Almost every team in the NFL entered free agency in 2025 with ample amounts of cap space following the salary cap boom to $279.2 million per team.
However, not every team was able to pull off big moves with the additional resources. Some teams were active, but that activity fell more in the quantity department than the quality department. A few teams, most notably the San Francisco 49ers, hemorrhaged talent instead of adding to their roster. The Houston Texans, who entered free agency with an offensive line problem, reshuffled the deck chairs but still leave the first two weeks of free agency with the same issue. The Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears were actually able to maximize the cap space afforded to them by the league and having a quarterback on a rookie contract.
Given so much of the dust has settled, now is as a fair a time as ever to determine the winners and losers from free agency’s opening weeks. Let’s take a look who is in a better place, and who is wishing things would’ve gone differently.
Winner: Minnesota Vikings
When Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was hired as the Vikings general manager, quarterback Kirk Cousins and his contract were attached at the hip to the franchise. Fast forward to 2025, and Adofo-Mensah got to experience his first offseason in charge with a significant amount of salary cap space after letting Sam Darnold walk and having J.J. McCarthy, the 10th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, on a rookie deal.
He spent his team’s money like he just won the lottery: The Vikings have spent $245.47 million in free agency, the most in the NFL, according to OverTheCap.com. Minnesota got punked in their 2024 NFC wild-card round loss against the Los Angeles Rams, surrendering an NFL-record nine sacks. Adofo-Mensah spent like no tomorrow in order to be the bullies, not the bullied.
Here are the notable moves he has made to become a more physical team at the line of scrimmage:
Re-signed RB Aaron Jones (two years, $20 million with $13 million in total guarantees)
Acquired RB Jordan Mason and a 2025 sixth-round pick from the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for a 2025 fifth and 2026 sixth
Re-signed CB Byron Murphy (three years, $54 million with $34.78 million guaranteed at signing)
Signed G Will Fries (five years, $88 million with $44 million guaranteed)
Signed C Ryan Kelly (two years, $18 million with $9.25 million guaranteed)
Signed DT Jonathan Allen (three years, $41 million with $31.255 million guaranteed)
Signed DT Javon Hargrave (two years, $30 million with $19 million guaranteed)
Minnesota learned it doesn’t matter if Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison are downfield if its quarterback doesn’t have time to get them the ball. That’s why the Vikings went all out on spending to protect their own QB and terrorize opposing quarterbacks.
2025 NFL free agency live tracker: Full list of team-by-team signings and trades from the first week of moves
Kyle Stackpole
2025 NFL free agency live tracker: Full list of team-by-team signings and trades from the first week of moves
Loser: Houston Texans QB C.J. Stroud
A case can be made that C.J. Stroud’s offensive line got worse despite it being an obvious problem area in 2024. Houston traded five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil, who was Pro Football Focus’ fourth-best pass-blocking tackle, and a 2025 fourth-round pick to the Commanders for four draft picks (a 2025 third, a 2025 seventh, a 2026 second and a 2026 fourth). They also traded away 2022 first-round pick offensive guard Kenyon Green and a 2026 fifth-round pick to the Eagles for safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and a 2026 sixth-rounder. If the Eagles are interested in your team’s offensive lineman, it probably means you shouldn’t send them to Philadelphia.
Houston opted to swign 33-year-old offensive guard Laken Tomlinson to a one-year, $4.25 million contract and acquire 2022 second-round pick offensive guard Ed Ingram from the Vikings in exchange for a 2026 sixth-round pick. Ingram ranked 150th (7.8%) and Tomlinson ranked 100th (5.7%) in quarterback pressure rate allowed among 161 offensive linemen who played at least 500 offensive snaps in 2024. They also picked up Cam Robinson after he split time with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Minnesota Vikings in 2024. Once Robinson took over as a starter for the Vikings last season following being acquired in a midseason trade, Weeks 9-18, his quarterback pressure rate allowed of 10.1% was the fifth-highest in the entire NFL. That’s tough for Stroud.
Winner: New Pittsburgh Steelers WR DK Metcalf
Two-time Pro Bowl wide receiver DK Metcalf requested a trade off of the Seattle Seahawks on March 4, and just five days later on March 9, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Not only was Metcalf traded, but he also received the new contract he was searching for, signing a four-year, $132 million extension. His new average per year salary of $33 million is the fourth-highest among all NFL wide receivers. Sure, he doesn’t know who will be throwing him the football yet, but he’s getting paid and got engaged to pop star Normani. Metcalf has certainly been winning since free agency began.
Loser: Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are still scared to make big moves in free agency despite having the cap space to do so. They either re-signed most of their own guys, or they went bargain bin hunting, mostly on ex-first-round picks who haven’t hit in their previous stops. The Cowboys restructured the contracts of both quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb to open up more cap space in 2025 and push more money into the future, but they haven’t done anything of note with that cap relief in the present.
Dallas also let some of their homegrown, key guys depart in free agency despite possessing the means to retain them. Cornerback Jourdan Lewis (three-year, $30 million deal with $20 million guaranteed with the Jacksonville Jaguars), running back Rico Dowdle (one-year deal worth up to $6.25 million with the Carolina Panthers) and edge rusher Chauncey Golston (three-year, $19.5 million deal) all left the Cowboys. The one commendable, external free agency move Dallas has made is signing Dante Fowler after leading the Commanders with 10.5 sacks last season. The Cowboys are sitting around with $37.4 million in effective cap space, the eighth-most in the league per OverTheCap.com, without any major free agency signings. Plus, All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons still isn’t re-signed as the rest of the league continues to drive his price up.
Signed
RB Javonte Williams (one year, $3 million)
G Robert Jones (one year, $3.75 million, $3 million guaranteed)
EDGE Payton Turner (one year, $3 million, $2 million guaranteed)
DT Solomon Thomas (two years, $ 8 million)
LB Jack Sanborn (reported one-year deal)
RB Miles Sanders (one-year, $1.337 million with $167,500 guaranteed)
WR Parris Campbell (reported one-year deal)
EDGE Dante Fowler (one-year, $8 million)
Traded for
LB Kenneth Murray from Tennessee Titans (received Murray and a 2025 seventh in exchange for a 2025 sixth)
CB Kaiir Elam from Buffalo Bills (received Elam and a 2025 sixth in exchange for a 2025 fifth, 2026 seventh)
Retained
KR/WR KaVontae Turpin (three years, $13.5 million with $5 million guaranteed)
P Bryan Anger (two years, $6.4 million)
LS Trent Sieg (three years, $4.45 million with $3.105 million guaranteed)
S Markquese Bell (three years, $9 million, 6.2 million guaranteed)
ST/CB C.J. Goodwin (one year, $1.422 million)
Winner: New Los Angeles Rams WR Davante Adams
Six-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Davante Adams saw his Pro Bowl streak snapped across the last two seasons with the Las Vegas Raiders — who rotated through a number of quarterbacks in 2023 and 2024 — and the New York Jets — who started an Aaron Rodgers fresh off a torn Achilles on the wrong side of 40 in 2024. Now, he’s headed back to his home state of California on a two-year, $44 million deal with $26 million guaranteed to go play for a Super Bowl contender in the Los Angeles Rams.