2022 NFL Free Agency

[ChoppedWood]

Originally Posted by IndyNorm

I posted rounded contract numbers for the players I listed who have signed. You asked for deals that other teams have made that I would have liked to have seen Ballard made, and so I listed a few.

I'm not saying we should be pissed at Ballard for not specifically bringing in those guys (although if Trubisky works out in Pittsburgh we should definitely be pissed about that). What we should be pissed off at Ballard for is that it's his job to improve the team and recently he's failed at that. We were worse in '21 than in '20, and while there's still plenty of time this offseason to turn things around Ballard is off to a disaster of a start.

Also, saying we need to hold back all kinds of cap space to potentially re-sign draft picks 3 and 4 years from now in case they work out is ridiculous. For starters, unless something crazy like COVID happens, the cap increases every year. Also, there are plenty of ways to manage the cap long term to be able to re-sign your own other than hoarding cap space like Ballard does. Most every other (at least successful) franchise is able to bring in some top tier FAs to fill needs while re-signing their own. So why the hell can't we?

Bravo, bravo. Apparently something restricts Ballard from doing the same that these other teams do. So far as I can surmise that something, is Ballard.

[IndyNorm]

Originally Posted by rm1369

Unfortunately it’s the way the game is played. It’s why I no longer respond to them. They want specific players so they can justify each decision in isolation and not have to account for the overall pattern.

Yeah, figured that was coming but I took the bait anyway.

I am so tired of reading that Ballard can't go improve the team b/c he has to re-sign Nelson. News flash: Nelson currently counts ~$14M against the cap, which is the 2nd highest cap hit for OGs in '22. The highest is Joe Thuney in KC at ~$18M. So if we extend Nelson and pay him in the $19-$20M/year range that's only $5-$6M more than his current hit, which leaves plenty of cap space for Ballard to get off his ass and make the team better.

[ChaosTheory]

Originally Posted by rm1369

Unfortunately it’s the way the game is played. It’s why I no longer respond to them. They want specific players so they can justify each decision in isolation and not have to account for the overall pattern.

It's typically to point out that guy-on-the-street doesn't have a grasp of the details and nuances of the decisions being made.

"Team X paid player Y a contract of Z. Well the Colts had that much room and should've spent it. Simple. I don't care if the guy wants to come here or not. Make him sign. I don't want a spending spree, but he needs to spend all the money because that's how you win in this league."

Once quarterback gets settled (hard to do), a huge chunk of that cap is gone. Then when a blue-chipper like Buckner becomes a possibility, they can go after that guy. Not upgrade a position from C+ to B- because fans saw this other team give a wide receiver $150m and it makes them antsy.

[ChaosTheory]

Originally Posted by IndyNorm

Yeah, figured that was coming but I took the bait anyway.

I am so tired of reading that Ballard can't go improve the team b/c he has to re-sign Nelson. News flash: Nelson currently counts ~$14M against the cap, which is the 2nd highest cap hit for OGs in '22. The highest is Joe Thuney in KC at ~$18M. So if we extend Nelson and pay him in the $19-$20M/year range that's only $5-$6M more than his current hit, which leaves plenty of cap space for Ballard to get off his ass and make the team better.

Sure. But add up Nelson, Taylor, Pittman, Blackmon, Kwity, Dayo, Willis, etc... Assuming these guys earn their paydays, that's a lot of money for guys we want to keep.

[rm1369]

Originally Posted by ChaosTheory

It's typically to point out that guy-on-the-street doesn't have a grasp of the details and nuances of the decisions being made.

"Team X paid player Y a contract of Z. Well the Colts had that much room and should've spent it. Simple. I don't care if the guy wants to come here or not. Make him sign. I don't want a spending spree, but he needs to spend all the money because that's how you win in this league."

Once quarterback gets settled (hard to do), a huge chunk of that cap is gone. Then when a blue-chipper like Buckner becomes a possibility, they can go after that guy. Not upgrade a position from C+ to B- because fans saw this other team give a wide receiver $150m and it makes them antsy.

If Ballard has set such a culture that no one (again this isn’t any single transaction) wants to come here then that’s a pretty damn big indictment of his team building wouldn’t you think?

Hey man, if you are happy with the state of the team after 5 years that’s great. I’m not. You can tell me year in and year out how Ballard’s methods are superior, but come playoff time the truth seems to always come out.

[rm1369]

Originally Posted by ChaosTheory

Sure. But add up Nelson, Taylor, Pittman, Blackmon, Kwity, Dayo, Willis, etc... Assuming these guys earn their paydays, that's a lot of money for guys we want to keep.

How the fuck does any team every sign anyone in FA then? Doesn’t every team assume their draft picks are going to work out?

I guess if you think Ballard is such a great drafter that this team can win always worrying about 4-5 years down the road instead of maximizing shorter term windows then we simply disagree. Right now the record supports me.

[IndyNorm]

Originally Posted by ChaosTheory

Sure. But add up Nelson, Taylor, Pittman, Blackmon, Kwity, Dayo, Willis, etc... Assuming these guys earn their paydays, that's a lot of money for guys we want to keep.

Kwity and Dayo will hit FA 4 and 3 years down the road, respectively, so holding back spending now just in case they pan out and need to be re-signed is fucking stupid.

And again, every other decent franchise in the league is able to re-sign their own while bringing in FAs that aren't in the bargain bin. What can't Ballard do the same?

Look, I wish that Ballard's methodology of filling all the team's needs through the draft and bargain FAs worked, but it obviously hasn't.

[rm1369]

I just want to point out one other thing. Losing some players to free agency isn’t a bad thing. It’s actually the sign of a good team. It comes with the benefit of comp picks. And the one thing most of us agree on is that Ballard can draft, so the extra picks would be great.

The key is keeping the right guys, not all of them. I like Willis, but he’s a replacement level player. Letting him walk wouldn’t be devastating by any means. And if we want to be truly honest, Taylor will probably not be a smart resigning- and he’s one of my favorite players. It’s the nature of the position.

[JAFF]

Originally Posted by ChaosTheory

Sure. But add up Nelson, Taylor, Pittman, Blackmon, Kwity, Dayo, Willis, etc... Assuming these guys earn their paydays, that's a lot of money for guys we want to keep.

Stop that, using facts.

[IndyNorm]

Originally Posted by rm1369

I just want to point out one other thing. Losing some players to free agency isn’t a bad thing. It’s actually the sign of a good team. It comes with the benefit of comp picks. And the one thing most of us agree on is that Ballard can draft, so the extra picks would be great.

The key is keeping the right guys, not all of them. I like Willis, but he’s a replacement level player. Letting him walk wouldn’t be devastating by any means. And if we want to be truly honest, Taylor will probably not be a smart resigning- and he’s one of my favorite players. It’s the nature of the position.

Great post. Willis is a decent player, but not great. He probably deserves a Hines/MAC level pay day. If Ballard ignores all of these gaping holes the team has and ends up signing Willis to top level FA money then he needs to be shown the door.

JT's going to be a tough decision. He has without a doubt earned a big payday, but you don't want it to be a Zeke Elliott type situation where his legs are shot 2 years into said big payday and we still owe him a ton of guaranteed dollars. Either way that's at least a year away, if not 2. An NFL FO worth it's salt would be able to figure out how to take care of this without hoarding 10s of millions of dollars in cap space in the current offseason.