Quote:
Originally Posted by 53Fan
This is where you lose me BHA. I like the points you bring up but then you say things like this. Do you really think N.E. would pay Hall the type of money you propose? This from a team that said no to Assante Samuel? I don't think anyone here opposes having Hall on our team. But to give him a huge contract just doesn't make sense to me. Why not offer him a good 3 year deal? If he doesn't turn out to be the player some think he will be, then we're not stuck with him forever. If he doe's turn out well, then we can either resign him or Tag him for at least 2 years. Or MAYBE even draft his replacement in the meantime. Having a shutdown corner, which Hall is not, does'nt guarantee wins. I give you Champ Bailey. Our secondary was one of our strengths before Hall even got here. If we're going to spend some money let's get Carey and a kicker in here and draft an OLB who can get to the QB. I think these things will go further toward making the playoffs on a consistent basis than giving Hall a big longterm deal.
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Asante wanted and got more money than what New England would be pay Hall. New England is not a stingy team, they just valued Samuel alot less than he valued himself... as to why i listed them as a team that would be intersted in Hall, i was listening to an NFL podcast (some espn guy) last week that was actually speculating that New England would be pursuing Aso if he wasnt tagged. CB is one of the primary positions they plan on upgrading and I would be shocked if they did not consider signing Hall, Bly, or Bodden... those players would also likely sign for NE cheaper than other teams, as they would have the chance to play for a team thats an annual contender.
As to our own needs, our secondary was a strength before hall got here, but Halls arrival semi-coincided with Springs recurring injury and Rogers and Smoots drop in play. Considering that Springs really should be let go due to his cap figure, Rogers is being a tool demanding a trade, and Smoot is just horrible... what was once a strenght could become our most glaring weakness overnight. At the end of the season, Hall was without a doubt our best corner. Signing him gives us so much more flexibility in what we can do.
Realistically, at this point, I think Hall may be priced out of what we should pay for him. If the FO had any foresight, as many of us fans did, they would have signed him to a 14-16M deal when they had the chance. Now, our best bet may be to let him sign elsewhere. We have too many needs to give ANYONE 20+M garaunteed and, as the current top corner on the market, Hall is in the drivers seat, and he will command top dollar.
If Hall walks, we certianly need to stay away from any other corners in the first couple weeks of free agency. Teams dont need top corners if they have a strong pass rush, so i think our best bet may be to let the offensive line stay pretty much in tact for another year and use our first round pick on a passrusher instead of a franchise RT.