Worst Free Agent signing by team

[shopson67]

The article has Drew Bennett for the Rams, but could just as easily be Jared Cook or Jake Long.

 

[flyerhawk]

Would you trade Chris Ivory + Malik Jackson for Suh?

I sure as hell would. But Jacksonville is essentially paying slightly more money for those two than Miami will pay for Suh.

Jacksonville HAD to spend money. They were dangerously close to not meeting the salary floor. From that perspective neither Ivory or Jackson are really that bad for them.

 

[ducky]

Jacksonville HAD to spend money. They were dangerously close to not meeting the salary floor. From that perspective neither Ivory or Jackson are really that bad for them.

There is a million and one ways to spend money in the NFL. Obviously they needed to add some players simply from a talent perspective but all the teams that were flirting with that floor (thinking Jack and Oak) could have just invited in their young QB's into their office and front loaded a long term deal and they would have been more than enough to get over the floor.

Jacksonville really went for it though (and they had to...it is win or the unemployment line for the coaching staff and FO there). Ivory if he can stay healthy is a good RB. And one of the best signings of the offseason IMO was getting Beecham for what they got him for and they did it with no long term commitment if it doesn't work out in year one (as a Vikes fan I am PISSED we are paying Kalil what we are for him when there were so many better LT's available for less).

This and the DT contracts show a seismic shift in NFL philosophy. It used to be LT was one of the most important positions. It's not even close anymore. DT, DE (or OLB in 3-4), and CB have all surpassed it in positional importance and you only have to look at the money teams are handing out to see that.

It actually makes the selection of Tunsil as the #1 overall pick a little more iffy than it would have been even just 4 or 5 years ago.

 

[flyerhawk]

There is a million and one ways to spend money in the NFL. Obviously they needed to add some players simply from a talent perspective but all the teams that were flirting with that floor (thinking Jack and Oak) could have just invited in their young QB's into their office and front loaded a long term deal and they would have been more than enough to get over the floor.

Except they can't. CBA precludes them from redoing their contract before the end of their 4th season.

This and the DT contract show a seismic shift in NFL philosophy. It used to be LT was one of the most important positions. It's not even close anymore. DT, DE (or OLB in 3-4), and CB have all surpassed it in positional importance and you only have to look at the money teams are handing out to see that.

Completely agree. Although I think part of the problem is that there is a dearth of really good LTs in the league. And spending 12 mill per on an average LT simply doesn't make sense.

It actually makes the selection of Tunsil as the #1 overall pick a little more iffy than it would have been even just 4 or 5 years ago.

I think the problem is that there haven't been many early pick LTs that have been big hits. Tyron Smith?

 

[ducky]

Except they can't. CBA precludes them from redoing their contract before the end of their 4th season.

Good point.

But you get my point. They could have brought in Julius Thomas and turned money from future years into a roster bonus and did that till they got there. Moving money around to get over a cap floor or get under a cap ceiling isn't all that tough.

Completely agree. Although I think part of the problem is that there is a dearth of really good LTs in the league. And spending 12 mill per on an average LT simply doesn't make sense.



I think the problem is that there haven't been many early pick LTs that have been big hits. Tyron Smith?

I actually think the decline of the LT has more to do with the DE's we see. Other than a handful of guys, no one can block these monsters we are seeing consistently without a chip from a RB or a TE. But a lot of guys can do it somewhat consistently if you give them a chip. So rather than try and find the one of the handful of guys that can do it all by themselves, the NFL is just designing their offenses around giving help and then using their money to go find one of those monster pass rushers so the opposing teams to try and figure out how to block them.

 

[flyerhawk]

Good point.

But you get my point. They could have brought in Julius Thomas and turned money from future years into a roster bonus and did that till they got there. Moving money around to get over a cap floor or get under a cap ceiling isn't all that tough.

Sure. But why not use that money to bring in more talent? The Jackson contract was exorbitant

I actually think the decline of the LT has more to do with the DE's we see. Other than a handful of guys, no one can block these monsters we are seeing consistently without a chip from a RB or a TE. But a lot of guys can do it somewhat consistently if you give them a chip. So rather than try and find the one of the handful of guys that can do it all by themselves, the NFL is just designing their offenses around giving help and then using their money to go find one of those monster pass rushers so the opposing teams to try and figure out how to block them.

Yeah. Certainly the Seahawks are embracing that strategy. Their entire line has been mix and match for the past 5 years. Hasn't prevented them from being one of the better offenses every year.

 

[Hank Kingsley]

Joey Galloway & Roy Williams.
Apparently the Cowboys decided that Draft picks meant nothing. I hated both of those moves.

I was reading elsewhere and they mentioned that ex-Colts kicker Vanderjagt? or however it was spelled.

That guy was a huge waste of a contract and it was pretty big too.

 

[cdumler7]

For the Broncos it might be Dale Carter back in 1999. The Broncos made him the highest paid defensive player in the entire league in 1999. He gave us one decent year and then was suspended the next season and never took another snap for the Broncos.

 

[Gooch1034]

Good topic. I couldn't think of one for the Steelers that was truly awful until I looked at the article, since they don't sign many free agents as a rule. That center Mahan was bad, but not really a killer. Looking at some of the other multiple horrid signings, I'm glad they just kind of dabble in it a bit.

Good topic. I couldn't think of one for the Steelers that was truly awful until I looked at the article, since they don't sign many free agents as a rule. That center Mahan was bad, but not really a killer. Looking at some of the other multiple horrid signings, I'm glad they just kind of dabble in it a bit.

Duce Staley ended up being a bad signing. I think it was something like 5 years/$14 million. Not many awful FA signings for Pittsburgh thankfully.

 

[RobToxin]

I think the article nailed ours on the head.

Ed Reed was a disaster in Houston.

 

[seafandoghawk]

For the Seahawks, Percy Harvin. I know that they lost at least one first-round draft pick for him, plus a couple of other picks, plus paid the guy some pretty good coin, all so he could be available for maybe 5% of the snaps/plays that he could have been available for, while proving a locker-room cancer that almost started dividing the team as for-or-against Russell Wilson, among other detrimental influences.

Thanks Percy. Hey, maybe some team will give you your fifth chance to make them glad that they brought you in. Hope springs eternal and all.

(On edit: My bad. Harvin was an acquisition through trade rather than a free agent signing. Still, I want to give him an honorary membership in the august company being discussed in this thread).

 

[night]

I agree with the Ray Edwards signing. That was a complete screw up.

 

[Maximus Rex]

Duce Staley ended up being a bad signing. I think it was something like 5 years/$14 million. Not many awful FA signings for Pittsburgh thankfully.

Yeah, Duce sure never was anything great after he came to the 'burgh. Good call. But, as you said, nothing truly awful like we've seen in a bunch of posts in this thread that just make you wanna facepalm yourself. Here's hoping it stays that way.

 

[Dude]

Pats had a couple in the past, Heyensworth, Chad Goldtooth, stuff like that. Fortunately they do these terrible things without breaking the bank.

 

[Maximus Rex]

Pats had a couple in the past, Heyensworth, Chad Goldtooth, stuff like that. Fortunately they do these terrible things without breaking the bank.

Yeah, the Pats, Green Bay, and the Steelers in particular all seem similar in that regard. Sometimes the FAs don't hit, but they're not backbreaking things like you see out of some of these other horror stories mentioned in this thread.