Burner's Burning Questions: Free Agency, The Mock Drafts, 2016 (Continual Updates)

[McD5]

Geezus.

London Fletcher was great. But both Buffalo and the Redskins sucked. Let's not confuse the two. You can be an incredible player on a crappy team.

You can also be a crappy player on a great team. Trent Dilfer.

Dan Marino could sling the rock like nobody's business. He was a human highlight reel on Monday nights.

The same with Favre. Elway was also great. As was Jim Kelly.

Marino and Jim Kelly didn't suck because they don't have rings.

Nor was Trent Dilfer great because he has one.

 

[redskins26]

While the Broncos didn't have superstars on those defensives they were 15 in points scored and 8 in yards they were in 87 6th in points 8 in yards so they were not slacking on defense

 

[Bulldog]

the production of Terrell Davis and Rod Smith along with an improved defense with Neil Smith, etc. were the REASON I indicated that Elway won the Super Bowl when the balance of his teams were good enough to be crowned champions.

the earlier Broncos teams in the 1980's benefited from playing in a weak AFC where Elway could make the difference in playoff games against the Oilers and Browns.

The Broncos team that lost to the Redskins in 1988 and gave up 204 yards rushing to Timmy Smith was poor on both the OL and DL. Their rush defense was atrocious.

I am not trying to say that Elway won 2 Super Bowls by himself, my point is just the opposite. No one player can win by himself.

But some players are good enough to bring their teams to the postseason and make them dangerous as an out in the playoffs even if the surrounding talent is 8-8 caliber.

And that is just what Elway did.

 

[DieselPwr44]

Getting back to the draft, I'm going to beat this drum, just like I have for the last twenty years:

Fix the trenches first and make things alot easier for ourselves going forward.

Will be extremely disappointed if we don't come out of this draft with at least two defensive linemen and a center.

 

[Boone]

Not sure how the QB is responsible for blowouts in the playoffs Shi (unless they throw 5 short field INTs or something)? I do feel Elway was overrated to a degree, and I felt the same way about Marino. I'm not arguing they weren't incredibly talented physical QBs, but I think both lacked some of the intangibles that some of the other great QBs, like Montana, had. They were Lebron's, not Jordans imho. Given the talent around him, Elway should've had more success, ditto for Kelly. I think if you looked at every great QB over time, you'd find they could all be described as 'cocky' - because they have to be at that level. The difference is, when you don't have the trophies to point to at the end of the day, you get called out for your confidence level. When you do, you get a pass.

 

[DieselPwr44]

Yeah, I'll take DG over Marino ten times out of ten.

I think alot of misunderstanding comes out of this old campfire/bar debate.

IMO, Joe Gibbs' Redskins should've been the dominant team of that decade. The only thing that prevented that(IMO) was consistency at the QB position.

Everytime we got average to above average QB play, we were in the SuperBowl.

Gibbs got about 3 seasons of above average play from Joe Theismann before Joe started down the slippery slope and then his career was ended.

Doug Williams got hot for a month and a half and we got a ring out of it.

Mark Rypien had one great,miracle year and then never got to that level again.

Now imagine if fate intervened and we wound up with Marino. Say a 12-14 yr stretch where there was never a question who the QB was gong into camp at Carlisle?

Dan Marino's arm paired with the Hogs,our wide outs and Buges' running game? Most likely there's 4-6 Lombardi's at Redskins Park and not just three.

 

[Boone]

Just out of curiousity, I looked at Elways 5 Super Bowl performances. It's not dazzling, and it doesn't look much different in the wins than it does in the losses. He did not shine in the big game.

1986 LOST vs. Giants 22/37 304 yards, 1 pass TD, 1 rushing TD, 1 INT, sacked 3 times
1987 LOST vs. Skins 14/38 257 yards, 1 passing TD, 3 INTs, sacked 5 times
1989 LOST vs. 49ers 10/26 108 yards, 0 passing TDs, 1 rushing TD, 2 INTs, 2 fumbles, sacked 4 times
1997 WON vs. Packers 12/22 123 yards, 0 passing TDs, 1 rushing TD, 1 INT, 0 sacks
1998 WON vs. Falcons 18/29 336 yards, 1 passing TD, 1 rushing TD, 1 INT, 0 sacks

There's not really a great game in there. Biggest difference in wins vs. losses wasn't Elway's production. It was QB protection and the running game Hmmm?

 

[Elephant]

I think alot of misunderstanding comes out of this old campfire/bar debate.

IMO, Joe Gibbs' Redskins should've been the dominant team of that decade. The only thing that prevented that(IMO) was consistency at the QB position...

...Now imagine if fate intervened and we wound up with Marino. Say a 12-14 yr stretch where there was never a question who the QB was gong into camp at Carlisle?

Dan Marino's arm paired with the Hogs,our wide outs and Buges' running game? Most likely there's 4-6 Lombardi's at Redskins Park and not just three.

Yeah, I have to say that Dan Marino coming off the bench against the Giants that Monday night could have been a better story than Jay Schroeder. I am just not sold we could have edged out the Giants in the 17-0 loss in the Meadowlands, and am not sure what other team during that stretch had a chance to go further with Marino at the helm. Not sure Marino could have gotten us past that Giants defense any better than anyone else we had.

 

[Bulldog]

yep. the Broncos traded for Gary Zimmerman (HOF tackle) and signed Mark Schlereth in free agency to bolster their OL.

They focused on ball control and managing the clock with Terrell Davis.

And they built up the defense to NFC standards.

The 1997-98 Broncos were basically NFC teams.

 

[McD5]

Here's a possible name to keep on the radar in the third or fourth round of the upcoming draft.

If I'm a truly multiple offense that knows how to use RB's creatively, I am figuring out just how long I can wait to draft CJ Prosise.

--Louis Riddick

Analysts are going wild over this guy fwiw.

Edit: Now that everyone is talking him up, he'll probably get pushed higher than where we'd be interested. He can definitely go though.

 

[Burgundy Burner]

The Dolphins took Marino just before we took Darrell Green. So it is a moot point anyway.

 

[Burgundy Burner]

Free Agency, The Mock Drafts, 2016 (Continual Updates)​

Offseason free agency is churning along at a much slower pace, but BBQ is here to keep you informed.

We take the latest chatter from Redskins Park and media pundits as BBQ tries to formulate what could happen in the coming days and weeks. Who will the Redskins target, re-sign and release? Feel free to offer your ideas on free agency and the draft.

Free Agents Obtained:
Ziggy Hood, DE, Chicago
Kendall Reyes, DE, San Diego
David Bruton, SS/ST, Denver
Terence Garvin, ILB/ST, Pittsburgh
Vernon Davis, TE, Denver

Free Agents Re-signed:
Colt McCoy, QB
Kedric Golston, DE
Mason Foster, LB
Logan Paulsen, TE
Kirk Cousins, QB
Tress Way, P
Will Blackmon, CB
Junior Galette, OLB
Josh LeRibeus, C

Unrestricted Free Agents:
Darrel Young, FB (Not Re-signed)
Pierre Thomas, RB (Unknown)
Alex Smith, TE (Very Likely Walks)
Cary Williams, CB (Very Likely Walks)

Restricted Free Agents:
Duke Ihenacho, SS (Re-signed)

Exclusive Rights Free Agents:
Will Compton, LB (Returning)
Chris Thompson, RB (Re-signed)

Players Released:
Robert Griffin III, QB - $16.15M Saved
Jason Hatcher, DE – $4.2M Saved
Jeron Johnson, S – $1.07M Saved
Dashon Goldson, S – $8M Saved

Possible Cuts, Cap Savings, Candidates For Restructure:
Andre Roberts, WR – (Very Likely June 1st Cut - $4M Saved if Cut at That Time)
Perry Riley, LB – (Restructure?)
Shawn Lauvao, OG – (Unknown - $3M Saved if Cut)
Kory Lichtensteiger, C – (Likely Stays? Depends on Draft? - $2.95M Saved if Cut)
Adam Hayward, LB – (Unknown - $945K if Cut)
Jackson Jeffcoat, LB – (Likely Cut - $600K Saved if Cut)

Seasonal Updates:
This section will now be devoted to periodic updates. We will no longer list prospects from other teams.

The Redskins now have about $12M in cap space and haven’t restructured a contract thus far.

The FA additions thus far have been devoted to adding depth.

The Redskins appear to be targeting next year as an offseason that is aimed at keeping key players. If the cap remains the same, the team will have about $45M in cap space.

The cap next season is expected to conservatively rise by about $10M or as much as $13M. That would give the Redskins about $55M to $58M in cap space.

Assuming a new contract for Kirk Cousins is in place this summer and after a post June 1 release of Andre Roberts, the Redskins could have $60M to $68M of cap space for 2017. Possibly a bit higher.

We’ll update the free agency situations as needed and as media chatter warrants. Give us your thoughts on free agency and what you think will happen.

Hail To The Redskins!

 

[TomE]

The FA additions thus far have been devoted to adding depth.

Not the splash moves that we're all trying to rehab from but it seems to make sense.

Most if not all of these guys are expected to go special teams and contribute, can't think of a better way to get football guys going.

Show up on specials, get into Redskins' mode, continue to develop and play themselves into the starting lineup if they have the chops.

There's nothing wrong with being a standout special teams guy either, if that's the limit.

 

[Fear The Spear]

Adding depth is nice, but eventually, and rather expediently, we're going to need to acquire guys that can step in and start at certain positions in 2016, and do a better than average job at it.

 

[McD5]

Adding depth is nice, but eventually, and rather expediently, we're going to need to acquire guys that can step in and start at certain positions in 2016, and do a better than average job at it.

I don't believe that's the schedule we're working on. It appears that our goal is to seriously compete in 2018 or 2019.

I predict that will change next offseason, and that McLovin will come to the realization that he needs to be much more aggressive in FA next year. Both in trades and in signing FAs under 27 years old that can start at a high level.

 

[Boone]

Adding depth is nice, but eventually, and rather expediently, we're going to need to acquire guys that can step in and start at certain positions in 2016, and do a better than average job at it.

What part of 'I believe in building through the draft' don't you guys get?

McLovin has said it repeatedly, and it's what he's done his whole career. It shouldn't surprise anyone that it's exactly his approach now. We can talk all we want about 'today's NFL' and '3 year windows' but McCloughan isn't on the hot seat and he's going to do this rebuild slowly and deliberately.

That doesn't mean he's some infallible savant - I've never bought into the hype as most have. But I think he does things a certain way, and until he screws the pooch I have to believe he knows what he's doing.

 

[Fear The Spear]

I don't believe that's the schedule we're working on. It appears that our goal is to seriously compete in 2018 or 2019.

Even taking that schedule into consideration, I still don't see the logic in building depth, before building starters. It seems backwards.
What's the benefit in building depth first, and then starters ? Too much can go wrong, with that method.
Also we just won the division. So why should it take another 2-3 years, to go from division winner, to serious contender ?

 

[Fear The Spear]

What part of 'I believe in building through the draft' don't you guys get?

That's why I used the term "rather expediently" in my original post......meaning, I sure as heck hope Scot is super confident he can extract a few decent starters within a few weeks on draft day.

 

[McD5]

Even taking that schedule into consideration, I still don't see the logic in building depth, before building starters. It seems backwards.
What's the benefit in building depth first, and then starters ? Too much can go wrong, with that method.
Also we just won the division. So why should it take another 2-3 years, to go from division winner, to serious contender ?

I understand what he's trying to do and I support it in a perfect world. The problem is that it isn't realistic for every team.

It's great if you already have a solid roster and you simply want to retain your own. It's awful and would take ten years for an expansion team or someone like the Browns.

It's really just a simple numbers game and I think it will take him another year (hopefully not more) to realize it.

In short, we are going to lose 3-4 starters a year. We are going to hope that he can hit on 3-4 starters a year through the draft.

When all is said and done, we won't net anything.

It's why he needed to trade anyone he didn't believe would fit his system for draft picks (RG3 and Morris before last year began) and it's why he'll need to entertain offers for some of our other players in the future.

He'll also need to get more aggressive in FA next year in something like signing a real safety that can play here for five years. Not just one year Dashon Goldsons.

He'll learn next year. And.then after a year or two of operating in that manner, we will have narrowed our talent gap.

Then he can change back to his current strategy of maintaining for hopefully the following ten years.

 

[Om]

I don't think Scot sees football teams as a collection of disparate parts, like some of you seem to. Having watched his approach up close now for a year, and looking back on his previous stints in SF and Seattle, and digesting his mantra about building through the draft with 'football players' who understand and buy into the concept of team ... I think he sees football teams as intended to blend into more than the sum of their parts.

Just looking at one side of the ball alone, watching the cobbled-together patchwork of guys the Skins had to start in the secondary and at LB last year, and seeing no-name guys like Jarrett and Dunbar and Compton and Foster blend themselves into a defense capable of supporting a playoff run, I see a big huge flashing neon sign saying we're witnessing a TEAM being built here, as opposed to a roster fans and experts can look at and try to assess featuring a bunch of guys with "names" and measurables or experience elsewhere.

We tried that here for 20 years. It failed, over and over and over again. Now we're seeing a team being built from the ground up, which in its very first year under the new philosophy more than doubled its win total, and down the stretch looked like a competitive NFL franchise heading in the right direction.

Count me as more than happy to watch Scot stir the cauldron slowly and add ingredients here and there until and unless I see evidence over the next year or two that his recipe is NOT working beautifully, as the evidence so far screams it already is.