The 2026 Free Agency Thread

[RedWolf]

I dont think it will take 3 yr 67 mil. At all. At this point I believe it will be 12-18 Mil/yr. I could be wrong but that is my belief.

What i'm saying is, let's be the ones to get it done.

I think 3 years at around $54M would get it done, but earlier rather than later. Post draft the competition will be greater and the price will rise.

 

[DWinzit]

Is he looking for a 3 year deal?
I knew initially he was looking for the same as the $15 pre year Pickens signed. So maybe he'd bite on the $18 mill per year. Maybe just a 2 year deal

 

[RexTomb]

I think 3 years at around $54M would get it done, but earlier rather than later. Post draft the competition will be greater and the price will rise.

My guess is that's exactly what Jennings is counting on. Doesn't hurt him to wait, nor does it hurt us to wait either. He may not be worth his price tag regardless.

 

[philibusters]

As a pure WR outside the Shanahan system I think Jauan Jennings is probably a low end 2 high end 3. He does bring other traits like he is an excellent blocker for a WR. As a receiver he is a good route runner and good making catches in traffic and contested catches.

I think the route running point is important because he is a good route runner within structure. He is a competitor and he has clearly mastered the nuances of Kyle Shanahan’s system. He understands spacing, he settles well in zones, and he is where he is supposed to be on time. But a lot of what makes that look clean is the environment he is operating in. In this offense separation is often schemed rather than earned. With motion, bunch formations, and stacked releases defenses are constantly dealing with off coverage, traffic, and communication stress. That leads to free releases, leverage advantages, and zone voids already opening up. So Jennings is not being asked to consistently win against press or create separation with speed, which is not really his game. He ran a 4.74 at his pro day and that was six years ago, he probably has not gotten any faster. It makes his routes look sharper and more effective than they would in a more static offense where he has to generate that separation on his own.

The YAC element also does a lot of the heavy lifting. The offense is built on slants, crossers, and in breaking routes where the ball is coming out in rhythm and into space. Jennings fits that well because he is big, physical, and tough over the middle. He does not need burst or deep speed, he just needs to secure the catch and fight for extra yards. The design creates space first and then asks him to finish, which plays directly into his strengths and boosts his efficiency.

Then you layer in the run game and play action. Because the wide zone system is so effective defenses are stepping up, safeties are coming down, and linebackers hesitate. That opens intermediate windows and crossing routes behind them. Jennings lives in that 8 to 15 yard area. He is not consistently winning deep or stressing defenses vertically, he is catching the ball where the defense is already conflicted.

So you end up with a player who is good at what he does and very useful in that role, but the role itself is not one that typically commands top tier money. He is not dictating coverage, he is not creating explosive plays at a high rate, and he is not someone defenses have to tilt toward. A lot of his production is tied to scheme, spacing, and situation rather than individual matchup wins. That is why it is hard to justify paying him like a primary option at 20 million a year when his value comes more from being a high level complementary piece than a true driver of an offense.

Shanahans system can turn a smart, physical, possession who in other system is probably valued as a low end 2 or 3 into a high end 2 and that is what I think happened with Jennings. Low end 2/high end 3 money is like 10 to 12 million a year, high end money is 20 million a year.

 

[Voice_of_Reason]

Actually it was the "Mr. Congeniality" and "Most Photogenic" titles that JJ took home during the All Galaxy pageant, but otherwise...yeah We should add someone of JJs caliber to our team, and JJ is closest to JJ that is currently available.

..and as a PS, I don't think the rest of the league isn out on him. They don't like his asking price, but you can bet your sweet ass that a bunch of them would take a swing for him in the 16-18 AAV range. The whole point of shopping during the FA period is spending your money on things that you both need and can afford. Give JD some weapons

I bet a bunch of teams did take a run at him in a variety of ranges.

But not the one he wants.

In some ways, his situation is similar to Terry’s last year except Terry had a team and Jennings doesn’t.

Both were/are asking for more than they are worth and the market was bear and therefor they didn’t get a deal quickly.

Terry had the benefit of the last year of his deal to fall back on, Jennings doesn’t.

But both priced themselves out of the their market and becuase of it it’s going to take longer for them to get a deal done. And both will have eventually settled for market value and look like dopes for overestimating their value.

 

[SkinsInSATX]

Excited to see what he does this season with JD!! #HAIL

 

[Dlts20]

Excited to see what he does this season with JD!! #HAIL

He's still not being talked about enough. I think that he becomes elite with Jayden and arguably his number one target. We still need receivers but he puts me at ease some without it. Definitely someone to take pressure off of Tara

 

[Dlts20]

 

[bowhunter]

Only if Dallas gave us #12 and #20 for #7. I think Logan is just filling airtime with that prediction.

 

[RexTomb]

Only if Dallas gave us #12 and #20 for #7. I think Logan is just filling airtime with that prediction.

At this point, they are probably all tired of talking about this. It has been an incredibly long offseason.

 

[SkinsNumberOne]

He's still not being talked about enough. I think that he becomes elite with Jayden and arguably his number one target. We still need receivers but he puts me at ease some without it. Definitely someone to take pressure off of Tara

Yes in modern FA the goal is to get as improved as you can get. There is a limit; market, salary cap, your own existing contracts all play a role.

So did you get as improved as you can? You start with did you improve and you go from there. We all know JD needed new weapons. Chig is an upgrade but you have to factor in the loss of Deebo and Ertz and think did they improve; not clear to me yet because of those losses. The O has a lot of questions starting with new OC who never coordinated. That’s where they start.

Hoping that Chig is an underrated upgrade but I feel they do need more if we rate that unit as improved from last year. Of course health hit them as hard as anything so perhaps they will get a lot more from some of the same people. You would like a better strategy going into 2026 with a new coordinator though.

 

[DWinzit]

Yes in modern FA the goal is to get as improved as you can get. There is a limit; market, salary cap, your own existing contracts all play a role.

So did you get as improved as you can? You start with did you improve and you go from there. We all know JD needed new weapons. Chig is an upgrade but you have to factor in the loss of Deebo and Ertz and think did they improve; not clear to me yet because of those losses. The O has a lot of questions starting with new OC who never coordinated. That’s where they start.

Hoping that Chig is an underrated upgrade but I feel they do need more if we rate that unit as improved from last year. Of course health hit them as hard as anything so perhaps they will get a lot more from some of the same people. You would like a better strategy going into 2026 with a new coordinator though.

Agreed, they needed to do more and failed in their efforts. It will be exciting to see if Chig and I look forward to seeing White in action. White seems to be a forgotten upgrade to Jaydes arsenal.

They have left themselves forced to make a WR by the 3rd round which sucks. Love would curb that feel a bit due to his multitudes of abilities

 

[Voice_of_Reason]

Agreed, they needed to do more and failed in their efforts. It will be exciting to see if Chig and I look forward to seeing White in action. White seems to be a forgotten upgrade to Jaydes arsenal.

They have left themselves forced to make a WR by the 3rd round which sucks. Love would curb that feel a bit due to his multitudes of abilities

You literally can't be successful everywhere in FA.

There are like 1-2 top prospects at each position and each one has anywhere between 10-15 teams interested in them.

 

[DWinzit]

You literally can't be successful everywhere in FA.

There are like 1-2 top prospects at each position and each one has anywhere between 10-15 teams interested in them.

Agreed, and they have had a successful FA campaign so far.

That however doesn't change my comments. We still have somewhat of a dearth at WR.....again. They jumped at a couple one year deals after striking out on legit WR1 and 2's.

 

[Dlts20]

Yes in modern FA the goal is to get as improved as you can get. There is a limit; market, salary cap, your own existing contracts all play a role.

So did you get as improved as you can? You start with did you improve and you go from there. We all know JD needed new weapons. Chig is an upgrade but you have to factor in the loss of Deebo and Ertz and think did they improve; not clear to me yet because of those losses. The O has a lot of questions starting with new OC who never coordinated. That’s where they start.

Hoping that Chig is an underrated upgrade but I feel they do need more if we rate that unit as improved from last year. Of course health hit them as hard as anything so perhaps they will get a lot more from some of the same people. You would like a better strategy going into 2026 with a new coordinator though.

Definitely need more but I still feel like their original plan is in place even if it's not who or exactly how they wanted it. I feel like their plan was Aiyuk and another starter level receiver. Until I hear otherwise, I am still 99 percent sure that Aiyuk is coming.

Then they are just waiting to see how the draft goes. If it's Tate or someone like that then I think that they are comfortable with them and Aiyuk. If we don't draft anyone then I think that we pivot to Jennings on possibly a one year deal or the likes of Deebo, Diggs Allen, etc

 

[NickyJ]

You literally can't be successful everywhere in FA.

There are like 1-2 top prospects at each position and each one has anywhere between 10-15 teams interested in them.

It's true that this season there weren't many good prospects. But this is their third offseason together. It's the ninth inning for this staff and it needs to hit a homerun in what may be their last offseason together if they fail. It's not their fault that there wasn't a run in the 8th inning, but it is their fault that they waited until the last 2 innings to try to hit a homerun at all. They were bunting the rest of the game, which miraculously gave them a lead in the first 3 innings and was disastrous for the next 3.

 

[Anselmheifer]

It's true that this season there weren't many good prospects. But this is their third offseason together. It's the ninth inning for this staff and it needs to hit a homerun in what may be their last offseason together if they fail. It's not their fault that there wasn't a run in the 8th inning, but it is their fault that they waited until the last 2 innings to try to hit a homerun at all. They were bunting the rest of the game, which miraculously gave them a lead in the first 3 innings and was disastrous for the next 3.

I’m not sure they need a home run. We don’t need the NFC championship game this year in order to not fire everybody.

I feel like 10 wins and one playoff win would buy it for us.

You can’t blame the front office for last year without giving them credit for the prior year.

I’m more worried about maximizing every year of Jaden Daniel’s career than I am about what happens to the front office and coaching staff. I agree with you a lot, and that I think we should be swinging for the fences every year and last year sucked.

 

[NickyJ]

I don't mean the playoffs when I say homerun. I mean long-term supporting cast being brought in for Jayden. They got Oz, Ekler, Noah Brown, and Ertz on short deals and aging careers. All of them contributed fantastically, one of them walked after the season, and the rest aged or came back down to earth.

I call that bunting, taking short term gains at the expense of long term returns. Instead of putting effort into getting a trusted and reliable cast for Jayden, they gambled on inexpensive players again. It didn't pay off, and now they need either hit a homerun with an instantly successful playmaker in the draft or a lucky pickup in free agency afterwards. It should never have to come to needing a last minute draft hit, or Brandon Aiyuk washing up after his shipwreck.

 

[Anselmheifer]

I don't mean the playoffs when I say homerun. I mean long-term supporting cast being brought in for Jayden. They got Oz, Ekler, Noah Brown, and Ertz on short deals and aging careers. All of them contributed fantastically, one of them walked after the season, and the rest aged or came back down to earth.

I call that bunting, taking short term gains at the expense of long term returns. Instead of putting effort into getting a trusted and reliable cast for Jayden, they gambled on inexpensive players again. It didn't pay off, and now they need either hit a homerun with an instantly successful playmaker in the draft or a lucky pickup in free agency afterwards. It should never have to come to needing a last minute draft hit, or Brandon Aiyuk washing up after his shipwreck.

I think we are mostly in the same place. I just think the 1st year was well executed. They just failed to follow that up by doing what you say. If Rivera hadn’t fucked the roster so hard, things would have been much easier, but then we probably also wouldn’t have Jayden.

I feel like they swung hard at addressing both of our concerns this year, which I think means they recognize the issue I think they are going to continue to swing hard at adding weapons. We just can’t swing and miss.

More important than even a winning season tho year, is getting Jayden back to being LSU and rookie Jayden. His rookie year wasn’t a fluke. It was just him continuing to look the way he did at LSU. Given health and adequate weapons, we should be able to anticipate the same.

 

[NickyJ]

I agree that he needs more adequate weapons, and I don't doubt that they swung hard this season. But they swung hard too late. They got lucky year one, which is fine. As you said, Ron left the cupboard bare. But year 2, they doubled down on luck. Hoping that Noah Brown's 1 year of good health was the norm and that the rest of his career was a fluke. Hoping that McCaffrey would take a huge step up. Hoping that Ertz wouldn't run out of gas. Hoping that the roster wouldn't get injured enough to need even mediocre depth. (I will never forgive them for depending on Chris Moore and Robbie Chosen.) After two years of hope as sustenance, the team is going into this season banking on hope and Chig. With a newborn OC.

At 3 years, this is no longer Ron's team. This is the team that Peters built. If they whiff in the draft and Aiyuk is washed up, Peters failed Jayden.