In a Perfect World: A Look Back at the 'Skins Major Offseason Moves

I wondered why you've been so quiet, Ramseyfan...

I've been prepping for law school and busting my butt on this never-ending case at the law firm I'm working at.

No offence to Ramseyfan, but all I can say is thank God your not the Redskins GM. You would rather have a bunch of unproven talent then proven leaders and winners. While I would agree that I would have liked to not give up 2nd and 3rd round picks, that was the price to get proven players. Living in Jacksonville I have had the opportunity to watch Brunell every year since '95. He is a winner and will mentor Ramsey very well. A 3rd round pick is a small price to pay for a QB that will lead us to the playoffs then show Ramsey how to follow in his footsteps. He is far better than any of the free agent QB's that came available ie... Garcia, Couch, Testaverde, Blake. As for trading Champ Bailey who no longer wanted to be a Redskin even after Joe Gibbs came back, I can only say See Ya! Clinton Portis is a rare talent that you would never dream of being able to get before you heard the deal was in the works.As far as drafting a RB to carry the load for Gibbs' offense, I didn't see a back in the draft I would trust. There are alot of backs that look great in college and get fans all excited about there potential and then don't do anything in the Pros ie... Thomas Jones 1st RND, Curtis Enis 1st RND, Rashad Sallam 1st RND, Ron Dayne 1st RND, Tim Biakabatuka 1st RND, TJ Duckett 1st RND just to name a few. Brunell & Portis will make things much easier for WR's Coles, Gardner, McCants, & Thrash. When all is said and done Redskins Fans will be glad that Joe Gibbs is calling the shots in DC, and until I have 3 Super Bowl trophies in my show case I will refrain from second guessing him.

The way I look at the new players is they will help us be a better team. To take the team to the next level at this stage, we need a super talented quarterback who has more than the comparatively tiny experience that Pat Ramsey has. Brunell is a guy that I believe will excel and be one of the top quarterbacks in the league this year. He is special and he is a perfect fit for a Joe Gibbs run offense, especially with the awesome protection Joe Bugel's men will provide for him. Ramsey will be there to fill in if Brunell does get nicked up, and meanwhile he is getting the training that really almost any very young quarterback should get before being thrown into the fire.

Regarding his contract, the key element is not the total dollar figure of the contract but the way it is structured. The way you compared it to Bulger is not the way a capologist would look at it.

Is he worth it? I believe he will be crucial in our success and that he would be much better for our team than any other quarterback we could have brought in here.

Regarding Clinton Portis and Champ Bailey - Bailey's attitude would have been a painful detriment to what the Redskins are building right now in my opinion. He didn't want to be here, and I think he will be much happier in Denver where he'll be the toast of the town. There was no question he had to go in my view. Clinton Portis provides incredible ability and I don't have a problem with adding the draft choice for him. Bailey we have already replaced with some very capable defensive backs led by Shawn Springs.

No offence to Ramseyfan, but all I can say is thank God your not the Redskins GM.

Yeah thank god we have Danny Snyder running the show because without him, we wouldn’t have been winning all these years since he took over.

You would rather have a bunch of unproven talent then proven leaders and winners.

No, I’d rather have proven leaders and winners, but you simply can’t afford to do that constantly a la Snyder-GM approach.

While I would agree that I would have liked to not give up 2nd and 3rd round picks, that was the price to get proven players. Living in Jacksonville I have had the opportunity to watch Brunell every year since '95. He is a winner and will mentor Ramsey very well. A 3rd round pick is a small price to pay for a QB that will lead us to the playoffs then show Ramsey how to follow in his footsteps. He is far better than any of the free agent QB's that came available ie... Garcia, Couch, Testaverde, Blake.


He is better than the other free agent QBs and I never said he wasn’t. But he’s 34, cost a bundle, and has a history of injuries.

As for trading Champ Bailey who no longer wanted to be a Redskin even after Joe Gibbs came back, I can only say See Ya! Clinton Portis is a rare talent that you would never dream of being able to get before you heard the deal was in the works.As far as drafting a RB to carry the load for Gibbs' offense, I didn't see a back in the draft I would trust. There are alot of backs that look great in college and get fans all excited about there potential and then don't do anything in the Pros ie... Thomas Jones 1st RND, Curtis Enis 1st RND, Rashad Sallam 1st RND, Ron Dayne 1st RND, Tim Biakabatuka 1st RND, TJ Duckett 1st RND just to name a few.

I think Jackson will be more than good. I’d like to have Peyton Manning, Patrick Ramsey, Marvin Harrison, Jeremy Shockey, Clinton Portis, etc. on my offense but you just can’t afford to do that. You can’t be stacked at every position with great free agents, you need those young, unproven players to build a franchise…..unless you’re talking fantasy football.

Brunell & Portis will make things much easier for WR's Coles, Gardner, McCants, & Thrash. When all is said and done Redskins Fans will be glad that Joe Gibbs is calling the shots in DC, and until I have 3 Super Bowl trophies in my show case I will refrain from second guessing him.

Wow, well then, I guess there isn’t much to discuss. I’m not the type to defer to anyone. If I think someone, even someone like Gibbs is doing something stupid, I’ll say so. Gibbs, who is probably one of the best coaches in NFL history, makes mistakes and when it comes to the salary cap, he’s as much of a novice as I am.


Sorry about the sarcasm….no offense intended.

Regarding his contract, the key element is not the total dollar figure of the contract but the way it is structured. The way you compared it to Bulger is not the way a capologist would look at it.

Even if a contract is heavily backloaded, which Brunell's is, you've still got to look at that $8.6 million signing bonus and know that we are going to take a $5 million cap hit if he's cut after 3 years. You can't avoid that unless you plan on having Brunelll here for the next 5 or 6 years.

Regarding Clinton Portis and Champ Bailey - Bailey's attitude would have been a painful detriment to what the Redskins are building right now in my opinion. He didn't want to be here, and I think he will be much happier in Denver where he'll be the toast of the town. There was no question he had to go in my view. Clinton Portis provides incredible ability and I don't have a problem with adding the draft choice for him. Bailey we have already replaced with some very capable defensive backs led by Shawn Springs.

Bailey did have to go and I said asmuch in my original post. However, I just don't think we did what was best (even if what we did was good).

BTW, I did cast the only vote endorsing my plan vs. Snyder/Gibbs'. :thumb:

he might not post every day, but man when he does what a post!

and you have no gaurantees that you're choices would even be available... what if minn's offer wasn't on the table? how can you be sure they'd agree to the terms etc... its too hard to guess how 400 variables would shake out...

I personally do believe brunell got too much, but he is the best of the bunch, but I would do the portis trade everytime. Danny is paying over 10 mill for coaching isn't he? why skimp on the tools that the staff needs to win... there are serious personal decisions that will (most likely) have to be made because of how the FO has been operating, so Danny has to minimize the possibility of failures and take proven players when possible. All IMHO though.

It’s true that Portis gives us a proven performer and that Stephen Jackson is far from a guaranteed success. But, remember that this difference is reflected in the two types of players’ contracts. We paid through the nose to get Portis whereas the Rams will pay a pretty modest price for the draft’s top back. The simple fact is that you can’t keep trying to get proven performers via free agency, they are too costly and if they blow out a knee you up sh-ts creek without a paddle.

I heard on PTI today that Jackson is holding out and that Martz is ready to move on without him. How modest did you say that contract would be??
I don't know but I,ll take Portis!!
I do think that we paid way to much for Burnell!!! I would rather have signed Jeff Garcia for free. But over all I like our moves. :dallas: :dallas:

I heard on PTI today that Jackson is holding out and that Martz is ready to move on without him. How modest did you say that contract would be??
I don't know but I,ll take Portis!!
I do think that we paid way to much for Burnell!!! I would rather have signed Jeff Garcia for free. But over all I like our moves. :dallas: :dallas:

It's a little early to say that Jackson is holding out, camp hasn't even begun, Martz will not move on without him, and his contract will be much, much, much cheaper than Portis'. I'm not saying Jackson will be the next Clinton Portis or that he will come dirt cheap. I'm also not knocking Portis (God knows I'm a huge fan). I also said in my original post that I like the deal and think Portis will do a TON to help both our offense AND the defense, I just don't think it is the best option we had.