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Early assessments of the free-agent market come with equal doses of educated guessing and logical dot-connecting.

That's how it feels when you're the one trying to draw the lines between player and team, doing it while assessing needs and keeping the delicate salary-cap balance in mind.

The feeling is different for fans, though. Much different.

A long winter came early for many fanbases around the league, weeks before Super Bowl LI. Most fans care little about counting dollars because the money isn't theirs to spend anyway. They care about landing the big-name free agent who can provide an instant upgrade at an area of need.

There's plenty of hoping, wishing and dreaming for the fan in early February. But salary-cap handcuffs are real and often tight.

That can't be ignored when discussing the best landing spots for the top available free agents, as we're about to do here. Some teams can bully others with their mighty dollars. Others will quietly wait until the second and third waves of free agency, plucking cheaper but still valuable pieces from the scrap heap.

We're focused on the former category, and on projecting the likely future places of employment for the shiniest names out there. Factors that determined those names and where they landed were recent production and the possibility that performance falls off soon due to age. The ideal fits are based on team needs and the salary-cap space available.

Let's get to it.