MichiganCardinal

sO tHiS iS wHaT tHeY'vE bEeN dOiNg iNsTeAd oF sIgNiNg fReE aGeNtS?! Makes sense, they earned it. They originally signed six year contacts in 2021, and this is only adding a year, through 2027. So it's likely more of a raise than it is a one-year extension for four years from now. Is this the first Lions coach to get a second contract since Wayne Fontes?

Your #3 should be the best clipboard holder in the building and if that’s what they see in Sudfeld I have no complaints.

Jim Harbaugh won more games, despite being suspended for six of them.

If Ben Johnson didn't run the ball on 2nd down so much, this never would have happened.

It's not bickering about the bickering it's squabbling about the quarreling.

I don't think there is any real evidence that the Lions go about things any differently than any other smart organization. And honestly, if the fringe roster types of John Cominsky, Hal Vaitai, and Charles Harris are annoyed at the expense of the pleasure of guys like Goff, ASB, and Hutch.... oh well. I think this is a mountain out of an ant hill topic that crops up here every offseason.

At least I'm good for comedic relief, if not nuanced discussion.

In both I was referring to trades. I was saying I would be willing to trade for Mack and rework his contract, but would not be willing to trade for Williams.

I think I would counter that I don't think they've ever really given him a jump ball merchant to use. Chark is as close as they got, and he averaged about five targets a game when he actually played.

It's a bit semantical, but I don't think it's injury history that Brad likes (e.g., signing Montgomery was cited to his lack of injury history), but rather that he likes short length, low risk deals that don't foreclose money long-term.

I think he's referring to Williams. But I don't think signing Williams would foreclose the various necessary extensions.

Mike Williams was cut. If he can’t get a long-term deal somewhere, seems like a one-year Holmes classic candidate.

It's not job security but it is added financial security. Even if he is cut even without playing another game for the Lions - or another game in the NFL - that's his money to keep. He's (only?) made about $7MM in his career. It's a cut-throat league where guys leave around age 30 needing to make their career earnings last the next 40-50+ years. Another $500k guaranteed is 1/14 of his total career earnings, and can go a long way.

It's a business at the end of the day. That $2MM might matter at the trade deadline. And the restructure didn't come without benefit to Cominsky too, he got an additional $500k converted to a signing bonus. What if we sign Reader and Mack, and then use one or two of our first three picks on the defensive line? He would be a fringe roster player at that point. I expect Davis will get extended to free up some space too. At 27 and for a 3rd round pick, I doubt he's a one year rental.

Yes, but only if their contract is expiring. Like teams can't reach out and talk to Jared Goff, he's under contract. But as of Monday they could talk to CJGJ, whose contract expires today. Arik Armstead is under contract, but it's already been announced he is going to be released by the 49ers because he refused to take a significant pay cut and he has a $28MM cap hit. Teams can't tamper with him though, because even though the Niners announced they're going to cut him, they haven't yet, so he's still under contract. There is a chance with him too that the 49ers wait until June 1st to cut him. They would spread out their dead cap implications to him if they do.

FWIW

Osweiler was a terrible QB though who no one wanted. He had signed an asinine 4 year / $72 million deal with the Texans in 2016 and got benched for Tom Savage in week 15 of the same year. As opposed to Mack, who is still a high caliber player. The team that acquires Mack - whether by trade or free agency - will want to make use of him. Russell Wilson is someone who would have made more sense for an Osweiler type move, where the Broncos sent him to the Patriots, Titans, or Commanders along with two day two picks. The new team then would have absorbed that astronomical cap hit for the next two years, and either let him compete with their other QBs or just straight released him. I guess the Broncos valued their picks more than their $85MM though, or the other teams didn't want to be weighed down by the cap hit.

I think it's possible a team that is in a position to win now (or thinks they are) with cap space to spare offers a 6th or 7th to avoid a bidding war. The Bears, Seahawks, Raiders, Broncos, Colts, Lions, and Packers all probably qualify.

FWIW regarding Carlton Davis, reading the Bucs message boards there are mixed feelings. They're happy they got the 3rd, but the general consensus is that despite having a rough year last year, particularly in zone coverage, when he was healthy and on the field, he was a very reliable defensive back. For the comparisons being made to Jerry Jacobs, if we had traded Jacobs instead of releasing him I don't think anyone would have been sad.

I'd be pretty surprised if they chose to offload Bosa over Mack. To a certain extent, Horitz and Harbaugh are expected to win now in LA, but it's still a new regime and Bosa is five years younger than Mack. Even beyond their age, Bosa would save them $14MM against the cap; Mack would save them $23MM.

I think Mack actually makes a lot of sense, if he is willing to rework his contract to substantially reduce that cap hit. I might even extend him one year if it could spread that $38MM over the two years or beyond. He's elite against the run, still reliable for double digit sacks, and at 33 isn't going to be demanding a multi-year extension. He just wants a ring. Keenan Allen is a very similar player to ASB. Not to say having two ASBs would be a bad thing, but the roster fit would be kind of weird. I think Mike Williams would make more sense as a Reynolds replacement if he becomes available, but he's not worth anywhere near that cap hit. He's played 16 games in the last two seasons and is coming off a torn ACL... I wouldn't trade for him, but if he is released I would be interested in a one-year deal akin to DJ Chark's two years ago.

The odds of this happening should be zero, but would any of us actually be that shocked if we awoke to this headline on ESPN tomorrow morning?

Given his stance to this point has been “he’s coming back don’t shoot the messenger” I think it signifies something of a turning of the tide, even if minor. Someone told him something.