Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=JoeRedskin;1061370]Let's see how much Jason W. gets. As for R.Jax, good guy - he has how many sacks?

- Tagging Rak is not going to cost us any free agents we want.
- [B]Rather overpay a homegrown guy than an import.[/B]
- Still not seeing anyone suggest a legitimate replacement who could step in and provide what Rak does.[/quote]

How about not overpaying anyone.
In the era of a hard salary cap, overpaying anyone is [U]always[/U] a bad idea.
If you only measure LB's by sacks, then you will have an incomplete evaluation and you have a player and a defense with holes in it. oh yeah we lareday have that. That is like paying a DB $11M that is great against the pass but is not so great against the run. BIg money should only go to players that are complete. No weakness'. Rak has several.

The worst reason I have heard to overpay for Rak? Because you are AFRAID he will sign with someone else. Weak.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=JoeRedskin;1061370]Let's see how much Jason W. gets. As for R.Jax, good guy - he has how many sacks?

- Tagging Rak is not going to cost us any free agents we want.
- [B]Rather overpay a homegrown guy than an import.[/B]
- Still not seeing anyone suggest a legitimate replacement who could step in and provide what Rak does.[/quote]

How about not overpaying anyone.
In the era of a hard salary cap, overpaying anyone is [U]always[/U] a bad idea.
If you only measure LB's by sacks, then you will have an incomplete evaluation and you have a player and a defense with holes in it. Oh yeah we already have that. That is like paying a DB $11M that is great against the pass but is not so great against the run. BIg money should only go to players that are complete. No weakness'. Rak has several.

The worst reason I have heard to overpay for Rak? Because you are AFRAID he will sign with someone else. Weak.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Im surprised the Rak tagging would cause such dissention.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

I am not afraid Rak signs somewhere else, I would bet a solid $100 that he would. He is the player at whom someone will throw a bucket of money. If they don't tag him, consider him gone - which is fine if you have a back-up plan. Otherwise, you are just creating more problems. I have yet to see a legitimate back up plan that (1) is guaranteeing equal or better production; or (2) has any cost analysis that explains why a tag of Rak will create salary cap problems immediately or in the future.

[I]Don't overpay?![/I] We are filling the position with a UFA or Rak (a prospective UFA). Given the nature of free agency, and to [I]guarantee equal[/I] or better production from the spot, we are either overpaying Rak a little OR overpaying someone else (or several someones else) a lot.

You think no one is going to throw buckets at Rak. Fine, you may be right - BUT, if you don't tag him and then EXPECT him to come back THAT is weak [I]and[/I] stupid if you don't have a back-up plan. Either the plan is to fill ROLB with a premier UFA or take a risk on a cheap alternative. [B]Tell me your plan to fill this spot and get a legitimate 10 sack production[/B] from it at a cost less than 11M/year. Very simply, we will be overpaying an import OR taking a risk that Rak's production can be replaced on the cheap.

The question is not whether someone else will pay him, it's whether or not we can guarantee a replacement that will equal the production from ROLB position with a less expensive option. If we cannot [I]guarrantee[/I] equal or better production for less, than you have just created one more hole on a defense that has other more pressing needs AND - as an added detriment - increased the leverage of Riley and R.Jax. Unless, of course, you think we can rebuild the entire back 8 from UFA's and draft picks.

With Rak tagged, we now have to only replace/retain our ILB's rather than 3/4's of our entire LB corp.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=Chico23231;1061482]Im surprised the Rak tagging would cause such dissention.[/quote]

LOL ... not me. This crowd got tons o' crazy to go around.

- We need to develop our own players.
- Don't overpay anyone, but create roster spots that need to be filled by untested rookies or UFA's.
- Throw money at a roster spot of need (Byrd), but don't resign your own very good players at the most expensive position on the D (pass-rusher) if it is at a premium.
- In a year where D has many holes to fill, take a risk that you can fill its most important position with rookies or cheap UFA's.

In light of everything we need to accomplish through the draft and the UFA process, what he brings to the table, the position he plays and the regular demand for such players in free agency, and the opinion his teammates have of him, tagging Rak seemed like a no-brainer to me.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

A couple of my buddies who are fans of other teams look at me like I have 3 heads when I tell them that some Skins fans don't think franchising Rak was a good idea.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Chargers released CB Derek Cox.
Cox inked a four-year, $20 million contract on the second day of free agency last year and received $10.25 million guaranteed for one season of utterly mediocre play. The Chargers save $4.25 million in cash but are eating $3.9 million in dead money against the cap. The move clears just $1.65 million in cap space. Cox was benched multiple times last season. He was deemed expendable for a team that really needs corner help. Cox is still just 27 years old.

This is a guy getting talk last year as a CB we were interested in...

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

The rationale behind the Orakpo thing is this:

You let him go, then what? You draft a DE with our first pick. Great, we STILL have a hole that could have been filled by that.

You keep him, we have less cap space, but that makes us make smart decisions in FA and build through the draft.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Alex Mack off the market, $10 million transition tag.

Pricey Center.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=Chico23231;1061482]Im surprised the Rak tagging would cause such dissention.[/quote]

You have not seen enough offseasons on the Warpath.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=Chico23231;1061496]Chargers released CB Derek Cox.
Cox inked a four-year, $20 million contract on the second day of free agency last year and received $10.25 million guaranteed for one season of utterly mediocre play. The Chargers save $4.25 million in cash but are eating $3.9 million in dead money against the cap. The move clears just $1.65 million in cap space. Cox was benched multiple times last season. He was deemed expendable for a team that really needs corner help. Cox is still just 27 years old.

This is a guy getting talk last year as a CB we were interested in...[/quote]

Good post. To me there is an argument here for keeping Rak as we have. We know what we are getting in Rak. Beware the unfamiliar FA who may not be the guy you thought he was.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=Lotus;1061501]Good post. To me there is an argument here for keeping Rak as we have. We know what we are getting in Rak. Beware the unfamiliar FA who may not be the guy you thought he was.[/quote]

Once some guys get paid its over...they just stop going hard.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

So ... if it became an actual choice (since Mack was tagged with a transition tag not a franchise tag):

Mack at 10M/year [I][B]or[/B][/I] Byrd at 12M/year

or neither at the apparent asking price.

BTW - TJ Ward is also a UFA .

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Per the redskins facebook page: "The Washington Redskins have waived RB Jawan Jamison and RB Davin Megget. They have also terminated the following vested veterans: TE Richard Quinn, P Sav Rocca and DE Adam Carriker."

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=Chico23231;1061496]Chargers released CB Derek Cox.
Cox inked a four-year, $20 million contract on the second day of free agency last year and received $10.25 million guaranteed for one season of utterly mediocre play. The Chargers save $4.25 million in cash but are eating $3.9 million in dead money against the cap. The move clears just $1.65 million in cap space. Cox was benched multiple times last season. He was deemed expendable for a team that really needs corner help. Cox is still just 27 years old.

This is a guy getting talk last year as a CB we were interested in...[/quote]

Sounds like someone we should avoid at all costs. He should be in his prime right now, instead it sounds like he'll be struggling for a job until someone gets injured.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=Monkeydad;1061499]Alex Mack off the market, $10 million transition tag.

Pricey Center.[/quote]

And worth every penny

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=SFREDSKIN;1061518]And worth every penny[/quote]

Must be a Stanford man.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

$10M for a center seems pretty ridiculous.

Why don't they have separate tags for each line position?

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

mack really is that good. he's like hutchinson, always blocking at the 2nd level on runs etc.

i wouldn't rule him out, but i would say it's pretty unlikely. however, i rather have mack and a 2nd tier safety than byrd and nothing on the OL. mitchell, ward, whitner won't want as much as byrd and could still be big upgrades.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=JoeRedskin;1061519]Must be a Stanford man.[/quote]

Cal Berkeley

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

The Seattle Seahawks Brandon Browner has been reinstated by the NFL. He will now be a free agent next week. He should have many teams who could use his talents .

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=skins89moss;1061573]The Seattle Seahawks Brandon Browner has been reinstated by the NFL. He will now be a free agent next week. He should have many teams who could use his talents .[/quote]

[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullshit]Bullshit - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/url]

That is how I feel about that.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Our old boy John Beck has just signed with the Lions.



























[I]The BC Lions of of the CFL.[/I]

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=skins89moss;1061573]The Seattle Seahawks Brandon Browner has been reinstated by the NFL. He will now be a free agent next week. He should have many teams who could use his talents .[/quote]


So a repeat-offending roid user gets back in from an "indefinite" suspension after missing a few games but Tanard Jackson cant even get the Commish to return his call?


How much of this is because the Seahawks are the new flavor of the week? Everyone is suddenly a Seahawks...sure...

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=Monkeydad;1061603]So a repeat-offending roid user gets back in from an "indefinite" suspension after missing a few games but Tanard Jackson cant even get the Commish to return his call?


How much of this is because the Seahawks are the new flavor of the week? Everyone is suddenly a Seahawks...sure...[/quote]

What if it turns out that TJ has been calling the answering machine of a guy in NY named Goodman for the past year?

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=Monkeydad;1061603]So a repeat-offending roid user gets back in from an "indefinite" suspension after missing a few games but Tanard Jackson cant even get the Commish to return his call?


How much of this is because the Seahawks are the new flavor of the week? Everyone is suddenly a Seahawks...sure...[/quote]

Sorry to interject facts but he was suspended for missing 3 drug tests when he was unsigned, therefore out of the league a few years back which put him into 'Level 3' of the treatment program and then tested positive for marijuana last fall, which triggered the indefinite suspension. It was reversed based on the 3 missed tests essentially being made a moot point. He will still potentially be suspended at the outset of 2014 for a few games.

Jackson repeatedly tested positive for multiple illegal drugs.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

why isnt anyone talking about oher? would love to have him

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=dmek25;1061618]why isnt anyone talking about oher? would love to have him[/quote]

He kinda sucked last year.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Denver Post info on Eric Decker (will get 8 mill a year?) and things Bronco related.

[url=http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_25268401/free-agent-wide-receiver-eric-decker-position-strike]Free-agent wide receiver Eric Decker in position to strike it rich - The Denver Post[/url]

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

cause his last two years have been pretty bad.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=dmek25;1061618][B]why isnt anyone talking about oher[/B]? would love to have him[/quote]

As one site I saw put it: Big name, small game.

He is an upgrade over the current RT but that ain't saying much. Baltimore has issues along its line and is letting him walk. They want to bring back Monroe at LT but it's not a guarantee b/c they don't want to pay top 5 LT salary for him. So, with no guaranteed starter at LT, they let their RT go with no intent of resigning. Oher has never lived up to the billing.

If he comes dirt cheap, sure. I just think we can probably do a lot better.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Oher is a widely-known name but his on-field performance has really fallen off. He lost his job to Eugene Monroe (also a FA) and Baltimore doesn't even want him any more.

I'd take him for depth but not sure he can be trusted as a starter any more, MAYBE at RT, definitely not LT.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Would Oher be a better guard? We need a few of those as well.
Is Oher's drop off in play in pass protection or run blocking or overall play?
If it is pass protection, getting out quicked, a move to guard would solve that issue.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

i dont think Oher has been a LT for a few years now. The ravens used mcKennie at LT before they got monroe.

I think the prob with oher is that he is slow and not good w an outside speed pass rush.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=EARTHQUAKE2689;1061371]You better stop making sense, we talked about that.[/quote]

Hey, you know how JoeR is. He never listens when his mother talks. :joecool:

Sorry, EARTHQUAKE; that was just too easy to pass up.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Devin Hester says he wont be back with the Bears.

[url=http://espn.go.com/chicago/nfl/story/_/id/10559764/devin-hester-says-back-chicago-bears-next-season]Devin Hester says he won't be back with Chicago Bears next season - ESPN Chicago[/url]

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Right now we dont have any starting ILBs. I really hope we can lock up Riley at an affordable, multi year deal. If Quell Jax, Spikes are not brought in, I would seriously give Daryl Smith a hard look at a one or 2 year deal. He's been a "quiet baller" his entire career. Good player.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

Right now, our cap space is approximately $21.5MM but I'm just about certain that we'll have more room than that as FA progresses.

As soon as we reach a long-term agreement with Rak, I think he'll probably help out the team a little by taking perhaps $9.5MM in salary this season, saving the team $2.0MM in cap space. That would take us to $23.5MM.

In my mind, it's a near certainty that we're going to do something to improve the OL. When that happens, some OL currently on the team making approximately $2MM will be cut. That would increase the amount we could spend to $25.5MM.

I think that we need to take advantage of the strong class of FA DE's this year. If we upgrade with a starter there, then Bowen and his $2MM cap number will probably go away. That would mean that we could spend $27.5MM on FA's.

We'll have enough cap space to improve the team. What we shouldn't do is hang on to older, overpaid, under-performing players who can be easily replaced.

One other thing to consider has to do with the typical perception of the FA class on the part of the average fan, including myself. We tend to see our team shopping for the higher priced FA's because those are the players we know. But that is not necessarily going to be the case, except for maybe a couple of players, at most.

If the team's executives were to function that way, we would have no chance of building a winning team. They spend a lot of time and effort scouting and evaluating pro players on other teams. They are going to try very hard (and let's hope they succeed) to identify players who, for whatever reason, will cost less in FA but produce as well as those who would have cost more. Our salary cap dollars may stretch a lot farther than many of us think.

I'm very optimistic about what the Skins can accomplish in FA. I think we have in Bruce Allen a better, more professional GM than we've had for a long time. We'll soon see what he and his team can do.

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

[quote=JoeRedskin;1061628]As one site I saw put it: Big name, small game.

He is an upgrade over the current RT but that ain't saying much. Baltimore has issues along its line and is letting him walk. They want to bring back Monroe at LT but it's not a guarantee b/c they don't want to pay top 5 LT salary for him. So, with no guaranteed starter at LT, they let their RT go with no intent of resigning. Oher has never lived up to the billing.

If he comes dirt cheap, sure. I just think we can probably do a lot better.[/quote]

Great post; it basically backs up this article:
[url=http://mmqb.si.com/2014/03/05/nfl-free-agency-risks/?eref=sihp]NFL free agency is about being cautions of risks and red flags | The MMQB with Peter King[/url]

Re: Current 2014 Free Agents
 

I know it's the BR but some nice names [url=http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1984295-under-the-radar-free-agents-washington-redskins-should-pursue]Under-the-Radar Free Agents Washington Redskins Should Pursue | Bleacher Report[/url]