To say that NFL free agency hit the ground running would be a colossal understatement. From pretty much the moment the league's legal tampering window opened at noon ET on Monday, big names — and big money — started flying, with front offices around the league willing to risk it all to bring in the talent they believe will help kickstart rebuilds or finish championship puzzles.
Of course, we know from recent history that only some of those deals will actually work out; for every Milton Williams or Sam Darnold, there's a Jevon Holland or Justin Fields. While there are plenty of players still available and plenty of time left in free agency, here's who won and lost the first wave.
Early winners from NFL free agency
Chicago Bears
It hasn't been the splashiest start to free agency for Chicago, but the Bears quietly made a couple of additions that I think will pay big dividends for their defense in 2026. Coby Bryant is a perfect fit in Dennis Allen's scheme, capable of playing not just two-high looks but also darn near everything else while being a sound tackler as the last line of defense. And going from Tremaine Edmunds to Devin Bush at linebacker is a substantial upgrade in athleticism, one that Chicago desperately needed at the second level. These are two helpful players at positions of need on middle-class contracts.
Kansas City Chiefs
Some fans likely won't love the choice to hand Kenneth Walker III $15 million a year rather than target Jeremiyah Love with the No. 9 pick in next month's draft, but I'm a fan. For starters, there's no guarantee that Love will even be there at No. 9 after blowing up the NFL Combine. And Walker gives Kansas City exactly the explosive element it had been missing in the run game, while allowing Brett Veach to keep all of his first-round options open — whether that's taking another defensive playmaker, trading back a bit or both.
Add in monstrous nose tackle Khyiris Tonga, who will do wonders for this run defense and allow Chris Jones to eat, and it's been a solid start for a Chiefs team that has a lot of work to do this offseason.
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams haven't been the busiest team in the league so far in free agency. But their one signing was surgically precise, adding former Chiefs corner Jaylen Watson on a three-year, $51 million deal ... just days after acquiring his former teammate in Kansas City, Trent McDuffie. That's a complete secondary overhaul for L.A., which now looks like the most complete roster in the NFL. Les Snead did exactly what he needed to do in order to free his team up to take a big offensive swing in the first round of next month's draft; if they make a move for Jeremiyah Love to be Sean McVay's new Todd Gurley, don't say you weren't warned.
Las Vegas Raiders
Yes, the Raiders took a wood-chipper to the center market by handing Tyler Linderbaum $27 million a year — far and away the richest contract ever given at that position. But Vegas had to spend their gobs of cap space somewhere, and there are few better ways to ease the transition of your soon-to-be rookie QB than getting him a veteran center (who just so happens to be a perfect stylistic fit with head coach Klint Kubiak). Linderbaum is a huge get, and this is likely what they had to pay in order to get him to the desert. Also nabbing Jalen Nailor to prove some vertical speed at receiver is just the cherry on top.
And on top of that, the Raiders weren't done. Vegas continued to add, this time with more emphasis on the defense as they signed two of the free agency class' top linebackers, Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker, while re-signing Malcolm Koonce. Not to say that any of these moves were true game-changers for the Raiders, but for a team aiming to add some real infrastructure around (likely) Fernando Mendoza, you have to like the youth, talent, and experience Las Vegas added to the mix early.
New Orleans Saints
Is the Saints offense about to explode in 2026? Maybe that's a bit hyperbolic, but adding David Edwards at guard puts the foundation in place for a potentially dominant offensive line that will give new running back Travis Etienne plenty of space to run. New Orleans is building something very, very interesting on that side of the ball; find a WR2 to put opposite Chris Olave, and Kellen Moore and Tyler Shough will have no excuses.
San Francisco 49ers
There might not be a single cooler fit than Mike Evans to San Francisco, where he'll finally give Kyle Shanahan the true X receiver he's been missing for the last couple of years. Evans isn't a spring chicken anymore, but he remains an excellent route runner and, most importantly, a menace against man coverage, two skills that Shanahan will know exactly how to utilize. Questions remain, starting with the future of left tackle Trent Williams. But this is a surgical signing for the Niners that could pay big dividends.
Pittsburgh Steelers
There's no reason to be over the moon about a potential overpay like Jamel Dean, though he does help the secondary, it was a solid day at the office. Though we're talking purely free agency, you can't overlook trading for and extending wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr., while signing Rico Dowdle and Asante Samuel Jr. also continues to address needs. This ultimately feels like the Steelers simply were able to get better early in free agency, even if nothing outside of the Pittman addition was all too flashy.
Early losers from NFL free agency
Cleveland Browns
What exactly would Andrew Berry say he does here, again? Rebuilding the offensive line was priority No. 1 on Cleveland's offseason checklist. But handing nearly $50 million to former Chargers guard Zion Johnson is ... hard to get all that excited about. Johnson is coming off the best year of his career in 2025, but it's still telling that a Chargers team also desperate for help up front seemed content to simply let him walk in free agency. He's not a player who moves the needle all that much, and this is substantial money; as the lone move for the Browns thus far, it feels pretty underwhelming.
New York Giants
Are we putting John Harbaugh on Washed Watch already? I'm willing to suspend judgment for a little while longer, but the early returns are not great: three years and $40 million for Isaiah Likely, three years and $36 million for Tremaine Edmunds and a three-year, $12.3 million deal to make Jordan Stout the new highest-paid punter in the NFL.
That's a tight end who can't block, an off-ball linebacker who can't cover and a punter, all making meaningful money. It's one thing to spend at non-premium positions; it's another to do so on underwhelming players, and New York didn't have a ton of cap space to burn to begin with. Re-signing Jermaine Eluemunor makes a lot of sense for New York, no question — but it isn't enough perfume to mask the questionable and major moves they made earlier on.
Tampa Bay Bucs
Losing Evans is a blow for reasons both strategic and sentimental. But that's just the tip of the iceberg in what feels like a pretty bad day for the Bucs, who also let CB Jamel Dean walk and decided to hand Kenneth Gainwell $7 million a year rather than simply bringing back Rachaad White for less. And Alex Anzalone hardly feels like the solution to Tampa's Lavonte David problem, considering how risky his aging curve could be as he enters his 30s.
Tennessee Titans
If we were simply measuring who did the most, the Titans would be a winner with a bullet. But for as much cash as Tennessee splashed in the opening hours of free agency, I'm not sure it was money well-spent.
Start with the good: John Franklin-Myers will be a menace next to Jeffery Simmons up front. But why, exactly, are we paying Wan'Dale Robinson and Cor'Dale Flott a combined $115 million? Is $20 million per year for Alontae Taylor really the best use of resources? It would be one thing if Tennessee were taking the Raiders route, spending big to put infrastructure around Cam Ward. This just feels like Robert Saleh and new OC Brian Daboll being given way too much free reign to play shadow GM, and the results could be disastrous as the Titans burn all their newfound flexibility on non-impact talent.
Washington Commanders
Desperate is never a good thing to be in free agency. As exhibit A, allow me to present the Washington Commanders, who were so panicked after striking out on their wave-one targets that they eventually decided to hand a whopping $100 million to former Ravens EDGE Odafe Oweh. Oweh is a solid player, and he'll immediately become Washington's best pass rusher. But the Commanders have so many holes to fill this offseason; spending that much money on just one of them feels misguided at best, especially after Adam Peters watched so many potential fits come off the board.