I agree with pretty much all of this. Which is why my frustration was not so much with Ochocinco, who seemed to at least make a serious effort to make things work, as with the organization for making the trade in the first place. I never thought 85 would be a fit, either from a personality or from a system perspective. Getting him was a non-trivial investment in terms of draft picks, salary, and not pursuing other options. The 2011 FA WR group wasn't particularly strong, but there were other options available - such as Donte Stallworth, who cost Washington all of $810K to sign, and who had prior experience with the Patriots system. The money and draft picks could have been used elsewhere, and the benefit to the team would likely have been greater. There were other options as well. But collectively the FO and coaching staff thought that Ochocinco was the best option to upgrade the WR group. Taking some risks is ok, but Ochocinco was a relatively high cost high risk gamble from the outset, and I wonder why such a collectively smart and experienced group of football personnel thought he was a good investment.
