You may not have heard this, but it's NFL draft week. Starting Thursday in Detroit, the best and brightest from this year's incoming class will find out where their professional career begins.

For the players, it's the beginning of an opportunity they have worked toward and dreamed of since they were children.

For the teams, it's something very different. It's an exercise in educated speculation that can alter a franchise's trajectory for years, for better or worse.

It's even truer for teams that were either unable or unwilling to make big additions in free agency, whether it's due to salary-cap constraints or looming extensions. For them, getting as many starters (if not stars) as possible on rookie deals isn't just appealing—it's critical.

With that in mind, here are the eight teams who spent less than $80 million in free agency in 2024 (highlighted by one that spent more than $200 million less than seven teams), what they got for what little they spent, and the positions they badly need to hit on in Motown this week.

Dallas Cowboys

Free-Agent Spending: $13.7 million

To say the Dallas Cowboys had a quiet free-agency period is quite an understatement. Not only were they the only team in the league to spend less than $30 million, but they didn't even hit the $15 million mark.

The only real signing of note was a one-year, $3 million deal given to veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks.

Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones told 105.3 the Fan (h/t Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram) that it was less a matter of not wanting to spend and more about the financial realities of three massive extensions coming up soon:

"We spend max, max money year in and year out. All 32 can only spend the same amount of money over a five-year stretch. When we're all said and done, we max out our salary cap every year. We will have done that. What comes with having a good roster, which we do, we're also looking towards signing our own guys.

"It doesn't mean it happens overnight. But when you're wanting to sign players like Dak (Prescott) and Micah (Parsons) and CeeDee (Lamb), then you have to hold money back if you want to have a realistic chance of signing those guys."

On some level, Jones has a point: Extensions for that trio will likely sail past $100 million a season in average annual value. But that doesn't solve Dallas' glaring hole at running back after Tony Pollard left or potentially major issues along the offensive line after the loss of left tackle Tyron Smith and center Tyler Biadasz.

New Orleans Saints

Free-Agent Spending: $32.2 million

Stop me if you've heard this before. The New Orleans Saints' salary-cap situation in 2024 was a mess. It's an annual issue that dates back to the days of Sean Payton and Drew Brees.

Every year, Saints GM Mickey Loomis plays a shell game of sorts, restructuring deals to create cap space. Some years, those financial shenanigans allow the team to be active in free agency, such as last year's signing of quarterback Derek Carr.

This was not one of those years. New Orleans has barely topped $30 million in total spending, with the biggest outside signing being the one-year, $13 million "prove it" deal for edge-rusher Chase Young.

Loomis told reporters that the team has reached a point where the bill has come due and this year's free-agent frugality may extend to 2025 as well.

"We've got to recover from some of the things that happened with COVID and the contracts that we did in the past," he said. And so (we're) not as active in free agency maybe as we'd like to be at times. And look, I think we're probably going to be in that mode for another year or so."

That makes this year's draft picks (starting with No. 14 overall) all the more important. The Saints have postseason aspirations in 2024, but they also have major questions at offensive tackle, cornerback and wide receiver.

Fortunately, this is a relatively deep draft class at those positions, with players like Oregon State tackle Taliese Fuaga and Alabama cornerback Terrion Arnold legitimate options in Round 1.

Los Angeles Chargers

Free Agent Spending: $44.5 million

It's no secret that new Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh favors a physical run game—and back in February offensive coordinator Greg Roman told reporters that is what the Bolts planned to have in 2024.

We want to have an identity as an offense, and we want that to be a strong, powerful identity, and that's what we're working on," he said. "In this league, you can really help dictate to defenses if you have a strong running attack."

The problem for the Chargers this year was a lack of cap space. So, the offensive overhaul was extreme. High-priced veterans like running back Austin Ekeler and wideouts Mike Williams and Keenan Allen are all gone. Ekeler's replacements (Gus Edwards and JK Dobbins) have combined for a grand total of zero 1,000-yard seasons.

The Chargers have issues on defense as well—both starting off-ball linebackers are gone, and while Denzel Perryman was brought in to fill one spot durability has been an issue for the 31-year-old, who spent his first six seasons with the Bolts.

The wide receivers around Justin Herbert may appear to be the Chargers' most glaring need. But Harbaugh is all about physicality on both sides of the ball, and Los Angeles has needs on both the offensive and defensive lines.

The Chargers are a trendy pick to trade back from the fifth slot in this year's draft. But if general manager Joe Hortitz stands pat and makes the pick, the smart money is on this year's best tackle prospect in Notre Dame's Joe Alt.

Cleveland Browns

Free-Agent Spending: $67.3 million

The good news for the Cleveland Browns is that this isn't a roster with a lot of glaring needs. And they weren't completely quiet in free agency, swinging a trade with the Denver Broncos for wide receiver Jerry Jeudy and adding a veteran presence at linebacker in Jordan Hicks.

The bad news for the team that has spent the fourth-least amount of money in free agency this year is that the Browns will be toward the bottom of the NFL in that regard.

Whether it's cornerback Denzel Ward and edge-rusher Myles Garrett on defense or quarterback Deshaun Watson's fully guaranteed $230 million beast of a deal on offense, Cleveland's roster isn't short on fat contracts.

The Browns also don't have a first-round pick this year (again) due to the Watson trade. In fact, Cleveland didn't pick in Round 2 in each of the past two years. General manager Andrew Berry told reporters he anticipates that changing in 2024, even if he doesn't know who the team will take at No. 54.

"I will probably have a better feel once we get to 10 picks out," he said. "It really just depends on how the board falls, if I'm being truthful. So, I'm not sure as we sit here today, but we'll see if we can break the trend of making it three years in a row without a second-round pick."

If Berry does make that pick, expect depth along the offensive line to be a priority—especially at tackle, where the Browns' top-three options at the position are coming off injury-marred seasons.

Denver Broncos

Free-Agent Spending: $69 million

It's not especially hard to see why the Denver Broncos spent the fifth-fewest dollars in free agency this year—taking on an NFL-record $85 million dead cap hit for the release of quarterback Russell Wilson tends to gum up the books.

That financial hurdle left the team looking through second- and third-tier free agents to replace departing players, whether it was Brandon Jones for Justin Simmons at safety or Cody Barton for Josey Jewell at linebacker.

The offense has its own issues—with Wilson gone, Jarrett Stidham is the team's No. 1 quarterback. The Jerry Jeudy trade left the Broncos thin at wide receiver behind Courtland Sutton.

The Broncos are widely expected to explore drafting a quarterback at No. 12. While addressing the media, general manager George Paton wouldn't rule that out, but he also said they aren't going to force the issue.

"You want to get the right player at No. 12," he said. "Our first pick we have to hit on, whether it's a quarterback, whether it's a tackle, a receiver or you name it. We need to get an impact player."

Paton is spot-on. The Broncos haven't made the playoffs since winning Super Bowl 50 a decade ago. Splash trades in recent seasons have blown up in the franchise's face. There are holes under center, at wideout, at corner opposite Patrick Surtain II and on both lines.

Paton doesn't just need to hit on the 12th overall pick, although that's critical. Denver needs its best draft in years—or it's going to be another long season in the Mile High City.

Cincinnati Bengals

Free-Agent Spending: $74.9 million

With quarterback Joe Burrow out much of the season with a hand injury, the 2023 campaign was a disappointing one for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Cincy is also living in the realities of a post-Burrow extension world.

With Burrow now being the NFL's highest-paid quarterback in terms of average annual salary and wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase potentially about to reset the market at his position, the Bengals don't have a ton of coin to throw at outside players, especially after franchise-tagging wideout Tee Higgins.

While discussing an extension for Higgins, Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin told reporters that there's only so much cap space to go around.

"We like Ja'Marr. He's in our long-term plans. He's a high-level player in this league. And we want to keep those kinds of players on our team," Tobin said. "I want Tee Higgins back. Everyone on our team would like Tee Higgins back. There's a pie and there are things we can do and can't do because of it. We'll see."

That left the Bengals mainly trying to upgrade through short-term deals. Running back Joe Mixon left in favor of the much less expensive Zack Moss. Cincinnati's seemingly never-ending quest to bolster the offensive line continued with a dice roll on oft-injured tackle Trent Brown as a replacement for Jonah Williams.

That offensive line remains, arguably, Cincinnati's biggest need, but holes exist at defensive tackle and cornerback as well.

If Burrow is going to lead the Bengals on another deep playoff run in 2024, Tobin needs to add multiple players capable of contributing in the short term.

New York Jets

Free-Agent Spending: $75.1 million

The 2023 season was an unmitigated disaster for the Jets. After jumping headlong into "win now" mode with the acquisition of quarterback Aaron Rodgers, they got all of one series out of him before he tore his Achilles tendon.

The Jets appear to be maintaining that "live in the now" mentality after making a pair of big-ticket veteran additions in wide receiver Mike Williams (free agency) and edge-rusher Haason Reddick. The team also gambled that veteran left tackle Tyron Smith can return to form, signing the long-term Dallas Cowboy to a one-year, $6.5 million pact.

New York also has a top-10 pick with which to address other needs, although general manager Joe Douglas told reporters that it could be amenable to moving up or down if the opportunity presents itself:

"Who are those players that we would consider coming up from 10 to go get? How many of them are there? How far are [we] willing to go?' Obviously, we don't have our full complement; we don't have a second-round pick this year. So that limits you a little bit on just how far you can go up, but those are the conversations we're having.

"And then on the flip side, if we get to 10 and we have a strong group of players that we love, are you willing to move back? How far do you feel comfortable moving back? So, those are the conversations we're having yesterday and all of next week."

Standing pat could net Rodgers a passing game-weapon like Georgia tight end Brock Bowers or a high-end offensive line prospect. But a trade back could accomplish the same thing while recouping that second-rounder, which could be used to bolster a secondary that needs work around young corner Sauce Gardner.

San Francisco 49ers

Free-Agent Spending: $76.3 million

On some level, it seems odd to say the 49ers were "quiet" in free agency.

They agreed to 20 contracts in free agency—fourth-most in the NFL. But those deals averaged less than $4 million per pact. In total, they were 25th in the NFL in free-agent spending in 2024.

The biggest pending was done on the edge, where Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos were brought in as part of a continuing effort to find a reliable complement to Nick Bosa.

Veteran linebacker De'Vondre Campbell was added as injury insurance against Dre Greenlaw's torn Achilles. But as far as impact free agents go, there were no obvious ones arriving in 2024.

This also marks the first time since 2021 that the Niners have a Day 1 pick. General manager John Lynch told reporters that's all well in good, but their emphasis on building through the draft makes every pick important:

"We've got a first-round pick for the first time in a long while. That's nice, but we really try to focus on making them all count. They're all an opportunity to improve your organization, and we look at each one of those as such. We pride ourselves on putting as much into the late rounds as we do into the early. We'll take them where they come, and we'll try to make the most of them."

This was the team (and GM) that found a quarterback who started a Super Bowl after being the last pick of the 2022 draft. But Brock Purdy's looming extension is likely one of the factors that contributed to Lynch's reluctance to spend big in free agency this season.

That ratchets up the pressure to hit on those picks he mentioned. As good as the Niners are, the cornerbacks and offensive line are both areas in need of a boost.