2013 NFL free agents: A closer look at this year’s biggest names

With Goldson set to hit free agency and the 49ers not budging on their stance of not using the franchise tag on him this year, that contract could come from a different NFL team. Goldson has been with the 49ers since he entered the league as a rookie in 2007, when the 49ers drafted him in the fourth round.

Goldson could be one of the top free agents to hit the market this offseason. Before we talk about where he’s at here and now, we’ll take a look at his situation over the past few seasons.

The 2012 season didn’t turn out like Jared Cook was hoping for, as the Titans starting tight end struggled with playing time and his overall involvement when he was in the game plan. With his rookie contract finally expiring, Cook is expecting a substantial payday, one the Titans may not be willing to hand over.

Cook was drafted by the Titans back in 2009, and despite the continued promise of a “breakout” season each year, he has yet to really live up to his expectations. He is currently sitting on 131 receptions, 1,717 yards and eight touchdowns for his four-year tenure.

For a decade now, Reed has been one of the most terrorizing defenseman in the NFL.

One of the most common misconceptions surrounding Reed’s career is that he was part of the 2000 Ravens championship team. As one of the most acclaimed defenses of all-time, many forget that Reed was still attending class, wearing green and orange on Saturdays.

He responded by starting all 16 games in 2010 and having his best season as a pro. His followup year, 2011, was injury-plagued and he appeared in just six games. He was more reliable in 2012. He started 15 games but did miss one in Week 11 due to injury.

After the Patriots declined to use their franchise tag, Vollmer is expected to hit the open market when free agency begins March 12. Vollmer recently had arthroscopic knee surgery, but that shouldn’t have a great impact on his next contract.

After struggling through his last two seasons in the nation’s capital injured, playing just 15 of 32 possible games during that stretch, it appeared Landry was on the way down. He promptly proved that wasn’t the case.

In what was a very tough season for Gang Green, Landry was one of the few bright spots and now will be paid for his production, but maybe not in New York.

As a result, Quin was considered a strong candidate for the Texans’ franchise tag. The figure would have been relatively cheap. The $6.9 million franchise tag number for safeties sounds like a lot, but it looks a lot better when compared to the more than $10 million cornerbacks will receive. Alas, The Texans apparently didn’t consider Quin a strong enough core player, and have let the safety test the the free agency waters.

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The long time running back for the Rams announced at the end of February that he would void the final year of his contract and hit the free agency market for the first time in his career.

It took one year for Jackson to be named the starting running back. From then on, the rest is history, at least in the franchise. Jackson is the career-rushing leader for the Rams, and was one of the premier backs in the NFL, where he has rushed for over 1,000 yards the past eight straight seasons. He was named to his first Pro Bowl in 2006 and was named the NFL Offensive Player of the Year after finishing with 346 carries for 1,528 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Louis Delmas didn’t waste any time making an impact at the NFL level but, after two promising seasons to start his career, has been limited by injuries over the last two seasons. Delmas is scheduled to hit unrestricted free agency March 12, and while young and talented, injury concerns could hurt his free agent prospects.

“Our doctors are still evaluating his situation,” Mayhew said, according to ESPN. “We’re still making those decisions as we speak.”

If Moss does decide to play at least another season, the question will become where? A number of NFL teams could use wide receiver depth, and while Moss may not be the same player he was a few seasons ago, he showed last season he still had the speed and leaping ability to be a valuable deep threat. That should open a few doors, even if Moss did burn a few bridges with ugly exits from New England, Minnesota and Tennessee. Moss has already racked up all-time great stats and made plenty of money, so chasing a Super Bowl is likely his main objective. With that in mind, he’s more likely to sign with a contender.

Wherever Moss lands, the team will be getting one of the greatest wide receivers in NFL history. Moss has caught 982 passes in his career. He’s third all-time in receiving yards with 15,292 and is second all-time in receiving touchdowns with 156.

Avery finished the 2012 season with career-highs in targets (125), receptions (61) and receiving yards (781). Avery will forever be linked with Luck, as well, as Avery was the recipient of Luck’s first-career touchdown pass in Week 1.

St. Louis released Avery in Sept. 2011, and he eventually signed with the Titans for the 2011 season. Avery signed a one-year deal with the Colts last March and proved to be a capable receiver.

But in 2008, his third year in the league, Jennings caught 80 passes for 1,292 yards and nine touchdowns. He averaged 80.8 yards per game, the best mark of his career.

Since then, Jennings has been a consistent star in the Packers’ offense. From 2008 through 2010, Jennings averaged 1,223 receiving yards and eight touchdowns per season. Despite the consistency, Jennings didn’t earn his first Pro Bowl nomination until 2010. In that season he caught 76 passes for 1,265 yards and 12 touchdowns, which tied a career high.

Cribbs, known more for his return skills than his receiver ability, is an extraordinary athlete. He played quarterback for the Kent State Golden Flashes. He is the school’s all-time total offense leader with 10,839 yards. He also holds the record for rushing touchdowns with 38, pass completions with 616, passing yardage with 7,169 yards and touchdowns scored with 41. While at Kent State, Cribbs became one of two true freshmen in NCAA history to both run and pass for over 1,000 yards.

In his eight years, Cribbs has caught 107 passes for 1,161 yards and seven touchdowns. He has also rushed for 753 yards and two touchdowns, he has over 10,000 kick return yards and eight touchdowns and over 2,000 punt return yards and three more touchdowns.

The Steelers drafted Wallace in the third round of the 2009 draft. There was a lot to like about the speedy receiver. He posted one of the faster 40-yard dashes at the 2009 scouting combine and his deep threat abilities almost immediately cemented his standing in the receiving corps. As a rookie, Wallace led the NFL in yards per reception, finishing with 39 receptions for 756 yards and six touchdowns.

Wallace is reportedly seeking Vincent Jackson-like money, but it remains to be seen whether he will end up with $55 million in his wallet. Still, as one of the top receivers in this year’s free-agency, Wallace will get paid -- it just probably won’t be as much as what he turned down in 2012.

Not only did Hartline lead the team in receptions, targets and yards, but he also had the most receptions over 20 yards, and also averaged more yards per reception than any other Dolphin (minimum 20 receptions).

Whether or not Hartline stays in Miami past 2012, he’s already etched his name into Miami’s record books. Hartline broke Miami’s single-game receiving yards record in Week 4, when he caught 12 passes for 253 yards and a touchdown.

Even when it seemed like everything was going against Welker, he still put up huge numbers. Welker wasn’t a starter at the beginning of the 2012 season, which some took as sign from Bill Belichick. However, Julian Edelman went down to an injury, putting Welker back into the spotlight. He caught 118 passes for 1,345 yards and six touchdowns in just 12 starts.

So who would want the services of Welker, who is set to turn 32 on the first day of May? Let’s start with the obvious, but not-so-obvious choice: The Patriots.