What to make of the AFC's offseason shopping spree

NFL free agency is typically chock-full of player movement. That's especially true this year because the salary cap rose 14% after an 8% drop in 2021. Teams are wheeling and dealing - and not just by opening their bank vaults to acquire free agents.

The trade market has been especially active, too - particularly for quarterbacks, a position that traditionally doesn't see much movement. Most of that aggressiveness is concentrated in the AFC, where the Patriots' two-decade dynasty is no more, and a host of young, talented quarterbacks upped the competitive ante in 2021.

A conference that began the offseason with Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Justin Herbert, and Derek Carr now also includes Russell Wilson and Matt Ryan, plus Deshaun Watson moving from Houston to Cleveland. Meanwhile, high-end 2021 draft picks Trevor Lawrence, Zach Wilson, and Mac Jones are entering pivotal second seasons. The Titans plan to roll with the efficient (but limited) Ryan Tannehill, the Dolphins are gearing up a new-look offense for Tua Tagovailoa, the Steelers took a cheap, short-term flyer on Mitchell Trubisky, and the Texans intend, for now, to run Davis Mills out there for another rebuilding year.

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And that's it. That's where all 16 teams stand at the quarterback position heading into 2022, pending the addition of more reinforcements in the draft or the acquisition of someone like Jimmy Garoppolo or Baker Mayfield.

But the AFC's arms race hasn't just been limited to QBs. Let's examine what most of the conference's top teams have done to bolster their rosters after a season in which the margin for error was incredibly thin.

Denver Broncos

Key additions: QB Russell Wilson, EDGE Randy Gregory, DT D.J. Jones, CB K'Waun Williams, RT Tom Compton, RT Billy Turner

Key retentions: RG Graham Glasgow, ILB Josey Jewell

Key losses: DL Shelby Harris, TE Noah Fant

What it means: The Broncos spent seven years flailing in their attempts to land a quarterback, and in recent seasons they've been one of those teams that's only a quarterback away from being a postseason challenger with the potential to make a deep playoff run. Wilson, the first major domino to move this offseason, fixes that problem.

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Wilson will have wideouts Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton, and Tim Patrick, tight end Albert Okwuegbunam, and running back Javonte Williams at his disposal - plus a coaching staff that figures to let him rip it. But by keeping Glasgow and bringing back Turner (and adding Compton for depth), the Broncos went a long way toward keeping Wilson upright, something that had been a longstanding problem for him in Seattle.

Denver might have overpaid for Gregory, who has played more than 12 games just once in seven seasons, but that's fine. GM George Paton has referred to Jewell as "the glue that kept our defense together," so bringing him back after he missed all but two games with a pec injury helps complete the defense, too.

Las Vegas Raiders

Key additions: WR Davante Adams, EDGE Chandler Jones, DL Bilal Nichols, CB Rock Ya-Sin, RB Brandon Bolden, DL Vernon Butler, CB Anthony Averett, CB Darius Phillips

Key retentions: EDGE Maxx Crosby, RT Brandon Parker

Key losses: EDGE Yannick Ngakoue, WR Zay Jones, CB Casey Hayward, DL Quinton Jefferson, CB Brandon Facyson, FB Alec Ingold, ILB Nicholas Morrow, ILB Nick Kwiatkoski, ILB K.J. Wright

What it means: After landing in the playoffs with an interim head coach and coming just a few yards shy of knocking off the eventual AFC champion Bengals, the Raiders got super aggressive in the offseason. They traded for Adams and will pay him top-of-the-market money, extended Crosby and signed Jones to bookend him, and swapped Ngakoue for Ya-Sin.

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A huge extension for Carr has to be in the works, too. He has long given the Raiders solid play, while they haven't complimented him with a strong defense. Their new Patriots-influenced brain trust has taken strides to improve that unit, but they still need help at linebacker. Vegas also now lacks a first-and second-round pick in the upcoming draft, so it remains to be seen just how big a step it can take in a loaded AFC West.

Miami Dolphins

Key additions: WR Tyreek Hill, LT Terron Armstead, LG Connor Williams, RB Chase Edmonds, RB Raheem Mostert, FB Alec Ingold, QB Teddy Bridgewater

Key retentions: DL Emmanuel Ogbah, TE Mike Gesicki, ILB Elandon Roberts, TE Durham Smythe

Key losses: WR Allen Hurns, RT Jesse Davis, WR Will Fuller, RB Phillip Lindsay, RB Duke Johnson

What it means: With Armstead and Williams, Miami took big swings to shore up its offensive line. With Hill, the team added a dynamic playmaker to complement Jaylen Waddle and Gesicki. But the additions of Edmonds, Mostert, and Ingold - along with the retention of Smythe - signal that new head coach Mike McDaniel intends to install a Kyle Shanahan-inspired offense that's big on throwing the ball out of heavy personnel packages.

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Only Jared Goff and Ben Roethlisberger had fewer average intended air yards last season than Tagovailoa, according to Next Gen Stats. It seems the Dolphins are doing all they can to create a supportive structure for him, much like McDaniel and Shanahan did for Garoppolo in San Francisco. If all else fails, Bridgewater is there to perform his perpetual backstop role.

Per Spotrac, only the Jaguars doled out more in contractual guarantees this offseason, so Miami is clearly going for it. Given the questions at quarterback, it's fair to wonder whether they're close to getting there, though even after the Hill trade, they still have a pair of first-round picks banked for 2023.

Los Angeles Chargers

Key additions: EDGE Khalil Mack, CB J.C. Jackson, DL Sebastian Joseph-Day, NT Austin Johnson, TE Gerald Everett

Key retentions: WR Mike Williams, RT Storm Norton, WR Jalen Guyton, DT Christian Covington

Key losses: RT Bryan Bulaga

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What it means: Herbert's rookie contract provides the Chargers with oodles of cap resources, and GM Tom Telesco set about using them to shore up a defense that kept the team from making the playoffs last season.

L.A. also spent a bundle ($20 million in average annual value) to retain Williams while also hanging on to Norton and Guyton, thanks to the low costs of the respective restricted free agents. Bulaga barely played in the two years since coming over from Green Bay.

Obviously, playing defense in the loaded AFC West is going to be a tall order, but L.A. did as much as it could to bolster what had been a beleaguered unit, no matter the opponent.

Kansas City Chiefs

Key additions: S Justin Reid, WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling, RB Ronald Jones

Key retentions: EDGE Frank Clark, LT Orlando Brown Jr.

Key losses: WR Tyreek Hill, S Tyrann Mathieu, CB Charvarius Ward, WR Byron Pringle

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What it means: The Chiefs gave up a dynamic talent by trading Hill, but they're playing the long game here in part because they have to. Mahomes signed his big contract extension two years ago, but 2022 is the first season in which the gargantuan cap impact of that deal ($35.7 million) kicks in.

Kansas City has the security of knowing it will have Mahomes for the foreseeable future. Losing Hill will sting, but Andy Reid's as good an offensive coach as there is, and stacking draft capital to have the low-cost ability to maintain a solid roster around Mahomes is important for sustaining the success they've had.

Cincinnati Bengals

Key additions: RG Alex Cappa, C Ted Karras, RT La'el Collins, TE Hayden Hurst

Key retentions: S Jessie Bates III, DL B.J. Hill, CB Eli Apple

Key losses: TE C.J. Uzomah, CB Trae Waynes, CB Darius Phillips

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What it means: The Bengals' Super Bowl loss to the Rams revealed how imperative it was for them to find protection for Burrow - for 2022 and beyond. Cincinnati managed to do just that by locking Cappa and Karras down as soon as free agency opened, then later adding Collins just days after the Cowboys cut him loose.

The Bengals never spend big in free agency, and they didn't break the bank to land some vital pieces. The franchise tag also allowed them to buy an extra year with Bates before he's eligible to hit the market. It looks like another strong spring for a franchise that's quietly been building with solid offseasons in recent years.

Buffalo Bills

Key additions: EDGE Von Miller, DL DaQuan Jones, DL Tim Settle, TE O.J. Howard, WR Jamison Crowder, RG Rodger Saffold

Key retentions: C Mitch Morse, CB Siran Neal

Key losses: WR Cole Beasley, DL Harrison Phillips, RT Daryl Williams, EDGE Jerry Hughes, CB Levi Wallace, EDGE Mario Addison, WR Emmanuel Sanders

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What it means: Buffalo ranked first in defensive DVOA last year, but it needed more on the defensive interior and for its pass rush. The acquisition of Miller, Jones, and Settle does a lot to fix those problems. On offense, Crowder can replace Beasley in the slot, while Howard and Dawson Knox can be a formidable 1-2 punch at tight end.

The franchise will have to put the disappointment of that devastating playoff loss to Kansas City behind it. Over the last five years, GM Brandon Beane and head coach Sean McDermott have shown they're capable of finding the right pieces.

This is a pivotal year for the Bills, too, with Allen carrying a cap figure of $16.4 million. That figure jumps to $39.7 million in 2023 when his extension kicks in. As with the Chiefs' decision to move on from Hill, the Bills will likewise have to make some tough roster choices on an expensive veteran or two next offseason. But they're certainly loaded for bear heading into 2022.

Cleveland Browns

Key additions: QB Deshaun Watson, WR Amari Cooper, WR Jakeem Grant Sr., DL Taven Bryan, DL Chase Winovich, QB Jacoby Brissett

Key retentions: TE David Njoku, RT Jack Conklin

Key losses: WR Jarvis Landry, C JC Tretter, EDGE Jadeveon Clowney, EDGE Takkarist McKinley, DL Malik Jackson

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What it means: Cleveland is now solid all-around, but it also just guaranteed a fortune to a quarterback who could be staring at a significant suspension. Will they or won't they release Mayfield? With him carrying an $18.9-million cap figure and few potential places left for him to land as a starter, that's the next domino to fall.

Dom Cosentino is a senior features writer at theScore.

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