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2025 NFL free agents: WRs Tee Higgins, Chris Godwin headline top players available
The NFL trade deadline is behind us for the 2024 season. Teams are all but set with their rosters, barring late-season signings to active rosters because of injuries. Eighteen trades were made from the start of the season through the deadline, with 25 teams involved in either trading away or receiving players.
Many players on expiring deals were expected to be on the move at the deadline but stayed put. Here are some of the top free agents for next offseason and their stats so far in 2024:
Top 2025 NFL free agents
WR Tee Higgins (Cincinnati Bengals)
2024 stats (six games): 38 catches, 489 yards, four touchdowns
Age next season: 26
Higgins missed five games this season but missed just nine in the previous four seasons. He's a reliable, big-bodied wide receiver on the field who can make contested catches. The Bengals' passing offense runs through Ja'Marr Chase, but they're a much more dangerous team with Higgins in the lineup.
WR Chris Godwin (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
2024 stats (seven games): 50 catches, 576 yards, five touchdowns
Age next season: 29
Godwin was one of the league's most productive wide receivers before his season-ending injury in Week 7. The one-time Pro Bowl wideout is fantastic from the slot and has 1,000-yard seasons with three different quarterbacks: Jameis Winston (2019), Tom Brady (2021, 2022), and Baker Mayfield (2023).
QB Sam Darnold (Minnesota Vikings)
2024 stats (10 games): 199 of 293 passing, 2,387 yards, 19 touchdowns, 10 interceptions; 46 carries, 166 yards, one touchdown
Age next season: 28
Darnold took the reigns as a full-time starter this season in Minnesota and is setting career-highs in completion percentage (67.9%), yards per game (238.7), and quarterback rating (100.0). However, mistakes have started to crop up in recent weeks, with five interceptions combined against the Colts and the Jaguars. Minnesota may move on to 2024 first-round draft pick J.J. McCarthy next season, making Darnold a potential starter elsewhere.
S Jevon Holland (Miami Dolphins)
2024 stats (eight games): 31 tackles, two passes defensed, one forced fumble, one sack; 44.4% completion percentage allowed when targeted (per Sports Info Solutions (SIS) data)
Age next season: 25
Holland has missed two games this season but is considered one of the best safeties in the league, especially against the run. Miami could be losing another top player on defense like they did last offseason. At just 25 next season, Holland should command a sizable contract for a free-agent safety. A team could be looking to upgrade their defense, like the Packers signing Xavier McKinney last offseason.
G Trey Smith (Kansas City Chiefs)
2024 stats (10 games): 587 snaps, zero sacks allowed, three penalties, 12 blown blocks (per SIS data)
Age next season: 26
Smith has been one of the best value picks from the 2021 NFL Draft. A blood clot condition diagnosed in 2018 took him off the draft board for many teams. The Chiefs capitalized, and Smith hasn't missed a game in three and a half seasons. Teams are shelling out more for interior offensive linemen - like Carolina did for Robert Hunt last offseason - so Smith could cash in after a good run in Kansas City.
CB Charvarius Ward (San Francisco 49ers)
2024 stats (seven games): 35 tackles, five passes defensed
Age next season: 29
Ward came to San Francisco in 2022 and has earned every cent of his three-year, $40.5 million contract. He led the league in passes defensed last season with 23 and was named a second-team All-Pro at cornerback. He hasn't missed time with injury since 2021; he's only been out of the lineup recently after the passing of his daughter. He'll be older for a corner in 2025 but should get some attention, likely from contenders offering a short-term deal.
OT Ronnie Stanley (Baltimore Ravens)
2024 stats (11 games): 607 snaps, one sack allowed, 10 penalties, 16 blown blocks (per SIS data)
Age next season: 31
Stanley hasn't regained the impressive form he showed in his first four years in the league. Injuries have forced him to miss 32 of 76 possible games since the start of the 2020 NFL season. He's been healthier this year, and offensive tackles can continue to perform well even into their mid-30s. If Stanley stays healthy through the end of the year, he'll likely be viewed as at least a plus starter by many teams. He could get something similar to the Mike McGlinchey deal from 2023.
CB D.J. Reed (New York Jets)
2024 stats (nine games): 37 tackles, two tackles for loss, eight passes defensed, one sack
Age next season: 28
Reed is on pace for a career year this season. Through nine games, he's allowing a career-low 46.2% completion rate in coverage (per SIS data), opposite Sauce Gardner, who is having a down year in 2024. Like Ward, it's impossible to deny how good he's playing, but teams will see his age and likely be concerned about handing him a long-term deal.
LB Dre Greenlaw (San Francisco 49ers)
2023 stats (15 games): 120 tackles, 1.5 sacks, five tackles for loss, four quarterback hits, four passes defensed
Age next season: 28
Greenlaw tore his Achilles in Super Bowl 58 and was one of the most important players on the 49ers' NFC-champion defense alongside All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner. He's yet to take the field this season, but if he looks anything like he did in 2023 when he does, he should get paid well in free agency for an off-ball linebacker. He's excellent in coverage and very solid against the run, bringing an aggressive attitude to the defense.
2025 NFL cap space
Three teams have at least $100 million in cap space to spend on players like this group for next season. Here's how things look as of Nov. 19 with data from OverTheCap:
New England Patriots: $132.44 million
Arizona Cardinals: $113.44 million
Las Vegas Raiders: $112.19 million
Washington Commanders: $99.75 million
Chicago Bears: $82.04 million
Los Angeles Chargers: $75.11 million
Minnesota Vikings: $74.41 million
Cincinnati Bengals: $65.65 million
Tennessee Titans: $65.00 million
Green Bay Packers: $62.75 million
Detroit Lions: $62.06 million
Jacksonville Jaguars: $61.57 million
Los Angeles Rams: $57.84 million
Denver Broncos: $56.48 million
Pittsburgh Steelers: $53.92 million
Indianapolis Colts: $50.79 million
San Francisco 49ers: $48.23 million
New York Giants: $42.31 million
New York Jets: $33.87 million
Carolina Panthers: $33.67 million
Philadelphia Eagles: $32.06 million
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: $24.59 million
Dallas Cowboys: $24.02 million
Kansas City Chiefs: $20.47 million
Baltimore Ravens: $17.03 million
Houston Texans: $15.79 million
Buffalo Bills: $8.11 million
Atlanta Falcons: $7.42 million
Miami Dolphins: $3.69 million
Seattle Seahawks: -$4.96 million
Cleveland Browns: -$11.91 million
New Orleans Saints: -$62.80 million
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Top 2025 NFL free agents: Best available free agents
