Well, if you extend the timelines like you do here, then of course it's going to look complicated. But let's break down these dates a little more:
How will any6 team be ready to start this season on time. Just look at a normal year.
Timeframe Type of negotiation Total in a year
January-March 1. Restructure or cut vets 3-6 Most of the NFL has already done this--look at Jeremy Shockey and O.J. Atogwe
January-May 2. Re-sign own RFAs 8-10 The RFA Tenders have already been done, and they're usually done in mid-February. Once they're done, they're done.
January-July 3. Re-sign own UFAs 4-6 Until July 3? In what world? In Cardinals land, usually if a guy you want to keep is hitting the open market, they're gone when free agency opens the first week of March
March-April 4. Offer to RFAs on market 1-2 There will be a lot fewer RFAs this year, and RFAs are rarely given tender offers.
March-July 5. Offer to UFAs on market 4-6 How is this different than the RFAs above? You're just trying to make your list longer.
March-August 6. Talk with tagged player 0-1 ?????
March-July 7. Offer to cap casualties 2-3 How is this different than free agency?
March-September 8. Make trades 0-2 Trades rarely happen after April, when they do, they're rarely impact trades.
May-August 9. Sign draft picks 6-12 This is more because of a deadline mentality around the NFL than that picks are hard to sign. There's a rookie pay scale in place now, and there may be a deadline for rookies to sign their deal by late July.
April 10. Sign undrafted rookies 10-17 Okay. This is usually done in one or two days; there's no reason it can't be done as quickly once the CBA is done.
July 11. Sign supplemental picks 0-1 LOL.
January-September 12. Injury settlements 2-5 ???? This doesn't happen until the end of training camp, for the most part.
40-70 total moves
This is like throwing all this against a wall and hoping some of it sticks!
GBR
40
Your point has some legitimacy, but the Cards aren't starting from ground zero here.
They should have their best offers for their own players ready to go once the bell rings (which the players won't sign because they'll be 48 hours from free agency, anyway).
They should have their cut list ready to go (hopefully Anderson right away, but they might wait until they have replacements on board)
They should have their UCFA list ready and have contacted guys during the draft. That will be done in 48 hours and have almost zero effect on the final roster.
When the free agency bell rings, it's going to be a disaster and logistical nightmare, but hopefully the Cards' staff isn't overwhelmed. They should have their list of FAs in hand and be ready to execute it.
I'm not going to condemn the Cardinals front office for being clueless until they display that they are. Yes, the time frame is compressed, but it's not so dire that a professional organization shouldn't be able to handle it when they've had literally five months to get a plan in place.
Cue smart-alecky comment: "This isn't a professional organization we're talking about here--it's the Arizona Cardinals." :rimshot:
Bulger has already stated he has little to no desire to move out of the northeast and start somewhere right now. I would bet money that he is no longer being considered for the Cardinals next QB either.
. The whole o-line situation just proves we need a mobile QB. That eliminates Bulger and Hasselback. Orton is probably the best option there. Still, Young sounds like the best option for our situation right now.
