The NFL’s free agency opened up on March 15th, and since then almost all of the big-name free agents have either resigned from their teams or found new homes for the 2023 season.
Despite this, there are still some incredible players on the offensive end still without a contract for next season. There are three players who had an enormous impact on their offenses last season still sitting in free agency.
1. Deandre Hopkins
Deandre Hopkins is the most recent big-name offensive player to hit the free agency market. He was recently released by the Arizona Cardinals. While it was no surprise that Hopkins would be moved from the team, the NFL world was shocked when he was cut rather than traded.
Hopkins is still a very talented receiver despite being set to hit 31 years old in the 2023 season. Last year in his nine games with the Cardinals, he pulled in 64 receptions for 717 yards and three touchdowns.
While this was not the best season of Hopkins’ career by any means, it was still an extremely productive stretch from a 30-year-old receiver. Along with this, Hopkins had Colt McCoy throwing to him for a third of the games that D Hop played in.
With the veteran receiver likely to join a Super Bowl-contending team with an elite quarterback, 2023 could be a career-reviving season for him.
2. Ezekiel Elliott
Ezekiel Elliott has had a steep drop-off in recent years and with the emergence of Tony Pollard last season, it was clear that the Dallas Cowboys would be moving on from him. After being cut from the Cowboys, Elliott is still looking for a team to play for this season.
While he had a career-low yard per carry of 3.8 last season, Elliott is still a very intriguing back sitting in free agency. He has the potential to still be a premier back and has the potential to be a huge help to some contending teams.
Despite not being the same workhorse back that he was when he entered the league, Elliott still has a fair amount left in the tank and is the top running back left in free agency.
3. Leonard Fournette
The final top offensive player in free agency is Leonard Fournette. Similar to Elliott, Fournette was beaten out for his starting job last season, and as a result of the contract he likely was requesting, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers moved on from him.
Fournette joined the Buccaneers after an incredible start to his career with the Jacksonville Jaguars, however, things would never be the same for him once joining Tampa Bay.
As he joined the team in the same offseason as Tom Brady, the Bucs offense would be extremely pass-focused, not leaving much room for Fournette to show off his skill set.
Despite the disappointing season, he had last year, Fournette could still be a great addition to an offense that is in desperate need of a running back. With a few contenders still in dire need of some additional help in the backfield, it is very hard to believe that he will still be sitting in free agency once the season begins.
