Don Banks on Fred Smoot ...

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/writers/don_banks/03/02/free.agency.wary/1.html

Fred Smoot, cornerback -- Maybe everyone else sees something I'm missing, but when I hear Smoot already has turned down a $10 million signing bonus from Washington (and wants $14 million), it's a head-scratcher. Smoot plays hard and competes, but watching him gives me the same feeling I got watching Champ Bailey: He's hardly a shutdown corner, and the reputation seems to have outgrown the reality. I'd rather sign Law, Rolle or Baltimore's Gary Baxter as my free-agent cornerback.

Let the firestorm begin ...

I don't disagree with this at all.

What firestorm? He's right.

He is right. HOwever I just dont want to spend the $$ on the other guys. I'd still rahter have smoot sign here for a lower amount. Its all about continutiy to me.

Gary Baxter isn't in Smoot's league. It's well known that Banks hates the skins as much as he loves the Ravens (he's a season ticket holder) so take this article with a huge grain of salt.

I wouldn't want Gary Baxter.

As much as I dislike him he's right mostly, Smoot isn't Law or Rolle, and I don't know where this idea that he is a franchise shutdown corner but he isn't. He's a 1b at best and isn't worth more than about 12 million. Of course his raven bias shows with the baxter thing but other than that he's on point here for a change.

I don't disagree either. But there are a 100 other posts about how we should give smoot anything he asks for because he's a core redskin, he plays hurt, blah blah blah ...

I like Smoot, and hope we resign him, but on our terms. All this we can eek out a little more for our own crap needs to stop. He wants #1 corner money, and he's not a number one corner, and not even the best corner on this team. I understand he wants to be paid, and has a right to. And I fully expect someone (hopefully not us) to throw a ton of money at him.

I concur, would much rather have Ty Law than Rolle though. I know he is old and was hurt but when he is healthy he is the BEST. I don't know any other corner that has been a gamer like him in the last ten years. See First Touchdown of superbowl against Rams, See 3 picks in the Title game last season against Colts.

word to his mother.

As much as I can't stand Banks, he's pretty well right-on about this one.

Nick

scratch his head... he is too busy scratching something else

i think once smoot realizes the redskins are the only ones in the league that is going to give him 10 million.....hes gonna be cryin when we sign somebody else and nobody wants to give him the big bucks....

ps gary baxter is probs the best shut down corner in the league.......sike!

Gotta agree on this one... I'm shocked!

If Anthony Henry got a eleven million bonus, Smoot isn't out of line asking for at least 13.

I think our offer for Smoot is FMV.

We should definatly try to get our hands on Samari Rolle cause he's a beast and has played in greg williams system . He would fit in the best. And i know all you guys are sayin Smoot isnt anything special, but he fit in perfectly wwith GW and i wish he wasnt such a money lover.

Smoot needs to sign with us he plays with heart every game. I would not mind Baxter he is young and has learned a lot from McCallister and Deion I am sure.

Hard to argue with this one (about Smoot or Champ). Smoot may well wind up a shutdown corner, but he hasn't earned the shutdown corner $$$ he's seeking now.

The problem is that everyone wants to be labeled a shut down corner and there is rarely a person that fits this label.

Champ was shutdown for a bit while he was here, but wasn't before he left and isn't now.

You cannot convince me that there is a shutdown corner in this league right now.

A shutdown corner is a corner who takes half of the field completely away from the other team.

Nobody is a shutdown corner anymore, maybe because of the rule em-fassis (on the sil-abble) maybe because of schemes, maybe because there's a lesser talent level but more overall talent. I don't know but Fred is no shutdown corner.

And he wants to be labelled one. Greg Williams defense is the perfect place to become a shutdown corner if you have the talent and desire to do so.

I betcha Champ Bailey secretely regretted leaving after seeing how dominant we were last year.

Originally posted by skinstzar

I concur, would much rather have Ty Law than Rolle though. I know he is old and was hurt but when he is healthy he is the BEST. I don't know any other corner that has been a gamer like him in the last ten years. See First Touchdown of superbowl against Rams, See 3 picks in the Title game last season against Colts.

Oh please, Ty Law was never the best. He's looked great when the refs have allowed him to manhandle recievers he covers, and he plays great zone defense. But he's slow, and extremely lucky he got injured this season instead of being exposed by the league's new emphasis on pass interference.

By the way, the very reason league even has this new emphasis on PI is BECAUSE of him in that Colts game.

what does baxter want in a contract? and what do you guys/gals think of him to replace smoot?

Keep one thing in mind about Smoot and the bonus. We're likely to sign Smoot for a 4-5 year contract, which means that every additional million $ is worth only $200-250k in cap dollars each year over the length of the contract. So while the difference between $10M and $14M is a lot of money, in football capology terms it only equates to between $800k and $1M in cap dollars.

Don Banks has made his opinion of the Redskins perfectly clear, over and over again.

I wouldn't take any advice from him.

Smoot has more heart then those other guys... But is it worth 4 more mill? I dunnoo