NFL Free Agency Reactions - 8/1/11

The news has calmed finally.  Many of the better players have already made their moves.  We have reached the bargain hunter portion of the free agency period. Before we get to the analysis you can check out my reactions to Tuesday's player moves here (cuts) and here (signings), Wednesday's player moves here, Thursday's moves here, Friday's moves here, Saturday's moves here and Sunday's moves here.

And onto Monday's moves...

Antonio Cromartie - Cornerback - Resigned with New York Jets - Four years for 32 million is much more than I thought he would get at this stage of the market.  Most teams are low or out of money right now, so I'm surprised that the Jets were unable to bring him back for cheaper.  Either way, this is an obvious consolation signing.  They missed out on Nnamdi and brought back Cro to fill the hole.  Cromartie was targeted 107 times last year, and will consider to have many balls thrown in his direction playing across from Revis.

Charles Johnson - Offensive Line - Signed with Minnesota Vikings - Johnson isn't that great of a lineman, but the move is relevant because it means that Anthony Castonzo will likely be starting at tackle this year for the Colts, as there is no other real competition for the job on the roster.  He should be good enough to get the job done, but if he ends up being a disaster out there for the Colts, it could end up as a big problem.

Ahmad Bradshaw - Running Back - Resigned with New York Giants - It took a while, but the Giants got back the running back all along.  It seems like Bradshaw expected to get more money out in the open market.  Now that the market for running back has dried up, he signed to a four year 18 million dollar contract, which is a nice bargain for the Giants to bring back a 25 year old running back.

Bradshaw remains a strong fantasy option, even if he's going to be splitting time with Brandon Jacobs.  He racked up 1,235 yards and 8 touchdowns last year, which are fine fantasy numbers for a number two running back.  He actually should be a nice value this year, as I think he's due to see more carries this year and should cut down on his fumble numbers to allow him to score even more fantasy points.

Kamerion Wimbley - Defensive End - Resigned with Oakland Raiders - Wimbley was a bit of a disappointment in his four seasons in Cleveland, but showed up in a solid way with nine sacks in Oakland in 2010 and solid play against the run.  However, that wasn't worth the upgrade to a five year 48 million dollar deal that he got from Oakland today.  Classic case of Oakland overpaying players.  Wimbley is a solid player who is a good starter, but nearly ten million a year is too much.

That's all the big news for today.  Be back tomorrow with more.

-Fred "Big Derf" Tobin