NFL - Free Agent WRs - On the Move
WR Greg Jennings, MIN (WR - #14)
The soon to be 30 year old face of the Old Spice commercials will likely be catching passes from someone other than Brett Favre / Aaron Rodgers when he starts his 8th season in the NFL. The Pack view him as expendable based on the injury concerns and the fact that they have a wealth of riches with Jordy Nelson Randall Cobb and James Jones returning. After averaging 75 catches for 1,223 yards and 8 TDs from 2008-2010, Jennings' production has tailed off dramatically over the past two seasons. He's missed 11 games the past two seasons due to groin/knee injuries and is coming off a disastrous 2012 regular season that ended with just 36 catches for 366 yards and 4 TDs. Jennings could serve as a solid WR2 addition for a number of WR needy teams, but he's unlikely to land a major contract amid injury / age concerns.
WR Mike Wallace, MIA (WR - #13)
Despite a down 2012 (64 catches for 838 yards and 8 TDs), the 26-year-old Wallace figures to be the most sought after free agent this offseason. The speedster is unlikely to return to Pittsburgh after they invested $42.5 million (6 years) in WR Antonio Brown last offseason. The Ole Miss alum averaged 66 catches for 1,225 yards (77 YPG) and an eye popping 18.8 YPC during the 2010-2011 seasons. The Miami Dolphins are already licking their chops as they have a ton of cap room and appear likely to meet his contract demands of 5 years $60 million. Despite the blazing speed , Wallace does have his blemishes as he's struggled with butterfingers and ranked in the bottom tier of WRs in catch percentage in 2012. His fantasy outlook will depend heavily on whether he lands in a system with a QB willing and able to take full advantage of his game breaking speed.
Injury Status: Injured ReserveWR Wes Welker, DEN (WR - #22)
The soon to be 32 year old Texas Tech alum has been a PPR monster topping 100 catches in five of the past six seasons as Tom Brady's go to weapon in the slot. Welker also has been reliable, having only missed five games during his nine year NFL career. The Pats are not in a favorable cap position and initial reports from Foxboro seem to indicate that they will let Welker test the open market where he is sure to be a coveted acquisition and command top dollar. New England could opt to franchise tag Welker for the 2nd consecutive year ($11.4 million), buying them another year but that doesn't appear likely despite Tom Brady's desire to keep his security blanket in Foxboro.
UPDATE: On February 25th, Tom Brady signed a contract extension that will result in New England gaining some extra cap space this offseason, which could very well result in Wes Welker remaining with the Pats.
