D'brick Ferguson; Bargaining chip?

Discussion in 'New York Jets' started by TonyMaC, Oct 30, 2014.

  1. TonyMaC

    TonyMaC Well-Known Member

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    All-right, here me out on this:

    The jets are about to hit a crossroads with their former first rounder D'brickashaw Ferguson.

    We don't tend to think about it, but D'bricks age, post pique play and his increasingly unjustified price tag could and probably will force the jets to move on from their former pro bowl left tackle, if not sooner then later.

    The timing of this could depend on how soon the jets get a reasonable replacement for a better price, but that opportunity's not gonna be in the cards till at least next years draft, if even then, so its not unreasonable at all to assume the Jets will keep him for 2015. In fact the most likely scenario is one where he's here next year and then either cut or (less ideally ) restructured the next season.

    However, i have an alternative to ALL of that, why not put him on the trading block next spring?

    See, theres not a great market for Left tackles in free agency, those who want a fix at LT are either shooting for the draft or looking at older vets or injured assets. D'brick isn't what he used to be but he's no where near a piss poor player or an undesirable asset either, in fact he could be seen as quite the catch to any team looking to upgrade their O-line, especially given his price tag if traded.

    D'bricks cap hit is very high for the jets, its 11 million now and next year and 14 million the next two years. but its not nearly as high for any team he is traded to, since his signing bonus would not be a factor. Not having that or his bonuses attached to him cuts off a good 5 million or so from his cap hit. his base salary next year is just under 6 million. Thats a perfectly acceptable price for a Left Tackle thats had no injuries and some pro bowl appearances underneath his belt, especially for a team with O-line woes.

    Mind you the only reason I suggest D'brick in particular is because he's over-paid for the level of play he's been giving of late, but good enough to be worth it at the price he'd carry if traded, and I believe theres a unique window where we can get something rather than nothing for him that will ONLY be opened next spring.

    Trying this AFTER he's a major bit of cap savings if cut in 2016 won't work as well as teams will just wait until he's cut to go after him if they want 'em. As is, the very idea that jets CAN reasonably go into next year with him as starter is enough to up the quality of the pick (or player) we get for him in return, so we'd have to strike NEXT SPRING or not at all.

    I'm thinking the jets could reasonably attain a second round pick for him at most, if not, certainly a third rounder. this is of course dependent on how desperate a team is for a quality LT, but I believe its worth it to test the market and see what he'll fetch… AFTER we get another tackle who can hold down the fort while a rookie plays that is.

    Speaking of, this would OBVIOUSLY mean we'd need a new LT, which might dissuade some from even considering the idea. But thats just it, we're gonna need a new LT eventually, REGARDLESS of wether or not he's here next year. Obviously interwoven it this plan is that we would actively beginn the quest to find his replacement rather than play it passive aggressively, maybe even with the help of the pick we give another team FOR D'brick.

    This is just a means of making sure we get something IN RETURN for his departure rather than get nothing as he slowly declines over time. For a team that needs an overhaul, getting value for a player with a foot out the door could be a coup, the timing is right, i think this is a good idea.
     
  2. 74

    74 Well-Known Member

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    D'brick shat my pants
     
  3. Bellows1

    Bellows1 Well-Known Member

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    I think his bonus would still count against our cap. So unless we get someone really cheap, there's no savings in trading him. Not sure about that though.
     
  4. Br4d

    Br4d 2018 Weeb Ewbank Award

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    D'Brick is 31 in December. The question probably isn't whether he's going to be a good bargaining chip in the spring. The question is whether he's still going to be good enough to start in the NFL by next September.
     
  5. James Hasty

    James Hasty Well-Known Member

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    Left tackle is a priority for this team.

    We can not continue to pay Brick exorbitant amounts of valuable cap room for substandard play.

    Not only should we be talking to him about a pay cut but we should also be talking to other teams to see if we can get anything for him.

    Since we end up eating the signing bonus his pay would be more reasonable to other teams without it. Even so, I would not expect to get much in return.

    The alternative to trading Brick would be to move him to either left guard or right tackle (unfortunately we need help at both positions). If Brick is unwilling to take a pay cut he would be the highest paid player at either position.
     
  6. twown

    twown Well-Known Member

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    OP

    a) doesn't rant or complain;
    b) consists solely of progressive idea;
    c) proposes addition by subtraction.

    I predict this falls off the front page by Sunday.
     
  7. Royal Tee

    Royal Tee Girls juss wanna have fun
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    D'Brick has had his ups and downs but seriously, LT is a a no joke position
     
  8. Jersey Joe 67

    Jersey Joe 67 Well-Known Member

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    Any way you slice it the O-line is a big concern and must be addressed now and looking ahead to the next 2 or so years.
    In a perfect world the ideas of the OP are great but I think moving Brick to another position along the line as another poster suggested might be a better answer and , in turn, may help solidify the line going forward for a few more seasons.
    It's tough to move that kind of salary and also absorb the guaranteed $ hit to the cap.

    Call me naïve but I think Brick would restructure to a more cap friendly # if approached in the next year or so.
    That would have to be a prerequisite going forward with a position change.

    Obviously this is all conjecture based on us finding a better, younger & cheaper option to move into Bricks spot.
    That's a pretty big "if".
     
  9. thatisjetsfootball

    thatisjetsfootball Active Member

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    This!
     
  10. 101GangGreen101

    101GangGreen101 2018 Thread of the Year Award Winner

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    Brick should not leave this team, sure we can move him to RT if we look to draft an OT in the first round this year, but I think Brick still is a good player in this league.
     
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  11. Innocenti

    Innocenti Active Member

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    Age is not as much of an issue with linemen.
     
  12. NotSatoshiNakamoto

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    He's not a RT though.
     
  13. 101GangGreen101

    101GangGreen101 2018 Thread of the Year Award Winner

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    Worth a try instead of just cutting him all together. Brick wouldn't be going up against the best pass-rusher anymore and he's a decent run blocker. I say this because it kind of gives us a little more time to explore our options for RT position. There's a really good LT prospect in Andrus Peat (Stanford) that we could plug in at the left side.
     
  14. NotSatoshiNakamoto

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    We don't want our RT to be a decent run blocker we want him to be a road grader.
     
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  15. James Hasty

    James Hasty Well-Known Member

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    LG would be more likely.
     
  16. 101GangGreen101

    101GangGreen101 2018 Thread of the Year Award Winner

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    We need the RT to be able to do both. More-so to the run blocking degree. You act as though the left side is awful at run blocking though, I don't think so - they've experienced success. You get another strong RG and you could make up some of the deficiencies. I just prefer to get everything we can out of Brick before you just throw him away all together.
     
  17. NotSatoshiNakamoto

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    I don't want to throw Brick away he is doing OK over there at LT IMO. Offensive linemen tend to play later into their 30's than other positions so I'm not concerned about him falling off a cliff just yet.

    I'm not acting like the left side is awful at anything. Those are your words. I said we want a road grader at RT, not someone who is OK at run blocking.
     
  18. BrowningNagle

    BrowningNagle Well-Known Member

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    This team has enough holes. Getting rid of Ferguson would be creating another one.

    He's actually a little underrated I feel, people take him for granted. He's a quiet player on a team full of loud "me" guys. Maybe that's why. I think the most impressive thing about him is that he never gets penalties . At the LT position that is a real surprise. He also is never injured and is mostly consistent. He leaves a lot to be desired in run blocking but so do many LTs in this league. You put him at LT for a short passing team like the Saints and he would be their best lineman.

    It hasn't been his best year but he's been playing next to a freakin sieve at LG so it's hard to tell and he does better earlier in games than later. I wonder if his conditioning is down this year. Either way some of the sacks he has given up were QBs fault for hanging onto it too long. At Ferguson's very worst he is an average LT. This roster doesn't have too many guys like that. And he plays a crucial position. Keep him around.
     
  19. NCJetsfan

    NCJetsfan Well-Known Member

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    IMO Brick has one position...LT. He's not strong enough or a good enough blocker in the run game to be an effective RT or OG. His best attribute is his quickness and lateral agility in pass blocking. He's barely above average now as a LT. How in the world do any of you think he could be even an effective backup at OG or RT?
     
  20. Chadchrebet

    Chadchrebet Well-Known Member

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    It's easy to transition to RT, he just needs to put on 15-20 lbs.
     
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