The 5 best under-the-radar signings in the NFL’s 1st free agency period

There was no shortage of headlines when free agency took a cleaver to rosters across the NFL. All-Pro safeties Earl Thomas and Landon Collins found new homes away from teams that weren’t interested in re-signing them. Superstar wide receivers Antonio Brown and Odell Beckham Jr. got the escape for which they’d hoped in blockbuster trades. Le’Veon Bell, more than a year removed from his last appearance on the gridiron, is set to play Sam Darnold’s savior in New York.

But while big names dominated the news cycles to kick off March, teams across the league were making the smaller signings that will push them to the postseason. More than 700 players hit the free market this spring. Some of those names signed to inexpensive contracts were simply relegated to a spot under the “transactions” header and will be mostly anonymous in 2019. Others will play key roles for contending clubs.

Here are five players who signed in the first week of free agency who didn’t generate headlines but should still pay major dividends come December.

New England was in need of a run-stuffing defensive lineman with Malcom Brown now a Saint and occasional healthy scratch Danny Shelton’s future with the team uncertain. The Patriots filled that hole by picking up a player with whom they were already familiar — former Jets defensive tackle Pennel.

Pennel has only started 15 games in his five-year NFL career, but the 27-year-old tackle put together two very productive years as a rotational lineman in New York. At 332 pounds, he’s a powerful run stuffer who should be able to slide into Bill Belichick’s defensive platoons without much of a learning curve. He shores up a major rushing game weakness for the defending champions as well:

The Patriots have spun unheralded defensive line presences into vital parts of Super Bowl championship teams in the past. Look no further than the man who will be lining up alongside Pennel through most of 2019 — former Raven and 2017 signee Lawrence Guy, whose bulk has been instrumental to the team’s defensive stops in recent years.

A torn ACL forced Williams into a one-year make-good contract with Carolina, and it could be the biggest bargain of 2019. The 26-year-old only has one full season of starting experience, but that 2017 performance ended with second-team All-Pro honors as arguably the most important blocker for an 11-win team.

Williams, a 6’6, 330-pound right tackle, re-upped with the Panthers for $60 million less than the Raiders gave Trent Brown, but he could be just as important to his team’s offense as the former Patriot. He blossomed into one of the league’s most dominant blockers in ‘17, rating out as the top right tackle and third-best offensive lineman in Pro Football Focus’ end of year grades. While his exponential growth was cut short by injury, if he can return as even 90 percent of the player he was 15 months ago, he’ll be a steal at $6 million and a catalyst for Carolina’s odd-year return to a winning record.

There are caveats to Williams’ performance, however. Panthers QBs saw their sack rate drop from 6.5 percent to 5.4 percent with Williams sidelined last fall. Cam Newton’s time to throw did decrease without his budding young left tackle, but only by 0.03 seconds — not enough to make a meaningful difference or any definitive statement about the strength of his pocket. Carolina’s yards-per-play average jumped from 5.0 to 5.9 without its starting right tackle as well — though that’s probably more attributable to Christian McCaffrey’s breakout second season than any observable change in blocking up front.

Barron was one of the first hybrid STAR linebackers to stand out as a pro, giving the Buccaneers and then the Rams a player who can fulfill duties as a linebacker and safety. Now the Steelers will be counting on him to be a reliable veteran in the middle of the field who can replicate some of the be-everywhere playmaking Ryan Shazier left behind as he recovers from a spinal injury.

The bad news is Barron will be 30 in 2019, isn’t a perfect fit for the 3-4 defense the Steelers play, and is coming off the least productive season of his career.

The good news is he can provide a pass defense option to replace run stopper Jon Bostic on third downs and obvious passing situations — two situations where the Steelers could use a boost after middling returns in 2018.

Throwing a useful veteran into dime packages will be a net benefit for the Steelers in 2019. Barron also gives the Steelers some extra insurance to take some wild swings in this year’s draft. They can either take a shot with an early-round linebacker and break him into the position slowly, or use those Day 1 and 2 picks — including the extra third-rounder acquired from the Raiders in the Antonio Brown trade — to address other needs while relying on its new ILB pickup as a bridge from the present to the future.

Barron isn’t necessarily an every-down player at this point in his career, but he won’t have to be in Pittsburgh. If he can provide the tight end-stymying presence in the middle of the field that helps the Steelers get off the field on third down, he’ll be worth his $6 million annually.

In a year when big-name safeties cashed in despite a positional surplus — Collins, Thomas, Tyrann Mathieu and Lamarcus Joyner signed contracts worth a combined $223 million — Clinton-Dix was forced to sign a very 2018 deal with the Bears. He’ll take the field for Chicago on a mere $3.5 million contract after he generated relatively little interest in his first foray into free agency.

He may have landed in a perfect situation. He’ll have the chance to step in and replace Adrian Amos (who, coincidentally, signed with Clinton-Dix’s former team in Wisconsin) in the Bears’ secondary. His primary duty won’t be sexy — he’s pretty much the downfield anchor who allows playmaker Eddie Jackson to ruin opposing quarterbacks’ Sundays. But it’s a job Clinton-Dix can handle while providing useful over-the-top coverage as a safety who can make hay in the box and also roam a little bit downfield. He’s got 11 interceptions and 251 tackles over his past three seasons.

Clinton-Dix isn’t perfect, but he served as the thin strand that held together a disintegrating Packers’ secondary early in his career. He’ll join one of the league’s best defenses in 2019 and have more support than ever before. That could be the license he needs to soar in his sixth year as a pro.

Nick Foles needs weapons in Jacksonville. Last year’s Jaguars team got an inefficient performance from tailbacks Leonard Fournette, T.J. Yeldon, and Carlos Hyde and averaged just 4.1 yards per carry — good for 26th-best in the league. Only Fournette is under contract for 2019. Dede Westbrook, catching passes from the impotent duo of Blake Bortles and Cody Kessler, led the team in receiving with just 717 yards. Donte Moncrief, who ranked second on the team with 668 yards, is now a Steeler. The team’s top tight end threat, James O’Shaughnessy, finished the year with 24 catches.

Help is on the way.

Signing former Cowboys tight end Geoff Swaim should provide a modest boost, but the real centerpiece of the team’s offensive reinforcements is Conley. The former Chief has caught nearly 64 percent of his targets over the past three seasons, averaging a shade under 12 yards per catch. While he’s useful across the lineup and can play along the sideline and in the slot, his most important role may be as a red zone target. Not only is Conley 6’3 with an absurd 45-inch vertical leap, but he’s shown plenty of talent when it comes to making contested catches through tight windows.

The question is whether a bump up the depth chart in Florida is enough to offset the dropoff from playing with reigning MVP Patrick Mahomes to a less consistent passer in Foles. Conley was overshadowed over four years in Kansas City by players like Tyreek Hill, Sammy Watkins, Jeremy Maclin, and Travis Kelce. He’ll have the chance to beat out Westbrook, Marqise Lee, and D.J. Chark for a starring role with the Jags — and he’s also going from a quarterback who threw the ball more than 36 times per game last season to one who averaged 40 passes per start in Philly.

If the Jags want Foles to keep up that pace, they’ve got to surround him with playmakers. They may have found a hidden gem in Conley.