So we didn't use the Tag on anyone ?

Brady_to_Moss said:

The reason why some are frustrated (me included) is becasue we haven't had a good/great CB since Law...

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That's absolutely untrue. Samuel wasn't a top 10 CB, but he was a good one. He was certainly better than Talib has been to this point.

Brady_to_Moss said:

i wish the cap hit was lower for CBs so we could have kept talib. pats won't do a multi year deal on him..maybe another 1 year deal? but will he want that? i think not

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Like you said, I doubt it. Maybe it will come down to a 2 yr deal, or even a 3 yr deal with an out.

I think the most positive way of looking at it is that we will almost certainly have a deeper and more talented secondary than in the past couple/few years, so that will help. The McCourty wildcard ability to move back to CB still exists if/when that comes down to it, and for all we know they may have big plans to shore up the safety position on top of that.

Just remember that while the overall lack of talent and depth has been there recently, they have still made it to the AFCCG or better in the last 2 yrs. We've certainly seen them do more with less.

There's also the good chance that Talib has been greatly overrated here anyway, as there were plenty of other moves that were made that ended up improving the secondary a lot more than a guy who played in 1/4 of the season after injuries. He may have been better than what we've seen lately, but that also doesn't mean they should overpay for him either.

Oh great Slater is our best WR, Our best corner will be behind bars, and we have no depth on the Oline we are doomed.

Deus Irae said:

Talib has 19 INTs in 5 seasons in the league, he's forced 2 fumbles in his entire career, and you're whining because he's not back and the team needs playmakers? :bricks:

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While all you write is true he was still the best CB we had. I Hope we come up with a deal for him. He brought a swagger to the defense.

supafly said:

There's also the good chance that Talib has been greatly overrated here anyway,

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It's also possible you are underrating him and Talib really was a key reason their pass defense improved.

supafly said:

That's what my pet peeve about the whole situation is, and that's what tends to piss me off.

Their plan may have been to realistically sign 1/3 of these players the entire team, with Welker being the leading candidate for obvious reasons; yet we'll hear about how the team messed up, how their heyday is over, and how suddenly Talib and Vollmer moving on will be the downfall of everything.

There are always challenges to overcome, weaknesses to hide, areas of concern, and players who move on--every single year.

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What I don't get is why people are acting surprised they didn't tag Talib when there were probably zero serious discussions before today about using the franchise tag on the guy.

onegr8om said:

swagger

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I can't realistically describe the hate I have for that word.

supafly said:

The McCourty wildcard ability to move back to CB still exists if/when that comes down to it, and for all we know they may have big plans to shore up the safety position on top of that.

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I really don't want him at CB. I cringe at the thought of him going back to covering people 1 on 1 but if we have no one else..he will have to.

JackBauer said:

What I don't get is why people are acting surprised they didn't tag Talib when there were probably zero serious discussions before today about using the franchise tag on the guy.

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You do know the pats keep these things on the down low right? just like the brady extension? They never leak that info until it happens

strngplyr said:

I can't realistically describe the hate I have for that word.

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Ok, he brought an attitude. A Confidence. An identity. Choose any word that you do like, but he brought it. I'm fine with letting him walk, as long as they have a backup plan to bring someone as talented or better in.

Brady_to_Moss said:

The reason why some are frustrated (me included) is becasue we haven't had a good/great CB since Law. We have failed in the draft at the CB position and it gets people frustrated seeing teams pass all over u come playoffs/Sbs the pats 5 years.

Even if talib hasn't had eye popping stats over his whole career..he has been the best option we have had since..well for a while even if it was for 6 games. yes he was hurt but he made plays last year our other CB's couldn't make besides dennard. He gave us some stablility and people would like to see that

they may make a trade for a CB or maybe get a grimes ect to make up for talib gone who knows. I am just sick of them cheaping out at that position or their lack of being able to find the talent in the draft

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I get what you're saying. I have some of the same worries myself.

One of the things that needs to be understood though is that the secondary has been bad lately due to having poor talent and options at just about every position, with maybe the exception of DMcC. Once a couple of those positions were helped out and improved upon, it really helped to hide some of the weaknesses of the others. There aren't many teams who are solid 1-4 starting base secondary, and probably none who are solid 1-5 or 1-6 in nickel and dime. Adding improvement to even 1-2 more of those positions along with McCourty and Dennard could be a nice group, and will likely make us quickly forget about Aqib Talib.

Having McCourty at FS, and Arrington in the slot certainly helped to mask some of the problems that trotting out Antwaan Molden, Sterling Moore, James Ihedigbo, and Patrick Chung as being 4 of your 6 DBs in the Super Bowl would typically bring you. Look at that bunch of misfits...If you saw those 4 guys getting lots of reps in the biggest game of the year, you'd have thought they'd allow 35 pts+.

We should have better safety play, and some better options at CB this year no matter what happens. If you're really in the mood to feel positive, there's even the thought that our high #33rd player in the 2011 draft will actually contribute on some level also, although we can't count on it.

We don't know if ANYONE is "walking" and we won't know for another couple of weeks. I preach patience grasshoppers. We have another 6 months or more before we have put a team on the field for real.

There will be deals made in the next couple of weeks, but the vast majority will come after that point.

scott99 said:

Talib ? Sea Bass ? Welker ? So we didn't use the tag at all ? Interesting, what's next ?

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Browns $46,622,155
Bengals $45,273,805
Colts $43,544,252
Dolphins $36,578,906
Buccaneers $32,872,205
Eagles $32,440,721
Jaguars $26,630,698

With the exception of the Bengals who have to pay big contracts to Dalton, Green, Atkins, Johnson at some point now or in the near future I do see there being mutual interest between our big 3 with any of the others.

I can't wait to see Chung leave..what a waste he has become..a rock would be better back there. Safety play is key which is why they need to upgrade with another solid body. I miss the harrison days

those teams with that much $$...will over pay the crap out of a lot of players. Including the talibs and hartlines of the world

Brady2Moss said:

I had hoped they would tag Talib because he is the best FA corner and I think he's gone if he hits the open market. Would've liked to see the D with him for an entire year before committing long term. I think we're going to see Welker back and probably Dunta Robinson and some other decent corner for mid-level money. Lack of playmakers will be as apparent as ever on defense

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My question is who do you see paying Talib big money? Because I'm looking at the list and I don't see any team either needing a CB, experienced enough to take a risk on a player like Talib or having the money to pay him.

Brady_to_Moss said:

those teams with that much $$...will over pay the crap out of a lot of players. Including the talibs and hartlines of the world

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Yes but why would Vollmer or Welker want to play for perennial losers?

Jax said:

My question is who do you see paying Talib big money? Because I'm looking at the list and I don't see any team either needing a CB, experienced enough to take a risk on a player like Talib or having the money to pay him.

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a ton of teams need CB help this FA and draft. Both of the eagles Cbs are about to be gone. ATL has holes as does many teams including us. MIA needs 1 now that smith is gone

Jax said:

Yes but why would Vollmer or Welker want to play for perennial losers?

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$$ talks for some players

Marqui said:

It's also possible you are underrating him and Talib really was a key reason their pass defense improved.

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There were 4 other moves (Chung being pulled which obviously helped, McCourty playing safety full-time, Arrington in the slot where he plays much better, and Dennard starting outside on the other side) besides Talib.

So we have:

Talib--having played in about 50% of the snaps and having multiple injuries

vs

4 other moves


I'm guessing that the 4 other moves had a lot more to do with it than people think. The lack of depth down the board is what hurt us, with Arrington being forced outside and Cole being forced into a real role on Boldin. If those moves are improved upon, those problems don't occur.

I just have a hard time bowing down to a guy who was credited with 2 passes defended and an INT in 6 games played down the stretch of the regular season.

Aqib Talib NFL Football Statistics - Pro-Football-Reference.com

If Talib is 1/2 as great as you are saying he is, how come he was so close to getting outright cut by the worst secondary in football this year?

I'm not suggesting that he isn't an improvement (when healthy of course), but I am suggesting that he's extremely overrated by many here also.