Heads all around the NFL officially started spinning at 4 PM Eastern on Tuesday as free agents were officially able to sign with new teams. Days of rumors, hints, allegations, bogus scoops, tea leaf reading, and duplicitous Twitter comments came to a head as the carousel finally spun for real.

The Miami Dolphins made the biggest splash, throwing tens of millions at WR Mike Wallace and LB Dannell Ellerbee. Wallace, arguably the top wideout on the market after two 1,000+ yard seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, cashed in to the tune of five years and $65M, per reports. Ellerbee got five years and $35M to defect from the Ravens. This builds on the re-signing of wideout Brian Hartline, who stuck with the Dolphins for just over $30M over the weekend.

Wallace becomes the No. 1 wideout the team sorely lacked. It’s questionable if he is a legit No. 1 and worth all that cash, but he is certainly an upgrade and gives Miami a threat to score from anywhere on the field. It puts Hartline where he rightly belongs as the No. 2, and with steady Davone Bess in the slot the Dolphins receiving corps looks a lot more in order. Ellerbee takes over in the middle for Karlos Dansby, who was released about 30 seconds after the Dolphins figured out they had Ellerbee locked up. Miami also added outside backer Phillip Wheeler for five seasons and $26M, with $13M guaranteed. 

I’ll be honest: I think they overpaid for each of these guys. I believe that in about 2016 the new general manager will be doing whatever he can to get out from underneath Wallace’s final years. But the Dolphins needed to make a statement to their increasingly blasé, dispirited fan base, which watched several free agents tell Miami “thanks but no thanks” last offseason. The team is definitely better, and they got younger in swapping Ellerbee for Dansby, saving enough money in the process to re-sign safety Chris Clemons. There is very little question that the Dolphins have blown past the Bills and Jets in pursuit of the Patriots in the AFC East, but the price tag was high.

The flip side is Baltimore, which consummated their deal to trade Anquan Boldin to San Francisco for a 6th round pick. They lost Ellerbee, the heir apparent to the retired Ray Lewis in the middle. That strips them of both inside backers from their Super Bowl run, and pretty much everyone assumed it was a foregone conclusion that Ellerbee would stay with the Ravens. Losing Boldin robs them of the reliable veteran receiver that Joe Flacco leaned upon heavily in the playoffs.

Top sack man Paul Kruger left the Ravens for the division rival Browns, who overpaid at five-years, $40M for a player who was universally labeled “disappointing” his entire career until about last November. Ed Reed and Cary Williams, half the starting secondary, is still out there on the market and apparently a lot less likely to return than they were 24 hours ago, according to a text I got from a friend inside Owings Mills. I don’t mean to beat the horse to death here, but Ravens fans can squarely blame Flacco and his greed, and Ozzie Newsome for acquiescing to the demands and losing his normal impeccable senses. 

Quick takes on other moves:

Minnesota had to trade Percy Harvin, and they got good return from Seattle with a first and a seventh in this year’s draft and a middle round pick in 2014. It was clear Harvin had no future in Minnesota, between his exorbitant contract demands, constant poking of the coaching and management bears, and iffy durability. Seattle is in position to assume that risk on the basis that he is the piece that puts them over the top; the Vikings are not on that level. It leaves a gaping hole on the Vikings depth chart, but they can still fill that hole with some lower-priced free agent options and with their extra picks in this very deep draft class. GM Rick Speilman also released venerable veteran Antoine Winfield, as the corner was no longer worth his contract. Unlike Harvin, they will absolutely miss Winfield in the locker room.

The Philadelphia Eagles quietly improved considerably. They rid themselves of misfit Nnamdi Asomugha, who provides an abject lesson in why fans shouldn’t get too excited about free agent signings and their perceived impact. Asomugha was part of the “Dream Team” signings that might be the most hyped free agent haul ever. This time around the new Eagles regime opted for solid, smart signings like NT Isaac Sopoaga, safety Patrick Chung, corner Bradley Fletcher, TE/FB James Casey, and LB Jason Philips. Sopoaga is the big kahuna here, the line anchor for the new-look 3-4 defense. Casey and Phillips are players that have been underused with their prior teams and could be primed to break out with more opportunity. Chung brings loads of playoff experience, while Fletcher has consistently played better than advertised, most recently with the Rams. They still have a lot of work to do, but today was a great start. 

The Tennessee Titans also had a good day. They overpaid to bring in guard Andy Levitre from the Buffalo Bills, but he’s a huge upgrade for a team that was downright terrible at run blocking on the right side. It cost them $39M (or $46M depending on your source) over five years, huge money for a guard. They also signed TE Delanie Walker, who is a more economical and consistent replacement for Jared Cook, who left the Titans for bigger cash with the St. Louis Rams. Walker isn’t as dynamic as Cook, but he’s less likely to make his coaches and the Titans fans bang their heads in agony. Late Tuesday it was reported the team signed DT Sammie Hill away from Detroit. The deal will be finalized Wed., and Hill immediately upgrades the defensive line. There is still more work to be done, and that includes finding a taker for WR Nate Washington, who is actively being shopped. One team with alleged interest is St. Louis, which is ironic considering that the Titans are trying to move Washington in part to free up cash to sign former Rams WR Danny Amendola.

The Bills lost Levitre, but the more significant news was that they released starting QB Ryan Fitzpatrick in the wake of a humorous, illegal wiretap of a staged call between GM Buddy Nix and his Tampa Bay counterpart, Mark Dominik. In that call, Nix laments giving Fitzpatrick the massive contract he signed a couple years ago and complains it is hindering the entire franchise. The Bills had little recourse but to cut him. Now in addition to needing a guard, their need for a quarterback is borderline desperate. Say hello to Geno Smith or Matt Barkley…

The Chicago Bears got themselves a new starting TE in Martellus Bennett, late of the Giants. While he’s been inconsistent, Bennett is hitting his prime and has matured into a strong all-around threat. A major hole has been filled by GM Phil Emery. They also signed former Saints LT Jermon Bushrod to compete for a spot along their running punchline of an offensive line. Bushrod is a marginal starter, but that immediately entrenches him as the best tackle on the team.

The Houston Texans didn’t sign anyone, but they released WR Kevin Walter in the wake of losing James Casey. Walter has been the No. 2 receiver behind Andre Johnson for years now, but here is a great example of just how pathetic the Texans are at wideout: Walter will be lucky to catch on as a #4 receiver for a veteran-minimum contract with any other team. The Texans are about to lose valuable safety Glover Quin, perhaps/hopefully to Detroit, and could also see OLB Connor Barwin depart for greener pastures. The Ravens aren’t the only AFC team that egregiously overpaid a slightly above-average QB that hinders their ability to surround said QB with more talent.

The Indianapolis Colts had all kinds of money to spend, and spend they did. GM Ryan Grigson showered former Lions RT Gosder Cherilus with $34M, including a $10M signing bonus. He gave Erik Walden, a marginal contributor on a pass rush-desperate Packers team, $16M to come to Indy. Corner Greg Toler is a good acquisition, provided he stays healthy. They also brought in Donald Thomas and Lawrence Sidbury, two more low-cost veterans with experience on playoff teams that can compete for rotational roles.

The Kansas City Chiefs added Alex Smith via trade, but they also signed former Saints backup Chase Daniel for $3M a year to back up Smith. Daniel has thrown just 9 passes in three years while backing up Drew Brees in New Orleans, but he impressed new GM John Dorsey and Head Coach Andy Reid enough to outbid other suitors. This strikes me on the surface as a potential Matt Flynn/Russell Wilson situation in Seattle, where the lesser regarded young talent upends the more heralded veteran acquisition and surprises everyone by winning the starting job. I can tell you that wouldn’t surprise many within the Saints organization, which is sorry to see Daniel depart.

There will be many signings over the next few days, and I’ll have another reaction piece later this week.