The 49ers have a dilemma on their defensive line.
It’s the strength of the team and the 49ers would like to keep it together, but Arik Armstead will be a free agent next month seeking a big payday, and he’s a key defensive lineman. Can the 49ers keep him?
“Arik is an excellent player,” John Lynch said. “He had an excellent year. We want to find a way to keep him and make him a part of the 49ers for a long time.”
If there were no salary cap, the 49ers would sign Armstead long term, no problem. But there is cap, and the 49ers currently have less than $13 million in cap space. Re-signing Armstead won’t be easy or cheap, and might not be prudent, either.
The 49ers drafted Armstead with a first-round pick in 2015 and developed him the past five years until he finally blossomed in 2019 and recorded a team-high 10 sacks. He was terrific.
But he was not terrific the first four seasons of his career. He recorded only nine sacks from 2015 to 2018 — that’s why the 49ers didn’t give him a long-term contract extension last year. They gave him a one-year deal instead.
Why did Armstead take so long to play well and fulfill his potential? Did he raise his game during a contract year to earn a big extension as so many pro athletes have done before him? And will he revert to the player he was before 2019 after he signs a multi-year contract?
Impossible to know the answers.
The Steelers have a similar dilemma with their former first-round pick, Bud Dupree. He never produced more than six sacks in a season until 2019, when he abruptly transformed into a dominant pass rusher and recorded 11 sacks. Who is the real Dupree? What should the Steelers do with him?
The collective bargaining agreement created this dilemma. First-round picks sign four-year contracts on a “rookie wage scale” which pays them below-market value. They can’t get big money until they sign their second contract, and they have to wait at least four years to sign it. So the urgency to play well and earn money doesn’t always kick in right away.
Take Nick Perry, the Packers’ first-round pick in 2012. He recorded just 12.5 sacks the first four seasons of his career. Then, during the final season of his rookie contract, Year 5, he recorded 11 sacks, and the Packers thought he had matured into a quality player. So they gave him a five-year, $60 million contract extension. Two years later after back-to-back dismal seasons, they cut him, and now he’s out of the NFL.
The 49ers have to be careful with Armstead.
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A first round pick (19) from Raiders would afford this team the opportunity to parlay the pick into rounds 2/3/4.
I doubt his value is graded that high. Too many DE in FA to surrender better than Ford got in my opinion.
It is worth noting that there may be more nuance to Armstead improvement over the last two seasons. Armstead played with a torn Labrum through his first two seasons, and the injury greatly affected his ability to disengage offensive lineman. Prior to shoulder surgery, Armstead told reporters that simply raising his arm above shoulder height, caused him pain, and he also had this to say via the Sac Bee: “There comes a time when you’re trying to play through an injury, but your shoulder keeps popping out in the middle of a game, it’s like, ‘What are you going to do?’ You’ve got to fix it.” Armstead underwent shoulder surgery to repair the Labrum during the 2017 offseason, but he unfortunately suffered a broken hand six games into the regular season. He came back strong the following season (2018) and, although his 2018 campaign was not as a good as 2019, he showed drastic improvement, particularly his ability to get off blocks and win at the point of attack, so in reality, Arik has put together two very strong back-to-back seasons.
That said, it’s still a numbers game, and there is only so much money to go around in terms of the salary cap. Armstead is likely to command more on the free agent market than the 49ers should be willing to pay him, because you can only allocate a certain amount of money for any one position group. Armstead may have a valid excuse for his early career struggles, but there is no question that Buckner has been far more consistent throughout his career, and for that he should be a made a priority over Armstead, IMO.
Did he raise his game during a contract year to earn a big extension as so many pro athletes have done before him? And will he revert to the player he was before 2019 after he signs a multi-year contract?
———————-
History would suggest that the answer to both of these questions is, yes.
It’s not like he’s even the star of the defensive line, he’s the best player in that group. Let someone else pay him the big money and be disappointed when he starts missing a ton of playing time again.
Don’t you feel like teams are a bit weary of him because he didn’t produce his first 4 years? Won’t teams understand he was more of a product of a good team?
If so they wouldn’t want to pay him 17-18 million a year. To me a team like Miami might because they are deprived of talent and are flush with cap space. But certainly not SEA like Grant suggests.
I agree.
Seb
You’re just pissed because of our ‘gentlemans’ bet that I claimed that Arik would outperform Buckner this season…any true niner fan who favors letting Armstead walk, is really a ‘squawks’ fan …and is stupid to boot
Blah, blah, blah blah blah….
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Ummm, DeForest Buckner won the Bill Walsh Award, the MVP of the team.
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Guess you are disagreeing with the Niner coaches.
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I certainly do not want Armstead to walk, right over to the Seahawks, which is what may happen, if they do not franchise tag and trade him out of the NFC.
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I really like Arik Armstead, but the salary cap dictates that they may not be able to keep him. That is a harsh reality, but it is just business in the NFL.
You kind of answer your own question James. It only takes one team. We all know the story of the contract-year player because of how common it is in this league. We all stand on the sidelines and say, “teams are smart enough to recognize this guy for who he really is.” and then someone hands him a wheelbarrow full of cash.
I don’t know that it’s a question of “if” at this point but more of, “who”?
Very very true
I just caught my typo, this should read:
“It’s not like he’s even the star of the defensive line, he’s the 3rd best player in that group.
Personally I think he is the 4th best. We didn’t get to see the best of Ford last year, but when healthy he’s a more impactful player.
We can’t afford to lose him and we can’t afford to pay him more than 16 million/year, so tagging him makes the most sense. We bring back the same unit next year and boast an elite defensive line that will lead us to another first round bye. Here is a list of the QB’s we play next year…
Josh Allen
Sam Darnold
Daniel Jones
Dwayne Haskins
Kyler Murray
Jered Goff
Dak Prescott
Whoever MIA QB is
Whoever NE QB is
Russell Wilson
Aaron Rodgers
Drew Brees
I think he’s a prime candidate for a tag-n-trade. 1st rounder? Most unlikely. Maybe a 2nd round pick and a player.
But to me it’s a 20th pick or later at the very busy. Who are you going to get with that. Then you look at our defensive line and we have Thomas and 3 guys coming off IR.
If we lose Armstead our defense is undoubtedly worse. Our run defense is worse, our pass rush is worse, and that makes our secondary worse. Do we want our secondary worse with Sherman a year older and Spoon as our starter opposite?
We can’t afford to lose him. But we don’t necessarily have to keep him long term .
Buckner wants $70 million guaranteed. He turned down $60 million. I have to wonder if The Twin Towers really want to win a Super Bowl when they’re looking for those types of paydays. It puts the team in a very precarious position. Tom Brady knew the importance of getting good players to help him win SB’s. If the 49ers believe Jimmy G is legit, then I’d expect a restructure coming to free up cap space. The only way I’d sign Armstead would be if he agreed to give the team a 3rd year opt out of his deal….
Can’t blame a player for wanting to make as much money as they can. I am sure Buckner’s agent is also well aware that with a new CBA coming, contract values are likely to jump up again.
$70M guaranteed is a lot, but as we found out with Kaep, there are different types of guarantees. The main thing is they don’t want to end up in a situation like the Eagles are with Cox. If you give Buck this big contract, can’t then be restructuring it in a couple of years time to create cap space in the short term that makes his cap hit in future years untenable. I had hoped they might be able to create a bit of cap space with a Buckner extension, but maybe they should just look to keep his cap figure around what it is now to make the contract palatable longer term.
I don’t blame them but don’t be selfish either. You want to compete for championships year after year like the Patriots have done, then everyone needs to be a little flexible. Otherwise as you said, you end up overextended and a closed window….
Arik Armstead:
* Use the Non Exclusive franchise tag and Take the 2 first round draft picks.
* Resign DT DeForest Buckner and TE George Kittle
tag and trade would be ideal…especially since we need draft picks….but have you seen the market for pass rushers this off-season….seems like there are a lot more than usual….would their be a market for teams willing to give up a draft pick, let alone a 1st rounder for him? I guess a 2nd rounder would suffice but still. But I trust Lynch to make the best decision here.
The niners could easily sign Armstead, Buckner and Kittle, but they would need to commit to Jimmy long term. If they were willing to get rid of their out clauses and give Jimmy a more guaranteed contract they could save a lot of money in the upcoming year.
The real question isn’t really can they keep Armstead, or how much they like Armstead… the real question is how much do they believe in Jimmy?
I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
Shoup
* “The niners could easily sign Armstead, Buckner and Kittle, but they would need to commit to Jimmy long term.” TRUE!
* “If they were willing to get rid of their out clauses and give Jimmy a more guaranteed contract they could save a lot of money in the upcoming year.” ALSO TRUE!
* “The real question isn’t really can they keep Armstead, or how much they like Armstead… the real question is how much do they believe in Jimmy?” QUESTIONABLE?
* The real question is: Does the 9er FO believe Armstead will / can repeat his contract year performance, NOT just how much do they believe in Jimmy!
* Can the 9er FO sign a DE/DT that can replace Armstead for less than $10 mil P/Y? Buffalo DE free agent Shaq Lawson: Spotrac 2020 Market value = 4 yrs, $30,749,235 Avg. Salary: $7,687,309. https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/buffalo-bills/shaq-lawson-18967/market-value/
Shaq Lawson FULL Career Highlights – 2020 FREE AGENT Target – (2016-17 to 2019-20, Buffalo Bills
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQrWbnFmhuk
There’s no question that the 49ers have options to mitigate the loss of Armstead by way of a platoon of other players. They’ll have to add a F/A as insurance against Blair(provided he’s resigned), Street and Taylor. All of which are coming off significant injuries….
Geep,
I’m far less concerned with retaining Armstead than I am with leaving the cap as is.
Jimmy has done enough imo that sf should Redo his deal. I don’t think they could just replace him and be fine nor do I see any reasonable upgrades being available.
With SF being in win now mode I absolutely think they should try and maintain their elite pass rush and improve in areas where they can. And no I don’t think armstead is essential to that but another pass rusher is whoever that may be.
Shoup
* I agree with you with respect to JG “doing enough” and it would help the 9er with the cap.
* F/A Shaq Lawson happens to be a young player (26 YO) who’d fit in with the 9ers D-line. He’s good at setting the edge and good with putting pressure on the QB. He’s just coming into his own and his Market value (per Spotrac), fits well with reducing the 9ers cap.
What was Armstead’s production with and without Dee Ford in the lineup? It seems like he was a good player who played great when he was able to take advantage of 1v1’s. In other words, he’s not the guy who can be a cornerstone of a DL like Aaron Donald. If the 49ers can keep him and have enough to sign the other players they really need then great. If they tag and trade for a 2nd rounder or better then I’m good with that too.
He can play end in base and slide inside as a pass rush threat in nickel. Players like that are valuable. 1st round value? I don’t think so, but maybe another team feels differently….
Yeah, thats going to be a little tricky when the 49ers try to tag him. Is Armstead a D-Tackle or a D-End? There’s about a $3M difference in price for the franchise tag between those 2 positions. If you’re trying to keep Armstead another year then you tag him as a D-Tackle and save $3M but you piss off the player. If you’re trying to Tag and Trade him then you tag him as a D-End to get more value in return on the trade.
That is not left to the team to decide; his tag salary is based on snaps played at certain positions. He has more DE snaps then DT. So he will get tagged as a DE. It covered in the CBA
Wow. Didn’t know that but it makes sense. Just curious, who keeps the official stats for snap counts for the NFL? I went to their site but the only thing I could see was D-Lineman. Even RotoWorld just lists D-Lineman. You say Armtead took more snaps at DE. What was the delta between the 2 positions?
With Dee Ford there was some history of more than one successful season. He started producing sacks in his 3rd year and the only thing that has slowed him down has been injury. 10 sacks in 2016 in 15 games, 2 sacks in 2017 over 6 games, 13 sacks in 2018 over 16 games and 6.5 sacks in 11 games in 2019.
To me the the last five years has shown that the team really needs true edge rushers. While Armstead had a great season and is versatile, it seems easier to replace a guy like Armstead than one like Nick Bosa or certainly a healthy Dee Ford.
Also, Armstead only played in 8 games in 2016 and 6 in 2017. However, he has played in all 16 games over the last two seasons, so I’m guessing that teams are not too concerned about his injury history.
The Dolphins seem like they would be a good destination for Armstead. They traded away Tunsil and Fitzpatrick, so they have 3 first round picks. They would get a grizzled veteran, and his sack production would dominate most rookies who are not as strong and are unproven. They also have 88 mil in cap space, so they could easily afford him.
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The Niners would be trading Armstead out of the NFC, and I do not relish the possibility of him playing against the Niners twice a year, if a division rival signs him.
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The Dolphins have the 4th, 18th and 26th picks. The Niners should ask for the 18th, and settle for the 26th. Then the Niners could trade back from 31, and still have a first round pick.
I don’t think Armstead is worth a 1st round pick. If he is more valuable to us than Dee Ford and we traded Dee Ford for a LATE 2nd round we. It doesn’t add up.
Are we locked in with Dee Ford? If not, I would close the books on him to save cap space. Ford was non-existent in 2019 and only had a few flashes when he did play.
Plus, Ford doesn’t seem to be a leader in the huddle or sidelines which matters to me. All-Pro players should excel in this facade of the game as well.
lol…….it is your requirement that ballplayers should be a leader in the huddle….but you don’t expect the same type of leadership from your King trump.
Really explains your biases and what really matters to you.
Ha! Get a life One9. You don’t need to prove to me that you hate #45. Here’s a thought, you get to hate him for 4 more years ?
unlike you I love my country more than I hate anyone…..after 4 years then what?….
You will continue and forever be haunted by the damage you have done to this country because of your hate…..
Says the guy who responded to a football post with a hateful post about his president. The only person here filled with hate is 19er
Look familiar??? ???
https://youtu.be/pRx8A4Ne17w
At1:45 ??
Dude. Trump is your daddy.
hello minions….Sorry I am not allowed to feed the trolls.
Landslide ?
Girl, I see you’ve had your eye on the market graphs these last two days? Landslide indeed.
Although from our financial whiz in chief: “Stock Market starting to look very good to me!” Buy low and sell high? That’s great, but what if you already own?
Rib…. I know you know why the stock market is sagging right now.
You’re better than that dude.
If someone, who had nothing to do with it, takes credit for the good, better be prepared for that same person, who had nothing to do with it, getting the blame for the bad. That’s how these things work. And I know you know that.
Rib…. you get blamed for the bad when it’s mismanagement.
Not natural disasters or some virus China decided to unleash.
He gets credit for the stock market because of his policies and we all know Wall Street is greedy,
You’re half right. But we know if the bankers wanted to crash the economy they can whenever they want. So invest in gold and silver is my advice.
After all it’s just paper, but with Trump in office we can turn that meaningless paper into gains that will never fail.
Time is now. I’d jump on it quick because after 2024.. who knows
What policies?….you can’t name one…
Ha… trolls bring up politics out of the blue. He’s your daddy! 4 more years buddy. Buckle up!
I love my country and unlike the progressive elements who want to destroy it, I am willing to die for it just like some of my family members have in WWII and Korea during war time.
Stop coming on here acting like you’re a victim and the only true American on this board because you are not.
Take your hatred to the voting poll not this venue.
Btw, I would like to have my football question answered ?
Dang right AES!
I can see you are ALL IN…..as usual
A million thanks, AES, to your family members who bravely served our country ????
thank you…….do us a favor – get a job and pay taxes like the rest of us progressive loving USA citizens
Go to spotrac or overthecap and look at his contract yourself.
Ha! Good advice Hammer.
Thanks.
nah ….AES is a follower…….he lacks the brain to find answers himself…..
One9,
For someone who cries about how Trump divides the country, you sure do a good job of it on this venue. Did you order your antifa uniform yet?
Btw, I found the answer, his name is Trump!
AES, just a reminder, those family members of yours who died in WWII died in the service of anti-fa(scism)
Yes they did, and if they were here today they would proudly die again. Last I looked, I did not see fascism except for that created by CNN and the other anti-Trump media haters.
Rib, and One9 get your popcorn ready for another 4 years of your hate Trump campaign my friends ?
Define fascism?
Let me help you copy and paste…
Sounds like the Democrat Party
“often capitalized : a political philosophy, movement, or regime (such as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition”
O RLY?
“exalts nation and often race above the individual” White nationalists parading under the swastika = "very fine people".
"a dictatorial leader" <— "I alone can fix it" "they have to get rid of the whole asylum system because it doesn’t work, and frankly, we should get rid of judges.” Arrest Adam Schiff “for treason”? Incessant “lock her/him/them (political opponents) up” at his rallies.
“severe economic and social regimentation” <— ensuring the rich get richer and the poor remain poor? GOP 2017 tax cuts: A household earning $1 million or more would get an average cut of $69,660, an income bump of 3.3 percent. Compare that with the a tax cut of $870, or 1.6 percent, for the average household earning $50,000 to $75,000 https://www.npr.org/2017/12/19/571754894/charts-see-how-much-of-gop-tax-cuts-will-go-to-the-middle-class
Ha… this clown pics Oxford. Basically the only one defining it that way.
Definition of fascism
1 often capitalized : a political philosophy, movement, or regime (such as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition
2 : a tendency toward or actual exercise of strong autocratic or dictatorial control
early instances of army fascism and brutality
Last I checked it’s the left shutting down free speech, race baiting, turning to violence in a dictating way.
What planet is this dude from?
He can’t determine the difference in a nationalist and a nationalist dictator.
He can’t explain how trump is a dictator, racist, Russian spy or any of the other alt left garbage they spew.
This cat is completely consumed with hate and distaste for his country.
He is exactly what I posted earlier in that video.
I’ll bet my houses he votes Sanders.
The real communist Russian loving, Castro feet kissing Marxist in government.
What a joke!
And he claims to have a degree.
I know damn well it isn’t in political science, and with the whiny college kids today it wouldn’t matter anyways.
Bet he doesn’t live in his own either. Tucked away in mommy’s basement.
He’s been a little fit throwing brat since the Alex Smith days.
Onelame you are the poster child of SJW left winged nut job.
Antifa must be proud.
Smh
“Exalts nation” – If you think of “progressivism” as an ideological nation state the definition fits quite well.
“Race above the individual” – when they cant make a rational argument they accuse their opponent of racism.
One9,
Looks like Nickelodeon for Dems will be on tonight. Who’s your candidate?
Pocohonus, Creepy Joe, Commie Bernie or the kid. If I was still a Dem I would choose Uncle Joe, but the fact that he is fighting against Sanders for the top spot only tells me how far the progressive movement has divided our great country.
If these are your top candidates then you might to follow Whoopi’ promise to move to Canada if Trump won in 2016.
Oh wait!
One9, try sticking to football bud, because your ranting is not going to change any minds around here.
Rib…. you’re seriously not comparing Trump rallies to leftist marches and “rallies” are you?
You seriously don’t think Clinton shouldn’t be locked up over her obvious crimes do you?
You seriously believe someone like you and I would get away with destroying evidence the government wants and have the lead investigator come out and say it’s wasn’t on purpose so she can walk do you?
You must have missed the clowns from Russia who pulled the joke on Shiff on a prank call huh?
It’s been factually proven the Obama DOJ was spying on trump (a private citizen at the time) illegally.
And you seriously don’t belive the FBI is credible at the top at all do you?
Now folks like you and onelame scream for social justice over street cops, and you’re going to sit here and believe the fbi isn’t full of corruption?
And are you saying Hillary and the democrats didn’t outright rip off Sanders in the primaries with voter fraud?
And th at Russia amd China havent been messing with our elections for decades now?
Or did you actually believe Obama when he told trump to quit whining and take the L before he shocked the world and won?
That Russia was an excuse? That voter fraud was an excuse?
Which is it? Lol
And as far as your tax claim. There are numerous studies that show the middle class upper and lower are benefiting from the tax cuts.
Now show me where the middle class benefits from tax cuts under Obama or any plan these yahoos are throwing out there to raise taxes more.
All you have to do is research California to find out it doesn’t work.
Cmooon maaaan.
You hate trump that much you’d vote for one of these idiots?
Seriously what have they done since winning the house?
Please name me something. Besides resist the will of the people and their votes.
Locked in, no.
However, their will be a significant amount of dead cap if SF releases him.
Shoup
Thank you sir.
Hope he can have a much better year than last season. Getting healthy is his biggest hurdle.
Politics don’t matter, and no one cares about two corrupt parties and their worthless leaders like Trump and Pelosi
You should listen to his teammates like Bosa not espn. Ford is way more important to D then just stats. Ford gets double teamed, so bosa runs free or visa versa. Forget stats and watch film like coaches and playets do. This line only works if one player can take on double teams, freeing up the other 3 to rush.
Agreed. A healthy Ford makes the 49ers D even better. No way I would be looking to let him go.
You don’t release a player like Ford until you’ve developed his replacement or he’s unable to continue his career at a high level….
Raz,
I hear you. But aside from Ford’ one All-Pro season he’s only an above average player trying to get healthy.
I agree that you don’t get rid him this season, but if he has another average year his name should at the very least be in the questionable conversation going into 2021.
Also, we may have talent in Shiar if he continues to develop. If Ford can stay on the field this year then that could conceivably get us back to the Big Bowl.
Maybe someone should let the readers know that if Lynch wouldn’t of missed on so many picks that they wouldn’t have this problem. Thomas and Fosters are great examples. Both first-round picks. You wouldn’t have needed Kwon [ lb] or Armstead if either of those picks were worth a damn. With the 2nd pick of the draft, you need to get a 10-year player. Not a bench warmer. If Lynch would’ve listened to his scouts who told him Thomas was rated as a 2nd round pick and Foster who had so many red flags was trouble, the Niners wouldn’t be having these cap problems. They spent over a $ 100 mill on a l.b and D.E. Both Ford and Alexander have a history of injuries.
I’m a die-hard Niner fan and I’m just disgusted with Lynch and his drafts. It’s an incompetent G.M that tells the press after Foster is let go, that he would take Foster with the first pick if Thomas wasn’t there. And KITTLE, Shanny wanted a T.E that could block for his running game. Kittle’s dad was a pro-O.L. Kittle was the best blocker. But what people don’t know is Kittle only caught 48 passes in 49 games in college. You never read that, but it’s a fact. So they got damn lucky when they found out he could catch and block. If they knew that they’d of drafted him in the 2nd round.
Everything was there in 2017. They had enough talent at certain positions and over $110 mill in the cap. And Lynch blew it. This team should ‘ve been a dynasty for years to come. Only if he could.ve hit on all those high picks. In fact, look at his top 5 picks in 2017. But I’ll still have to here from my Rah Rah friends. Just shaking my head when Lynch get an award. Pathetic!
We are now the model to look at as a quick turnaround success story
Because every other GM gets it perfect every year. Look at any GM sucess right and lynch is top 10 but he only took a horrible nonets team and got them in the SB in three years just like every other GM does, oh wait thats right. Only a few GM have ever achived that.
I totally agree with what your saying about Thomas and Foster. The jury is still out on Thomas I wouldn’t be surprised to see him with 8+ sacks this year. Like the comment above, every GM misses on picks. Look at the Seahawks GM he has missed on like 75% of their picks the last few years and is still regarded as one of the best
Said before. Will say it again. Lynch gets a pass for the 2017 draft. Wasn’t hired until after the Superbowl and probably hadn’t given it one moment’s thought until very near that time. Had to learn the infostructure from scratch. Had to rely on the in place (Chip Kelly) scouting and evaluating teams, as did Shanahan to a lesser degree.
It only fair to judge him by the 2018 and 2019 drafts, but for all of that, he did manage to come up with George Kittle in 2017. 2019 was a haul. He’s learning and will get better. Hope he is with the Niners for a long time!
dis,
He also went from a 4 win season to the SB.
Not bad at all in my book.
LMAO. Traded up to get Pettis and Bethards. One of those picks N.O drafted Kumara. Ever hear of him? I doubt it. Passed on Mahomes and Watson when we needed a Q.B. Come on. He drafted Young with the 2nd pick. How can you miss? Oh, that’s right he took Thomas and he missed. He HAD $110 mill to spend. Now that they can’t sign Sanders, Armstead, Ward, and others. Minds like yours and his is the reason why it was just a 1 shot deal. All in the pot for 2020. No money and still, Buckner and kittle need to be paid. People like you just don’t understand what it takes. Try reading something about Niner nation in the ’80s and ’90s with Bill Walsh and Policy!! You’ll see next year and years to come that they blew it.
It’s not the 80’s and 90’s anymore. Players are getting paid more, the rules are different. Not to mention there is much more concern about injury and players are trying to get in and out. Every team struggles with managing the cap once they get good. Average players want to be paid like stars and stars want to be paid like superstars.
Occasional forays onto this blog often, like today, are like remakes of an old (1948?) movie called The Snake Pit. It’s about madness. Reading through the angry angst here is reminiscent of the closing scene of that film. Good luck folks.
Take care, Brotha and tell the Duchess me and Dave (Undercenter) said hi!
Thank you dude, best to Under as well. Duchess is doing well.
Me? I had a rough weekend but things are all arrows up now. Had a effing heart attack Saturday morning. They put in a stent and I feel better today than I have in a year or two. Back on the horse that threw me! ?
The future’s so bright I gotta wear shades ?
Yea, my wife got one of those back when she turned 37. Seemed to do her good. She’ll turn 50 March 4. Stay in that saddle my friend. Under is scheduled to stay with me during the Indy 500, so I’ll be sure and tell him!
Oh man, Brotha! Hope you are doing well and have a speedy recovery.
Sorry that I got involved with the “madness” you speak of.
Thanks AES. I’ve got to watch my $*+#, but feeling good and almost unlimited already. I’ll be back wrestling alligators in no time. I’ve got a small pharmacy in my med closet from now on! ?
We all have our triggers. On a good day I don’t respond here but just mutter something ?. Regulars here know I’ve lost it a few times.
Very sorry to hear that. Glad you’re on the mend!
Thank you m’lady.
Hey BT. Good to hear from you. Had some 2016 Caymus cab recently. It was very disappointing. Found out later that the winemaker had left. Still liking the Merryvale cab and recently had Grgich cab on a cruise ship (it was quite good).
Hey Cubus.
As you’ll see from my comment to Razor above, I’ll be off the sauce for a couple of months, but some recs for Pinot Noir you may not be familiar with. None cheap but awesome for special occasions:
Domaine Anderson
Papapietro-Perry
Three Sticks
Dutton-Goldfield
Marimar Estate
You probably know Testarossa and Williams-Selwin and Merry Edwards and Iron Horse. The Iron Horse Cab is really nice too. I like Sinskey Pinot Noir and Merlot, but they’re beginning to give me price resistance.
If you ever see A.Rafanelli Cab or Zin in a restaurant……spring for it.
Ciao Bella
This situation reminds me of Dana Stubblefield and Bryant Young.
Stubblefield played excellent football when he was lined up next to Young, but when he went to Washington for the big bucks his statistics dropped considerably despite the fact he was playing next to Dan Wilkinson.
Throw in the fact that Armstead has only had one good year; I think You cut bait. Tag him and get what you can for him.
Yep.
I don’t know much about the history of tag and trades in the NFL. If he is tagged is it pretty certain that he will be traded at good value? If not, then the team would have to keep Armstead, wouldn’t they. If the goal is to ultimately release Armstead and get something for him, it might be better to let him leave in FA and pick up a 2021 3rd round pick. No guarantee it would be a 3rd round pick, but there is also no guarantee the team could get anything better than a 3rd round pick in a tag and trade scenario.
Also, as I think Scooter pointed out in an earlier thread, if Armstead is tagged, then the cap space associated with that tag is tied up until the actual trade occurs. In other words, it is not available for signing a free agent.
That’s my main concern – not having cap space available while they work out a trade and thereby missing out on adding other players.
I believe a team can rescind a franchise tag offer so long as the player hasn’t signed it.
Middlekauff hinted the 49ers could try and get the Browns #41 pick in this years draft in exchange for Armstead. The Joe Woods connection would make it a seamless transaction….
To me, that would be a great trade.
Saw the first mock of us taking Tee Higgins, WR, Clemson. Boy, oh boy if he were actually available at #31, he’d have to be the pick or there’d better be one hell of a trade offer on the table!
According to an article on NN, the 49ers have spoken with Justin Jefferson from LSU and TCU’s Jalen Reagor. But, at almost 6’4″ and 216 pounds with an 81″ wingspan, it really does seem that Higgins would be a great addition to this WR group.
I expect Reagor to run a 4.34. If they sign Gabriel to stretch it deep, and draft Higgins to open up the middle for Kittle, no one could stop us even with our at or below average OG’s in pass pro….
Yep. Throw in a healthy Hurd and boy this offense could easily rival KC.
I’m starting to get a bad feeling Hurd may never play a snap in the NFL.
Same here Scooter. I am proceeding as if in the best case scenario, Hurd and Taylor are backups to Samuel and a day one or day two draft pick. I also expect the 49ers to trade Pettis before the start of training camp….
I’m not sure about that.
I imagine the offense would look about the same as last year. Same strengths and weaknesses.
I do expect fewer turnovers from Jimmy though.
If Higgins was there at 31 I would take him over trading back for sure.
As cubus said, that would be a great trade for the 49ers.
Yo scooter, I thought Hurd was 100% healthy as of last week?
Not according to Lynch/ Shanahan’s pressers at the combine.
I am starting to think there is more to this story than we have heard.
SOMETHING TO SOOTHE THE SAVAGE BEASTS ON THE COHN BLOG:
The 2020 NFL scouting combine, the league’s annual evaluation of college players, will start Tuesday and run through the weekend before it ends on Monday, March 2.
This year, 337 athletes have been invited to be poked and prodded, to sprint and jump and to go through written tests, personal interviews and on-field positional evaluations.
This is my 2nd favorite time of the year.
Really? I would have never guessed…..lol
I always enjoy the banter….