Post#213 » by CrimsonCrew » Thu Mar 17, 2022 1:39 pm
I don't entirely agree on Buckner. Yes, they could only pick one of Buckner or Armstead. But if you don't think their cap situation played a role in which one they kept, you're kidding yourself. They knew their cap situation wouldn't allow them to match the contract another team would offer him. So they kept the lesser player on a back-loaded contract. And now Armstead is going to be something of an anchor around their necks.
And this is not meant to dump on Armstead. He had a good season, and some extremely good stretches. He's a big part of our playoff run, though he also has a tendency to disappear for stretches, and unfortunately one of those stretches was the NFCCG. Buckner is clearly the superior player, and for the next two seasons, his annual cap hit is about $5 million less than Armstead's. Meanwhile, we pushed almost $7 million of Armstead's contract into a voidable year, and we're going to have to eat that cap hit at some point.
Though honestly, I was thinking a little bit about it yesterday. In some ways, having Jimmy around still may be a good thing because it is restraining their spending right now. They can't dive headfirst into FA while he's still on the roster, so they'll have to target value FAs, which is what they should be doing anyway with so many at least decent players getting cut and the roster in good shape, but not looking at a major SB push this year (unless Lance blows everyone away, in which case one additional high-priced FA probably won't be the difference).
Finally, the FO appears to be making some good choices, letting an OG and DT walk while targeting a CB, then letting the market come to them a bit. It seems too coincidental that they're showing that degree of patience when their ability to spend is restricted (though apparently they were right there in the Chandler Jones sweepstakes, so maybe that's a flawed impression).
Anyway, what's done is done, and they have given themselves a little more time to move off Jimmy and get something in return. Bridgewater went to Miami, so there really aren't any even fringe starting-caliber guys left, unless you count Mariota or an injured Winston. And they've demonstrated to teams that they're willing to eat Jimmy's cap for at least a little longer, so the market may heat up for him again. Let's hope. After the draft, there won't be many teams that both have the cap space to fit Jimmy in and that didn't address QB in the draft (granted maybe with a guy who isn't ready to start).
