During a time of uncertainty in sport, the NFL pressed on with the start of free agency Monday as planned and there have already been some major moves.
The coronavirus pandemic has shut down the majority of sports leagues at all levels, but not the NFL. Free agency Monday went ahead as planned, much to the excitement of football fans everywhere.
DeAndre Hopkins to the Cardinals
The most shocking Monday deal had to be the trade of DeAndre Hopkins to the Cardinals for a second-round pick, running back David Johnson and a swap of fourth-rounders. There seems to have been friction between Hopkins and Texans head coach Bill O’Brien, which may explain why the Cardinals were able to add a player like Hopkins to their squad. The Cardinals were certainly the winners here.
Looking good for the Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins had a successful Monday too, coming into this period with the most amount of cash to spend. They snapped up Byron Jones from the Cowboys on a 5-year, $82.5 million contract – making him the highest-paid corner in the entire NFL.
Former Patriots linebacker, Kyle Van Noy, also joined the Dolphins on Monday on a 4-year, $51 million contract. Miami also have three first round picks this year, don’t sleep on them!
Stefon Diggs to the Bills
The Bills set out to get a young, talent pass catcher to pair with quarterback Josh Allen. They’ve certainly got that in Stefon Diggs. Buffalo gave up a massive collection of draft picks (first-round pick, fifth-round pick, a sixth-rounder, and a 2021 fourth-round selection) in exchange for Diggs and a 2020 seventh-rounder.
However, the risk taken by the Bills seems justified, as they now have a young Diggs just entering his prime and already has some great stats to his name.
Brady leaving the Patriots
After a busy first day of free agency, today’s news was even bigger. After six Super Bowl wins, four Super Bowl MVP awards and a total of 20 seasons with the Patriots, he finally called it a day.
Brady’s decision to leave the Patriots seemed hard to imagine just a couple of weeks ago. The big question now is where he will be playing his football next year. In recent years, Brady repeatedly said that his goal was to play until he was 45, which gives him two or three more seasons on the field.
According to the sportsbooks, Brady is set for a move to the Bucs, with the next most realistic possibility being the Chargers in LA.
We look forward to seeing where he’ll be playing next season and what other business is done over the next few days!
