Offseason Plan 3.0 - Special Xmas Edition

[milkman]

Originally Posted by RunKC

Howard is the best DL on the team and has transformed this defense to elite status.
I'd overpay to keep him if it meant letting Poe walk.

I generally stay away from commenting in these draft threads until the season is over at the very least, but I just have to comment here.

Jaye Howard is a very good piece in this defense, and is improving, but Hali's resurgence, and the overall defensive resurgence coincided with the return of Sean Smith the lineup, and Dontari Poe's return to health.

Howard a a very good player.

Poe is a difference maker.

[kccrow]

Originally Posted by milkman

I generally stay away from commenting in these draft threads until the season is over at the very least, but I just have to comment here.

Jaye Howard is a very good piece in this defense, and is improving, but Hali's resurgence, and the overall defensive resurgence coincided with the return of Sean Smith the lineup, and Dontari Poe's return to health.

Howard a a very good player.

Poe is a difference maker.

Agreed.

[RunKC]

I think that Poe is important for this defense, but I would not be in favor of bringing him back if he wants a huge salary like I expect him to. He's a rare specimen who will want to be paid somewhere in Gerald McCoy's neighborhood IMO.
I know people are saying Poe is better than Howard, but I don't think that's true. Poe is the better pass rusher than Howard, but Howard is a better run stuffer.
I think that Howard is a better pass rusher than Poe is a run stuffer. Obviously we would all love to keep both, but we've already got significant money tied up in Bailey and soon to be Howard (we've already made it a priority to get this done).
Keep in mind that we've shown a penchant for finding good DL (Howard/Williams) and we've also shown a huge amount of development in all of our DL, so could we move forward without spending a ton on a player with back issues?

As for CB, I do want Sean Smith back, but it's probably not gonna happen. This draft class is filled with great talent at CB and I'd like to take one early on pure principle, however I think we'll be forced to take one as a need, as I don't see any real talent in FA that would come at a significantly cheaper price than what Sean Smith will cost.

I think this draft will be all about depth. I think we need depth at these 3 positions more than anything else:

-Speed receiver to replace Avant/backup returner. (Braxton Miller would be great). I want to build this WR core up like the Steelers and Cardinals.
-CB, even if we keep Sean Smith.
-OLB. I don't care if Tamba comes back. We need insurance in case Ford struggles in the future, or another injury occurs in the future.