I know we are hurting for cap room at this point, but that is the backbone of Tannenbaum's success as a GM thus far, is getting us cap room and having productive free agencies to solidify the roster pre-draft. I think that we are going to see more restructuring and some cap casualties between now and through March 13, the start of NFL Free Agency. I don't think Tanny will want to go into the draft without having signed (in no particular order): A WR: probably Braylon A Safety: Griffin, Landry, DeCoud...somebody. A back-up QB: Orton, Campbell, Henne...somebody An Offensive Lineman That said, we probably want to re-sign Pouha so we don't leave Ellis and Tevaseau as our only options in the 3-4 crucial position of NT. He is 33 so we'll probably look to sign him to short-term and hope Ellis is the guy of the future. The short term variety will be more expensive. Hopefully, Woody will sign off on a nice signing bonus so the realized cap hit is less. This is starting to look messy because, at this point, we only have barely enough cash to sign maybe Pouha back, if that's the route we go, and sign our rookies. -Anyway, I think that bringing in a WR is necessary so we're not hamstrung in the draft. Braylon is a good fit if healthy, and should come cheap with an incentive laden contract. -Safety is probably necessary because the draft is weak at the position and we can't count on someone falling to us with good value that will play for us from day 1. As it stands right now, we have zero NFL starting caliber safeties on the roster. (Unless Tracy Wilson works out). -QB is necessary and Woody, Tannenbaum, and I think Rex have all said they agree that Sanchez needs a serious back-up QB. That said, I borrowed this idea on Collins from another website and I'm sure some of you have seen it before, but I wanted to generate some chatter about this potential FA. He is 6'5, about 320 and is 26 years old. He was drafted in the fourth round in 2008 after winning the Orange Bowl with Kansas. He was named to multiple first-team All-America lists out of KU in 2007 and helped to pave the way for a high-powered offense for the 12-1 Jayhawks as an LT. He was a red-shirt Junior when he entered the draft: "As a junior, credited with 108 knockdowns and 15 touchdown-producing blocks for an offense that averaged 479.8 yards per game; he was penalized only twice all season." Here's a scouting report before the 2008 draft from Sports Illustrated: POSITIVES: Well-sized pass-blocking left tackle with growth potential. Strong at the point, immediately gets his hands into defenders off the snap, and controls them at the line. Bends his knees, blocks with leverage, and makes good use of blocking angles and body positioning. Displays adequate footwork sliding out to protect the edge and easily knocks pass-rushers from their angle of attack. NEGATIVES: Lacks blocking balance, bends at the waist, and struggles to adjust. Marginally athletic, not light on his feet, and not effective in motion. ANALYSIS: Collins is a solid prospect who could be used at several spots on the offensive line. He offers a good degree of upside and could develop into a starter at the next level if he steps up the intensity of his game and learns to improve the details of his position. PROJECTION: Early Second Round Last spring, rotoworld wrote this about him: The Bengals are 7-2 with an average of 110 rushing yards per game in RT Anthony Collins' nine starts over the past two seasons. Maybe they should stop messing around with Dennis Roland and Andre Smith, and just start Collins. A 25-year-old entering a contract season, Collins played only 281 snaps of offense in 2010. He started seven games the season prior, and according to Pro Football Focus allowed just six QB pressures all year. This is the re-cap of his 2011 season from his bio at bengals.com: 2011 HIGHLIGHTS: Played in seven games (Games 1, 7 and 12-16), with starts Dec. 11 vs. Houston and Dec. 18 at St. Louis in place of injured RT Andre Smith ... Active-DNP in six games and inactive in three games ... Also inactive for Wild Card playoff ... Contributed to pass protection that ranked tied for fourth in NFL in fewest sacks allowed (25) … On Sept. 11 at Cleveland, saw action mostly on special teams and occasionally as an extra blocker in short-yardage situations … On Dec. 4 at Pittsburgh, played as replacement after Smith left game in second quarter with ankle injury, and also saw brief action on defense as an extra lineman in short-yardage situations … Played in all four preseason games. Here's the LINK to the rest of his bio from Bengals.com. He has been missing out on PT behind LT Andrew Whitworth, who is a stud and RT Andre Smith, who was picked #6 overall in 2009. Bengals fans like what they see out of Collins and he has performed admirably in his time replacing Smith. He will come cheap because he has no leverage other than age and will be enticed by the opportunity to start at RT. If he isn't the answer at RT, he is a solid addition to the offensive line and can solidify depth at both tackle positions, something we don't have right now. Unfortunately, Brick was often beaten to the QB and did not have a pro-bowl season despite what the fans voted. We need to be looking for a T back-up at both positions anyway. I know this is a lot to ask of free agency in such a cap-strapped offseason but IMO if we can land a crop like this, we are free to do whatever we want in the draft, which includes selecting Trent Richardson or trading down if the OLB we want or Decastro aren't there.
