Politics and RGIII

First, I need to address some shallow thinking:

Skin-deep, it's smart to be interested in Matt Flynn. Most of the pros buy him as the real thing, and he'd fit right in here.

But when you think just a LIITTTLE harder, you come up with more to that story. First, I'm hearing rumors of some truly undoable salary demands. He was awesome in those two games, ok. Would he be that awesome every week with THIS team?

How MUCH? More than half the quarterbacks in the NFL? More than 2/3rds? Well, I'm hearing that his camp will want more than two thirds of the STARTING quarterbacks in the NFL, for at least five years.

This would gobble up the bulk of the Browns cap dollars, at a time when the ideal answer at wide reciever is a VETERAN, and veteran X-RECIEVERS are there in numbers. So are good-to-excellent free agent cornerbacks. (X-reciever: demands double-coverage. Tends to run deeper routes and challenge safeties. Primary reciever--not a slot guy GET IT?)

Meanwhile, Colt McCoy enters only his second season in the West Coast, after his first actual preseason with that system, and with much more real-game experience than Flynn. And if he DOES beat out Flynn, we've got a massively-overpaid backup quarterback who we CAN'T trade because nobody wants to pay that much for a guy who couldn't beat out Colt McCoy!

Meanwhile, RGIII is right in front of us, with an astronomicly higher upside than either Flynn or McCoy. True, trading that extra first round pick would hurt a lot, but with the new rookie salary structure, Griffin would cost much less than Flynn. The monies some shallow thinkers had earmarked for Flynn, along with the the salary they would have had to pay #22, is now available for some truly GOOD young free agents (26 and younger).

This brings up part one of the politics of it: Rightly or wrongly, free agent X-recievers will be reluctant to sign with the Browns with Colt McCoy projected at quarterback. They would for Robert Griffin III.

More importantly, if Heckert, Shurmer, Childress, and Holmgren feel that RG III is for real, and will kick ass in the NFL, they HAVE to try to get him.

Why? What if they don't, and Grif does a Cam Newton, or at least an Andy Dalton? The fans will be out with the ropes and torches by about game three.

Get me right: I fully expect that IF McCoy gets some better protection, Hillis re-signed, and one reciever with real deep speed, he will do well. I just don't believe he can do as well as Griffin. He can't put the ball in a one yard window 40 yards downfield. He can't break out of a collapsing pocket and run for 30 yards, and he can't be near as accurate on the run and throwing all-arm, off-balance.

Even if statisticly they're similar, that won't matter to the Cleveland lynch mob. We could have had Saint Robert, and they just let him go.

Of course, if they disagree with Mayock, Kuiper, Miller, Wilcotts, Gannon, Brandt, etc. and don't believe that Griffin will be that good, they're ok. It's just that they're betting their futures on that judgement.

...and I doubt that they disagree with all these guys.

PS I was impressed by Griffin defending his college offense, insisting that he usually had at least three reads and looked foreward to showing that in his team interviews. I believe him--he'd be stupid to make the assertion of it wasn't true.

Because I believe him, I'm really encouraged. I was kind of shocked to hear him say that he could learn a West Coast offense quickly at first-- but then he said what I said about the difference between book-learning and learning by doing. He seems to me supremely confident, but with both his feet on the ground.

Pat Kirwin, Gil Brandt, and ALL the other REAL experts on NFL Radio agree on one thing:

IF YOU HAVE A CHANCE TO GET A GUY YOU THINK CAN BE A FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK, YOU TAKE HIM, EVEN IF YOU ALREADY HAVE A QUARTERBACK. THE QUARTERBACK IS TTHHEEEEE MOST IMPORTANT PLAYER ON YOUR TEAM.

Some clowns are saying that they can just get Bradley next season. Yeah, when they don't have two first rounders and aren't just two slots away. All it will take is the following season's first rounder, the current second round pick and a bunch more, is all--SHUT T F UP YOU IDIOTS! If you expect 4-12 again you are retarded, and if they win six it's over. Morons.

Get him now, spend 20 mil on free agents, draft eight more players, keep McCoy, and don't WORRY about the most important player on your team for ten years!

BUB: Sure, the season before last he was a third or fourth-rounder. Part of the reason he's so white-hot right now is the drastic improvement he showed between 2010 and 2011. Mayock is a brutal judge of quarterbacks, and all he could find wrong with him was that he didn't anticipate well (yet).

Isn't such rapid improvement indicative of FURTHER rapid growth? I'd rather have that than rock-solid, gradually growing Andrew Luck (not that I don't think Luck can be as good or better, mind you--just opining that Griffin is there with him.)

Plan B

OK so if Tom and Mike's secretaries are again screening my emails, they might not know that I said they should go get RG3. I have to allow for this. So what do they do if thusly deprived of my advice?

Well, there's always Richardson. I addressed this before and won't repeat the whole thing. The summary is: best since Adrian Peterson AND an excellent RECIEVER. R E C I E V E R DO YOU U N D E R S T A N D? West Coast ready. Playmaker. Much bigger impact than Peterson had in Minnesota due to those sticky fingers of his.

But only if they don't re-sign Hillis.

Claiborne? No argument. Other positions are needed much more, but he's rare and worth that pick.

Blackmon? No. He's not a burner. He'll probably be really good, but the Browns already have Little, Moore, and the true tight ends. At ten, maybe. Not at four.

Trading down is always good. Don't be a blockhead! They could go down a long, long way and still get Tannehill, a STUD right tackle, and--well---everything else, too! You guys think it's got to be one or two superstars and nine guys named Joe. Better: 2 guys named Joe, 4 pretty good guys, 3 REALLY good guys, Joe Thomas, and yes: a healthy Peyton Hillis.

Trade down. Get two really good ones instead of one great one who might get hurt (and of course a staph infection) anyway. How 'bout ALL above average players?

I'd trade for Griffin. OK so they might not. Part of that is that they already have a quarterback well-suited to this system, who's only now had his chance to learn it (without much support). Griffin could set them back (temporarily).

This is Cleveland, so it wouldn't matter how well McCoy played, or how long Griffin would take to master it real-time. Colt would throw one bad pass, and somebody would start with the "ARR-GEE! ARR-GEE!", and God help him if he threw a pick! Even if they WANT RG3, YOU people might scare them off him. They don't like being told how to run their team by a bunch of hero-worshipping...

This is how good football people get fired.

And you know, that Tannehill guy has many of RG's traits. He's much less experienced, and only last season Griffin projected in the third or fourth round. Tannehill is ahead of where Griffin was at the same stage.

He's safer. You could get away with stashing him on the bench while McCoy continues to grow on the field; making some more mistakes, as all young players do.

And for all we know, the next Matt Ryan might already be here. Thadeus Lewis, if not McCoy. Probably not, but could be! McCoy might not morph into Joe Montana or Drew Brees or Aaron Rodgers or Brian Sipe (ps I used those four for good reasons), but then...?

FREE AGENT fast wide reciever first! Garcon! Any drafted wide-out has to learn it all. You bring in a vet and he can help right away. A tackle, running back, man corner, etc. can help as rookies. No QB here, including Griffin, can succeed without a pocket, some sort of running game, and a two-pronged outside recieving threat.

Sign the wide reciever, and you can draft the rest. Especially if you trade down.

I Almost Changed My Mind on GIII

...especially after a very thoughtful, persuasive (ie RARE) fan-post I read. This guy didn't need to remind me of the nature of the West Coast offense--not an ideal fit for spread QB RGIII. But he DID point out that Shurmer has been inflexible in it's application.

I remember when Chris Palmer drafted Tim Couch and made him a pocket passer...and ONLY a pocket passer, with NO roll-outs or shotguns EVER, to ease his transition, or make the most of his talents. I remember later when the Browns acquired Garcia, and again refused to let him roll out or use the shotgun.

But I haven't been able to watch more than 2-3 games last season, and am often driving a truck when I listen. Analysis is shallow.

Now, thanks to the great Terry Pluto, I know that the Browns actually threw 47.7% of it's passes out of the shotgun! This ranked 27th in the NFL. Sure, Shurmer prefers his QB under center, but the shotgun is integral to all passing offenses, including Shurmer's.

The Packers' offense used shotgun 66.6%, and the Eagles were 59.9%; this is Shurmer's mentor, Andy Reid, adapting to Micheal Vick. Carolina and Denver increased their shotguns to make better use of Tim Tebow and Cam Newton. Just how dumb do people think Pat Shurmer is?

Oh--I'm not sold on Shurmer yet. He WAS inflexible in his steadfast refusal to use the hurry-up until conditions mandated it. But the whole shotgun issue has been exhaggerated.

More shotgun last season probably would have helped McCoy, but there is more to it here in Cleveland. It's not as easy to run the ball out of the shotgun, in which the backs are actually in front of the quarterback at the snap. It was important to run the ball (between the tackles) to help out the inexperienced, injured offensive line. The backs often needed to hit the hole with a running start, ie taking the handoff as they passed the quarterback verticly.

It's much easier for a rookie guard to fire off the ball and hit somebody than to pick up a blitze or deal with a sneaky veteran passrusher while on his heels. When a defenive front sees a shotgun, it automaticly attacks and seeks penetration. It tips the offense's hand. With Hillis, dumpoffs could exploit this, but without him, this didn't work so well.

The return of Steinbach (which keeps sounding more likely), a now-seasoned right guard, and an upgrade at right tackle would make the shotgun more viable, for either McCoy or Griffin. Hillis, too, would help. Many of his biggest plays were actually on dump-offs, or catches in the flats. He's one of the best in the NFL at this.

In re RGIII, I'll go back to something I pointed out earlier: for an Olympic hurdler to take snaps from under center will not be difficult. He had some limitted experience with it--about ten percent of his snaps--and for him the physical part is nothing. One of his best assets is his ability to track recievers while running around.

Now, the poster who wrote this pretty insightful article also made some mistakes. It's true that the West Coast runs a lot of crosses and slants, and by design spreads the field laterally more than verticly, but it's not black-and-white. Aaron Rodgers generally throws intermediate passes, and some deep as well. So does Vick. So did McNabb.

Further, a strong arm is still an advantage on the shorter passes to the sidelines and underneath coverage, where low trajectories and quick deliveries get the ball to the reciever before the defender can react.

One otherwise very smart national article decried McCoy's inaccuracy, but she blew her credibility right there. McCoy was off the mark too often in '11, but sometimes the inexperienced recievers failed to get to the point in time, or got there too early (TIMING, remember?) (But then, as I've admitted, he wasn't very accurate on the run, either).

In 2010, when it was a sight adjustment, he was on the money every time.

Accuracy isn't why I like Griffin more than Colt. It's Grif's stronger arm, which threatens the whole field. It's also the fact that defenses will be terrified by Griffin's speed and can't attack him in the backfield the way they attack McCoy. This would help the linemen and the running backs.

Most defenses would have to assign a safety or linebacker/safety hybrid to "spy" Griffin and mirror him, which they don't have to do with Colt.

The West Coast is indeed complex, and Colt now has most of a season under his belt in it. If they drafted Griffin, it wouldn't suprprise me if McCoy remains the starter in game one (and does well). (Making many posters declare Griffin a "bust" immediately).

Intellectually, Griffin will master this offense quickly. He will be "book smart". What would be difficult for him, as with any quarterback, would be overcoming the deceptions that pro defenses will use on him to disguise coverages, set traps, and fool him into seeing what they want him to see. Make no mistake, they messed with Colt in '11, big-time.

It's harder for a QB to get street-wise in the West Coast, when the ball is supposed to be in the air before the reciever makes his break.

Mayock did mention that Griffin didn't throw with anticipation, which is a red flag for the West Coast. But am I the only one who read the 'BECAUSE HE DIDN'T HAVE TO" part? Anyone as mentally disciplined as Griffin so obviously is can force himself to throw to a spot and trust his reciever to do the right thing, and that's the long and short of this.

I would actually hope that McCoy would be the starter, and do well. Let RG look over Colt's shoulder; Colt the other short accurate guy.

I'd be a better GM than most posters, because most posters want instant gratification. I would trade up for Griffin thinking about 2013 and 2014, and the Superbowl rather than a short-term almost-playoff run. What if I and a lot of other people including Mayock, Brandt, Miller, and Gannon are right about Colt, and he does well in his second season in the West Coast? A wasted draft pick, you think?

No! Then McCoy is either the best backup in the NFL, or at least a second round draft pick in a trade!

What if I get Garcon from Indi as the new number one and now have Little as the number two? What if I re-sign Hillis (and he stays healthy)? Are those two things and a good right tackle out of range because I surrendered my highest EXTRA draft pick? I got the cap room, and the oldest of the free agent prospects is 26 years old. You really think #22 is a make-or-break pick that we can't afford?

Would you rather have Kendall Wright, the little burner from Auburn, more than the ready-to-plug-in outside Garcon? How many recievers and right tackles do we need? 4? 7? God I'd HATE to be next to a lot of you in a foxhole! Might shoot you myself! "WE'RE ALL GONNA--" BANG!

Thanks Terry Pluto for preventing me from changing my mind. I hope they trade up for RGIII.

But Tom's will be done. Amen.

RG III

I can't find it anymore, but in among the ignorant, cliched, dumb posts I found a real gem by a kindred spirit. He talked about a rule that might be applied to evaluate prospective NFL quarterbacks:

This involved their score on the wonderlick test, the number of college games they'd started (experience), and...either their completion percentage or TD-to-interception ratio.

Experience and percentage-wise, this wasn't the first I'd heard of it. Pat Kirwin on NFL Radio talks about it a lot. Junior quarterbacks don't generally do well. Seniors--or at least guys with at least 18-20 college starts under their belts, do much better than inexperienced quarterbacks.

Cam Newton is an exception to this rule, but you can find few others.

Anyway, this poster was a real dogged researcher, ala Terry Pluto. He listed all the guys who fulfilled this experience/wonderlick/accuracy rule on one side, and all those who had not on the other. The difference was stunning, and damn near universal. The guys not making the cut were variously mediocre or downright putrid. The guys who made it varied from pretty good to Hall-of-Famers.

No-no--not all quarterbacks drafted in every round. He was referring to the 2-4 quarterbacks atop their respective drafts; those believed to have starting NFL talent, ok? A guy without that kind of ability can have all the brains and experience in the world, and it won't matter.

After Mike Mayock and Solomon Wilcots pounded the table about Robert Griffin the 3rd, I jumped on the trade-up-for-him bandwagon, and boy does that posted rule back it up! He completed over 72% of his passes for over 10 yards-per-catch. A 5:1 TD/Int ratio. He graduated highschool and college early, and he'll have a post-grad degree in May. I'm guessing he'll do okay on the Wonderlick. And he started since he was a rookie.

Another article recommending the trade-up was both smart and moronic. He persisted in Micheal Vick comparisons throughout. Vick never had Griffin's touch or accuracy. Vick was a running quarterback. Grif is a quarterback who can run; a pocket passer first. Griffin is more mature and refined than Vick was.

A much more valid comparison--if I haven't mentioned it before--is Randall Cunningham. Randall was also a quarterback first.

Guys like this work extra-hard to be quarterbacks, because it's so very easy for them to take off and just run the ball. They have to override their own fight-or-flight impulses in order to stand in there with the world collapsing around them, looking for their target. It says a great deal about their willpower and determination.

My, uh...brother in law I'll call him--he's almost as smart about the Browns as my humble Da Vinci-like self, and he thinks Griffin is a dice-roll, and wouldn't make the trade.

His guy at four, in fact, is super-cornerback Morris Claiborne. Haden and this guy would turn this into an awesome secondary instantly and really mess up enemy passing attacks, even in the pass-happy NFL.

I hear that. If they allowed the fifth fewest points in the NFL last season, what might they do with two shut-down corners and suddenly great depth in the secondary, maybe with Brown at free safety? Wow.

But damn--how often will the Browns be this close to such a promising stud quarterback? I mean, anybody can fail, and half the high first round quarterbacks drafted DO fail, and set their organizations back years.

I get that. But listen to Wilcotts and Mayock, who KNOW what they're looking at! This guy is just as close to "can't-miss" as Andrew Luck is! Luck is just a couple inches taller, and has more pro-style experience, for crying out loud! I personally think the two inches mean more to these guys than the college sytem.

And if you need a sure thing before you make or call a bet, I want to play poker with you, because you will never, ever win.

I don't take anything back that I said of Colt McCoy. He'll be a good quarterback; a starter--a playoff quarterback--once he has a little more time, and recievers who get open and don't drop balls.

But Griffin is from another planet. His arm and speed make his cieling much higher.

McCoy incidentally didn't meet the 27 (I believe) threshhold in the Wonderlick. I take it with a grain of salt--I'm sure he's plenty smart. But Griffin either works very much harder, or is a freaking genius, or both. I'll take either--there's nothing he can't learn in one off-season.

We're talking about a starting point trade of both the Browns first-round picks. Some have cited a long list of historical examples of more massive trades, but conveniently ignored the fact that we're talking about TWO SLOTS here, and the fact that the Rams could still get the guy they want most when the dust settles. (I think it's Kalil).

Washington and Miami will probably fight over Matt Ryan, and Miami has the inside track. Kalil won't be there at the Skins' 6, and the Rams would rather have both their first rounders THIS season, don't you think?

Understand this: the Rams have their quarterback entering his third season, along with some solid parts and pieces. They took a step back last season when they changed coaches and systems, but they can be competitive in their division this season with a little help as young players mature.

Washington would have to offer their 2013 first rounder along with this year's first and at least a third.

No, I think the two firsts and maybe Massequoi or the lower 4th-rounder could do it.

BUB, is that so bad?

We got so many other holes to fill? See my previous post on free agents, all of which I listed are 26 years old or younger this season, and should be affordable.

Also, as usual, much is overstated. Like, it's not the right SIDE of the offensive line, but right tackle. How do you KNOW last season's rookie left guard isn't this years fair-to-middling right tackle? Pinkston was a LEFT tackle in college, you know!

They don't need two wide recievers. They need ONE. They HAVE linebacker DEPTH. They just need a weakside backer and a rush right DE, and I want to give Benard his shot there! I'll bet on him!

Luvao had zero experience, and might be a solid right guard this season. Or Pinkston, if he's not a good enough tackle. Steinbach's return, and the natural growth of these youngsters, could fix everything--possibly even right tackle!

Some of the best linebackers, cornerbacks, running backs, and right tackles in the NFL were middle/low-round draft picks, and the defense was pretty good LAST season.

The Browns would still have a high second, third, and fourth rounder. In other words they'd still have a complete draft. And Robert Griffin. AND Colt McCoy, so who CARES who starts game one?

If the two ones are what it takes, or those and a fourth--I say DO IT. Take the stud QB. Let Colt and Robert have a fair fight, and start the winner. It would be better to let Griffin sit and watch at first anyway.

Finally, due to over-abuse, I have to confiscate these words and phrases: Extremely, At Best. They will be returned to you when you show that you can use them appropriately.

Free Agency and the Free Market

First, to dispense with some more idiocy and false premises:

1: Mohammud Massequoi couldn't have dropped more than two passes in 2011, and was productive in his limitted playing time. He gets open and he has good hands. When he didn't play, the offense was worse. He is a decent number two. His concussions are a concern, and the Browns could do better, but it was Little who had the drops--and ran incorrect routes. I see what is there, and not what I want to see.
He was drafted in the Mangini regime alongside Brian Robiskie. Doesn't matter. He played well.

2: Mitchell still exists and has a chance to emerge at WR in his third NFL season.

3: Norwood was a really nice, sure-handed slot reciever last season, and there is no urgent need to replace him. Further, Josh Cribbs caught over 40 passes and can play the slot too. The Browns need a number one. Not a slot guy. This is baby-out-with-the bathwater stuff. Think clearly.

4: Little improved markedly late in his rookie season. It's not accurate to say he can't be a number one simply because he's a couple tenths of a second slower than Green in the 40. He has yet to approach his potential.

The Browns need ONE reciever with deep speed.

Blackmon overmatched his level of competition and is probably being over-hyped. He should not go in the top five, according to many of the scouts I've listened to.

There's no need to draft a wide reciever high this season anyway, as the free agent market is being flooded with wide recievers this season.

There are only 32 teams in the NFL, and not all of them are looking for wide recievers. Teams on the cusp of Superbowl contention will be more open to signing the older vets who might get them over the top. Heckert and the Browns are building for the season after next and thereafter, so if you're over 28 at the oldest, you need not apply.

Not that they'll be beating the door down to play for the Cleveland Browns anyway, mind you.

Vincent jackson (29) is really the premiere guy here, but there are several others who will dilute the salary demands. It's not just the teams who will be fighting over their services, but the players themselves will be pressured: If they're too greedy, another player will sign and they'll have fewer suitors. Once the first two or three sign, they and their agents will start getting nervous.

For them, it's not just the other free agents. It's also the wide recievers coming up in the draft--with the new rookie salary cap. They will be cheaper than any of these free agents, and with a lot less mileage on them.

Don't be surprised if Heckert plays it cool, and lets people think he might draft Blackmon at four.

For the 4-12 Cleveland Browns, Vincent Jackson and Dwayne Bowe are not realistic targets. Nor is Bowe a true deep threat. Little might be him this season anyway. Brandon Lloyd is 31. Stevie Johnson is a talented bone-head; another Chad Ochosinco. No thanks...but hopefully somebody else signs him and takes themselves out of the market.

I read that the Stoolers will re-sign Mike Wallace no matter what. I also read that they're 20 million over the cap. Heckert has a shot. He can make an offer. If the Stoolers beat it, it will force them to dump more salary, some of which he might scoop up for depth or hold-the-fort guys. If they don't...oh wow....Wallace a Brown. Pinch me.

Then there's Colston.

But the guys the Browns have the best shot at, and who could fill their need most affordably and for the long term, are:

Pierre Garcon, Colts. One analyst said he dropped too many passes, but that's not what I get from the others. In fact, he sounds pretty sure-handed. His stats suffered in a Manningless season, while Manningham kicked butt in the Superbowl, so he's sort of the red-headed stepchild here.

But Garcon is bigger and more physical than Manningham, with similar speed. He is an instant number one in this offense, making Little the number two. With Massequoi and hopefully Mitchell also here, the Browns could take WR off their board.

Then there's Mario Manningham. I don't care about his weak production last season. He proved himself in 2010 with over a thousand yards. The Giants had two other excellent recievers, so when he was injured he came back as part of a rotation.

He is a pretty small guy, and you hate to make him cross the field a lot, as he would in a West Coast offense, but he's a clutch performer who burns. Unfortunately for Garcon and fortunately for Heckert, Manningham will be the hotter commodity. Not every team needs an outside guy, Manningham is a little more explosive and reliable, and vertical passing teams are less concerned about size than speed.

Plus, most fans are pretty ignorant, so they'd buy tickets to see the awesome Manningham than they would to see that bum Garcon.

But the smartest move would be to sign Randy Moss or Terrell Owens, don't you think?

I kid.

Do that, re-sign Hillis, and now on offense the big thing is a right tackle.

No NOT KALIL! LEFT tackles make a lot more money, and are more athletic than right tackles, many of whom are tall guards with long arms. You don't burn a top ten draft pick on a RIGHT tackle. You don't draft another Joe Thomas and make him play right tackle. Shut up. Just shut up.

I was gone for awhile but I'm back now.

There are also some good free agent defensive ends, and Ernie Accorsie made a great point recently: You start your defense with the line, and a strong pass rush. That takes much of the heat off the back seven while you build it. They don't need to cover as long, and runs get re-routed ar blown up in the backfield.

I personally haven't given up on Benard, who was a defensive end--not a linebacker--in college.

Last "preseason" the coaches weren't allowed to talk to the players, and Benard pumped himself up to over 270 lbs. He was ineffective, and then had his accident.

Jauron has told him that he doesn't need to be that big; he's not being expected to engage the tackle. Speed is the thing. Benard should show up at 260 or less, which is fine for the weakside DE, which is what the Browns need. Then let's see what he does.

Can't count on it, though.

I wish they could sign Mario Williams, but I doubt they have a realistic shot.

Cliff Avril is a sack machine (might not be so great against the run--as this unreliable analyst suggests) but 11 sacks and 6 forced fumbles? 26 years old? Probably priced too high, though.

There aren't that many of these guys, though; it's a seller's market. Lower down, there is good depth to be had on the strong side, however: Micheal Bennett. Solid strong side DE to spell Sheard and maybe be a rush tackle.

There are cornerbacks, as well, including emerging young guys like the Jags' William Middleton, who started due to injury last season and did really well. He's ranked as the eighth best on the list I've got, meaning the Browns have a reasonable shot at him. Tom and I kind of favor young, EMERGING talent, see? Once they're already big stars, they get expensive, see? Masters of the obvious don't make good GM's.

There are no stud right tackles here. Geathers could be one, but has chronic back issues. There's a chance this drives his price down enough that Tom would be dumb not to scoop him up, but I doubt it. Three other guys are pretty decent, but not really special, and might not be better than one guy already on the roster who played guard last season.

Erin Henderson is a weakside linebacker for the VIKINGS, and Childress might help Tom steal him. He's not great, but pretty good, with upside remaining.

Wesley Woodyard of the Broncos is another young guy who gets no play because of the studs in front of him, and is another realistic weakside linebacker target.

Rather than spending their entire 20 million on two players to make childish impatient fans happy, ALL of the above (with Avril a longshot) are doable by THIS team in this market before the draft.

The wide reciever is a difference maker. The rest are very solid upgrades, the oldest of which is 26. If these guys were signed before the draft, the probable needs would shrink to right tackle, right DE, and...

Well they might also try for Ryan or Kolb. Kolb? Yes. He flopped, but it might not be permanent. They said they'd bring someone in to COMPETE with McCoy, remember?

PS Rich Gannon, at least, has seen enough of Ryan to predict that he'll be a top-notch QB.

If not, what about RG III? I mean, if you've upgraded wr, cb, weakside lb, and you've got Hillis back...?

I saw a recent pretend draft run by Rams fans. They had WASHINGTON trading their number six, their second rounder this season, and their second next season so they could take RGIII.

That's the most realistic one I've seen. The value chart is a rule of thumb. I read one column in which the guy wrote that both fof the Browns first rounders would come up 20 points short. Out of 2,600. So the Rams would refuse? Over that? We got an extra 6th or 7th lying around somwhere, don't we? So why did this writer think the Browns 2013 first rounder needed to be included?

Insanity

Yeah. Let's get DeSean Jackson. For our #4 pick. And over half the 20 mil they have to spend. Let's do that. And while we're at it, let's get Danny Amendola, who catches passes at the torrid pace of one per game from the slot. Certainly, the reciever we need is a slot guy. We don't have any slot guys who kicked butt last season or anything, and Cribbs only caught around 45 passes, so we really need Amendola bad.

Oh yeah. He's an Eagle. Heckert helped draft him. Therefore it's a given.

Yep. And Peyton Hillis is a locker room cancer. How dare he not play with strep throat! How dare he take a day off from rehabbing a hamstring to get married. You need all the rehab you can get with a hamstring. You have to stretch it, and...umm...well anyhow he might have forgot to stretch it!

And all those terrible things he said about the team, like....well I know he must have said some stuff! And he was asking for 6 mil/ year or something! What a slap in the face to the management! You just can't go around asking for more money like that!

Of course, the management hasn't been talking about how desperately they want him back, which of course means they hate him and won't make any offers at all because he sucks. And of course he still wants 6 mil/year no matter what, so there's no room for compromise.

They should also draft that left tackle that's about as good as Joe Thomas at number four, pay him more than everybody else, and make him a right tackle.

We should trade both our firsts and our second this year and another first next year to move up two slots and get RG III.

Or instead, we should pay the entire FA budget on Peyton Manning, who is only 36-37 and will do so much more with the same recievers and offensive line. In no time at all, we will then overtake Pitt and Balt. and go to the Superbowl weeks or even months before Peyton retires in 2013 or 2014!

I mean, all we need is a right tackle, number one reciever, defensive end, linebacker, cornerback and of course running back since Hillis sucks so bad.

We trade our number four for DeSean Jackson, and cut some people to afford him and Manning. Like that Norwood guy. Cut him--we can get Amendola.

Whatever we do, we can't trade down. Look what happened last season! Julio Jones caught four more passes than Little! Everybody knows that after the top 5 everybody is a bum!

Think I'm funny? Well, I'm allowed to vote. Who's laughing now?