Everyone misses football but if there was a bright spot this season, it turns out that the AFC South isn’t a dumpster fire we all thought it would be. Jacksonville surprisingly won the division with the scariest defense in football. Tennessee even made the playoffs and fired their head coach in an odd turn of events. Houston may have been a playoff team if Deshaun Watson didn’t tragically tear his ACL. Indianapolis should be better considering Andrew Luck is one of the best quarterbacks on the planet.
What should we expect from this quirky division heading into free agency? Is the AFC South for real or was 2017 just a flash in the pan?
Houston Texans
Free Agents: Jonathan Joseph, Brian Cushing, Marcus Gilchrist, Chris Clark, Breno Giacomini, Marcus Williams, Shane Lechler, Xavier Sua’Filo, Andre Ellington, T.J. Yates, Jelani Jenkins, Josh Johnson, Tom Savage, Bruce Ellington, Alfred Blue
Houston has $60 million to spend in free agency with a lot of contracts coming off the books. This offseason should be all about getting an offensive line for Deshaun Watson. The Texans had one of the worst offensive lines in football last year and that was before the team traded longtime left tackle Duane Brown. The Texans need to fill just about every slot on the offensive line. Without a first or second round pick to do so this offseason, look for Houston to get active out on the market.
Indianapolis Colts:
Free Agents: Frank Gore, Vinatieri, Darius Butler, Kamar Aiken, Barkevious Mingo, Jack Mewhort, Pierre Desir, Rashaan Melvin, Donte Moncrief, Jon Bostic
Indy has $72 million in cap space. The problem is nothing will really matter if Andrew Luck isn’t healthy. Chris Ballard has started to build a nice young core after a promising draft class. The question of whether Frank Reich will succeed in the NFL is probably the bigger questioning concerning the Colts.
Jacksonville Jaguars:
Free Agents: Paul Posluszny, Marqise Lee, Chad Henne, Allen Robinson, Patrick Omameh, Aaron Colvin, Corey Grant, Ben Koyak
Jacksonville still has some cap space but will be limited after Blake Bortles is set to earn $19 million this year after his option was picked up. The Jags have about $20 million in the bank to work with but can increase that number by making a few roster cuts (Jeremy Parnell – Marcedes Lewis). Really the Jags need to figure out who they want to bring in to catch passes from Blake Bortles. Paying both Allen Robinson and Marqise Lee isn’t a wise idea. With Jarvis Landry getting tagged, there really isn’t too much to work with on the market. The good news is they essentially don’t have to touch that great defense.
Tennessee Titans:
Free Agents: Eric Decker, Erik Walden, Brice McCain, Harry Douglas, Josh Kline, Brandon Weeden, Brian Schwenke, Avery Williamson, Quinton Spain
The Titans have a bunch of money to play with. They also have a new head coach with Mike Vrabel. One would think that they will try to target a bunch of defensive players. Outside of corner with Adore Jackson and Logan Ryan, it seems every spot it up for grabs on defense.
The offense has really been targeted over the years but Tennessee doesn’t have much to show for it. DeMarco Murray might be a roster cut. The same could be said for Delanie Walker and Rishard Matthews. With $45 million in cap space, the Titans really could over haul their roster.
