Today, McCourty goes from a team that failed to win a game in 2017 to a bona fide Super Bowl contender housing a family member on the roster. Not a bad deal.
What Nelson’s ceiling is in Oakland is anyone’s guess, because while the wideout had an excellent 2016 season (earning Comeback Player of the Year), it became clear in 2017 he was no longer the team’s best wideout. At 32 years old (he turns 33 in May) and entering his second season after an ACL injury, his expected contribution lands somewhere between 2017 Crabtree and bordering on a 1,000-yard season in a best-case scenario.
But once he officially hit the free agent market earlier this week, Cousins was able to cash in on a historic deal while receiving the stability and long-term security he never felt he had in Washington.
“The expectations from both sides is that we will raise our kids here, and be here for a long, long time,” Cousins said.
They signed deep threat receiver Marquise Goodwin to a three-year extension. And San Francisco didn’t forget about the trenches either, as they are expected to sign center Weston Richburg to a five-year deal.
Their offense seems like it should be pretty well set, but the 49ers also made a big splash on defense by agreeing to a deal with Richard Sherman. The contract is team-friendly, loaded with incentives, and Sherman should be plenty motivated to prove he can bounce back from a torn Achilles. Keeping him in the same division as the Seahawks is huge and should only add more fuel to the fire. Related slideshow: 2018 NFL first-round mock draft (Provided by Yardbarker)?
The Patriots added defensive tackle Danny Shelton in a trade from the Browns. The Bills flipped quarterback Tyrod Taylor and offensive tackle Cordy Glenn to get them better positioned in the draft and also landed defensive tackle Star Lotulelei. The Jets, after rebounding cheaply at QB with Josh McCown and Teddy Bridgwater, got busy all over the place with running back Isaiah Crowell and center Spencer Long for the offense, plus cornerback Trumaine Johnson and inside linebacker Avery Williamson for the defense.