Nice JLC article on the cap

[Popeman38]

Truth hurts. JLC is just reporting the facts, folks.

No, JLC is still pissy that he isn't the beat writer for the Red Wings still. Yes, he is an experienced hockey writer. Beat writing for an NFL team is new to him, and he is a self-professed Ravens and Raven FO fan. They can do no wrong. The Skins can do no right.

We have an aging team with very little depth and as much guaranteed money as anyone in the league committed to players who are injury-prone or whose best years are behind them.

Very little depth? Losing half your o-line for the season and still making the playoffs is no depth? Losing your best defensive player and still ranking in the top 10 is no depth? Having your best WR gimpy all year and still making the playoffs is no depth? Please. The truth is that this team is returning every single starter. And drafting 9 times on Sat/Sun. And locking up key guys for years.

It's not a great situation and it will take some patience and really solid drafting to remedy.

If we simply draft 2 guys every year that turn out to be NFL starters, we will be in great shape. 2. That is not horrible shape. This team made the freakin playoffs 2 of the last 3 seasons. We are so bad, the freakin Jets are better than us!!! :doh: :doh:

Trading multiple picks for CJ and giving him a huge deal would be insanity.

And what indication (other then Chris Mortenson on ESPN who has been wrong 80% of the time with the Skins over the last 5 years) has been given that we are considering giving up multiple picks? JLC sicks, and if you believe what he writes isn't biased by Danny *****-slapping ther Post your comprehension skills rank right there with his writing skills.

[Sebowski]

Portis, who will be 27 this season, received $9.32 million in signing bonus in March. Not a bad haul at all. Oh yeah, and they also guaranteed his salary for the next two seasons and also guaranteed a big portion of his 2010 salary as well. In all, the Skins guaranteed $15 million to this guy through the 2010 season. He ain't going nowhere people, for quite some time. No other club in the league would touch that deal for most any running back at this point in his career, and especially not for someone who has needed half a season to find his legs and get his conditioning down in recent years.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/redskinsinsider/2008/04/the_numbers_dont_lie_version_2.html?nav=rss_blog

This is the best news I have heard in a long time.

Locking up CP is always a good thing.

[TheLongshot]

And what indication (other then Chris Mortenson on ESPN who has been wrong 80% of the time with the Skins over the last 5 years) has been given that we are considering giving up multiple picks? JLC sicks, and if you believe what he writes isn't biased by Danny *****-slapping ther Post your comprehension skills rank right there with his writing skills.

Because JLC has pretty much bet the farm that we are going to trade for CJ hell or high water, ignoring some of the stuff that comes out of Vinny's mouth that they aren't going to overpay for players. Course, JLC would love to prove that wrong.

To be honest, CJ is pricing himself out of the Redskins market. If he's under the illusion that he will see that kind of money with the Skins, then he's dreaming. I think only those teams with money to burn are going to be interested.

Jason

[Isifhan]

To be honest, CJ is pricing himself out of the Redskins market. If he's under the illusion that he will see that kind of money with the Skins, then he's dreaming. I think only those teams with money to burn are going to be interested.

Jason

I think if it was a question of just money then we'd probably pull the trigger. The problem is that it would cost multiple draft picks as well and the Redskins seem intent on keeping their full stock this year.

[Fury010]

Jason...You still mad at the guys for feeding you that Fassell was going to be our new Head Guy?

[Walking Deadman]

The draft is this weekend.....do we hear anything from JLC about the Skins and the draft, NO!!!!! :mad:

[fansince62]

tell em McMetal. Like I said in another post, this is a dead end job for him. He has no connections inside Redskin park, hence the title of his blog is extremely misleading.

I guess I'd be pissed if I had to do a job and didn't have the tools, in other words "the ability to create relationships" and have a respectful demeanor.

This message board and redskins web site makes the Post and it's "blogs" or redskins articles absolutely meaningless, because the only people who would read the Post for redskins info, know that they can come here and get a true perspective of what is going on.

Dan is making them irrelevant to the mainstream football audience.

I can take or leave JLC...but..."they can come here and get a true perspective of what is going on."

uh huh.....you all are just as clueless as the next bunch of rabid fans. pls...a little honesty never hurt...all around.

[elkabong82]

Another tidbit from the blog: Apparently there is this thing called "the draft" that is less than a week away. Now that I know about I'll start looking into who the Skins are working out and any rumors I've heard, instead of bashing the FO cuz I'm getting scooped out by other reporters.

In all seriosuness, we know the Skins have had issues in the finance department. When Gibbs came in a large part of the roster was rebuilt, and some of those contracts are still affecting us. If a team made the change just in the past couple years, then the figures aren't going to dramatically decrease in just one off season. In fact, I don't know how you can claim the team hasn't changed in this regard, and use numbers that don't include this year's change.

The Skins have made the playoffs 2 of the last 3 years, which is a lot more than other teams who have better numbers than the Skins. I could understand simply reporting the numbers. But when you put in terms like "snuck into the playoffs", "haven't accomplished anything", and "don't let these guys fool you, they haven't changed" this only shows bias. The playoff runs are belittled, made to seem like they are "no big deal." JLC paints this elaborate picture that the FO is trying to "fool" all of us, like they're some dark, brooding nefarious group only out to hurt the team. Then he goes on to say the only reason we were quiet was because of a weak FA market and cap constraints. Well, we have the same amount of cap to work with as we did last offseason, and back then we brought in Fletcher and Smoot, among others. The FA class was weak, but you certainly could have fooled all the teams who were active, like the Browns and Jets. In fact, it was Cerrato himself who said the FA class was weak, and he more or less was correct.

In any case, the timing of these pieces, coupled with biased terms, shows JLC seems to be more interested in grinding his axe than reporting on current events. We all know he has had issues with the FO before. Whether the feud between Snyder and the Post, or the fact that it appears the Skins recently fired PR guy was JLC's inside source, has a lot or little to do with this is up for speculation.

Pretty sad when the suppossed "Redskins Insider" blog for the Post is talking about past finances of the FO, instead of the NFL draft, which is only 5 days away, and the Skins have 9 picks this year, the first time they've had a significant amount in a long time.

[[[ghost]]]

So JLC wrote an article telling us not to be fooled, that we haven't gone away from our old ways.

All he really said was that we're still paying for our old mistakes.

Did anyone here think that the deals we made for LAST season were still being payed off as of now?

[elkabong82]

Truth hurts. JLC is just reporting the facts, folks. We have an aging team with very little depth and as much guaranteed money as anyone in the league committed to players who are injury-prone or whose best years are behind them. It's not a great situation and it will take some patience and really solid drafting to remedy. Trading multiple picks for CJ and giving him a huge deal would be insanity.

You mean the same "facts" he got called out on by the Skins org., and the Post had to put a retraction in his blog because of it? Those "facts"? Just cuz they're sprinkled in here or there doesn't mean a writer can't manipulate facts to his advantage. It's about the perception of those facts.

We have an aging team? OL is around 30, except for Kendall. His replacement is likely going to be drafted in 5 days. DL we have Daniels. Griifin is 31, which isn't that old for a DT. Griffin also played in most every game in '07. Daniels replacement is either on the roster (Wilson or Evans) or will also be drafted. CB it's Springs, who again, will have his replacement likely drafted in 5 days. LBer, Fletcher already has his replacement (Blades) but still plays at a high level. Washington can still play, though we should look for his replacement next draft.

As far as starters go, QB, RB, TE, C, WR, DT, 1 DE, 1 LB, 2 CBs, and both FS and SS have young starters. Our K and P are young too.

The injury concerns, outside of Rogers and McIntosh, belong to starters who are probably having their eventual replacements drafted this year, and likely won't be here in a season or 2.

We have 9 draft picks, which is an excellent opportunity to get younger depth, and groom young guys to replace the older vets. Most of our starters, however, are young. This is why some of us have a beef with JLC right now. The draft is in 5 days, and will determine the future success of this team, yet JLC decides to keep harping on the past, when it is the future that is most important right now.

[ConcordNCSkinsFan]

JLC is nothing more than the new Len Pasquarelli. Would people please stop posting his garbage on this site unless he actually comes up with some new info and not just a rehash of the same crap he has recycled for the past 2 or 3 years.

[SkinsMaster88]

All that matters is if we're under the cap. We've gone from $20M+ over to $8M under without losing anyone of importance. The only person that should be worried about how much total signing bonuses are paid is Dan Snyder as he writes the checks. The rest of this cap hell stuff that comes up every year is pointless. We know how to move around contracts and have flexible options to work year-by-year.

Is it a good long-term strategy to pay big bucks to aging FAs every year and abandon cheap talent in the draft? Not really, as we've seen the results of that with little depth. But, the team overall still has talent and can be good in the future. In the end, it matters who wins. Every team has busts and steals. You have to produce on the field. Period.

[COWBOY-KILLA-]

Jaded and Bitter. Vindictive article. This guy sucks. Every chance he gets he sticks a knife in our side, just because he can. What a jerk.

[TheLongshot]

All that matters is if we're under the cap. We've gone from $20M+ over to $8M under without losing anyone of importance. The only person that should be worried about how much total signing bonuses are paid is Dan Snyder as he writes the checks. The rest of this cap hell stuff that comes up every year is pointless. We know how to move around contracts and have flexible options to work year-by-year.

Is it a good long-term strategy to pay big bucks to aging FAs every year and abandon cheap talent in the draft? Not really, as we've seen the results of that with little depth. But, the team overall still has talent and can be good in the future. In the end, it matters who wins. Every team has busts and steals. You have to produce on the field. Period.

But, how often have the skins paid "aging FA" in the past 4 years? There is Brunell and there is Fletcher, and Fletcher is still playing at a high level.

Most of the guys that JLC lists are still relatively young. The only one of those guys who may be over the hill is Jansen.

Jason

[No Excuses]

Is this guy our beat reporter or beat basher? Why would anyone in the Skins front office give insider info to this tool, who does nothing but bash us. His blog sucks and he's provided 0 inside report this year.

He has nothing to write about anymore.

[Killer Rob]

where JLC is wrong is we don't have any major gaps to fill. Sitting tight in the offseason and keeping our core group in tact was the smart move. He acts like we f'd up by giving Portis all that money, but Portis is in the prime of his career, and I believe he will produce more in the next few years than any seasons before, even the Denver ones. with that being said, it would be nice to get that signing bonus stat down a bit. seems like we're giving much more than necessary, and it effects us way to long for seasons to come.

[Dick Edds]

I can take or leave JLC...but..."they can come here and get a true perspective of what is going on."

uh huh.....you all are just as clueless as the next bunch of rabid fans. pls...a little honesty never hurt...all around.

so ... explain to me how the "you all are just as clueless as the next bunch of rabid fans" line of thought is any different that my claiming that this board has just as much "insider info" as JLC seems to report?

If you thought I was insinuating that the "truth" was waiting here on ES on a silver platter for us to gobble up, well then that is your mistake.

The bottom line is that JLC has not reported anything "new" or given us any "insider info" that we haven't been able to figure out from other resources that exist within this forum, or just using plain common sense. I may be a homer, but I'm not an idiot, nor am I naive ... and shame on you for thinking so.

Not once did I ever refute what JLC said ... because it is true to an extent. That was my whole point, he's "re-gifting" his blog like and dressing it up like it's something new, but it's not. It's the same old, same old.

[fansince62]

so ... explain to me how the "you all are just as clueless as the next bunch of rabid fans" line of thought is any different that my claiming that this board has just as much "insider info" as JLC seems to report?

If you thought I was insinuating that the "truth" was waiting here on ES on a silver platter for us to gobble up, well then that is your mistake.

The bottom line is that JLC has not reported anything "new" or given us any "insider info" that we haven't been able to figure out from other resources that exist within this forum, or just using plain common sense. I may be a homer, but I'm not an idiot, nor am I naive ... and shame on you for thinking so.

Not once did I ever refute what JLC said ... because it is true to an extent. That was my whole point, he's "re-gifting" his blog like and dressing it up like it's something new, but it's not. It's the same old, same old.

DE....simply responding to the tone of this blog. the loudest (not you) generally are the least informative. at the end of the day....when this is all reduced to essentials...I am certain of one thing:

- the Skins have not won a *amn thing since the 1992 SB. theirs has been a record of sustained failure. no excuses can overcome that one seminal truth. the problem isn't JLC...it's the Skins inability to grasp their environment, adapt and prevail.

The juvenile spitballing at JLC has become boringly predictable....thread after tedious thread. What exactly are the purveyors of truth and reporting fairy dust shooting for? A novel insight every other day? Around the clock tailing of Snyder, Zorn and the coaches for that elusive scoop no one else caught? What resources do they expect should be spent doing all of this? Exactly where does their information base start from? (hint: work done by others...not themselves).

the Skins want to control the information flow.....perhaps even shape it at times through disinformation on boards like this...who knows...:-).....that's their right. it's also a partial source of the frustration/anxiety some seem so susceptible to. I don't hear anyone complaining about that. In fact, many will extol its virtures as "not tipping their hands". JLC is only part of the equation. Folks don't get the reality of the matter...IMO...they're caught in the middle and ought to be upset with both parties....that is if their real objcetive is to be informed/in the know.

[No Excuses]

JLC probably goes :jerk: for the Cowboys

[Reaganaut]

All the players that JLC mentions are questionable for resigning are the core players on the team. Throwing money at your core players is smart I guess if they're Michael Strahan or Payton Manning, but if you are Jon Jansen then it's wasted money I guess. These players are leaders in addition to being pro bowl level year in and year out. This is all just stupid. We are keeping the chemistry on the team not ditching it by bringing in people like Deion Sanders to displace Darrell Green. No, I am not a big fan of Snyder anymore, but this is BS flat out.

[Going Commando]

"Everyone I speak to sez that Cincy owner Mike Brown is as stubborn as they come and no way he's going to give in to the brash WR."

Who actually writes sez instead of says? The quality of his writing and reporting is very poor. I don't dislike the content of his blog because it is negative, I dislike it because its nothing more special than any average fan could come up with. Like someone else said, using slanted editorial language like "snuck into the playoffs" is just really amateur and hurts whatever journalistic credibility he may have had. I don't usually like the sports blogs featured by major news sources because the writing is usually so bad and unedited. It's the same kind of thing at ESPN, where Williamson, Sando, and Yasinskas are all really bad--especially Williamson, he is just awful. Matt Mosely is the only one I don't mind, even though he is a Dallas beat man. I don't know how guys like Bill Williamson and JLC bamboozled publications like ESPN and the Post into giving them jobs. They can't get paid that much for what they do.

[TheLongshot]

DE....simply responding to the tone of this blog. the loudest (not you) generally are the least informative. at the end of the day....when this is all reduced to essentials...I am certain of one thing:

- the Skins have not won a *amn thing since the 1992 SB. theirs has been a record of sustained failure. no excuses can overcome that one seminal truth. the problem isn't JLC...it's the Skins inability to grasp their environment, adapt and prevail.

Considering that there have been many people running the ship in that time, kinda hard to lay blame. Course, maybe that also says something

The juvenile spitballing at JLC has become boringly predictable....thread after tedious thread. What exactly are the purveyors of truth and reporting fairy dust shooting for? A novel insight every other day? Around the clock tailing of Snyder, Zorn and the coaches for that elusive scoop no one else caught? What resources do they expect should be spent doing all of this? Exactly where does their information base start from? (hint: work done by others...not themselves).

Well, I would expect his output to be greater than the average post on this board. As Dick Edds says, he's not really adding anything here, and I find his "insights" somewhat pedestrian and not always thought out.

For example, he talks about getting rid of the deadwood on the roster (course, not really specifying what that "deadwood" really is. Maybe he was speaking of Jansen.) but, the fact is that a lot of those moves were nessicary to actually have cap space. If it actually costs more on the cap to get rid of a player than it would be to keep him, the player would truly have to be dead weight. (Not to mention that some vets, like Griffin, Daniels and Washington are actually vulnerable.)

As I said, not terribly well thought out. Now, if he put as much thought into that as he did making his argument of how Mooch could have been a prime candidate, maybe he'd earn some of that respect. He may have been wrong, but that was some good thinking on his part. Too bad he shoots from the hip most of the time.

the Skins want to control the information flow.....perhaps even shape it at times through disinformation on boards like this...who knows...:-).....that's their right. it's also a partial source of the frustration/anxiety some seem so susceptible to. I don't hear anyone complaining about that. In fact, many will extol its virtures as "not tipping their hands". JLC is only part of the equation. Folks don't get the reality of the matter...IMO...they're caught in the middle and ought to be upset with both parties....that is if their real objcetive is to be informed/in the know.

Granted, tho I understand the Skins' position, considering how aggressively negative the press got and with some of the ways that they tried making the news. Even that is changing somewhat, tho, with Vinny being much more available. Course, that comes with his new position.

But, that has nothing much to do with the way JLC sometimes spitballs stuff that really is out there to be provocative, but doesn't have much depth.

Jason

[bedlamVR]

You know I have managed to not read any JLC stuff for a week and wow I don't feel any less informed in fact I feel a little smarter . People say he tells it like it is and the balance to Redskins corporation that are trying to slant information...that is okay as long as you like your truth speculation flavored ...

Of the Washington post writers I read there is ...Jason Reid and thats it Mark Maske was okay but he moved on . Wilburn took cheep shot at Taylor and that has never sat well with me and has little to do with the Skins anymore..Jenkins comes across as nothing more than society gossip columnist reporting nothing more than speculation and opinion and JLC well ....

Look at Bram, A well respected sports reported who is moving up the chain ... he like Larry Micheals and Garry Fitzgerald of Redskins.com are all roped into the voice of the evil corporation and quickly dismissed but people give JLC and his wildy speculative poorly edited blog gospal status .

Bram in a recent blog thanked the Skins organization and said not once did anyone from Redskins.org tell them what to report even when they disagreed with his views... what motive does he have for sticking up for the FO now on his private blog with his destiny now in Bristol?

Gerry Fitzgerald...if you actually read anything on redskins.com is a decent writer . You can expect a very *GO REDSKINS* undercurrant in his writing because of the audience he is writing for is different from the general sports media but the information he provides is pretty good . So good infact the Washington Post (JLC in fact) lifted his top ten lists of the biggest concerns going into mini camp last season and then turned round and accused Gerry of plagiarism ... an accusation he backed away from pretty smartish..

The point is there are other reporters out there like Ryan O'Hallrohan, David Elfin of the times ... I am not telling people what to read or what to think but if you think JLC is a tool stop reading his junk ... if you read Rich Taldlers blog for example he will often go off on a bizzaro rant every now and then but sometimes he has some insight... something missing from Jasons offerings for some months now ..

[fansince62]

Considering that there have been many people running the ship in that time, kinda hard to lay blame. Course, maybe that also says something

Well, I would expect his output to be greater than the average post on this board. As Dick Edds says, he's not really adding anything here, and I find his "insights" somewhat pedestrian and not always thought out.

For example, he talks about getting rid of the deadwood on the roster (course, not really specifying what that "deadwood" really is. Maybe he was speaking of Jansen.) but, the fact is that a lot of those moves were nessicary to actually have cap space. If it actually costs more on the cap to get rid of a player than it would be to keep him, the player would truly have to be dead weight. (Not to mention that some vets, like Griffin, Daniels and Washington are actually vulnerable.)

As I said, not terribly well thought out. Now, if he put as much thought into that as he did making his argument of how Mooch could have been a prime candidate, maybe he'd earn some of that respect. He may have been wrong, but that was some good thinking on his part. Too bad he shoots from the hip most of the time.

Granted, tho I understand the Skins' position, considering how aggressively negative the press got and with some of the ways that they tried making the news. Even that is changing somewhat, tho, with Vinny being much more available. Course, that comes with his new position.

But, that has nothing much to do with the way JLC sometimes spitballs stuff that really is out there to be provocative, but doesn't have much depth.

Jason

Jason...cuz I do happen to enjoy your posts (even when off the mark!) I will refrain from starting an unnecessary volley. JLC is one among many. The singular quality amongst most reporters covering the Skins aand certainly posters on this board is that they rehash knowns. There is nothing novel in that idea...it's inherent in how information is being managed BY ALL PARTIES.

I do not care about tone (the quibbling over diction so many on this board are apparently experts at)...which is what most folks are burning their chaps over. If they want to be spoon fed a daily dose of happiness that is their business.

Here's an idea..."Dear Washington Redskins....as loyal fans we find JLC irritating and unsupportive....it makes us really, really angry. Some even wet their pants in frustration. If you would only elevate the quality and substance of the team's official news releases we wouldn't have to spend our time and intellectual resources highlighting the pettier aspects of our personalities attacking someone who....in the grand scheme of things....is a foot soldier. Thanks for your consideration....lovingly....B&G Fans everywhere".

[fansince62]

... I am not telling people what to read or what to think but if you think JLC is a tool stop reading his junk ... ..

Bingo!