Top 50 free agents: The younger, the better

Rule No. 1 of NFL free agency: Don't get caught up in names.

Rule No. 2: Don't give big money to any player over the age of 30.

Samari Rolle has the kind of coverage skills many teams badly need. (Getty Images)

Naturally, a lot of teams don't follow those rules. But they should. As the free-agent period is about to begin Wednesday, teams are preparing to strike fast (if you don't think many of these deals are done already, then I have a piece of swamp land I'd like to sell you). In some cases, that means name players will be signing. In others, it's players over 30, which means on the downward slope of their careers.

That's where cap problems come into play. Signing a player for big money who is over 30 can blow up a team's cap. That's why teams that are close to getting to the Super Bowl have to be careful whom they pay. The lure of winning can sometimes cloud prudent thinking.

"We've seen that before with a lot of teams," said one NFL personnel director. "They get so close, and it's killing them to get it that they pay a player they have no business paying, thinking he will fill a key spot. Then that player struggles, the team doesn't get to the Super Bowl and they're on the books for a big contract that they don't want."

So in compiling our Top 50 list of free-agent players, we took age very much into account. There is no player 30 or older in our top 10. Of the 10, two are 28, two are 27, four are 26 and two are 25. They all fall into the key target age. And there are no players who have been slapped with franchise tags because that takes them off the market.

The top player on this board is Tennessee Titans cornerback Samari Rolle. He is a premier cover player who was set free for cap reasons. The Titans coaches love the guy, as will the team that gets him.

He isn't a great tackler, but in terms of coverage skills he's outstanding. He'll be 29 when the season starts, which is a little older than I would prefer, but he can give a team 4-5 good years of coverage play. That's too valuable to ignore.

There are two other corners in the top 10: Fred Smoot of the Redskins at No. 3 and Anthony Henry of the Browns at No. 8. That's because in my book, good, young corners have a lot of value.

Hope you enjoy the list. And if your team violates one of the two main tenets of free agency, don't say you weren't warned.

1. Samari Rolle, CB, Titans: At 28, he is a premier cover player. Even if he isn't a great tackler, that is a valuable ability to have on your defense.

2. Mike Wahle, G-T, Packers: This 27-year-old is a heck of a guard, but some teams have him targeted as a tackle. The Panthers appear set to land him.

3. Fred Smoot, CB, Redskins: At 25, he's an outstanding cover player who talks a big game, too. Some like their corners more physical, but we like this kid a lot.