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Texans place Franchise Tag on D Rob today.

Spike said:
This was the right move for the organization. Obviously, efforts were made to arrange a longer term deal. You have to believe if the Texans knew Dunta was back to full strength, this would have gotten done. Now we have 16 more games to make that determination.

Let me just say - I think his attitude is terrible. This is a business...big business, which will allow him to get paid a ton of money for one year's worth of work that is sufficient to keep him comfortable the rest of his life. The Texans promised him? Come on - all you can promise to do is negotiate in good faith. He and his agent should have made a promise not to entertain any other offers past the deadline, and this wouldn't have been necessary.
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I'm not surprised by his attitude. All he did was express frustration and disappointment with the tag. I would expect that. I think Barrett had the best post about this, and I agree entirely with him. I also want to know why nobody picked up the phone and notified Dunta this was happening... However, my guess is that his agent was notified and his agent didn't get the news to Dunta.
 
Why isn't anyone talking about how Rick Smith supposedly told Dunta he wouldn't be franchised only to end up doing it anyways...
 
Totally agreed. The guy hasn't hardly played in the last two years and we've had to suffer through his absence and he is really lucky that the team is holding him in such high regard especially when he isn't worth near a 9 to 10 Million dollar salary. I'm glad we tagged him and all and think it needed to be done, so we can evaluate him for one more season before deciding what we think he is worth but he needs to come to reality and realize that there is not a huge market out there for him after that injury and we have shown a lot of confidence in him. He needs to show more confidence in the organization now and prove that he is a pro bowl calibur type of player if he wants to get a long term contract like one.
 
Well after coming off the injury, STFU and play....He's not getting that kind of $$ until he can prove himself this season, then start asking for more $$.. Honestly, this is why sports is rubbing me the wrong way... He's getting a 7 million dollar raise and he still fires his mouth off !!
Man, if you are not happy, fine, play your ass off this year and show everyone what ya got..then if you must leave, see ya...thanks for the years of service !!!
 
Polo said:
Why isn't anyone talking about how Rick Smith supposedly told Dunta he wouldn't be franchised only to end up doing it anyways...
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There are numerous posts in this thread referencing Dunta's assertion that Rich Smith lied, so I don't really know what you mean by your comment.
 
Polo said:
Why isn't anyone talking about how Rick Smith supposedly told Dunta he wouldn't be franchised only to end up doing it anyways...
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The problem here is that his agent told Dunta what the Texans said, so we are getting into territory where we are not sure what really happened. I personally been situation where a phrase like "we would rather not use the franchise tag" gets translated into "The Texans won't use the franchise tag"

that said, do I think the Texans are beyond directly lying or "changing thier mind after looking at the market" (insert you own BS phrase)? No.
 
Polo said:
Why isn't anyone talking about how Rick Smith supposedly told Dunta he wouldn't be franchised only to end up doing it anyways...
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That is just it we do not know that for sure. The crack reporting staff at the chronicle did not ask Rick Smith about it or ask Dunta agent if that was actually the case or did the agent lie to Dunta.
 
Polo said:
Why isn't anyone talking about how Rick Smith supposedly told Dunta he wouldn't be franchised only to end up doing it anyways...
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Rick Smith has done and will continue to do what is best for the team.

Are we sure that Rick Smith said that? The is a train of though out there (there being the interwebs) that Dunta's agent told him that Rick Smith said he wouldn't use the tag.

as Jerome Solomon said:
http://blogs.chron.com/jeromesolomon/2009/02/post_81.html

The franchise tag is the biggest baddest weapon a team has in this type of negotiation. It's like your father's belt. Would your father ever say, "I promise I won't pull out my belt?" He is more likely to say, "Don't make me go get my belt," right?

You take the franchise tag off the table, and you don't have hand in the negotiations. You keep it in your back pocket, and the players is under pressure to get a deal done.

Taking it off the table makes no sense.

Rick Smith isn't that stupid.

But Dunta says Smith made that promise to his agent Jason Chayut, and even as shady as some agents can be, Chayut has no reason to invent such a tale. This is more than a little miscommunication. It's just strange.
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I think both sides are just taking a hard line in the press in terms of negotiating a potential new contract.
 
Well John McClain said that he was gonna ask Rick and Gary about that at the press conference so we'll see...
 
Specnatz said:
That is just it we do not know that for sure. The crack reporting staff at the chronicle did not ask Rick Smith about it or ask Dunta agent if that was actually the case or did the agent lie to Dunta.
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Smith and Kubiak are in Indy and will be doing their Combine interview today. McSloth said he was going to make it a priority to ask about the promise to Dunta.

I reckon we'll hear about the interview later on. I'm not sure what time they're up.

*edit: Polo beat me to it. :)
 
Would it be such a horrible thing is Smith did tell Dunta that he wasn't going to use the tag, and then changed his mind as the free agent market started to sort it out and there are no viable replacements for Dunta on the market?
 
I think those that want to make the argument that Dunta is just what he can while he can because the organization is not going to care about him if he gets hurt need to remember how we treated Dunta while he was rehabbing.

If you recall, there were many posts on this board about the advantages and disadvantages, the possibilities and impossibilities of letting go of Dunta because he could possibly never come back from the injury or be the same Dunta.

The Texans were at a crossroads then, and decided to show that loyalty at a time that Dunta's future was VERY uncertain by keeping him and not cutting him.
 
Polo said:
Dunta is better than a second corner.
If you put Dunta on any respectable defense then I think opinions of him change a bit.

If you put him on a defense like the Ravens, Titans, GreenBay, Vikings and I think he's a star...

It was widely reported that Dunta would have been a top free agent assuming all the players with expiring contracts hit the market...As in one of the top 3 or 4...

If we don't give Dunta the money, another team will...And I think that team would get their money's worth...
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But he's not a lock down #1 either. He is decent in coverage, but he can get picked on. We'll see with new DB coach/DC if anything changes.

Polo said:
Why isn't anyone talking about how Rick Smith supposedly told Dunta he wouldn't be franchised only to end up doing it anyways...
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I'm sure Justice is getting ready to post a BLOG about how Rick Smith is a insecure liar blah blah....Its Pro Football, shocker they lie.
 
Specnatz said:
Why the hell didn't he ask that yesterday after he had talked to Dunta, what a freakin dumbass.
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I don't want to sound like I'm taking up for McLame, but for the Texans sake I hope Smith and Kubiak are busy looking at potential players rather than taking time to answer McLame's questions.
 
HOU-TEX said:
I don't want to sound like I'm taking up for McLame, but for the Texans sake I hope Smith and Kubiak are busy looking at potential players rather than taking time to answer McLame's questions.
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I'm pretty sure the NFL schedules their press conferences at the combine, and I'm pretty sure the NFL makes them attend said press conferences. Or in other words, I don't think the press conferences Smth and Kubiak have today are an option, they are mandatory.
 
HOU-TEX said:
I don't want to sound like I'm taking up for McLame, but for the Texans sake I hope Smith and Kubiak are busy looking at potential players rather than taking time to answer McLame's questions.
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In his article he has a quote from Rick Smith so where did he get that from?
 
Hoth-Boy said:
I'm pretty sure the NFL schedules their press conferences at the combine, and I'm pretty sure the NFL makes them attend said press conferences. Or in other words, I don't think the press conferences Smth and Kubiak have today are an option, they are mandatory.
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I know this. As I stated above, I'm not sure of the time they are scheduled.
 
some news:

According to McClain, Dunta never said he found out about the tag through the media. In fact, McClain swears he knows that not to be true from Dunta's mouth. I told McClain that I saw it in the story from NFl.com/ Yahoo, and he rightly pointed out that it wasn't a quote for Dunta.
 
WolverineFan said:
Only an NFL athlete could complain about making a guaranteed $10 million dollars in one year. Freaking prima donnas.
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I think Dunta's upset because he feels he was lied to or at least misled. He really likes Houston and the organization and wants respect. I don't think his feelings have much to do with the money (except that he wants a long term deal). He's a very straightforward, tell it like it is person and he expects the same in return. The details (what was said behind closed doors) are hard to know, so most of this is speculation.

BigBull17 said:
But he's not a lock down #1 either. He is decent in coverage, but he can get picked on. We'll see with new DB coach/DC if anything changes.
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The thing about the franchise tag is more about the value that particular player has to the team... not overall league value. A lot of the guys getting paid Top 5 money aren't true lock down #1 corners. Dunta isn't this but he has just as much value to the Texans due to our current CB situation, other areas of need we have to address, and maybe even the market of CBs out there we'd look at to replacing him.
 
dalemurphy said:
some news:

According to McClain, Dunta never said he found out about the tag through the media. In fact, McClain swears he knows that not to be true from Dunta's mouth. I told McClain that I saw it in the story from NFl.com/ Yahoo, and he rightly pointed out that it wasn't a quote for Dunta.
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That's such good news. I feel like the Texans' front office are classy. When it's something like this, I think you HAVE to tell the parties involved first. It's like any job/business decision in life. For instance, if your moving to a new job/company... it's probably better to tell your boss first before letting him/her hear about it elsewhere. Other wise you burn bridges. In this case it's the other way around. If there's a business decision to be made, it may be nice for the management to tell those involved before blindsiding them with a company wide email.

A little unrelated but sorta related: Is it true Tracy McGrady made the announcement he'd be out the rest of the season and would require surgery before he told Adelman/Morey? Is it true they found out on ESPN? If so, that's absolutely insane.
 
WolverineFan said:
Only an NFL athlete could complain about making a guaranteed $10 million dollars in one year. Freaking prima donnas.
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Give me a break! If you knew you were worth $25 million in the marketplace and someone used a legal tool to keep you and only give you 40% of that money, you wouldn't have a beef with that?

if you answer that you wouldn't, one of two things are true:

1. you're a liar
2. you're nuts

Money is all about perspective. I guarantee that there are plenty of people in the world with much, much worse economic circumstances than you that would question how you handle and value money. Does that make you a prima donna?
 
Well yesterday I kind of went off. The truth is, this is the closest thing to a free market economy left. Whatever Daunta can get he's worth. I think he's not getting that bad of a deal at 9mil. The injury wasn't his fault, but it is his problem. We want to see if he's back. If he's actually back, he'll get paid. If he's not, he got paid 9mil to find out if he was or not. From our prespective that is a good deal.

At the same time, he knows he's probably worth more than the 9mil. We'll have to wait and see what he's really worth. "Sorry Daunta, if you want guaranteed money today, you're going to have to take less than you think you're worth. If you're really worth what you think you are, come out, play for a year and prove it."

I also think there is a bit of posturing going on here. We slap him with the tag. He says "I don't know if I want to play in houston now". Both are smoke and mirrors. He'll get signed for somewhere between 19 and 21 mil is my guess.

In summary, we don't know what he's worth. At worst, he's worth a guarantee of about 12 mil. At best, its probably about 23-25. If we work out a deal between now and then it should be in the 19-20 range. We'll give him more than the low end if he'll accept less than the highest possibility. Both sides should absorb equal risk. The league has given the team a tool in the form of the franchise tag, to find out for sure what he's actually worth. If neither side agrees on the risk they are willing to take in this situation, he should play for the 9 mil, audition for us, and we'll pick up the discussion next year.

Mike
 
dalemurphy said:
Give me a break! If you knew you were worth $25 million in the marketplace and someone used a legal tool to keep you and only give you 40% of that money, you wouldn't have a beef with that?

if you answer that you wouldn't, one of two things are true:

1. you're a liar
2. you're nuts

Money is all about perspective. I guarantee that there are plenty of people in the world with much, much worse economic circumstances than you that would question how you handle and value money. Does that make you a prima donna?
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I usually agree with you but asking for perspective on money at that amount does not equate to me. It's one thing to try and size the amount down to well if I am making 7.50 an hour and I know i am worth more and can get 10.50 an hour but my current employer legally blocks me that's one thing. That extra 3.00 an hour means a LOT.

Now if i am making 3.25 MILLION a year and I think overall i am worth much more and I am sure on the market I can get more. However, my current employer blocks me from seeing my market value(for ONE year) BUT, gives me 9 MILLION for that year. Would i be upset?

Heck no! Difference is with the second scenario I'm not struggling to make bills. Not struggling to see how I am going to make tuition, much less how I am going to pay it off later.

Perspective would have Dunta go look at the unemployment lines around the country. Perspective would have Dunta reading the headlines saying 600,000 jobs lost last month. Perspective would have Dunta looking at people like my sister: single mom, working part time, going to school full time and taking out school loans for a better future.

Screw Dunta and his perspective. Take the 9 million. Shut up and play.
 
Goldensilence said:
I usually agree with you but asking for perspective on money at that amount does not equate to me. It's one thing to try and size the amount down to well if I am making 7.50 an hour and I know i am worth more and can get 10.50 an hour but my current employer legally blocks me that's one thing. That extra 3.00 an hour means a LOT.

Now if i am making 3.25 MILLION a year and I think overall i am worth much more and I am sure on the market I can get more. However, my current employer blocks me from seeing my market value(for ONE year) BUT, gives me 9 MILLION for that year. Would i be upset?

Heck no! Difference is with the second scenario I'm not struggling to make bills. Not struggling to see how I am going to make tuition, much less how I am going to pay it off later.

Perspective would have Dunta go look at the unemployment lines around the country. Perspective would have Dunta reading the headlines saying 600,000 jobs lost last month. Perspective would have Dunta looking at people like my sister: single mom, working part time, going to school full time and taking out school loans for a better future.

Screw Dunta and his perspective. Take the 9 million. Shut up and play.
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He's going to play. When he made the comments, he prefaced it by saying that he knows it's a lot of money and he's excited about the money, but he's upset because he felt he was dealt with dishonestly. Honestly, if I was in his position, knowing his career could end on any play, I would be doing what I could to get the guaranteed money. Furthermore, I'd be very upset if I was told they wouldn't tag me and then they did at the last minute.

You know, it's not all about buying nice cars. I'm sure he has a list of things he wants to do in the community, for friends and family, etc... If he sits out and refuses to play then I would be upset. For expressing frustration, I don't undertand why people have a problem with it. He's not being a jerk and using those phrases like, "I gotta put food on the table". He's just angry because he felt he was treated dishonestly and it could cost him $10 million, as a result.
 
dalemurphy said:
He's going to play. When he made the comments, he prefaced it by saying that he knows it's a lot of money and he's excited about the money, but he's upset because he felt he was dealt with dishonestly. Honestly, if I was in his position, knowing his career could end on any play, I would be doing what I could to get the guaranteed money. Furthermore, I'd be very upset if I was told they wouldn't tag me and then they did at the last minute.

You know, it's not all about buying nice cars. I'm sure he has a list of things he wants to do in the community, for friends and family, etc... If he sits out and refuses to play then I would be upset. For expressing frustration, I don't undertand why people have a problem with it. He's not being a jerk and using those phrases like, "I gotta put food on the table". He's just angry because he felt he was treated dishonestly and it could cost him $10 million, as a result.
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People are upset because he's voicing frustration at getting paid 9 million for a season in a bad recession.

9 million a year is going allow him to put " a lot of food on the table". I'd understand if he was a UDFA or a late round pick whose career might end at practice or on one play. But after he signed his rookie contract I really doubt he'd ever have to worry about "putting food on the table" again.

If being treated dishonestly still net me that kind of contract.... again I'd be fine with that. He can dress it up any way but at the day he's likely going to get paid more then most of the posters here will see in a lifetime and he's frustrated by that.
 
Goldensilence said:
9 million a year is going allow him to put " a lot of food on the table". I'd understand if he was a UDFA or a late round pick whose career might end at practice or on one play. But after he signed his rookie contract I really doubt he'd ever have to worry about "putting food on the table" again.
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There's a huge misconception when it comes to professional sports players and their salaries. Everyone assumes they're making so much money and that they are living all fine and dandy. The truth is SO many football/basketball players are actually struggling to get by. Struggling... I just used that term extremely loosely. It's not like they have millions saved up in their savings account.

To all of us, it seems like so much. Even rookie contracts... I'd LOVE to be making $300K a year! But in actuality that money goes quickly. Many of these players come from nothing. Even if nothing, the vast majority, their families never had much growing up. When a player finally makes it, they aren't being asked to provide for Family and friends... it's assumed. EVERYBODY comes out of the wood work and is getting some sort of share. Mom, dad, brothers, their possies, etc.

It's not uncommon for sports players to have to take out loans b/c they are "being taken advantage" of and then they have to repay their debts as they get paid. A lot of the guys are 21-26 years of age and all of a sudden they're making more money than they can dream of. They go out and are spending $20K+ on their credit cards a month, buying this and that.

Now you can fault them for for Giving their money to family/friends, you can fault them for not having a budget/being good with money, you can fault them for spending WAY beyond their means. I'm not excusing that one bit but I can see where they are coming from. They come from families that make $20-$40K a year and have to feed 5 mouths to all of sudden being the baby making all the money for the whole family, paying for everyones stuff. I would suffice to say that if you take the average person and double their salary.. they will not live in their means. They'll overspend, they'll blow all the money. How many normal Americans are in over their head in debt because of this? A LOT. It's not b/c they aren't making enough, it's because they don't know how to be smart with their money.

These players are all playing for their second contract. That's when they FINALLY hit it big, if they're smart can begin wiping out most of their debt, they are a little older, a little more mature, etc.

Does Dunta fall in this category? I have no idea. But he played his heart out for his second contract. I'm not saying what's fair/not fair, right or wrong. The injury is a huge concern. But I can imagine he's ready for the long term deal that finally takes care of him and his family. Family in pro sports is not just wife and kids. It's wife, kids, momma, mom's husband, uncle, aunt, cousins, close friends, etc.

EDIT: sorry this kind of turned into a rant. I just kept writing and writing. Goldensilence, this wasn't really meant for you but just addressing a big issue that so many people have a problem with (and understandably). Just quoted you cuz you were the most recent post :)
 
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When fans rip into players for contract negotiations, you are essentially saying that you'd rather the owners have more money. Why isn't anyone outraged that Bob McNair is squabbling over a couple million dollars when he's a billionaire. As a fan, if you have a problem with the amount of money that is in the game, then don't spend your money watching it. I quit on baseball largely because of the money. Those guys are prima donnas and I could no longer, in good conscience, support the product.

However, I just don't see reason for outrage with Dunta. Again, his only complaint, is that he was treated dishonestly. That's a reasonable complaint.
 
dalemurphy said:
When fans rip into players for contract negotiations, you are essentially saying that you'd rather the owners have more money. Why isn't anyone outraged that Bob McNair is squabbling over a couple million dollars when he's a billionaire. As a fan, if you have a problem with the amount of money that is in the game, then don't spend your money watching it. I quit on baseball largely because of the money. Those guys are prima donnas and I could no longer, in good conscience, support the product.

However, I just don't see reason for outrage with Dunta. Again, his only complaint, is that he was treated dishonestly. That's a reasonable complaint.
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When Dunta Robinson agreed to sign a contract and play in the NFL he knew the rules. He knew the rules of his rookie contract, he knew the rules of free agency, etc. When he signed on that dotted line, he was agreeing to follow those rules.

The franchise tag is a rule put in place by the owners and the players association. Both sides agreed on it, and when Robinson signed the contract, he was agreeing to abide by the rules as well.

I am tired of the players complaining about the franchise tag. If they hate it so much, why did they agree to put it into the CBA? Its not like McNair found some major legal loopholes to trap Robinson here. He always knew the tag was a possibility and he always knew how it works. It was designed exactly for people like him.

I don't care about the money. I don't care if hes complaining even. What bothers me is that he's threatening to stop participating in team activities because he doesnt like that the team used a legitimate mean to keep him here. Thats BS in my opinion.

If you don't like the franchise tag, get the NFLPA to change it, put it into your contract that a team can't use it on you, or play somewhere else.
 
dalemurphy said:
When fans rip into players for contract negotiations, you are essentially saying that you'd rather the owners have more money. Why isn't anyone outraged that Bob McNair is squabbling over a couple million dollars when he's a billionaire. As a fan, if you have a problem with the amount of money that is in the game, then don't spend your money watching it. I quit on baseball largely because of the money. Those guys are prima donnas and I could no longer, in good conscience, support the product.

However, I just don't see reason for outrage with Dunta. Again, his only complaint, is that he was treated dishonestly. That's a reasonable complaint.
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Does McNair negotiate player contracts?

I thought Smith did?
 
dalemurphy said:
When fans rip into players for contract negotiations, you are essentially saying that you'd rather the owners have more money. Why isn't anyone outraged that Bob McNair is squabbling over a couple million dollars when he's a billionaire.
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We have cap implications to think about here too. If McNair just gave him whatever he wanted, we'd be screwed.
 
Dunta said he was mad because they lied to him...Not because they tagged him...
 
gtexan02 said:
When Dunta Robinson agreed to sign a contract and play in the NFL he knew the rules. He knew the rules of his rookie contract, he knew the rules of free agency, etc. When he signed on that dotted line, he was agreeing to follow those rules.

The franchise tag is a rule put in place by the owners and the players association. Both sides agreed on it, and when Robinson signed the contract, he was agreeing to abide by the rules as well.

I am tired of the players complaining about the franchise tag. If they hate it so much, why did they agree to put it into the CBA? Its not like McNair found some major legal loopholes to trap Robinson here. He always knew the tag was a possibility and he always knew how it works. It was designed exactly for people like him.

I don't care about the money. I don't care if hes complaining even. What bothers me is that he's threatening to stop participating in team activities because he doesnt like that the team used a legitimate mean to keep him here. Thats BS in my opinion.

If you don't like the franchise tag, get the NFLPA to change it, put it into your contract that a team can't use it on you, or play somewhere else.
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Well, a few things. He's worked off only one contract in his career: his rookie contract. When he signed that, he was powerless. He wasn't part of the NFLPA and had nothing to do with the negotiations that put that rule in place.

Second, if he chooses not to participate in OTAs and/or training camp, he's using a legal tool for negotiations as well. Certainly, he has a right not to show up for voluntary workouts.

He's made no threats other than to express how upset he is. He did say that he's committed to his teammates and the city of Houston. As a fan, I want Dunta to be at the team functions, prepare and have a great season. I also want him to sign an extension that doesn't hurt our ability to sign FAs and keep our players going forward. All that being said, I'm not going to turn on him simply because he makes my life as a fan a little uneasy. He's done nothing wrong and I respect him as a man and I realize he has priorities in his life higher than keeping me entertained and happy as a fan. So, any fans that are jealous of the money he's making or upset because he's made their fandom inconvenient- get over yourself and grow up!
 
dalemurphy said:
Well, a few things. He's worked off only one contract in his career: his rookie contract. When he signed that, he was powerless. He wasn't part of the NFLPA and had nothing to do with the negotiations that put that rule in place.

Second, if he chooses not to participate in OTAs and/or training camp, he's using a legal tool for negotiations as well. Certainly, he has a right not to show up for voluntary workouts.

He's made no threats other than to express how upset he is. He did say that he's committed to his teammates and the city of Houston. As a fan, I want Dunta to be at the team functions, prepare and have a great season. I also want him to sign an extension that doesn't hurt our ability to sign FAs and keep our players going forward. All that being said, I'm not going to turn on him simply because he makes my life as a fan a little uneasy. He's done nothing wrong and I respect him as a man and I realize he has priorities in his life higher than keeping me entertained and happy as a fan. So, any fans that are jealous of the money he's making or upset because he's made their fandom inconvenient- get over yourself and grow up!
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Just out of curiosity, are you sure training camp and OTAs are optional? I was under the impression that they were mandatory
 
You all know that I'm a huge D-Rob fan. Imo, he's the heart and soul of this franchise. He should try to get as much money as he possibly can with his new contract. With that being said, I have to admit I'm a little pissed at his reaction to getting tagged. There are much better players than Dunta that have had the franchise tag slapped on them. And they all seem to react the same way about it even though they know it's perfectly legal for the front office to choose this option with them. My biggest problem is that if the Texans did offer him a contract similar to the one Gamble signed and his agent turned it down, then that's Dunta's problem, not the Texans. A contract that size for a guy who still has somewhat of an uncertain future at this point as far as his production level is more than fair. There are better ways of going about things than the way he chose. I'm preety sure that the tag was more of an insurance policy for the Texans to keep other teams away while they hammer out a long tem deal, which is smart business on their end. What it's sounding like is that Dunta doesn't want to be a Texan any longer. If that's the case then screw him. Let him go somewhere else.
 
Ole Miss Texan said:
There's a huge misconception when it comes to professional sports players and their salaries. Everyone assumes they're making so much money and that they are living all fine and dandy. The truth is SO many football/basketball players are actually struggling to get by. Struggling... I just used that term extremely loosely. It's not like they have millions saved up in their savings account.

To all of us, it seems like so much. Even rookie contracts... I'd LOVE to be making $300K a year! But in actuality that money goes quickly. Many of these players come from nothing. Even if nothing, the vast majority, their families never had much growing up. When a player finally makes it, they aren't being asked to provide for Family and friends... it's assumed. EVERYBODY comes out of the wood work and is getting some sort of share. Mom, dad, brothers, their possies, etc.

It's not uncommon for sports players to have to take out loans b/c they are "being taken advantage" of and then they have to repay their debts as they get paid. A lot of the guys are 21-26 years of age and all of a sudden they're making more money than they can dream of. They go out and are spending $20K+ on their credit cards a month, buying this and that.

Now you can fault them for for Giving their money to family/friends, you can fault them for not having a budget/being good with money, you can fault them for spending WAY beyond their means. I'm not excusing that one bit but I can see where they are coming from. They come from families that make $20-$40K a year and have to feed 5 mouths to all of sudden being the baby making all the money for the whole family, paying for everyones stuff. I would suffice to say that if you take the average person and double their salary.. they will not live in their means. They'll overspend, they'll blow all the money. How many normal Americans are in over their head in debt because of this? A LOT. It's not b/c they aren't making enough, it's because they don't know how to be smart with their money.

These players are all playing for their second contract. That's when they FINALLY hit it big, if they're smart can begin wiping out most of their debt, they are a little older, a little more mature, etc.

Does Dunta fall in this category? I have no idea. But he played his heart out for his second contract. I'm not saying what's fair/not fair, right or wrong. The injury is a huge concern. But I can imagine he's ready for the long term deal that finally takes care of him and his family. Family in pro sports is not just wife and kids. It's wife, kids, momma, mom's husband, uncle, aunt, cousins, close friends, etc.

EDIT: sorry this kind of turned into a rant. I just kept writing and writing. Goldensilence, this wasn't really meant for you but just addressing a big issue that so many people have a problem with (and understandably). Just quoted you cuz you were the most recent post :)
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Good post.
 
Let's go to the next possible step. Dunta gets a offer sheet comparable to other CB signing. We can get a 1st this draft and another next year. That is pretty tempting. A package could be offered to trade up and get Malcom Jenkins. Do you take the picks or match the offer?
 
badboy said:
Let's go to the next possible step. Dunta gets a offer sheet comparable to other CB signing. We can get a 1st this draft and another next year. That is pretty tempting. A package could be offered to trade up and get Malcom Jenkins. Do you take the picks or match the offer?
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I would take the picks in a heart beat.
 
All in all, if Rick Smith promised not to use the franchise tag, that would have been stupid, moronic, idiotic, etc. People would be calling for his head on a platter if he allowed Dunta to just get up and leave with zero compensation.

If anything, I would do the opposite and THREATEN to use the franchise tag. If guys hate it so much, they would sign the long term deal.
 
badboy said:
Let's go to the next possible step. Dunta gets a offer sheet comparable to other CB signing. We can get a 1st this draft and another next year. That is pretty tempting. A package could be offered to trade up and get Malcom Jenkins. Do you take the picks or match the offer?
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I would take it in a heartbeat too. But if Dunta goes to another team like in this scenario, it's more likely the Texans and that team will negotiate some sort of trade. It may not be two 1st rounders but something "close" in value to that. We may even feel fine getting a 1st and a 2nd rounder or something... who knows.

But I'd find it unlikely any team would give up two 1st round picks for him, they'll try to negotiate.
 
Ole Miss Texan said:
I would take it in a heartbeat too. But if Dunta goes to another team like in this scenario, it's more likely the Texans and that team will negotiate some sort of trade. It may not be two 1st rounders but something "close" in value to that. We may even feel fine getting a 1st and a 2nd rounder or something... who knows.

But I'd find it unlikely any team would give up two 1st round picks for him, they'll try to negotiate.
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Nobody is going to give up a 1st round pick and sign him to a huge deal. There's no chance! He hasn't proven himself post-injury on game tape. His injury is the reason we have locked him up- a team from the outside isn't going to throw guaranteed money that we aren't willing to and also give us quality draft picks.
 
badboy said:
That's my thought. Next year does not excite me especially as deep as this draft is. What would you do? I realize it depends on where the picks are but a lot of potential.
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SS Eric Berry from Tennessee would be a guy I'd consider trading up for next year if we got most of the problems addressed on D this season.

This year add a FA D-lineman, 1st rd SLB Brian Cushing, 2nd round CB like DJ Moore, Sean Smith?

Then next year move up for Berry and we'd have a TERRIFIC Defense. That doesn't even address the fact we'd have an extra 1st rounder this year.
 
dalemurphy said:
Nobody is going to give up a 1st round pick and sign him to a huge deal. There's no chance! He hasn't proven himself post-injury on game tape. His injury is the reason we have locked him up- a team from the outside isn't going to throw guaranteed money that we aren't willing to and also give us quality draft picks.
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I would find it hard to believe too. However unlikely, some team could be desperate enough. He could have more immediate impact as a CB on a team than a 1st rounder like Vontae Davis though.

I would think that IF for some reason we agree to some trade, we'd have to address the CB situation early this year. Reeves and Bennet would be starters. Faggins would be out there a lot until Molden comes back healthy and that's assuming he'd be 100% too. Yikes!
 
dalemurphy said:
some news:

According to McClain, Dunta never said he found out about the tag through the media. In fact, McClain swears he knows that not to be true from Dunta's mouth. I told McClain that I saw it in the story from NFl.com/ Yahoo, and he rightly pointed out that it wasn't a quote for Dunta.
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You are correct:

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/afcsouth/0-7-559/Texans--Smith-responds-to-Robinson-s-charge.html

This has some stuff that clears up a lot of the questions.
 
dalemurphy said:
Nobody is going to give up a 1st round pick and sign him to a huge deal. There's no chance! He hasn't proven himself post-injury on game tape. His injury is the reason we have locked him up- a team from the outside isn't going to throw guaranteed money that we aren't willing to and also give us quality draft picks.
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If he is not worth a 1st this year, why all the screams about not giving him a big long term deal?

IMO he should be worth a top 25 first this year and maybe a 3rd.
 
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