TEAM FREE AGENTS ----- RE-SIGN: Jeremy Kerley ----- already done. Good move. Damon Harrison ---- can’t let Snacks go. David Harris - despite signs of decline, there’s no better options in free agency or the draft. Bilal Powell – he should have never gotten lost in the RB shuffle. He can run, catch & block. Leger Douzable --- Better than rotation material. Resign unless someone offers huge cash. Dawan Landry --- Normally, I opt for youth, but he had a really good year & our roster is in no position to let go of slightly better than average players. Plus the safety position is so unsettled. Kyle Wilson ---- probably the biggest shock. Milliner & McDougle appear to be so injury prone, we are forced to bring Wilson back. As much as we hate the former 1st round pick, we might realize his value once he’s gone. Wilson isdurable, has experience& is better than average covering the slot receiver. Kenrick Ellis -- unless he gets a ton of cash thrown at him. 6-4 345lb bodies don't grow on trees. We need to keep Snack fresh & I am still hopeful with Ellis. Shit, we can keep him as trade bait after a year or 2. Muhammed Wilkerson ---- his patience is wearing thin. Its time to sign him long-term. TEAM FREE AGENTS ----- ADIOS: Percy Harvin – I doubt the new FO/CS regime wants to pick up the previous FO/CS regimes failure. I don’t even see Harvin re-negotiating his contract to the point we’d want him to. So we lose a 6th rounder. Not sure if we really learned anything on that trade. Michael Vick David Nelson Antwan Barnes Jermaine Cunningham Jaiquawn Jarrett ---- I think the big Pittsburgh game was a mirage. Time to move on. Greg Salas Willie Colon Chris Johnson --- $4 million for 2015 is too high & the gun arrest makes it an easy decision. TRADE: Quinton Coples. OK,……..so that whole draft pick despite numerous red flag warnings that ended up with a head-scratching ill-fated plan to transform him a 3-4 pass rushing OLB, really worked out,…….eh Rex? Its actually good for us he came on towards the end of the season, - it will help us in the trade. Unlike Wilkerson & Richardson, he’s not in our long term plans and I don’t trust him with a big payday. With a contract up after 2015, - I say trade him now & get what we can. Standard draft pick for any guy in the last year of his rookie contract is 4th round. Coples is more suited to play DE in a 4-3 scheme, --- just as it was specified in the months leading up to his draft. Best landing spot is a trade to NFC Dallas Cowboys, Tony Romo turns 35 before 2015 season starts. They are in the “win now” mode. Figure we end up with pick #124 in the 4th round. FREE AGENTS If there was anything I was in complete agreement with John Idzik, - it was his philosophy about free agency. In the past few years, the Seahawks have not chased many big-name expensive free agents. They have viewed FA as the opportunity to solve specific positions & not the supreme solution. This is the purpose of the draft. Kareem Jackson / CB / Houston Texans 5-10 190 turns 27 years old in April 2015 Probably our most expensive offseason FA acquisition. I don’t want us to invest yet another draft pick on a young CB who needs time to learn. We need an experienced & durable veteran to provide mentoring to a younger group. The new GM will HAVE to assume that either Dee Milliner, Dexter McDougle or both of them will not b be able to stay healthy; - much less determine if they can even play well when healthy. Very impressed with Marcus Williams – we need to develop this kid (something Rex Ryan and Dennis Thurman were not going to do). Phillip Adams got valuable experience. With Bowles as head coach, people think Cromartie is coming back but he’s turning 31. Jackson comes from Houston via Maccagnan. Jabaal Sheard / OLB / Cleveland Browns 6-3 264 turns 26 years old in May 2015. Former Gang Green group draft favorite. How much longer could Calvin Pace have? Jason Babinis older & recent late round draft picks TReilly and IK are unknowns. We are due for a longer term investment with someone young. Browns paid a ton of money to Paul Kruger and drafted Barkevious Mingo in 2013. Sheard will not break the bank like Justin Houston will. Also not injury-prone like Brian Orakpo. Clint Boling / OG / Cincinnati Bengals 6-5 310 turns 26 years old in May 2015. Willie Colon HAS to be on his way out. It’s only been 2 years, but Brian Winters has shown me nothing to resemble starting material. We’re all hopeful that Dakota Dozier could develop into something, - but the fact that he hasn’t dressed at all in his rookie season yells “project” and we’ve never had luck with that. Oday Aboushi has played well enough to start & develop. Last year I wanted the FO to go after OG Jon Asamoah from KC who ended up going to Atlanta. Free Agent Mike Iupati has been mentioned as a possible offseason FA target. He will be 28 years old by the time the 2015 season training camp opens & will probably command a fortune in free agency. 28 is not old, but it’s not young either. NFL careers at getting short & we wouldn’t break the bank by getting Clint Boling at what I feel is the next level guard down from Iupati. Matt Moore / QB / Miami Dolphins 6-3 223 turns 31 yrs old in August 2015 Its slim pickings for QB in free agency & the draft. We can’t force the issue of a long-term solution. Remember, - we’re rebuilding. This is the “best bad idea / least worst option” we can go with. The May 2016 draft is going to be STACKED with long-term franchise type QB options. Plus, I always thought that when Moore played, he did well & for some reason, just never got a fair shake. Hey, - its better than Mike Vick. DRAFT My HOPE is that we trade down from 6 & acquire additional picks. 1/6 Amari Cooper / WR / Alabama 6-1 210 It’s a no-brainer if he’s available when NYJ is OTC. But if he’s not here, then it should be Shane Ray OLB Missouri. 2/38 Eli Harold / OLB / Virginia 6-4 250 Looks like we’ll be sticking to a base 3-4 D with Todd Bowles as coach. Harold played the 3-4 at UVA in a hybrid type OLB/DE role. God Bless Calvin Pace but he just can’t possibly go on much longer. Jason Babin is more of a situational pass rusher & not a full-time starter. No idea what we have with recent draft choices IK & Trevor Reilly. 3/70 Derron Smith / FS / Fresno St. 5-11 197 We don’t have to draft CBs to make our secondary better. We get Dawan Landry re-signed short term, - Smith can learn & isn’t required to jump in and start right away. 3 time First-Team All-Mountain West, - Smith can do it all, but his specialty is coverage. 4/102 Daryl Williams / OT / Oklahoma 6-6 329 Breno Giacomini has regressed to dogshit. I considered him short-term at best, but he’s gotten so incompetent that we need to get him out now. We can bench him or cut him (& lose $2.5 million). IMO - Williams has MUCH higher upside than Sambriello of Colorado St. 4/ 124 (Coples trade to Dallas) Vince Mayle / WR / Washington State 6-3 219 Another receiver? It looks like Idzik completely missed the mark on the WR position in last year’s draft. Summer 2014 training camp reports indicated 2014 4th round draft pick Shaq Evans couldn’t catch the ball. Mayle’s 2014 season totals = 106 receptions / 1,483 yards (practically exact same stats as WR Kevin White of West Virginia). Scouts talk about his long-term potential, - but unlike Stephen Hill, he CAN catch a football. Put up big #s vs solid PAC-12 competition. You have to admit that after Decker, Kerley and Cooper (hopefully), we really don’t have ja ck shit. 5/138 Sean Mannion / QB / Oregon St. 6-5 220 Everyone talks only about the bad shit of Mannion. He was given a 3rd grade prior to 2014 draft, so he went back to school. Ouch. But he still has an NFL frame, great arm, solid accuracy and 4 years starting experience in a pro-style offense. He just doesn’t have mobility & the league seems to be heading in that direction. 6/166******* NO PICK === Percy Harvin Trade ****** 7/198 Taiwan Jones / ILB / Michigan St. 6-3 252 This is the thumper to replace David Harris down the road. He’s just not ready yet. Was top team leader at MSU.
No shot I deal Coples for a late 4th. No way. If Coples has a strong year, you can get a 4th in compensation in a later year since he's pass rusher entering his prime.
You make a good point. But what's the difference if we basically do it a year earlier? We still get the 4th rounder you are talking about and still bid adieu to Coples.
Very realistic, I love it. I'm all for trading Coples but not for a 4th, would have to be a third at best. Harold is a very underrated talent, when you watch him he pops off the screen. One of the best pass rushers in the class, I think Bowles would love him. Exchanging Harvin for Cooper and Mayle is also fine with me. They'll be cheaper and hopefully more productive, Cooper is a number 1 caliber receiver. Mayle is a great under the radar receiver, big frame and is a completion receiver. I'm also kinda hoping Shaq Evans pans out, I would trade Kerley if possible but not likely. Daryl Williams is an okay pick, I like Donovan Smith from Penn St and think he should be there around where you picked Williams. No real huge splashes in FA, which is fine. Great job overall WWS.
If the Raiders take Cooper and you go with Shane Ray as your second choice do you change your second rounder or do you still take Eli Harold?
Wow, the first projection of a Kyle Wilson resigning yet. Hope it's for 1.5-2M or less and 1 year. I'd probably tender Jarrett and keep him around as depth. He actually did have a decent season, especially in coverage aside from his monster game against Pitt. Interesting idea to trade Coples. He seems to be slowly growing into a 3-4 OLB, but still appears to be a much better fit for the 4-3 so it could be best for the Jets and Coples to part. I like the free agent signings a lot. Boling would represent a good combination of balanced talent and value. If Kareem Jackson is a guy Maccagran thinks highly of, he's probably a good bet to be back. Matt Moore is the best FA veteran option to compete for a starting spot IMO Like the draft too. Each picks makes sense. Not sure I like Mannion though, but once you hit that point in the draft it's a real crapshot anyway. Overall, roster would look good heading into 2015. I think I'd like an additional RB to team with Ivory and Powell unless you like Daryl Richardson. Other thing, and I'm not sure exactly how to go about it, but I'd like to see more competition for Geno than just Matt Moore. I'd look strongly into a trade for another QB (perhaps with Coples as an option). But then again, maybe Gailey or the next OC will feel confident that he can get more out of Geno. Other than that, this would be a solid offseason. Some unique ideas here too
Miss out on a potentially strong year out of Coples and are then forced to replace him with a rookie or free agent.
Thanks for the feedback, brother. We might be able to squeeze the 3rd from Dallas because its so late in the round. I would dangle Coples to TB for their early 4th rounder - some very recent news is that they might release Michael Johnson (current 4-3 starting DE) who they just signed on a pay-as-you-go megadeal. Only if my man D. Williams is gone will I look to PLAN B Donovan Smith. Anybody but Breno in 2015 ---- I'm telling you guys.
I change my 2nd. And its possible the other choices would change as well. And I would be 100% OK with Shane Ray at 6 if Cooper is off the board and we can't trade down.
Agree on the Kyle Wilson extension === cheap and short-term. Jarrett has minimal impact either way. Threw in some flavor w/the Coples trade (and the Wilson re-sign). Ya gotta have at least 1 shocker to be a GM. Yeah, - I put in the Mannion draft & I didnt even like it myself after hitting send. 5th rounder is a crapshoot, but good rosters are built not making any draft pick a "crapshoot" as well. I should have put in David Johnson RB from Northern Iowa. Thanks, brother.
As I feel like we're rebuilding (again), - its best to accelerate that process (get the rookie or free agent in & playing) when I know we're not going to re-sign Coples (for the aforementioned reasons).
I understand that but I just don't think you can just give up Coples for a late 4th. I would expect more from that for a young pass rusher. Maybe a 4th and 5th from Dallas since I can see Marinelli really like Coples since Coples doesn't have that "Lack of Motor" stigma around him anymore.
Plus, you've gotta not sign people to get those comp picks. Holding out from picking up a FA you think can help your team in the hopes of getting a pick north of 130... doesn't really shake out well IMO.
EEESSSHH. Not the best news about Donovan Smith via Rotoworld; NFL Media senior analyst Gil Brandt believes Penn State redshirt junior T Donovan Smith grades out as a sixth-rounder and could have improved his stock by returning to school. Smith announced late last month that he will enter the 2015 NFL Draft. Interestingly, TFY Draft Insider's Tony Pauline reported recently that scouts think Smith made a mistake opting in, echoing Brandt's thoughts. "To Smith's credit, he graduated in December with a degree in criminology," Brandt wrote. "At 6-foot-5, 335 pounds, he looks like he's got a lot of upside, but he's not very consistent with his technique and has issues with pass protection. His workouts will be even more vital than usual when it comes to his draft position, and if he doesn't have a good combine he's probably going to be a sixth-round pick. Had he stayed in school and maybe lost some weight, I think he really could've improved his draft position." CBS Sports' Dane Brugler wrote that Smith is "similar to Michael Oher type."
