As the NFL Draft Season approaches, there is another equally important part of the off season which is about to begin.  That is of course, Free Agency.  There are over 200 NFL players who are about to become Unrestricted Free Agents.  There are some big names, like Terrell Owens, and Gary Brackett.  Some medium names, like the only #49 in the NFL, Tony Richardson, and Adrian Peterson.  (Not THAT Adrian Peterson.)  And plenty of no names, like Langston Walker, and former Steeler, Brian St. Pierre.

No one in their right mind cares much about where 90% of these guys wind up.  Of those remaining, about half will be big news, but ultimately won’t matter in the grand scheme of things.  That remaining 5% of free agents will find new homes, or the same home, and shape the 2010-11 NFL season.

The really big news here is that Ladainian Tomlinson was released by the Chargers.  It’s not every day teams get a chance to just sign a sure fire Hall of Famer.  On the other hand, how much does he have left in the tank?  He wants a ring, so there are only so many teams that he would consider.  Super Bowl losers, Indianapolis might be the perfect fit, as their running game was atrocious last year, and this sort of leadership might be what the team needs to put them over the hump.

It seems that Terrell Owens is a free agent every year.  And there is a great chance that the 36 year old is going to be on his third team in as many years.  It doesn’t really matter where he goes, when the man signs a contract, it will be breaking news, and analysts will talk about Owens for days.  It’ll be sexy news, but Owens will have the same impact on his new team that he had on the Bills this last year.

Karlos Dansby has been the Linebacker getting the most attention.  He was likely the best defensive player on his team.  That team, the Arizona Cardinals, were 20^th in the league in total defense.  This may not be Dansby’s fault, but that also should not put him ahead of fellow linebacker free agent Gary Brackett, who’s Indianapolis Colts finished 18^th in total defense.  However, the Colts tend to take care of their own, and Brackett will probably resign.  Dansby will get off the sinking ship, and sign with another team for bigger money.  Dansby is the bigger story.

Scott Fujita and Darren Sharper were major contributors in the New Orleans Saints run to the Super Bowl.  It seems that teams that win it all would want to keep said team intact.  It never works out that way.  Fujita may or may not be back.  The aging Sharper, despite having a great year, is probably going to find work for another team and/or command a smaller paycheck.  On the other hand, there is a saying, “Strike while the iron’s hot.”  Sharper’s iron has never been hotter, and he COULD wind up being overpaid.

The last group of free agents that will make news are offensive linemen.  When these men sign, the only news will be footnotes and ten second news stories.  But the likes of a Chad Clifton, or center, Keven Mawae can have a huge positive effect on whatever team they wind up signing with.  The casual fan will not know why their team is better, but it will happen.

The draft may get most of the attention this off-season, as unproven commodities jockey for position, and fight for enormous contracts.  Free agency, and the safer bets, are where most teams will make their improvements.  Get ready for it.