The start of the new league year means that all 32 teams are free to make trades or sign free agents to their roster. Between now and August, only the top 51 contracts count toward the salary cap. This means that teams that might need to make cuts this summer could theoretically have room to sign players. Let’s take a look at some early offseason moves that could have a big impact on the upcoming season.

Kyler Murray is Going to the Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings likely regret getting rid of Sam Darnold after watching him win the Super Bowl this past year. Instead, the team opted to give the keys to the offense to J.J McCarthy, who repaid that trust by missing several games due to injury.

Kyler Murray will likely be the starting quarterback this season. The best part from the Vikings standpoint is that they will only owe him $1.3 million while Arizona pays the rest.

Murray was a former first overall pick and led the Cardinals to the playoffs in 2021. He has also been to the Pro Bowl twice. The only potential downside to the deal is that Murray cannot be given the franchise tag at the end of the year. Therefore, the Vikings would have to sign him to a long-term deal now if he plays well.

Maxx Crosby Staying in Las Vegas

The Las Vegas Raiders had a nonbinding deal with the Baltimore Ravens to send him to Baltimore in exchange for two first-round picks. However, the Ravens backed out of the deal claiming that Crosby failed a physical. Although it’s true that Crosby just had surgery, he was expected to be back by the late summer at the latest.

This poses a couple of problems for the Raiders as they no longer have an extra pick in the first round this year. They also have to account for Crosby’s roughly $30 million salary next year. While the Raiders likely have the cap space to keep him on the team, they did also spend hundreds of millions of dollars on other free agents.

Ultimately, this could hamstring the team’s efforts to build around presumptive first overall pick Fernando Mendoza. Even if the team does decide to trade Crosby in the future, it’s unclear whether they would get the same level of compensation. Regardless, it does little to provide any sort of immediate help to a team that thought it was going into a full rebuild.

George Pickens Gets the Non-Exclusive Tag

George Pickens rejuvenated his career after being traded from Pittsburgh to Dallas. He emerged as a true number one wideout while CeeDee Lamb was injured last season. Therefore, it’s no surprise that there is a market for his services this offseason.

By placing the non-exclusive franchise tag on Pickens, they have the right of first refusal if another team signs him to an offer sheet. If the team refuses to match it, they will receive two first-round picks from the club that signs him.

If no offer is made, Pickens would return to Dallas on a one-year contract worth just over $27 million. It’s also possible that the team could sign Pickens to a long-term deal, and that is something the team and player have expressed interest in.

Kenneth Walker III Could Put Kansas City Back on Top

Kenneth Walker III was perhaps the most coveted running back on the open market. He was the MVP of the most recent Super Bowl, but he didn’t feel like he was appreciated for his efforts in Seattle.

However, the Chiefs have been desperate for any semblance of a running game for a couple of years now. Therefore, they had no qualms giving him a three-year deal worth up to $45 million. He will almost certainly be the top back leapfrogging Kareem Hunt in the backfield rotation.

The presence of Walker III will be even more important as it’s unclear if Patrick Mahomes will be ready in time for the season opener. Even if he is, the Chiefs would likely want to ease him along. Having a strong running game can take the pressure off of Mahomes and the rest of the team trying to bounce back from a 6-11 finish.

Buffalo Remakes Its Defense on the Fly

Buffalo has signed edge rusher Bradely Chubb, safety Geno Stone and safety CJ Gardner-Johnson over the span of 48 hours. These signings will shore up areas that were thin after a spate of cuts and trades made in an effort to reallocate salary cap dollars.

The Bills are changing their scheme on defense this year after firing Sean McDermott in January. If Stone or Gardner-Johnson have anything left to offer, they should pair nicely with returning safety Cole Bishop.

Although the regular season doesn’t start for another six months, the landscape for this year is already taking shape. More clarity will come after the draft in April as teams fill positions of need and start putting their 53-man rosters together. Of course, there will likely be a few surprise cuts, trades or signings that mean little now but could mean a lot in February.