The NFL: Who Can Wait?

   

This has to be the worst time of the year for sports. The NFL is months away. The NBA is all sorted out but hasn't moved on to the playoffs yet. Baseball is in its pre-season, March Madness hasn't started, and most stories revolve around whatever scandal is hottest. I don't have anything interesting to say about Tiger Woods, Ben Roethlisberger being drunk and womanizing hardly qualifies as news, and the "revelation" that Allen Iverson drinks and gambles is about as shocking as a sunrise.

Luckily for me, the NFL free agency period just kicked off. Lots of money being thrown around on quick fixes, players with questionable potential, and posturing to sell more tickets next season? This time of year, that qualifies as hot stuff.

-First, the inevitable veterans that were cut to save cash.

Ladainian Tomlinson: Probably a year too late, which is the saddest part. Lots of great players never win titles, but few do it with such depressing consistency. Year after year, the Chargers inevitably left the playoffs earlier than they should have, typically after a lackluster effort by their star running back. After a good effort in a heartbreaking loss to the Patriots in '07, his last 3 seasons were notable mostly because of the way they ended: with Tomlinson sitting on the bench, helmet on, isolated from his teammates and hiding behind his tinted visor. A sad end for a hall of fame running back that leaves his once sterling legacy tarnished.

And yet, I can't help but feel sorry for him. He shouldered the load for the Chargers for seven years, and he never shirked the responsibility. He was by every account a hard worker and a humble person. His fans loved him nearly without fail. He reacted badly when he was hurt or struggling because he cared so much. The thought of his own mortality bothered him, and in pressure situations he was far too tightly wound. It was his fatal flaw. All he could be was a great player that couldn't carry his team in the playoffs.

We shouldn't remember him for two years when he broke down and couldn't deal with it. We should remember him for the seven years when he single-handedly carried an offense, always cared about living up to his responsibilities, and carried himself like a professional on and off the field. Those were 7 damn good years. Any team would have been ecstatic to have them.

Thomas Jones: Contracts in the NFL may not cripple franchises like they do in the NBA, but no one can convince me the system isn't flawed when someone like Jones rushes for 1400 yards and then gets cut to save money. Yes, the Jets have an excellent replacement waiting in the wings, but every team in the league would love to have two productive backs.

This isn't Jones first rodeo, though. The Bears cut Jones in 2007 to make way for Cedric Benson after Jones had rushed for 1200 yards and the Bears made the Super Bowl. The Bears went 7-9 the following season, and Benson rushed for 674 yards. Let's hope the Jets are smarter than they seem.

Jake Delhomme: The funniest big name cut. The poor guy was so inept that he became that wonderful combination of hilarious and pathetic, the ultimate train wreck. He was so bad that when he was officially succeeded by the un-drafted Matt Moore, the Panthers promptly won 4 of their last 5 games. A mercy killing was in order, and that's what poor Jake got. Hopefully some contender picks him up to be a back-up. As long as it isn't the Bears.

-Now for the false hope that throwing money at our problems provides: the free agent signings.

Antrel Rolle: Signed with the Giants for 5 years and $37 million, $15 million guaranteed. He shouldn't be one of the highest paid safeties in the league (which he now is), but the price actually seems reasonable for what they're getting. Confidence, toughness, and jaw-rattling hits don't grow on trees, and the Giants secondary could use all of them.

Anquan Boldin: Technically a trade, but he was leaving no matter what. The Cardinals got 3rd and 4th round picks in return, while Boldin signed a 3 year $25 million extension. A few people went out of their way to bash this trade, apparently for no reason other than to go against the grain. The idea that this transaction is anything less than a coup for the Ravens is ridiculous. They desperately needed an offensive playmaker and leadership presence on that side of the ball, and Boldin provides both. He's also one of the toughest players in the league: after suffering a severe skull fracture, he returned to play within a few weeks, helping the Cardinals reach the Super Bowl.

Oh, and he's made 3 Pro Bowls.

He'll fit in perfectly with the toughest team in the league as a desperately needed playmaker, and he might even supplant Ray Lewis as the toughest Raven. Explain to me how this could be a bad thing? If the Ravens' defense can keep from getting old too quickly, they will be formidable in 2010.

(Note that this trade, whether it works out or not, was an attempt to put a good team over the top with a logical move. It will stand in stark contrast to several other signings.)

Antonio Cromartie: I know a good number of Chargers fans. For the last two seasons, there were two topics that gave them pained looks: Tomlinson's decay, and coach Turner's ineptitude. Their favorite? Bashing Cromartie. They did it constantly. So while I'm inclined to trust the savant of defense that is Rex Ryan, I'm guessing that 10 people that watch every Chargers game are probably on to something.

Luckily for the Jets, Revis will be pulling the tougher assignment and easing Cromartie's burden, so maybe the move works. It just won't create the defensive juggernaut some people foresee.

Josh Cribbs: You know the Browns are an awful excuse for a franchise when they have to be shamed into paying their best player. Cribbs is so good at special teams it's borderline unfair, and he made their offense immensely less putrid whenever he got to run the wildcat. You would think the Browns would have overpaid him just to make him happy. Instead, they tried to play hardball.

Idiots.

Gary Brackett: The 29 year old defensive captain of a team that got to the Super Bowl gets 5 years $33 million. Visionary thoughts such as "Let's make sure to re-sign our best players at reasonable salaries" are why the Colts win 12 games every year. Go figure.

Nate Burleson, Kyle VandenBosch: Both decent players, both fill holes, both signed to reasonable contracts. They're also 28 and 31, respectively. With a team as awful as the Lions, seeking short term help reeks of desperation (and by all accounts, the Lions acted rather desperate in their pursuit of name free agents). Of course, fortunes change quickly in the NFL, so maybe steady progress will prove better than none.

I doubt it, though. (I know what you're thinking. 'Doubting the Lions' prospects for success? Where else can I find such insightful analysis?')

Brandon Marshall: Currently playing footsie with the Seahawks. Carroll is undoubtedly enamored with his athleticism, and thinks he can solve his quarterback problem by surrounding him with talented receivers. That may work in college, but it wont fly in the pros. Get a QB first, Pete. Then get a receiver who will berate that quarterback whenever he misses a throw.

Chester Taylor: My favorite move of the off-season. An under-appreciated player, Taylor is a versatile offensive talent who was only on the bench because the best running back in the NFL played ahead of him. The Bears got him for a song, and he will provide desperately needed options for Cutler while allowing Forte to save his legs. Awesome.

Julius Peppers: Signed with the Bears for 6 years, $91.5 million, 42 million guaranteed in the first three years.

I'm going to be calm. Rational. I'm going to look at this signing from all sides, carefully weigh every factor, be objective with regard to both player and team...

And still come to the conclusion that the Bears organization is filled with chimps. Are they serious with this signing? Did they just make up a number? Was any thought whatsoever put into this decision? Do they realize why this is absolutely indefensible?

(Deep Breath) OK. That was emotional. Let me take a more nuanced approach.

Albert Haynesworth was a first team All-Pro in 2007 and 2008. He is a defensive tackle, one of the three most important and irreplaceable positions on a football field. The other two are left tackle and quarterback, both offensive positions. That means, essentially, that Albert Haynesworth was one of the 2 most important defensive players in the NFL for two consecutive years. When he became a free agent, he was offered a 7 year contract for $100 million, of which $41 million was guaranteed.

Haynesworth was 27 when he signed that contract. Peppers is 30. Peppers plays a less valuable position than Haynesworth, and doesn't play that position as well as Albert plays his.

So what am I missing? How is a guy who was 10th in the league in sacks, who is visibly declining, and who got exactly 2.5 sacks in 2007, going to be paid like a franchise player? In what way is this defensible? It isn't like the Bears are on the cusp of a title and only need Peppers to put them into contention. They're one game under .500 the last 3 years with no playoff appearances.

The answer is two-fold. For one, the Bears had money burning a hole in their pocket. If the Bears are losers this season and they didn't use their cap space, their fans will complain that the team wasn't doing everything it could to put the best possible product on the field. Future flexibility be damned, fans would rather be 9-7 than 7-9, and if that costs $16 million and our future, so be it.

Which leads to the second reason: the coaching staff and front office are on the hot seat. They know that one more year of futility is going to lead to their dismissal, and if Peppers can generate a few more wins, that might mean another year of employment.

Of course, this speculates that Peppers is going to be worth a few wins, a rather dubious assumption. Even if he is healthy and giving a peak performance (which, admittedly, is a sight to behold), he can't fix a broken offense, a complete lack of receivers, and a defense that loses at least 2 key parts annually to injuries.

Peppers is an Oriental rug covering up a three year stain of failure. No one is going to look under the rug when things are good. But when the Bears start to lose, and the smell of that stain wafts through Soldier Field, the fans are going to lift the rug and remember that this was all just a distraction.

Stinks, doesn't it?

Image via MKROB

You can email Chris with questions or comments at TheSportsKiosK@gmail.com