The Official 2023 ES Free Agency Thread... available until Free Agency 2024 begins

[Jumbo]

1 hour ago, MrJL said:

we need more LB.

 

and cowbell 

[Voice_of_Reason]

Just now, Jumbo said:

 

and cowbell 

[MrJL]

always need more cowbell

[Voice_of_Reason]

24 minutes ago, MrJL said:

always need more cowbell

[NewCliche21]

59 minutes ago, Jumbo said:

 

and cowbell 

 

No no no, we have Robinson.

 

Wait, that's the bellcow, nevermind.

[Simmsy]

13 hours ago, FootballZombie said:

As much as I'd like it, w/ Barton getting some G money I don't see Swole-comb coming back. We don't play enough LBs to justify paying him while having Davis and Barton. Somebody would become a waste of money.

 

We are in great need of a punt returner. Someone who could replace Dax's roster spot.

Another OL would be nice to so we can cut some of the floatsam or have injury insurance in camp.

QB goes without sayin'

 

 

 

Something you don't see mentioned a lot: we had the worst starting field position of any team last year.

[Est.1974]

Vikings been getting some negative press for FA, that looks like damn good business to me so far. 

Minnesota Vikings

• TE Josh Oliver (3 years, $21 million)
• C Garrett Bradbury (3 years, $15.75 million)
• DE Marcus Davenport (1 year, $13 million)
• CB Byron Murphy (2 years, $22 million)

[Est.1974]

Any thoughts on this player. Aside from puns relating to his name....
 

44. Drue Tranquill, ILB

Best team fit: New York Giants

The Giants need to find an answer at linebacker. Tranquill's 144 tackles for the Chargers in 2022 were a career high, and he can be deployed as a blitzer from multiple second-level alignments. He logged 5.5 sacks and four pass breakups last season, too. Tranquill would play inside linebacker for Wink Martindale's defense, but he has the movement ability of a weakside linebacker in both base and sub-packages.

[Darrell Green Fan]

7 hours ago, method man said:

 

The counterfactual with Barton is that he was a 3rd round pick by the Seahawks in 2019. Isn't it fishy to you that it took until the second half of his 4th year to put it together? As much as we hope that second half was a true breakout for him, it could also be a mirage. 

 

Again, happy we signed him if they are thinking of him as the third linebacker as he is a huge upgrade over Mayo, Bostic, Eifler, etc. but I am hoping they are not betting on him as the second guy. Play it safe there and sign one of the two legends left in FA as both guys not only give you a stud at all three levels but also a leader for the defense. They have the room and don't need to fork over a ton of guaranteed money

I am so conflicted on Barton. I do take what Logan Paulson says seriously, he has studied the player and I have not. But you make a good point.  Guy has been in the league for 4 years and has 1/2 of a good season.  Sure this could mean he figured it out, it also could mean that stretch was an outlier.  I don't pretend that fans know more than coaches but pretty much every Hawks fan I heard from said he is not a solid starter. So who exactly are our solid LB starters?   Davis?  Perhaps, still has a lot to prove.  Holcomb may not be back so who else is a solid starting LB on this team?  

 

So Darren Waller just got traded to the Giants for a 3rd. Why exactly weren't we in on that?  An impact TE is desperately needed for this offense, a perfect safety net for a young QB.  

Edited March 15, 2023 by Darrell Green Fan

[KDawg]

5 minutes ago, Darrell Green Fan said:

I am so conflicted on Barton. I do take what Logan Paulson says seriously, he has studied the player and I have not. But you make a good point.  Guy has been in the league for 4 years and has 1/2 of a good season.  Sure this could mean he figured it out, it also could mean that stretch was an outlier.  I don't pretend that fans know more than coaches but pretty much every Hawks fan I heard from said he is not a solid starter. So who exactly are our solid LB starters?   Davis?  Perhaps, still has a lot to prove.  Holcomb may not be back so who else is a solid starting LB on this team?  

 

So Darren Waller just got traded to the Giants for a 3rd. Why exactly weren't we in on that?  An impact TE is desperately needed for this offense, a perfect safety net for a young QB.  

Davis is a starting ILB. He had a great sophomore season and showed plenty of growth. He is a penned in starter.

 

The second spot is up for grabs. 

[Skinsinparadise]

7 hours ago, method man said:

 

The counterfactual with Barton is that he was a 3rd round pick by the Seahawks in 2019. Isn't it fishy to you that it took until the second half of his 4th year to put it together? As much as we hope that second half was a true breakout for him, it could also be a mirage. 

 

 

Nope not fishy at all.    When I was listening to Logan Paulsen, my first thought was goiing back to the college game I watched and posted about on the draft thread and commented which was this dude was dyanamic and all over the field.

 

I am not really a theory driven guy about players.  I like to believe my eyes first.  Only reason why I didn't push him here is I still haven't watched nearly enough and still haven't.  But my takes dovetail a lot with Logan typically so the fact that he dove in and liked him AND PFF scores matched AND his stats are pretty good on the aggregate last year.  Yeah my skepticism is pretty low.

 

And yes I am one of those people here who do think that Rivera and Del Rio played LB mean they likely know more about the spot than we do, so if they grab a guy they like I'll give them some faith.

 

He was playing behind Bobby Wagner, played mostly special teams initially.  As I said and you agreed Lb is a slow growth spot for some players especially those moving from a different spot like him.   Some of the guys that we've touted on the FA thread over the year had meh starts to their career at that spot but really grew.  With Barton he didn't really have a meh start, he just didn't start period. 

 

So yeah for season 1 for him the fact that he played better as the season progressed to me is the opposite of a red flag.  It's sort of what you'd expect and hope for a first year starter.  If his play was more choppy, good game, bad game, etc or started strong and finished weak, that to me would be the red flag.

 

9.3 RAS shows this dude has some athleticism, he looked it too in that one game I watched but I'll watch more.

 

Edited March 15, 2023 by Skinsinparadise

[Est.1974]

So we’re clearly giving Holcomb a couple of days to see if he can get the deal he wants before he re ups here. We better not under cook LB again. 

[Koolblue13]

Holcomb needs to walk IMO. Especially if we're trying to address the position with younger, less experienced guys. 

 

Gives me a kind of Heinicke vibe. If you're not all in on him as a lock to start and run the defense, let someone else pay him.

[Rocky21]

8 minutes ago, Skinsinparadise said:

 

And yes I am one of those people here who do think that Rivera and Del Rio played LB mean they likely know more about the spot than we do, so if they grab a guy they like I'll give them some faith.

 

I hear ya but these were the same two former LB’s that thought it was a good idea to overdraft Davis, who had played college ball for 1 year, have him play middle linebacker and have a 19 year old rook call the defensive alignments

 

[Fan since a Fetus]

26 minutes ago, Darrell Green Fan said:

 

So Darren Waller just got traded to the Giants for a 3rd. Why exactly weren't we in on that?  An impact TE is desperately needed for this offense, a perfect safety net for a young QB.  

He’s played a total of 17 games the past 2 years. He is now past 30, although that to me is an only big deal because you have to account for his injuries. 
 

His catch percentage the past two years was around 59% and 65%. I think people are remembering the 2019 & 2020 years where he only missed one game and had a catch percentage of 74 and 77%. He’s been good 2 out of 7 years in the league. I don’t think he is an impact tight end.

 

also, his cap hit is close to $12 mil this year.

Edited March 15, 2023 by Fan since a Fetus

[Darrell Green Fan]

2 minutes ago, Fan since a Fetus said:

He’s played a total of 17 games the past 2 years. He is now past 30, although that to me is an only big deal because you have to account for his injuries. 
 

His catch percentage the past two years was around 59% and 65%. I think people are remembering the 2019 & 2020 years where he only missed one game and had a catch percentage of 74 and 77%. He’s been good 2 out of 7 years in the league. I don’t think he is an impact tight end.

 

also, his cap hit is close to $12 mil this year.

 

Thanks that does make me feel a bit better.  But all I know is every time I see him he is an impact TE, something this team sorely needs.  

23 minutes ago, KDawg said:

Davis is a starting ILB. He had a great sophomore season and showed plenty of growth. He is a penned in starter.

 

The second spot is up for grabs. 

 

You saw more than I did but can his last season be really considered "great"?  I was not under that impression.  He certainly showed growth, I am aware of that, but great?  

[KDawg]

5 minutes ago, Darrell Green Fan said:

 

Thanks that does make me feel a bit better.  But all I know is every time I see him he is an impact TE, something this team sorely needs.  

 

You saw more than I did but can his last season be really considered "great"?  I was not under that impression.  He certainly showed growth, I am aware of that, but great?  

Yes. When I say great I don’t mean in terms of NFL grand scale. I mean great as far as development and production compared to his rookie year and in comparison to the LB play we’ve had here in the past half decade or so.

 

He is going into year 3 and has gotten better almost every week of his career. 
 

I don’t think he should be overlooked. But we certainly have an issue at the other ILB.

[Skinsinparadise]

Listening to Keim I don't think they are overlooking LB this year.  Looks like they are bringing in another aside from Barton.

 

I know Cody Barton wasn't a big name and it felt yawn when it happened.  But I am not yawning on it the more I am absorbing.

 

An ascending young player, really good athlete, who played his best ball in the 2nd half of the season, even called plays for them at times. 

 

Based on PFF scores, Holcomb never matched in any year of his career, Barton's PFF tackling score last season, usually it wasn't even close.

 

130 plus tackles, 2 picks, 2 sacks.  Decent PFF scores, ascended during his first year as a starter.  9.3 RAs score.  I'd say at a minimum Barton is intriguing.  This isn't David Mayo part two as far as how it looks to me.

 

Looking at his stats, he played behind Wagner, they started him for the first time for the last 2 games of 2021 and according to PFF scores he played well in those games. Seattle let Wagner go that off season after that.

 

He's talking about a SB here, how can we be down on this guy?  

 

 

 

 

https://www.fieldgulls.com/2019/5/17/18629842/seattle-seahawks-cody-barton-nfl-draft-scout-report-projection-tape-inside-linebacker-pete-carroll

 

Barton’s ability suggests that he can genuinely push for a starting spot from Day 1. On most NFL defenses he’d be starting immediately. Next offseason, if negotiations with Middle Linebacker Bobby Wagner get nasty or scary-expensive, Barton will act as a nice hedge. What’s more likely is Barton’s talent making Wright expendable, given the 30-year-old has $0 of his salary guaranteed in 2020.

 

 

The East-West Shrine attendee made all the calls at Utah last season, leading from the Middle Linebacker role. Barton got the defensive front aligned. “I like being off the ball and being able to diagnose from the middle of the field,” Barton told reporters at his rookie minicamp presser. “Being that the Mike calls the plays and is the focal point in the middle of field, I like being the leader in the middle and just calling things out and talking about what I see.”

The leadership qualities Barton brings to a team weren’t just apparent on the field. “Scott Fitterer [co-director of player personnel] was talking about—Scott was the one who went to the Utah workout—and he talked about how [Barton] had so much juice about him. The players were attracted to him,” revealed Schneider. Barton clearly has leadership qualities that gravitate players towards him. Old and new teammate Marquise Blair called Barton a ‘smart leader.’ Barton’s intelligence is in part reflected by his bachelor’s degree in economics.

 

...Learning under Wagner, Wright and other seasoned veterans in the linebacker room makes it an excellent spot for a rookie too. “He’ll have a chance to learn under tremendously experienced guys,” added Carroll. Again, Barton has the right idea: “I’m gonna stick to [Wagner’s] hip, K.J.’s hip and just see their routine, what works for them and what makes them a great player and just learn as much as I can from those guys.”

 

 

 

 

Edited March 15, 2023 by Skinsinparadise

[Skinsinparadise]

25 minutes ago, Rocky21 said:

I hear ya but these were the same two former LB’s that thought it was a good idea to overdraft Davis, who had played college ball for 1 year, have him play middle linebacker and have a 19 year old rook call the defensive alignments

 

 

Logan Paulsen, stats, PFF scores and the one game I watched weighs with me. 

 

The fact that they trried to move Jamin to the middle in his rookie year does nothing to offset that with me.

 

I am not overriding it by thinking Rivera/Del Rio were arrogant about how they thought they can move Jamin Davis to Mike.    I watched a lot of Jamin before the draft and posted a ton about him back then.   

 

There was a contest on the board about who we'd take in that draft, I was the only one here who picked that they'd pick Jamin.  So I don't think they were dummies for taking him, it was a bit of an overreach IMO but I understood the thinking.  It was though arrogant to think they can move him to Mike and explained why at the time.  

 

But yeah none of that makes me think that I like what I am absorbing about Barton but Rivera and Del Rio have the reverse midas touch at LB.  I think if anything their success especially Rivera in prior stints at LB made them likely arrogant as if their crap doesn't stink at that spot.  But for me their arrogance about it doesn't make me thing that are likely wrong. 

 

Rivera has been right about that spot in big ways before.  The idea that he and Del Rio played the spots mean something to me or at a minimum its not a negative to me.  But that's the gravy, its not the main reason why I am intrigued by this.  Again intrigue is the operative word.  I don't love the player but I get it the more I absorb as to why they signed him.

Edited March 15, 2023 by Skinsinparadise

[Wyvern]

I suspect that not too many Washington fans would be vocally supportive for how the Rivera front office has dealt with the team's needs at linebacker over the last couple of years.  Bostic was probably the most familiar example of the types of solutions offered for LB needs that seemed questionable.  In part, it seemed like it was caused by the FO waiting too long to find a quality FA for depth.  So they wound up with folks like Mayo and Eifler because Washington had no real depth.  They lost about a season's worth of Davis' contract trying him in a role he didn't fit very well.  Meanwhile, everyone complained on why the Washington defense had troubles stopping opponents converting on 3rd downs.

 

It seems like the FO wants to "just get by" at LB, and maybe save some cap space... Now, Barton may be an "unearthed gem" that the other teams didnt know about, but there were a lot of proven LB'ers  who were available in FA and many were signed at fairly reasonable contracts.  Now, there are not so many left.  Let's see if Washington find a decent solution among what's left...or perhaps obtain a quality depth solution via the draft.

Edited March 15, 2023 by Wyvern

[FrFan]

Seahawks Free Agent Primer: Will Cody Barton Return as Starting LB?

Why Seattle Should Re-Sign Him

With only a handful of starts to his name in his first three seasons, Barton's lack of experience proved problematic early on, but the converted safety showed off his coverage chops as the season progressed. Per Pro Football Focus, from Week 8 on, he finished fourth among linebackers allowing a 68.6 passer rating, yielding only one touchdown while picking off two passes and generating three additional pass breakups. During that span, he also surrendered a league-low 6.7 yards per reception. As a run defender, when he got his hands on ball carriers, he typically finished the job, missing only eight tackles and posting a quality six percent miss rate while playing in all 17 regular season games. He also was effective as a blitzer, manufacturing a pair of sacks and four pressures on 28 pass rush opportunities.

Why Seattle Should Let Him Walk

Weighing only 237 pounds, Barton's lack of play strength consistently showed up when opposing linemen were able to reach him at the second level or cut him off at the line of scrimmage. Struggling to disengage and work off blocks, he found himself out of position too often on run plays and failed to maintain gap integrity, particularly early in the season when he opened with three games in the first four receiving under a 54.0 grade from PFF. While his overall tackling numbers ranked among the best in the NFL in terms of efficiency, he did have some awful misses during the season, including taking a bad angle and whiffing on a touchdown pass to 49ers tight end George Kittle in Week 15.

[Skinsinparadise]

8 minutes ago, Wyvern said:

I suspect that not too many Washington fans would be vocally supportive for how the Rivera front office have dealt with the team's needs at linebacker over the last couple of years.  Bostic was probably the most familiar example of the types of solutions offered for LB needs that seemed questionable.  In part, it seemed like it was caused by the FO waiting too long to find a quality FA for depth.  So they wound up with folks like Mayo and Eifler because Washington had no real depth.  They lost about a season's worth of Davis' contract trying him in a role he didn't fit very well.  Meanwhile, everyone complained on why the Washington defense had troubles stopping opponents converting on 3rd downs.

 

It seems like the FO wants to "just get by" at LB, and maybe save some cap space... Now, Barton may be an "unearthed gem" that the other teams didnt know about, but there were a lot of proven LB'ers  who were available in FA and many were signed at fairly reasonable contracts.  Now, there are not so many left.  Let's see if Washington find a decent solution among what's left...or perhaps obtain a quality depth solution via the draft.

 

They inherited Holcomb.  Kevin Pierre Louis was a good cheap signing in year 1.  But otherwise in FA they didn't throw resources at it.  Taking a LB with a first round pick is a swing.  Rivera likes to say Jamin reminds him of Thomas Davis.  Davis though didn't really explode until year 4.

 

They play a ton with just 2 LBS, sometimes just 1 so arguably not that big of a deal.   He's done good here and Carolina with draft picks in the secondary -- Curl, Forrest, St. Juste, etc. and seems to have a more focus there.  

Edited March 15, 2023 by Skinsinparadise

[Est.1974]

I don’t think we’re too far away in terms of the roster. Couple more gaps to plug and then dovetail into the draft. I reckon we’re sitting on a few deals, it’s a case of seeing which ones we can close out.

[Skinsinparadise]

Just now, Est.1974 said:

I don’t think we’re too far away in terms of the roster. Couple more gaps to plug and then dovetail into the draft. I reckon we’re sitting on a few deals, it’s a case of seeing which ones we can close out.

 

We have more needs than just this but no team of course is stacked at every spot, you'll always have some holes.

 

But to me the gist

 

A.  Corner

B.  2 more O lineman

C.  LB

 

They can use more safety depth, another TE, RB, etc.  But if they address those above needs its the most stacked roster I can recall during the Dan era.

[Koolblue13]

I was hoping to see us sign one clear starter. Not a guy who will start, but a guy who is a definite league starter.