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Free agency is often looked as fool's gold. There's more value in the NFL draft because of the controlled price points of rookie contracts.

But with a constantly rising cap, there are more opportunities for teams to build through free agency, particularly on the defensive side of the field, where you're only as good as your weakest link. Look at the defenses Denver and Seattle made Super Bowl runs with; they weren't possible without the free-agent additions of Aqib Talib, Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril.

Teams still have until March 9—the start of free agency—to offer deals to their players. After years of negotiations, though, if the two sides haven't come to an extension by now, players are likely to hit the open market.

We'll go over eight players who could be the difference between a team's making or missing the playoffs.

Some are stars, while others have never been 16-game starters before. All of them, though, could be value signings based on their talent relative to the markets of their individual positions, either overall or in this specific free-agency class.

These players could be the next Bennett or Avril pairings, the players who years from now you're looking at and wondering how a "smart franchise" landed their amazing contracts.