2011 Free Agent "Let's Sign This Guy" Thread

[ctpatsfan77]

Assuming a new CBA gets done of course.

Nope. The CBA mandates a draft this year, new deal or not.

The only potential issue is one of timing (they might postpone/push up the draft b/c of developments in the talks).

 

[Palm Beach Pats Fan]

Right now the owners cannot even agree amongst themselves.

Kraft is going to have to push his way toward the negotiating table.

Too many spoiled rich nitwits are involved upfront and are thumping their chests these days, despite the fact that they lack any long-term vision.

 

[ATippett56]

Yep. The only way BAL gives him up is if a team offers a pletora of draft picks. Like maybe a #1 and two #3s .

Even then I don't think they'd trade him.

The Ravens would cut Stallworth, Houshmandzadeh, Gregg amongst others to keep Ngata.

 

[Froob]

Nope. The CBA mandates a draft this year, new deal or not.

The only potential issue is one of timing (they might postpone/push up the draft b/c of developments in the talks).

I ment assuming the cba gets done so they can trade during the draft.

 

[ATippett56]

I ment assuming the cba gets done so they can trade during the draft.

I seriously doubt a new CBA will be ratified before the 2011 NFL Draft.

 

[RobertWeathers]

The Ravens would cut Stallworth, Houshmandzadeh, Gregg amongst others to keep Ngata.

BAL does a good job of cash flow mgt. They had $44m in net income last year and in the top 10 teams in total value had the 3rd lowest payroll.

They'll find the money no question.

I just like thinking about it.

 

[JackBauer]

I support signing someone to replace Tully Banta-Cain.

 

[ATippett56]

BAL does a good job of cash flow mgt. They had $44m in net income last year and in the top 10 teams in total value had the 3rd lowest payroll.

They'll find the money no question.

I just like thinking about it.

Baltimore has Ngata and the Patriots have Wilfork. What the Patriots really need on the defensive line is the next Richard Seymour.

 

[upstater1]

Right now the owners cannot even agree amongst themselves.

One thing that all the optimists are missing about the negotiations is that the owners are not looking at a short-term strategy. They are looking long-term. It's a different kind of thinking.

Too many people are saying that the owners will not leave the huge amounts of money they make on the table.

But what's left out is this: the new CBA will impact the value of the franchises. These guys are more into seeing their investment grow than they are the yearly profits. They think of themselves as public companies on Wall Street. They will put the value of their franchises ahead of the relative meager yearly profits. It's all about revenues for them and revenue distribution.

So why are franchises so highly valued? Because the NFL has continued to show growth. as in any industry, when you grow at an outstanding rate, your company earns a premium relative to the profit you earn.

Compare Google to Coca Cola. One is fast growing and one is slow growing. Both are excellent companies. But Google earns a premium because there is no ceiling on its growth potential yet. Coca Cola is steady, and doesn't earn that premium. The same thinking is at play here. The NFL owners need to preserve the appearance of great growth in order to keep the hypervaluations of their franchises high--especially as they look at a potential windfall in placing a team in the LA market.

That's why they want to squeeze the margins against the players, because squeezing margins will yield more growth. Heck, the owners have done it to American workers in their own companies, as corporations are making record profits, while salaries are stagnating and going backwards. What works in the corporate world is a model for the NFL too.

Beyond that, the last CBA almost fell apart when 10 small market owners blocked the big boys from changing the revenue distribution rules. The big owners now realize that they can't get their fellow owners to agree to a new CBA like the one proposed initially last time, so instead they are going after the players for the costs of redistributing revenues to the smaller teams.

In other words, I don't expect them to solve the problem.

 

[upstater1]

Not complain? I will be doing cartwheels! I would love to win the line of scrimmage all of the time and to pressure the opposing QB more than ours is pressured all of the time. Do both and I can't imagine, with our existing young and improving talent elsewhere, not being significantly better next year

Well, I would be all for this too, but what I meant was that this would be a squandering of resources, if you're hellbent on fixing the teams problems KNOWING that it would mean cutting a bunch of draft choices and current players.

The Patriots have a ton of young players on the line, and older talent:

Warren, Warren, Wilfork, Wright, Brace, Pryor, Deadrick, Love, Richard, Weston, Moore, and you add two more DEs to that, and you're now in an interesting situation.

At OLB, we have Ninkovich, Cunningham, Banta-Cain. This is a position where you could actually draft 3 players, and not worry too much about overcrowding. You keep 4, make Tully compete for his job, and you can easily see 2 of the 3 drafted make the team.

On the OL, Kaczur, Wendell, Ohrenberger are all potential cuts. Assuming Light and Mankins come back, that leaves only 5 sure bets on the line. You could draft at lest 4 guys and find spaces for them--though the Patriots tried that and failed with late round picks.

I would address OLB first, maybe twice in the first 2 rounds, then split between OL/DE with the other picks in the first 2 rounds.

Von Miller weighs 245 by the way. I know BB likes them heavier, but this kid could get up to 250. He's shorter than BB likes them as well at 6'2" but if he's a player, he is not very light in the pants.

I guess he has to set the edge but... he may have the size to play OLB here.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

So why are franchises so highly valued? Because the NFL has continued to show growth. as in any industry, when you grow at an outstanding rate, your company earns a premium relative to the profit you earn.

All great points, but then, are they willing to risk taking a long-term hit to those valuations by causing the 2011 season to be lost?

 

[RobertWeathers]

Baltimore has Ngata and the Patriots have Wilfork. What the Patriots really need on the defensive line is the next Richard Seymour.

Ngata plays more end in the 3-4 set now. He'll certainly move over the nose every now and then.

I would agree that Sey is a a better pure pass rusher in his prime.

 

[Guts]

At the end of the day this is America. America loves football its the sport here it's like taking away soccer in Europe. I believe there will be a 2011 season I hope so.

 

[upstater1]

All great points, but then, are they willing to risk taking a long-term hit to those valuations by causing the 2011 season to be lost?

Because they'd simply lose one year of income (and obviously not even that). Once the new CBA is in place, and the revenue stream becomes transparent, then the investment banks will revalue the franchises accordingly. A lost year's revenue doesn't figure into the new calculations.