BullBuchanan

And that will keep happening as long as we can't get to the QB.

We've gotten more than anyone ever thought possible out of Benford, Hamlin,Lewis and Ingram and Dane Jackson before them - all 6th, 7th, and UDFAs. They're look just as effective back there against elite teams, if not better, than when we had prime Tre White.

I agree that stopping the run is important, but finding those guys is a lot easier, and historically a lot cheaper, than finding guys that can sack the QB. I really like having a guy like Rousseau on a rookie deal or somewhere around $10M/yr. The opportunity cost of paying him pass rusher money is that now you have to pray you find an all-pro EDGE in the draft when you're going to be at a disadvantage. I would have rather went after a guy like Garret and then drafted a Rousseau replacement which would have been far easier.

McDermott's specialty is maximizing DBs. There's no way I'd pay a DB top money when we've been able to effectively turn day 3 picks and UDFAs into competent players. Spend that money on the trenches.

Did I say that? Why? he has 4.5 less sacks total over the last 4 years and one less forced fumble. Rousseau is clearly a tier above him, but you're paying an extra 325% for that extra tier. Crosby meanwhile is making like 60% more than Rousseau, and that's including diminishing returns for premium players.

How is it a team friendly deal? They paid a DE who has never eclipsed 8 sacks 20 million US dollars. If they signed him to the deal Bernard got, that would be team friendly. AJ Epenesa is almost as useful in the passing game, and we signed him for 6m vs 20m.

there are 30 other teams with zero super bowls too?

$20M for a guy whose primary skill set is stopping the run in 2025 and a guy who you can guarantee will be AWOL when you need him most? C'mon.

I guess they're gonna try running it back for the 6th time.

Stefon Diggs, Amari Cooper, and Curtis Samuel having their worst stretch of games as pros isn't a tell? How about Dalton Kincaid regressing to be one of the most useless receiving options on team? Brady has done two things really well. He's gotten the run game going (helped significantly by our OL improving and James Cook getting strong enough to break arm tackles), and he successfully coached Josh to be smart with the football and take what the defense gives you. He's still as far from an offensive mastermind as an OC could be, imo.

Except an onside kick actually makes sense in the context of the game,a s every kickoff features a live ball. A 4th and 15 onside kick makes the NFL look like some arena league.

A lot of receivers can get 1k yards and 10 TDs if Josh throws them the ball. Josh can't sack opposing QBs. Get the pass rusher.

Not sure any of it matters as long as Lawrence is still there. Dude is the bust of the century.

What team couldn't use an 11th slot receiver?

AJ Epenesa is straight up better and $19M cheaper. Bosa was shot by year 3.

They keep saying it because he has outperformed the pick and is liklely to keep doing so for at least the next two years, so why would you take lesser value and all the associated risk? It's opportunity cost. If you bought a lottery ticket for $5 and you won $10, would you sell me the winning ticket for the original $5 just so you could maybe get a higher return? If James Cook re-entered the draft right now and everyone knew exactly what he is, he'd probably go in the top 10 picks.

I won't argue that much, except Karlaftis has the clutch gene. If you put Rousseau on the Chiefs, I don't see them putting Rousseau ahead of him. Karlaftis at the $3.8M he was making this season is phenomenal, but at $22M? It would be a disaster. You nailed the key though - he has Chris Jones - we don't. That's everything. If you can find that guy, or a combo of players that add up to him in aggregate, sell the farm to go get him instead of paying 2/3 the contract for a guy who is merely "pretty good".

the 2nd last pick in the 2nd? No. He cost us more than that and he's in his prime. A top 10 pick in the 2nd? I'd think about it for sure.

1. Nope. 2. Yea, he was really "good". We need great. He would have been a backup on the Eagles or Chiefs. That's not good enough if you want to beat those teams.

Because those 3 points may as well have been 3 touchdowns for as close to we are to overcoming them. And then that team that beat us proceeded to get dismantled like they were a wild card team playing the 1 seed. If you don't think the same thing would have happened to us, you weren't paying attention. You're clearly one of many people who seem to think we were "just a play away". We weren't. We're not at that level, and we never have been. We're a top 4-5 team in the league right now and have been, but climbing up each rung of that ladder is like climbing from 32-14. We're already a very optimized machine so needing to add the extra juice we have to to get over the hump is way harder than you think it is. You should already know this by the results we've seen the last 5 years.

It depends what your expectations are. I'm on record saying that the earliest we have a reasonable shot to win the SB is 2026. I think we're 4-5 impact players away. If you want a real shot this year, you'd need to trade for just not one, but 2 impact players and then find a way to draft another 2 while filling the rest of our gaps with B+ players. That would be akin to an "all-in" move, which Beane has repeatedly come out against, so I'd put it in the long shot category. More likely they take a shot on a guy like Malcolm Koonce and/or Osa Odighizuwa and then draft some players in the first 100 picks that they hope have upside. I would like to see them take a look at Andre Cisco and then see if they're in a position at the end of the year where a great draft + 1 or 2 marquee FAs give them a shot. if they don't hit on their picks and mid-tier FA gambles this year, that will push them back to 20207 at least. Need to hope that Kincaid rebounds, Bishop and Carter aren't busts and Coleman has meaningful value on this team.

And I say you're settling for a roster building strategy that's proven to be unsuccessful. A DE whose specialty is stopping the run isn't worth $22M a year. That guy is your Phil Hansen, not your Bruce Smith. You want a run stopping DE? Go get a guy like Shaq Lawson for $1M a year like we did last season. The cheifs completely shut down Barkley and they got blown out. It does not matter in any way that is significant. Groot isn't a bum, but he's not a #1 DE on a championship team. You want to win a Super Bowl in today's NFL? Build a D line that can rush 4 and can't be stopped. That's how the Giants beat Brady and it's how the Eagles annihilated Mahomes. That means letting players like Groot go and bringing in guys like Crosby/Garret and pairing them with guys like Dexter Lawrence. In this case, good is the enemy of great.

If it were up to you, we would have made Trent Edwards the highest paid player in the league.

I think Cook is as much a product of our staff and system as he is an elite level talent. He's gotten significantly better since his rookie season which I attribute largely to his physique and playing style - things which I put under the bucket of development. I can absolutely see Davis developing in a similar, albeit different way. You'd definitely have to make another investment in the position, but I don't see that as a huge concern. Have him play out this year and get his replacement in 2026 if needed.

He's easily replaced in the sense that having a great RB doesn't typically have a big impact on winning Super Bowls. Given that should be our number 1 goal right now. not a lot of sense in doing that. Barkley was the 1st "elite" back since 2013 to win the SB, and he was invisible, rushing for 2.3YPC. I'm sure his mere existance had a big effect on the gameplan, which has value, but he didn't directly. I'd love James Cook for another 4 years at 9M a year, but I'm not paying him more than Barkley, Taylor, Kamara, Jacobs, Henry, or Mixon. Let the Raiders pay him $15M a year and we can keep trying to win a chip without him.