The second week of March annually rings in the new NFL league year, which kicks off the whirlwind that is free agency. Every year we learn new things about team building in the parity-filled NFL.

For years, it was thought that high spending in free agency didn’t equate to having a roster capable of winning it all, as no team from 2010-24 ranked in the top five in offseason free-agent spending by total contract value and then reached the Super Bowl. 

The league’s two Super Bowl LX participants, the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks, disproved that notion during the 2025 season. The Seahawks ranked fourth in the 2025 offseason in free-agent spending, while the Patriots went from picking in the top five of the draft to playing in the Super Bowl after spending an NFL-record $364 million in free agency during the 2025 offseason.

So what lessons did we learn from the first wave of the 2026 NFL free agency period? Here are five things to consider about offseason moves and signings going forward.

For more 2026 NFL free agency coverage:

1. Trades aren’t complete until the physical

This has always been the case, but the football world received a strong reminder when the Las Vegas Raiders‘ trade of five-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for two first-round picks fell apart after the Ravens backed out. 

Baltimore backed out of the deal after failing Crosby’s physical just two months after he underwent surgery on his left knee to repair a meniscus injury. Anyone who undergoes that type of procedure likely wouldn’t be able to pass a physical right now, and Crosby’s agent, CJ LaBoy, posted a statement saying his client is ahead of schedule and tracking toward returning for the offseason program this spring. The Ravens were well within their rights to nullify the trade because of the physical, and it appears it wasn’t as underhanded as it initially seemed, since no other NFL team has agreed to a trade with the Raiders for Crosby’s services.

Maxx Crosby fallout: Ravens might have just set ugly precedent for NFL offseason trades

John Breech

2. It’s never been better to be a free agent

The NFL’s salary cap jumped $22 million this year, from $279.2 million in 2025 to $301.2 million in 2026, because of the league’s bountiful 11-year, $110 billion media rights deal with Amazon, CBS, ESPN, FOX and NBC.

There have been salary cap jumps every year in the NFL of late, but the 2026 increase produced new levels of cashing in for players this offseason. Eight have either become the highest-paid player at their position or the highest-paid free agent at their position in terms of average annual salary.

McDuffie, Tunsil, Linderbaum and Stout became the highest-paid players ever at their respective positions, while Phillips, Pierce, Walker and Likely received the highest-paid free-agent contracts at their positions. For years, it was advisable for players to work out extensions with the teams that drafted them, as teams were leery of free-agent spending. As the salary cap continues to soar, it might be more prudent to have the patience to wait and cash in on the open market.

2026 NFL free agency live tracker: Full list of team-by-team signings and trades

Kyle Stackpole

3. Raiders, Titans follow Patriots’ blueprint

New England picked in the top five of the NFL Draft in both 2024 and 2025, but after selecting quarterback Drake Maye third overall in 2024 and then spending an NFL-record $364 million in free agency during the 2025 offseason, the Patriots were back in the Super Bowl. Two other teams that will be picking in the top 10 of the draft in 2025 and 2026 — the Raiders and the Titans — are looking to follow in the Patriots’ footsteps.

The Titans spent an NFL-most $293.2 million in free agency to help support 2025 first overall pick quarterback Cam Ward, while the Raiders were right behind them. Las Vegas spent $281.57 million in free agency ahead of likely drafting Indiana Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza first overall in April.

This likely won’t be the last offseason we see bottom feeders take major financial swings in free agency in an effort to quickly climb toward the top of the league.

4. Vikings ready to move on from J.J. McCarthy

The Vikings decided to let Pro Bowl quarterback Sam Darnold walk in free agency last year despite him throwing a career-high 35 touchdown passes. That decision came because of Darnold’s struggles in the final two games of the season — at the Detroit Lions with the NFC North title and the No. 1 seed on the line, and at the Los Angeles Rams in the opening round of the playoffs. It also came because Minnesota had traded up to select Michigan national championship-winning quarterback J.J. McCarthy 10th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft.

The choice to start McCarthy and let Darnold walk aged poorly almost immediately. The former No. 10 overall pick finished last in the NFL in completion rate (57.6%), touchdown-to-interception ratio (11-12) and passer rating (72.6), while Darnold won Super Bowl LX as the Seahawks’ starting quarterback. That sequence of events no doubt played a critical role in the decision to fire general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah less than a year after extending his contract.

The firing of Adofo-Mensah and the signing of 2019 No. 1 overall pick Kyler Murray to a one-year deal Thursday signal Minnesota is prepared to move on from McCarthy — provided Murray returns to his early-2020s Pro Bowl form that made him one of four players in NFL history to average 200-plus passing yards per game and 30-plus rushing yards per game for his career. The other three are 2024 NFL MVP Josh Allen, 2015 NFL MVP Cam Newton and 2024 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Jayden Daniels.

Don’t be surprised if McCarthy begins the 2026 season riding the bench after losing a training camp competition with Murray.

Kyler Murray signs with Vikings: Minnesota earns A+ for landing former No. 1 pick after Cardinals release

Carter Bahns

5. Running backs matter — even to Patrick Mahomes

The Chiefs’ 2025 running back duo of Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt failed the team’s offense. Chiefs running backs combined to rush for 1,247 yards, 3.7 yards per carry and 47 tackles avoided — all figures that ranked in the bottom five in the NFL. That’s why Kansas City went against its typical cost-cutting philosophy at the position and made Seahawks Super Bowl LX MVP Kenneth Walker III the highest-paid free-agent running back in league history with a $14.4 million average annual salary on a three-year deal. That figure also makes Walker the fourth-highest-paid running back in the NFL.

The days of Mahomes leading the Chiefs in rushing through the first six weeks of the season, as he did with 222 yards on the ground in 2025, should be over. The three-time Super Bowl champion quarterback needing to do so likely played a role in him tearing his ACL last season. Walker should be able to end the Chiefs’ drought without a 1,000-yard rusher, a stretch that began in 2018 — tied for the longest active streak in the league and spanning Mahomes’ entire tenure as Kansas City’s starting quarterback. 

Mahomes himself tweeted his excitement for the signing of Walker almost instantly after the news broke.

Walker wasn’t the only running back to cash in during the first wave of free agency. Former first-round pick Travis Etienne Jr. landed a four-year, $52 million deal with the Saints, giving him the largest contract at the position in the NFL by total value. In an era where teams play their safeties deeper to take away the vertical passing game, the value of a strong running game continues to rise.

One thing seemed certain when the 2025-26 women’s college basketball season opened: UConn forward Sarah Strong was the big favorite for national player of the year.

We didn’t know whether anyone would provide a significant challenge, especially since USC‘s JuJu Watkins, last year’s consensus pick for that honor, sat out this season with a knee injury.

But Vanderbilt guard Mikayla Blakes stepped up to make it a debate. Ultimately Strong was our pick, but Blakes also had exceptional sophomore season and is among ESPN’s All-America first-team picks.

Strong, a key part of UConn’s 12th NCAA title last year, has led the Huskies to a 34-0 record heading into Sunday’s NCAA Women’s Basketball Selection Special (8 p.m. Sunday, ESPN). Strong is the Big East Player of the Year and league tournament MVP.

Blakes averaged 30.5 PPG in SEC regular-season games and was the league’s player of the year. Vanderbilt was picked eighth in the SEC’s preseason coaches’ poll but finished tied for second.

As the rest of the automatic bids are won this week and before the release of the NCAA bracket, we weigh in with our end-of-season award winners for 2025-26, including freshman of the year, coach of the year and transfer of the year.

Player of the Year

Sarah Strong, UConn

The numbers are only part of the story with Strong: 18.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 3.4 steals and 1.6 blocks per game, 60.1% shooting from the field and 42.7% from 3-point range. The list is long. The offensive and defensive numbers are equally impressive, illustrating how well-rounded Strong’s game is and how she impacts the game in so many ways. But there is one number missing: minutes played.

Her stat line could be so much more impressive, but Strong only played 26.4 minutes per game. Instead of piling up more numbers, Strong sat on the bench during many fourth quarters because she helped decide the outcome early. The Huskies’ average margin of victory is 38.4 points. Only one of their 34 victories this season was decided by single digits. Not surprisingly, Strong performed even better in UConn’s No. 1-rated nonconference games. In seven games against teams in the top 30 of the NET, her stat line was 21.0 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 4.6 APG, 3.7 SPG, with 57.4% field goal shooting.

Still, as impressive as those numbers are, they don’t show how well Strong understands spacing, her feel for the game or how she seems to think two moves ahead to be in the right position. She’s unselfish. Through her first two seasons, Geno Auriemma has implored Strong to score more. Yet her game has remained steady, and she’s still the centerpiece of UConn’s attack, whether she is passing or shooting. While Strong didn’t win our defensive player of the year award, she certainly could have. UConn has the best rated defense in the country, and Strong is at the center of that, too.

Blakes has had a season for the ages. But Strong is just too dominant in too many different ways. — Creme

Freshman of the Year

Aaliyah Chavez, Oklahoma

An odd scenario unfolded in the SEC. Chavez won the league’s freshman of the week award an SEC record-tying eight times, was the league’s leading scorer among freshmen and was the only freshman to receive All-SEC honors (second team). But somehow, she wasn’t named SEC Freshman of the Year; that went to Vanderbilt’s Aubrey Galvan.

Both guards have had terrific seasons. The Commodores finished tied for second in the league, the Sooners were fifth. Vanderbilt won the head-to-head matchup with Oklahoma 102-86 in Nashville, Tennessee, on Feb. 9; Galvan had a season-high 30 points and Chavez 14.

For the 16-game SEC regular season, Chavez averaged 18.0 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists, including 26 points and eight assists in the Sooners’ victory over regular-season champion South Carolina. Galvan averaged 14.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists in SEC play.

USC guard Jazzy Davidson is the other top candidate for national freshman of the year; she won the honor in the Big Ten. For the season, she has averaged 17.6 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists. Her numbers bumped to 18.9, 5.7 and 4.6 in 18 league games as the Trojans, without star JuJu Watkins, finished tied for ninth in the Big Ten.

This was the toughest award for us to choose. The ultimate tiebreaker: Of the projected top 16 seeds in the NCAA tournament, only one has a freshman as its leading scorer: Oklahoma with Chavez (18.4 PPG in 31 games). — Voepel

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Aaliyah Chavez finishes inside over two defenders

Oklahoma’s Aaliyah Chavez finishes inside for a tough bucket.

Defensive Player of the Year

Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Since this is an award solely about defense, let’s imagine if Hidalgo never scored a point or registered an assist. While certainly not the same, it’s still an image of a highly impactful player. Hidalgo is as good without the ball as she is with it. Considering her career-high 25.2 points and 5.3 assist per game, that is saying something. Hidalgo is not just a defender. She’s a disruptor. Entire offenses get derailed by Hidalgo.

Notre Dame ranks 27th in adjusted defensive efficiency, with just average shot blocking and even worse defensive rebounding. That’s because Hidalgo’s 5.4 steals per game not only leads the nation but is a full steal better than the next player on the list (Montana State’s Taylee Chirrick). Hidalgo’s passing lane anticipation is only outdone by her ability to ball hawk a dribbler. A 16-steal game in November against Akron got a lot of attention, but Hidalgo had four games with 10 or more steals this season. The rest of the country combined had four such games. Hidalgo truly stands alone in the thievery department. — Creme

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Hannah Hidalgo Highlights vs. Syracuse Orange

Hannah Hidalgo Highlights vs. Syracuse Orange

Transfer of the Year

Olivia Miles, TCU

A year ago at this time, we wondered whether Miles would declare for the WNBA draft. Instead, she opted to return for her last college season but leave Notre Dame for TCU. That decision paid off for both the Horned Frogs, who won the Big 12 regular-season title, and Miles, who was the league’s player of the year.

Miles said she wanted one more season of collegiate experience and thought TCU coach Mark Campbell’s system would help her continue to develop for the WNBA. She led the Frogs in scoring (19.6 PPG), assists (6.4 APG) and steals (1.8 SPG) and averaged 6.9 rebounds. She has five triple-doubles this season and 11 for her college career.

After losing its top four scorers from last season’s Elite Eight team, TCU needed a talent infusion that could pick up things quickly. Miles and fellow transfers Marta Suarez (17.2 PPG, 7.3 RPG) and Clara Silva (8.9 PPG, 7.3 RPG) did that this season. — Voepel

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Olivia Miles scoops and scores for TCU

Olivia Miles gets to the rim and draws the and-1 for TCU.

Coach of the Year

Shea Ralph, Vanderbilt

Ralph, the former UConn standout guard and longtime Huskies assistant coach, has returned Vanderbilt to elite status, including the recruitment of players such as Blakes and Galvan. In her fifth season with the Commodores, Ralph was named SEC Coach of the Year and led them to a tie for second place in the league standings at 13-3 (27-4 overall); both win totals marked the most Vanderbilt has ever had in the regular season.

This will be Vanderbilt’s third consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament after an eight-year drought. As a projected No. 2 seed, the Commodores have a good opportunity to advance to the regional semifinals for the first time since 2009. — Voepel

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UCLA routs Iowa for second straight Big Ten title

No. 2 UCLA Bruins defeat No. 9 Iowa Hawkeyes 96–45 to capture back-to-back Big Ten titles.

All-Americans

First team

F Sarah Strong, UConn
C Lauren Betts, UCLA
G Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt
G Azzi Fudd, UConn
G Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame

Second team

F Madison Booker, Texas
F Joyce Edwards, South Carolina
G Olivia Miles, TCU
G Jaloni Cambridge, Ohio State Buckeyes
G Olivia Olson, Michigan Wolverines

Leaving Booker off the first team was the most difficult decision with our All-America teams, especially coming off her MVP performance in the SEC tournament. But if not Booker, which player would come off the first team instead? Strong, Blakes and Betts were easy picks. Hidalgo did have the occasional tough shooting night but might be the best two-way player in the sport, if Strong isn’t. Fudd’s shooting efficiency from deep is so important to UConn’s success and she, too, has become an elite defender. Booker and her 18.9 points per game were certainly deserving. We just ran out of room.

Not including Iowa State‘s Audi Crooks on either team was another tough decision. Blakes is the only player in the nation who averaged more points per game than Crooks (25.5 PPG).

It’s worth noting that seven of the 10 All-Americans are underclassmen. With the healthy return of JuJu Watkins next season, the competition for these spots won’t get any easier. — Creme