After the monotony of the NFL lockout, free agency commenced July 26 with a flurry of signings and trades, which has slowed only in the past few days. Some teams (Philadelphia Eagles) made moves to push them to the brink of being a Super Bowl favorite. Others (Cleveland Browns) stood pat.
Matt Williamson grades all 32 NFL teams on their free-agent acquisitions and trades since the end of the lockout, beginning with the AFC. The NFC will come Thursday.
POST-LOCKOUT GRADES:
AFC | NFC
Houston Texans
Key additions: Johnathan Joseph, Danieal Manning, Mike Brisiel (re-signed), Jacoby Jones (re-signed), Matt Leinart (re-signed)
Key losses: Vonta Leach, Amobi Okoye, Dan Orlovsky, Bernard Pollard
Analysis: I'm usually very reluctant when teams decide to switch their defensive personnel. But in this case -- seeing how Houston has handled it in the draft and free agency -- I am quite excited about the improvement that is coming on this side of the ball as the Texans make the transition from a 4-3 to a 3-4. Plus, Houston couldn't have gotten much worse than how it played on defense in 2010.
The team has filled needs extremely well while making this schematic transformation. Adding Joseph and Manning to a historically poor secondary is exceptional work, and both cover men have enough versatility in their game to allow Wade Phillips to run a wide array of coverages. Joseph is the bigger name player, but Manning had a very good season in Chicago last year. Brisiel is a vastly underrated player, and keeping him allows this excellent offensive line to create further continuity. The only big loss is Leach, who will deal a blow to the Texans' rushing attack. There are other lead blocking fullbacks in this league, but none like Leach.
Grade: B+
San Diego Chargers
Key additions: Vincent Jackson (franchised), Eric Weddle (re-signed), Takeo Spikes, Jeromey Clary (re-signed), Antwan Barnes (re-signed), Jacques Cesaire (re-signed), Scott Mruczkowski (re-signed), Travis LaBoy, Billy Volek (re-signed), Randy McMichael (re-signed)
Key losses: Brandon Siler, Jyles Tucker, Craig Davis, Malcolm Floyd, Darren Sproles