While simply entering a contract year is not a guarantee of increased fantasy football production, us gamers look to unearth any extra motivation that may help real-life players put put our fake squads over the top.

The key when evaluating such data is to treat it as another piece of the puzzle and not get too caught up in this extra info. The salary cap increased as usual this year after a dip during the height of the pandemic. We’ve seen a wild offseason of player movement this offseason — somewhat due to last year’s uptick in one-year deals creative a deep class of free agents at wide receiver. Well, receivers are deep yet again, and running back shows a few promising names as well, so look for it to continue into 2023’s free agency season.

The data is based on USA TODAY Sports’ partner Spotrac.com’s free-agent charts.

Notes: All players listed below will be unrestricted free agents as of March 2023, focusing on those who have made a dent in fantasy in recent years or could be in position to matter. Ages reflect how old the player will be upon the opening free agency. Players in bold font are considered to have the most to gain from a strong season.

2022 contract-year players