Draft / FA / Offseason Roster Moves (Merged)

[wickedsolo]

The Jets continue to be a circus...

They're looking at Jamarcus Russell.

I wonder who would be worse...Russell? Or, Sanchez?

[JAB1985]

Im not sure if it was said but i saw on the scroll that MIA doesnt think itll be able to retain Jake Long as hes seeking 10mil/year. Also theyre not going to try and retain Reggie Bush.

Long could be a long term answer but thats a pretty hefty price. Granted his current deal averaged 11.5, but im not sure where hes at as in if hes peaked and on the downward side. Not much possibility with our cap situation, but sounds like hes going to be one of those very rare top LT to make it to the open market.

The Jets continue to be a circus...

They're looking at Jamarcus Russell.

I wonder who would be worse...Russell? Or, Sanchez?

based on raw talent its got to be Sanchez. Nether can read a defense but at least JaMarcus can throw every throw right?

Thank God were not the Jets.

[wickedsolo]

I'd love to see Jake Long in a Ravens' uniform.

I just don't think it'll happen though. Teams are going to be all over him.

[NC Raven]

For that price, those teams can have Jake Long all they want. It just means there are plenty of teams still out there who don't understand the concept of "right player, right price." And as long as that is so, the Ravens will continue to maintain a competitive edge.

How many wins do you add for that $10 million?

[JAB1985]

Is he top 5 LT in the game because thats basically all hes asking for. 10 is actually a discount from what hes making now (i believe his 11.5 is the highest average salary right now, followed by Thomas and then Williams and Okung). I dont think a team willing to spend that doesnt understand it, they just may have different values for the position.

I agree we can get better value through 2nd tier and the draft which is what i think well do. Either the coaching staff does believe in McKinnie and hell be back (as I believe him to be great value) or well draft a decently high prospect, or maybe both.

[wickedsolo]

For that price, those teams can have Jake Long all they want. It just means there are plenty of teams still out there who don't understand the concept of "right player, right price." And as long as that is so, the Ravens will continue to maintain a competitive edge.

How many wins do you add for that $10 million?

It depends on how you look at it.

Would the Ravens have gotten to the SB had they not switch the OL up and gotten better pass protection?

Sure, it is possible...but I'm not confident that they would have.

A strong OL cannot be understated. Look at how it impacted the Saints and Packers this season. Those two offenses are nothing short of prolific, but they couldn't run block or pass block. It cost them.

I'm not for paying Jake Long $10 mill a year, but I am interested in bringing a player like that on board. I don't think he is going to get close to $10 mill anyway. Maybe 7 or 8.

[Paintballguy]

It depends on how you look at it.

Would the Ravens have gotten to the SB had they not switch the OL up and gotten better pass protection?

Sure, it is possible...but I'm not confident that they would have.

A strong OL cannot be understated. Look at how it impacted the Saints and Packers this season. Those two offenses are nothing short of prolific, but they couldn't run block or pass block. It cost them.

I'm not for paying Jake Long $10 mill a year, but I am interested in bringing a player like that on board. I don't think he is going to get close to $10 mill anyway. Maybe 7 or 8.

I'm hoping we can get McKinnie back on a reasonable deal. Then, we can get a LT prospect in the draft that could potentially start the following season.

[JAB1985]

Long was considered the top tackle in the NFL at one point, but his play has slipped as he's been plagued with injuries. He's no longer an elite run-blocker. Cleveland Browns tackle Joe Thomas is the highest-paid tackle in the league with an eight-year, $92 million deal signed before the 2011 season.

The 27-year-old Long, who has been selected to the Pro Bowl four times in five years, is a strong locker-room leader. Some team will gamble that he can stay healthy and return to form. The Dolphins, who have insurance with Jonathan Martin, are prepared to see what the market dictates rather than negotiating against themselves.

I think youre right Wicked because of the injuries hes had and his level of play dropping i could see him getting a lower deal 8-9, but hes still arguably top 5 and definitely top 10 imo. Clady remains the real prize of Free Agency in my opinion but i have no idea what his value is compared to Long. Whichever one ends up being cheaper will likely be the better value. I cant see the Broncos letting him go, which means Longs price will probably sky rocket once available despite those concerns and partially due to his leadership. So really Id assume him to sign a lower deal, but i wont be surprised at all if he signed a market deal equal to those others.

[wickedsolo]

I'm hoping we can get McKinnie back on a reasonable deal. Then, we can get a LT prospect in the draft that could potentially start the following season.

If McKinnie can be brought back and the guy will play ("will" being the key word) at the level in which he is playing now, then great.

However, the guy is going to be 34 years old this September.

If the Ravens bring him back, I think it should only be on a 1 year deal so that they can draft a young guy to groom behind him. If they aren't going to do that, then they better be willing to really look at potential LT free agents.

[wickedsolo]

I think youre right Wicked because of the injuries hes had and his level of play dropping i could see him getting a lower deal 8-9, but hes still arguably top 5 and definitely top 10 imo. Clady remains the real prize of Free Agency in my opinion but i have no idea what his value is compared to Long. Whichever one ends up being cheaper will likely be the better value. I cant see the Broncos letting him go, which means Longs price will probably sky rocket once available despite those concerns and partially due to his leadership. So really Id assume him to sign a lower deal, but i wont be surprised at all if he signed a market deal equal to those others.

Clady is going to get a big time deal from Denver. No way he even sniffs free agency.

I don't know if Long is top 5 or top 10, but what I do know is that he is 27 years old and is better than Oher.

[NC Raven]

I'm not saying "ignore the offensive line." I'm saying, "how much does a top LT actually do in terms of Wins/Losses, given how much cap space -- and therefore team depth at other positions -- he eats up?"

Ten highest paid LT's are who? I don't have an exact list, but from what I've seen it's guys like....

Joe Thomas? Loser team (cleveland). Jake Long? Miami -- loser team. Jordan Gross? Carolina. Loser team. Clady? Denver. Good team. One playoff win in 3 years???

D.B. Ferguson, Jets. Uhhh, yeah. The Jets... the Constanza of the NFL. Whatever they're doing, do the opposite and you'll be on the right track.

Roos, Tennessee.. Are they still in the league?

Peters, Philly. Meh. McNeill, San Diego. Penn, Tampa. Rebuilding? Relevant? Trent Williams, Washington? Improving team. Okung, Seattle? Finally we get somebody on a definitely good team at a good price.

Argue one or two above, sure.

Point is, most of those teams suck, and even the ones that don't totally suck are nowhere near being a SB contender. Denver and Seattle are the only ones on that whole list who are legit contenders right now.

So on balance I would say that tells me that the LT position appears to be overvalued by the market. If that list was chock full of teams routinely battling for the SB I'd say, yeah, looks like paying top dollar for a top LT is a must. But clearly it is not.

The fact that the Ravens were able to unearth a McKinnie on a dirt cheap deal (and thus save what, 8 million to spread around to the rest of the roster?) tells me that bargains win games, not paying top of market for one guy.

QB appears to be the only position that correlates well with "high paid" and "wins."

[arnie_uk]

My flavour of the week.

Trade our first and fifth with Arizona for their second and third.

Take Matt Elam.

Trade our second, fourth and sixth and move up in the second.

Take either ertz or eifert, which ever is there.

With the third we traded for take chris Faulk.

With our original third take Gerald hodges.

With our fourth comp pick take Jordan hill.

With one fifth comp pick take kwame geathers,

With our other fifth comp take Brian Schwenke g/c

With our sixth comp take Mathieu

With our seventh take Kyle juszczyk fb.

I'm assuming we extend jones and boldin, cutting leach and move to more of a two tight end or three wide receiver sets with 1 running back.

Also assume we lose ed reed, resign ellerbe, and Kruger I'm still not sure, we probably lose him and I'd like to have replaced him just can't fit anyone in. Finally we resign McKinnie to an incentive laden contract based on performance and sacks allowed, or not allowed as it actually would be.

[Paintballguy]

I'm not saying "ignore the offensive line." I'm saying, "how much does a top LT actually do in terms of Wins/Losses, given how much cap space -- and therefore team depth at other positions -- he eats up?"

Ten highest paid LT's are who? I don't have an exact list, but from what I've seen it's guys like....

Joe Thomas? Loser team (cleveland). Jake Long? Miami -- loser team. Jordan Gross? Carolina. Loser team. Clady? Denver. Good team. One playoff win in 3 years???

D.B. Ferguson, Jets. Uhhh, yeah. The Jets... the Constanza of the NFL. Whatever they're doing, do the opposite and you'll be on the right track.

Roos, Tennessee.. Are they still in the league?

Peters, Philly. Meh. McNeill, San Diego. Penn, Tampa. Rebuilding? Relevant? Trent Williams, Washington? Improving team. Okung, Seattle? Finally we get somebody on a definitely good team at a good price.

Argue one or two above, sure.

Point is, most of those teams suck, and even the ones that don't totally suck are nowhere near being a SB contender. Denver and Seattle are the only ones on that whole list who are legit contenders right now.

So on balance I would say that tells me that the LT position appears to be overvalued by the market. If that list was chock full of teams routinely battling for the SB I'd say, yeah, looks like paying top dollar for a top LT is a must. But clearly it is not.

The fact that the Ravens were able to unearth a McKinnie on a dirt cheap deal (and thus save what, 8 million to spread around to the rest of the roster?) tells me that bargains win games, not paying top of market for one guy.

QB appears to be the only position that correlates well with "high paid" and "wins."

Yep I agree with this 100%. This is why I'm hoping we can get McKinnie back on a bargain. We all know of his issues, but we also know that he needs the money. If we can get him back for a reasonable 1-2 year deal, I'm all for it. We just need to draft a promising LT prospect.

[JAB1985]

I'm not saying "ignore the offensive line." I'm saying, "how much does a top LT actually do in terms of Wins/Losses, given how much cap space -- and therefore team depth at other positions -- he eats up?"

Ten highest paid LT's are who? I don't have an exact list, but from what I've seen it's guys like....

Joe Thomas? Loser team (cleveland). Jake Long? Miami -- loser team. Jordan Gross? Carolina. Loser team. Clady? Denver. Good team. One playoff win in 3 years???

D.B. Ferguson, Jets. Uhhh, yeah. The Jets... the Constanza of the NFL. Whatever they're doing, do the opposite and you'll be on the right track.

Roos, Tennessee.. Are they still in the league?

Peters, Philly. Meh. McNeill, San Diego. Penn, Tampa. Rebuilding? Relevant? Trent Williams, Washington? Improving team. Okung, Seattle? Finally we get somebody on a definitely good team at a good price.

Argue one or two above, sure.

Point is, most of those teams suck, and even the ones that don't totally suck are nowhere near being a SB contender. Denver and Seattle are the only ones on that whole list who are legit contenders right now.

So on balance I would say that tells me that the LT position appears to be overvalued by the market. If that list was chock full of teams routinely battling for the SB I'd say, yeah, looks like paying top dollar for a top LT is a must. But clearly it is not.

The fact that the Ravens were able to unearth a McKinnie on a dirt cheap deal (and thus save what, 8 million to spread around to the rest of the roster?) tells me that bargains win games, not paying top of market for one guy.

QB appears to be the only position that correlates well with "high paid" and "wins."

most of the teams suck in order to get those Elite LT. problem is even though they hit on a T, that doesnt mean theyre well run and hit on other picks and Free Agents to actually get better. Is an Elite T going to change your team? probably not, but it can certainly help you get over the top with a good team around him.

[Ravenswintitle]

Yep I agree with this 100%. This is why I'm hoping we can get McKinnie back on a bargain. We all know of his issues, but we also know that he needs the money. If we can get him back for a reasonable 1-2 year deal, I'm all for it. We just need to draft a promising LT prospect.

I doubt they bring him back to sit on the bench until December. It would be better to have a young guy who is willing to bust his large ass

[leachisabeast]

I doubt they bring him back to sit on the bench until December. It would be better to have a young guy who is willing to bust his large ass

Chris Faulk in the 3rd round could step in when needed, there would be growing pains to begin with like there was with KO at RT, but there really are no other real options other than re-sign McKinnie for a year and draft a developmental player. Michael Oher at LT is not the answer, we'd be better off with Yanda at LT lol.

[Raveninwoodlawn]

With Jake Long, you REALLY have to ask yourself why a team would be willing to basically completely give up on a former first overall pick at LT who is only 27.

Nobody just lets guys like that walk when you have all the cap room the Dolphins have.

Everybody in Miami basically has said his play has REALLY been slipping over the last 2 years and he always seems to be hurt.

Not someone I'd be willing to invest $10 large annually in. There are red flags all over the place.

[JAB1985]

With Jake Long, you REALLY have to ask yourself why a team would be willing to basically completely give up on a former first overall pick at LT who is only 27.

Nobody just lets guys like that walk when you have all the cap room the Dolphins have.

Everybody in Miami basically has said his play has REALLY been slipping over the last 2 years and he always seems to be hurt.

Not someone I'd be willing to invest $10 large annually in. There are red flags all over the place.

In a league that, despite arguments against it, values the LT and at the least rarely sees a great one hit the market, it is extremely odd. I would hope the medical check would determine that but, it does raise some flags as to why they would be willing to give him up. maybe they do know something nobody else does.

[leachisabeast]

Forget about Jake Long, he isn't coming to Baltimore. Look at the usual solid/under the radar FA's that the Ravens normally look for to be playing in Baltimore next year, they wont over pay for a declining offensive tackle.

[Raveninwoodlawn]

Forget about Jake Long, he isn't coming to Baltimore. Look at the usual solid/under the radar FA's that the Ravens normally look for to be playing in Baltimore next year, they wont over pay for a declining offensive tackle.

I agree...he was never a real option although some wanted to dream.

Even if nothing was wrong with him, we just don't have the cap room to add someone anywhere near his price.