You might not know it if you’ve paid any attention to sports media over this week, but the actual start of the 2026 NFL free agency period isn’t until this afternoon at 4 p.m. What that means practically is that even though multiple deals involving star players moving to new teams on big contracts have already leaked or been announced, none of those deals is official until late this afternoon.

Either way, there’s lots at stake in this year’s free agent signing period, and by “lots” we mean “of dollars”.  That’s in part because the league’s salary cap, or the limit on how much each team can pay players on its final 53-man roster, jumped from $279.2 million last season to $301.2 million for the 2026 league year. And while that only represents about a 7.9 percent increase, in real dollars it means each team has $22 million more to spend. And spend they are.

Already, some big-name players have found new teams willing to back up the Brinks truck. That includes Odafe Oweh, an edge rusher who the Washington Commanders lured from the Los Angeles Chargers with a deal worth $100 million, including $68 million in guarantees,  over the next four years.

Offensive players got in on the action, too. Wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson got $70 million over four years to jump from the New York Giants to the Tennessee Titans, while Romeo Doubs, who played the same position for the Green Bay Packers will get $68 million to catch and run for the New England Patriots for the next four seasons. It’s worth noting that Doubs is replacing another former New England star receiver, Stephon Diggs, who the Patriots cut last week, making him one of the bigger free agent names to watch as teams continue signing players.

While it’s not unusual for pass rushers like Oweh or receivers like Robinson or Doubs to get big bags in free agency, one thing that’s glaringly missing from this year’s free agency class so far is a mega-deal for a quarterback. So far, besides former Green Bay backup Malik Willis’ three-year, $67 million deal with the Miami Dolphins, no other free agent quarterback has signed an eight-figure deal. And while, yes, seven figures is a lot, the numbers reflect a down year for quarterbacks in a league the best signal callers make nine-figures and even average starters are in the eight-figure range.

But there are still deals yet to come. Former first-round draft pick Kyler Murray was cut by the Arizona Cardinals and is rumored to have a landing spot with the Minnesota Vikings, but nothing’s official yet. The Cardinals still owe Murray $36.8 million in guaranteed money for 2026. The slot Willis is taking in Miami was formerly occupied by Tua Tagovailoa, who was also released with a whopping $54 million in guarantees owed to him by the Dolphins. The remaining money from old contracts means both those players are unlikely to cost their new teams much money in the short term.

Some other big free agent names to watch:

receiver Tyreek Hill, who the Dolphins cut after an injury-shortened season;

Brandon Aiyuk, the San Francisco 49ers receiver who last played in the 2024 season, is expected to be released as early as Wednesday afternoon;

left tackle Rasheed Walker, who protected the blind side for Jordan Love and Willis in Green Bay over the past two seasons, should be in line for a nice payday; 

David Njoku, an athletic tight end last seen struggling through injuries and quarterback chaos with the Cleveland Browns.