NFL 2008 Free Agents - Wide Receivers

It is just about free agent time in the NFL. In this league of great parity, free agency is a very important part of what goes on in this sport. Just think about the outcome that free agency had on the sport's biggest stage, the Superbowl. Without the acquisition of Donte Stallworth and Wes Welker, the likelihood of the New England Patriots having the best offense in the history of the NFL is- well, it's unlikely. Then of course, there was the franchise tagging of Asante Samuel, a move that kept him as the team's best cornerback and kept him away from the other scavengers that would have loved a crack at them. And if the Superbowl Champion New York Giants don't sign Kawika Mitchell this past off-season, who knows how vulnerable they are in the running game, especially when you consider how he almost single-handedly stopped Lawrence Maroney in the Superbowl.

But enough about them! It's time to discuss the wide receivers of this year's free agent pool. And none will have more of an impact on the 2008 NFL season than the unrestricted receiver I'm listing first.

Randy Moss, UFA, New England Patriots - Now the word on the street is that the Patriots are thinking long and hard about franchising Moss. But franchising a player that caught 98 balls, for 1,493 yards and 23 touchdowns just doesn't look good on the part of the organization. And it certainly is not something you would think someone of Moss's character would take too kindly. But Moss says he wants to be back in New England, so that may mean that he has to play by New England's rules. Afterall, you're talking about a team that last off-season franchised tagged the second best cornerback in the NFL at the age of 26. Still, Moss does have a lot of leverage here, because as good as the Patriots were with him, they still failed to win a Superbowl. Losing Randy Moss would more likely than not hurt that offense beyond repair, and I don't thinking getting worse is the answers to the Patriots most recent Superbowl drought.

Bernard Berrian, UFA, Chicago Bears - After years of playing for quarterbacks who weren't adept at getting the ball to the wide receiver, Bernard Berrian may be in line to play for a QB who can throw him the ball. Because Berrian certainly can catch it. Over his four years with the Bears, he has averaged 14.6 yards per catch and has caught 13 touchdowns. And he isn't just a big play receiver either. Last year he caught 71 balls for 951 yards, and that's with the combination of Rex Grossman, Brian Griese, and Kyle Orton throwing him the ball. The fact that those guys could hit him in the hands 71 times is amazing to me!

Bryant Johnson, UFA, Arizona Cardinals - I think that he is going to be one of the more underrated wide receivers going into this free agency period. He is a great talent, and he was well on his way to doing big things in the NFL after his rookie season, but then came Anquan Boldin the next season. And then the season after that, Larry Fitzgerald came on the scene. Needless to say, Johnson got pushed all the way to the third position. But smart GMs won't be fooled by his spot on the depth chart if they look at the fact that Johnson averaged 2 first downs per game, has caught 40 receptions or more for the last 4 seasons, and has done well under three different systems in Arizona.

Other notable free agent wide receivers:

Devery Henderson, UFA, New Orleans Saints

Andre Davis, UFA, Houston Texans

Drew Carter, UFA, Carolina Panthers

D.J. Hackett, UFA, Seattle Seahawks