http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/giants/2009/04/no-deal-giants-dont-expect-to.html
Whee. I hope that’s true, but it could just be posturing.
I’m amazed that they’re unwilling to give up the #29. They’d be lucky if the player they drafted there was 3/4ths as good as Edwards … and if that’s the case, why not just take the proven talent?
GMs overvalue draft picks to a ridiculous degree IMO.
The speculation I heard was that there are simply no other suitors for the Browns and the Giants are simply driving a hard bargain. If the Browns are motivated sellers then they expect them to come around, if they aren’t the Giants will call their bluff and find a WR elsewhere. If Mangini and Co. really want Edwards gone I bet they’ll find a deal before Saturday.
In other news, just about everyone expects the Lions to announce a deal with Stafford for the first overall pick today or tomorrow.
I don’t know, I think they have to accept that they’re ultimately pretty ignorant about exactly what the “proven talent” will provide to their team. Peerless Price? Deion Branch? Both, in fact, were pretty similar to Edwards in terms of age and production when traded.
That said, as a Giants fan, I wouldn’t mind if they gave up the 29th pick for Edwards. I just hope they can talk Cleveland down to something like a 2nd and a 5th.
I’m starting to come to grips about getting Stafford. I still prefer an offensive tackle, but if we must take a quarterback (despite the need to also keep said quarterback upright), I suppose we must take Stafford.
I feel almost like a unsuccessful dating person when the Lions are supposed to take a quarterback in the draft. I’ve been hurt so many times, my defense mechanisms are up, and it’s hard for me to draft again.
Price had never been a #1 receiver before being traded to Atlanta; he always had Eric Moulds in Buffalo to draw the coverage. Branch had never had a 1,000 yard season despite being the Pats’ #1 guy for at least three years.
I don’t think Braylon is anything like as good as SB thinks he is, but I don’t think comparisons to Price and Branch (who might have become a true #1 in Seattle if not for the injury bug) are fair.
Really good wide receivers are available all the time. I do not know why people draft them or why they overrate their own importance so much. Tight ends a re a bit rarer and are very important for many offensive schemes.
It seems the Lions are not drafting to fix the offensive or defensive lines. It will set them back again.
You could say those things, and you could also say that Edwards’ only really impressive statistical season happened in a more pass-oriented offense than either Branch or Price ever had. For whatever reason, his trade value is apparently about the same as Price or Branch’s was, and his production to date doesn’t put him on a whole different level than they they were on at the time of their trades.
Now, like you, I also think he’d play much better on his new team than Branch or Price did. No doubt, Seattle though they’d get better production out of their new, 5th-year WR than Atlanta got out of theirs. My point is that you can’t act like Edwards is a known quantity just because he’s a veteran; WRs on new teams often perform very differently than they have in the past.
…other than 2002, when Price had Drew Bledsoe as his quarterback and caught 94 passes- making him the team’s second leading receiver? Bledsoe, FTR, threw the ball ~80 more times in 2002 than Derek Anderson and Charlie Frye did in 2007.
There’s a report out that says that Stafford’s agent has until Friday to accept the contract or the Lions are drafting Aaron Curry.
…There’s…there’s a glimmer of hope! Yes we can!
I would still be majorly upset that you have to pay Curry that sort of money. The Buccaneers never paid Derrick Brooks the kind of money and he made a dozen Pro Bowls and All-Pro teams and was Defensive POTY.
The NFL needs a rookie wage scale, now.
I agree, especially when you consider that a middle linebacker isn’t a particularly hard position to fill, especially in a 4-3.
I believe Jason Smith and Aaron Curry also have the same agent, but it appears that the Lions would go with the “cheapest” alternative here. That also scares me.
I just want this to be over. Just…give me the junior quarterback that will almost certainly falter (see Cade McNown, Akili Smith, Ryan Leaf, and Alex Smith) as quarterbacks taken after their Junior year are wont to do. Ben Roethlisbergergergerger is the lone exception.
Can we please just take the tackle and trade up next year? Why not take the tackle and Pat White/Brian Hoyer gamble?
I’m interested in seeing if the Seahawks go after Pat White. All the talk has been about him converting to a wideout, but didn’t he have one of, if not the, best combines for QBs? It seems like a good fit, as it will allow Mora to completely recreate his Atl system only with the benefit of White seeming to have a much better head on his shoulders than Vick. His record four Bowl wins also is a good sign of his leadership qualities. Plus I bet he has Owen Schmitt putting in the good word for him too.
I hope this is what they do. That or go with Bomar, who’s name is bandied about a lot and seems to have a lot of upside. Plus they could be had in the 4th or 5th rounds. I’d much rather see them address the O-line or LB spots early, rather than taking the gamble and salary hit on Sanchez, who seems to be the current consensus 4th overall.
I completely agree with you. He’d make a very interesting pick in Seattle, for the reasons you described as well (although not going 4th overall, obviously).
I was just thinking about something. I wonder if we could deflate rookie salaries maybe if they started to essentially auction themselves off at a lower salary to go higher.
There’s a rumor that Aaron Curry would take less money than expected for a #1 overall if Detroit takes him. It could be mutually beneficial… there’s a possibility that Curry drops as far as #5, and the the #1 contract is worth about double the #5 contract. So Curry can say “I’ll take 20% less than last year’s #1 if you draft me there” and still make more money than he’d make in the 5 slot. Detroit saves money, Curry makes money, and potentially the #2 pick onwards can’t ask for as much because the guy who signed before you somewhat sets the pace.
With enough people willing to use this sort of logic, we could see who’s drafted influenced by what contract they’re willing to take, which could drive down prices, especially at the very top.
In the end, this ultimately hurts rookies since they’d end up getting paid less - but you can generally count on people to act in their immediate self interest, not in the interest in people that will be in similar positions in the future.
It is so distorted when draft choices make millions without proving themselves in the pro game.
Tony Gonzalez is going to Atlanta for a 2nd in 2010 draft;. That must be a payroll trade.
Not necessarily. They need to get something for him while he’s still marketable. I think it’s a very good move for Atlanta.
The idea of drafting Raji #5 overall is growing on me again after it was revealed he didn’t test positive for drugs. Curry has to be the #1 on the draft boards but there’s a decent chance he’s gone by #5 and then you’re left with Orakpo/Crabtree/Raji. Crabtree will probably have a solid career but ideally we’ll keep Edwards and it’d be hard to justify drafting 2 WRs that high unless he’s clearly the BPA. That said, if it meant teaming them up, I wouldn’t hate the pick. If he’s drafted as a replacement, I think that’s spending the #5 overall to take a step back.
But with Raji on the nose and Rogers at DE, ideally a healthy Corey Williams or if not then a pretty capable Robaire Smith could potentially make a top 5 D-line in the NFL. Draft the best center with the high #2, draft a right guard/right tackle project in the 4th, and we could be looking at top 5 O-line and D-line, which is the way to start.
It’s a very bad move for Kansas City. They just ran out and got themselves a shiny new franchise quarterback. Why on earth would they then trade their best receiver?
Fair enough; I should’ve checked that. Still don’t think that Edwards would be a substantially safer acquisition than either Price or Branch were. Higher upside, probably, with his high-draft-pick pedigree and all.
I love the trade for KC. Gonzalez is 33 years old, and pass-catch TEs don’t age well. In fact, Gonzo’s already past the age at which a TE should be expected to break down. Now, in part this means that he’s a special player for whom the usual rules don’t quite apply, but it also means that he could decline, quite rapidly, at any time. Atlanta is probably getting no more than two *good *years out of him, and could quite plausibly get zero. Shannon Sharpe is the big exception, and even he retired at 35. The Chiefs figure to get more use out of the draft pick, especially as they’re unlikely to contend this year anyway.
A good tight end is hard to find. They can stretch the field and punish linebackers.