hondo in seattle

What are the chances he never plays again? Personally, I think they're small. But if it did work out that way - what a great cautionary tale for the NFL's future instant millionaires.

I hate being a realist when realism seems like pessimism. But watching what Rex did with the D last year, and now watching the exodus of quality backups with no influx of talent to counterbalance it, it's hard to be optimistic right now.

And we're not going to win without them if we replace them with players who are even worse. What positions have we upgraded this offseason so far? Making the roster worse than '15 doesn't sound like a sound plan for creating positive changes in the outcome.

The offseason isn't over yet but so far it looks like our bench has been decimated. If we have an injury bug again this year, we're screwed.

Maybe you're right. But Bill Belichick disagrees with you otherwise the Pats wouldn't have offered Hogan $12 million.

I'm not enjoying the off season. We're losing some valuable backups - not to mention MW - and too spent to sign anyone.

Scott is probably right but maybe - just maybe... * Rex pulls his head out of his butt and shows us why some people label him a "defensive guru." * Roman gets his system really going and Shady rushes for 1800 yards. * TT - with the advantage of his 2015 experience - takes a big leap forward this year and establishes himself as a top-tier QB. * Tom Brady suffers a season ending injury. Without a few maybes and ifs, we're extending the steak.

I'm thinking the roster will be worse but I'm hoping the coaching will be better. I'm hoping Rex and Roman will be more effective entering their second years with new systems. I'm also hoping the roster is actually better in this sense - we're healthier this year. Maybe the 11 we typically line up on each side of the ball is better this year. Maybe these are all silly hopes but I'm a fan.

I get Chandler's point of view and Sestak was an amazingly productive pick for the 17th round. But I also see OJ and Bruce as great picks. OJ was one of the best players ever. Bruce was one of the 2 best DEs ever. Any pick that nets you a generational talent is a good pick, even if it came at the top of the draft. With no offense meant toward Kelly, Cookie, or any other Wall-of-Famer, OJ and Bruce were - in my mind - the two best Bills of all time. Thus they were very good picks.

Huge roll of the dice by Houston. Regardless of how it turns out for them, it's bad for us.

Suh and WIlliams are both great players - when motivated. It'll be interesting to see if Gase and his defensive staff can bring out the best in them. Even if they can, Tannehill is still the QB. Can they score?

This is very good news!

I think it's interesting that people have strong opinions about why Marrone left. He hasn't talked much about it and all we can do is guess. It's all just speculation. My own strong opinion is this: I'm glad he left.

Is Swann saying he doesn't think Megatron deserves to be in the Hall? Or is he wondering if the Selection Committee will elect Megatron when Johnson doesn't have a Super Bowl on his resume? “Hard to say he's going to be in the Hall of Fame when his team hasn't gotten to a Super Bowl, and they don't get a chance to get into the playoffs. And that's for a lot of guys across the board. If he had broken every passing record, like Danny Fouts, who didn't win the Super Bowl, then yeah, I think there's going to be consideration.” http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/25479434/hall-of-fame-wr-lynn-swann-doesnt-think-calvin-johnson-belongs-in-the-hall

They actually predict he'll sign for about $7m/year. Still, ouch. A dreadful 2015 dropped Mario's market value from the mid 8s to the mid 5s. He should have plenty of interest though, even at age 31, which will likely find him a contract in the $7M per year range when it's all said and done.

89-87 in 11 years in the NFL. He's an average NFL coach... which I think would make him an above average college coach if coaching at that level required the exact same skill set which it doesn't. His success will depend on his ability to recruit players and subordinate coaches to his program. And his ability to relate to - and understand - younger players.

TT... 4 year, $64 million?

8-8. There are things to like about both Rex's and Roman's resumes. And things to dislike. There are things to like about this roster. And things to dislike. In mind, it adds up to relentless mediocrity. Man, I hope I'm wrong!

According to one poll in 2014, 53% of blacks thought OJ was guilty. You're right about the trend. As years go by, more and more blacks think OJ is guilty. But in the same poll, 83% of whites report thinking OJ was guilty. There's still a racial divide, and that divide has more to do with the police than OJ himself. Blacks, in general, trust police (and - by extension - the evidence they collect) than whites. Cops like Mark Fuhrman are the reason why. http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2014/06/09/majority-of-african-americans-now-say-simpson-was-guilty/ Another poll with similar results: https://today.yougov.com/news/2014/06/12/oj-simpson-case-and-race-20-years-later/

Well played? He crapped on his friends/teammates who worked hard for a winning record and playoff berth. Mario's selfish.

I haven't heard - or read - anyone saying that Mario's lack of effort was the single most important reason the defense struggled last year. But it certainly didn't help and his lack of effort was disturbing. Whatever disagreement he had with Rex, he owed it to the fans and - especially - to his teammates to play harder. I'm glad he was cut.

I think he fits best on a 3-4 team because that's apparently the only alignment he'll commit any effort to. Whatever his skill set is doesn't much matter if he only applies effort in schemes he likes. He was horrible in Rex's scheme, regardless of the alignment, because he chose to be.

Yep. I could rarely understand him but I appreciated his play the last couple years - when he was healthy. Worth $4 million? Probably not - at least not in our cap-restrained universe. But I worry that we don't have enough good corners any more in a passing league.

Barry Speck, another member of Simpson's dream team, did a masterful job of casting doubt on the forensic evidence. Since there were no eyewitnesses, this was a very big deal. Cochran and Speck created enough doubt about the evidence as collected by LAPD to win acquittal. Incidentally, about 60% of blacks at the time thought OJ was innocent. http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2014/06/09/majority-of-african-americans-now-say-simpson-was-guilty/ 88% of blacks thought the jury reached the right decision. http://www.cnn.com/US/OJ/daily/9510/10-06/poll_race/oj_poll_txt.html Mark Fuhrman was one of the LAPD investigators on the case. While the jury didn't know this, Fuhrman admitted to using the word, "n*gg*r" multiple times and pleaded the 5th when asked if he ever fabricated evidence to arrest and convict black suspects. Fuhrman's obvious racism and admission that he'd fabricated evidence in the past made people wonder if he tampered with the evidence at this murder scene.

Most law enforcement officers are good, competent, honorable people. But this guy? Wow.