The cacophony of the NFL's first few days of free agency is over. As we stretch out into week two, though, the second- and third-tier free agents -- still very good players just below that "marquee" status -- are getting scooped up by smart teams.
I gave you a few "winners" from the first week's free-for-all's last Friday, but let's take a quick tour around the league to break down a few more front offices that have made interesting or high-ceiling moves over the past couple days.
Washington's understated/underrated haul: "It's a big man's game"
Scot McCloughan has a very strong reputation for evaluating personnel, and thus far I've liked his moves in Washington as the new general manager.
Right out of the gate, he released Barry Cofield and Stephen Bowen in the interest of cap space, then signed solid rotational DT/DE Ricky Jean-Francois, who had just been released by Indianapolis. McCloughan followed up that move by bolstering the line with versatile free agent defensive lineman Stephen Paea, and on Thursday he added former Broncos nose tackle Terrance Knighton. Washington lost Brian Orakpo in free agency, but added Jean-Francois, Paea and Knighton, a front line that includes Jason Hatcher, Ryan Kerrigan and 2014 second-rounder Trent Murphy.
McCloughan has hit the ground running on building his new team out from the trenches, a strategy that paid dividends with his last two teams in Seattle and San Francisco.
"I'll never lose sight of this, and maybe I'm a dinosaur in this, but it's a big man's game," McCloughan said when he was the Niners' GM. "That's from the standpoint of holding up through a season durability-wise, but also in the playoffs. You have to have some size and some power and strength, I think, to be a contender year in and year out."
Of course, McCloughan recognizes that it doesn't end there. He re-inked move tight end Niles Paul, an interesting pairing with Jordan Reed. Over the weekend, he bolstered the defensive secondary by signing former Niners' corner Chris Culliver and former Seahawks' safety Jeron Johnson. Not a shabby start.
SB Nation presents: NFL mock draft following big free agent signings
Speed kills
In addition to re-signing pass rusher Jerry Hughes, which was a great get for Buffalo's new head coach, Rex Ryan has shown that one of his top priorities is adding dynamic playmaking ability to the offense. He quickly traded Kiko Alonso for Shady McCoy, one of the shiftiest players in the league, then last week they inked Percy Harvin to a one-year deal.
Buffalo already has one of the best defenses in the NFL -- they're stacked -- but in stockpiling weapons on offense, the obvious hope is to balance the ledger a little bit and score more points. Harvin is a threat in the return game and has that home-run-hitting ability every time he touches the ball. However, he won't be relied upon to be "the man" in Buffalo, which means he'll likely see a lot of single coverage. That could be fun to see, though. He joins Sammy Watkins and LeSean McCoy as the Bills' offensive triumvirate, but don't forget about speedsters Robert Woods and Marquise Goodwin. Even tight end Chris Gragg has some speed to run up the seam.
Additionally, it's being reported that the Bills are making a hard run at Miami tight end Charles Clay, who got the transition tag from the Dolphins. Clay would be yet another great and versatile weapon for Buffalo.
It all starts with the quarterback position, of course, but if EJ Manuel or Matt Cassell can improve in 2015, that could be a pretty interesting offense.
Rams take a chance
If there was one thing the Rams needed, it was more defensive linemen.
Fairley becomes the fifth first-rounder on the St. Louis front line, joining Chris Long, Robert Quinn, Michael Brockers and Aaron Donald, completing what's sure to be the most intimidating defensive line in football. For the Rams, it's an intriguing move in adding a very talented but risky player, and for Fairley, it's an interesting choice to go to a team where he'll ostensibly play a rotational role as a backup.
The Rams go strength, on strength, on strength with this signing, and the newly-svelte Fairley has a lot to prove as he looks to put some tape out there for when he's seeking a long-term deal next year.
Bengals re-sign Michael Johnson in a coup
Defensive end Michael Johnson signed a five-year, $43 million deal with Tampa Bay last year and was released after only one season. He returns to the team he spent the first five seasons of his career with on a four-year, $20 million deal. Johnson brings with him a (likely) third-round compensatory pick in 2015, which the Bengals earned for losing Johnson to the Bucs last year.
That's how you debate!
Browns add some quality depth
The Browns quickly lost cornerback Buster Skrine to the Jets, tight end Jordan Cameron to the Dolphins and Jabaal Sheard to the Pats, but they buoyed those casualties by signing a couple of solid veterans on Monday.
Green Bay free agent corner Tramon Williams comes in to add depth in the secondary, and versatile defensive lineman Randy Starks should be a nice piece to an already solid front line. Cleveland's back four includes Joe Haden, Justin Gilbert, Donte Whitner and Tashaun Gipson. Williams should compete with and push Gilbert, who struggled in his first season.
Dolphins add weapons
Miami made free agency's biggest splash in signing Ndamukong Suh, of course, but they also made a couple of interesting moves this past week in signing Jordan Cameron and trading for Kenny Stills. Cameron has legit 4.5 speed at the tight end position, and we all know that Stills' biggest asset is his downfield prowess. With those two on the field with Jarvis Landry, that would be a pretty talented trio.
Texans continue to add pieces
I've been a fan of what Houston has done in free agency thus far, inking Brian Hoyer and Rahim Moore, and re-upping Kareem Jackson, Ryan Mallett and Derek Newton. On Monday, they kept things going by signing veteran Patriots free agent Vince Wilfork, who brings even more talent to an already strong defensive front.
Wilfork will join J.J. Watt and Jadeveon Clowney and make the Texans' fearsome up front, in name-value anyway. Assuming guys can get healthy, though, there's some solid potential to really put things together in 2015. With Whitney Mercilus, Jared Crick, Jeoffrey Pagan, John Simon and a returning Louis Nix, the depth on that line has a lot of promise.
Raiders finally spring into action
The Raiders came into free agency expected to be major players, and while they weren't able to land Suh or some of the other high-profile free agents, they've added some good players nonetheless. The headliners for their free agent class are center Rodney Hudson -- who replaces outgoing Stefen Wisniewski -- and nose tackle Dan Williams, a very solid run-stuffer. Safety Nate Allen is a big signing as well, and he'll be penciled in as the starting strong safety in 2015.
Oakland also added weak side linebacker Malcolm Smith, adding some depth to Ken Norton's defense, and inked Curtis Lofton for depth. On offense, I liked the addition of Roy Helu.
Chiefs shore up their secondary, work on offense
The Raiders' AFC West mates in Kansas City added some depth to their secondary as well, re-signing Ron Parker and Kelcie McCray while adding Tyvon Branch. A trade for Ben Grubbs and the addition of Paul Fanaika helps them on the offensive line, and signing Jeremy Maclin should help in the passing game.
Saints having a crazy offseason
It looks like a fire sale in New Orleans, and it was reported that everyone except Drew Brees and Brandin Cooks were on the trade block. Despite trading away Jimmy Graham, Ben Grubbs and Kenny Stills, the Saints stayed active in free agency and added a few key players for 2015.
They beefed up the running back spot by adding C.J. Spiller (they already re-signed Mark Ingram as well) on Friday, and they added Brandon Browner to their secondary -- both moves that I actually like for them despite all the offloading of talent they've already initiated.
Spiller is a natural fit for that "Darren Sproles" role in Sean Payton's offense, and when paired with Brandin Cooks he makes this Saints offense still very hard to game plan from week to week. Browner is limited in some respects, but is still a physically intimidating enforcer that can add some toughness and experience to a defense looking to bounce back next year. It probably wouldn't hurt for him to coach up Stanley Jean-Baptiste as well.
SB Nation presents: The Saints took part in a frenzy of trades just before free agency