The NFL offseason offers all 32 teams the ideal opportunity to build a Super Bowl champion quickly and easily: through savvy free agent signings, blockbuster trades, and shrewd draft moves.
But not all so-called « blockbuster » offseason moves are successful. In fact, major trades and free agent signings seem to go bust far more often.
Prior to this year’s draft, the New York Jets pulled the biggest move of the off-season trading with Green Bay Packers star and four-time league MVP Aaron Rodgers. With the future Hall of Famer in the fold, the Jets are hoping to a) end a 13-year playoff drought and b) win their first Super Bowl since 1968.
The Patriots will visit Rodgers’ Jets in Week 3 (1:00 pm EST) before welcoming them to the regular season finale at Gillette Stadium on Jan. 7 (time TBA).
The Patriots have not lost to their bitter rivals since Week 16 of the 2015 season, having won each of the last 14 games. Massachusetts sports betting promotions cover New England fans as the Patriots travel to MetLife Stadium to take on Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets this NFL season.
With that said, here’s a look at some of the NFL’s most recent offseason moves that ended up being giant busts.
Washington signs Albert Haynesworth for $100 million
The hulking 6-foot-tall Haynesworth was one of football’s elite defensemen during his tenure with the Tennessee Titans, from 2002 to 2008. He earned back-to-back Pro Bowl and First-Team All-Pro honors after leading the Titans to surprise playoff appearances both years.
A struggling Washington NFL franchise handed the defensive star a seven-year contract worth $100 million in 2009 in free agency. At the time, this was the largest free agent signing in league history.
It also didn’t take long for Washington to feel buyer’s remorse.
In his first season with Washington, Haynesworth complained openly about the club’s defensive scheme. He famously clashed with coaches and was eventually suspended by then Washington HC Mike Shanahan at the end of the 2010 season.
During his two years with Washington, Haynesworth had just 6.5 sacks and 53 combined tackles.
Vikings trade WR Randy Moss to Raiders
Although superstar wide receiver Randy Moss posted a Hall of Fame resume with the Minnesota Vikings in his first seven NFL seasons (1998 to 2004), the organization was content to switch from him in the 2005 offseason.
That year, the Vikings sent the future Hall of Famer to the Oakland Raiders in exchange for 2005 first- and seventh-round draft picks and linebacker Napoleon Harris. Needless to say, it was a trade that backfired on both clubs.
Moss posted a 1,000-yard season in his first year with Oakland, but his stat line dropped to 42 receptions, 553 yards and three touchdowns in 2006, the worst season of his career up to that point.
In 2007, the Raiders traded Moss to the New England Patriots. That same year, Moss set a single-season record for receiving touchdowns with 23. The Patriots won their first 18 games and narrowly completed a perfect 19-0 season, but fell to the New York Giants in Super Bowl 42.
Not that Moss’ trade worked any better for the Vikings. In three years with the organization, Harris had just 4.5 sacks and 116 combined tackles.
With selection no. 7 in the 2005 Draft (via Oakland), they famously outlasted the aforementioned Aaron Rodgers and South Carolina draft pick Troy Williamson. In three years as a Viking, Williamson mustered just 79 receptions for 1,067 yards and three touchdowns.
Jets give Le’Veon Bell $52.5 million
Bell turned down a lucrative multi-year extension with the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2018 offseason. Unsatisfied with his contract status, Bell opted to sit out the entire year in hopes of securing a mammoth contract in 2019 in free agency
The Jets ended up signing Bell to a four-year deal worth $52.5 million. Era reported soon after then-Jets head coach Adam Gase was against the idea of giving that much money back to a running back.
Bell had a forgettable year with the Jets, averaging just 3.2 yards per carry (789 rushing yards and three rushing TDs on 245 carries). Following disagreements with Gase and company at the start of the 2020 season, Bell was released from his contract.
