TJ
Frank Kaminsky is my Hero.
Wow what a day! I was out and about all afternoon and evening while the texts kept coming in that Q was traded, Dansby to Miami and Antron to NYG. Well, that sucks....for now.
Since I was not near a computer or a television today I was not able to make sense of it all but I had a chance to think about what we lost and what we have to gain from this opportunity.
It has been a given for a couple of years that Q was not going to be in Cardinal red moving forward. He has made it abundantly clear he was unhappy with the organization and his contract. Add that on to his multiple injuries and his stock has reached an all-time low. Last season, we were unwilling to take a 2nd rounder straight up for him. Now, we had to trade him along with a 5th to get a 3rd and a 4th. I firmly believe Baltimore got the better end of the deal. Boldin has thrived before as the focal point of the passing offense. With the way Warner spread the ball around and Fitz going nuts the past two seasons, Q has been sort of an enigma. Nevertheless, I love what Q did for us and he will always be a Cardinal.
Pretty much similar to Dansby. For two years we have franchised the guy trying to get a deal done but he was hellbent on becoming a free agent and cashing in. What is perplexing is the fact that we reportedly offered him $24 mil guaranteed last season and he laughed it off and then turns around and signs with Miami the following season for $22 mil. There may be extenuating circumstances here (location, tax laws, etc.) but I cant help but be a little insulted. Would have loved to keep Karlos here, but if he didn't want to be here then it made no sense to hold him here against his will anymore.
The Rolle situation was perplexing at first. It was widely reported that he would likely come back from people like Darren Urban. Didnt take long to dispel those rumors. Then I realized who his agent was, his ego, and the fact that the Cards cut him loose. Even though the writing was on the wal that the Cards were not going to pay him his bonus, Im sure it is still bothersome to him that he was cut. Then the Giants came in and offered him the richest contract for a safety in the history of the NFL. I can't argue with the front office for not matching their offer. Rolle is not a top 10 safety in this league, so I can't justify making him the league's highest paid player in his position.
Now comes the fun part of free agency: replacing these players.
The Cards seemed to have prepared for losing Q a couple of years ago. I dont think it was with Breaston because he was brought here mainly for special teams. It is a much added bonus that he manifested into a special receiver. IMO, Doucet was the insurance policy for losing Q even though Breaston is now the #2. I think the wideout situation could not have played out any better with losing Q. Dont get me wrong, I would still love to have Q here, but Whis and Co had preemptive measures in place, much like the Antonio Smith/Calais Campbell situation.
Replacing Dansby will be hard. We are paper thin at all linebacker positions and need to do some serious scouting for both free agents and draft picks. Larry Foote is scheduled to come here on Monday. Whether or not you like him is a different story. The bottom line is he is one of the better ILBs available and it would be nice to have a veteran step into Los's place as opposed to having unproven talent like Highsmith, Walker or a draft pick start from day 1.
We are short in safety depth too but there are plenty of FS on the market we can tackle (probably better than Rolle could in the open field
). I like Jermaine Phillips, Ryan Clark and Darren Sharper (as a temporary fix). I am highly confident the Cards will go after one of these guys. At the same time, I still have not given up on Rashad Johnson just yet. It took safeties like AW and Kwame Lassiter here one full season to develop into their own. From what I recall on Johnson's scouting report, he is a bright kid with a knack for the ball and studies a lot of film. He has an opportunity to shine with next year's situation, even if we do bring in a veteran.
Obviously, there is no salary cap anymore, but we saved approximately $15 mil give or take just with these guys leaving. What the Cards do with this extra change, who knows. Do they go out and fill holes? Do they allocate this money to the draft? Re-sign current players? Or line their pockets?
I think a lot of the reason people are upset is the quick nature in which it was received. In 4 hours, we lost three impact players from the Superbowl team. I think the news coming in at a rapid fire pace caused many of us to go into Defcon 1. Is the loss of these individuals painful? Certainly. But we have never been a top flight defense with Dansby and Rolle in the picture so there is still an opportunity to improve. I am ambivalent about this situation because I like Rolle and Dansby and am a firm believer of continuity but I am trying to see this as a glass is half full situation.
As much as people want to compare, this is not 1999 all over again. I can assure you. The money man in charge would not open up the purse strings and the leadership up above was sub par at best back then. Now we have Whisenhunt, a proven track record of success and a new stadium. That makes all of the difference. So with what we lose, we should have an easier time replacing. No longer should players be ashamed of playing for the Cardinals or using us to get bigger contracts from another team. With Whisenhunt having the final say in talent now, I believe he will do what's best for the team.
I was told by an anonymous ASFNer today that getting a 3rd and 4th rounder won't be all that bad because of the depth of this draft. And I believe him after thinking about it and reflecting upon the many mock drafts I have evaluated. With the four picks we have in the 3rd and 4th, we should be able to pull at least one starter/impact player to contribute right away. I have that much faith that we are competent enough now more so than ever before to get this done.
In summary, we still have months of free agency, trades and drafts still to come. Games are not won and lost on the first day of free agency. Sometimes, it only makes those who participate in throwing obscene amounts of money around look foolish.
Let the record show we are still 0-0 in 2010.
Since I was not near a computer or a television today I was not able to make sense of it all but I had a chance to think about what we lost and what we have to gain from this opportunity.
It has been a given for a couple of years that Q was not going to be in Cardinal red moving forward. He has made it abundantly clear he was unhappy with the organization and his contract. Add that on to his multiple injuries and his stock has reached an all-time low. Last season, we were unwilling to take a 2nd rounder straight up for him. Now, we had to trade him along with a 5th to get a 3rd and a 4th. I firmly believe Baltimore got the better end of the deal. Boldin has thrived before as the focal point of the passing offense. With the way Warner spread the ball around and Fitz going nuts the past two seasons, Q has been sort of an enigma. Nevertheless, I love what Q did for us and he will always be a Cardinal.
Pretty much similar to Dansby. For two years we have franchised the guy trying to get a deal done but he was hellbent on becoming a free agent and cashing in. What is perplexing is the fact that we reportedly offered him $24 mil guaranteed last season and he laughed it off and then turns around and signs with Miami the following season for $22 mil. There may be extenuating circumstances here (location, tax laws, etc.) but I cant help but be a little insulted. Would have loved to keep Karlos here, but if he didn't want to be here then it made no sense to hold him here against his will anymore.
The Rolle situation was perplexing at first. It was widely reported that he would likely come back from people like Darren Urban. Didnt take long to dispel those rumors. Then I realized who his agent was, his ego, and the fact that the Cards cut him loose. Even though the writing was on the wal that the Cards were not going to pay him his bonus, Im sure it is still bothersome to him that he was cut. Then the Giants came in and offered him the richest contract for a safety in the history of the NFL. I can't argue with the front office for not matching their offer. Rolle is not a top 10 safety in this league, so I can't justify making him the league's highest paid player in his position.
Now comes the fun part of free agency: replacing these players.
The Cards seemed to have prepared for losing Q a couple of years ago. I dont think it was with Breaston because he was brought here mainly for special teams. It is a much added bonus that he manifested into a special receiver. IMO, Doucet was the insurance policy for losing Q even though Breaston is now the #2. I think the wideout situation could not have played out any better with losing Q. Dont get me wrong, I would still love to have Q here, but Whis and Co had preemptive measures in place, much like the Antonio Smith/Calais Campbell situation.
Replacing Dansby will be hard. We are paper thin at all linebacker positions and need to do some serious scouting for both free agents and draft picks. Larry Foote is scheduled to come here on Monday. Whether or not you like him is a different story. The bottom line is he is one of the better ILBs available and it would be nice to have a veteran step into Los's place as opposed to having unproven talent like Highsmith, Walker or a draft pick start from day 1.
We are short in safety depth too but there are plenty of FS on the market we can tackle (probably better than Rolle could in the open field
). I like Jermaine Phillips, Ryan Clark and Darren Sharper (as a temporary fix). I am highly confident the Cards will go after one of these guys. At the same time, I still have not given up on Rashad Johnson just yet. It took safeties like AW and Kwame Lassiter here one full season to develop into their own. From what I recall on Johnson's scouting report, he is a bright kid with a knack for the ball and studies a lot of film. He has an opportunity to shine with next year's situation, even if we do bring in a veteran.Obviously, there is no salary cap anymore, but we saved approximately $15 mil give or take just with these guys leaving. What the Cards do with this extra change, who knows. Do they go out and fill holes? Do they allocate this money to the draft? Re-sign current players? Or line their pockets?
I think a lot of the reason people are upset is the quick nature in which it was received. In 4 hours, we lost three impact players from the Superbowl team. I think the news coming in at a rapid fire pace caused many of us to go into Defcon 1. Is the loss of these individuals painful? Certainly. But we have never been a top flight defense with Dansby and Rolle in the picture so there is still an opportunity to improve. I am ambivalent about this situation because I like Rolle and Dansby and am a firm believer of continuity but I am trying to see this as a glass is half full situation.
As much as people want to compare, this is not 1999 all over again. I can assure you. The money man in charge would not open up the purse strings and the leadership up above was sub par at best back then. Now we have Whisenhunt, a proven track record of success and a new stadium. That makes all of the difference. So with what we lose, we should have an easier time replacing. No longer should players be ashamed of playing for the Cardinals or using us to get bigger contracts from another team. With Whisenhunt having the final say in talent now, I believe he will do what's best for the team.
I was told by an anonymous ASFNer today that getting a 3rd and 4th rounder won't be all that bad because of the depth of this draft. And I believe him after thinking about it and reflecting upon the many mock drafts I have evaluated. With the four picks we have in the 3rd and 4th, we should be able to pull at least one starter/impact player to contribute right away. I have that much faith that we are competent enough now more so than ever before to get this done.
In summary, we still have months of free agency, trades and drafts still to come. Games are not won and lost on the first day of free agency. Sometimes, it only makes those who participate in throwing obscene amounts of money around look foolish.
Let the record show we are still 0-0 in 2010.
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