NFL Players Whose Stocks Are Soaring This Offseason

With the 2019 NFL draft behind us and the preseason just a handful of months away, a few players around the league are watching their stocks soar.

There are a number of reasons that might be. It could be that a player finally received a big contract or that their respective franchises are building around them. Others might be with new coaching staffs that could help their games blossom.

At any rate, a few key players' stocks are rising heading into the 2019 season.

If you thought Baker Mayfield was dangerous as a rookie, just wait until you see what he does with a superstar wide receiver at his disposal.

The Cleveland Browns finally found their franchise quarterback last season when they took Mayfield No. 1 overall. After breaking the rookie passing touchdown record with 27, Mayfield heads into his second season with an offensive-minded head coach in Freddie Kitchens and one of the league's best wide receivers in Odell Beckham Jr.

Although the Browns didn't have an offensive focus in the NFL draft this past weekend, adding Beckham alone should help take the aerial attack to new heights. The running game will also get a boost once Kareem Hunt returns from an eight-game suspension for shoving and kicking a woman in a hotel in February 2018. 

Kitchens may not be the biggest name at head coach, but the work he put into Cleveland's offense as the interim coordinator last season should have Browns fans fired up.

For the first time in what feels like decades, the Browns are one of the NFL's most exciting teams in the NFL, and Mayfield is front and center for all of it.

Offensive linemen don't get the national recognition they often deserve, but after a decade of being a journeyman tackle, it was time for Ty Nsekhe to get just that.

The Buffalo Bills signed Nsekhe to a two-year deal worth up to $14.5 million this offseason, giving the 33-year-old starter-caliber money and a likely starting role. Considering Nsekhe went undrafted in 2009 out of Texas State and has had multiple stints in the Arena Football League, that's quite the accomplishment.

Nsekhe has only started 16 games in his career but has played in 56 as a backup swing tackle. According to Pro Football Focus, Nsekhe has never played more than 403 snaps in a season, but he was a reliable tackle in pass protection in 2018 with allowed pressure on just 4.8 percent of his pass-blocking snaps.

It's hard for an offensive lineman to have his stock soar into the national spotlight, but going from a backup to a starter after the journey Nsekhe has weathered is probably the best example of a player's stock doing exactly that.

Fantasy football owners will look long and hard at all the offensive weapons in Arizona this season. However, don't overthink things regarding David Johnson, because he might have benefited more from his team's moves than any other running back in the league. 

His 2018 numbers fell short of his talent level. Despite playing in all 16 games, he put up only 940 yards rushing while averaging just 3.6 yards per attempt.

One of the big issues was his utilization. As James Koh from DirecTV's Fantasy Zone pointed out, far too many of Johnson's rushing attempts early last season came between the tackles instead of where he could take advantage of his speed.

Things will be different for Johnson this year. Not only do the Cardinals have a new, bright, young, offensive-minded coach in Kliff Kingsbury, but they also have plenty of other weapons. No. 1 overall pick Kyler Murray is a dangerous dual threat, and the Cardinals drafted a pair of exciting wide receivers in Andy Isabella and Hakeem Butler.

Defenses had no problem with putting the vast majority of their focus on Johnson last season. With a ton of other playmakers around him, he should find himself breaking off some bigger plays and putting up bigger numbers in 2019.

It has been a drama-filled offseason for the Pittsburgh Steelers, but wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster should be happy with his situation.

The 22-year-old had an exceptional sophomore season in 2018, catching 111 passes for 1,426 yards and seven touchdowns despite being the No. 2 receiver behind Antonio Brown. Now that Brown's been traded to the Oakland Raiders, it's time for JuJu to be the No. 1 target in Pittsburgh.

Sure, there's some concern that Smith-Schuster will now be the primary focus for opposing defenses in the passing game, which could temper is production. However, the 2017 second-round pick can still be a matchup issue thanks to his ability to line up in multiple positions. According to Pro Football Focus, Smith-Schuster was one of the best wideouts when lined up in the slot and even led the NFL in total yards after catch from the slot in 2018.

It's also not like Smith-Schuster will be the only talented receiver on the roster. James Washington, Donte Moncrief, Eli Rogers and third-round pick Diontae Johnson should also take some of the pressure off.

Given his production in his first two seasons, this could be the year Smith-Schuster establishes himself as one of the league's best wide receivers.

As a rookie, Indianapolis Colts linebacker Darius Leonard was sensational. In his second season, "The Maniac" might be an even bigger problem for opposing offenses.

Not only did Leonard win Defensive Rookie of the Year last season, but he was also named a first-team All-Pro thanks to a ridiculous 163 combined tackles, 7.0 sacks, two interceptions and four forced fumbles.

While the expectations are at an all-time high for the 2018 second-round pick, there's a couple of reasons Leonard's stock is continuing to rise. According to Kevin Bowen from ESPN 1070 The Fan, managing his weight is a big goal for Leonard, who is hoping to enter the season around 225 pounds instead of the 234 he came in at as a rookie.

Taking care of his body and weight could play a big factor in Leonard's play this season, but the amount of talent the Colts drafted on defense should open things up even more for him. Of the team's first eight picks, seven were defensive players, making it clear that Indy wanted to add talent on that side of the ball to make things a bit easier on Leonard.

With an adjusted weight and an injection of talent around him, Leonard could be poised for another stellar season in 2019.

Few players may have benefited from their team's 2019 draft class more than Los Angeles Chargers safety Derwin James.

The Chargers will pair James with another talented safety in Delaware's Nasir Adderley. He'll likely fit as a deep coverage safety or cornerback and allow James to spend more time in the box and moving around to keep offenses guessing.

Not only that, but the Chargers also added a disruptive interior presence in the first round with Notre Dame's Jerry Tillery, who will put more pressure on opposing QBs. 

James already looked like a superstar as a rookie, racking up 105 combined tackles, three interceptions, 3.5 sacks and 13 pass deflections. The Chargers defense already had talent around him, but adding two big-time playmakers in Tillery and Adderley to that defense will make James' job even easier in his second NFL season.

If that doesn't terrify the rest of the AFC West, it should. 

Many casual fans in other parts of the country may not pay a ton of attention to West Coast teams, but they'll quickly learn how dominant Frank Clark can be.

The former Seattle Seahawk's stock has soared this offseason because of what the Kansas City Chiefs gave up to get him, and what they were willing to pay him. The Chiefs traded a first-round pick and a 2020 second-rounder while swapping third-round picks this year.

After relinquishing all that draft capital, the Chiefs also signed Clark to a five-year, $105.5 million contract extension, making him one of the NFL's highest-paid defenders.

With 32 sacks over the last three seasons, Clark has developed into one of the league's most dominant pass-rushers, and the Chiefs were willing to give up a lot to acquire him. They were apparently comfortable enough to trade away Dee Ford.

Moving to another team that runs a 4-3 defensive front will benefit Clark, who has been a more natural pass-rusher with his hand in the dirt. Seattle's defense still has talent, but it isn't what it once was, and Clark was going to be a primary focus for a lot offenses. In Kansas City, he'll have the luxury of playing around guys like Chris Jones, Kendall Fuller and Tyrann Mathieu, who should make his job a bit easier. 

Putting this much faith in Clark speaks volumes of his level of play, so it's not hard to see why his stock is way up with a new team and a new contract. 

Is this the year Chicago Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky breaks out? The Bears were certainly willing to put all the pieces around the third-year quarterback to make sure he'll be in a position to do so in 2019.

After signing the likes of running back Mike Davis and receiver Cordarrelle Patterson in free agency, the Bears used their first two draft picks last weekend on Iowa State running back David Montgomery and Georgia wide receiver Riley Ridley.

A plethora of new weapons isn't the only reason for Trubisky's rosy outlook. This is also the second season the third-year quarterback will be playing in head coach Matt Nagy's offensive scheme. Any quarterback will need time to feel comfortable with a new playbook, so this offseason should be a big one for Trubisky to start showing confidence with the play calls.

Of course, Trubisky will need to prove it on the field, but it's not hard to see why Bears fans are so hopeful that the offense will blossom.