No one will trade for Watkins’ $21M cap hit next year

yep. We're stuck with that deal. When he's healthy, he's a difference maker.

I think next season, we should draft his replacement.

We need to do the Pats' thing. Reclamation projects on the cheap, solid but aging vets with a little left in the tank to fill spots as stopgaps, and draft solid. No more big contracts unless it's homegrown guys at premium positions that you think you can't replace.

By the way-I think Jones and Hill qualify.

This works but you have to hit on the solid vets or reclamation projects. I got blasted for bring up Amerson and Scandrick but those guys were, are and always will be turds. The fact that the Chiefs get a pass around here for those types of moves that basically helped make an entire position a liability for 4 months is wild to me.

Well, the problem is banking on reclamation projects.

Don't bank on those guys, but you sign them and throw them into the mix and see if they sink or swim.

But say, how about a Chris Long for DE? Proven leader, still had 7 sacks last year, and then pair him with a Jaylon Ferguson in the first? Long's salary was just shy of $3 million last year and ain't going up at 34.

THAT is a Patriots style move. Know what I'm sayin?

Yes thats my argument.... you hafta platoon the vet.

Had they platooned Amerson with a 2nd or 3rd round CB it might not be so bad.

If they platoon Speaks or Kpass with a Chris Long you have all your options covered.

Not really. If you look at the history of the tag, it appears most players negotiate with their team and others until they get a deal, and THEN they sign the tag.

The deadline is July 15th. There have been a TON of tag offers signed on the 14th and 15th over the years.

of course, I say that but still like Landon Collins on a long term deal. But he's 25 and a great player with ties to Spagnuolo.

Read what I said again. He WAS a run-stuffing DE that slid inside.

He never rushed the passer "without his hand in the dirt".

I never said he was a poor pass rusher. I said he'd never played standing up before.

The Chiefs were asking him to do things he'd really never done before.

EXACTLY. In this way, you're less likely to get caught with your pants down if an injury hits, or an aging vet just hits the wall.

Or you have to have backup plans in the draft.

Good teams make the Amerson and Scandrick moves. Some of them actually work out, even for the Chiefs.

The problem is that can't be your ONLY strategy. It has to be multi-faceted. Like Chris said, you can't bank on it. You bank on the draft.

Signing guys like that is more like buying penny stocks.

If the Chiefs intend to tag and trade Ford, they are already talking to teams who may be interested. I suspect they will have a deal in place before the new league year officially opens for business.
Pass rushers of Fords caliber and age rarely become available. I think we will be surprised at what a team will be willing to give up to get him.
Think about it, we picked Dee in the first round and it took him five years to get to this level. So, a team could use its first rounder on an edge rusher and may have to wait years for this kind of production, OR use it on Ford and have him step in immediately!!
I think we will know in early March how this is going to go.

right; so like, somebody like a Chris Long is a perfect stop-gap. team leader, smart player, high motor, good technique, crafty veteran. He's 34, so he's almost out of gas, but he had 7 sacks last season. You pair that with a Jaylon Edwards in the 1st. Now you have plan A and plan B. Young guy learns the ways of the force from the old guy. Long knows he's nearing the end, and might like to add another ring. He made just shy of $3 million last season, with almost the same pass rush production as Houston at $21 million. Win/Win.

this what the Patriots have done for YEARS, with the Rodney Harrison's and Junior Seau types. Once great players with a little left in the tank, plug them in, but draft their replacements at the same time; the kids learn how the legends go about their business and take over when they're ready.

You got blasted because you fail to provide examples of FA/rookie corners that we missed on.

Also, you fail to acknowledge that we upgraded from Amerson, to Scandrick, to Ward, who played as well as anybody we could’ve signed or drafted those last 3 weeks. It clearly wasn’t lost on Veach that we had a hole at corner, hence us trying to sign Kyle Fuller also.

It’s easy to sit there and say they should’ve signed or drafted somebody. Last years free agent and rookie corner classes simply were not very good at all.

The other issue is that the GM can only do so much. He tried to do this exact thing with Berry by both bringing back Parker and bringing in Lucas.

It isn't his fault that Sutton wouldn't get Lucas on the field.