Upcoming Free Agents
by AKAY47 on Feb 9, 2010 2:04 PM CST
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PrintOk, so like most of you, I'm still celebrating this victory and I keep seeing sports writers talking about how the Saints might not be able to keep this team together because of all the upcoming restricted free agents, but they're restricted, right? Meaning we can match any offer.. So why would Mickey Loomis & Co. have a tough time keeping the core group together? Also, I know we have 3 unrestricted free agents (Sharper, Fujita, Brunell) but would someone be able to provide the names of all the Saints restricted free agents, please? I know we have Pierre Thomas, David Thomas, Billy Miller, Jammal Brown, Lance Moore, Jahri Evans, Jermon Bushrod, Remi Ayodele, Roman Harper, Marvin Mitchell, Mike Bell, Anthony Hargrove, Garrett Hartley who are all set to become RFA's, is there anyone else (that's basically the whole team).. This is still a young team and I'd love to see all these guys retained, but realistically we have to let some go, so who do you think stays and who do you think goes?
I think it's critical to bring back Darren Sharper for another year, same with Scott Fujita. Of course guys like Jahri Evans, Pierre Thomas, Roman Harper, Anthony Hargrove, David Thomas, Lance Moore (somewhat) Garrett Hartley, Jammal Brown are all guys that need to stay..
One last question, I don't understand the RFA statuses in the NFL. In the NHL it's pretty simple, if the player's contract is up and is younger than 25, he's a restricted free agent. If he's older than 25 and hasn't played 3 full NHL seasons (or something like that) and his contract is up, he's still a restricted free agent. But Jammal Brown has definitely played more than 3 seasons and is 28, so how come he's a restricted free agent?
thanks!
WHO DAT BABY, SUPER BOWL CHAMPS
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I say we let go of
Jamal Brown
Remi Ayodele
Marvin Mitchell
And we concentrate on the rest since we will be limited on FA signings
by mississippisaintsfan on Feb 9, 2010 2:16 PM CST reply actions
Jammal Brown is a Pro-Bowl LT, I think we need him.. Bushrod was getting man-handled at the end of the season
Dwight Freeney can’t pull moves on a guy like Jammal Brown
This is the second year he has been hurt
This is bushrods first year as starting left tackle i believe he will get better
But in the mean time we dont need to keep a LT that keeps getting hurt
by mississippisaintsfan on Feb 9, 2010 8:31 PM CST up reply actions
No way we "let go of" Jamal Brown
without getting greater or equal value back at the O-line. Bushrod was a glaring weak spot down the stretch. The Saints CANNOT plan on him starting next season. I think we can do better than Brown, but we actually have to do better before we let him go.
"The Colts were punching at it and grabbing for it, trying to get it out. But I didn't care if they broke all my fingers. There was absolutely no way in the world I was going to let go of that ball. That was our ball.''-Chris Reis
Unfortunately we can’t “do better” before we let him go. Because of the Final Eight plan.
If we want to upgrade we have to first let him go and then hope that somebody better is actually still available. Yeah right.
Unless we trade for an RFA, we either have to bring back Brown or draft Bushrod’s replacement.
There are FA acquisition limitation for the final 8 teams... the ones in the divisional round
Pigs have flown! Hell has frozen over! The Saints HAVE WON the Superbowl!!
Final 8 rule
Simply put, if your team makes it to the divisional playoff round, you cannot sign free agents without first losing a player/players of equal monetary value.
My thinking on this is
what if we just straight up release Grant from his contract? Does that solve that problem? I don’t know if he fits the bill for escaping the “final 8” bit of the uncapped year rules, but he’s a big name that I wouldn’t mind losing while the cap doesn’t get hit by his contract. I’m shure the actual checkbook holders disagree, but if they were ever going to take that hit, now’s the time.
"The Colts were punching at it and grabbing for it, trying to get it out. But I didn't care if they broke all my fingers. There was absolutely no way in the world I was going to let go of that ball. That was our ball.''-Chris Reis
I'm "sure"
"The Colts were punching at it and grabbing for it, trying to get it out. But I didn't care if they broke all my fingers. There was absolutely no way in the world I was going to let go of that ball. That was our ball.''-Chris Reis
Cutting doesn't count
We have to lose a UFA to another team before we can sign a UFA. I also believe that $ is a factor. That we can’t spend more than we lose. So we couldn’t sign Peppers unless we lost free agents with salaries totalling 18 mil or whatever it’d take to get Peppers.
Our best bet is to resign as many young UFAs as possible. Those that are RFAs we put decent Tenders on to encourge them to resign, or at least get solid picks if they were to go elsewhere. Then tag the UFAs that we either couldn’t sign or don’t want to do a long deal with. I think we get three tags this year b/c it’s uncapped,rather than the standard one tag.
by saintsdevotee on Feb 10, 2010 11:13 PM CST up reply actions
here:
Players who have an asterisk* following their names are fourth- or fifth-year players who would be unrestricted free agents if a new Collective Bargaining Agreement is reached prior to March. If not, the NFL will go into an uncapped season, and those players will become restricted free agents
Kendrick Clancy UFA
Scott Fujita UFA
P. Prioleau UFA
Darren Sharper UFA
Mark Brunell UFA
Dan Campbell UFA
Darnell Dinkins UFA
Billy Miller UFA
Nick Leckey UFA
Jermon Bushrod RFA
Remi Ayodele RFA
Jeff Charleston RFA
M. Mitchell RFA
Usama Young RFA
Leigh Torrance RFA
Chris Reis RFA
Pierre Thomas RFA
Courtney Roby RFA*
Lance Moore RFA*
Roman Harper RFA*
A. Hargrove RFA*
Jammal Brown RFA*
Zach Strief RFA*
Jahri Evans RFA*
Mike Bell RFA*
David Thomas RFA*
HOLY.............. MOLY!
Sean & Mickey have their work cut out for them.
:-O
Pigs have flown! Hell has frozen over! The Saints HAVE WON the Superbowl!!
Not as bad as it looks
I saw this yesterday and nearly $#!t myself. But after looking it over it’s not as bad as it looks. Of the 26 free agents, 17 are restricted, so we have a great deal of leverage to get new deals done with them. Since it is an uncapped year it would be very difficult for a team to create a “poison-pill” typ offer that we couldn’t match. They could offer more than we were willing to pay, but if that’s the case we’d get fair compensation for the player in the form of draft picks. The seven UFAs are not guys that are going to be hot commodities this off season. There’s two or three names that you might think we “have” to have back, and we can tag those players so they can’t leave, Looking at it that way, we are in pretty good shape. If this next year was to be capped, we’d be in a lot more trouble. 9 more players would be UFAs and we’d have less tags to go around. and those 9 players contain some pretty key guys. So, for now I am hoping that a new CBA isn’t done before March.
by saintsdevotee on Feb 10, 2010 11:21 PM CST up reply actions
Here's who we should bring back.
Darren Sharper UFA
Billy Miller UFA
Jermon Bushrod RFA
Chris Reis RFA
Pierre Thomas RFA
Courtney Roby RFA*
Lance Moore RFA*
Roman Harper RFA*
A. Hargrove RFA*
Jammal Brown RFA*
Zach Strief RFA*
Jahri Evans RFA*
Mike Bell RFA*
David Thomas RFA*
Good list
I would take Mike Bell off of it, and maybe add Prioleau, but otherwise I agree.
"The Colts were punching at it and grabbing for it, trying to get it out. But I didn't care if they broke all my fingers. There was absolutely no way in the world I was going to let go of that ball. That was our ball.''-Chris Reis
Keep in mind some of last year's top draft picks should be off IR:
The Saints almost have two or three “extra” draft picks with these young studs coming back.
Vaughn, Chip Safety
Arnoux, Stanley LB
Dunbar, Jo-Lonn LB
Don't worry, the CBA most likely won't be reached.
Not that that’s a good thing in the long run, but still.
He's not on these lists,
but I think getting out from under Grant will be the silver lining of this uncapped year for the Saints. They’ll take a hit financially, but for one year, they won’t have to worry about weakening the team as a result of that hit.
"The Colts were punching at it and grabbing for it, trying to get it out. But I didn't care if they broke all my fingers. There was absolutely no way in the world I was going to let go of that ball. That was our ball.''-Chris Reis
Bobby McCray proved in the post-season that he can take over the RE starting position, in my opinion..
If we were to draft another RE in the 2nd round, I’d be content.. Plus Charles Grant is still facing a suspension for the StarCaps or whatever they’re called..
Remi Ayodele is a good player
if his salary is reaonable compared to what we would have to pay for another DT, I say keep him. You need more than 2 DTs and he played well for us. Not sure what to think about Clancy. I think he’s good, but he’s getting older. I also think everyone is knocking Bushrod. EVERY Left OT gets beat once in a while- they always face the other teams best sack producer. Every left OT gets help on some plays- it’s the QBs blind side and you can’t afford a miscue. Bushrod did well this season- he got beat against DeMarcus Ware and at least one of those sacks was partly attributable to a missed assignment – it was either PT or Eckel. An OT is going to approach blocking a DE differently when he is expecting a double team as opposed to when he is solo.
I do think we should keep Jammal Brown, but I think everyone is too tough on Bushrod. His position is the toughest one on the O line. We need to find a way around Charles Grant. He’s too much buck for the bang.
"I think we agree, the past is over" - George W Bush
"The greatest enemy of knowlege is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge" Stephen Hawking
He did an admirable job, but I don’t think he’s a starter. Would you be comfortable with Bushrod as your starting LT next year? He did a fine job this season, all things considered, but he’s a rotation player and a backup to me. A damn fine one, no doubt, and one who’s gone through the crucible, but there are better starters. That’s all I’m thinking about him, personally.
"The Colts were punching at it and grabbing for it, trying to get it out. But I didn't care if they broke all my fingers. There was absolutely no way in the world I was going to let go of that ball. That was our ball.''-Chris Reis
Dwight Freeney pulled moves on EVERY lineman he faced this year
"I think we agree, the past is over" - George W Bush
"The greatest enemy of knowlege is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge" Stephen Hawking
And the only time he really handled Bushrod was the sack. He got a head of steam, caught Bushrod backpedaling, and blew right past him.
Other than that, I think he did exceptionally well… And, he’s done well all season.
Bushrod only had one game that I’d say he played poorly, and that was the Cowboys game.
But, I’d put part of the blame on the O-line coach/whoever determines blocking schemes, because we needed a better plan to block that 3-4 Over Blitz-ing defense.
Pigs have flown! Hell has frozen over! The Saints HAVE WON the Superbowl!!
You can write off Brunell
Mark Brunell could probably ride off into the sunset now that he has a Super Bowl ring. He’s 39 years old and will be 40 this September. While he has a nice job being Drew’s backup, his performance against the Panthers in Week 17 would have made you pop antacids if the game meant anything. Quite simply, the guy doesn’t have it anymore and it’s pretty important to have a viable backup QB and Brunell simply doesn’t look like he can fill that role anymore. They might as well get Chase Daniel fitted into that role now.
And the eighth and final rule: if this is your first time at Fight Club, you have to fight.
This is a pretty complicated issue
A lot of people think that an uncapped year means a team can just go out and spend as much (or as little) as they want for one season. It isn’t that simple. Free agency will be more complicated than ever before, and the list of free agents will be extremely slim. The value of star players in this market is extremely high. The way I see it, we’ve proven that we can win with Bushrod. If we can legitimately afford Brown then it would be nice, but his price tag is going to be extremely high considering he’s coming off a big injury.
"I want to hand this trophy to the MVP of the Super Bowl -- and the MVP of the entire league.''
-- Saints coach Sean Payton, handing the Vince Lombardi Trophy to Drew Brees after Super Bowl 44.
Actually that’s the one thing that might make him affordable… IF we get started on trying to keep him before its too late. Because despite the fact that he is good the “injury prone?” question will scare off a team or two. And if he’s not dead-set on joining his brother on some other team then we MIGHT have a chance to negotiate something with him early on to prevent him from getting to free agency in the first place.
Okay forgive my newbie status
Can someone explain to me in laymen’s terms the difference between restricted and unrestricted. Also how an uncapped year versus a capped one affects both? I know it gets complicated.
Also Bushrod deserves some credit for the way he handled Allen, don’t you think?
Thanks so much!
"I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious." - Vince Lombardi
by SarahT on Feb 9, 2010 11:32 PM CST via mobile reply actions
A restricted free agent means the Team he was on this year has the right to match any other team’s offers before he can leave. Unrestricted doesn’t have to consult with his current team at all. It’s based on tenure in the NFL.
"The Colts were punching at it and grabbing for it, trying to get it out. But I didn't care if they broke all my fingers. There was absolutely no way in the world I was going to let go of that ball. That was our ball.''-Chris Reis
UFA or RFA
UFA: player can take a contract from any other team. Saints get nothing in return.
RFA: Any other team can make an offer to an RFA; however, the current team can match that offer and keep the player or they can allow thatp[layer to leave, but the team that gets the player will have to “compensate” the former team with a draft pick. Dont ask what determiens whatthat draft pick is or how they calcualte it. All i can tell you is that Tom Brady was one such pick.
Did i get it right?
Basically, yeah. You forgot ERFA tho, and the years of service involved.
In any year you are a ERFA if you don’t have a contract and you have two or less years of experience. That means that if your previous team makes you an offer at all, you can’t negotiate with anybody else and have to either accept/negotiate with your old team or nothing.
In a “normal year” you are an RFA with 3 years and a UFA at 4. With the uncapped year you are an RFA at 3 to 5 and a UFA at 6.
Oh and the RFA tender amounts are set in advance, but the options are “1st and 3rd” (highest possible tender short of a franchise/transition tag), “1st”, “2nd”, and “original draft position”. So if somebody was undrafted and you give them the lowest possible tender you still get nothing if they sign with another team.
Once the tender has been offered the player can still be traded for less than the “face value” in draft picks if the team holding his rights wants to, just like any other player under contract can be traded.
Thanks guys!
"I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious." - Vince Lombardi
AS far as Bushrod is concerened
take into account he is only 25 years old, he never started a game before this year (only his 3rd year) he only played in a handful of games before this year, he went to Towson (hardly a pinnacle of college football), and still he started every game and held down a very difficult position vs. usually the opponent’s best pass rusher and he helped take us to the SB! He’s still learning- still a babe!
Now, are there better OTs in the league?- I am sure there are. But, he is truly a legitimate starter. You don’t start 19 games on a team that wins a SB and you are just a good sub. All- Pro- no. Not yet. And, although I want Jamaal Brown back, if we have to “settle” for Bushrod in order to have the cash to get a linebacker, a DT or a DE, I’m fine with it. But, I would prefer Brown and Bushrod. I doubt that will happen unless Brown stays cheap.
"I think we agree, the past is over" - George W Bush
"The greatest enemy of knowlege is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge" Stephen Hawking
Agreed. My dream scenario is somebody quickly (let them tamper all they want, the sooner they sign him the better) overpays badly for Brown enabling us to pursue a decent to top-end DE, we extend Bushrod’s contract slightly giving him a bit of a raise, and then we draft another LT early in the draft. It supposedly is pretty full of many high-potential left tackles. By doing this we both show Bushrod we appreciate what he did but also that we want him to work his butt off to prove he should keep his starting position.
Fujita is a player that has been on our SB winning team and on a team that went to the NFC Championship game
and bear in mind when we went to the NFC Championship game, Vilma, Greer and Sharper weren’t here yet. I think he is a valuable player that we should resign unless his salary is out of control. We should only switch 1 LB and give some of the younger guys like Jo Lon Dunbar a shot also. Don’t gut our defense unless you are like the media that thinks we have a bad defense and we get lucky. We have a defense that faced 3 HOF QBs in the playoffs and gave up 2 passing TDs and got 4 ints not to mentiojn the fumbles we created. Also, we limited P Manning to 17 total pts in SB (only 7 second half).
"I think we agree, the past is over" - George W Bush
"The greatest enemy of knowlege is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge" Stephen Hawking
Mike Triplett
reports the Saints will likely release Charles Grant, resign Scott Fujita, and place the franchise tag on Darren Sharper.
All these RFAs due to the exceptional circumstances of this offseason will probably remain with their respective teams; most analysts believe it will be a very quiet offseason. I wouldn’t worry about our guys, as we’ll tender almost all of them offers, I’m sure.
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