The motor city madman......
Like the words to the song say, "Never before have I turned on you, when you look so good to me" ......."It's a Free for all and like I said you can bet your life.....", Football's silly season is here. The chance for clubs and players to be real fantasy football fodder. Where will they go? What will they get paid? Will they love their new situation? Will it take a seemingly good player and trash his career? Well that is the fun of it all isn't it?
Can you name five players that switched clubs and improved? Not so easy to do is it? Now, can you name five players that were supposed to be a clubs saviour that dropped off the face of the football earth?. Much easier to do, isn't it? Well that is the tricky thing about free agency you can buy a name, but if he doesn't fit your system you just wasted alot of money. No one wants to be a "Terminus Eldorado...."
Opening salvo's:
It is interesting to note, that most teams try to have a plan going in to free agency, the fun and excitement are the teams that obviously don't. They will grab at anything they can get their hands on, just to show that they are doing something to try and improve, more often than not those teams are sacrificing their future for the up coming season. Tampa I am looking at you, re-sign your current QB, sign a Free agent QB, trade for another QB, and then he retires on you. How many starting QB's do you guys need, seems like one good one would be better than three questionable ones...if that is a plan I will eat your hat.
They said it....
Since this has re-surfaced, I thought it would be good to share the Lance Briggs quote I used a few weeks ago. Turf Toe 2/14
I would say [the franchise designation] is the last thing the player wants and probably the last thing the team wants, too," Briggs said last week. "It's not a good alternative to a long-term contract, that's for sure. Just thinking about it, I mean, it knocks the air out of you." -Lance Briggs Breaking fabrication:
The Skins have made a blockbuster acquisition, in their effort to make a splash in free agency again this year the Skins made a move sure to grab headlines, the deal is still being finalized but they have essentially all but locked up Lavar Arrington to a 5 year $75 million dollar deal, to make this fit under the cap the Skins simply released everyone they signed last year.
This weeks outlawed phrases:
"This is a good move for our club"
"I look forward to the challenge of competing for a spot"
"We had every confidence we were going to get a deal done"
Heart of the Matter:
Look, I can set here and throw some more Ted Nugent lyrics on you, but whats the point? Well the point is, Free Agency has gone all wonky. Especially this year with the extra CBA cash, eight years eighty million dollars, that is in line with Vick or Farve, or Brady or Manning's deal, is a DB really worth that?
Come on SF has to feel good to get their man, but come on at that price? Why not just give him 10% ownership in the club and be done with it? Then I have always wondered how others feel, this years beat me if you can Free Agent move? Offensive linemen, "Hey I signed a 7 year $49 million deal", "Oh, yeah, Well I signed a 7 year $49.5 million deal"...."thats nothing, I just signed a 7 year $49.6 million deal, top that" as of this writing I am waiting to see if there is another lineman out there that can top that. I don't think there is, but come on for that much money, who really believes that measly $100,000 more means bupkis to these guys? Its all about bragging rights.
Lance Briggs is unhappy with his tag....naaaah, he is not unhappy with his tag, he is unhappy that Thomas gets $37.5 million to play for a SB contender while Lance gets a measly $8 million or whatever the tag is, he wants his (point 6) deal so he can have some bragging rights, he will probably get it, in San Francisco too.
Crunked Says:
Its official, the salaries are so high, they cannot be fathomed by the average man, can one of these rich suckers work in a deal that the beer is free in a random section of the stadium each week instead of the extra 100k, that will help ticket sales, give the player a tax write off and at least keep section 324 happy every now and again, thats the kind of community give back I want to see.
The best-the worst-the ugliest of the week
Best
Well I have already mentioned it, the best is the ludicrous salary that Nate Clements got to go to the niners. Come on, 80 mil, you can't say with a straight face anyone is worth that kind of money.
Worst
Teams trading stars for cap relief. This will become a bigger trend in the NFL with the way this CBA is set up, mark my words, but the fall out is only starting...watch for a league CBA amendment to the agreement or worse yet a trashing of the whole system in 2009.
Ugliest
The Jake Plummer debacle. These guys aren't accustomed to being moved like prized heffers. Well guess what this is the new NFL, and the new CBA. Dre Bly is mad, because Denver wont give him a contract extension, Jake Plummer retired to avoid going into the kooky quarterback collection club. Lance Briggs doesn't want to be tagged for a puny 8 mil when he knows someone will gladly shell out 40 mil or better for him, the scales have tipped gentlemen this ain't yo' mamma's CBA anymore.
The motor city madman......
Ugliest