It's week 11. How are those free agent pickups doing?

[Apparition]

Okay, maybe not quite week 11, but close enough.

[minutemancl]

Adoree Jackson is great. Probably the best deep ball defending CB in football.

Golladay has barely played due to injury. He has looked good when playing and targeted.

Devonta Booker finally started to look good. Looked so slow and sluggish to start the season, but has been playing well recently. Runs hard. Doesn't ever break tackles though.

John Ross has been good when healthy as well. 

Kyle Rudolph has been a dud. Seems disinterested in blocking sometimes. Is never even targeted in the red zone, which is why we brought him here.

Danny Shelton is god awful. Our defense averages 2+ YPC higher when he is on the field compared to when he is not. He gets thrown around regularly. It's hard to believe a man that big is so bad at standing his ground.

[ThatJerkDave]

Green Bay:

De'Vondre Campbell - This guy has been a godsend.  Probably a Pro Bowl player.  He has become a tackling machine and plays sideline to sideline.  

Dennis Kelly - Injured for the most part, and I think contributed to a FG being blocked when he was active.

Whitney Mercilus - Very good as a rotational pass rusher for us.  Injured his biceps against Seattle, and probably misses the rest of the season.   I thought this guy was going to be an also ran, but he has some gas left in the tank.

Rasul Douglas - I don't know how this guy was not on a roster.  He is good for one mistake per game, and otherwise has been very, very good when pressed into a starting role.  

Jaylon Smith - Didn't have anything left.  Has already been released, probably because of special teams inability.  

[scar988]

I knew the Packers would love Campbell.

Cordarrelle Patterson has been great in Atlanta.

Josh Andrews has been inactive all year.

Mike Davis has been meh

Wayne Gallman: See Mike Davis.

Erik Harris has been solid, but unspectacular. Same with Harmon and Moreau. Falcons got some bargain basement snap stealers. If the season goes bad quick, expect a lot of Richie Grant, Darren Hall and Jaylinn Hawkins seeing snaps when those guys are done stealing snaps.

[Forge]

49ers: 

Alex Mack - has been very meh and sometimes very bad (Green Bay game comes to mind). I don't mind him as a bridge, but wish we had a  back up Center we were grooming to take the role sooner rather than later. 

Samson Ebukam - dude is just terrible on defense. Will be a one and done; can't believe that we will keep him around next year. 

Zack Kerr - depth signing at a minimal cost. He played sparingly and I'm pretty sure that he was recently released. 

Dre Kirkpatrick - has given me two of the most LOL awful plays I have ever seen over the last three weeks, so his entertainment value is sky high. 

Josh Norman - He has 6 DPI or defensive holding penalties this year lol. His most notable contribution was probably getting into it with Kingsbury last week before getting benched. 

Trent Sherfield - actually looked really good in the preseason as a receiver...then turned back into a pumpkin. So he's basically useless on offense, and I guess he contributes on special teams? 

Tavon Wilson - He was here...for at least some period of time...I guess. 

Mo Sanu - He's dropped some passes and been very slow. Now on IR. At one point, like 6 games into the season, he had basically the same season stat line as Brandon Aiyuk...so..you know...good on us for really making use of our talented guys. His numbers would probably look better (not good) but Jimmy doesn't like to throw to him down the field when he's wide open. 

 

[Apparition]

OLB Matthew Judon (4 years/$56m/$32m gtd)
B E A S T. When this signing was made, I tried to not get too hyped up on it because I remembered when the Pats signed Adalius Thomas, who had a very similar athletic profile to Judon and played a similar role in the Ravens defense, and he turned out to be a major disappointment. But Judon has been everything he was advertised to be and more. Through 10 games, he's 4th in the league with 9.5 sacks, which puts him on pace to challenge the Patriots team record, set by Andre Tippett in 1984. He also ranks 6th with 19 QB hits and 7th with 10 TFL. But more important than what the stat sheet says, he's substantially transformed the character of the defense from a relatively passive one that would often get manhandled on outside runs last year into a downhill attacking style that can also get home while rushing 4. And on top of everything, he's been a strong locker room presence, which was a big issue with Adalius Thomas.
A+

TE Jonnu Smith (4 years/$50m/$31.25 gtd)
On the flip side, Jonnu has been a major disappointment. He was better in recent weeks, before hurting his shoulder (no word yet on if he'll be available in week 11) but early on he was a disaster with his catching and ball security, and just didn't seem to have his head in the game. Week 3 against the Saints was one of the worst performances I can recall seeing from any player in a Pats uniform. So far he's got 21 catches for 193 yards and 1 TD and hasn't really earned Mac Jones' trust.
D-

TE Hunter Henry (3 years/$37.4m/$24m gtd)
Henry's performance softens the blow of the Jonnu Smith disappointment. He hasn't been a Gronk-esque gamebreaker, but he's been a productive and reliable target who currently leads all TEs with 7 touchdowns. His yardage numbers aren't eye-popping but he's been very effective in the red zone, giving the offense a dimension it was sorely lacking last year. He's also been a very good blocker.
A-

DB Jalen Mills (4 years/$24m/$9m gtd)
Mills didn't play corner all of 2020. In 2021 he's been thrust into a starting CB role and the results have been pretty predictable. He's been the weak link in the secondary all season, and we don't anticipate that changing any time soon. The impending free agency of both Devin McCourty and Adrian Phillips mean Mills will likely be moved to safety in 2022. But it's tough to watch him struggle on the outside, knowing that it could've been Stephon Gilmore locking down that side of the field instead. 
D+

WR Nelson Agholor (2 years/$24m/$16m gtd)
Agholor was brought in to be a stretch-the-field guy who opened up space underneath for the tight ends and Jakobi Meyers, and caught the occasional long ball. So far he's done a decent job with the former, but with the exception of one 44-yard strike against the Chargers, the latter hasn't really materialized yet. He's contributed a decent amount in the short and intermediate games, and we hold out hope that he'll find the deep ball chemistry with McCorkle that Bourne has developed, but for the time being this signing is a bit of a flop.
C-

DT Davon Godchaux (2 years/$16m/$9m gtd)
He's come on in recent weeks, along with the entire run defense. Early in the year he looked like a bit of a bust because the line hadn't rounded into shape yet. But the emergence of Christian Barmore as a dominant interior disruptor has been a catalyst for the whole front-seven to be more effective in their respective roles. Godchaux's is that of a space eater in the middle who comes off the field on passing downs, and in that regard there's been little to complain about in recent weeks.
B

WR Kendrick Bourne (3 years/$15m/$5.25m gtd)
Maybe one of the top steals in all of free agency. Bourne had a breakout game in week 3 against the Saints, when he made an impressive TD catch along the sideline to put the Pats within striking distance in what was otherwise their worst game of the year. Since then he's emerged as McCorkle's favorite downfield target, averaging 15.8 yards per catch, including a handful of eye-popping plays. He's got an outside shot at reaching the 1000-yard mark this season, and is reminding me of David Givens - one of the more underrated receivers from the Brady era.
A

DL Henry Anderson (2 years/$7m/$3m gtd)
Brought in to be a rotational 3/5-tech and placeholder for Barmore. He suffered a torn pectoral in week 4 and was done for the season. Prior to that he was barely playing anyway. Barely worth mentioning. 
D

Not going to bother listing Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins, Ted Karras or Trent Brown because they've all been here before.

Raekwon McMillan tore his ACL in camp and has missed the entire season.

 

Edited November 15, 2021 by Apparition

[-Hope-]

Bud Dupree has been a disappointment, which I think literally everyone saw coming except the Titans. Sigh. He's not been bad when on the field and has made some plays- he's a capable edge setter who has also notched a few good pressures. But he came back too early from his ACL and has been injury-plagued ever since. One sack is not exactly what you're hoping for with that contract.

On the flip side, Denico Autry has been incredible. Best signing of the offseason without a doubt. Pretty sweet to snag a guy from a division rival who always made plays against us and then have him shore up our front 4 the way he has. He's freed up Simmons and Landry to eat while also being a formidable interior pass rusher himself.

Jackrabbit Jenkins has been decent. Titans fans are giving him more grief than he deserves because of a few ugly plays, but by and large he's been a solid starting corner. Against the Saints he got beat for a TD but also made a great play on the game-saving PBU, and that's kind of a microcosm of his year. The hope is Farley will be able to come back next year and supplant him as a starter, but for now we could do much worse.

Kendall Lamm has been fine depth at tackle. He's had to play in spots (just like basically every OL on our damn roster) and has generally held his own, minus a few plays here and there.

Josh Reynolds was cut and is now on the Lions. Hard to believe that at one point he was in line to be our #2 WR. He got lapped by just about every receiver on the roster in camp and was a healthy scratch more often than not. No idea what happened with him.

Geoff Swaim is what he is. He had a brutal start to the season but has settled in now as a decent blocker and okay pass catcher, but he's not really any kind of threat and we will almost certainly be looking to upgrade at TE in the offseason.

Ola Adeniyi has been a pleasant surprise. He was brought in mostly to be a special teamer, but was forced into action as an edge rusher on defense due to- you guessed it- injuries, and has provided a reasonably good change-up to our starters. Not a game changer by any stretch of the imagination, but he's capable of the occasional pressure or sack and that's more than you could say about our previous edge depth.

Might have missed one or two very minor signings, but I think that's all of them.

[ThatJaxxenGuy]

54 minutes ago, Apparition said:

OLB Matthew Judon (4 years/$56m/$32m gtd)
B E A S T. When this signing was made, I tried to not get too hyped up on it because I remembered when the Pats signed Adalius Thomas, who had a very similar athletic profile to Judon and played a similar role in the Ravens defense, and he turned out to be a major disappointment. But Judon has been everything he was advertised to be and more. Through 10 games, he's 4th in the league with 9.5 sacks, which puts him on pace to challenge the Patriots team record, set by Andre Tippett in 1984. He also ranks 6th with 19 QB hits and 7th with 10 TFL. But more important than what the stat sheet says, he's substantially transformed the character of the defense from a relatively passive one that would often get manhandled on outside runs last year into a downhill attacking style that can also get home while rushing 4. And on top of everything, he's been a strong locker room presence, which was a big issue with Adalius Thomas.
A+

 

 

It’s nice to Judon in a system that allows him to play to his strengths putting up volume. Some Ravens fans had the craziest hate on for him but I always contended he was a dawg. Our system just didn’t allow him to put up volume stats but now he’s feasting.

Edited November 15, 2021 by ThatJaxxenGuy

[Chiefer]

Jarran Reed has steadily made progress. Was a real dud to start the year. But he and Jones together are nasty in the middle lately.

Josh Gordon has done nothing surprising nobody.

[animaltested]

Kerry Hyder Jr - Really solid addition along the defensive line. Been shifting inside-outside and seemed to have locked up the 5 Tech. But then this week LJ Collier out snapped him, which is odd considering LJ had been a healthy scratch since week 1. Not showing in the box score, but he has been a massive upgrade over what Seattle had been trotting out last year in the DLINE rotation. 

 

AL Woods - Filled in really nice for Jarran Reed. Between Hyder and Woods; Reeds snaps have been easily replaced. 

 

Ahkello Witherspoon - Traded before the season. Was getting snaps in the 4th quarter of preseason games, and couldnt even beat out Tre Flowers (who was cut later). Major dud, and Im not entirely sure how comp picks work, but potentially losing out of a mid round pick for Shaq Griffin for this dude stings alot. 

 

Gerald Everett - Solid signing, and legit 3rd option so far. I really enjoy how much Waldron moves him around; and he has been a solid outlet for Geno-Russ. Game flow just ignores him for long stretches which is frustrating; so his impact is not showing in the boxscores. Dude has caught 22 of 23 targets. (The whole damn offense is frustrating). Really hope he see's more targets moving forward; Russ leaves so many easy yards underneath on the field. Blah. 

 

Piere Desir was released pretty early in camp; Dont think Aldon Smith even made it to Seattle lol.

[Apparition]

32 minutes ago, ThatJaxxenGuy said:

It’s nice to Judon in a system that allows him to play to his strengths putting up volume. Some Ravens fans had the craziest hate on for him but I always contended he was a dawg. Our system just didn’t allow him to put up volume stats but now he’s feasting.

it's funny because historically that can be said about the Pats' system as well. Back when Matt Patricia was DC here he would routinely drop a guy like Chandler Jones into coverage or have him play QB spy. But Judon is really breaking the curve. 

[candyman93]

John Johnson has been trash. I’m not sure if it’s scheme or what.

 

Anthony Walker also sucks.

 

Troy Hill has been average.

 

Clowney has been great at times, but I think he’s starting to get tired.

[43M]

Steelers

OLB Melvin Ingram -  Was great in preseason and the opener vs Buffalo.  Then disappeared and asked to be traded.   Very disappointing, because I had high hopes.

OT Joe Haeg -  backup...hasnt done much.  Hasnt looked great when given chances.

OG Trai Turner - Average...at best.

Trades

Akhillo Weatherspoon -   Huge waste of 5th rounder.   Hasnt even seen field.    Colbert continously shiz the bed with DBs.

Joe Schoebert -  backup caliber player who is starting.  Will likely be cut this offseason.

[43M]

49 minutes ago, animaltested said:

Ahkello Witherspoon - Traded before the season. Was getting snaps in the 4th quarter of preseason games, and couldnt even beat out Tre Flowers (who was cut later). Major dud, and Im not entirely sure how comp picks work, but potentially losing out of a mid round pick for Shaq Griffin for this dude stings alot. 

So bad, he made this list for multiple teams.    

[Dome]

2 hours ago, ThatJerkDave said:

De'Vondre Campbell - This guy has been a godsend.  Probably a Pro Bowl player.  He has become a tackling machine and plays sideline to sideline. 

I said when you signed him I thought he was underrated in ATL, I’m not surprised by this.