As far as where the team goes from here, if I am AP I am looking at any player he doesn't see as a core player (but still has value to other teams) and look to move them to get draft picks.
I concur with your post by-and-large, and quoted this to kind of dig into it. I'm not sure how many players really fall into this category.
Free Agents by year post 2025:
2028 is just the 2024 draft class, and 2029 is just Sam Cosmi.
For 2026 FAs, Terry would have value but he is a core player. Wylie, Ekeler, Reaves are too old to hold much value. BRob could have had some late round value IF this draft was bad for RBs, but it's great, so no one is gonna take him. Everyone below that I don't think has any real trade value. It's basically just Allen who might actually have some value.
For 2027 FAs, I think Payne, Luvu, Biadasz could carry some trade value above a 6th, BUT I think Luvu and Biadasz are locked in as core players.
So it's basically just Allen and Payne as possible options to move for value, unless we're talking about like, maybe getting a 6th for Quan (and I think Quan sticks even if he isn't a "core" player).
I do think if you're AP you shop them both and see what you can get. While conventional wisdom says move Allen, keep Payne bc he's younger, and also Allen had an injury, but that also may mean Allen isn't gonna get much value back, plus it's a one year rental b4 you gotta pay him again. So maybe instead you're moving Payne? What does he fetch? A 3rd?
And if you do move Payne or Allen, where does the unit go in '25 and beyond? Presumably we'd bring in someone from FA who costs a lot less than either of them. I saw the name
Osa Odighizuwa mentioned. I'd like to kick the tires on Poona Ford for the run game. If you do that and moved Allen, you got 2 years to figure out what to do once Payne's deal expires. Maybe we just extend him; he'll only be 30 when it expires, so if he looks capable of play thru 32-33, maybe just give him a few more years at potentially a reduced rate.
If instead you move Payne, you've got a bit more urgency to get something done. Allen will be 31 and done after '25. So unless you bring in 2 FAs or draft someone high, you're gonna have Newton and, again assuming we add someone in FA, that FA, and you're gonna have to go back to the well.
Part of me is just in the "F it we ball, blow it up" mindset where we move BOTH and replace them with Osa and Poona and roll with Newton/Osa/Poona. But that might be too wacky, and I dunno if that's going to create some culture issues.
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