NFL

Long time lurker, first time poster here...

Basing this post off of (shortlinked), which was fantastic like a week ago.

Fun answers throughout that one and I think this take could be quite controversial given Jerry Rice's 22 TDs in a short 1987 season or Megatron's rec yards record in 2012... maybe even Cooper Kupp's 2021 season, but...

1493 receiving yards and 23 touchdowns (on only 98 receptions, stupid efficient) in 16 games. Can't imagine anyone breaks the 23 TD mark any time soon even with the extra game being played. Is Randy Moss' 2007 season the best WR peak season in NFL history?

I've never posted on Reddit before, but I feel compelled because of this sub's collective meltdown due to Ryan Poles's actions (or supposed lack thereof) since the free agent signing period opened yesterday. Because so many people appear to sincerely believe that spending large amounts of money in free agency is a legitimate means by which to construct a successful football team and are thus convinced that Poles is committing a grievous error of judgement by refusing to sign premium players to high-dollar deals, I'd like to present the following list of NFL teams by total money spent in free agency over the last four years , which was obtained from a very helpful that I recommended reading. I've also included how many playoff appearances (PA) each franchise has made during the same period, as well the number of conference championships (CC) and Super Bowls (SB) they've won. Teams are listed in descending order, and monetary figures are rounded to the nearest million.

Though I doubt this information will mollify the ever-present and rapidly-expanding legion of hysterics who've decided that Chicago Bears fandom is a good fit for their overexcitable temperaments, I hope everyone else finds it interesting.

Top 16 NFL Teams by Free Agent Spending: 2020-21 - 2023-24

• New York Jets: $346MM; 0 PA

• Jacksonville Jaguars $324MM; 1 PA

• Cincinnati Bengals: $287MM; 2 PA; 1 CC

• Miami Dolphins: $270MM; 2 PA

• Las Vegas Raiders: $249MM; 1 PA

• New York Giants: $240MM; 1 PA

• Carolina Panthers: $234MM; 0 PA

• New England Patriots: $230MM; 1 PA

• Denver Broncos: $229MM; 0 PA

• Chicago Bears: $227MM; 1 PA

• Los Angeles Chargers: $222MM; 1 PA

• Houston Texans: $206MM; 1 PA

• Cleveland Browns: $204MM; 2 PA

• Buffalo Bills: $198MM; 4 PA

• Washington Commanders: $197MM; 1 PA

• Tennessee Titans: $159MM; 2 PA

As you can see, the 50% of NFL teams who spent the most in free agency during the past four years combined for a grand total of 20/56 playoff appearances, 1/8 conference championships, and zero Super Bowls during that period. To get a little more granular, the 10 highest spending franchises made nine total playoff appearances and won one conference championship - with three top 10 teams missing the playoff in all four seasons.

Bottom 16 NFL Teams by Free Agent Spending: 2020-21 - 2023-24

• Kansas City Chiefs: $157MM; 4 PA; 3 CC; 2 SB

• Detroit Lions: $148MM; 1 PA

• Baltimore Ravens: $144MM; 3 PA

• Atlanta Falcons: $141MM; 0 PA

• Pittsburgh Steelers: $130M; 3 PA

• New Orleans Saints: $130MM; 1 PA

• Minnesota Vikings: $126MM; 1 PA

• Arizona Cardinals: $126MM; 1 PA

• Seattle Seahawks: $122MM; 2 PA

• San Francisco 49ers: $111MM; 3 PA; 1 CC

• Philadelphia Eagles: $111MM; 3 PA; 1 CC

• Indianapolis Colts: $96MM; 1 PA

• Los Angeles Rams: $93MM; 3 PA; 1 CC; 1 SB

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers: $84MM; 4 PA; 1 CC; 1 SB

• Dallas Cowboys: $54MM; 3 PA

• Green Bay Packers: $21MM: 3 PA

Relative to the previous group, the 50% of NFL teams who spent the least in free agency have been much more successful over the previous four seasons - combining for 36/56 playoff appearances, 7/8 conference championships, and all four Super Bowl titles. That holds true even if we exclude the Chiefs, as the 10 lowest spending franchises made 24 playoff appearances and won four conference championships and two Super Bowls. Notably, unlike their high-rolling counterparts, every team in the bottom 10 made the playoffs at least once during the period in question.

Conclusion: While there are obviously other relevant factors not included in this analysis, evidence from the past four years strongly suggests that spending lavishly on high-dollar free agents is not only an ineffective means of building a competitive football team, but also it's something that bad teams do and good teams don't. Successful franchises still spend money, but they primarily do it by offering extensions to good players they drafted, not by paying a premium to guys allowed to hit the open market.

TLDR: Long story short, Poles is doing the right thing to establish a foundation for long-term, sustained success. Trust the process.

I don’t understand. This is my 3rd year watching 40+ games. In the NFL if you go out there night in and night out, continuously sucking at your job, you’re going to get cut before the end of the year. Watching guys like Petry, Fischer and maybe even Chiarot. How come something doesn’t happen? As a NFL fan I would imagine it would happen even more with the AHL at hand. I understand the claiming and reclaiming, and our players could get stolen. But, we have a few guys who seem to be “ready” to come up and stay up, and guys like Petry who suck night in and night out on the roster. Why don’t they just cut them like the NFL?