Free agency is supposed to be a game-changer… A chance for NFL teams to land that one missing piece—and make a run at Super Bowl glory.
GMs, player personnel execs, and owners are all after a franchise-altering move. But sometimes—it doesn’t alter their franchise in the way they’d have hoped.
We’re talking about the signings that made fans question not just their team’s front office but their fandom itself!
From overpriced quarterbacks to washed-up stars who had no business inking multi-year deals, these are the 20 BIGGEST free agent busts in NFL history—ranked from bad to worst!
Which free agency signings in the NFL turned out to be massive busts?
20. Dallas Cowboys: Mike Vanderjagt, K
The Cowboys took a chance on the most accurate kicker in NFL history at the time—which did raise some eyebrows, not just because of the price tag but also because of all the noise he had made in the media following the brutal season-ending missed field goal for the Colts—and Peyton Manning subsequently calling him an “idiot kicker” for his antics.
If you’re paying a kicker top-tier money, he better be ice-cold in the biggest moments—not a guy that the head coach is terrified to even bring out for the easy kicks!
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But that is exactly what transpired as all of the warning signs came true.
Vanderjagt lasted 11 games, hitting just 72% of his kicks, and had so little leg strength that Bill Parcells actively avoided sending him out for anything beyond 35 yards. A far cry from his Pro Bowl campaign in 2003 when he famously went 100% on field goals and extra points for Indy!
19. Houston Texans: Brock Osweiler, QB
In another classic case of a quarterback starved team getting desperate, the Houston Texans shocked everyone when they offered Osweiler a 4-year, $72 million deal in 2016.
Osweiler had looked serviceable filling in for Peyton Manning in Denver, but did that really warrant $72 million from the Texans? Spoiler alert: It did not.
Houston bet on potential, but what they got was a guy who made bad reads, missed open receivers, and struggled to complete even basic throws. He was benched before the season ended, and the Texans had to bribe the Browns with a second-round pick just to take his NFL contract off their hands.
18. Washington Redskins: Deion Sanders, CB
Fresh off a year of Super Bowl glory in Dallas, Deion landed in Washington on a contract that made him the highest-paid defensive back in NFL history.
But one season in, it was clear: The passion wasn’t the same, and, thus, the playmaking wasn’t there.
Deion just… wasn’t Primetime anymore. He retired after one season with $8 million in the bank and Washington’s front office looking dumbfounded.
17. San Diego Chargers: David Boston, WR
One year removed from a monster season in Arizona where the wide receiver went for nearly 100 catches, 1598 yards, and eight touchdowns, the Chargers backed up the Brinks truck for Boston, despite him battling injuries the immediate year prior—only to realize he was more interested in lifting weights and fighting with his coaches than actually playing football.
After one season, the Chargers ate the loss and traded him away just to get rid of the headache.
16. Cleveland Browns: Andre Rison, WR
The Browns literally took out a loan to sign Andre Rison. That’s how sure they were that he was going to be their number-one receiver for the next half-decade.
How did Rison repay them for the fattest deal a wide receiver had gotten to date, five years and $17 million?
He caught less than half his targets and left the team the following offseason when their move to Baltimore was announced.
15. New York Jets: Neil O’Donnell, QB
Fresh off a Super Bowl run with Pittsburgh, O’Donnell cashed in with the Jets. But in typical Jets fashion, this one blew up in their face.
O’Donnell played in just six games his first year due to injury—and lost every single one of them. The Jets finished 1-15, which was the worst season in franchise history. By Year 2, he was benched for Glenn Foley, as he and new head coach Bill Parcelles never saw eye to eye—largely because of his inability to perform. By Year 3, he was out the door—with nothing to show but an 8 and 12 record as a starter.
Keep in mind, his five-year $25 million dollar deal was the biggest free-agent contract in franchise history at the time, too!
14. Oakland Raiders: Desmond Howard, WR/KR
Some players peak at just the right moment to secure the bag. Desmond Howard was that player.
The Raiders went all in bringing the former Heisman Trophy winner to town after he earned MVP Honors in Super Bowl 31, making him the second consecutive Super Bowl MVP to get a fat deal from the Raiders.
He played well as a return man but couldn’t come close to making the kind of impact that his contract warranted—they needed him to raise his level as a wide receiver.
Despite the payday, Howard never delivered in that role. In two seasons with Oakland, he failed to crack 30 receiving yards in a single year… Yes… 30. And he caught just one touchdown pass in that span.
By the end of his second season, it was clear the Raiders had overpaid, and the two sides parted ways.
13. Cleveland Brown: Jeff Garcia, QB
The Browns thought they were getting a proven leader when they signed Garcia to a four-year, $25 million deal in 2004.
He had been a three-time Pro Bowler in San Francisco, had led the 49ers to multiple playoff appearances, and had thrown for over 30 touchdowns in two out of his last three seasons.
For a team that had been cycling through quarterbacks like a late-season sitcom goes through cast members, Garcia was supposed to be the guy to bring stability.
Instead, Cleveland remained the NFL’s Bermuda Triangle for quarterbacks. Garcia started 10 games, going 3-7, completing just 57% of his passes, and throwing nearly as many interceptions with nine as touchdowns… 10.
He finished with an abysmal 76.7 passer rating, ranking near the bottom of the league—and the Browns cut him after one season—only to have him revive his career elsewhere!
12. New York Jets: Le'Veon Bell, RB
Bell spent the entire 2018 season sitting out after failing to reach a long-term deal with the Steelers. He bet on himself, and the Jets rewarded him with a four-year, $52.5 million contract—a huge investment for a running back in an era where the position was rapidly losing value… and from Day 1… it was a disaster.
His patience behind the line of scrimmage, once his biggest strength, turned into a liability behind a shaky Jets offensive line. And Adam Gase—the brilliant offensive mind the Jets hired—openly admitted he never even wanted Bell on the roster and, in many ways, actively sabotaged the back.
Bell made it just one season and two games before the Jets pulled the plug, eating the cap hit and moving on.
11. Atlanta Falcons: Kirk Cousins, QB
Atlanta had been stuck at 7-10 for three straight years, and with Arthur Smith mercifully out the door, the Falcons needed a new direction… and they decided to roll the dice on a 35-year-old Kirk Cousins, who was coming off an Achilles surgery!
Cousins, unfortunately, did not look like the same guy as he did in his prime. The mobility was even more diminished and he couldn’t get comfortable in the pocket.
By the end of the season, Cousins was benched for Michael Penix Jr., meaning the Falcons front office signed a backup quarterback to a $180 million dollar deal—with $100 million guaranteed. Just insane!
10. Philadelphia Eagle: Nnamdi Asomugha, CB:
At the time, the signing made all the sense in the world. Asomugha was coming off three Pro Bowl seasons in a row with the Raiders and was widely building a reputation as one of the best shutdown corners in football.
The Eagles, fresh off a playoff appearance, thought they were one superstar away from taking the next step.
They went all-in and paid Asomugha $60 million over five years, which made him the face of their new-look defense, prompting backup quarterback Vince Young to infamously dubbed the Eagles the “Dream Team.”
Turns out, it was a nightmare… Maybe that’s where Meek Mill got his inspiration for his famous hit!
The Eagles went 12-20 in his two seasons, the Dream Team collapsed, and Asomugha became the symbol of it all. He was cut after two years, and just like that, his career was over as he set sail for Hollywood.
9. Houston Texans: Ahman Green, RB
Green was a four-time Pro Bowler with Green Bay, a workhorse who racked up five 1,000-yard seasons and was once among the best all-purpose backs in the NFL. But by the time he hit free agency in 2007, the wear and tear was catching up.
Houston, however, saw a marquee name and gave him a four-year, $23 million deal, hoping he’d be the offensive centerpiece they lacked. Instead, they got a shell of the player he used to be, who played 14 total games in two years, contributing 554 rushing yards and one of the worst dollar-to-production ratios of any free-agent running back ever.
8. Washington Redskins: Adam Archuleta, S
When Washington signed him to a six-year, $30 million deal, he was supposed to be the next great hybrid safety—an athletic playmaker who could roam the field and be a difference-maker in coverage.
Unfortunately, he was a woeful mismatch for their system and got shipped out of town in the middle of his first year with the team.
7. Jacksonville Jaguars: Nick Foles, QB
The Jaguars, desperate for a franchise quarterback, threw $88 million at Nick Foles, fresh off his Super Bowl MVP run with the Eagles.
Foles broke his collarbone in the first quarter of the season. By the time he returned in November, Gardner Minshew had already taken over the team, and Foles’ play was so bad that he was benched again after three games—and didn’t remain a Jag much longer after that.
6. Washington Redskins: Albert Haynesworth, DT
Washington gave Haynesworth $100 million in 2009—the first nine-figure NFL contract ever handed to a defensive player and he proved all the doubters right by refusing to play in Washington’s defensive scheme, showing up out of shape, clashing with coaches, and openly quitting on the team.
Put simply, Albert Haynesworth secured the bag and checked out.
He was benched in year two and jettisoned out of town the following year to the Patriots for a fifth-round pick.
5. Detroit Lions: Trey Flowers, DE
In 2019, Detroit was desperate to upgrade its pass rush. Matt Patricia, fresh off his first season as head coach, was determined to recreate the Patriot Way in Detroit.
And what better way to do that than to pay $90 million for a player who had thrived under him in New England?
He was limited to just seven games in each of his first two seasons and was released by Year 3, causing Detroit to eat a bunch of dead money in the process—with just 3.5 sacks in return.
4. Los Angeles Chargers: J.C. Jackson, CB
Jackson signed a whopping five-year, $82.5 million deal fresh off a career year with New England, and the Chargers thought they were getting an elite lockdown corner to build around.
What they got instead was a guy who played seven games in two years—and looked completely unplayable—before being traded back to New England for a sixth-round pick, while L.A. ate a nice cap hit in the process.
3. Seattle Seahawks: Franco Harris, RB
After a contract dispute with Pittsburgh, Harris signed a nice deal with the Seahawks in 1984 in hopes of finishing his career strong. Instead, he lasted eight games, rushing for just 170 yards before getting benched, as his heart clearly was no longer in it.
Harris retired after that year. The cost wasn’t massive, considering it was a $600K deal, but considering the expectations coming off another 1000-yard season in Pittsburgh, this was a huge disappointment for Seattle.
2. Philadelphia Eagles: Demarco Murray, RB
Some free-agent signings don’t just fail—they implode spectacularly. And it doesn’t even have to be because the player is entirely washed up!
Fresh off a historic 2014 season in Dallas—where he led the NFL with 1,845 rushing yards, won Offensive Player of the Year, and carried the Cowboys to a 12-4 record—Murray hit free agency as the league’s premier running back.
Philly, their division rival, tried to swoop in, but Murray didn’t fit into Chip Kelly’s offense at all.
Murray’s frustration boiled over when reports surfaced that he went behind Kelly’s back to owner Jeffrey Lurie, complaining about how he was being used—and he finished the season with a mere 702 yards.
One year later, the Eagles dumped him onto the Titans for a mid-round pick.
Adding insult to injury? Murray instantly rebounded in Tennessee, rushing for 1,287 yards and making the Pro Bowl.
1. New York Giants, Kenny Golladay, WR
The Giants—desperate for a number one receiver to revive their offense—handed Golladay $72 million to be their guy.
Granted, he was just one year removed from back-to-back 1000-yard seasons, but there were reasons that few other NFL teams were competing for his services.
In his first year in New York, he had just 37 receptions and didn’t record a single touchdown… and it never got much better. He was released after the 2022 season, having recorded just 43 catches for 602 yards and one touchdown.
