McLendon visited Packers today

[BlastFurnace]

Per steelersdepot

[salamander]

That's one guy I'm really hoping the Steelers keep around.

[BlastFurnace]

No compensation if he leaves too.

If he leaves, Steelers developed him but never found out how good he was in leau of an over-the-hill Hampton and they get no comp.

[Count Steeler]

Shocking. I guess the theory of keeping him hidden and paying him dirt cheap didn't really pan out.

[Shoes]

Whats shocking to me is giving Hampton the green light over McLendon last season. More shocking stuff to come.... :chuckle:

I still have no confidence in 1st rounders, Hood & Hayward.

[GBMelBlount]

Ugh

[Seven]

Wait what do we have him tendered at?

[salamander]

The Steelers aren't exactly instilling much confidence in me this off season.

[BlastFurnace]

Wait what do we have him tendered at?

1.3 million

[Dwinsgames]

Per steelersdepot


http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000160927/article/steve-mclendon-reportedly-visits-green-bay-packers

so multiple sources now ....

not good

[Seven]

1.3 million

No pick attached to him?

[BlastFurnace]

No pick attached to him?

None

[salamander]

None

:doh:

[blackngldblood]

If it comes down to signing Bradshaw or retaining McClendon, I think I personally want to retain McClendon. The Steelers CANNOT afford to let him go, and I think everyone is about over the Hampton experience. Don't get me wrong, I love the big snack, but its time to move on and Ta'amu isn't ready yet, and quite frankly still seems like a liability at this stage.

[Seven]

None

Christ that was a dumb move. This guy is an asset on the defensive line. Why the fuck are we lowballing him?

[Shoes]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000160927/article/steve-mclendon-reportedly-visits-green-bay-packers

so multiple sources now ....

not good

Wow, did you see that last line?
*They could re-sign Hampton to play out his age-36 season* ............Pardon me while I go barf!

[Psycho Ward 86]

Christ that was a dumb move. This guy is an asset on the defensive line. Why the fuck are we lowballing him?

gee i dont know...


The cap issues are always overplayed. Every offseason they are blown way out of porportion.

lol, if we lose mclendon, now you know why :lol:

[tube517]

LOL Hampton is done. Big Mac needs to be retained. Big Snack needs to retire.

[Seven]

gee i dont know...



lol, if we lose mclendon, now you know why :lol:


You still honestly believe they couldn't find a way around the money? They absolutely could. The problem here isn't money, it's that the team undervalues McLendon regardless of the cap situation. They have undervalued him for two years. In 2011 when no one knew who he was, every fan said he was "too small" and every reporter spelled his name wrong it was obvious to a lot of us that he could really play. But for some reason the Steelers still look at him as some sort of bargain guy that nobody else knows about. That's not the case.

[Dwinsgames]

Wow, did you see that last line?
*They could re-sign Hampton to play out his age-36 season* ............Pardon me while I go barf!



this may be the worst off season in recent memory

[Psycho Ward 86]

You still honestly believe they couldn't find a way around the money? They absolutely could. The problem here isn't money, it's that the team undervalues McLendon regardless of the cap situation.

not. sure. if. serious.

- - - Updated - - -


Wow, did you see that last line?
*They could re-sign Hampton to play out his age-36 season* ............Pardon me while I go barf!

shoot me

[Texasteel]

I nomally think the FO makes pretty goo decitions, but the offers they have given the RFAs this year are confusing at best.

[Seven]

not. sure. if. serious.

If that's the type of post you want to use to support your points, so be it. At least you didn't bring up Mike Wallace this time.


I nomally think the FO makes pretty goo decitions, but the offers they have given the RFAs this year are confusing at best.

The Sanders tender was bad but I could sort of understand them trying to slip that one by the league, but the McLendon snub is baffling to me.

[Devilsdancefloor]

I dont know if i should be angry at other teams or the FO at the moment i am leaning towards the FO. He seen what sanders got and has nothing to lose if they sign him to a contract then it is back to the FO to match. UGH UGH why does this feel like 1984????

[Mojouw]

We aren't talking about Reggie White here. McClendon is to old to really be a prospect anymore and he hasn't been able to unseat an aging and increasingly injured Hampton for a few years running now. Not sure why it matters whether he stays or goes.

[Texasteel]

the media may try to play this down, but in my mind this is worse that loosing Sanders for a 3rd round pick. I can only think that unless the Packers go nuts with their offer, we would match it if we can.

[Psycho Ward 86]

the media may try to play this down, but in my mind this is worse that loosing Sanders for a 3rd round pick. I can only think that unless the Packers go nuts with their offer, we would match it if we can.

and they have all the freedom in the world to go nuts with their offer. nothing we can do but pray for mercy

[Psycho Ward 86]

If that's the type of post you want to use to support your points, so be it. At least you didn't bring up Mike Wallace this time.



The Sanders tender was bad but I could sort of understand them trying to slip that one by the league, but the McLendon snub is baffling to me.

spoke too soon. you think our financial situation is fine because of what past history has dictated and the success we've had while riding the salary cap tight rope. that makes perfect sense. but youve completely neglected abnormalities outside of our financial situation. we dont normally keep so many aging veterans on the cusp of the end of their careers in favor of our young, emerging talents like mike wallace and keenan lewis. Heck, keenan lewis was had for a BARGAIN. And we certainly dont normally come upon the cusp of losing young, emerging talents expected to become starters (emmanuel sanders and steve mclendon) via mike tomlin's "next man up" mantra. Furthermore, we dont normally have such a horde of players being so immature and stirring up trouble (mike wallace with his contract situation, rashard mendenhall with his pouty suspension, taamu with his laundry list of stupidity, chris rainey with his alleged fight with his girlfriend). why are we doing this? lack of draft success and impact players developing far too slowly. The premise of our strategy is to build through the draft and use free agency to patch up some holes. We've visibly failed to do either because were clinging onto declining veterans with barely anything left in the tank for young promising stalwarts that are just getting warmed up. Free agency? For how many "steeler type" free agents weve pursued, weve been able to pick up damn near nothing. And leading the league in restructured contracts isnt healthy for the future either.

there are so many variables that are very clearly interconnected with the financial problems but you dont even bring them up because you seem to think theyre separate issues. if thats not so, id like to hear why you think "the money isnt the problem." Clearly its a problem. And clearly this problem isnt necessary when you look at the comfortable salary cap situations of the patriots, ravens, packers, etc. paired with their success.

[Seven]

spoke too soon. you think our financial situation is fine because of what past history has dictated and the success we've had while riding the salary cap tight rope. that makes perfect sense. but youve completely neglected abnormalities outside of our financial situation. we dont normally keep so many aging veterans on the cusp of the end of their careers in favor of our young, emerging talents like mike wallace and keenan lewis. Heck, keenan lewis was had for a BARGAIN. And we certainly dont normally come upon the cusp of losing young, emerging talents expected to become starters (emmanuel sanders and steve mclendon) via mike tomlin's "next man up" mantra. Furthermore, we dont normally have such a horde of players being so immature and stirring up trouble (mike wallace with his contract situation, rashard mendenhall with his pouty suspension, taamu with his laundry list of stupidity, chris rainey with his alleged fight with his girlfriend). why are we doing this? lack of draft success and impact players developing far too slowly. The premise of our strategy is to build through the draft and use free agency to patch up some holes. We've visibly failed to do either because were clinging onto declining veterans with barely anything left in the tank for young promising stalwarts that are just getting warmed up. Free agency? For how many "steeler type" free agents weve pursued, weve been able to pick up damn near nothing. And leading the league in restructured contracts isnt healthy for the future either.

there are so many variables that are very clearly interconnected with the financial problems but you dont even bring them up because you seem to think theyre separate issues. if thats not so, id like to hear why you think "the money isnt the problem." Clearly its a problem. And clearly this problem isnt necessary when you look at the comfortable salary cap situations of the patriots, ravens, packers, etc. paired with their success.

You wrote a lot of words but didn't say very much. For someone who believes money is such an issue, you sure do advocate spending a lot of it. If you think signing Mike Wallace at $60 million and Keenan Lewis at $26 million would have been solid decisions, well, I really don't know what to say about that.

What "declining vets" are we clinging to? Troy? Take a look at the roster. There isn't a vet on this team costing us more than he's worth besides LaMarr Woodley and maybe Polamalu. And both of those guys still have the talent if they figure out their health issues.

- - - Updated - - -

Oh, that's right. I forgot, Antonio Brown is overpaid and draining us financially. But Mike Wallace is worth $60 million, right? Give me a break.

[fansince'76]

We aren'tl talking about Reggie White here. McClendon is to old to really be a prospect anymore and he hasn't been able to unseat an aging and increasingly injured Hampton for a few years running now. Not sure why it matters whether he stays or goes.

Thank you. Finally a voice of reason. This is kinda why Ta'amu wasn't put on a bus out of town long before now.

[fansince'76]

and they have all the freedom in the world to go nuts with their offer. nothing we can do but pray for mercy

Really? They just gave Matthews close to $70 million. They're about to sign Rodgers to probably the richest contract in NFL history. How much cap space do you figure they have to "go crazy" with?

[TomlinSteelTribe]

Welp, this is about the worst thing that could have happened before Friday. I think it's a pretty big hit if we lose McLendon. We don't want to have to depend on Ta'amu or what's left in Big Snack's tank (big Hampton fan, for the record).

And I'm not trying to get in the way of anybody's dispute, but I'd say the brass choosing such a low tender for McLendon was directly related to the cap issue. Had there been some cash at their disposal, they would have use the second rounder on him and Sanders. These guys are projected to start. They've been groomed and know the system and no longer have to think/react so much on the field. The FO thought they could slip em by, I guess, which is a borderline ridiculous thought, but that's what being poor in the cap world will do to ya.

What was the final verdict on the Ziggy Hood at NT experiment? It would put Heyward on the field more, which doesn't seem like such a bad idea. And I'd agree we need McLendon more than Bradshaw, as much as I want Ahmad in Pittsburgh.

[Seven]

Welp, this is about the worst thing that could have happened before Friday. I think it's a pretty big hit if we lose McLendon. We don't want to have to depend on Ta'amu or what's left in Big Snack's tank (big Hampton fan, for the record).

And I'm not trying to get in the way of anybody's dispute, but I'd say the brass choosing such a low tender for McLendon was directly related to the cap issue. Had there been some cash at their disposal, they would have use the second rounder on him and Sanders. These guys are projected to start. They've been groomed and know the system and no longer have to think/react so much on the field. The FO thought they could slip em by, I guess, which is a borderline ridiculous thought, but that's what being poor in the cap world will do to ya.

What was the final verdict on the Ziggy Hood at NT experiment? It would put Heyward on the field more, which doesn't seem like such a bad idea. And I'd agree we need McLendon more than Bradshaw, as much as I want Ahmad in Pittsburgh.

Good post.

I do disagree that the McLendon tender (or lack thereof) was due to the cap situation, I think they would have tendered him that way whether they had more room under the cap or not. As I said before, I think the team still has this facade that McLendon is an unkown guy who can be had for a bargain.

But I liked your other point.

I'd like to see more Hood at nose because Heyward and Kiesel on the ends sounds good to me. There seemed to be some buzz about it being a possibility last offseason, but i don't think they pursued it very far due to Hampton, McLendon and Ta'amu all needing snaps at the position. There would definitely be some concerns about Hood being able to handle double teams, but we'll never know until we try it. I think he can get some good penetration and would like to see him lineup on the interior instead of having to deal with right tackles. Not saying it'll work, but it'd be worth a try.

[GBMelBlount]

Really? They just gave Matthews close to $70 million. They're about to sign Rodgers to probably the richest contract in NFL history. How much cap space do you figure they have to "go crazy" with?

Personally I think McClendon would be a steal right now.

On a side note Gary, is Matthews worth that kind of contract?

I realize if we put it in the context of Woodsloth's contract it would probably justify paying him $50,000,000 a YEAR...but still...15 mil/year?

[salamander]

Maybe McClendon couldn't unseat Hampton because the Steelers like to play "favorites" with the older veterans? I don't know, just speculation.

[tube517]

Thank you. Finally a voice of reason. This is kinda why Ta'amu wasn't put on a bus out of town long before now.

Ta'amu and Hampton together on a bus out of town wouldn't make it very far. A bus can only hold so much weight.

[Spike]

Shocking. I guess the theory of keeping him hidden and paying him dirt cheap didn't really pan out.

here we go cheap......again

the offseason from hell marches on

The Packers also could sign McLendon to an offer sheet before Friday’s deadline. If the Steelers choose not to match, the Packers would get him without compensation, because the Steelers tendered McLendon, who was undrafted, at the lowest level of $1.323 million.

If the Packers make a move on McLendon, the Steelers could once again find themselves stung by a decision to tender a player too low. By bumping the number to $2 million, the Steelers would have been entitled to a second-round pick as compensation — and the Packers surely wouldn’t be considering a run at McLendon.

[Mojouw]

Couple of points. Can't really call the Steelers cheap. They have been at or over the cap every year in attempts to field a super bowl caliber team. Cheap is a team like the Bengals and an owner like Mike Brown who refuses to spend cap room despite the team's on field success.

McLendon is 27. He has a dozen tackles and no startes in 3 full seasons on and off the roster and back and forth from the practice squad. That is the definition of replacement level. Now we have certainly heard a ton about McLendon's potential and he has flashed in preseason. For whatever the reason, perhaps the defensive coaches favoring veterans, perhaps lack of performance...who knows, McLendon has been almost totally unable to see the field.

All that being said, where does anyone want his cap room to come from? He was tendered at the level he was because the FO has to construct a 53 man roster under the cap. I wouldn't be super happy about having to pay McLendon $2 million + to sit on the bench. Clearly they do not view him as the runaway favorite to slide into Hampton's starting spot. His RFA tender and their patience with Ta'amu demonstrates that.

Finally, the Packers basically have no cap room anyways. On paper it appears they do, but it is imaginary. A bunch just went to Matthews. Another chunk is earmarked for the GIGANTIC contract Rodgers is going to get this off-season. Additionally, they don't have a credible RB on the roster and that will cost them some money at some point. I just don't see them making a big-time offer to McLendon. At least not one that Pittsburgh could not match.

This is not a big deal. Our lack of a TE who can block and catch passes, plodding RB's, horrific depth at WR, aging safeties, unproven or suspect players at key pass rush positions, and the fact that ILB is an issue again are far more pressing concerns than wether or not a wholly replaceable player shifts from one 3-4 team to another. If you don't think McLendon is replaceable and he is tendered too low, why aren't 3-4 teams who need a nose (say the Saints who don't have one on thier roster) lined up around the block?

[TMC]

They have some contracts they can still fiddle with to create a little space. The McClendon tender would have to top $2M this season to put them in a situation to have to rework other players.

The Packers have space. Matthews big deal was an extension. They can rework his numbers this year (his salary was @$3M) and not eat much space if they so desire. They had @$17M in space. Rodgers has a $9+M salary. So, if we make the assumption that Matthews cap hit moves to $7M, that means they have $13M left. They could easily extend Rodgers and get his 2013 cap number under his current salary. The Ravens did it with Flacco.

If they want to throw money at McClendon, they can. Not sure if they do. I think they probably brought him in to talk to him about being a backup to Raji, Picket, or the like. The Packers are not DL poor. He would likely come in and be a backup there. He should be penciled in as the starter here.

If the Packers make a play, I doubt it is more than the Steelers can afford.

[NCSteeler]

Couple of points. Can't really call the Steelers cheap. They have been at or over the cap every year in attempts to field a super bowl caliber team. Cheap is a team like the Bengals and an owner like Mike Brown who refuses to spend cap room despite the team's on field success.

McLendon is 27. He has a dozen tackles and no startes in 3 full seasons on and off the roster and back and forth from the practice squad. That is the definition of replacement level. Now we have certainly heard a ton about McLendon's potential and he has flashed in preseason. For whatever the reason, perhaps the defensive coaches favoring veterans, perhaps lack of performance...who knows, McLendon has been almost totally unable to see the field.

All that being said, where does anyone want his cap room to come from? He was tendered at the level he was because the FO has to construct a 53 man roster under the cap. I wouldn't be super happy about having to pay McLendon $2 million + to sit on the bench. Clearly they do not view him as the runaway favorite to slide into Hampton's starting spot. His RFA tender and their patience with Ta'amu demonstrates that.

Finally, the Packers basically have no cap room anyways. On paper it appears they do, but it is imaginary. A bunch just went to Matthews. Another chunk is earmarked for the GIGANTIC contract Rodgers is going to get this off-season. Additionally, they don't have a credible RB on the roster and that will cost them some money at some point. I just don't see them making a big-time offer to McLendon. At least not one that Pittsburgh could not match.

This is not a big deal. Our lack of a TE who can block and catch passes, plodding RB's, horrific depth at WR, aging safeties, unproven or suspect players at key pass rush positions, and the fact that ILB is an issue again are far more pressing concerns than wether or not a wholly replaceable player shifts from one 3-4 team to another. If you don't think McLendon is replaceable and he is tendered too low, why aren't 3-4 teams who need a nose (say the Saints who don't have one on thier roster) lined up around the block?

I like your thoughts hear. Name a few back up NTs around the league. Everyone think Mac is the second coming here but I'g guessing around the league he's a little known commodity and certainly not worthy of a 2mil tender. If were so desperate they will draft a NT . Also agree with TMC packers are loaded on the DL and would not be looking to pay Mac 2mil, ofcourse they may have intentionally waited for us to do sander so we would be even tighter.

This offseason has been marked with strange moves and some let downs, but it was par for the course for things to catch up to us a little

[GodfatherofSoul]

Ta'amu and Hampton together on a bus out of town wouldn't make it very far. A bus can only hold so much weight.

Well, depends on who's driving :sofunny:

[Pristas]

My uncle Mike sat with LeBeau on a flight a few months ago. They talked a little, and I texted and asked "why McClendon wasn't getting any playing time?". My uncle relayed the question and LeBeau said with a smile, you'll see plenty of him next season.

My take from that is they have been hiding him, and giving Hampton his final year in the Burgh. Hampton was adequate, so no need to toss him out on the street. If McClendon signs in Green Bay, it will be a tremendous loss. Ta'amu is not the future, more of a stop gap.

Can someone answer these for me;

1. How much of an offer from GB forces us to renegotiate an existing contract with the likes of Troy or Woodley, 2.1, 2.2 mil?
2. How much time do we have to make this decision, five days or sooner?

The biggest question is how much of a wrench does this throw into our draft plans? With no NT worth starting, how high do we have to look at one? Rd 1? I'll bet Big Snack is already in the worst shape of his life, expecting to retire. They probably just made him a permanent seat at Primanti Bros.

[Dwinsgames]

My uncle Mike sat with LeBeau on a flight a few months ago. They talked a little, and I texted and asked "why McClendon wasn't getting any playing time?". My uncle relayed the question and LeBeau said with a smile, you'll see plenty of him next season.

My take from that is they have been hiding him, and giving Hampton his final year in the Burgh. Hampton was adequate, so no need to toss him out on the street. If McClendon signs in Green Bay, it will be a tremendous loss. Ta'amu is not the future, more of a stop gap.

Can someone answer these for me;

1. How much of an offer from GB forces us to renegotiate an existing contract with the likes of Troy or Woodley, 2.1, 2.2 mil?
2. How much time do we have to make this decision, five days or sooner?

The biggest question is how much of a wrench does this throw into our draft plans? With no NT worth starting, how high do we have to look at one? Rd 1? I'll bet Big Snack is already in the worst shape of his life, expecting to retire. They probably just made him a permanent seat at Primanti Bros.

- - - Updated - - -

My uncle Mike sat with LeBeau on a flight a few months ago. They talked a little, and I texted and asked "why McClendon wasn't getting any playing time?". My uncle relayed the question and LeBeau said with a smile, you'll see plenty of him next season.

My take from that is they have been hiding him, and giving Hampton his final year in the Burgh. Hampton was adequate, so no need to toss him out on the street. If McClendon signs in Green Bay, it will be a tremendous loss. Ta'amu is not the future, more of a stop gap.

Can someone answer these for me;

1. How much of an offer from GB forces us to renegotiate an existing contract with the likes of Troy or Woodley, 2.1, 2.2 mil?
2. How much time do we have to make this decision, five days or sooner?

The biggest question is how much of a wrench does this throw into our draft plans? With no NT worth starting, how high do we have to look at one? Rd 1? I'll bet Big Snack is already in the worst shape of his life, expecting to retire. They probably just made him a permanent seat at Primanti Bros.


you can probably get a pretty good Nose in round 2 , Jenkins ,J Williams , B. Williams , one of more of them could be there in round 2 for us , that being said it turns your draft upside down having to take a NT early you are going to miss out on a damn good S or WR that falls into the middle of the second or a dam fine LB which is also a current need ....

this is the second tender offer that just might bite us in the ass in the same off season , mismanagement of the highest level this entire off season IMO

we have 700k in free cap space , so 2mil is the magic number without having to renegotiate someones deal to match ... 2 mill is CHEAP by todays standards for a backup NT who can play for a 3-4 team , esp considering there is no pick attached to him ....

if we where counting on him being the starter a second round tender should have been offered to him IMO ( any time a guy is listed as the starter you need to have replacement value attached to him before he hits the market ) or you risk losing them

[Psycho Ward 86]

You wrote a lot of words but didn't say very much. For someone who believes money is such an issue, you sure do advocate spending a lot of it. If you think signing Mike Wallace at $60 million and Keenan Lewis at $26 million would have been solid decisions, well, I really don't know what to say about that.

What "declining vets" are we clinging to? Troy? Take a look at the roster. There isn't a vet on this team costing us more than he's worth besides LaMarr Woodley and maybe Polamalu. And both of those guys still have the talent if they figure out their health issues.

- - - Updated - - -

Oh, that's right. I forgot, Antonio Brown is overpaid and draining us financially. But Mike Wallace is worth $60 million, right? Give me a break.

lewis is being paid $5million a year and was considered among the top free agent cornerbacks available. this has been an absolute bargain year for cornerbacks and you think $26 million is a lot of money over the course of 5 years? LOL. Sure focused a lot on my miniscule mentions of wallace even though i didnt say signing wallace would have been a solid decision. heck i even mentioned his absolute immaturity with his contract disputes as an example of how our approach has had to change , waves of change that ive clearly stated and you havent even addressed because your only argument is that "i wrote a lot but didnt say much." yeah, you dont have to "say anything about that" because its easy to tell you cant.

Declining vets? lol I didnt just mention declining vets, i mentioned (quote on quote) aging veterans on the cusp of the end of their careers. Heres the laundary list: casey hampton, larry foote, brett keisel, james harrison (cut), ryan clark, troy polamalu, and ike taylor.

1) casey is going to be 36 years old by the start of the season and has had 3 acl surgeries. he's absolutely done with this team, and if he isnt, we know were in trouble.

2) foote is going to be 33 at the start of the season and was serviceable. how long do you anticipate him being able to play at even a serviceable level? you dont actually think all players can be effective at this age do you? and certainly not players that are going to be on the wrong side of 35, which is how long we have him under contract.

3) Keisel will be 35 in september. he did his job. Good for him. guess how long we have him under contract? are you confident in a 35 year old playing at high level as well as if he's an immortal sage? hood disappointed last season so look where that leaves us at defensive end if he doesnt pan out.

4) deebo was going to be 35 at the start of the season where he's coming off 2 straight seasons of missing many games, including this past season where it took him half the year just to get anywhere near his normal playing level. he was clearly not the same. how many effective years moving forward did you think we had with him?

5) clark is going to be 34 by the middle of the season. good season. but guess how long we have him for? (see keisel)

6) troy is 31 and played 7 games for us last season. we love troy but everyone knows you cant count on him to play 16 games in a year. luckily we had a great backup plan in will allen. a backup plan we no longer have...we also dont have a backup to our backup plan in ryan mundy. no worries though, robert golden is poised to be our next pro bowl safety :)

7) ike rarely misses games. but he did. thank god it was only a hairline fracture. he's turning 33 this season. he's our top cornerback, but he has shown signs of vulnerability the past couple of seasons (2009 was a terrible year for him, 2010 he was an oft culprit, 2011 playoffs, he was destroyed by demaryius thomas, and the beginning of 2012 he was almost run out of town). we kept a short term solution in favor of a long term solution (keenan lewis), who was young, affordable, and proven effective.

"if they figure out their health issues." thats an awful big if youre riding on. did you ride on that "if" this season? it did a great job of getting us to 8-8. again, never said wallace is worth $60 million. i actually used him as more of an argument of the fact that because of whiny divas like him, we are unable to operate as we normally do. unfortunately you dont draw connections. from anywhere about anything.

[Psycho Ward 86]

and as tmc mentioned, believe it or not, even with a monster contracting slightly exceeding that of joe flacco's and clay matthews extension, the packers should and could have far more cap room than us by backloading that money. the ravens did it with flacco and they were able to sign an all-pro linebacker in elvis dumervil to a big contract. we need to change our financial approach because things dont always go our way (young players causing problems/asking for tons of money, drafts not panning out, vets not taking paycuts, etc)

[Pristas]

OK, this I just got from NFL.com:

Q. What is the time period for free agency signings this year?
A. For Restricted Free Agents, from March 12 to April 19. For Unrestricted Free Agents who have received the June 1 tender from their prior club, from March 12 to July 22 (or the first scheduled day of the first NFL training camp, whichever is later). For Franchise Players, from March 12 until the Tuesday following the 10th week of the regular season, November 12. If a Franchise Player does not sign by November 12, he must sit out the season. There are no Transition Player designations this year.
http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-2/Q--A-2013-NFL-Free-Agency/3220df6d-e9d0-47b4-9194-f98f011cf718

So if I am reading this correctly, RFA signings end April 19? That leaves McClendon until tomorrow to sign with either team. And should he sign with GB for more than we have left in cap space, there will not be time for the Steelers to restructure the contract of another player, and get an offer to McClendon. So basically Green Bay has us by the balls. Well played GB, well played indeed.

[Dwinsgames]

lewis is being paid $5million a year and was considered among the top free agent cornerbacks available. this has been an absolute bargain year for cornerbacks and you think $26 million is a lot of money over the course of 5 years? LOL. Sure focused a lot on my miniscule mentions of wallace even though i didnt say signing wallace would have been a solid decision. heck i even mentioned his absolute immaturity with his contract disputes as an example of how our approach has had to change , waves of change that ive clearly stated and you havent even addressed because your only argument is that "i wrote a lot but didnt say much." yeah, you dont have to "say anything about that" because its easy to tell you cant.

Declining vets? lol I didnt just mention declining vets, i mentioned (quote on quote) aging veterans on the cusp of the end of their careers. Heres the laundary list: casey hampton, larry foote, brett keisel, james harrison (cut), ryan clark, troy polamalu, and ike taylor.

1) casey is going to be 36 years old by the start of the season and has had 3 acl surgeries. he's absolutely done with this team, and if he isnt, we know were in trouble.

2) foote is going to be 33 at the start of the season and was serviceable. how long do you anticipate him being able to play at even a serviceable level? you dont actually think all players can be effective at this age do you? and certainly not players that are going to be on the wrong side of 35, which is how long we have him under contract.

3) Keisel will be 35 in september. he did his job. Good for him. guess how long we have him under contract? are you confident in a 35 year old playing at high level as well as if he's an immortal sage? hood disappointed last season so look where that leaves us at defensive end if he doesnt pan out.

4) deebo was going to be 35 at the start of the season where he's coming off 2 straight seasons of missing many games, including this past season where it took him half the year just to get anywhere near his normal playing level. he was clearly not the same. how many effective years moving forward did you think we had with him?

5) clark is going to be 34 by the middle of the season. good season. but guess how long we have him for? (see keisel)

6) troy is 31 and played 7 games for us last season. we love troy but everyone knows you cant count on him to play 16 games in a year. luckily we had a great backup plan in will allen. a backup plan we no longer have...we also dont have a backup to our backup plan in ryan mundy. no worries though, robert golden is poised to be our next pro bowl safety :)

7) ike rarely misses games. but he did. thank god it was only a hairline fracture. he's turning 33 this season. he's our top cornerback, but he has shown signs of vulnerability the past couple of seasons (2009 was a terrible year for him, 2010 he was an oft culprit, 2011 playoffs, he was destroyed by demaryius thomas, and the beginning of 2012 he was almost run out of town). we kept a short term solution in favor of a long term solution (keenan lewis), who was young, affordable, and proven effective.

"if they figure out their health issues." thats an awful big if youre riding on. did you ride on that "if" this season? it did a great job of getting us to 8-8. again, never said wallace is worth $60 million. i actually used him as more of an argument of the fact that because of whiny divas like him, we are unable to operate as we normally do. unfortunately you dont draw connections. from anywhere about anything.

one of your best posts IMO even though I was fine with Lewis departure because I have faith in Cortez Allen , but that still needs to be replaced because the depth is now low and I have no faith in Brown

[Psycho Ward 86]

So if I am reading this correctly, RFA signings end April 19? That leaves McClendon until tomorrow to sign with either team. And should he sign with GB for more than we have left in cap space, there will not be time for the Steelers to restructure the contract of another player, and get an offer to McClendon. So basically Green Bay has us by the balls. Well played GB, well played indeed.


and they waited for us to burn what little cap room we have on matching the offer sheet for sanders. genius...its the price we play for leaving ourselves vulnerable. im praying to the football gods tonight

[Spike]

...its the price we play for leaving ourselves vulnerable

exactly

Steelers have nobody to blame but themselves

[Mojouw]

Sigh. Let's assume that everyone here is correct and the Steelers should have tendered Sanders and McLendon at higher RFA offers. For the sake of round numbers, let us assume that this would have had a cap increase of about a million bucks. I think Sanders would have been 500 K and McLendon 300K or so. I don't really know. The exact number is actually irrelevant to my point.

The question I level is what is the "offset" everyone would like to see to squeeze the extra cash out of the cap? Cut Kiesel? Heck, Taylor is old and apparently gets burnt a bunch now, so maybe he should go? Polamalu is fragile, let's get rid of him. You can not on one hand bemoan the loss of players due to cap reasons and not be specific on who you would propose get the axe in their stead.

We all had to know that the piper would have to be paid at some point for 3 SB appearances in a handful of years. That drove the cost up on all of the team's own players. In 12 days time this could all look totally different depending on how the draft plays out.

For instance, if Spence never obliterates his knee and goes on to have the rookie year many were predicting for him, would anyone be wailing about the ILB depth chart?

I honestly think that this can still be a playoff team without McLendon, Mendenhall, and Lewis. As for Wallace, he will never "earn" all the money Miami gave him, but the Steelers could be really hurt at WR this season unless the get a rookie in the draft who is special.

[86WARD]

Once he's gone, nothing there...lol.

More evidence of shitty roster management and crappy capology.

[Psycho Ward 86]

Sigh. Let's assume that everyone here is correct and the Steelers should have tendered Sanders and McLendon at higher RFA offers. For the sake of round numbers, let us assume that this would have had a cap increase of about a million bucks. I think Sanders would have been 500 K and McLendon 300K or so. I don't really know. The exact number is actually irrelevant to my point.

The question I level is what is the "offset" everyone would like to see to squeeze the extra cash out of the cap? Cut Kiesel? Heck, Taylor is old and apparently gets burnt a bunch now, so maybe he should go? Polamalu is fragile, let's get rid of him. You can not on one hand bemoan the loss of players due to cap reasons and not be specific on who you would propose get the axe in their stead.

We all had to know that the piper would have to be paid at some point for 3 SB appearances in a handful of years. That drove the cost up on all of the team's own players. In 12 days time this could all look totally different depending on how the draft plays out.

For instance, if Spence never obliterates his knee and goes on to have the rookie year many were predicting for him, would anyone be wailing about the ILB depth chart?

I honestly think that this can still be a playoff team without McLendon, Mendenhall, and Lewis. As for Wallace, he will never "earn" all the money Miami gave him, but the Steelers could be really hurt at WR this season unless the get a rookie in the draft who is special.

i dont think you understand. the packers could literally sign mclendon at 11:59 PM tomorrow and not even give us a chance to mount any sort of attempt to keep him. damn, now thats a checkmate. gotta give it to ted thompson and co. this is impressive, opportunistic work.

[Dwinsgames]

Sigh. Let's assume that everyone here is correct and the Steelers should have tendered Sanders and McLendon at higher RFA offers. For the sake of round numbers, let us assume that this would have had a cap increase of about a million bucks. I think Sanders would have been 500 K and McLendon 300K or so. I don't really know. The exact number is actually irrelevant to my point.

The question I level is what is the "offset" everyone would like to see to squeeze the extra cash out of the cap? Cut Kiesel? Heck, Taylor is old and apparently gets burnt a bunch now, so maybe he should go? Polamalu is fragile, let's get rid of him. You can not on one hand bemoan the loss of players due to cap reasons and not be specific on who you would propose get the axe in their stead.

We all had to know that the piper would have to be paid at some point for 3 SB appearances in a handful of years. That drove the cost up on all of the team's own players. In 12 days time this could all look totally different depending on how the draft plays out.

For instance, if Spence never obliterates his knee and goes on to have the rookie year many were predicting for him, would anyone be wailing about the ILB depth chart?

I honestly think that this can still be a playoff team without McLendon, Mendenhall, and Lewis. As for Wallace, he will never "earn" all the money Miami gave him, but the Steelers could be really hurt at WR this season unless the get a rookie in the draft who is special.


we could have tendered both McLendon and Sanders at second round levels for what McLendon and Sanders are currently on the books for , to me that is mismanagement ( esp when I pointed out the mistake the day the tenders where disclosed , I am not a GM and I knew better , surely they should have )

[vader29]

Steelers Sign Steve McLendon to a 3 year contract: http://www.steelers.com/news/article-1/Steelers-Sign-Steve-McLendon/6d6c2270-ed1c-4ae5-b049-3d1b20cca45c

[Pristas]

If they really want to keep McClendon, then they are probably signing an updated contract for Troy, Woodley or Brown as we speak to free up cap space. There's no reason why they couldn't get that done today, in hopes of a good counter offer or match tomorrow.

I wonder if the "5 days to match offer" rule ends in 5 days or April 19th, whichever comes first? Guess it doesn't matter if they don't have a restructure done by tomorrow.

[Psycho Ward 86]

Steelers Sign Steve McLendon to a 3 year contract: http://www.steelers.com/news/article-1/Steelers-Sign-Steve-McLendon/6d6c2270-ed1c-4ae5-b049-3d1b20cca45c

PRAISE FRIGGIN JESUS

[Seven]

So much for cap issues preventing us from signing him...

[Spike]

crisis averted


all is well








Go Pens!

[zulater]

Once he's gone, nothing there...lol.

More evidence of shitty roster management and crappy capology.

Great insight! :applaudit:

[Pristas]

Steelers Sign Steve McLendon to a 3 year contract: http://www.steelers.com/news/article-1/Steelers-Sign-Steve-McLendon/6d6c2270-ed1c-4ae5-b049-3d1b20cca45c

Bam! Done.

[TMC]

i dont think you understand. the packers could literally sign mclendon at 11:59 PM tomorrow and not even give us a chance to mount any sort of attempt to keep him. damn, now thats a checkmate. gotta give it to ted thompson and co. this is impressive, opportunistic work.

While it is not an issue with McLendon anymore, the Steelers would have 5 days to make a decision. Every team gets 5 days with a RFA. That is why the signing period for RFAs ends 6 days before the draft, so teams have time to make that decision and the draft pick (if applicable) can change hands.

[Seven]

Declining vets? lol I didnt just mention declining vets, i mentioned (quote on quote) aging veterans on the cusp of the end of their careers. Heres the laundary list: casey hampton, larry foote, brett keisel, james harrison (cut), ryan clark, troy polamalu, and ike taylor.

1) casey is going to be 36 years old by the start of the season and has had 3 acl surgeries. he's absolutely done with this team, and if he isnt, we know were in trouble.

Casey Hampton? James Harrison? I asked you to mention players who are on the roster. If you don't even know who is on the team I don't know how you expect me to take you seriously.

Larry Foote is costing us next to nothing, Ryan Clark probably played his best season ever in 2012 and Ike Taylor and Brett Kiesel are still playing at levels worth their salaries. I've already addressed Troy so I won't do so again.

You are grasping at straws here. Just as I said we wouldn't all day yesterday, we had no trouble retaining McLendon. Furthermore, Sanders is still on the roster as well after you preached gloom and doom all over that thread.

The cap issues can be dealt with. As is proof by the way we just signed McLendon out from underneath this supposed dire situation.

Sorry if you're butthurt.

[Psycho Ward 86]

Casey Hampton? James Harrison? I asked you to mention players who are on the roster. If you don't even know who is on the team I don't know how you expect me to take you seriously.

Larry Foote is costing us next to nothing, Ryan Clark probably played his best season ever in 2012 and Ike Taylor and Brett Kiesel are still playing at levels worth their salaries. I've already addressed Troy so I won't do so again.

You are grasping at straws here. Just as I said we wouldn't all day yesterday, we had no trouble retaining McLendon. Furthermore, Sanders is still on the roster as well after you preached gloom and doom all over that thread.

The cap issues can be dealt with. As is proof by the way we just signed McLendon out from underneath this supposed dire situation.

Sorry if you're butthurt.

Hampton, who was a possibility if mclendon was gone. harrison, who had similiar implications with the team until he was cut. the purpose of the examples were very palpable and explained in detail. no need to tiptoe around concise explanations just because you dont have anything to say to them. thats great if foote is costing us next to nothing. but who do we have behind him? and why do you keep ignoring my main point that we have been unprepared for roster turnover for quite some time now? You should at least bother to answer SOME questions in a debate if you want any credibility as well.

I acknowledged that ryan played a good season. im ahead of your curve in acknowledging that. what you fail to acknowledge is his age, the 1 year left on his contract, and the fact that youre ok with having a practice squad player as depth behind an aging duo of safeties, including one who rarely plays full seasons and only played 7 games last season. you addressed troy very poorly. you stated that if troy gets the medical aspect of his condition down that he'll be fine. he hasnt gotten that aspect of his nfl career down pat since his college playing days...

im backing everything up with facts. clearly, it wasnt easy to mclendon if the packers had our balls in a vice and even brought him in for a visit with the deadline approaching. were $700k under the salary cap...the only way we were going to keep mclendon is with an immediate long term contract. Contracts arent negotiated and signed in a day. No one here knows if mclendon was being negotiated with this whole offseason or just a short period of time ago. i very much doubt you had that kind of inside knowledge. i preached that it would be hard to keep sanders because again, the patriots had our balls in a vice, and they did. just because we managed to sign him doesnt mean i was wrong. matching that offer sheet came at a price. now we probably wont be able to sign other significant free agents we had been interested in such as steve breaston and ahmad bradshaw.

im delighted we were able to sign mclendon <3

[X-Terminator]

Thread closed due to McClendon re-signing.