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NFL Offseason 2: Free Agency or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Squicken

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T

Talon

Member
The_Darkest_Red said:
I still think you have to go OL. They are down at least one OG and maybe two (what's the latest on John "Just Below Average" Jerry?), plus settling for Clabo at RT again doesn't seem like a good idea to me. I still see that as the biggest area of need for the team right now.
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And you were so optimistic about Clabo coming into the season. :|
 
W

Wes

venison crêpe
large.gif


Ben Tate is going to visit the Browns today.
 
K

KingGondo

Banned
Wes said:
We kind of had to overpay as we had two needs at ILB and no one to play there. I'm not too concerned though. We have tons of cap space, it's front loaded for first two years so can always dump him when needed, and he's a good character guy to have in the locker room by all accounts.
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Yep. Shouldn't affect the cap situation much.

Besides, fuck it. It's Jimmy's money.
 
T

The_Darkest_Red

Member
Talon said:
And you were so optimistic about Clabo coming into the season. :|
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He was really inconsistent last season. Started off rough so he got benched, then he came back and actually held his own fairly well.

Here's the thing about all the Tannehill sacks that a lot of non-Dolphins fans probably didn't notice: the majority came late in the game. Now, you could say it was because they were losing so they had to pass more but honestly they were winning late about as often as they were losing late so I don't think that's the issue. The issue is guys like McKinnie and Clabo are getting up there a bit in age and they just don't have enough gas in the tank to last a full game. Part of it may have been due to conditioning as well, I'm not sure. That's my biggest issue with Clabo overall, he just didn't finish games strong.

Honestly they need to patch up the OL in the draft, something Ireland was never able to do.
 
H

Himynameischris

Member
The_Darkest_Red said:
He was really inconsistent last season. Started off rough so he got benched, then he came back and actually held his own fairly well.

Here's the thing about all the Tannehill sacks that a lot of non-Dolphins fans probably didn't notice: the majority came late in the game. Now, you could say it was because they were losing so they had to pass more but honestly they were winning late about as often as they were losing late so I don't think that's the issue. The issue is guys like McKinnie and Clabo are getting up there a bit in age and they just don't have enough gas in the tank to last a full game. Part of it may have been due to conditioning as well, I'm not sure. That's my biggest issue with Clabo overall, he just didn't finish games strong.

Honestly they need to patch up the OL in the draft, something Ireland was never able to do.
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The first bills game and the ravens game come to mind as games that we were winning/had a chance and lost because of our shitty oline play at the end.
 
F

Futurevoid

Member
Some draft prospect news to break up FA:

RosterWatch @RosterWatch · 26m

BREAKING : #Bama LT Cyrus Kouandjio, after a disappointing combine, is the only player at pro day not participating "by choice." #ProDayTour
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That's...smart.
 
E

eznark

Banned
Jared Allen seems like he would be real useful in Seattle. Not so useful in Chicago. They's need him to do way too much.
 
G

gutshot

Member
Required reading for my fellow Eagles fans:

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/red_zone/Putting-Malcolm-Jenkins-poor-grades-into-context.html

That brings us to ProFootballFocus' (PFF) player rankings. PFF is an incredibly valuable service for its raw data. There aren't many places where you can find how many times a linebacker dropped into coverage, or how long a QB held onto the ball on average before he threw. PFF provides that kind of data, which is extremely valuable. However, many of their stats are useless, without context. For example, it has been pointed out that Jenkins gave up 486 passing yards on balls thrown his way in 2013, which was 2nd most among safeties in the NFL.

However, that ignores context. When a player like Jenkins is covering guys like Larry Fitzgerald in the slot, of course he's more likely to fail than a safety playing deep middle in Cover 3. The Saints gave Jenkins difficult responsibilities because they trusted that he could handle them better than anyone else on their team. The side-effect of that, however, is that a site like PFF isn't going to adequately account for the degree of difficulty. They'll simply chalk up a poor number, then stand behind it like it's the end-all be-all measure of that player's worth.

Jenkins received a -6.0 grade (65th out of 86 safeties) from PFF last season. Patrick Chung was right in the same neighborhood, at -7.0 (71st out of 86). However, when you watch the two play, a novice can easily identify that the skill levels of Chung and Jenkins aren't even remotely close. Jenkins will be a significant upgrade in the Eagles' pass defense. Ignore the noise.
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Y

yankeehater

Member
gutshot said:
Required reading for my fellow Eagles fans:

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/red_zone/Putting-Malcolm-Jenkins-poor-grades-into-context.html
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You keep focusing on the rating, ignore the ratings. Jenkins has more missed tackles that basically any safety, he also only has 6 picks in 5 years. He is a poor tackler with bad ball skills. This was a bad signing any way you want to look at it. I dont care that he fails covering good WR or he fails covering bad WRs, we should have gotten a guy that succeeds in coverage and guy like Bryd. They went bargain bin and it is going to fuck them this year. I really dont understand why you are trying to put a happy face on this. Maybe they will make other moves and it will work out, but right now shit sucks. There is no other way to look at it. They had a chance to make a big move and they totally whiffed on it.
 
P

Plinko

Wildcard berths that can't beat teams without a winning record should have homefield advantage
Marc Sessler ‏@MarcSesslerNFL 16m

Jared Allen meeting with @Bears & @Seahawks, per @RapSheet; he's at peace walking away from NFL if he doesn't get money he wants.
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From the sounds of it, I don't think he's getting what he wants.
 
J

jbug617

Banned
Pats offer to Talib was 4yrs/$40 million. That's a pretty good offer

Edit: Seattle cut Chris Clemons. Save them $7.5 million
 
S

squicken

Member
Rams looking at Davin Jospeh.

No thanks. If the guy can't handle Aldon or Justin Smith then he shouldn't be getting a look. Mebane, Campbell, Bennett, Brooks. Too many good defensive linemen in the NFCW to start shitty offensive linemen
 
S

ShaneB

Member
Maragos is gone too?! =( Dang it.

edit: and I see Clemons is confirmed cut, expected.

edit: that gif is indeed nice, what a pretty girl.
 
G

gutshot

Member
yankeehater said:
You keep focusing on the rating, ignore the ratings. Jenkins has more missed tackles that basically any safety, he also only has 6 picks in 5 years. He is a poor tackler with bad ball skills. This was a bad signing any way you want to look at it. I dont care that he fails covering good WR or he fails covering bad WRs, we should have gotten a guy that succeeds in coverage and guy like Bryd. They went bargain bin and it is going to fuck them this year. I really dont understand why you are trying to put a happy face on this. Maybe they will make other moves and it will work out, but right now shit sucks. There is no other way to look at it. They had a chance to make a big move and they totally whiffed on it.
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I'm not trying to put a happy face on it. I'm just trying to counter balance all the doom and gloom amongst Eagles fans here. I've said I think the move was solid, but not exceptional.

And I'm not hung up on the rating, I'm trying to discredit the rating. People keep trotting it out as proof that Jenkins "sucks" and I'm trying to refute that notion.

As far as your evaluation of Jenkins talent, you've watched his tape, have you? I'm guessing not. And neither have I. So I rely on the opinions from those who have watched his tape and all have come to the same conclusion: he's a solid player whose strengths are his versatility and his plus coverage skills. Is he Pro Bowl caliber? No. But he's an upgrade over what we had and certainly not as bad you seem to think he is.
 
Y

yankeehater

Member
Bleacher Reports take on the Jenkins signing

This much is certain: The Philadelphia Eagles are better off at safety now that, according to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer, they've signed veteran Malcolm Jenkins to a three-year contract. But unless the Eagles plan on complementing that move with another major acquisition at safety, fans have reason to be disappointed.

Jenkins is barely a starting-caliber player. He's an upgrade over Nate Allen, who hasn't been re-signed, or Patrick Chung, who was released on Tuesday, but safety is the one spot at which the Eagles had to spend some cash in order to make a splash and that just didn't happen.

Actually, the worst part is that they did spend cash without making the splash. The deal is worth $5.5 million per year with $8.5 million guaranteed, per McLane, which is crazy when you consider that they probably could have had top-tier playmaker Jairus Byrd for only a few million dollars more.

The Eagles value Jenkins' versatility, which is understandable. The 26-year-old broke into the league as a corner, and he's able to cover inside and outside while also spending time in the box and rushing the quarterback. He also spent more time in the slot in 2013 than any other safety in football.

But versatility only takes you so far if you're lacking in talent, and that slot factoid is quite irrelevant when you consider that the Eagles already have a superb nickel cornerback in Brandon Boykin.

The facts are the facts. The Eagles, who ranked dead last in the NFL against the pass last year, desperately needed help in coverage at the safety position. That's a big reason why they've invested in a cover-oriented player at that position, but he simply hasn't been good enough.

When targeting Jenkins the last two seasons, opposing quarterbacks have posted an average passer rating of 96.8, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required). In 2012, PFF graded him as the worst safety in football. In 2013, the same source found that he ranked second-to-last among all safeties with 1.6 yards allowed per cover snap and dead last at that position with one reception allowed per 12.7 cover snaps.

Coverage set aside, he was one of only three safeties to miss 20 or more tackles in 2013 and one of only nine to miss more than 15 in 2012.

Missed tackles since 2012: Jenkins and the Eagles Player Missed tackles
Malcolm Jenkins 36
Mychal Kendricks 35
DeMeco Ryans 22
Nate Allen 20

Pro Football Focus

That's easier to tolerate if a guy is a playmaker, but Jenkins has just six interceptions, 12 takeaways and 4.5 sacks in 71 games in nearly five full NFL seasons. And I say "nearly full" because he's never made it through a full NFL campaign.

Elsewhere on Tuesday, the Denver Broncos signed free-agent safety T.J. Ward to a contract worth $5.5 million per year, per Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. So even if the Eagles didn't want to fork over some extra cash for Byrd, it seems they could have had Ward for a similar price.

Ward might not be as versatile, and he might not be a prototypical cover safety—ESPN's Adam Caplan pointed out Tuesday that he "just doesn't fit what they need"—but that had better not be the sole reason the Eagles targeted Jenkins instead. Because Ward is simply a better player. That isn't a debate.

He was PFF's third-highest-rated safety in 2013, and although he was in coverage less often than Jenkins, he was still better than Jenkins in those situations. The Eagles could have signed him and forced him out of his element, or they could have brought him in as a box safety and added someone with versatility at a cheaper rate or in the draft.

Jenkins makes this team better, but Ward would have made it a lot better at a similar price. That's baffling.

This move would have made a lot more sense if it were part of a two-pronged investment at that position. As USA Today's Mike Garafolo points out, that's still a possibility. But Ward is in Denver, Byrd is visiting the Saints, per ESPN's Mike Triplett, and Mike Mitchell—whom yours truly thought was an ideal target—is signing with the Steelers, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

With Louis Delmas, Antoine Bethea and Donte Whitner also signed, starting options are becoming slim (as in, Chris Clemons or bust), which means there's a good chance Jenkins is the only starting-caliber safety the Eagles add before the draft.

A bad signing can still make your team better. That's the case here.

GRADE: D
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Seems like a very fair look at it. I hate this signing so much. I would have rather kept Nate for no money and tried to draft 2 safeties.
 
T

Tom Penny

Member
jbug617 said:
Pats offer to Talib was 4yrs/$40 million. That's a pretty good offer
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he got the biggest bonus in cornerback history...I'm sure his was much less and incentive based due to his injury history. That is more on paper then I thought they would offer.

I'm partial to Kelly Hazell or whatever when it comes to dem brits.
 
F

Futurevoid

Member
Andre Brown also visiting the Raiders.

Raider CB Tracy Porter is visiting with the Giants right now.

Considering we just signed Jennings, Reese and Reggie should have just worked on trading these guys. :jnc
 
B

BigAT

Member
Alligatorjandro said:
So he would've made 10 million a year. Guess he didn't want to stay there.
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A guy that injury prone has to value guaranteed money much more than simply the $/yr amount. I highly doubt that the Patriots offer had more guaranteed than the Broncos deal, which gave him the most guaranteed money EVER for a CB.
 
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