Sports

[gardenman]

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@Spurt wrote:

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@gardenman wrote:

The Derek Carr deal is great news for every other QB in the league. If the Redskins won't go that high for Cousins, they may have to give serious thought to moving him to get something in return. If they can't sign him by July 17th then their only two options after that date would be to pay him the $24 million he's due this year, then either let him walk, or tag him again at $34 million.

My gut says the Redskins won't pay Cousins and they'll trade him to the Niners. Things could get pretty interesting come the middle of July.

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@gardenman

I have a feeling that the Redskins will match the Carr deal............

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It'll be interesting to see. Up until a couple of months ago the Redskins were still at $16-$18 million for his max salary. The last I heard they'd upped the offer to around $20 million. That jump from $20 million to $25 million is a pretty big jump. Theyve been talking up Colt McCoy a lot lately too. 

If they think the Niners wil be bad this year regardless of QB (a fair bet) and they can get the Niners first round pick next year for Cousins, it might not be a bad move. The Redskins would be hard pressed to win more than five games or so with McCoy as the starter so they'd likely end up with two top ten picks next year. Those two picks could be leveraged to get an even higher pick and grab a cheap QB of the future who they'd pay less over his first five years than they're paying Cousins for this year.

And don't forget that Kaepernick is still out there floating around. He'd cost some money, but not $24 million, and he's had some success  in recent years. Trade away Cousins, get a high first round pick for him, sign Kaepernick for the $14-$16 million they wanted to give to Cousins, use the draft picks you get to get a kid next year and build for the future. It's not necessarily a bad plan.

Would the Niners trade next year's first round pick knowing the Redskins will have to let Cousin's walk if they can't sign him? With the Jets and Browns always needing QB's it's entirely possible they could be forced to make the move if they really wanted to get him.

If the Redskins don't sign Cousins to a new deal by the 17th of July, expect there to be a "For Sale" sign on him.

[gardenman]

There's some weird stuff going on out in KC these days. The Chiefs cut Jeremy Maclin a few weeks ago out of the blue and he was their best, most proven wide receiver. Then they sign Andy Reid to a new contract extension and then fire John Dorsey, their GM the same day. It kind of looks like Andy will be both coach and GM again, and we all know how well that worked in Philly (badly). Did he want Maclin gone so Maclin couldn't relate what had happened in Phily with Andy as both coach and GM?

John Dorsey was largely hailed as one of the best GM's in the business, but it kind of looks like Andy has pushed him out the door and taken total control of the Chiefs. The Chief's draft this year was interesting in that they picked Patrick Mahomes as their quarterback of the future.

I'm starting to think the Chiefs will be sliding back a bit in the standings for a bit now. A whole lot of football is played between the ears, and the heads of the Chief's players are likely not completely focused on the task at hand.

[Spurt]

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@gardenman wrote:

There's some weird stuff going on out in KC these days. The Chiefs cut Jeremy Maclin a few weeks ago out of the blue and he was their best, most proven wide receiver. Then they sign Andy Reid to a new contract extension and then fire John Dorsey, their GM the same day. It kind of looks like Andy will be both coach and GM again, and we all know how well that worked in Philly (badly). Did he want Maclin gone so Maclin couldn't relate what had happened in Phily with Andy as both coach and GM?

John Dorsey was largely hailed as one of the best GM's in the business, but it kind of looks like Andy has pushed him out the door and taken total control of the Chiefs. The Chief's draft this year was interesting in that they picked Patrick Mahomes as their quarterback of the future.

I'm starting to think the Chiefs will be sliding back a bit in the standings for a bit now. A whole lot of football is played between the ears, and the heads of the Chief's players are likely not completely focused on the task at hand.

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@gardenman

I thought that was very intersting about the front office moves within the Chiefs organization.  And thought the same thing about Reid pushing out Dorsey in order to gain more control...It's just too much for a coach to be both Coach & GM. ..I think it's a big mistake because I think with some tweaks here and there on the Chief's offense and they could've really made some noise and challenge the Patriots. The Chief's defense was really bothering Brady in last year's playoffs and they just needed a piece or two on offense to be a contender..................

BTW did you see on ESPN's website you can vote for your team's all time Franchise QBs!!!   I thought it interesting that the Eagle fans were choosing McNabb over Jaws and Randall Cunningham..........My Redskins picked Sammy Baugh, Sonny was #2, and Theisman #3....followed by Rypien.... When I was checking out other team's QBs there were a lot ex-Redskin draft selections that didnt work out....Stan Humprhies, Sage Rosenthal, etc etc....LOL.  Looks like those teams were desperate and didnt have many decent QBs over the years.......

@teganslaw

How would you rank the Colts all time franchise QBs????  Johnny U? Peyton? Or Andrew?  Bert Jones? 

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/19649516/the-franchise-qbs-rank-top-all-signal-callers-all-32-tea...

[gardenman]

@Spurt 

Of those three Eagle quarterbacks, I'd probably rank Cunningham top, followed by McNabb, then Jaws. Cunningham could do stuff that would just make your jaw drop. If Cunningham had ever been coached up right and given a better supporting cast, you'd be talking about an HOF type player. He was special.

[Spurt]

@gardenman

As you know I'm not an Eagles fan (kudos to Captain Obvious), but I always liked Randall Cunningham......and thought he was a very good QB and had that athletic versatility........

Sorry but I never liked McNabb (on or off the field) and when he became a Redskin for a minisecond....it turned my stomach.......

[gardenman]

McNabb and Jaws were "good" quarterbacks, but neither was 'special.' Cunningham was "special." His biggest issue was playing for defensive oriented coaches who never really coached him up, or surrounded him with enough talent. Buddy would just tell him to go out there and make plays.

[teganslaw]

SPURT, I didn't follow the Colts when they were in Baltimore; didn't become interested until later. The only Colts quarterbacks I'm familiar with are Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck. (Though  I remember Jim Harbaugh as QB) 

I consider Peyton Manning as the top Colts QB. He broke several records and was a master of the game. Luck is very good, despite having a bad O-Line. He will do even better if Ballard can improve things. But he's not quite where Manning was. 

[gardenman]

There aren't many quarterbacks who will ever be as good as Peyton Manning was. I think sometimes a QB like Manning spoils a coaching staff.  They get used to a QB like him and forget that's not how every QB works. Manning was QB and offensive coordinator all rolled into one. His ability to recognize the defense and adapt the offense was very impressive and uncommon.

I suspect the Colts coaching staff, having grown used to Peyton, may have assumed that Andrew Luck could just step in and replace him without as much coaching or support as young Andrew may have needed.

I like what the Eagles have done with Carson Wentz this offseason. They've built a mountain of an offensive line in front of him and given him talented players by the score around him. Last year at this time he was envisioned as the third string QB, so they were leaving Sam Bradford out there on his own with limited talent to help him and hope he survived. When the chance to move Bradford came along the team couldn't pass up that opportunity and they moved up Carson to be the starter. I suspect if they'd known earlier that he'd be their starter, they'd have gone after a better supporting cast for him last year. As it was they patched holes where they found them.

As soon as the 2016 season ended, the Eagles were signing veteran offensive linemen off the street and kids off of other teams practice squads. They poached linemen and receivers from all over the league. That continued right into and through free agency. Carson Wentz now has an offensive line that's at least two deep with starting talent at every position and a plethora of talented wide receivers to throw the ball to. He may very well be in the best position of any QB in the league with the players they've surrounded him with. 

Carson now has a rock solid o-line in front of him. He's got tremendously talented receivers in Alshon Jeffery, Torrey Smith, Nelson Agholor, and Jordan Matthews. As good a group of tight ends as there are in the league. LeGarrette Blount as the workhorse back, Darren Sproles as the change of pace back and four talented kids behind them. It's been quite the transformation on offense.

I suspect every defensive coordinator the Eagles will face this year is already groaning at the prospect of dealing with this offense and the weapons available to Carson Wentz. It'll be fun to see how it all plays out.

[teganslaw]

Gardenman, I thought that the Eagles were having some problems with Nelson Agholor, like in dropped passes and not playing up to his level. Maybe I'm wrong, but wasn't he almost benched at one time?

Also, are they thinking about releasing Matthews? I know I read that somewhere, but it could have just been a rumor, not fact.

[gardenman]

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@teganslaw wrote:

Gardenman, I thought that the Eagles were having some problems with Nelson Agholor, like in dropped passes and not playing up to his level. Maybe I'm wrong, but wasn't he almost benched at one time?

Also, are they thinking about releasing Matthews? I know I read that somewhere, but it could have just been a rumor, not fact.

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Agholor's had a really good spring so far. Even the Philly press has commented that he seems like a different player this year. This will be his third year in the league and that's typically the make or break year for a kid. Last year he got off to a good start in the first four games, then his confidence got shot and he started to make the stupid mistakes. The veteran receivers around him this year in Smith and Jeffery also seem to have lit a fire under him.

Jordan Matthews has been rumored to be available in a trade as his contract will be up soon and the Eagles and his rep are pretty far apart on his value. The Eagles largely see him as a good, dependable slot receiver, while his agent views him as a number one receiver. There's an eight to ten million dollar gap between the two. That's a big gap. I expect him to stay an Eagle this year then test free agency. I don't see another team making an offer for him now. Matthews and Wentz were in a good synch last year also, so I think the Eagles will keep him around unless one or more of the kids we've got steps up.

The wildcard in the Eagles receiver corps is Dorial Green Beckham. He's got Alshon Jeffery's size and build with Torrey Smith's speed. He'll just show flashes of what he could be though. He'll make a play or two that makes you go "Wow!" then just disappear. If the coaches could harness his potential, the sky's the limit for him, but harnessing his potential is a challenge. I suspect he won't make the roster despite his potential.

Then there's the guy who shouldn't fit, in Paul Turner. He's too small, too slow, not athletic enough, etc., but every time he's on the field he gets open and catches the ball. The kid just has an uncanny feel for the game. 

Bryce Treggs is another guy who's flashed a bit in the off season work. He's lightning fast and has made some plays in the practices that were open to the press.

There's a lot of depth on the offensive side of the field this year. The defense is a tad iffier however.