Early Winners and Losers in Free Agency

While there are still many big names available in free agency, it’s easy to see which teams have a head start to the 2009 season in upgrading their rosters. A quick take on the transactions of the last 48 hours:

Winners

Washington Redskins
Daniel Snyder loves to piss away his money. Maybe he’s finally figured it out? Instead of overpaying hype players like Randle El or Brandon Lloyd who’ll just end up getting cut a year later, the Skins have actually found a cornerstone to the team: Albert Haynesworth.

New England
Whether it’s trading for Randy Moss for a bag of footballs, or tagging a backup quarterback then dishing him for picks, the Patriots rarely make bad decisions. Signing Fred Taylor could be the biggest steal of the week. Taylor could have a big fantasy year in ‘09; his running style fits the Patriots perfectly. There’s almost a hint of déjà vu with Taylor going to New England, as this reminds me of the Patriots signing Corey Dillon and reigniting his career.

Losers

Philadelphia
The Eagles improved their O line with Stacy Andrews, but had a few of their key players poached while they weren’t paying attention. They lost Safety Brian Dawkins, Correll Buckhalter and Sean Considine, and trading away Lito Sheppard for next to nothing seems like a waste. The Eagles still have McNabb looking over their shoulders and begging for more toys.

Cleveland

Why would they trade away Kellen Winslow Jr. for draft picks? The Browns could have made a few moves to improve their team. Instead there are rumors of Brady Quinn not being the guy next season, and even if he is, they just sent a reliable weapon packing.

On the Fence:

New York Jets- Great you got LB Bart Scott & Lito Sheppard but who’s your QB now? Don't tell me you didn't see that one coming?

Denver Broncos-Quantity over quality, but they’re having a pretty good weekend.

Arizona Cardinals- Are slowly getting picked apart… and they better re-sign Warner soon, since he’s [for some reason] in demand.