Lance Briggs - Potential Free Agent

[firstdown]

Hmm, this sounds like another time we go out pay a guy a bunch of money and do not get what we paid for. I would rather see us look for some O line and a D pass rusher. I think we have had and still have enough of these high dollar players.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by firstdown

Hmm, this sounds like another time we go out pay a guy a bunch of money and do not get what we paid for. I would rather see us look for some O line and a D pass rusher. I think we have had and still have enough of these high dollar players.

On the offensive line, are you talking about a starter? Or just depth? Because if you'd try to upgrade one of our starters along the line, that's a SERIOUS misallocation of resources.

As for pass rushers, is 10 sacks through 14 weeks not good enough for you? I mean what the hell does Andre Carter have to do to get some love?

[MTK]

Briggs is a baller, I'm not advocating for bringing him here but I wouldn't have any concerns about him not living up to his reputation once he gets the big deal he's looking for.

LB is a position that may need to be looked at this offseason but I don't see the need for paying for a guy like Briggs.

[4mrusmc]

Oh my God, it's August all over again. Before we talk about who we can pick-up in the free agent market, let's focus on supporting the current team members drive to THIS years playoff drive.

[Schneed10]

One thing I REALLY don't get.

How is it that so many people in this thread, arguing against the idea of obtaining Lance Briggs, are some of the very same people who argued that trading for him back in April was a good idea? We were ready to pay the guy a huge signing bonus then, and we had fans of that trade. What's different now? Is our LB corps so much better now? I doubt it, not with Rocky out for a season and a half, not with Marcus Washington constantly in and out of the lineup, not with Dallas Sartz getting axed, and not with a short-term solution like Randall Godfrey.

And if you want Blades to try to fill in for Rocky next year at OLB, who the hell is going to be your depth? I absolutely don't get it.

The reason the Briggs deal didn't make sense was because we had Rocky. Now we don't have Rocky. And by the time Rocky comes back, Marcus Washington will likely be on the downside and will have a contract that lends itself to salary cap casualty.

I think WR is a bigger priority, but I'm dumbfounded at the faith we have in our current LB corps sans Rocky. If you don't like Briggs because of his price tag, at least acknowledge that we're paper-thin and LB will need to be addressed in the offseason.

[skinsnut]

Briggs is fine but will cost too much.
I dont know where the Chad Johnson talk came from...those guys dont fall on trees and there is no way the Skins get him unless they trade...and that would worry me.

We really can handle LB and WR with the draft...we could hide a LB issue easier than WR though..we still need D line and youth on the Oline..a young corner and RB and TE depth are needs too.

I just dont see the need unless our LB backups crash and burn.
Making a big splash could hurt us if we are trying to finally shift to a draft first team

[BleedBurgundy]

RE: Faneca

There's not too many FA's that Pittsburgh lets go that have any kind of career later on. Their personnel dept knows what the hell they're doing.

[SFREDSKIN]

Originally Posted by BleedBurgundy

RE: Faneca

There's not too many FA's that Pittsburgh lets go that have any kind of career later on. Their personnel dept knows what the hell they're doing.

Yeah, but he doesn't sound happy in Pitt. Didn't he almost retire at the beginning of the season? I think he's in a situation like Kendall was with the Jets.

[Schneed10]

Per the WP:

Several league sources believe the Redskins will heavily pursue Chicago freeagent linebacker Lance Briggs, whom Washington attempted to land in a trade last offseason. The Redskins have long pursued a stable third wide receiver as well, and potential free agents such as Drew Carter and Bernard Berrian are possible targets. They would like more youth along the offensive line and in the secondary as well, but have tempered their sweeping pursuit of free agents.

"We'll continue to exhaust all resources and take a look at personnel out there," Williams said. "But we also don't want to disrupt chemistry."

Redskins Peek Back, Look Ahead - washingtonpost.com

[SmootSmack]

There is a rumor the Niners might be targeting Briggs as well. Not sold on Carter. I'm torn on Berrian, I like him but I'm just as happy with Reche.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

There is a rumor the Niners might be targeting Briggs as well. Not sold on Carter. I'm torn on Berrian, I like him but I'm just as happy with Reche.

Yeah I'd expect Briggs will get a lot of attention. He's the only real impact LB available. As for WR, none of the guys available in free agency really float my boat. Bryant Johnson is probably the best of the bunch for me, but I don't know how Arizona lets him get away. Berrian doesn't do a whole lot for me, neither does Carter. If we want to improve WR, we're probably looking at the draft. Anything in free agency will pretty much serve just to fill out depth.

[MTK]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

There is a rumor the Niners might be targeting Briggs as well. Not sold on Carter. I'm torn on Berrian, I like him but I'm just as happy with Reche.

I'm torn on Berrian too. He's a burner but not much else, still it would be nice to have that speed in the slot.

[Smooter]

I really hope we don't land Briggs. I think we're fine at linebacker. As far as the WRs go im not sure. I'd like to think we're fine there if we resign Reche. CB seems to be a big concern to me though.

[JoeRedskin]

As to Briggs, if we can get him at a competitive price then I'm all for it. (Vet min + incentives - I kid, I kid). Schneed's right - we are paper thin at LB and, again, I think GW's defense is really places a heavy burden on the LB's and Corners.

Given our cap status, I am not sure we will have a lot of flexibility in pursuing big names and, while I am sure we can make solid offers, there are a lot of teams that are way under the cap. These teams can make huge offers (See SF for Nate Clements last year) that simply blow everyone out of the water. Some of these same teams are not big players in FA, but every now and then they may wish to "go big" to convince their fan-base that they are serious.

I also think the UFA market tends to be pretty sparse these days as teams have realized that holding onto their own guys makes a lot more sense. Yes, even the Skins realized this.

With all this said, I do not expect Briggs to land here even though he would be a good pickup. I just see us as getting out-bid. As for other UFA's, I don't see anyone worth blowing up the salary scale for. Briggs? Yes. Berrian, Johnson? No.

I expect that we will resign, restructure most of our own and pick up some back ups like last year. We will probably make a play for Briggs but get out bid.

[TheMalcolmConnection]

I think we need to continue to be financially prudent. So he comes here, then Rocky gets healthy and then what? We have two starting LBs, one with a huge contract and one who is a wasted draft pick if he doesn't play.

Let's draft one in the mid to late rounds, continue to use Blades and Godfrey and wait and hope Rocky gets healthy.