Place all crazy FA signings here

So that it will be all in one thread. I come hre and hope that one of the titles is some indicator of a legit at least somewhat thought out FA plan.

Asante Samuels won't come here and the price tag is beyond our reach. Same for Nate and please don't talk about the "hometown discount" please. I wouldn't be surpised to see Greenbay in the hunt for a big acquisition.

Briggs will either be tagged or resigned by the Bears. Gee keep playing on one of the best defenses and while i am not saying overratted he's got a hell of a Dline in front of him and Urlacher in the middle.

Something Reasonable:

Adalius Thomas and as FA comes not sure where he'll stand with the same argument as Briggs minus the tagging part. A good possibility though and reasonable for the foreseable part. Best value is Na'il (sp) Diggs from Carolina. I liked the guy at Ohio State and he quietly did well in Greenbay and Carolina.

While Redding might be a possibility and personally i don't care about the money i'd just want to gt out of Detroit. I do think a decent price tag and the lure of growing with a young Defense that has promise. Best Value is Terdell Sands from Oakland. While Oakland's D is goingto be lelite nexy tear their offense will struggle and there's Al Davis.

I wouldn't Be opposed to Lewis from Philly. It'd bring an experienced safety here and drafting Landry, Nelson or... Merriwether in the second. I like Merriwether a lot. Versatility. I think it's something this secondary needs with the Safety spot. Someone really is going to get a good one prior to this year i don't believe he's had character issues and as for the Melee..... that is just black eye for everyone involved and passions overspilled. (insert Bengals jab here).


We are not in the best Cap situation ATM and have quite a bit of deadcap to deal with. I don't think loading our team with all stars without regaurd to team chemistry is the best way to go about things (see Yankees and redskins).

Dont think Rik Smith wont over spend for Nate or any other FA. Remember this is his first crack at the market.. not that bonehead Casserly

Adalius Thomas is at worst the second best LB on the market, if Briggs is resigned, he is clearly the best, meaning he is going to be out of our price range. I think Michael Lewis from Philly is a good idea, as well as Diggs from Carolina. Ken Hamlin is a name that has been thrown out a lot, and I would like to see him here in the FS spot. However, looking at how CC Brown has performed at that position, just having an average FS would boost the level of the defense considerably. Just someone to sit back and cover the middle of the field or the deep ball without making a lot of mistakes would really help our pass coverage, which is often very badly positioned and confused.

I would be extremely happy to see Thomas come here. He's the kind of guy we could use and utilize if we want to run blitzes very successfully. In our scheme he should be able to fit into the DE if we so desire to place him there, and that would give us a nice compliment to Mario. He would also be able to play coverages very well if we want to run exotic or zone blitzes (what other LB can cover receivers like Chad Johnson effectively?).


I just think he's our best bet at LB...we need to get either him or Briggs, in my opinion, so that we can get that veteran presence to help our defense understand how to run a dominant defense like Baltimore or Chicago.

I originally wanted us to get one of the safeties with our first pick..but am not leaning towards that anymore. After looking at some of the players that I do want us to draft in each round...i think picking up a FS in FA is crucial.

I found this when searching for players contracts to get an idea.

ken hamlin-is he the best FS in FA or are there others?

http://asp.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/salaries/playerdetail.aspx?lname=Hamlin&player=2831

1st round-AP,Levi Brown, Gaines Adams, Branch/Okoye
2nd round-Ryan Kalil
3rd round-Best CB without reaching...aaron ross,damien hughes,david irons...etc?

After the first day i don't have us having a new FS and that troubles me. so i think FA is the way to go...then the draft and our secondary looks a lot better. If we can pick up ol during FA too that would help...steinbech seems to be popular choice. Adding a Center like Kalil in the 2nd would help us and either FA or if we get levi in the first. if not levi.. Gaines Adams or Amobi Okoye would help our line.

Some may not be the sexiest picks but this is what I think is best for the texans long term. and think we will see some instant gratification as well.

Adalius Thomas plays OLB in both 3-4 or 4-3 system so there is no need for him to switch position. He is by far the best OLB available this off season and he is ahead of Briggs. But I think he will end up with 49ers this off season if he doesn't sign contract with his team.

Michael Lewis would be the biggest signing for us. It would be out first real safety to ever have. He is also young and has a pro bowl under him, plus a lot of playoff experience...whole lot of playoff experience. Plus he has something to prove because he has been taken away of playing time.

Sounds like nothing could go wrong here.

It seems that everyone is forgetting that Michael Lewis is a SS, went to the pro bowl as a SS, and played SS since his freshman year of college. What our team needs is a true FS, since both Earl and Brown are best suited to play SS. In that respect, both Ken Hamlin and Deon Grant (if available) would be better additions to our team than Lewis. I also wouldn't mind Meriweather in the 2nd based on his production, but only if he interviews well and his off-the-field issues seem to be behind him.

RFA TENDERS INCREASE

Mike Reiss of the Boston Globe (sheesh -- we cite him two stories in a row . . . we must owe him a favor or money or something) has the restricted free agents tenders for 2007 in his blog.

Per Reiss, the low tender is a one-year contract with a salary of $850,000. By offering the restricted free agent a contract worth that amount, the team retain the right to match any offers received by the player, along with compensation equal to a draft pick from the round in which the player originally was selected. For a player who was undrafted, there is no compensation.

The new second-round tender (which guarantees compensation in the form of a second-round draft pick) is $1.3 million.

The first-round tender is $1.8 million.

The first-round and third-round tender is $2.35 million.

In 2006, the low tender was $712,000, the first-round tender was $1.55 million, and the first-round and third-round tender was $2.069 million.

The biggest challenge for teams with restricted free agents in 2007 is the selection of the appropriate tender amount. Given the continued presence of the poison-pill provision, which allows a new team to sign a guy to, for example, a seven-year, $49 million offer sheet that becomes full guaranteed if he plays five games in the city in which his current team is located, it's easy to come up with a financial package that the original team won't be able to match.

The team facing the biggest dilemma in this regard is the Falcons. If quarterback Matt Schaub is tendered at the $1.8 million level, another team might opt to give up the first-round pick in order to get him. Thus, the Falcons likely will be forced to pay Schaub $2.069 million in order to keep him around as the backup to running back Mike Vick for another season.

Schaub made $425,000 in 2006, the third and final year of his rookie deal.

http://www.profootballtalk.com/rumormill.htm

TexanAddict said:

It seems that everyone is forgetting that Michael Lewis is a SS, went to the pro bowl as a SS, and played SS since his freshman year of college. What our team needs is a true FS, since both Earl and Brown are best suited to play SS. In that respect, both Ken Hamlin and Deon Grant (if available) would be better additions to our team than Lewis. I also wouldn't mind Meriweather in the 2nd based on his production, but only if he interviews well and his off-the-field issues seem to be behind him.

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michael is an upgrade from earl and brown, so i dont care if hes a SS

earl is terrible in coverage and can only play the run

I think our front office have to used their money wisely. There is no doubt they can go out and sign a free agent for any position on our team and it would be an upgrade, but they need to do that where they get the most bang for there buck. we have too many holes and too many needs to be getting a free agent where we're fine.

That brings up a few positions that I will limit it too for time purposes. offensive line, cornerback, and free safety. I think they can pick up maybe another DT but not one of the popular guys..

*Steinbach is someone a lot of people are big on, I don't know anything about him but do know we need help bad. At left tackle Leonard Davis from Ari is not an option.

*Nate Clements and Asanti Samuel would both be huge additions and would in all likely hood force Dunta to be our #2 cornerback. They are going to be demanding an ungodly amount of money that may force us out of the competition...and lead us to drafting a CB during the draft. Our front office is smart and when looking at the whole team needs i don't see them spending this much money for one guy when we still have at least 4 more holes on our defense alone.

*Ken Hamlin or another good Free Safety is who I think we should really target. Free Safety is indeed what we are lacking and what we really need. Give C.C. and Earl a hard time if you want...but them battling for the SS position is what we need. Both of them are not starter material together but one of them is at the SS. I'm actually high on Earl and think with an actual leader of a FS and one that can cover will help him and our secondary out immensely. not to mention giving our dline more time at the qb.

*That brings me to michael lewis. He seems like a very high character guy and would be a great person to have in our clubhouse but would feel we would be marginally better with him. While there is no arguing he would be an improvement to SS, that's not one of our glaring needs. I think we're better off spending our money on the FS.


I think we can find a good/decent cb in the draft in either the 2nd or 3rd round. McCauley may slip to the 3rd. he's got all the physical tools but needs some coaching badly. maybe that's why he slips and we shouldn't draft him but he could turn out to be a steal. his stock is horrible now and having him competing for the job would help...definitly not start right away by anymeans seeing how he's having trouble in college with half the speed. Maybe we should go straight for a starter. just an idea.

I see them going after Ken Hamlin, Kenny Macklin to play opposite Robinson at CB and possibly Justin Smith at DE or Na'i Diggs at LB.

QB Matt Schaub
RB Michael Turner
WR Kelley Washington
TE Daniel Graham
OL Leonard Davis
OL Eric SteinBach
OL Floyd Womack
OL Mike Gandy
DE Justin Smith
DT Cory Redding
LB Kawika Mitchell
CB David Macklin
FS Deon Grant
K Josh Brown

Toro said:

I see them going after Ken Hamlin, Kenny Macklin to play opposite Robinson at CB and possibly Justin Smith at DE or Na'i Diggs at LB.

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Send them the memo now. I like this, and that frees up us to do whatever we want in the draft...plus they arent expensive at all but would really contribute and help the team.

RB - Michael Turner RFA (SD) What would the compensation be for signing this guy away from SD. He was Drafted: Year: 2004 Round: 5 Pick: 22?

If it is not out rageious, like a 5th round pick I would do this. That would eliminate any need to draft a RB this year or next year.

Specnatz said:

RB - Michael Turner RFA (SD) What would the compensation be for signing this guy away from SD. He was Drafted: Year: 2004 Round: 5 Pick: 22?

If it is not out rageious, like a 5th round pick I would do this. That would eliminate any need to draft a RB this year or next year.

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San Diego's slapping the high tender on him. No way a 5th gets the job done.

asante samuel, CB

josh brown, K

ill be happy with those guys

dunta23 said:

michael is an upgrade from earl and brown, so i dont care if hes a SS

earl is terrible in coverage and can only play the run

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He may be an upgrade over Brown and Earl, but that gives us 3 SS and no FS. FS is the position that most requires an upgrade. You must fix the areas of the greatest weakness first. I believe between Brown and Earl, one will emerge as a decent SS, however, there is not a single player on our roster that deserves to start at FS.

Ole Miss Texan said:

*Ken Hamlin or another good Free Safety is who I think we should really target. Free Safety is indeed what we are lacking and what we really need. Give C.C. and Earl a hard time if you want...but them battling for the SS position is what we need. Both of them are not starter material together but one of them is at the SS. I'm actually high on Earl and think with an actual leader of a FS and one that can cover will help him and our secondary out immensely. not to mention giving our dline more time at the qb.

*That brings me to michael lewis. He seems like a very high character guy and would be a great person to have in our clubhouse but would feel we would be marginally better with him. While there is no arguing he would be an improvement to SS, that's not one of our glaring needs. I think we're better off spending our money on the FS.

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I agree with this.

Just to further elaborate on my original post here of who I wanted to see Houston go after--

We all need to take a look at free agency by a realistic, but need based plan. Obviously someone like Lance Briggs or Asante Samuel (or Nate Clemens) would make a big splash and have the headlines ringing, however when you evaluate what the Texans need versus what cap space they have, it's not economically possible to get one of those two, while still having cap space to upgrade at other positions, or room to sign the draft picks.

I know my list of names mentioned hardly would make much of a splash in the headlines, but I think the names I threw out there would be servicable upgrades and would be economically affordable.

When setting up the list, I looked at Safety as more of a "need" than CB. I think Dunta Robinson is the leader of the secondary and should remain as so. However, every great leader has help, and I think Kenny Hamlin would be that "second in command" type guy who helps in coverage and would allow CC Brown and Glenn Earl to continue in their growth and development, and would also take pressure off them.

At CB, I penciled in Kenny Macklin. He's not flashy by any means, but he's still productive and at worst could serve in the nickle.

At DE, Justin Smith would give the Texans a pair of bookends who both are disruptive forces, and he could be the type of guy who would allow Mario Williams some wiggle room and some space from the double teams.

None of them really jump out at you as a "WOW" signing, but I still think they could be AS good and would marketably upgrade their respective positions.

Toro said:

Just to further elaborate on my original post here of who I wanted to see Houston go after--

We all need to take a look at free agency by a realistic, but need based plan. Obviously someone like Lance Briggs or Asante Samuel (or Nate Clemens) would make a big splash and have the headlines ringing, however when you evaluate what the Texans need versus what cap space they have, it's not economically possible to get one of those two, while still having cap space to upgrade at other positions, or room to sign the draft picks.

I know my list of names mentioned hardly would make much of a splash in the headlines, but I think the names I threw out there would be servicable upgrades and would be economically affordable.

When setting up the list, I looked at Safety as more of a "need" than CB. I think Dunta Robinson is the leader of the secondary and should remain as so. However, every great leader has help, and I think Kenny Hamlin would be that "second in command" type guy who helps in coverage and would allow CC Brown and Glenn Earl to continue in their growth and development, and would also take pressure off them.

At CB, I penciled in Kenny Macklin. He's not flashy by any means, but he's still productive and at worst could serve in the nickle.

At DE, Justin Smith would give the Texans a pair of bookends who both are disruptive forces, and he could be the type of guy who would allow Mario Williams some wiggle room and some space from the double teams.

None of them really jump out at you as a "WOW" signing, but I still think they could be AS good and would marketably upgrade their respective positions.

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I think you're going about it in the right direction...if we were on the edge of the playoffs this year and looking to win our division...by all means go after the big guys..

truth of the matter is thats a another 2years or more away....we need as many upgrades as we can get. we're rebuilding and getting quality starter all through the draft. I like getting 4 guys that would help out for the price of 1. They are a lot less expensive and fewer teams competing for them.

Toro said:

Just to further elaborate on my original post here of who I wanted to see Houston go after--

We all need to take a look at free agency by a realistic, but need based plan. Obviously someone like Lance Briggs or Asante Samuel (or Nate Clemens) would make a big splash and have the headlines ringing, however when you evaluate what the Texans need versus what cap space they have, it's not economically possible to get one of those two, while still having cap space to upgrade at other positions, or room to sign the draft picks.

I know my list of names mentioned hardly would make much of a splash in the headlines, but I think the names I threw out there would be servicable upgrades and would be economically affordable.

When setting up the list, I looked at Safety as more of a "need" than CB. I think Dunta Robinson is the leader of the secondary and should remain as so. However, every great leader has help, and I think Kenny Hamlin would be that "second in command" type guy who helps in coverage and would allow CC Brown and Glenn Earl to continue in their growth and development, and would also take pressure off them.

At CB, I penciled in Kenny Macklin. He's not flashy by any means, but he's still productive and at worst could serve in the nickle.

At DE, Justin Smith would give the Texans a pair of bookends who both are disruptive forces, and he could be the type of guy who would allow Mario Williams some wiggle room and some space from the double teams.

None of them really jump out at you as a "WOW" signing, but I still think they could be AS good and would marketably upgrade their respective positions.

Click to expand...

Honestly this is along the lines I'd be looking for. I like the Justin Smith pick specially if we get a Dlinemen in the third or go after Redding or Sands. While it wouldn't be an all pro bowl line... it'd be a line that could get pressure on the QB outside and push up the middle in the running game.

I like the secondary moves and think i like Earl a lil better at SS.I liek the Hamlin move and wonder how much that would cost us But Macklin is a guy that i could deal with a solid second tier corner who would do enough to force people at times to throw to Dunta's side.

What do you think about Linebacker? Thinking Diggs would be a solid addition here. I'm alos quietly wondering...if we leave Ryans at MLB. I know before the injury Wali Rainer looked like a decent mike.

With these dfensive transactions it really solidifies the defense in a division with MAnningand Young and the Running Game Jacksonville will start to feature and they have a solid young receiving corps there. If we can't win games in our division don't expect better then 6-10 again.

Food for thought too...if Russell and Quinn are gone and people hesitant to pick up Troy Smith and I don't know how i feel about the Kolb Pick. Rohan Davey is UFA from Arizona and behind Leinert and Warner....I think with the tutledge he's had to get there he'd made more progress then in Colelge and i liked him in College. Just a thought.....

Couple of things, 1st we do not have the cap space to make a splash, we still need to get rid of some dead salary around here before we add a big splash. Casserly was a great GM, not.

2nd. We do not need another SS. remember this name in the draft Sabby Piscitelli might slip to day 2 and he can cover and has size. Might go in the 3rd. Also watch for Michael Coe to move up some draft boards, while Daymeion Hughes may drop a round or so, another to start watching AJ Davis.

3rd Stop looking at Cincy defenders, they run a 3-4. We do not need anymore tweeners. Now if we could add Cory Redding to the DL mix. He can move outside on 3rd down and act as an end or inside to get a speedy guy inside. I would like to add Terdell Sands to that mix. Would give us a line Weaver, Sands, Redding, Willaims. Backed up by Kalu, Johnson, Maddox, Babin. That could be a very good rotation of guys.

FA to watch: Orlando Huff Cards OLB, Cato June Colts OLB (not likely), Robert Griffith Cards FS (older). Terrence Holt Lions FS, Quintin Mikell Eagles DB.

I am hoping Smith is able to keep bringing in guys that can play that are not the huge named guys.

This thread is not living up to its title. THEREFORE:

I propose a straight up swap - David Carr for Tom Brady.

Please_Evolve said:

Honestly this is along the lines I'd be looking for. I like the Justin Smith pick specially if we get a Dlinemen in the third or go after Redding or Sands. While it wouldn't be an all pro bowl line... it'd be a line that could get pressure on the QB outside and push up the middle in the running game.

I like the secondary moves and think i like Earl a lil better at SS.I liek the Hamlin move and wonder how much that would cost us But Macklin is a guy that i could deal with a solid second tier corner who would do enough to force people at times to throw to Dunta's side.

What do you think about Linebacker? Thinking Diggs would be a solid addition here. I'm alos quietly wondering...if we leave Ryans at MLB. I know before the injury Wali Rainer looked like a decent mike.

With these dfensive transactions it really solidifies the defense in a division with MAnningand Young and the Running Game Jacksonville will start to feature and they have a solid young receiving corps there. If we can't win games in our division don't expect better then 6-10 again.

Food for thought too...if Russell and Quinn are gone and people hesitant to pick up Troy Smith and I don't know how i feel about the Kolb Pick. Rohan Davey is UFA from Arizona and behind Leinert and Warner....I think with the tutledge he's had to get there he'd made more progress then in Colelge and i liked him in College. Just a thought.....

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Took the words outta my mouth, except with the way Ryans performed last year, I would leave him where he is.

You all act like that there is a huge difference between free safety and strong safety... I play free safety, and trust me, there really isn't much of a difference. In a cover 2, the Strong Safety just covers the side with more receivers. Glenn Earl played free safety in college and was a ball hawk at notre dame leading notredame 9-0 at the begining of the 2003 season.

My point is: A safety is a safety, only in cover 4 is their a difference, where a strong safety has to be a little more physical to key off a TE.

yourfavoritetexan42 said:

You all act like that there is a huge difference between free safety and strong safety... I play free safety, and trust me, there really isn't much of a difference. In a cover 2, the Strong Safety just covers the side with more receivers. Glenn Earl played free safety in college and was a ball hawk at notre dame leading notredame 9-0 at the begining of the 2003 season.

My point is: A safety is a safety, only in cover 4 is their a difference, where a strong safety has to be a little more physical to key off a TE.

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I'm afraid that in the NFL the difference between safeties is much different than in high school. The FS typically has much better coverage skills and can cover the deep middle of the field, while the SS typically has to be able to step up into the box, be more physical, and stop the run. The issue is you need to have at least one safety with solid coverage skills to play over the top or be the last line of defense in the passing game, and this safety is almost always the FS. We currently do not have a safety on our roster that meets this requirement. Both Brown and Earl are both physical safeties with limited coverage ability that would be better suited at SS.