2026 NFL free agency: Projecting new contracts for 20 players - ESPN

NFL free agency is unpredictable. But that's not going to stop us from trying to predict it.

With the NFL's legal negotiating window set to open at noon ET Monday and the new league year starting at 4 p.m. ET next Wednesday, it's time to start figuring out who's going where and for how much money. So this represents what I think might happen next week with 20 of the top free agents, based on the reporting I've done on and around free agency so far.

Some of these projections will look silly a week from now. Others could look absolutely brilliant. But this is a snapshot of how the people around the NFL I'm talking to are sizing things up with a few days to go, knowing of course that a lot can change over the course of one frantic weekend. So enjoy. Get mad. Get your hopes up. But no matter what, get ready for some big contracts.

Jump to a player:
Willis | K.Walker | Etienne | Pierce | Evans
Shaheed | Doubs | R.Walker | Linderbaum
Hendrickson | Phillips | Oweh | Mack | Mafe
Franklin-Myers | Lloyd | Q.Walker | Brown
Watson | Cook | Others

Contract projection: Two years, $44 million with $32 million guaranteed

This would represent a $1 million-per-year improvement over the contract Justin Fields signed with the Jets last year. That deal paid Fields $20 million guaranteed in 2025 and guarantees $10 million of his $20 million salary in 2026. Willis doesn't have nearly as much NFL game experience as Fields did this time last year, but he has better vibes around him than Fields did after his Pittsburgh benching and could have multiple teams interested. Willis has six career starts, including one last season, and he has thrown six TD passes to zero interceptions over the past two years (along with three rushing scores).

Predicted