Maybe Drafting / Fa More Bad Luck Than Bad Decisions?

[ket222]

I may be reaching here, but it's seemed to me over the last few years that very often 1) we wanted a player or position in the draft but just missed him (last year, we wanted a DE but the good DEs were taken just before our second pick, so we chose Hageman); 2) we wanted a good FA but there weren't any that year for our position of need (I forgot the name of the awful DE from Minnesota we picked up, but I remember there just wasn't any other great DEs available)?

I've just had this feeling several times over the years, and I wonder if we've just not had good opportunities for getting the players we need? I mean, how many great DEs are available every year? Maybe the NFL is now like the NBA and there just isn't a lot of available talent each year to 32 teams? I guess I'm now feeling there just isn't ANY HOPE because it's just too hard to fill all our positions of need over the next couple of years (esp. since the quality of our best players like Roddy seem to be going downhill--they have to be replaced too).

Is it just a situation of the 'rich get richer'--a very few elite teams have the personnel to be good every year?

[Ghosts of Glanville]

I'd like to think its luck, but the pattern is there. Too many guys with injury issues, too many undersized players, too many taken based on their wonderlic scores instead of raw ability and drive.

If you're going to make a bet like the Julio trade, you'd better be thinking several moves ahead and have answers for the holes caused by lost draft picks. Ray Edwards and Peter konz were not adequate answers.

[ket222]

The shame of it is that we may have wasted great draft opportunities last year in a deep draft that third round pick just angered me it seemed so stupid-always a guy out of nowhere that none of the draftnuts are talking about also wasn't there anyone besides Hageman who was more of a sure thing? it seems we need SEVERAL drafts with high draft picks (requiring terrible losing records) to get the talent we need!

[Godzilla1985]

If luck were all there was to it anyone could be a good GM. TD gets paid the big bucks to evaluate talent and pick the guys we need especially in the later rounds and FA.

[Psychic Gibbon]

You can construct a team of All Pros and this coaching staff would **** it up.

[JDaveG]

I may be reaching here, but it's seemed to me over the last few years that very often 1) we wanted a player or position in the draft but just missed him (last year, we wanted a DE but the good DEs were taken just before our second pick, so we chose Hageman); 2) we wanted a good FA but there weren't any that year for our position of need (I forgot the name of the awful DE from Minnesota we picked up, but I remember there just wasn't any other great DEs available)?

I've just had this feeling several times over the years, and I wonder if we've just not had good opportunities for getting the players we need? I mean, how many great DEs are available every year? Maybe the NFL is now like the NBA and there just isn't a lot of available talent each year to 32 teams? I guess I'm now feeling there just isn't ANY HOPE because it's just too hard to fill all our positions of need over the next couple of years (esp. since the quality of our best players like Roddy seem to be going downhill--they have to be replaced too).

Is it just a situation of the 'rich get richer'--a very few elite teams have the personnel to be good every year?

We don't even kick the tires on FA DEs other than Osi. We didn't make a pass at Dumerville, Peppers, Avril, etc. There is talent out there. Not game-changing, Pro Bowl talent in most cases. Usually it's just some solid contributors who can help. But if we'd bother to pick up a couple of those guys it would help. Because I guarantee you Elvis Dumerville won't suck as bad as Kroy Effing Bierman.