Top 2009 Free Agents

Albert Haynesworth
Albert is a defensive tackle that the Titans drafted in the first round of the 2002 season, who essentially underachieved until the last two years, which were contract years. During these two years he has at times dominated the line of scrimmage. The tools that he has used to dominate are his quickness and his hand placement. These are the same tools that have made him attractive to so many teams. Albert can collapse the pocket with the best of them, and he recognizes schemes very well which shows his intelligence and allows him to dominate an offense. The knock against Albert through out his career has been his maturity, passion, and durability. All three of these issues will have to be taken into account by the team that signs him this off-season. I project Albert to either go to Tampa, Washington or back to Tennessee.

Julius Peppers
Peppers is a at times ferocious pass rushing defensive end out of UNC who was drafted number two overall in 2002. He is a long and lean player who strikes fear in the hearts of opposing quarterbacks. Julius comes off of the edge very quickly, and plays the run equally as well. Peppers is not solely a speed rusher, he often uses power moves to achieve his goal of demolishing a quarterback. He has expressed a desire to play in a 3-4 defense. A perfect fit for him would be Pittsburg, but will he accept a lower dollar amount for a chance at a ring.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh
Houshmandzadeh is a big receiver who feels he should be the focal point of the offense. He runs routes well, and is willing to go over the middle, and can run away from a DB. He can turn a DB as well as any receiver in the game, and will pluck the ball cleanly when it comes to him. He is also big enough to be able to take a bump and stay on his route, and can easily break tackles. A good situation for T.J. is Philadelphia.

Matt Cassel
What is there not to like about this guy’s story? Cassel has been in the league for four years without a single start, but still had a huge impact on his team’s success when Tom Brady went down. By the end of the year Matt became a top 10 quarterback in the league, and with the impending return of Brady there is not a spot for Matt in the starting lineup anymore. He stands in the pocket well and delivers the ball down field accurately. Cassel quickly moves through his progressions, and when he decides to deliver the ball he transfers his weight very well. Matt’s release is quick, and has a good ball-fake. The ideal situation for Matt is Kansas City.

Ray Lewis
Lewis is as dominant a run defenders as there is in the league at the linebacker position. He moves effortlessly from tackle to tackle, and still hits like a Mac truck. His instincts are excellent and his football intelligence is still superb. His great vision still allows him to take great angles to the ball. Ray still uses his hands well to shed blockers, but he has lost a step (what does lost a step mean? Is the explanation in the next sentence? If so maybe you should elude to that or put it all in the same sentence). He can be exposed in pass coverage more frequently than ever before. With all this being said he is still a top 10 to 15 linebacker in the NFL. Ray fits best with Baltimore, but I can see him with the Jets or Cowboys which would be a mistake.

Next five
Arizona QB Kurt Warner
Baltimore LB Bart Scott
New Orleans LB Jonathan Vilma
Philadelphia DB Brian Dawkins
Tennessee TE Bo Scaife

Johnson is editor and contributor to The Sports Information Hub and can be contacted at johnsonthesportsguy@gmail.com