Well, that's one way to start the free agency period. The NFL's official tampering period started yesterday (officially starting the free agency period), and almost immediately, shots were fired. With a loaded free agent class and plenty of teams with cap space, tons of players switched teams. From expected re-signings to surprise additions, we had a lot of exciting moves all around.

Naturally, with these moves, there will be winners and losers from the entire first day. Let's go around the league and see who are the biggest winners and the losers from the first day of the NFL free agency period.

Winners: Philadelphia Eagles

The San Francisco 49ers showed a blueprint to turn a solid team into one of the best in the league. San Francisco already had a pretty great offense, with Brock Purdy leading a team with Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, and George Kittle. Not content with that lineup, the team went and traded for superstar Christian McCaffrey a few years ago. Now, the 49ers are arguably the best team in the NFC.

The Eagles seem to have taken a page out of the 49ers playbook by swinging for the fences. In the opening hours of free agency, they quickly snagged ex-New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley to a massive deal. Philadelphia knows all too well how good Saquon is, so signing the star as soon as he was available was a no-brainer.

That move alone would make the Eagles clear winners in the free agency period. Keeping Landon Dickerson and Brandon Graham was also nice. What really puts Philly over the top, though, is their signing of star EDGE Bryce Huff. Huff is an underrated pass-rusher that will thrive in any situation.

Losers: Minnesota Vikings

Now, this piece is about Day 1 of the 2024 free agency, so we're really not counting the recent signing of Aaron Jones as part of the Vikings' evaluation. Still, even with Jones' arrival, the Vikings' NFL free agency period has been absolutely dreadful, mainly due to the departures.

Despite their best efforts, the Vikings were unable to convince Kirk Cousins to stay. As soon as the NFL free agency period started, Cousins signed a massive deal to join the Atlanta Falcons. It's a tough blow for Minnesota, and their situation is only made worse by what happened around the league.

Baker Mayfield re-signed with the Buccaneers way before the NFL free agency period started. Mayfield was believed to be the team's backup plan in case Cousins did not resign. Now that both Mayfield and Cousins are out, the team had to turn to Sam Darnold. This could also impact their ability to sign Justin Jefferson to a new extension.

Winners: This year's RB class

Last offseason, the biggest talking point around the NFL was the decline of the running back position. Teams were unwilling to sign names such as Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs, and Tony Pollard to new deals. All three were slapped with the franchise tag, and other running backs suffered a similar fate.

This time around, though, NFL teams are much more willing to sign the big-name running backs to long-term deals. We already touched on Barkley getting a new deal and Jones, but here's a list of other running backs that got paid this offseason.

  • Josh Jacobs – Packers (4 years, $48 million)
  • Austin Ekeler – Commanders (2 years, $11.43 million)
  • Tony Pollard – Titans (3 years, $24 million)
  • D'Andre Swift – Bears (3 years, $24 million)
  • Zack Moss – Bengals (2 years, $8 million)
  • Devin Singletary – Giants
  • Gus Edwards – Chargers (2 years, $3.375 million)

There's also other free agents waiting to be paid. Jones was quickly picked up by the Vikings, and Joe Mixon should get some good offers as well. Derrick Henry is reportedly nearing a deal with the Ravens.

Loser: Mac Jones

What a fall for Mac Jones. A few years ago, people were wondering if he would be the next franchise QB for the Patriots. Asking him to mimic the NFL's GOAT was always futile, but the hope was that his strong rookie year would be an indicator of his future performance.

Instead, four years later, and Jones was traded to the Jaguars (a team with an established quarterback) for pennies on the dollar. Just goes to show how quickly things can change.

Winners: Rest of the NFC North

While the Vikings suffered huge losses in the offseason, the rest of the NFC North thrived in the NFL free agency period. We already hinted at the Packers acquiring Josh Jacobs. While they had to let Aaron Jones go, they also went and signed a top safety in Xavier McKinney.

The Bears, on the other hand, added more pieces around their budding roster. Swift was productive in Philadelphia, and the hope is that he'll provide excellent run support for the Bears' next QB. In addition, Chicago retained their CB1 in Jaylon Johnson and signed star safety Kevin Byard to a deal.

The Lions had a relatively quiet offseason, but it's been nothing but solid moves for them. Resigning a part of their offensive line in Graham Glasnow and key CB Emmanuel Moseley are good deals. They also went and agreed to a trade for Buccaneers CB Carlton Davis.

Losers: Carolina Panthers

Being a Carolina Panthers fan seems to be an absolutely miserable experience huh. In the span of a few years, they traded away their young stars for draft picks, all in the name of rebuilding.

It's easy to forget that just a few years ago, the Panthers had one of the most promising cores in the NFL. They had McCaffrey, Brian Burns, and DJ Moore. One could argue they were one good free agency away from competing. Now, Carolina is left with next to nothing. Bryce Young and a few Day 2 and 3 picks are all they have left. In fact, they lost more draft capital trading for Darnold than they got for all three guys! Ain't that unfortunate.

Conclusion: NFL free agency is insane

The NFL free agency period is not even close to being done. There are still a lot of big-name free agents still available. Most of the WR class, as well as a few star EDGE rushers, are still on the board. It will be interesting to see what developments happen as the offseason goes on.