cut than keep. Unless he absolutely sucks it up in camp i don't see them parting ways yet. And it have to be an epic suck up. When is the last time a team gave up on a guy after 1 season and 2 camps without a criminal record being an issue, just play?

OT - 2 Moses, Lowe - Right now Lowe is our starting LT. Not good enough. I like him as a 3rd or 4th back up though so we can keep him. We need to draft a guy for OT long term but also sign another FA imo. I like either Smith or Beachum for a 1 year rental. But we need to use a pick here no later than day 2. But it should be mention Lowe is 100% cuttable due to his contract.

G - 3 - Onwenu, Wes, Strange - I think Wes is a lock for sure. He backs up a bunch of spots and is there to be the flexible back up IOL man across the board. Is Strange a lock? Only due to his cap situation. In any case we need to draft 1 interior OL for the future... Ideally a guy who can both play G and C so depending on how things go in year 2 we can move him to any spot along the interior to start. I wouldn't mind adding Scheffer for this year though.

C - 1 - Bradburry - Brown ain't a lock at all.

RB - 2 - Stevenson, Gibson - Need 2 more guys... maybe 3 idk. I'm okay getting them as UDFA unless someone really worth the pick falls on day 3.

Offense - 18 locks IMO

DT - 4 - Milton, Barmore, Tonga, Pharms - I don't think Pharms is is much danger of getting cut, though he could be if we add guys and things fall against him. But as a 4th option he's okay. As a 5th he's actually pretty good. Tonga is getting downplayed by some but he's a big body we need and frankly decent. Not starter level but a solid back up. Not a particularly good back up but solid enough. We could use either a draft pick or FA here to be the 3rd guy and move Tonga and Pharms down.

EDGE - 4 - Landry, White, Chaisson, Jennings - White is a good pass rusher and besides his contract makes him cut proof. Same for Chaisson. Could Jennings be cut? Unlikely. it would cost 3M and save only 2. Besides he's if he's our 5th guy we'd have a better 5th guy than most NFL teams by a lot. They could add 1 more guy here. Probably better off drafting to get young blood in.

LB - 4 - Spillane Gibbens, Elliss, Tavai - Tavai is a lock due to his contract, also he isn't a bad back up option. Everyone else is making it obviously. We need another body here but i could see them keeping Spillane, Gibbens and Ellis for a while. Elliss is only on a 1 year deal but i could see them upping him next year. That's your core 3 and not a bad one.

CB - 4 -Gonzo, Carlton, M. Jones, Austin - Austin is a solid 4th option. Probably better off drafting a 5th than FA.

S - 4 - Dugger, Epps, Peppers, Hawkins - Hawkins played okay for a backup last year but could be cut. For now i think he's safe as 1/3rd of his contract is already paid out. But he's definitely on the line.

Joker - 1 - Mapu - Mapu is a bit like Hawkins. He probably makes it but and his contract makes him a bit of a hard but not impossible cut. Unlike Hawkins though he fills a niche no one else really does. But do we need a 225 lb S/LB hybrid?

So i guess i have them keeping 21 defensive players.. but Hawkins and Mapu are included and both are not true 100% locks but likely.

Then our 3 specialist... honestly don't care all that much : P Cardona, Romo Baringer? All seem NFL quality to me going by how they've kicked and snap previous... if someone truly special falls in the draft maybe... but i don't see the point of spending draft picks upgrading any right now nor using us FA $ on it when they are all servicable IMO and we have bigger needs. Make them compete with UDFAs... but i think all are fairly safe.

I know some people think Kicker is a big need. Romo made 11/12 kicks last year and 7/8 XP. That's fine. Also for his longer kicks he made 4/5 between 40-49 and 1 from 50+. Seems like a solid start to me. Let's see what he can do. Missing an XP isn't great, but these days most guys miss 1 or 2 a year since moving it back. I think these sample is in line with most NFL kickers.

We aren’t that far off. A few differences
WR. We don’t have a WR2. I see that in the draft (you may too, I wasn’t clear) You said Polk would have to be epically bad. He was. Considering the said he guy, it was the worst season ever by a wr basically. I want him on the outside looking in and need to earn his roster spot not locked. I wouldn’t say no to Lockett for example.

G. Strange is a lock as starter. Schweitzer has played 150 snaps in 2 years and gotten into 17 of his teams last 51 games. Very likely to be injured. I would like to bring in a comparable guy to compete.

DT Pharms is terrible. There are a lot of guys we can bring in who who have a god chance of beating him out.

CB Id like a vet at CB4. Cb3 is going to be used at least 2/3 of the snaps. Marcus jones is made of glass. Austin is ok but being the starter if any of the 3 out is too big a role for him, at least without a bunch of competition to earn it over.

S Hawkins was awful. But it’s S4 and won’t see a lot of time so they could keep equally awful Pettus becuz of special teams. Definitely many opportunities to upgrade S4 in FA or draft. I think we are going to see a S in round 3 or 4. We will need a new starter by 26 or 27.

I think LT and WR2 are the glaring needs.
After that I think our biggest weaknesses are primary backup at some positions and last man in the rotation at other. Upgrading those guys is important.

Given the current FA list here are some I’d kick the tires on and im sure I missed a few who are better players that guys we would have making the team right now.

Cooper
Lockett
A$ante jr
Zdarius Smith
Justin Blackmon
Tyron Smith
Jedrick Willis
Nick Chubb
Jk Dobbins (prolly to expensive )
Judon
Kendall Fuller
Raekwon Davis
Isaiah Simmons
Shaq Griffin
Will Hernandez
Jordan Whitehead
John Cominsky
Gus Edwards
John Felicisno
Cody Whitehair
Dalton Risner
Oli Udoh
DJ Humphries
Maurice Hurst
Andrus Peat
Germain Ifedi
Foley Fatukasi
Austin Johnson