The 2026 NFL free agency period is right around the corner. With the regular season over, fanbases are speculating which players their team will add to get them over the hump and become Super Bowl champions.
Free agency can be a great opportunity for rebuilding teams to accelerate their timeline, bringing in proven veterans to complement the young prospects they’ve drafted in recent years. Likewise, spending too much on the wrong players can doom a franchise.
There have been many signings over the years that simply haven’t lived up to the contract they received.
10) Earl Thomas to Ravens, 2019
After eight illustrious seasons with the Seahawks, Earl Thomas signed a four-year, $55 million deal in free agency with the Ravens in 2019. He joined a secondary featuring the likes of Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters, taking advantage of Lamar Jackson’s rookie contract in a year that would end up being his first MVP season.
Thomas ended up having a great year in 2019, making the Pro Bowl with two interceptions and finishing No. 12 in PFSN’s SAF Impact Metric. However, he got into a physical altercation with teammate Chuck Clark in practice heading into 2020, resulting in Thomas’ release. He didn’t play a single snap in the NFL again.
9) Nnamdi Asomugha to Eagles, 2011
Nnamdi Asomugha was an elite cornerback when he hit free agency in 2011. He was coming off three consecutive All-Pro seasons with the Raiders, and he was rewarded handsomely in the open market by a five-year, $60 million deal from the Philadelphia Eagles.
Unfortunately, Asomugha didn’t reach the same heights in Philadelphia that he did in Oakland. The “Dream Team” the Eagles assembled in 2011 only went 8-8, and they regressed to 4-12 in 2012. Asomugha was released two years into his deal, playing solid football but not matching his previous elite level of play.
8) Jonas Jennings to 49ers, 2005
In 2005, the San Francisco 49ers were coming off a disastrous 2-14 season that finished dead last in the NFL. They were in need of reinforcements on both sides of the ball. In addition to drafting Alex Smith and Frank Gore, they also signed former Bills offensive tackle Jonas Jennings to a seven-year, $36 million deal.
Jennings dealt with numerous injuries during his time in San Francisco, playing just 23 games over four seasons. He was able to start in 13 games in 2006 and fared well that season, but that was the only season he made it through more than five games. He ended up released after the 2008 NFL season and didn’t play in the league again.
7) Mike Glennon to Bears, 2017
Mike Glennon had thrown just ten passes combined in his final two seasons with the Buccaneers, having backed up Jameis Winston. In his previous two years, he went a combined 5-13 as their starter with a 59.4% completion percentage. That was apparently enough for the Chicago Bears to sign him to a three-year, $45 million deal in 2017.
Glennon’s reign as the Bears’ starting quarterback lasted all of four games, as he went 1-3 and threw more interceptions than touchdowns in the role. Mitchell Trubisky took his place in Week 5, and Glennon didn’t play another snap with Chicago. He was released the following offseason and bounced around the NFL for a few more years as a backup.
6) Kenny Golladay to Giants, 2021
There was a risk attached to the New York Giants signing Kenny Golladay in 2021. He had played in just five games the year before with the Lions due to injury, but he also had two 1,000-yard seasons in a row prior to 2020. That earned him a four-year, $72 million contract from the Giants.
The hip injury that Golladay suffered the year before slowed him down significantly in 2021. Despite making WR1 money, he caught just 37 passes for 521 yards with no touchdowns in his first year in New York. His next season was even worse, as he only had six catches for 81 yards in 12 games in 2022. He was predictably released after that year.
5) J.C. Jackson to Chargers, 2022
Before hitting free agency, J.C. ranked No. 7 in PFSN’s NFL CB Impact Metric in 2021, leading the NFL with 23 pass deflections. In his final two seasons with the Patriots, he has an astonishing 17 interceptions. It’s easy to see why the Los Angeles Chargers were eager to sign him to a five-year, $82.5 million deal.
Unfortunately, Jackson didn’t come close to replicating that success with the Chargers. He played in just five games in 2022 due to injury, allowing four touchdowns and a near-perfect 152.4 passer rating when he did play. He only played in two games in 2023 before Los Angeles traded him back to the Patriots for a late-round pick swap.
4) Kirk Cousins to Falcons, 2024
Though a torn Achilles cost him most of 2023, Kirk Cousins proved to be a reliable starting quarterback for the Vikings. He made it to three Pro Bowls in his six years there, going 50-37-1 as their starter and surpassing 4,000 passing yards in four seasons. In need of stability at QB, the Atlanta Falcons signed him to a four-year, $180 million deal.
Cousins’ stint with the Falcons started off badly before he even hit the field, as Atlanta surprisingly drafted Michael Penix Jr. that year. He started the first 14 games of 2024, got benched, and served as a backup in 2025. In his two seasons with the team, Cousins has finished No. 20 and No. 30 in the league in PFSN’s NFL QB Impact Metric, respectively.
3) Nick Foles to Jaguars, 2019
One year removed from a miraculous Super Bowl run, which saw him win the game’s MVP, Nick Foles was riding high heading into 2019’s NFL free agency period. The Eagles had their franchise QB already in Carson Wentz, so it was a foregone conclusion that Foles would sign elsewhere. He cashed in with a four-year, $88 million deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Foles only started in four games for the Jaguars before he got traded to Chicago in 2020, going 0-4 in that stretch. He suffered a broken clavicle in the first game of the year, placing him on injured reserve. Gardner Minshew took his place in the starting lineup, and though Foles started three games upon his return, he was soon benched in favor of Minshew.
2) Brock Osweiler to Texans, 2016
Peyton Manning’s final year with the Broncos ended with Super Bowl glory, but 2015 was the worst year of his Hall of Fame career. Bad plays and injuries plagued him, and it was Brock Osweiler who kept things afloat in his absence. After Osweiler went 5-2 as their starting QB, he signed a four-year, $72 million deal to start for the Houston Texans.
The Texans made the playoffs in 2016 and went 8-6 with Osweiler as their starter, but that had little to do with him. He threw 15 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in those 14 games, completing just 59.0% of his passes. In order to offload his bad contract, Houston had to include a second-round pick along with him to get a fourth-round pick from the Browns.
1) Albert Haynesworth to Washington, 2009
In his previous two seasons before hitting free agency in 2009, Albert Haynesworth was arguably the best defensive tackle in the NFL. He combined for 14.5 sacks with the Titans in that time, finishing as a first-team All-Pro and a top-five finisher in Defensive Player of the Year voting both seasons.
Haynesworth would sign a seven-year, $100 million deal with Washington that offseason, having been touted as a major acquisition. The switch to a 3-4 defense was new to him, as he played in a 4-3 system in Tennessee. His production dropped to 37 tackles and four sacks in 2009.
2010 was an even further step back, as Haynesworth had just 2.5 sacks in eight games and had been taken out of the starting lineup. Arguments with Washington’s coaching staff, showing up to camp overweight, and refusing to practice saw Haynesworth released after the 2010 season, putting an end to his disappointing run with the team.
Important Dates in 2026 NFL Free Agency
The legal tampering period runs for 52 hours, opening Monday, March 9, at noon ET and closing at 3:59 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 11, just minutes before free agency officially begins.
During that window, teams can negotiate with the certified agents of players set to become unrestricted free agents. Verbal agreements can be reached and reported, but nothing is official yet.
For the first time, teams can recruit up to five players and speak with each for up to 1 hour via video or phone, rather than routing all contact through agents. The player’s agent must be present on every call. If a team wants to meet a player in person or have him visit a facility, that still must wait until free agency is officially underway.
Free agency officially opens at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 11, when the NFL’s new league year begins. That’s when contracts become official, not when they’re reported. The trading period also opens at that moment, allowing previously agreed-upon deals to be completed.
All teams must be cap-compliant by the 4 p.m. Wednesday deadline. The 2026 salary cap is set at $301.2 million, a $22 million increase from 2025.
Most of the market’s top players will have agreed to terms well before Wednesday afternoon. The tampering window exists to give that process structure. What’s new this year is that players themselves, not just their agents, can now hear directly from the teams pursuing them.
