NFL Free Agency: What Teams Look Better and Worse for Madden 26?

NFL free agency kicked off in a major way with hundreds of millions of dollars being thrown around to big and small-name players across the league. Some massive trades went down, teams decided to keep their long-time franchise players at the detriment of their cap space, and huge free agents shocked the world with their team decisions. While there are still a few major players and moves left to go, the initial wave of signings is now over.

With that in mind, there are certainly some teams that vastly improved their outlook on the 2025-26 season while other teams might struggle to reach the same win total they achieved a year ago. All of the signings and trades that occurred during free agency also play a role in how Madden 26 shakes out. Teams will look extremely different when Madden 26 releases in the summer of 2025, and your favorite team could either be much more enjoyable to play as or a drag to play with on both sides of the ball.

While NFL free agency isn’t over yet, we thought it could be an interesting idea to see how the winners and losers of the new year could affect Madden 26. In this article, we’ll go over three teams that look better for the upcoming game and three teams that could be considerably worse.

Three Teams That Look Better For Madden 26

There are some clear winners when it comes to teams that improved their overall roster during free agency so far. Whether that was due to bringing in high-priced free agents, making trades, retaining their own players, or making under-the-radar signings, several teams should be better on paper in Madden 26.

We’ll go over those three teams individually and what moves they’ve made so far in free agency below.

New England Patriots

Let’s kick things off with the team that had the most cap space entering free agency. The Patriots finished with a mere four wins in 2024-25 and are arguably the worst team to play as in Madden 25. However, thanks to a rookie quarterback deal and not too many high-priced players, New England has cash to burn — and burn they did.

The Pats doled out over $200 million on the first day of free agency, inking players like DT Milton Williams, CB Carlton Davis, OT Morgan Moses, and LB Harold Landry to multi-year deals with tons of guaranteed money. New England was also looking to spend even more cash, as they had massive deals on the table for Chris Godwin and Ronnie Stanley before they decided to return home for less money. While the Patriots still have glaring holes at receiver and along the offensive line, their team already looks like the most improved roster for Madden 26.

Chicago Bears

The Bears began to make noise before free agency even began. GM Ryan Poles swung deals for OL Joe Thuney and OT Jonah Jackson to beef up the protection for QB Caleb Williams. Then, when free agency began, Chicago spent some real money to sign the best center on the market in Drew Dalman. Sticking on offense, the Bears also signed TE Durham Smythe as well.

The rest of Chicago’s free agency class thus far is on defense. The two biggest defensive signings have been DE Dayo Odeyingbo and DT Grady Jarrett. While the Bears still need some work on defense, Caleb Williams won’t have to run for his life every play thanks to a much improved offensive line. That should make the Bears a far easier team to play as in Madden 26, and they could still get even better.

Washington Commanders

This one was a toss-up. On one hand, you have teams like the Carolina Panthers and Minnesota Vikings making great signings across the board. However, when a team like the Washington Commanders makes some of the moves they have so far, it’s impossible not to take notice. The Commanders swung massive trades for WR Deebo Samuel and LT Laremy Tunsil, which makes their offense one of the best in the NFL as long as Jayden Daniels doesn’t hit a sophomore slump.

In terms of signings, the Commanders have kept things modest for the most part even though they had the second-highest cap space. Washington has brought in veterans like DT Javon Kinlaw, CB Jonathan Jones, S Will Harris, and DE Deatrich Wise Jr. However, the team has also retained a large number of their own free agents including TE Zach Ertz, LB Bobby Wagner, P Tress Way (yes, punters count), and RB Jeremy McNichols. Somehow, the Commanders should be even more fun in Madden 26 a year after making the NFC Championship.

Three Teams That Look Worse For Madden 26

With the happy-go-luck teams out of the way, now let’s focus on the teams that have been hit the hardest in free agency. These teams have either had a large chunk of their own free agents leave or they’re simply not having much luck getting top free agents to sign on board. While some of these teams should still be solid in Madden 26, they likely won’t be as strong as they were in Madden 25.

Philadelphia Eagles

The Super Bowl champs have paid the price for their run. The Eagles have been decimated, mainly on the defensive side of the ball. Six defensive starters have left in free agency, including DT Milton Williams, DE Josh Sweat, and CB C.J. Gardner-Johnson (through trade). While the team did manage to sign back LB Zach Baun, that’s about all they’ve done so far.

Philly has swapped backup QBs, shipping out Kenny Picket for Dorian Thompson-Robinson (Tanner McKee likely becomes the top backup now), brought in a project OL in Kenyon Green, and that’s it. While the Eagles always draft well and find value in smaller-name players, they might have a tough time repeating as Super Bowl champs. Still, though, their offensive will be as fun as ever in Madden 26 with Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, and A.J. Brown on the roster.

San Franciso 49ers

San Fran is another team that has just been obliterated by having too many solid free agents. The 49ers haven’t really retained any player of note and only managed to sign two players to multi-year deals: WR DeMarcus Robinson and TE Luke Farrell. You could also count backup QB Mac Jones, as he got a two-year deal, but we don’t need to talk about Mac Jones.

On defense, the 49ers lost studs like LB Dre Greenlaw, CB Charvarius Ward, and S Talanoa Hufanga. Then on offense, OG Aaron Banks departed for Green Bay, said goodbye to FB Kyle Juszczyk, and traded away WR Deebo Samuel, leaving San Fran with multiple holes all over the roster. Christian McCaffrey will always make a team enjoyable on offense in Madden, but the 49ers might be on the struggle bus in 2025-26.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Rounding out the list is the Pittsburgh Steelers, who are making some curious roster decisions so far. The team decided to let QB Justin Fields walk and sign a two-year deal with the New York Jets, leaving them with a gaping hole at quarterback that might be filled by… maybe Aaron Rodgers? While the Steelers could go another direction — like turning back to Russell Wilson — the QB situation in the Steel City is genuinely cause for concern.

Aside from that, the Black and Yellow did bring in star WR DK Metcalf and signed him to a whopping $150 million deal, despite the receiver saying he wanted to play in a warm climate (and being somewhat similar to George Pickens). However, Metcalf is one of the only offensive signings for the Steelers. TE Donald Parham Jr. signed a one-year deal, but the team lost RB Najee Harris as well. On defense, Pittsburgh did manage to bring in CB Darius Slay and LB Malik Harrison, but the team simply looks worse on paper for now. Depending on what happens at quarterback, Mike Tomlin could be in jeopardy of ending his consecutive streak of winning seasons.

And that does it for our list of the three winners and losers of NFL free agency and how it might affect Madden 26. This list is obviously subjective and could change, but that’s where we feel things stand right now.