For these 5 NFL teams, the 2025 offseason can't end soon enough: Lions, 49ers are trending downward

Examining the five NFL teams that had the worst offseasons

The 2025 NFL offseason is cruising along with all 32 teams turning their attention to OTAs and mandatory minicamps. We may still be awaiting a resolution to the Trey Hendrickson saga and fighting through another bout of Aaron Rodgers fatigue, but the preseason is right around the corner.

Which teams made the best moves as we enter the month of June? The Chicago Bears hired Ben Johnson to serve as their new lead man, the New England Patriots went on a spending spree with new head coach Mike Vrabel while the Minnesota Vikings completely revamped their defense. 

Perhaps a more interesting question is which teams made the worst moves? The New York Jets replaced Rodgers with Justin Fields, the Indianapolis Colts added Daniel Jones to compete with Anthony Richardson, the Seattle Seahawks traded Geno Smith away for Sam Darnold while the Tennessee Titans and Kansas City Chiefs took some interesting swings at left tackle in free agency. 

Let's break down the five teams that had the worst offseason, starting with one that some didn't expect to read about. 

5. Detroit Lions

The Lions are likely to be a playoff team in 2025, but we are really about to find out what this team is made of -- and at +160 to miss the postseason according to FanDuel Sportsbook, it's worth thinking about a flyer after a tough offseason. Detroit lost both its offensive and defensive coordinator this offseason, and both leaders were incredibly important when it comes to the team's recent rise.

Ben Johnson established himself as one of the best offensive coordinators in the NFL, and oversaw a unit that put up more points than any team in the league last year, and more points than any Lions team before (33.2 points per game). The 29.0 points per game the Lions averaged after Johnson took over as offensive coordinator in 2022 ranks first in the NFL, and he helped Jared Goff continue to develop after he was thrown aside by the Los Angeles Rams. Now, Johnson will be leading the rival Bears.

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Jared Dubin

Aaron Glenn is a former NFL cornerback who is also ready for his opportunity as a head coach. Detroit's scoring defense rank improved each season under Glenn's leadership, and that includes a jump from No. 23 to No. 7 over the past two seasons. The Lions also increased their number of takeaways each season under Glenn. 

Dan Campbell is viewed as one of the best coaches in the NFL, but Johnson and Glenn were the architects of the offense and defense, respectively. Now, there is significant pressure on new offensive coordinator John Morton and new defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard. 

Do you remember what happened to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023 when they lost Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon? After a 14-3 campaign which ended in the Super Bowl, the Eagles went 11-6 in 2023, and limped to the finish line, losing five out of their last six regular-season games. Then, Philly was destroyed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the wild-card round, 32-9. The hires of Brian Johnson and Sean Desai did not work. They could not replace what Steichen and Gannon brought to this team. Can Morton and Sheppard replace what Johnson and Glenn did for Detroit? 

There wasn't a high amount of turnover when it came to the Lions' roster this offseason. Most notably, they swapped Carlton Davis for D.J. Reed at cornerback. However, Goff did lose two important offensive linemen in right guard Kevin Zeitler and center Frank Ragnow. The former signed a new deal with the Titans in free agency, while the latter surprisingly retired on Monday. Detroit has high hopes for No. 57 overall pick Tate Ratledge out of Georgia, but Zeitler and Ragnow were two consistent difference-makers up front. One of the best offensive lines got a bit weaker. Speaking of the trenches, why didn't the Lions add another legitimate starting pass rusher to pair with Aidan Hutchinson? 

The Lions still have plenty of talent, but losing the leaders of both your offense and defense in the same offseason is tough. What is Goff going to look like without Johnson? And with Johnson game-planning against him twice a year? It's fair to say Detroit is expected to take a step backwards this season. After winning 12 games in 2023 and 15 games in 2024, BetMGM Sportsbook has the Lions' Over/Under win total listed at 10.5! That's in large part because the NFL gave the Lions a very, very tough schedule. Eight of Detroit's nine road games come against teams that finished above .500 last season, which is the most in NFL history.

4. Miami Dolphins

Mike McDaniel caught the attention of the NFL world by quickly developing Tua Tagovailoa and building an offense that sometimes can look like the most explosive unit in the league, but the dirty truth is that Miami just doesn't beat good teams. Under McDaniel, the Dolphins are 24-9 vs. non-playoff teams, and 4-14 vs. playoff teams. McDaniel is also still looking for that first postseason win.

Did the Dolphins improve this offseason? It's hard to answer in the affirmative when you lose a talent like Jevon Holland in free agency. Miami had a solid draft, and put an emphasis on shoring up the trenches with defensive tackles Kenneth Grant and Jordan Phillips plus offensive guard Jonah Savaiinaea, but are those players that will get Miami over the hump?

The vibes feel low in Miami, don't they? The Dolphins' offseason got off to a terrible start when Tyreek Hill told reporters in the locker room that he was "out" directly after the regular-season finale. Hill did more than just walk back those comments. He came to OTAs humble and focused on winning back the trust of his teammates. Hill even said he doesn't deserve to be voted a team captain. That's honorable, but I would rather have Tyreek, the outspoken confident personality that believes Tua is the best quarterback of all time, than Tyreek, the somber wide receiver who is the subject of trade rumors.

Speaking of trade rumors, star cornerback Jalen Ramsey is expected to be dealt soon. General manager Chris Grier made it clear in April that Ramsey wouldn't be on this roster in 2025, and it's a huge hit to what could be the worst secondary in the NFL this season. 

3. Cleveland Browns

With Deshaun Watson expected to miss the 2025 season after re-injuring his Achilles, the Browns decided to construct the weirdest quarterback room of all time. Former Comeback Player of the Year Joe Flacco is back at 40 years old, and Cleveland also traded for former Steelers' first-round pick Kenny Pickett. Then, the Browns famously made headlines in the draft.

At No. 94 overall, the Browns selected Dillon Gabriel out of Oregon. While he was a Heisman finalist, Gabriel is pretty undersized and doesn't have the kind of throw power you want. Taking him in the third round was fairly shocking. If that pick wasn't controversial enough, the Browns then took the next quarterback off the board by halting the slide of Shedeur Sanders.

Why did the Browns draft two quarterbacks? And why did they draft these two quarterbacks? Does either even have a shot to start this year? Some teams like to avoid "distractions," but the Browns LOVE them. Not only did they want to be the team to stop the most infamous draft slide of all time, but they made sure to draft a different quarterback ahead of him, too. Why would we expect anything different from the franchise that traded for a quarterback facing 20+ lawsuits and hand him a historic fully-guaranteed contract?

Speaking of the draft, is the Browns' trade down from No. 2 overall going to age poorly? Cleveland passed on the best player in the draft -- who played two different positions at a high level -- for a defensive tackle. Not only that, but I feel as though the Browns didn't get enough from the Jacksonville Jaguars to move down.  

It was a first-round swap (No. 2 for No. 5), a second-round pick, a first-round pick next year and a fourth-round pick swap with a sixth-rounder going back to Jacksonville. When you lay it out like that, it doesn't sound like a blockbuster trade, right? One team prioritized the reigning Heisman Trophy winner who also won the Biletnikoff award and Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, while the other team did not. 

There's not much reason to be optimistic about Cleveland moving forward. The offensive line is still a question mark and Pro Bowl linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah has already been ruled out for the season. You may be shocked to learn that the Browns are -1000 to finish last in the AFC North over at BegMGM Sportsbook. Or maybe not shocked.

2. San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers' 2024 season was a disaster and the offseason wasn't much better. No team lost more talent, as safety Talanoa Hufanga, linebacker Dre Greenlaw, offensive guard Aaron Banks, cornerback Charvarius Ward, defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, offensive tackle Jaylon Moore, pass rusher Leonard Floyd, defensive tackle Maliek Collins and running back Elijah Mitchell are now playing for new franchises. The 49ers also traded away versatile offensive weapon Deebo Samuel and running back Jordan Mason. 

Meanwhile, the 49ers' free agency class is headlined by tight end Luke Farrell and wide receiver Demarcus Robinson. Bryce Huff is an interesting addition via trade, but he was a disappointment in Philadelphia last season. According to CBS Sports Research, San Francisco's $264 million free-agent spending deficit from players lost to players acquired was the largest in NFL HISTORY.

Teams with the worst deficit in free agent spending over the last five seasons

Year	Team	Season win change
2024	Dolphins	-3
2023	Eagles	-3
2022	Cardinals	-7
2021	Steelers	-3
2020	Cowboys	-2

The exodus of talent is a clear reason why San Francisco had one of the worst NFL offseasons, but this issue could be amplified with Brock Purdy at quarterback. 

Most NFL fans can admit Purdy is a good starting quarterback, but the question is how good? How many other NFL quarterbacks would you take over him if you were starting your own team? On one hand, Purdy has the highest yards per attempt (8.9) and passer rating (104.9) in NFL history, but he needs plenty of talent around him to be successful. 

Purdy has a career record of 27-15, including playoffs. However, he has a losing record (10-11) when any of his "big five" does not suit up -- a list which includes Christian McCaffrey, Trent Williams, Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle and Samuel. That "big five" is no more, as Samuel was traded away this offseason, so Jauan Jennings or Ricky Pearsall will have to step up and produce at a high level. Can Purdy return to MVP form with less talent around him in 2025? The 49ers are +146 to miss the playoffs. On paper, this is not an obvious playoff-caliber team. 

1. New Orleans Saints

The Saints are seemingly never big players in free agency because of their cap situation, but they added a couple of notable pieces such as former Chiefs safety Justin Reid and a 31-year-old Brandin Cooks. New Orleans also lost some notable pieces such as cornerback Paulson Adebo and safety Will Harris, but without a doubt the headline of the Saints' offseason was the retirement of quarterback Derek Carr. It turns out that his right shoulder injury, which popped up out of nowhere, was serious. The Saints described it as a labral tear accompanied by significant degenerative changes to his rotator cuff, so New Orleans loses its QB1 without much warning.

Carr wasn't a quarterback that pushed Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson for MVP, but he was definitely the best option the Saints had. Consider that he went 5-5 as the starer for the Saints last year while the combination of Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener went a combined 0-7. Even though Carr missed seven starts due to injury, he finished the 2024 season ranked top 10 in completion percentage (67.7%), yards per attempt (7.7) and TD-INT ratio (15-5).

To replace Carr, New Orleans selected former Oregon, Texas Tech and Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough with the No. 40 overall pick. It appears there was considerable love for Shough behind the scenes, with one anonymous NFL coach even saying he believed Shough was the top quarterback in this class. Yes, even better than No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward. Shough possesses legitimate arm talent and is uber competitive, but he will turn 26 years old early in his rookie season, and has dealt with numerous serious injuries such as a broken collarbone and broken fibula. Is he really the answer for New Orleans?

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Ryan Wilson

Even if the Saints wanted to add another quarterback, who would that be at this point? Rodgers already said no thanks, and it would be shocking if the Atlanta Falcons traded Kirk Cousins within the division. Over at BetMGM Sportsbook, the Saints are not only -200 to finish in last place in the NFC South, but also tied with the Browns in having the best odds to finish the regular season with the least amount of wins.

Some fans are excited about Carr no longer being in the fold, but did the 5-12 Saints get better this offseason?