5 NFL Free Agents Whose Careers May Be Coming to an End

Despite a crazy NFL free agency happening already, there are still several big named players who are without teams. Many of these guys are veterans who seem to be dropping off from their normal play style. Will guys like Adrian Peterson or Demarco Murray find a team? How long do these guys have until they’re watching from home? Today we break down which NFL free agents careers ending are right around the corner.

Adrian Peterson

One of the best running backs of this generation, Adrian Peterson is still in great physical shape. He has the speed, the power and the strength every coach dreams of in their running back. However, Peterson just turned 33 years old, which in running back years is very old. Since 2016 he’s played for 3 different teams and that will go up to 4 if he is signed by another team in this offseason. His rushing totals have clearly fallen off and he’s not the player he used to be. Now the major question is will Adrian Peterson be signed to a roster this year or is career over? I personally think a team will sign him after the NFL draft, but for a very low amount. He will get a low year, low salary deal and will have a very limited role. His best case will be to split carries, but that might even be a lot. If AP’s career doesn’t end this year it surely will not too long in the future.

DeMarco Murray

Murray’s career has been very interesting. He had a phenomenal year with the Dallas Cowboys in 2014 before falling off a cliff in 2015 with the Eagles. He then moved to the Titans where in 2016 he had a very solid year. Then in 2017 he had another sub par year. Now as an unsigned free agent, things do not look well for the 30 year old back. I will just come out and say that he will be signed before the start of the 2018 season. Despite this confidence, I am way less confident on the role he will have on the team that does sign him. There’s been rumors of him going to teams like Miami or Seattle, but no offer has been made between a team and Murray. Wherever Murray does end up going, he’ll likely be splitting carries and I’m just not sure how much he has left in the tank.

Jay Cutler

After getting a surprisingly large amount of money to be the Dolphins starter for a year, Cutler is again without a team. The only way it seems he’d be willing to play again is if he would be a starter, which in the current NFL doesn’t seem like a possibility. If I were a GM I wouldn’t waste my money here and I’d let Jay Cutler retire from football for real this time.

Eric Decker

In my opinion Decker had one of the most disappointing seasons in 2017. After going to Tennessee I was really hoping Decker would have been able to flash the potential he has shown in his past. However, he managed to put together just 563 yards receiving and one touchdown. Will a team sign the 31 year old Decker? Of course someone will. The question is will he be able to be a productive starter for that team. Personally, I’d love to see him go back to the Broncos and backup Thomas and Sanders. He’d fit great there as a 3rd or 4th option, which at this point in his career is where he should be. I am worried a team will sign him expecting him to be a number 2 option and it seems that is something Decker just cannot do anymore.

COLIN KAEPERNICK

Alright, this may be my most controversial part of this article, but I am going with my gut. I think Kaepernick deserves to be on a roster. Not only that, I think he’s got what it takes to be a productive starter in this league. He is a pretty productive QB who honestly doesn’t make that many mistakes. Yes, he’s not going to throw for 4000 yards but he’s also going to throw less than 10 interceptions too. Excluding one year, he’s never had a single season below an 80 passer rating in his entire career. Yeah, 80 isn’t great but in his last season as a starter, his rating was 90.7. Looking at stats from this season, that mark is higher than guys like Dak Prescott, Derek Carr and Cam Newton. I get a lot of people do not like him because of his protests and the distraction that creates, but as an NFL GM I think they should look past that. It’s not like the guy is out on the streets getting arrested or skipping practice. If a team wants to roll the dice on Kaepernick I can guarantee he’d work his butt off day- in and day- out and earn his spot on that team. Even if he’s signed as a backup, he’d still make an impact over time and the fact that this guy isn’t even on a roster just blows my mind. Now I hope Kaepernick’s career isn’t over, but unless a team is really really confident in his onfield abilities, I am not so sure he’ll get another opportunity to prove people how talented he is.

Written by Casey Spilka