Grading Free Agency

It's still a little too early because I need to see some more depth pieces added to the roster, but at a "macro" level, I think it was a decent start and pivot away from the "Cousins era" into the "QB rookie-scale contract era"...

What I liked:
- "Resetting" the cap; clearing Cousins/Hunter/Davenport this year sets us up for loads of possibilities in 2025/2026
- Young defensive players; I do think Greenard & Van Ginkel will actually be better together on the EDGE than Hunter & (blank) that we had in 2023 from an overall production standpoint, and Cashman does seem to be a well-rounded LB to help in all facets (run, pass, blitz). Van Ginkel isn't as young as Greenard/Cashman, but he'll only be 29 when the 2024 season starts which is still younger than Hunter.
- Aaron Jones signing; if he's healthy, he could be a nice RB1 pickup, even if it is for just 1 season

What I didn't like:
- Harry at $9m; we haven't seen the final cap # for 2024 for Harry and even though it's a paycut, it's still a higher amount that I liked considering the market for S's is much lower and Harry clearly wasn't playing at that level in 2023.
- Darnold at $10m; I think this was "market value" for a "bridge" (not a backup), and we likely had competition that drove up the prince point (Denver & Washington were kickin' the tires, too), but it's still slightly higher than first anticipated.

Question Marks
- Brandel & Bullard as "starters"; it seems obvious that both were given low-level starting money and while we still have the Draft the rest of free agency to possibly upgrade, the interior of both lines are still big question-marks for 2024
- Special Teams (K & P); we'll probably sign another K to compete w/ Romo and another P to compete with Wright, but both are questions at the moment
- RB depth; Aaron Jones was a nice get for 1 season, but there's still question marks on rounding out the room (RB3) for 2024 and beyond
- CB depth; need to sign a veteran CB for the room and it still might happen, which is why it's a question mark for now
- 2025 comp picks for Cousins/Hunter; will we get anything for either or both in 2025? It's a big question right now as we wait for Wonnm, Osborn and Risner to sign deals that hopefully exceed $4m AAV

If I had to give it a grade right now, I'd probably go with a "B" to B-", or an "N/A" because it's still early, and there's still a bunch of question marks that could go either way...

Really an incomplete until I see the QB drafted. Around a B if I had to grade. I agree a lot with what Unc said above.

I'd like to remind everyone that there were simply too many holes to find potential answers for in a single offseason.

I'm at a B(ish). I am not alone in pounding the table for the Trenches. Kwesi made a serious run at Wilkins. The money was just too high for my tastes. The Guards got significantly more money than I expected.

This instantly becomes an A if they ink Connor Williams, even if he can't start for a while.

The Darnold deal doesn't bother me in the slightest. There's a Zero Percent Chance that Tannehill or Garapolo or Flacco or Brissett come to Minnesota and find a higher level of success than they've ever had before. And most of those guys are too old anyway.

There is a non-zero percent chance Darnold becomes a Franchise guy. It makes no sense at all to ink Tannehill as a Bridge versus Darnold. If a fan disagrees that's solely based on hating the Player, not the logic behind the move.

Agreed, there was so much work that needed to be done that it would be very unreasonable to expect it all to be completed in one offseason. It seems like they stuck to smart moves that made sense and wouldn't break the bank. I would have liked to see them add some beef to the Dline, and maybe they still can, I don't know who else is still out there though.

Since "A" didn't restrict it to 2024, I picked "A." Not because it made us any better for 2024, but because the long term effects of this much needed reset should improve our chances of ever reaching the promised land. The competitive rebuild path was not a viable recipe.

Uncle and FSUVike basically stated my opinion. We landed 4 quality starters and they are taking a giant dead cap hit in 2024 to finally be free to go nuts in 2025. I'd prefer no Darnold/Smith and get some iOL help with that money, though.

The success of the offseason plan all comes down to the draft. Landing a franchise QB alongside hitting on a couple other picks could build a new core of the team, while another bust of a draft would put this franchise further back. With or without Kirk, this team is not going to go deep in the playoffs without having some great draft classes.

I agree with what most have already said, but I give a slight bump to a B+ since KAM didn't cave into Kirk's ridiculous contract demands.