At this point of the offseason, there are not many premier-caliber edge rushers on the free-agent market. However former Buccaneers pass rusher Jason Pierre-Paul is arguably the best pass rusher available. After completing a two-year $25 million deal with Tampa Bay, he hit free agency. Here are the potential landing spots for Jason Pierre-Paul.
Background
Pierre-Paul was traded to the Buccaneers back in 2018. He has re-established himself as one of the league’s best pass rushers during his four years with the Buccaneers. Pierre-Paul was voted to the Pro Bowl and won his second Super Bowl in 2020. After a down year where he only had 2.5 sacks in 12 games, Pierre-Paul finds himself looking for the NFL team of his career.
There are plenty of teams that could use Pierre-Paul, at minimum, as a situation pass rusher. At age 33, Pierre-Paul may not be the Pro Bowl level pass rusher he was earlier in his career but he can still be a solid starter for a team. He could get a team close to ten sacks if he has a consistent role for their defense.
Arizona Cardinals
There isn’t another team in the league that has a more concerning edge rusher room than the Arizona Cardinals. After losing Pro Bowler Chandler Jones in free agency, Arizona did not bring any notable veterans in to replace him. Instead, they drafted defensive ends Cameron Thomas and Myjai Sanders in the third round to possibly start opposite Markus Golden. Neither of them are expected to have a major impact on the team outside of taking major reps early on for the Cardinals.
Arizona would be a perfect fit for Jason Pierre-Paul for a few reasons. Established veterans, like Pierre-Paul, have signed with the Cardinals late in their careers because they are potentially interested in retiring in a warm-weather state. He would be a great compliment for Markus Golden who had 11 sacks this past season. Pierre-Paul would be capable of starting opposite Golden until either Thomas or Sanders is ready to take over as a full-time starter for this defense.
Los Angeles Rams
The Super Bowl Champion Los Angeles Rams took a massive blow this offseason when they lost Von Miller to the Buffalo Bills in free agency. Losing Miller flew under the radar because Los Angeles signed former Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner in free agency. Wagner was a great addition to their defense but could not affect opposing offenses in the same way Miller did. Besides the play of Matthew Stafford, it was the pass rush created by Aaron Donald, Von Miller, and Leonard Floyd that make the Rams unstoppable down the stretch. Now with Miller out of the picture, Los Angeles will have to find another way to create that level of pass rush.
Jason Pierre-Paul would be able to cement his legacy as a Hall of Famer if he won a third Super Bowl. There is no better team to ring-chase with than the current Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams. He could be a key contributor for this Rams defense that is lacking a pass rusher opposite Leonard Floyd. He doesn’t have to be Von Miller for this defense to be great. But if he can take some attention away from Aaron Donald or take advantage of the one-on-ones he’ll get against opposing offensive tackles and rack up big sack numbers for the Rams, he would be a great value signing.
Carolina Panthers
Last season Carolina’s pass-rush duo of Haason Reddick and Brian Burns dominated for the Panthers’ front seven. However, now that Reddick is a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, Carolina must rely on Burns and third-year pass rusher Yetur Gross-Matos to rush the passer from the edges. Burns was voted to his first Pro Bowl this past season but Gross-Matos has been disappointing since being selected in the top-40 of the 2020 NFL Draft. The Panthers may want to bring in veteran competition to compete with Gross-Matos for starting edge rusher reps opposite Burns.
Carolina may not be the most attractive destination because they aren’t expected to win a lot of games next year. However, Pierre-Paul may want to play for this young talented defense where he could have a starting role. He could serve as a mentor to Burns and Gross-Matos who are both under the age of 25. Pierre-Paul would be some stiff but necessary competition Gross-Matos who must show this season that he is the team’s long-term answer opposite Burns.
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens have already made a great value signing during the post-NFL Draft period of free agency by picking up former Pro Bowl cornerback Kyle Fuller. They should consider making another investment in a veteran pass rusher to join their rotation of edge players. Baltimore got great production out of 2021 first-round pick Odafe Oweh last year and fifth-year player Tyus Bowser led the team with seven sacks this past season. Even after adding Michigan pass rusher David Ojabo in the second round, Baltimore should add another veteran to fill the role left by Justin Houston on this defense. Ojabo is a freak athlete with a high ceiling. However, after tearing his Achillies during his Pro Day there is a good chance he doesn’t make his NFL debut until November.
Baltimore has a long history of recruiting veteran players to be the finishing touches to their Super Bowl-caliber teams. They are one of the most consistent franchises in the NFL every single season from coaching, personnel, and record standpoint. Last year Justin Houston was a great veteran player to have in a rotational role for this edge rusher group. Pierre-Paul is in a similar situation to what Houston was in last offseason when the Ravens sign him. He could compete and rotate with Bowser and Oweh until Ojabo is ready to play.
Kansas City Chiefs
Many may think the Kansas City Chiefs got a lot worse this offseason by losing Tyrann Mathieu and Tyreek Hill. However, the Chiefs used the assets made available to them by losing those star players to retool their roster. The Chiefs spent a lot of their available salary-cap space on pass catchers to replace Hill. While they used a lot of their draft capital to continue building their defense. A pass rusher was a major need for Kansas City before they drafted Purdue edge rusher George Karlaftis in the first round. Now the Chiefs have solid bookend defensive ends in Karlaftis and Pro Bowler Frank Clark. However, a contending team could never have enough pass rushers on their roster.
Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnolo had Jason Pierre-Paul as his best pass rusher back when he was the defensive coordinator for the Giants from 2015 to 2017. That familiarity could be enough for him to possibly want to bring Pierre-Paul onto Kansas City’s roster. Karlaftis is an unproven commodity and Clark has struggled to stay healthy and produce at a consistent level over the last few seasons. There are a few scenarios where Pierre-Paul could start for the Chiefs. But worst-case scenario, Pierre-Paul could be a rotational pass rusher and veteran presence in a locker room with Super Bowl aspirations.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers have been one of the best teams in the league at getting after the quarterback the past few seasons. A major reason for their success has been the emergence of T.J. Watt as the best edge rusher in the league. This past season Watt broke the single-season sack record posting 23.5 sacks. Alex Highsmith primarily lined up opposite Watt and had a career-high six sacks this past season. Even with Highsmith being a productive pass rusher opposite Watt, the Steelers should consider bringing is another pass rusher similar to how they brought in Melvin Ingram last offseason.
After Watt won defensive player of the year this past season it is very likely he starts receiving the same treatment Aaron Donald and Myles Garrett receive from opposing offenses. That means more triple teams from tight ends, tackles, and guards. Pittsburgh should consider bringing in another pass rusher to take some pressure off of Watt. Highsmith is solid, but Pierre-Paul is only one season removed from being a Pro Bowler. If Pierre-Paul is given one-on-one opportunities consistently against opposing defenses he could be a productive pass rusher despite his older age. Playing for a prestigious organization like the Steelers could be something Pierre-Paul could be interested in after winning two Super Bowls with his previous two teams.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
At this point of the offseason, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers re-signed Jason Pierre-Paul. They are set at the edge rusher position after paying Shaq Barrett and drafting Joe Tryon-Shoyinka in the first round last offseason. However, it couldn’t hurt to bring Pierre-Paul back on a cheaper deal to be a rotational player for their defense.
Pierre-Paul’s familiarity with the scheme could be a reason why he would return there. Rather than learn a new playbook, he’d be in the system he has played in for the past three years. Defensive coordinator Todd Bowles is now the head coach of the Buccaneers which means he could have more say over personnel. This year is expected to be Tom Brady’s last year with the Buccaneers and playing football, so the team should sign whatever veterans they can to give it one more go for a Super Bowl.
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