Sports

[Spurt]

Back to football..........

Murray picked the CORRECT sport....who would want to put all the time and effort into baseball...whose fan base uses the game as a sleeping aid...Now there are twitter reports that Murray is just the kind of player Snyder wants to see on the Redskins....PLEASE NO!!!...too many needs already and not enough cap space!!!  I think the Giants might grab him...

Doesn't sound like there will be a contact extension between the Eagles and Golden Tate.  The Eagles aren’t laden with cap space at the moment and that obviously impacts their ability to hold onto Tate while making other moves to set the team up for the 2019 season. They can maneuver their way to more space, but that may not leave Tate any likelier of sticking around for a full year in an Eagles uniform.  Although Tate has said he hopes his time with the Eagles isn't coming to an end...

Interesting, Panthers re-signed "problem child" and complainer, Eric Reid to a 3 yr extension...so does this mean his NFL collusion case will be dropped?

@teganslaw

Whadda think????

The Colts have 11UFAs....and 120 mill in cap space....The projected keepers are WR-Dontrelle Inman,  Najee Goode, LB, Clayton Geathers, S.  Players on the fence-Pierre DeSir, CB.  They were saying these guys wont be back...Ryan Grant, Mike Mitchell, Margus Hunt, Al Woods 

[Spurt]

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@teganslaw wrote:

I forgot about Snyder wanting a new stadium. Redskins' attendance has been down the past few years, so to paraphrase, Snyder probably thinks "if he builds it, they will come." I think making changes in the team rather than a stadium would be better. Maybe new management? 

I watched some highlights of an AAF game, and it was interesting. More action than the Superbowl.  I recognized some players who used to play in the NFL. 

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@teganslaw

I can give Snyder a bit of advice....."if we build it, they will come" That WON'T WORK!!!!  We built a stadium and NFL didnt come ....And your right TEGAN, put away the plans with the new stadium complete with moat....Snyder would get more fans back if he fired Bruce Allen....

@gardenman

Ill tell you why they'd give him free land...the money an NFL team generates for the city, same reason cities offer corporations tax breaks and a limited time of no taxes.... 

A newly built stadium can provide significant economic growth for the communities that surround it. Consequently, some professional sports advocates justify public economic assistance for stadium construction, saying it is a civic investment. Economic growth spurred by professional sports franchises can manifest itself in many ways, including infrastructure development, and increased tourism, job creation (including building those roads which the city also needs) and special events. An increase in home prices and rental residences--more tax income. A stadium built for a professional sports franchise can also be used as a centerpiece for hosting  large-scale conventions, college and other sporting events etc

The problem is owners go overboard with extra fancy stadiums-so they can't afford the land and pay for the stadium which tax payers are opposed to paying for these days-thank Jerry Jones for that....and Dan's moat is certainly NOT a necessity....

BTW how much did it cost Philly taxpayers to foot the bill to run a courtroom and jail at the old Veterans Stadium.......

BTW Snyder can move his team here...I'd be first in line to purchase season tickets...

[Spurt]

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@stevieb wrote:

@Spurt No idea on Kraft... Have to say, as you note, not being local to Boston, I don't follow the media on him... As you know, I'm somewhat of a Pats fan but not a Kraft fan, per se. I don't have strong feelings about him one way or the other, and not being much of an NFL aficionado anymore don't really follow any of these folks... I just happened to pull up their pages on Wikipedia and was frankly surprised at Kraft's largess and not so surprised that the piece on Danny boy wasn't exactly flattering...  I suspect Emmit's assessment might have had something to do with intel he'd gathered from players or former players, though I noted recently that Alex's wife had expressed gratitude to him for his support during Alex's injury and ongoing rehab... Of course, the team has a ton of money invested in Alex, so there's motivation... The truth about Snyder probably lies somewhere in the middle, but the consensus seems to be he isn't one of the NFL's good guys...

Overall, agree with you on the Post. Where most things are concerned, their bias is glaring... Still, that's more or less today's media, where objective reporting is no longer the norm...

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@stevieb

I hear ya....

Kraft has a lot more money than Snyder,6.6 bill vs 2.3 bill Kraft's wife (now deceased) came from a wealthy family too. But yes Snyder's philanthropic efforts DO seem very wimpy...

But I did think it was a nice gesture for Snyder to set up a trust fund for Sean Taylor's daughter, after Taylor was murdered in his own home by burglars ....(.the burglars didnt think he'd be there, but Sean was on injured reserve and went to see his daughter)...sad.

And I totally agree about the media...

[gardenman]

Golden Tate and Nelson Agholor are both slot receivers, and you only really need one slot receiver. When the Eagles got Tate they moved Agholor outside because Mike Wallace and Mack Hollins got injured and were done for the year. The Eagles also have Braxton Miller lurking in the background. He's an athletic freak who's growing more and more into a receiver role. I suspect he'll be the backup slot receiver in 2019. I think part of the reason for trading for Tate was to have Braxton around him, studying how he played. At this moment the Eagles have twelve receivers on the roster. They'll lose Tate, and maybe Mike Wallace and Jordan Matthews.

I wouldn't be shocked to see Jordan Matthews resign with the Eagles. I don't think there will be a huge market for him. The same could be true with Mike Wallace. A guy to watch in training camp is Carlton Agudosi. He's a big guy 6'-6" with 4.6 speed. He's still raw as heck, but you don't find a lot of guys with his physical traits. The 4.6 speed isn't blazingly fast, but it's more than fast enough when he's 6'-6" and 220 pounds.

[teganslaw]

I want Inman to stay; he has been an asset to the team, and is on his way to be #2 WR behind Hilton. Ryan Grant hasn't done much, even when he's been healthy. 

Geathers wants to stay with the Colts. I don't know whether they will resign Desir, although he had a successful season. Mitchell is interesting; he is a leader and a solid player, but has been on IR for much of the season. He's in his early 30's, so his age might be a factor against him. I would like the Colts to resign him for at least another season. He does good when he's healthy. 

Cleveland must believe that Kareen Hunt learned his lesson and will follow the rules. If they're right, Hunt is a great addition to the team. While Hunt is on suspension, they have Chubb. The Browns are becoming a legitimate contender in the AFC North. 

[Spurt]

@teganslaw

The name Geathers sounded familiar...... 

Clayton Geathers uncle is Jumpy Geathers who played for a lot of teams including the Redskins in 90-92...and he retired in 96. Clayton's cousins also play(ed) football-- Orlando Predators defensive end Jeremy Geathers, free agent defensive end Clifton Geathers, free agent nose tackle Kwame Geathers, former Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Robert Geathers, and former UCF defensive end Jarvis Geathers.  

From what I've seen on nfl fan sites, Colt fans want Mitchell to stay, because he is a leader, but some said he wants a big contract, and probably not feasible due to his age..On Twitter an NFL columnist said they hadnt heard about him wanting a lot of money to re-sign....

[teganslaw]

Interesting about Clayton Geathers. I didn't know much about his background.

I heard that Mike Mitchell wants a large contract, but I don't know how that started. Colts sports writer, Andrew Walker, said that it wasn't necessarily true, that players his age and not guaranteed starters don't usually command that much money. Have to wait and see how it plays out. 

Now Arizona is saying that Josh Rosen is their guy, that Kingsbury plans on working with Rosen to help develop him. Murray might be going elsewhere. 

Antonio Brown has demanded a trade and tweeted goodbye to the Steelers. Who will be willing to pay the high cost to pick him up? 

[gardenman]

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@teganslaw wrote:

Interesting about Clayton Geathers. I didn't know much about his background.

I heard that Mike Mitchell wants a large contract, but I don't know how that started. Colts sports writer, Andrew Walker, said that it wasn't necessarily true, that players his age and not guaranteed starters don't usually command that much money. Have to wait and see how it plays out. 

Now Arizona is saying that Josh Rosen is their guy, that Kingsbury plans on working with Rosen to help develop him. Murray might be going elsewhere. 

Antonio Brown has demanded a trade and tweeted goodbye to the Steelers. Who will be willing to pay the high cost to pick him up? 

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Kliff Kingsbury said: "Josh is our guy," but he forgot to add the "for now." If Kyler Murray knocks their socks off at the combine and in the interviews, Josh Rosen can become "Josh who? Kyler Murray's really our guy!" You can believe pretty much nothing you hear from a coach or GM at this time of year. We'll have to see what happens as the draft gets closer.

The question is, will the price tag for Antonio Brown be all that high? He's clearly intent on leaving. The Steelers just wasted a year with the Le'Veon Bell holdout. Do they want to waste another one with Antonio Brown refusing to report? It's a slightly different scenario, but they can't force him to play. He can just opt to sit out the year if he doesn't get his way.

He's a great football player, but, and this is a big but, his focus is a bit all over the place.  From Dancing with the Stars to the Masked Singer, to God only knows what else he's doing, he doesn't appear to be especially focused on football right now. If you're a team trading for him, and his big contract, do you really want an unfocused guy, who can be great when he's focused, but who's also a bit of a diva? They didn't get the offer they wanted at the winter meetings. I don't think the offers will get better. Do they keep him just for the sake of keeping him, or cut him loose to become someone else's problem?

Worse even than sitting out, he could come back and not play hard. They'd then be paying him and getting nothing from him. "Oops! I dropped it!" I think the Steelers are backed into a corner and have to take whatever they can get. They've got to get some order restored in that locker room. Put him on the market and the high bidder gets him. If it's a first round pick, great. If it's a thrid round pick, whatever. If it's a fifth round pick, well it's better than keeping a cancer in your locker room. We saw the Panthers end up letting Josh Norman go for nothing just to remove him as a distraction. That's not a bad example for the Steelers to follow with Antonio Brown. Get whatever you can for him, just know you won't get what he's worth, but losing him is better for the team than keeping him against his will.

[nun ya]

Antonio is a mess. He didn't show to his court hearing yesterday for driving over 100mph. He's in trouble for throwing furniture off a balcony and the lastest report of domestic abuse. He seems to think bad attention is better than no attention at all. Look at his ridiculous blonde mustache. He's lost his ****** mind. The comments on his goodbye cruel Pittsburgh post are hilarious.

he has a good contract, what more does he want? 

Better question, who wants to put up with him?

[gardenman]

Yeah, Antonio Brown is doing everything possible to get himself cut loose. It's not a bad strategic move on his part if he can get released before teams spend their cap space on other players. Let's assume the Steelers decide they need his roster spot for someone saner and cut him loose before free agency. He can then sign with anyone (Cleveland?) at no cost other than salary to that other team. 

If the Steelers continue to try and get something of value for him, he can just keep doing stupid stuff to drive down his cost to another team. Eventually the Steelers will have to let him go, or poison another season with a disgruntled player on the roster who's not contributing.

If a guy really doesn't want to be on your team, get rid of him. Get whatever you can but if you can't get anything, cut him loose anyway. Sometimes there truly is addition by subtraction. Until the Steelers make a move, every press conference, every fan encounter, will be focused on Antonio Brown. Work the other GM's at the combine and find someone, anyone to take him off your hands, and let him go. It's getting to the point where if they have to give a team something to take him, it might be worthwhile. Just get rid of him. Let him become someone else's headache.