3 Early Winners in Free Agency

Here are the three teams who have had the best off season's so far. Obviously things can change but these three teams are off to a good start.

1. Washington Redskins: Big Moves: resigning CB DeAngelo Hall, signing DT Albert Haynesworth (FA, Tennesse Titans), signing OG Derrick Dockery (cut, Buffalo Bills)

The Redskins have had a great start to the off season signing three starters all of whom are under the age of 30. It could be argued that all three are the best free agents at their position. Haynesworth being the best overall free agent and maybe the best defensive tackle in the game. Dockery and Hall are no slouches either. Dockery, who was originally drafted by Washington,, is a top run blocker and will be 7 years younger than the man he replaces, Pete Kendall. Hall, only 25, was a huge asset to the Redskins secondary when they claimed him off waivers from the Oakland Raiders last season. Hall can be one of the top corners in the league when he stays focused. The only negative to the Redskins off season so far is that Washington may have already spent all of their money available for free agency. The Skins still need to address needs at defensive end, outside linebacker and right tackle. If they can address at least one more of those needs with a second tier free agent the Redskins will have had a great off season. Grade: A The Skins signed three of the best players on the market, none of whom were with this team in Week 1 last season.

2. Miami Dolphins: Big Moves: re-signing OT Vernon Carey, MLB Channing Crowder, S Yereimah Bell, signing S Gibril Wilson (Cut, Oakland Raiders)

"If it ain't broke don't fix it" seems to be the Dolphins motto this off season as they have re-signed their top three free agents. Miami inked their three guys and signed safety Gibril Wilson, who had just been released by the Raiders, all before free agency began Friday morning. This allowed them to maintain leverage in negotiations, keeping the price down some what. Bell is the only one of these players that is older than 30 and he will just be 31 this next season. All four players are quality starters in the league. The other advantage with signing their guys early and getting Wilson before free agency began is that none of those guys could have been replaced internally and Wilson replaces their best available free agent safety Renaldo Hill. Carey is an above average right tackle and is a solid bookend to Jake Long. Crowder is a solid inside linebacker who has missed a couple games the past two years due to injury. He lacks the big play ability of other linebackers but is a sure tackler in the middle. The Dolphins secondary just got very dangerous this off season as Bell and Wilson are one of the best safety tandems in the league. Wilson will be three years younger than Hill and is a big upgrade to the 25th ranked passing defense. Both he and Bell excel at stopping the run and playing center field. While the Dolphins have protected themselves from losing any of their top players, Wilson is the only improvement they've made. The Dolphins still have to address issues on their offensive line, at wide receiver and at cornerback. Grade: A The Dolphins kept together a group of players that led to a 10 win turn around in 2008 and look to build towards taking the next step and advancing in the playoffs.

3. New York Giants: re-signing RB Brandon Jacobs, signing OLB Michael Boley (FA, Atlanta Falcons), DT Rocky Bernard (FA, Seattle Seahawks)

The Giants wasted no time locking up their offensive star, first by placing their franchise tag on Jacobs, then inking him to a multi-year deal. Jacobs was a key part of the Giants running attack that finished 1st in the league. Jacobs signing means the likely departure of fellow 1,000 yard back Derrick Ward. New York made the right decision in keeping Jacobs. While Ward is a good back, Jacobs can be a great back. His combination of power and speed is extremely rare in the NFL, and represents a nightmare for opposing defenses. The Giants strengthened their own defense with a pair of signings over the weekend bringing in Bernard and Boley. Bernard should help bolster an already impressive defensive line. He will join a tackle rotation that includes Fred Robbins and Barry Cofield. Bernard, who will be 30 next season, is no longer the every down tackle he once was but can still be a force in the middle. Boley, 27, is one of the better young outside linebackers in the league. Boley should be a big upgrade to a linebacking corps that lacked talent on the outside. Boley did struggle last season with a new defense so it will be interesting to watch how the Giants use him this year. The Giants still need to fill a few more holes but keeping Jacobs was a must for this offense. The defensive signings were solid but neither player is truly elite. Grade: A- The Giants have done well striking quickly and bringing in some good players. The key to this off season will be Boley, if he plays like he did last season it's a bust, but if he plays like he did in his first couple of years this could be a great signing.

NFL Free Agency Updates

NFL Free Agency began this morning at 12:01 AM and as expected we have already seen a number of big moves. Three of the top defensive players have already agreed to new contracts led by the top free agent available defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth who signed with the Washington Redskins. On the offensive side of the ball we haven't seen any major free agent signings but we did see one surprising trade as the Cleveland Browns traded tight end Kellen Winslow to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a couple of draft picks. Here is a small rundown of each of these two moves and what they mean to their new clubs.

1. Albert Haynesworth signs for 7 years-$100 million dollars: At first glance it may seem as though the Redskins are back to their free spending ways where they sign every free agent and try to 'buy' their way into the playoffs. But the reality of it is Haynesworth was the best free agent available and has been a defensive force for his entire career. Now many will question whether the Skins were wise to spend so much on a defensive player to add to a defense that ranked 4th in the league in yards allowed. While the Skins were very efficient to holding opposing offenses under 20 points, Washington was among the worst teams in terms of getting to the quarterback and forcing turnovers. The Redskins finished 28th in the league in both those categories. Haynesworth should immediately help generate a pass rush as his 8.5 sacks were more than twice what the Redskins leader had. Haynesworth is also the type of player that can help the entire defense around him. Haynesworth is simply a force in the middle that will clog running lanes and occupy multiple pass blockers. Having him on the roster frees up the rest of the defense which could mean big things for ends Jason Taylor and Andre Carter. There is a negative side to signing Haynesworth as well, he has never made it through a full 16 game season, and he's had issues keeping his weight in check. Also by tying up so much money into Haynesworth the Redskins might not be able to sign any offensive linemen which is one of their biggest weaknesses. This is one time though where the reward is worth the risk as Haynesworth was far and away the best player on the free agent market and should make the Redskins a better team. Grade: A-, Haynesworth's talent is too good to pass up.

2. Tampa Bay trading for Kellen Winslow from the Browns: Since we don't know yet exactly what draft picks the Bucs gave up for Winslow its hard to grade the trade effectively. If I had to guess I'd say that its probably a 2nd rounder this year and a late rounder in 2010 or a 3rd round pick in each year. If its anything more than that Tampa overpaid since they will have to now sign Winslow to a big time extension as well or risk losing him after 2010. Winslow has the ability to be one of the elite weapon in the league. He will be just 26 years old next season and possesses the speed and hands of a receiver and the size and strength of a tight end. If you look at just 2006 and 2007 Winslow was just that, when he combined for almost 2,000 yards in over 170 catches. The problem is Winslow has been in the league since 2004 and in those other three years he has only 48 catches for 478 yards. He has had 36 games wiped out due to injury or suspension throughout his career and has been considered somewhat of a problem in the locker room. It's a bit of a surprise that the Buccaneers would add a player that has been divisive in the past, especially to an offense that lacks a true leader to keep him under control. This could be an ominous move for Tampa and has the potential to blow up in their face. If the Buccaneers can keep Winslow's focus on the football field, then they will have a great option in their passing game. Grade: C+, Winslow is a high risk, high reward player.

I will continue posting more thoughts on free agent signings and offseason trades as they happen.