Let's stack the 10 biggest upgrades at specific positions since the end of last season, including three teams' linebacker units.
Let's stack the 10 biggest upgrades at specific positions since the end of last season, including three teams' linebacker units.
Ben SolakMay 29, 2026, 06:30 AM ETCloseBen Solak joined ESPN in 2024 as a national NFL analyst. He previously covered the NFL at The Ringer, Bleeding Green Nation and The Draft Network.
Ben SolakMay 29, 2026, 06:30 AM ET
It's the end of May. NFL free agency is done. Trades are mostly done (looking at you, A.J. Brown). The draft is done. Even the second wave of postdraft free agency is wrapping up, with players like Jauan Jennings and Dante Fowler Jr. committing to teams. Save for the supplemental draft in late June (which might end up mattering this year with Brendan Sorsby), all of the big offseason events for player acquisition are complete.
With the dust settled, I listed the 10 positional groups I think improved the most from the end of 2025 to kickoff of the 2026 season, specific to teams. Plenty of groups that made big acquisitions failed to make the cut, as their standard of play from last season was too high to begin with. For instance, Alex Anzalone and Josiah Trotter make a great new linebacker duo in Tampa Bay, and I admire how well the Buccaneers filled that hole. But they only had such a great need because they lost Lavonte David to retirement, and he was a great player right until the end.
I'm focusing more on the biggest net gains from last season to now, not just the best additions. As such, here are my 10 groups that have taken the biggest leap over the past few months -- and what we can expect from them moving forward.
Jump to a position improvement for: ARI | CIN | CLE | LV | LAC LAR | NYG | TEN | WSH
1. Arizona Cardinals running backs
In: Jeremiyah Love, Tyler Allgeier
Out: Michael Carter, Emari Demercado
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