{"id":253995,"date":"2025-11-09T13:30:21","date_gmt":"2025-11-09T18:30:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=253995"},"modified":"2025-11-08T19:45:54","modified_gmt":"2025-11-09T00:45:54","slug":"4-teams-could-sign-top-nfl-free-agent-josey-jewell-gem-ranked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/11\/09\/4-teams-could-sign-top-nfl-free-agent-josey-jewell-gem-ranked\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Teams Could Sign Top NFL Free Agent Gem, Ranked"},"content":{"rendered":"

The NFL playoffs are getting closer every week, so this means postseason contenders across the league are likely to sign a few players on the free agent market to prepare, and this could include linebacker Josey Jewell. Bleacher Report predicts<\/a> that Jewell is still a top 10 free agent, even though his latest release from the Carolina Panthers was due to concussion symptoms, but there’s still a chance that he could return, as he’s likely to be healthy now. Barring any circumstances that he can’t play, he should be able to garner interest from teams that need linebacker depth at a minimum, as teams will be reluctant to start him.<\/p>\n

4 Teams Could Sign Top NFL Free Agent Gem Josey Jewell, Ranked<\/h2>\n

The Panthers were hopeful to bring Jewell back once he is healthy, but it’s been quiet on his side, so it’s hard to imagine that teams will trust his abilities to go unless stated otherwise. However, when healthy, Jewell recorded 97 tackles, 3.5 sacks, seven tackles for loss and an interception to end his campaign last year. Although injuries caught up to him, Jewell has an open future and should earn at least a one-year contract. Originally selected fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft, the former Iowa product signed a three-year deal before the concussions.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, he couldn’t turn things in the right direction, but these four teams could present an opportunity.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

1. Cincinnati Bengals<\/h3>\n

After trading Logan Wilson to the Dallas Cowboys and coming close to shipping Trey Hendrickson<\/a>, the Bengals could use all of the help they can get on defense. With Hendrickson hitting free agency after the 2025 campaign, the team will likely need to start from scratch. Cincinnati has one of the worst pass secondaries, but the mess starts with the defense upfront. Jewell won’t drastically change things, but he could be a solid veteran for a team that must figure things out to give quarterback Joe Burrow plenty of opportunities to stay on the field.<\/p>\n

\"bengals
Main Photo: Sam Greene\/The Enquirer-USA TODAY NETWORK<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

2. Washington Commanders<\/h3>\n

While the Commanders are 3-6 and likely to miss the playoffs for the first time under the Dan Quinn era, it shouldn’t stop them from improving the defense. Jayden Daniels<\/a> luckily didn’t tear anything, but the Commanders must keep him safe and ready for 2026. With Bobby Wagner and Von Miller likely to retire after the season, the team will be in the market for a linebacker to help Frankie Luvu. Jewell could fill the void, and if Jacob Martin can start on this defensive line, then the Commanders’ defense could change for the better.<\/p>\n

\"Bobby
Jan 12, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin (17) and linebacker Bobby Wagner (54) celebrate after winning a NFC wild card playoff against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

3. Dallas Cowboys<\/h3>\n

While the Dallas Cowboys are close to being out of playoff contention, Jerry Jones isn’t giving up. After trading for Quinnen Williams<\/a> and Logan Wilson to strengthen the defense, the Cowboys are still clearly trying to make a last-minute run to be a wild-card team at least. The Cowboys need depth on defense as Damone Clark and Jack Sanborn have failed to live up to expectations, but Jewell could be a reliable factor in situational moments.<\/p>\n

\"damone
Main Photo: Chris Jones-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

4. San Francisco 49ers<\/h3>\n

After failing to make any trade before the deadline, the San Francisco 49ers could sign Jewell as a last-minute rental. The team lost Nick Bosa<\/a>, rookie Mykel Williams and Fred Warner in one season, so they can’t ignore upgrading the defense somehow. Jewell might be the linebacker the 49ers want long-term, but it could be beneficial to alleviate the pressure off Tatum Bethune, Dee Winters and Luke Gifford.<\/p>\n

\"Nick
Sep 14, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa (white headband) looks on against the New Orleans Saints during the first half at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The NFL Playoffs are looming and these four possible teams could sign this free agent gem before the season is over. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4795,"featured_media":253996,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[36,30,7,19,6431,31,8896],"tags":[1051,7739,7725,7422,3879,4445,7661,4776,7325,2573,8996],"class_list":["post-253995","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl-news","category-panthers","category-bengals","category-cowboys","category-nfl-teams","category-49ers","category-washington-commanders","tag-bobby-wagner","tag-carolina-panthers-news","tag-cincinnati-bengals-news","tag-dallas-cowboys-news","tag-josey-jewell","tag-nick-bosa","tag-panthers-featured","tag-quinnen-williams","tag-san-francisco-49ers-news","tag-trey-hendrickson","tag-washington-commanders-news"],"modified_by":"Anthony Palacios","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253995","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4795"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=253995"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253995\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":254000,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253995\/revisions\/254000"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/253996"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=253995"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=253995"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=253995"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}