"The Trade!"

[Master4Caster]

I like the thread. A couple of points:

1. The Skins were not going to keep Bailey. Both, Bailey's unhappiness with the team environment and the salary cap meant we were going to lose him. The question was do we release him and get nothing, or go for the best available option?
2. I don't buy that Edgerrin James or Shawn Alexander were available. Yes, they were at the end of their contracts, but I do not believe their teams had any intention of losing them. Most of that chatter about them being available "cheap" was posturing.
3. Clinton Portis was not happy in Denver. Match that with Mike Shanahan's view of RBs as interchangeable, along with the Bronco's crying need for a corner who could single-cover and you have the ingredients for a deal. Portis was the best available rusher at the time. This was a good deal for both sides. (actually Denver's draft choice loses value as the Redskins' record improves)
4. Gibbs does not use CP the way Denver did. He uses him like Riggo or Earnest Byner -- power thru the line. Edgerrin James excells at that, but he was not really available.

Portis excells at cut backs and bouncing outside the line. He added weight, worked the offseason, came to camp and blocks effectively - everything the coaches ask of him. The running game issue is not with Portis. I suspect Shaun Alexander would get the same result if used the same way.

And why did we need a back in the first #@^% place? Because a certain "inexpercienced" owner hired a genius college coach who had no skill evaluating NFL talent and whose offensive scheme had no use for a power rusher. How does Portis compare to Trung Canidate? That's the comparison to make.

What could Gibbs have done with Stephen Davis? Even though he's aging, if Davis were on the roster, I think Gibbs uses the Bailey trade to fill another hole.