NFL free agency: Top 5 receivers available

NFL free agency doesn’t start until the tampering period gets underway on March 12 at 4 p.m. ET, but every team and their fanbases are looking at the upcoming class. Who can help the team, how much will they cost and are they worth the potential impact?

Some positions are stronger than others this year. The offensive linemen are almost non-existent outside of Andrew Norwell, Matt Slauson and Justin Pugh. The pass-rushers are few and far between with the likes of Ezekiel Ansah, Trent Murphy, Alex Okafor and Junior Galette being the top prizes (DeMarcus Lawrence and Adrian Clayborn are never getting to the open market).

However, the class of wide receivers is both intriguing and deep, and could be of interest to a host of franchises.

Everybody already knows about Jarvis Landry. Landry has enjoyed a tremendous start to his career with the Miami Dolphins, last year leading the NFL with 112 catches. At 25 years old, the former LSU star has already racked up 22 touchdowns and 4,038 yards despite playing his games with Ryan Tannehill, Jay Cutler and Matt Moore under center.

With Landry as the top prize, he is going to command top dollar. The Chicago Bears would make a ton of sense as an interested party considering their motley crew of receivers. If Mitchell Trubisky is ever going to become the player general manager Ryan Pace believes him to be, there must be help coming. Another obvious landing spot would be the Houston Texans, who have long needed a compliment to DeAndre Hopkins on the outside. Factor in Deshaun Watson bouncing back from a torn ACL, and Houston’s offense would suddenly be very scary.

A low-cost, high-upside bargain could be Allen Robinson. Robinson spent the first four years of his career all but tucked away with Blake Bortles and the Jacksonville Jaguars, with the latter fo those campaigns cut short in Week 1 with a torn ACL. In 2015, Robinson was prolific and earned a Pro Bowl nod with 80 catches, 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns. The following year, Bortles held him down to 883 yards and six touchdowns. Only turning 25 years old in August, Robinson would make sense in a bevy of spots, especially for a contender.

Other names to keep an eye on include Sammy Watkins and Paul Richardson. Watkins helped the Los Angeles Rams make the playoffs for the first time in more than a decade, catching 39 passes for 593 yards and eight scores. Only 24 years old and a former top-10 pick, he should have a robust market.

Richardson is unheralded, but talented. Blessed with top-end speed, the former University of Colorado star finally broke out in 2017, snatching 44 passes for 703 yards and six touchdowns.