Missing Champ Bailey...

smoot will pick up the slack Springs will be a wash. we walt harris we will we survive.

I think Springs will see a revival in his career now that he's playing back in his hometown.

Truth is most teams' playoff contentions hinge on the fact that one or two franchise caliber players stay in the lineup throughout the season. Injuries are part of the game. And the best teams have quality depth and great coaches. Where do we stand? As far as Bobby Taylor is concerned, his contract is so front loaded we probably wouldn't have been able to afford him. Winfield on the other hand...

Champ Bailey did not wanna be here. You could tell throughout the whole season last year. As much as I miss him, we're better off without him. We have more cap room, a great rb, and two quality corners. Champ wanted outrageous money and we couldn't give it to him.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the league Charles Woodson is demanding to be the highest paid CB in the league (and by extension of all time) and Chris McCalister is going to have to settle for the franchise tag of 8 Million dollars. It seems impossible for a team to tie up this much cap room for a player who doesn't stop the run or pressure the QB. All cbs get beat. I think that we may be ahead of the curve by trying to field established veterans at reasonable rates.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/trainingCamp04/columns/story?columnist=clayton_john&id=1848424

"You've got a guy in Portis who's done a lot of great things on the field, but you don't know if he's going to last as long as I am" Bailey said. "It's hard to find corners or at least one great one. When you've got a good corner, you've got a good defense. I hope not to dissapoint him"

Uhhhh....last time I checked our defense sucked last year even with Champ.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/trainingCamp04/columns/story?columnist=clayton_john&id=1848424

"You've got a guy in Portis who's done a lot of great things on the field, but you don't know if he's going to last as long as I am" Bailey said. "It's hard to find corners or at least one great one. When you've got a good corner, you've got a good defense. I hope not to dissapoint him"

Uhhhh....last time I checked our defense sucked last year even with Champ.
LOL! Exactly! I guess he doesn't count last year in that statement, because the coaching was so bad. Maybe he should have said, "when you've got a good corner and a good defensive coordinator, you've got a good defense."

I'm not overly worried about Champ's departure. Springs isn't in his class, but he's a solid replacement, and unlike Champ, Springs is overjoyed to be here at home in Washington. Springs also brings a positive energy and vocal component as a leader that Champ definitely lacked.

Last year at this time, I was one of the biggest supporters for re-signing Champ to a long-term deal. But after I watched Champ in training camp last year, during his interviews, and just his overall body language when he discussed his contract situation, it was apparent that he was tired of Washington and was ready to move on. There was no urgency on his part to get a deal done, and he pretty much seemed to not care one bit about being a Redskin anymore. The more apparent that became as the year wore on, the less concerned I was if the Skins were unable to sign him.

The bottom line is, Champ didn't want to be a Redskin anymore, and that's all I need to know to be at peace with his departure. Too many other positive things are happening with this team for me to worry about one guy who isn't here anymore. I hope he enjoys the view from afar as Gibbs leads the Redskins back to respectability, and ultimately, victory.

:httr:

LOL! Exactly! I guess he doesn't count last year in that statement, because the coaching was so bad. Maybe he should have said, "when you've got a good corner and a good defensive coordinator, you've got a good defense."

I'm not overly worried about Champ's departure. Springs isn't in his class, but he's a solid replacement, and unlike Champ, Springs is overjoyed to be here at home in Washington. Springs also brings a positive energy and vocal component as a leader that Champ definitely lacked.

Last year at this time, I was one of the biggest supporters for re-signing Champ to a long-term deal. But after I watched Champ in training camp last year, during his interviews, and just his overall body language when he discussed his contract situation, it was apparent that he was tired of Washington and was ready to move on. There was no urgency on his part to get a deal done, and he pretty much seemed to not care one bit about being a Redskin anymore. The more apparent that became as the year wore on, the less concerned I was if the Skins were unable to sign him.

The bottom line is, Champ didn't want to be a Redskin anymore, and that's all I need to know to be at peace with his departure. Too many other positive things are happening with this team for me to worry about one guy who isn't here anymore. I hope he enjoys the view from afar as Gibbs leads the Redskins back to respectability, and ultimately, victory.

:httr:


I couldn't agree more Crisp. Well put.

Champ who?

champ did not want to be here true thats why i am glad we have portis, but to say springs is eleite is another matter. we beat seattle last year. i dont remember springs making a differnce. every game the skins played champ was on the frontline

Hey, I liked Champ when he wanted to be a Redskin, but I also like Springs. You don't "dis" a guy based on not remembering him make a difference in one game. If that is the case, every fan in NY must see Champ as at the very bottom of the CB pile. Toomer has beaten him regularly for TD's for two seasons!

BTW, JoeCrisp, great post. Nice to hear insight form a hands-on guy.