The NFL season is now officially through Week 1 after the Washington Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles, San Diego Chargers and Houston Texans played on Monday Night Football and with numerous injuries piling up for team, free agents will start to sign and some names may include Brandon Lloyd, Bart Scott, Cedric Benson, Jahvid Best, Kerry Rhodes, Willis McGahee, Brandon Jacobs, Beanie Wells and Tim Hightower.
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Some of the teams that could be interested in those players include the Baltimore Ravens, New York Giants, New England Patriots as well as the Pittsburgh Steelers, since all those teams have injury issues heading into Week 2. The Ravens lost Jacoby Jones to a knee injury in their blowout against the Denver Broncos on Thursday night and they next will play their AFC North division rival the Cleveland Browns. Making the injury hurt even worse, the receiver the team traded away to the 49ers in Anquan Boldin had over 200 yards receiving in his debut in San Francisco.
The Ravens looked absolutely awful against the Broncos and the team allowed seven touchdown passes from Peyton Manning and now they will try to rebound against the Browns. ESPN.com reports that Jones will be out for up to a month and it could last six weeks after he sprained his right knee. The report says that Jones has an MCL sprain and he had three receptions for 24 yards before getting injured. Jones was able to walk off the field, but having him off the field for a few weeks will be a big blow and it feels even worse knowing that he was injured by a player on his own team after Brandon Trawick hit him during a special teams play.
Harbaugh blamed the inexperience of the rookie as the reason why the play broke down and now Jones will be a big loss after he was so integral to the team in the playoffs on their way to winning the Super Bowl. The Ravens have lost a number of players from their Super Bowl roster and Jones is another one that will miss some action. Brandon Lloyd could be an option after he made over 70 catches last season for the Patriots and there is a chance Baltimore could have some interest.
One reason the time between Weeks 1 and 2 is prime time for veteran free agents to sign is because if a team brings in a veteran player and signs him before the first game, his contract is guaranteed for the season. After Week 1 the team has more cap flexibility and that is why the Giants, despite losing Andre Brown in the preseason, New York went into Week 1 against the Cowboys with just David Wilson and Da'Rel Scott and that turned out to be a disaster. Wilson fumbled twice and Scott ended up contributing to a critical turnover when the Giants were driving on their way down the field down 36-30 on a last-minute drive.
The team is working out Willis McGahee and Brandon Jacobs and the team also looked at Beanie Wells and Tim Hightower and they could sign one of those backs. The team also looked at Jonathan Dwyer after he was released by the Steelers, but now it appears Pitt will sign him after dealing with some injuries and not liking what Felix Jones brought to the table. Dwyer led the team in rushing last season and after losing LaRod Stephens-Howling to an injury, they will need some more depth at the position with Le'Veon Bell also out.
The Patriots may also look for a free agent running back after losing Shane Vereen for a few weeks with wrist surgery. The Pats have Brandon Bolden and LeGarrette Blount, so there is a chance they could try and get by without signing anyone. The team is also dealing with a groin injury to Danny Amendola as well as injuries to tight ends Zach Sudfeld and Rob Gronkowski and they could make a move there as well. The team could look at Lloyd after having him last season, but after Belichick released him it doesn't appear likely.