Updated: Redskins Trade for Vikings DE Erasmus James

Originally Posted by steveo395

Erasmus James' career has been very similar to the beginning of Kyle Vanden Bosch's career, who is a pro bowler now. Vanden Bosch was a second round pick of the cardinals, who tore 2 ACLs and an MCL in his first 3 seasons and got cut after his 4th season(2004). Then in 2005, the Titans picked him up for the vet minimum and he started all 16 games and got 12.5 sacks.

James was a first round pick who tore 3 knee ligaments in his first three seasons and now he got traded to the Redskins to try to resurrect his career. It might take all of this year to get healthy, but it is definitely possible for him to come back and play very well. I'm not saying he is gonna be a pro bowler like Vanden Bosch, but it is possible. It has been done before.

Kyle Vanden Bosch
Erasmus James

Originally Posted by skinsnut

Schneed, you never cease to amaze.
Excellent analysis on the cap...this makes me feel better...since I think this guy is only worth about 500k

Originally Posted by RIGGO/NYC

I don't have much of a problem with taking a chance on him, except for the fact that we could have paid him the vet min, instead of 1 mil base he is do now, due to the trade. I hope he does not make the team because I think Wilson will be a 6-9 sack guy and I want Evans and Buzbee to be the other 2 DE backups. WE NEED A NICKLE DB!!!!! We were 16th in pass defense last year and we had Taylor and Rogers for half a season(ranked No.1 before they went out). We are going to have our season ruined by bad pass defense!!!! That is the only issue I have with Cerratto is that he is not good at evaluating a roster. Any GM would notice this glaring need, but Cerratto sees Springs and Smoot and thinks we are set, when any elite football guy would say wow we are thin at DB. We can not put our season on the hope that Springs will play 16 games, which he has only done 1 time, since signing with Washington. We should have drafted Carl Nicks instead of Tyron and then got Tyron in the 6th, where he was projected to go, or drafted Scandrick in the 4th over Tyron because he is so much more physically gifted. I like Synder's enthusiasm, but he and Vinny just do not know how to properlly evaluate a roster, particullarly depth and they do not understand the value of certain positions, just the obvious positions like WR and RB.

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Let's recap:

If he doesn't make our 53 man roster, we don't give up any picks/compensation to the Vikings.

If he doesn't make our 53 man roster, we don't carry any salary cap charge. If he makes the team, we're only responsible for his $1 million base salary this season, which is non-guaranteed.

After signing rookies, we will have $4-5 million in cap space. So if he beats out a Ryan Boschetti or an Alex Buzbee and makes the team, salary cap space will not be an issue.

So... what exactly is the downside here? Nothing. You either got yourself some DE depth with upside, or you say bye bye to him and you've still got the same personnel (and draft picks) you had yesterday.

Will it change our season, almost certainly not. But there's no downside at all.

Originally Posted by RIGGO/NYC

huh, actually I have more than 10 posts, but please do not refer to this passing of time as a carreer. But back to my point, this trade should have been done for a nickle, instead of a washed out pass rusher. I know some idiot is going to say washed out is inaccurate, due to his age of 25, but he is washed out and will do absolutely nothing with the skins. Just to show you how stupid this front office is, he will make the team, costing us a 7th rounder and have no more than 2 sacks. This is Jerome Mathis all over again, but at least Mathis was the vet min and did not cost a pick potentially.

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Thanks for the kudos.

I'm thinking it honestly wouldn't matter if the guy makes $2.5 million this year (he doesn't, he makes $1.0). We're going to have plenty of cap space going into this season, he could make starting DE money and we'd have no problem carrying it. You would theoretically only lose out on the opportunity to sign someone else to an extension to make use of that space, or lose out on the opportunity to bolster next year's cap limit by playing with incentives for your current players. But other than that, the guy could make a buttoad and it wouldn't matter, as long as he fits under our cap. Which is no problem.

The way I see it, Vinny saw this as an opportunity to get a guy who played for one of the coaches who sees talent in the guy, with nothing to lose from a cap standpoint, with little to lose from a pick standpoint, and who could potentially add depth. It's not hard to understand from my perspective, the bottom line is:

- James is talented
- James is always injured
- Who knows how James will look in camp
- If he looks good and healthy, a 7th rounder and $1.0 million is a small price to pay for a young hungry talented DE
- If he looks hurt/crappy, you cut him and lose nothing

No brainer. Good move.

Originally Posted by skinsnut

That, my friend, depends on how much we are paying him.
I say...1 sack for every 150k...for example, if we are paying him 600k...he better give us 4 sacks

Originally Posted by That Guy

so for 1.5mill we get 10 sacks? for 3mill we get 20? that's the best value ever :P

i mean, there's not a single team that'd pass on paying a DE 16$mill a year if he got 32 sacks every season (and that's over three times your retail sack value).

the problem, of course, is that the NFL sacks for cash equation isn't linear by any means.

also, such a thing would be a bit shortsighted, since, by that standard, making 8 game winning tackles while having 0 sacks would be a failure to attain value...

Originally Posted by Dirtbag359

And by that rational theres little incentive to play the run, since the players livlihood would be based on how many sacks he got.

Originally Posted by skinsfan69

I remember this guy coming out of Wisconsin a few years ago and he was a monster. But he hasn't been able to do much of anything since he turned pro and there is a reason Minn basically cut the guy. Good pass rushing DE's in the NFL don't get cut or traded for 7th round draft picks if they're any good. I just don't think this guy can play at the NFL level.