1 comments Chris Chase Says Russell Wilson Isn't Worth His New Contract Simply Because He Isn't

I think Russell Wilson probably got more money than his overall talent level should suggest, even compared to what other NFL quarterbacks have received lately. Still, I see why the Seahawks paid Wilson like they did and I can't say I wouldn't have done the same thing they did. I can't really find evidence that Wilson is overrated or doesn't deserve the money, so I have a hard time bashing him and criticizing his contract until he shows that he's simply not a franchise or above-average quarterback. Chris Chase of "For the Win" doesn't have this problem. In a column that I am guessing he had pre-written in some form (just a guess, I have no proof) he states that Russell Wilson is now vastly overpaid. Great, I can understand this line of thinking. Unfortunately, Chris Chase doesn't explain why he believes Wilson is overpaid other than, "We all know he's not that good," which doesn't really grade out as a persuasive argument for why Wilson is overpaid. An opinion isn't proof. If it were, then Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith would be the two smartest men in sports.

In one fell swoop, Russell Wilson went from the most underpaid quarterback in the NFL to its most overpaid.

BAM! You got scalded by this hot take. Russell Wilson is the most overpaid quarterback in the NFL only seconds after being the most underpaid. Life's a bitch, especially when you are now wealthy beyond all imagination. 

The Seattle Seahawks quarterback beat a Friday deadline to extend his contract, signing for a whopping $61 million guaranteed, with a reported $31 million signing bonus for an annual salary of about $21.9 million that’s just under that of Aaron Rodgers. The total amount of the four-year deal is worth a preposterous $87.6 million which doesn’t appear to contain much of the funny money that usually inflates the contracts of NFL players.

This is the going rate for a franchise quarterback. Is Wilson a franchise quarterback? I don't believe he is on-par with Rodgers, Brees, Brady, Luck, but Wilson has given no evidence my belief is anything but fiction so far. He's been impressive when he needs to be in important games. It's hard to put a value on that. 

This was a deal that both sides needed.

Seattle locked up their starter before this season started, avoiding the headaches and questions that would have come along with Wilson’s unsigned contract for next year. It also locks up a fine quarterback for the foreseeable future.

It's a mutually beneficial contract where Wilson gets paid a ton of money and the Seahawks don't have to search for a replacement for Wilson. While Chris Chase thinks the Seahawks overpaid for Russell Wilson, it's more expensive to let Wilson go in free agency and try to find his replacement. Wilson probably is making more money than he rationally should, as are many other quarterbacks in the NFL, but until a team doesn't have a quarterback it's forgotten how much it sucks to not have one. It's hard to put a price on trying to find a quarterback when an NFL team doesn't have one.

But to do that, the ‘Hawks had to overpay a very good QB who, 

To call Wilson a "very good QB" is to also understand $20+ million per year is the going rate for a very good quarterback.

thanks to a phenomenal defense, great offensive line and powerful rushing attack, has convinced the league he’s one of its best.

Chris Chase will provide no data or any other information that supports his contention the great offensive line, powerful rushing attack and great defense are what makes Russell Wilson the quarterback he is. I'm sorry, I expect more than just the same old talking points about why Wilson is overrated.

He’s the clear winner in the deal.

You don't say? The guy who just got guaranteed $61 million is the clear winner in this deal. You sure about that? 

Wilson, who paid his dues playing his third year with the contract of an NFL pauper, will be in the final year of the deal when he’s 30, when he’ll still be in his prime (and the salary cap should be considerably higher). But Seattle wins too.

They win because they keep the quarterback who, overrated or not overrated, has taken them to two straight Super Bowls. Wilson isn't Trent Dilfer or Brad Johnson, but this also doesn't mean he is Aaron Rodgers. He's been a pretty good quarterback so far and he got paid like a pretty good quarterback. 

So if both sides win, how can Russell Wilson be overpaid? Because, come on: Russell Wilson isn’t worth Aaron Rodgers money. He’s not worth Drew Brees money. Heck, he really has no place near Philip Rivers’ tax bracket.

But, why? Do better than stating, "He's just not as good as these guys." Brees, Rivers and Rodgers all signed their current contracts before the quarterback market had been reset (thanks Joe Flacco!). So it's possible Wilson isn't overpaid, quarterbacks like Rodgers, Brees and Rivers could be underpaid. Maybe not, but at least give statistical and logical reasons other than "He just is" for why Wilson is overpaid. 

Now he’s the second-highest paid quarterback in the league? It’s nonsense.

If there were a schoolyard pick of quarterbacks in the NFL, Wilson should go about 13th, right around Eli Manning and Cam Newton.

Cam Newton just signed a contract very similar, though one year longer, than that which Wilson just signed, while Manning has a cap hit of $19.75 million this year. Just a tip, but if you are going to compare Wilson to two other quarterbacks in an effort to show he is overpaid, try not to compare him to two quarterbacks who have salaries in a similar financial bracket as he has. If Wilson is 13th around Manning and Newton, then Wilson seems to be properly compensated, no?

I mean, if he’s worth $21.9 million per year, what should Andrew Luck get? $30 million? $35 million? $50 million?

Andrew Luck will get a ton of money. He'll get more than Wilson, despite not having had Wilson's success in terms of Super Bowl appearances. See how it works? Then if you compare Luck's salary to that of Rodgers, Brady, and others it will look like Luck is overpaid because he doesn't nearly have the amount of rings and MVP's those guys have.

Yet Wilson deserves every penny of the deal 

(Bengoodfella throws hands up in the air) If he deserves the money then how can he be overpaid? Being overpaid means an athlete (or person) is compensated more money than he deserves for his performance. If Wilson deserves the contract, he probably isn't overpaid.

and the Seahawks had no choice but to pay it, even if it hamstrings them from making deals with other players over the next three years.

Yes, but quarterback is the most important position on an NFL team. History shows that if a team doesn't have a good quarterback then they aren't winning a Super Bowl and don't have a great chance of making the playoffs. 

If Joe Flacco and Andy Dalton are getting nine-figure deals, then the market is set for a winner like Wilson to thrive, even if quarterback wins are the most overrated stat in the game. (When Dalton’s wins are cited, people say they don’t matter. When Wilson’s are, they are.) 

The very obvious difference in comparing Dalton to Wilson is that Dalton is 0-4 in his playoff career while Russell Wilson is 6-2 with two Super Bowl appearances. Wins are an overrated stat, there's no doubt, but a comparison of Dalton to Wilson is laughable when the big difference in the two quarterbacks using the win statistic is ignored. If Chris Chase claims the only difference in Wilson and Dalton is wins then I'd like to mention that Russell Wilson doesn't have A.J. Green either and Dalton doesn't have the wins that a quarterback is graded on. Dalton's wins are dismissed because he falls on his face in the playoffs. Chris Chase knows this, yet he acts like this isn't relevant.

Other QBs set the market and Wilson was able to parlay that into a bigger deal because the other 21 guys he plays with are better than the 21 players on other teams.

Again, this is an opinion which has no factual backing. Wilson is overpaid, overrated and he only got a deal because his team is better than other NFL teams. Fine, without some factual backing it's just an opinion. Do better. 

Despite that one ring and the second ring that was lost with one of the most untimely and awful passes in NFL history, Wilson is an above-average quarterback on a team that allows such a signal caller to thrive.

Yes, despite those two Super Bowl appearances in three years, Wilson is an above-average quarterback on a very good team. He'd be 13th in QB rankings, right between two other quarterbacks who are making around $20 million per year as well. Tom Brady is a missed field goal and an untimely pass away from being 2-4 in the Super Bowl. He's two really good passes by the Giants away from being 6-0 in the Super Bowl. Super Bowl wins (right or wrong) is how a quarterback can be graded.

And I'm not a big defender of Russell Wilson, but he's been better than above-average when the Seahawks have needed him to be. Maybe he isn't Aaron Rodgers, but he fits what the Seahawks are doing, and that in itself could be worth the money he's getting in his new contract. I keep waiting for Wilson to fall flat on his face too, but it hasn't happened.

Guys like Andrew Luck or Aaron Rodgers are quarterbacks who lead, Russell Wilson is a quarterback who sustains.

I don't even know what this means. I feel like Russell Wilson is a pretty good leader, even if he doesn't have an outstanding set of skills on paper that Rodgers and Luck have. 

That’s apparently good for $20 million plus in the modern-day NFL.

An above-average quarterback who wins games is worth $20+ million in the modern-day NFL. I don't know if Chris Chase's beef is with the increasing cost of the quarterback position or with Russell Wilson, but when stating Wilson is overpaid then it's better to come with some proof or statistics. An opinion is great, but it seems like Wilson is right where he was expected to be in terms of compensation in a new contract. Until further notice or further proof, I can't call him overpaid yet. I don't particularly like how he lobbied and acted on his way to getting his new contract, I found him to be slightly disingenuous with some of his negotiating tactics, but he got paid and that's all that matters. Let's wait for him to fall on his face, or for any proof the past three years have been not representative of his skill set, before announcing Wilson is overpaid. Trust me, I keep trying to come up with reasons too and I just can't.

4 comments Bleacher Report Provides the Official Grades for How NFL Teams Did in Free Agency

I probably use the word "overrated" a lot to the point my use of the word is a bit overrated. I think NFL free agency is really overrated though. I mean this and am not using hyperbole. Maybe NFL free agency as a whole isn't overrated, but the teams that make the biggest splashes with the biggest signings aren't usually teams that end up winning the Super Bowl that next season. Free agency seems to be an inefficient market where players are being paid for past performance and one bidder can drive the player's price up sky high. Smart teams spend smartly in free agency. Spending smartly means choosing players who fill in some holes on the current roster prior to the draft, while using the draft to fill in the rest of the holes on the roster. I still think the draft is the best way to build a successful team in the long-term. Spending big in free agency and rewarding teams with high grades who spend big in free agency is a fool's errand in my opinion. So here some grades from the NFL free agency period. They are purely subjective and seem to be pretty pointless.

Now we'll explore how the teams have done in free agency and assign them each a grade of either pass or fail. We came to this conclusion for a variety of reasons—none more important than if the team is better than it was at the end of the 2014 season.

And of course it makes total sense to judge a team on whether they are better after free agency than they were at the end of the 2014 season, especially since the NFL Draft hasn't even happened yet. Improving is an offseason-long process, not something that just happens after free agency is over.

We also included factors such as quality of players signed, if their own important free agents stayed and how many good players defected.

And this is all subjective of course. The author decides which players are "good" that defected and which free agents for a team were "important." Mostly though, the author uses personnel moves the team made outside of free agency as the basis for his grade in this slideshow where the supposed intent is to hand out grades based on only free agency.

Let's start the slideshow!

Arizona Cardinals: PASS

General manager Steve Keim was able to restructure the contract of star receiver Larry Fitzgerald, and the 31-year-old pass-catcher should now complete his Hall of Fame career in the desert. Keeping Fitzgerald in the fold was a wise move; while he's not the player he once was, he's still capable of getting the job done.

I really don't think this should be a part of the grade. Fitzgerald wasn't a free agent and his contract was restructured. Bleacher Report makes their own rules though.

They did lose longtime defensive tackle Darnell Dockett (released and signed with San Francisco), his battery-mate Dan Williams and cornerback Antonio Cromartie, but the club should be able to overcome those losses.

How can they overcome these losses when the author didn't list a single DT or CB signed by the Cardinals? Who cares? The Cardinals shall overcome these losses with great force of will.

Right now, the Cardinals offseason gets a slight pass. But if they can acquire a game-changing running back in either the draft (Todd Gurley?) or via trade (Adrian Peterson?), it will skyrocket to an unreserved pass.

So if the Cardinals draft a running back or trade for one then their grade on how well they did in free agency will get much higher? So teams can get a higher grade for their free agency moves by making moves outside of free agency? This doesn't really make sense.

Atlanta Falcons: PASS 

In that search, the club imported a number of free agents to Hotlanta: pass-rushing linebacker Brooks Reed, defensive end Adrian Clayborn and tight end Jacob Tamme among them. Tamme should provide quarterback Matt Ryan with a reliable target over the middle,

He's 30 and had 14 catches on 28 targets for 109 yards last year. He's never been very good when Peyton Manning isn't throwing him the ball. Maybe my definition of "reliable" is different from the author's definition.

while Reed and Clayborn will be counted on to provide much-needed pass-rushing oomph.

Clayborn had 1 tackle last year in one game and has 13 sacks over a four year career. Brooks Reed has 14.5 sacks on his four year career and has 3 sacks last season. They may work out, but apparently signing pass rushers, no matter how good they are gets a passing grade.

Dimitroff also re-signed running back Antone Smith, who is a threat to score every time he touches the ball,

7 career touchdowns in five years. Maybe he should touch the ball more.

The Falcons most notably lost receiver Harry Douglas and linebacker Sean Weatherspoon, but those aren't earth-shattering defections.

The author gives credit to the Cardinals for signing Weatherspoon, but doesn't seem concerned the Falcons lost Weatherspoon to the Cardinals. Sure, consistency be damned.

Baltimore Ravens: FAIL

The Baltimore Ravens' 2014 season ended in heartbreaking fashion at the hands of the eventual Super Bowl champion Patriots—and it doesn't currently appear that the team is better than it was on that fateful Saturday in January.

If only there were a way for the Ravens to improve their team by choosing players who played college football last year through an organized selection process. It could be called "the draft." But alas, there is no such thing so the Ravens haven't improved their team and probably never will improve the team prior to the season starting.

Buffalo Bills: PASS

And Ryan hasn't disappointed in his first few months on the job, as the Bills made a gigantic splash, trading linebacker Kiko Alonso for Eagles running back LeSean McCoy in a true stunner. McCoy is a nice fit in Ryan's ground-and-pound offensive philosophy, and it can be reasoned that Ryan's defense can operate at a high level of efficiency without Alonso.

McCoy was acquired in a trade and not through free agency, dumbass. So on a list of grades for NFL teams the McCoy acquisition wouldn't count because he wasn't acquired through free agency.

And although the club overpaid for tight end Charles Clay (five years, $38 million with $24.5 million guaranteed), he should instantly improve the passing attack. Mercurial wide receiver Percy Harvin also came in on a one-year, low-risk deal.

Sure, the author thinks the Bills overpaid, but that's how you win Super Bowls. Overpay for players through free agency. It's a proven way to win, just ask the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Carolina Panthers: FAIL 

Despite winning back-to-back NFC South championships, the Carolina Panthers have a number of roster holes to fill—and they definitely haven't filled them just yet.

If only there were an NFL Draft! Why hasn't this happened yet? Teams need a way to fill needs on their roster after free agency is over. Where are college football players expected to go after their eligibility runs out? To Canada to play football?

but trying to improve the team's pass protection by signing tackle Michael Oher isn't going to do the trick. Bringing back wide receiver and kick returner Ted Ginn Jr. is nice, but it isn't going to move the meter.

I didn't know the grade was partly on "moving the meter," as opposed to how upgrading from one of the worst left tackles in the NFL and improving the 31st ranked special teams would improve a team's grade.

Meanwhile, longtime running back DeAngelo Williams was released and signed with Pittsburgh,

He was the third-string back at the end of the year.

While it's hard to criticize Gettleman for letting go of Hardy—who was limited to one game last season due to charges stemming from a domestic violence case—Hardy is definitely a major talent who can get after the opposing quarterback.

And yet, the Panthers somehow managed to have a good pass rush without Greg Hardy last year. But sure, the fact Hardy wasn't on the team in 2014 should be factored into how the team is now worse without him on the team in 2015.

Chicago Bears: FAIL

The Chicago Bears have a new coach (John Fox) and general manager (Ryan Pace)—but unfortunately for them, the quarterback (Jay Cutler) remains the same, so it's hard to issue them a passing grade.

So because the Bears didn't trade Jay Cutler, a move that would have nothing to do with free agency, then it's hard to give them a good grade for their free agent moves? This makes not of sense.

Cutler is the albatross slung around the franchise's neck, with his bloated contract and atrocious body language weighing down the entire operation. It's hard to criticize Fox and Pace for being unable to jettison Cutler from the roster, but finding a way to do so would have been a significant boon.

So the author finds it hard to criticize the Bears for not trading Cutler, but he'll give them a failing grade for not doing so. Sure, makes sense in Crazy Land.

The Bears might be in good hands for the future, but the team earns a failing grade thus far.

What? Ryan Pace can only be judged so far on the job he has done in free agency. The author thinks the Bears are in good hands because Ryan Pace is the Bears' GM, yet he thinks the only thing Pace has done since becoming GM was a failure. So why does the author think the Bears are in good hands again?

Cleveland Browns: FAIL

While coach Mike Pettine and general manager Ray Farmer can't be blamed for the yearlong suspension of receiver Josh Gordon and the rehab stint of quarterback Johnny Manziel, those events still hurt the club and must be taken into account in the overall grade.

NO, NO, NO. No, Johnny Manziel entering rehab should NOT be taken into account when giving the Browns a grade for how well they did in free agency. Manziel entering rehab has nothing to do with the Browns and their performance in free agency. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. This cheap ass slideshow is supposed to be about grades for a team's performance in free agency, which has nothing to do with the drafting of Johnny Manziel or the suspension of Josh Gordon.

The Browns are surely a worse team now than at the start of the free-agent period.

Every NFL team can't fix all the holes they have on the roster through free agency. That's why there is an NFL Draft. Why must the author be so dumb and expect teams to fix all their holes in free agency?

Dallas Cowboys: FAIL

Owner Jerry Jones brought back Bryant with the franchise tag, which was the right move—of the two (Bryant and Murray), Bryant is the more valuable player. But there can be no denying that Jones and the Cowboys made a Texas-sized bungle allowing Murray to sign with the rival Eagles.

Nope, there can be no denying that handing DeMarco Murray the amount of money he wanted in free agency could have been a Texas-sized bungle. Running backs are being devalued and a running back like Murray who has been healthy for two seasons since he left high school isn't necessarily the smartest investment.

Murray's defection leaves a major hole in Dallas' run game, as there's no way the pu pu platter of Darren McFadden, Joseph Randle and Lance Dunbar can replace him. While it's possible Jones will make a splashy play in the draft (Melvin Gordon?) or via trade (Adrian Peterson?), that position—once one of strength—looms as a disaster.

A "pu pu platter"? Thanks, Bill Simmons.

Notice how the Cardinals haven't taken care of their running game, but that's perfectly fine with the author. Who cares? Meanwhile, the Cowboys have (on paper) a weak running game and this of course is a disaster waiting to happen. Weird how that works.

Denver Broncos: PASS

Regardless of whichever players the Denver Broncos signed or lost in free agency, the whole rigmarole must be considered a success. And that's for one reason and one reason only: Quarterback Peyton Manning is returning to the team for a fourth season in the Mile High City.

THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH FREE AGENCY!

The Broncos brought in tight end Owen Daniels to rejoin new head coach Gary Kubiak, but they lost tight end Julius Thomas, guard Orlando Franklin, defensive tackle Terrance Knighton and safety Rahim Moore. Those are talented players to lose, but general manager John Elway has assembled a talented roster that can overcome those defections.

Oh that's great to know. I didn't know that Owen Daniels was a Pro Bowl tight end. I guess he is.

And, as we've already stated, it all starts and ends with Manning. Since he's back, the Broncos earn a passing grade.

The Broncos get a passing grade in free agency based entirely on a move that was made, that wasn't even a move the team really made, which had nothing to do with free agency. Typical Bleacher Report.

Detroit Lions: FAIL

He says the Lions failed mainly because they didn't sign Ndamukong Suh and let Nick Fairley go. Fairley underachieved and the Lions dodged a huge bullet by not keeping Suh's contract on the books and allowing him to sign a bloated contract the Dolphins will eventually come to regret. I LOVE Ndamukong Suh, but the Lions won free agency by not re-signing him or letting his cap figure take over their salary cap.

Houston Texans: PASS

Coach Bill O'Brien and general manager Rick Smith needed an upgrade at the quarterback position, and they got just that when the signed Brian Hoyer away from Cleveland.

Browns fans snicker a little bit.

Bringing back cornerback Kareem Jackson was a wise move, and notable imports include safety Rahim Moore, wide receiver Cecil Shorts and defensive tackle Vince Wilfork, the latter of whom brings a championship pedigree to H-Town.

Much like the championship pedigree that Ed Reed brought to the Texans until he was cut prior to concluding his first season with the team?

Kansas City Chiefs: PASS

So the Chiefs do deserve credit for bringing in speedy wideout Jeremy Maclin from Philadelphia—even though they overpaid (five years, $55 million) for him.

And really, what's the point of signing a guy in free agency if you aren't going to overpay for him? There's no fun in making a big splash if there can't be a little financial irresponsibility that goes along with it.

While receiver Dwayne Bowe and center Rodney Hudson are now ex-Chiefs, the signing of Maclin is enough to give Kansas City a passing grade.

The Chiefs got a passing grade because simply because they overpaid for a wide receiver (and the Jaguars also got a "Pass" grade for signing Julius Thomas). It's almost like the author favors making a big splash over a team not spending salary cap space on players who could help the team but also aren't smart financial signings.

Miami Dolphins: PASS

Any time you can sign one of the best three free agents in the history of the NFL, you earn a passing grade. The Miami Dolphins did just that. 

Okay, you are going to have to calm the fuck down. Suh is a great player and the top free agent available but the Dolphins paid him like a franchise quarterback. It's great that Suh is a wanted free agent, but the Dolphins will regret his contract and you can write that down with a chisel in stone. Suh will produce for the Dolphins, but his contract will continue to give the team problems.

Along with Reggie White (1993) and Peyton Manning (2012), Ndamukong Suh completed the holy trinity of free agents, and his decision to go to Miami could have a major impact on the AFC playoff picture.

Peter King wants to know where Nnamdi Asomugha fits into that trinity.

New Dolphins Executive Vice President of Football Operations Mike Tannenbaum has done a great job cleaning up mistakes from deposed general manager Jeff Ireland, headlined by his trade of underachieving (and overpaid) receiver Mike Wallace (along with a seventh-round pick) for a fifth-round pick in this year's draft.

He cleaned up Ireland's mistakes by overpaying for another free agent. Brilliant move. It is the equivalent of cleaning a toilet using asbestos as the cleaning agent. Boy, it sure looks clean until you realize a few years later you just caused a whole new set of problems for yourself.

Trading for Saints receiver Kenny Stills was an underrated move that should pay immediate dividends.

That was a trade and not free agency. Stop judging NFL teams on moves they made that weren't moves made in free agency. If this slideshow is supposed to be about how teams did in free agency, then stick to moves these teams made in free agency.

Minnesota Vikings: PASS

But until the uncertainty surrounding running back Adrian Peterson's status is resolved, it's difficult to assign a definite pass or fail to the Vikings.

Adrian Peterson is currently a player on the Vikings roster. He is not a free agent. Whether he is going to be traded, he'll retire, or assume a new identify and try to enter the draft as Adam Patterson, his status has zero to do with what the Vikings' grade should be for their free agent moves. Stop judging NFL teams' free agent moves based upon moves they made that weren't made in free agency.

New Orleans Saints: FAIL

While re-signing running back Mark Ingram and bringing in cornerback Brandon Browner and speedy back C.J. Spiller all qualify as positive moves, the Saints remain in a world of financial hurt, and losing Graham makes this an easy call for a failing grade.

Jimmy Graham was traded. TRADED to the Seahawks. This isn't a move in free agency and shouldn't have anything to do with the grade. Here is what the author stated his grade would be based upon:

Now we'll explore how the teams have done in free agency and assign them each a grade of either pass or fail. We came to this conclusion for a variety of reasons—none more important than if the team is better than it was at the end of the 2014 season.

We also included factors such as quality of players signed, if their own important free agents stayed and how many good players defected.

Do you see anywhere in there where it says, "We will also include any personnel moves these teams have made since the end of the season"? No? Because it's not there and all of the language has to do with the grade being based upon the moves these teams made in free agency. Yet, here we are again...Jimmy Graham was traded so the Saints get a failing grade in free agency.

New York Giants: PASS

While general manager Jerry Reese overpaid for special teams ace Dwayne Harris, he should upgrade the return game. Defensive end George Selvie, linebackers J.T. Thomas and Jonathan Casillas will also help.

I like how the author doesn't give a shit if a team overpays for a player in free agency, just as long as that team acquired the player. Because free agency isn't about making smart decisions to help your team in the short-term and not handicap the team in the long-term. Not at all. Free agency is about spending however much money that team needs to spend in order to improve themselves on paper. Who cares if a team overpays for a free agent? It's about making a splash and getting a good grade for that. Fiscal responsibility isn't cool and can only result in a lower grade.

New York Jets: PASS

Although they shelled out massive money to bring cornerback Darrelle Revis back to Broadway, it was the right decision. Revis is still an elite player and should be one for the majority of his five-year deal. It was an excellent signing by new general manager Mike Maccagnan.

Maccagnan also signed two other cornerbacks, Antonio Cromartie and Buster Skrine, morphing a position of weakness into one of strength. Also brought in were guard James Carpenter and safety Marcus Gilchrist.

Thanks to these signings, the Jets earn a big-time passing grade for the free-agency period.

The Jets spent a lot of money on players and this obviously gives them a good grade. Here is a fun game. Think about the big free agent signings over the last few years and how they turned out. This writer gave every team who signed a big name/expensive free agent a passing grade. Yet when looking back on big signings in free agency from a few years back, those teams wouldn't get a passing grade. It's almost like the author values a splash signing more than he values smart free agent signings. That's the typical reaction of fan-boy, amateur bullshit writing, so I shouldn't be surprised.

Oakland Raiders: PASS

Beleaguered general manager Reggie McKenzie made a series of great signings, including linebacker Curtis Lofton,

Who, as Saints fans will attest, isn't very good at playing football.

former Super Bowl MVP Malcolm Smith (linebacker).

He's also more recently a former backup linebacker, which of course the author fails to mention.

And running back Trent Richardson represents a low-risk, high-reward transaction (seriously).

Seriously, regardless of the risk, Trent Richardson is awful. The tape don't lie.

Philadelphia Eagles: PASS

At this point, it seems every team is passing. Everything is awesome! Every NFL team improved itself in free agency! How realistic.

Kelly's trade for Rams quarterback Sam Bradford (dealing a second-round pick in 2016 and quarterback Nick Foles to get him) was questionable, but the rest of Kelly's moves were brilliant. Running back LeSean McCoy didn't have a great season last year, and Kelly was able to get a quality young linebacker, Kiko Alonso, for him.

Repeat after me. This was a trade and had nothing to do with free agency. Consistently the author is mixing free agency with other personnel moves outside of free agency.

Philadelphia Eagles coach Chip Kelly has become the most interesting man in sports. He doesn't always talk to the media, but when he does, everyone stops what they're doing and listens.

And that's a credit to the incredibly interesting Kelly, who doesn't care what you or anyone else thinks.

I actually agree with the author about the Eagles' moves, but not because Kelly is interesting. It seems the author is confusing a coach being interesting with this meaning the moves he made in free agency (and of course, outside of free agency) are smart.

Pittsburgh Steelers: PASS

So give general manager Kevin Colbert and coach Mike Tomlin credit for re-signing Roethlisberger to a massive contract extension that will allow him to retire a Steeler.

(Bangs head against the table that a current Steelers player being given a contract extension is being included as part of a grade on how the Steelers did in free agency)

The signing of running back DeAngelo Williams should help, as the depth last year (once LeGarrette Blount was cut and re-emerged in New England) behind starter Le'Veon Bell wasn't great. Williams might not be the player he once was, but he's still capable of moving the chains and getting the job done.

As of the time the author wrote this, this was the only move the Steelers had made in free agency. So while the author knocks other teams for not filling all the roster holes they had, the Steelers sign a backup running back while losing three starters (Worilds, Keisel, Taylor) and they get a passing grade. I guess they have no more roster holes to fill.

Bringing in Williams was a brilliant move by Colbert, and inking Roethlisberger to an extension was smart. That earns the Steelers a passing grade.

I wouldn't call signing Williams as "brilliant." I saw him play for his entire career and he's definitely playing with a fork in his back at this point. The Roethlisberger extension was not a free agent signing. I will repeat this until I die, which may be soon.
 
Seattle Seahawks: PASS

The only move that ultimately matters in their pursuit of a second Lombardi Trophy was the trade to bring in All-Pro tight end Jimmy Graham from New Orleans.

There's no point in typing it at this point.

Gone are cornerback Byron Maxwell, guard James Carpenter and Super Bowl hero Malcolm Smith, but general John Schneider has assembled a roster with great depth that can overcome those losses. 

The acquisition of Graham easily earns Seattle a passing grade.

I love how when the author wants to give a team as passing grade, and yet that team has lost some players in free agency without replacing them, so he just writes, "GM X has assembled a roster with great depth that can overcome those losses" without going into specifics. Yeah fuck it, they'll be fine. Who cares how, because that trade for Jimmy Graham gives the Seahawks a high grade in free agency. So everything should be fine after that.

St. Louis Rams: PASS

Like every other team, the Rams pass because they made a move which gave them headlines. Also, like much of this list, the trade for Foles is the biggest reason the Rams did well in free agency which apparently is now shorthand for "every move the team has made in the offseason."

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: FAIL

Last offseason, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers went on a free-agent spending spree, notably signing quarterback Josh McCown, defensive end Michael Johnson and offensive tackle Anthony Collins.

As of now, none of those three players are still on the roster. So we're going to retroactively award a failing grade for both last year's free-agency period and this one. You're welcome, Tampa Bay.

And yet, without any sense of self-awarenss or the slightest bit of irony, the author has awarded every team that made big, expensive moves during 2015 free agency a sparkling "Pass" grade. It's weird how the author knows these big free agency moves didn't work out for the Buccaneers last year, but he doesn't think to realize perhaps these "Pass" grades based on big moves might end up looking silly a year from now. Big free agent moves don't always work out, yet the teams who make these moves get an exciting "Pass" grade in free agency from the author.

It's hilarious to me the author is all like, "HAHA! Look at those stupid Buccaneers who made high-profile and expensive moves to improve the team last year in free agency. Let's all point and laugh at them for thinking if they throw money at players then the team will succeed. THE JOKE'S ON YOU ASSHOLE!" Then he proceeds to give every team that made high-profile and expensive moves a passing grade for this offseason. It's grand. 

Washington Redskins: PASS 

And McCloughan has already made a positive impact on the roster, making a number of under-the-radar signings in free agency that make both football and financial sense. What a novel concept!

But did he fill all of the personnel holes the Redskins team had? Because that's the standard upon which free agency is judged apparently. The Redskins failed if they didn't address every single need the team had in free agency. We've learned this truth throughout the slideshow.

Linebacker Brian Orakpo and running back Roy Helu headline the list of players that signed elsewhere, but Orakpo had underachieved and Helu is expendable.

Ah screw 'em, who needs these guys anyway? Brian Orakpo underachieved and Roy Helu is just a guy. Of course the author did give the Titans and Raiders "Pass" grades for signing these two players, so I have to wonder why it was smart for the Redskins to not re-sign Orakpo because he underachieved, but the Titans made a smart move by signing him? That seems odd. If Helu is expendable, then why would part of the Raiders' "Pass" grade be based partly upon them signing him?

Overall, the Redskins got better, and that earns them a passing grade.

Yeah, but what happened to filling all the holes on the team because free agency is the last chance to do that? Isn't that how the author judged NFL teams earlier in this exercise of free agency grading futility? The Ravens failed due to not filling all the holes the team had.

I should expect nothing else from a grading system that uses personnel moves a team made outside of free agency as the basis for a grade on how that team did in free agency. 

7 comments MMQB Review: The Mania and Joy of Overpaying in Free Agency Edition

We still have open spots in the fantasy baseball league and if anyone wants to join then send me an email to bengoodfella@yahoo.com and I will send you an invite. So, onto David Steele being unfair.
 
Peter King showed the first rendering of the non-existent, possibly existent football stadium that would be built in St. Louis for whichever team would like to play there in last week's MMQB. He also advocated for Josh McCown as a $4.75 million player/coach and seems to be under the impression that McCown can still successfully start NFL football games. This week Peter talks about which teams are overpaying in free agency this offseason, free agents who will be bargains, his visit to Iceland (I'm sure there wasn't as much ice as Peter expected), and thinks J.K. Simmons is just like Bill Parcells. There's a comparison you don't hear very often. Peter is a little obsessed with Parcells from covering him for "Newsday" so I guess it makes sense in that aspect.

The headlines this morning, on the eve of the explosive, money-burning-holes-in-NFL-pockets 2015 free market:

Otherwise known as the 2015 free agency period where teams will sign the players they are trying to get rid of three years from now. It's an exciting time of free agent signings, followed by a sad time remembering your team still owes Derek Newton $2.5 million and he doesn't play on the team anymore.

THE DEVIN McCOURTY SIGNING MAY HAVE GIVEN AWAY THE PATRIOTS’ PLAN WITH DARRELLE REVIS. Can the Patriots afford to employ the game’s second-highest-paid safety (McCourty got $9.5 annually, according to Ian Rapoport) and the highest-paid cornerback if they re-sign Revis in the neighborhood of $15 million a year? Not likely, but you never know with New England.

NFL teams can pretty much do whatever they want, so the Patriots could re-sign Revis for $15 million per year, but the only question is how this affects their cap in the future. So maybe the Patriots have a plan for this that doesn't involve Tom Brady taking a pay cut.

In agreeing to terms with the best defensive lineman in free agency in the past 20 years, Ndamukong Suh, the Dolphins get the game’s best interior pocket-collapser—which they believe is the best strategy for facing Tom Brady. More about that on Page 2.

Because having Suh worked out so well in helping the Lions lose 34-9 to the Patriots just this past season.

If wideout Jeremy Maclin signs with Kansas City on Tuesday, which appears likely (according to Chris Mortensen), that means in the span of 12 months the Eagles coach will have gotten rid of the three biggest offensive weapons on the team: Maclin, DeSean Jackson and LeSean McCoy. Imagine if Kelly uses Nick Foles in a gigantic package to move up from the 20th spot in the first round April 30 to pick Marcus Mariota. (Hmmmm. Trading up for Mariota. Where have I heard that before?)

Where has Peter heard this before? How about in tons of mock drafts and whispers of speculation before he posted that mock draft? I like how Peter is trying to take credit for the Mariota to the Eagles trade in his mock draft, like there hasn't been speculation that Chip Kelly would trade up for Mariota since before the 2014 NFL season even began. No Peter, this was an original idea that you thought of. Kudos for the original thought 500 other sportswriters had.

Wide receiver Torrey Smith, the former Raven, likely headed to San Francisco for $9 million a year … Ditto tight end Julius Thomas from Denver to Jacksonville, for about the same money 

Should Julius Thomas regret leaving the Broncos and Peyton Manning before signing the contract or will he just defer these feelings until after he signs a contract to catch passes from Blake Bortles? Apparently getting one more contract worth a lot of money isn't something that concerns Thomas. His best chance to get that one more contract worth a lot of money is to stay with the Broncos and Peyton Manning. If I'm Thomas, I sign a two year deal to keep playing with Manning and then take a chance on becoming a free agent at the age of 28.

The Raiders, with $59 million in cap room, begging any warm free-agency body to take some of it 

I can't imagine why this wouldn't be a good strategy. Too much salary cap room is a bad thing if you ask me. All that money to burn and so many players to overpay so that money gets burnt.

The Patriots wouldn’t actually pay Darrelle Revis his $20 million option-year compensation, would they? I can’t see it.

Peter seems very concerned about what the Patriots will be doing with Darrelle Revis. It hasn't gotten to the point where it got a few years ago when Nnamdi Asomugha was a free agent and Peter called him the most valuable free agent on the market since Reggie White, but it could get to that point if Peter's giddiness ever becomes slightly more unbridled.

The Jets re-signed linebacker David Harris, and dealt a fifth-round pick for 31-year-old wideout Brandon Marshall, and are in play for free-agent quarterback Brian Hoyer. Not good enough, unless you’re competing with Tennessee and Jacksonville for 27th place in the NFL. The Jets enter free agency with at least $48 million to spend, and an owner fascinated with a Revis reunion. “The Jets can’t not be trying to make that happen,” said a source with knowledge of the team’s inner workings.

As I said, too much salary cap room can be a bad thing. All of a sudden the Jets are in the same position they were in with Darrelle Revis three years ago, except they pay him this time, then they start handing out cash to David Harris and Brian Hoyer. They aren't bad players, but when the Jets have money to spend they aren't going to start being cheap with the contracts they hand out.

As one opposing coach said Sunday, “Revis would be the obvious play for them, but at what cost? The hard part for the Jets is they’ve become an organization that has to overpay.” That’s what happens when you go four straight years without a winning season.

Yes Peter, but a team goes four straight years without a winning season by becoming a team that overpays for free agents. Please don't be blind to the reality of the NFL because it's more fun to watch the Jets spend money. Teams that haven't had winning seasons don't have to overspend for free agents.

The prevailing wisdom has been that New England would cut Revis and the two sides would find a common ground for him to return. That’s certainly possible, but Revis has been a mercenary during his career (and who can blame a player for wanting to max out his value?), and if the Jets offer, say, four years and $60 million, mostly guaranteed, that’d be a hard deal for New England to compete with. 

I like Darrelle Revis, but didn't paying for Eric Decker seem like a good idea to the Jets at the time? Not that Revis isn't worth the money possibly. Whatever, free agency vexes me many times over.

Revis has the one thing Johnson so desperately needs for his adrift-at-sea franchise. He’d bring legitimacy back to the team. Johnson could hold him up as an example of how the tide is turning and the talent is returning. Plus, Revis loves the lights and the pressure. It’d be a great marriage.

It was a great marriage. Then Revis held out every other year and the Jets traded him. What makes them think if he starts performing at a high level that he won't want another new contract? I love Revis as a player, but the dude is never happy with the amount of money he is making.

Tuesday, 4:01 p.m.: The first signing will be announced, certainly to be accompanied by words to this effect from the signee: “I left money on the table elsewhere.”

That elsewhere may end up being Oakland. That's how they will give Greg Hardy and DeMarco Murray $150 million combined over the next six years. But hey, Peter will like these moves because they bring legitimacy to the organization and overpaying is how they break their string of non-winning seasons. Right? That's how it usually works in the early days of free agency? Teams spend money and then immediately shoot themselves right into the Super Bowl.

1. Suh will be the highest-paid defensive player ever, handily. His $19 million average (six years, $114 million, per Mortensen) beats J.J. Watt’s $16.7 million average (six years, $100 million). Silly, because Watt’s the best defensive player, hands down, in football. But Watt wasn’t a free agent, and he didn’t have the leverage Suh had as a free man in a year with no other front-seven player even close to his impact.

Well, Watt could have eventually become a free agent. Just like an unselfish, hard-working guy like J.J. Watt would do though, he took his measly $100 million and continued to dance with the team that brought him. It's just like J.J. Watt to sacrifice so much for his team. 

Watt is now underpaid compared to Suh, but I like how Peter is acting like Watt didn't get $100 million from the Texans, like Watt signed for half of what Suh eventually got. Watt is still filthy rich, make no mistake about it. 

Against strong edge rushers, Brady feels the rush and steps up in the pocket and makes things happen. Against strong up-the-middle rushers, Brady has to roam to either side to keep the play going, and he’d rather not do that. With Cameron Wake on the outside and Suh now rushing from inside, Brady and the Patriots have a new headache in the division.  

While I do agree that having Suh and Wake together is great, again, the Lions had Suh with other quality pass rushers this year to throw at Brady. The Seahawks had a great pass rush in this past Super Bowl and neither the Seahawks or Lions managed to beat the Patriots this past season. It's a lot of money to give to a player like Suh. I'm cheap. 

2. The Packers keep wideout Randall Cobb off the free market with a four-year, $40 million deal. Sensible move by Cobb, knowing he could catch 400 balls over the next four years from Aaron Rodgers, if both stay healthy. Certainly he could have made more in Oakland or Jacksonville, and if that’s what you want to do—max out your income while you’re in your prime—that’s fine. But Cobb has a chance to be part of the best passing game in football, now, for at least the first eight years of his career. Let’s say he could have made $48 million over four in Oakland. If maximizing his money is what he wants, it’s understandable. Personally, I’d rather make $40 million and contend for a title every year than make $2 million a year more and be in a place where you have no idea if you’ll ever win.

It seems that Peter King and I agree. It's time to have a new opinion. Randall Cobb is smart. He knows he will be 28-29 years old when his contract runs out, so he has a chance to get another contract (are you listening Julius Thomas?). So by playing with Aaron Rodgers he has a chance to cash in twice during his career, as opposed to hoping David Carr or Blake Bortles turns out to be a good quarterback. Accepting $40 million to play with Aaron Rodgers and leaving options open for a second big contract in four years really shouldn't be a difficult decision.

3. The Eagles did what you should never do with a decent player on a championship team: vastly overpay him. Cornerback Byron Maxwell agreed to a six-year, $63 million deal (a $10.5 million average). I get it, and free agency is good for the players, so good for Maxwell. But in paying Maxwell—the 45th-rated cornerback in the league last season by Pro Football Focus—so much, the team and fans will expect him to be a shutdown corner, which he most decidedly is not. He’s a physical, tall, competitive corner, but not a great one. The Eagles will end up being disappointed, the same way Dallas was disappointed in Brandon Carr. I recall the words of the late Giants GM George Young: No player ever plays better because you pay him more money.

But Peter, you just hinted that the Jets needed to pay players in order to become relevant. Teams have to overpay for players when they can't win games, but overpaying these players isn't the key to winning more games. Darrelle Revis is a much better player than Byron Maxwell, but what if the Eagles are signing Maxwell to give their fans an indication there is still talent coming to Philadelphia? It's alright for the Jets to do this, but the Eagles can't?

Finding gems in free agency is every bit as important as—and given the financial savings, perhaps more important than—connecting on blockbuster deals.

It's more important to find gems in the free agency market than it is to make blockbuster deals. Peter shouldn't let the fact he gets fun headlines out of blockbuster signings affect his opinion. Finding gems on the free agent market is how a team succeeds, not through the blockbuster deals they make. Blockbuster deals can absolutely pay off, but good teams make smart deals with less expensive free agents. It doesn't surprise me that Peter favors headlines as much as smart decision-making.

“It’s a beautiful day for baseball. Let’s play two.”
—Former Niners coach Jim Harbaugh, conjuring up the late Ernie Banks at Oakland A’s training camp on Saturday. He was invited to speak to the team by manager Bob Melvin.

He's not an NFL head coach anymore. Can there just be no more mentions of Jim Harbaugh in MMQB from now on? This quote is boring and really brings nothing new to the column. It's not interesting simply because Jim Harbaugh said it. There has to be a better quote somewhere.

“How much more evidence do we need that the running back position is completely devalued? A healthy LeSean McCoy, one year removed from being the league’s leading rusher, was traded straight-up for a middle linebacker coming off knee surgery. With the degree to which a running back’s job is split up these days, no one really cares about having a top talent at the position in the NFL. Teams would rather spend that money elsewhere. One of these days the general public will come to accept this.”
—An astute Greg Bedard of The MMQB, in the wake of the McCoy-for-Kiko Alonso trade, in his Friday column.

I'm sorry, did the general public make the deal for LeSean McCoy? I seem to think the Bills front office made this trade, so I'm not sure why Bedard is lecturing the general public about the value of running backs. I think the general public knows that running backs are being devalued, so maybe save the lecture for the general public and lecture those teams who are paying these running backs. I think the deal works for both the Eagles and the Bills. Rex Ryan wanted a great, reliable running game and he has one now. Chip Kelly thinks his running backs are interchangeable and he just improved his team's defense. 

Mr. Starwood Preferred Member Travel Notes of the Week

Iceland seems like a really cool place—no pun intended.

Get it? Ice is cold.

And the 320,000 people who live there are pretty cool too—based on those I met on airplanes last week. Let me explain.

If you must explain why 320,000 people are all pretty cool, then go for it.

Many of you who follow this column will recall that nearly a year ago, my brother Ken died in England. My wife and I spent four days last week in England with my sister-in-law and the family, and to save a couple of bucks plus have a fun experience, we traveled on Icelandair, the national airline of the island nation near the Arctic Circle.

Oh, so Icelandair is related to the country "Iceland." Thanks for clearing that up. I was confused as to whether Icelandair was just a airline that specialized in really cold airplanes.

We had a fairly quick connection, 45 minutes, on the way over, and so we had to hustle off the plane to make the connection. One problem: I’d fallen asleep after finishing the LeSean McCoy-to-Buffalo column top for my Wednesday column with my cell phone in my lap, and so when we landed, my cell phone had disappeared. “You have to find it!” said one of the flight attendants, on her knees, looking for it under the seats. “The cell phone, it is your life!”

In reality it was Peter who said this, not the flight attendant and his exclamations probably went more like this.

(Peter King) "You have to find it. That cell phone is my life. Close the door, don't let anyone out! I SAID CLOSE THE FUCKING DOOR BECAUSE I'M ABOUT TO SPEAK! (everyone looks at Peter) I lost my phone. I'm important, so which one of your middle class, potentially non-American assholes took my phone? Just cough it up and I won't call you out in my weekly football column I write. No one is leaving this plane until my cell phone is found."

(Flight attendant) "Sir, we have to open the door. We can't keep everyone holed up on this flight."

(Peter King) "You have to open the door AND open your mouth when you aren't being talked to, don't you? DON'T YOU! (throws cold coffee that he refused to drink because it didn't have enough creamer in it into the flight attendant's face)"

(Flight attendant wiping her face off) "Sir, your phone is in the pocket of your shirt. We have to open the plane door."

(Peter King pulling his phone out of his shirt pocket) "Silly me! I have to catch a connecting flight, so move out of my way (starts pushing people down to get off the plane). Why are there so many people on this flight? (Peter's bag is hitting people in the face as he tries to get off the plane and then turns around as he is about to exit the plane) Lovely flight by the way. You are all pretty cool people---no pun intended."

After a few minutes of looking, two of the flight attendants said we’d better go, because we’d miss our plane, and I quickly figured, painfully, that the 787 phone numbers in the memory could be replaced (I need to save them daily, not semi-monthly),

Because Peter is important and has many friends with leather bound books he has to save his contacts daily. His house smells of rich mahogany and he knows many important people. He can't emphasize this enough. 

Dejected, I walked to the gate for Heathrow. The London flight was leaving in 20 minutes. I hate replacing cell phones. Monstrous pain. We were second in line for the connection when one of the flight attendants rushed up and said, “We found it! So happy we found you!”
Thanks, Icelandair. I’ll be back.

All people are judged by Peter on how much they are capable of helping him out or doing things that benefit him. If they can help him, they are good people. He only has time for useful people in his life. I write this because many of Peter's stories about people who are really nice revolve around these nice people doing something nice for him.

Skip this section if you don’t care, but for those who wonder what Iceland is like, I was outside for about three minutes on Saturday. Three minutes in March, anywhere, is an absurd period of time to judge any place,

Repeat after me: This is how we know that Peter will now make a comment where he tries to judge the place. Immediately after saying he can't or shouldn't judge something, Peter usually judges that something.

but here was my snapshot: The sleet pelted my face sideways, the wind whipped at 30 mph minimum, and the darkened sky look menacing. An hour later, as we taxied to leave, the sun was out, and it was setting. I loved it. A totally different world.

Fortunately, Peter found his cell phone or he would have described Iceland as the Hell-world that time should have forgotten.

Monday office pool suggestion:  "Who will the Raiders grossly overpay for?"
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) March 8, 2015

Yeah, but they would just be overpaying in order to draw talent to the team to show that players are interested in making as much money as possible playing in Oakland. Plus, this is how teams that have had so many losing seasons react, by overpaying for players in free agency. It's a vicious circle.

Ten Things I Think I Think

1. I think I’m not in the Chip Kelly’s-an-idiot camp, the same way I wasn’t in the Jimmy Johnson’s-an-idiot camp 25 years ago.

I don't think Chip Kelly is an idiot, but he certainly is getting rid of a lot of great offensive players. It's hard to call him an idiot until he actually fails for a season or two. Otherwise, it just feels like hot takes based on conventional wisdom.

3. I think it’s stunning to me that eight challengers will go to Hawaii next weekend to run against De Smith for the executive director post of the NFL Players Association. Eight foes had to be nominated by at least three player reps, which says everything you need to know about the current level of satisfaction or lack thereof with Smith’s performance. I’ll just say this: I think it’s wrong-headed to say Smith made a bad deal with the 2011 CBA. Maybe it was a bad deal, making a pact for a decade. But the gains in off-field lives for players are always minimized when players discuss the fruits of the new labor deal, and Smith’s group did a tremendous job in giving players more of an off-season and in making practices in training camp and during the season significantly less taxing. I’m not advocating for Smith.

Well, you sort of are advocating for De Smith. Not that it's a huge deal, but you are doing a little advocating. The NFL has completely non-guaranteed contracts, which I am sure is something that irritates athletes in the most physically demanding and dangerous sport just a little bit.

Notice how Peter says he thinks it's wrong-headed to say Smith made a bad deal with the 2011 CBA, then says, "Maybe it was a bad deal." So Peter is being wrong-headed in his own belief that the CBA was a bad deal. Yes, the CBA did help the players make gains off-the-field for the players, but it seems the players themselves don't appreciate these gains so why should anyone else care about this part of the fruits of the labor deal?

I’m simply saying the last deal isn’t a bad one for players—which is a platform each one of the candidates will try to espouse next weekend at the player rep meeting. 

And of course, we all know Peter wants his agent (Marvin Demoff, in case you haven't read my harping about it) to go out and get a new contract that he can proudly brag is "not a bad one" for Peter. I'm guessing Peter would probably expect a little bit more out of his agent, just like the players expect more from Smith. But since it's not Peter who has to live under the CBA, "not a bad deal" is perfectly fine with him.

6. I think it will be fashionable around Philadelphia to believe that a 32-year-old running back is a poor substitute for LeSean McCoy. But Frank Gore, in my opinion, will be a superb signing because:

But don't think Peter is going to bat for Frank Gore. Because he's not, but here are all the great things about Frank Gore: 

(I've noticed that Peter tends to worry about going to bat for a player/coach/NFL-affiliated person in a situation where it doesn't matter, yet there are other times where it matters that he doesn't give a shit if he's going to bat for a player/coach/NFL affiliated person. Like, when he tries to help Alex Mack find an offer sheet that brings him more money and will pull him away from the Cleveland Browns. That seemed pretty shady to me, but Peter didn't care if he seemed like was advocating for Mack.)

a. Gore is a north-south physical runner, more of what Chip Kelly likes in a back.
b. Gore, in his past four years, at 28, 29, 30 and 31, missed zero games playing this bruising style.
c. Gore is consistent to a fault. He has rushed for between 1,106 yards and 1,214 yards per season in the past four years. In the past eight years, he’s averaged between 4.1 and 4.9 yards per carry.

Yeah, but Frank Gore is boring and LeSean McCoy is exciting. So it's better to have an exciting player than a boring player. Trading McCoy for Gore obviously means Chip Kelly has no idea what he's doing. (Cue Stephen A. Smith's hot take)

7. I think by Thursday, everyone will be very familiar with free-agent cornerback Buster Skrine. He’s the Cleveland corner, a middle-class player at a vital position who won’t cost what a premier player costs. He’s also the type of player—maybe the fifth or sixth cornerback in the pool—who will make more than he should.

So if a team signed Skrine would it be a good signing or a bad signing? He's not expensive, but he'll be overpaid. He plays a vital position but a team shouldn't invest in him to play that position? Peter doesn't have to take a stand on Skrine's value, but he's all over the map here when talking about Skrine. If the nickel corner position is so important and Skrine won't be paid like a premier player, then couldn't that mean Skrine won't be overpaid, it's just players at that position are valued highly?

8. I think the two players incumbent teams are undervaluing are Bryan Bulaga and Julius Thomas.

I think Julius Thomas is a player who is being overvalued. I also think (and here's a situation where Peter is advocating without worrying about whether he is doing it), that Peter is advocating a bit for Peyton Manning to get Julius Thomas back. Thomas is a great receiving tight end. He's not a great blocker and how many tight ends has Peyton Manning helped to look great? Jacob Tamme looks like a serviceable tight end with Manning throwing him the football.

I am surprised Green Bay GM Ted Thompson apparently believes $7 million a year (or so) is too much for Bulaga. You can be sure Bulaga’s agent, Tom Condon, will end up with a higher offer than $7 million a year for Bulaga, the best tackle in free-agency in a weak candidate pool. I get Thompson’s skepticism, after Bulaga has missed half the Green Bay games over the past three years.

Yes, Ted Thompson is undervaluing Bulaga by not wanting to invest in a player who can't stay healthy. Why wouldn't Thompson value a good offensive tackle who can't stay healthy in a weak market by paying him like he's a great tackle who plays 16 games a year?

But he’ll be 26 on opening day, and I’d think a contract with significant incentives could hit the target for Bulaga.

Because Bulaga would probably rather accept a contract where he has to earn significant incentives while turning down an offer from another team that will guarantee him the money he would have to earn from the Packers. What kind of sense does this make?

I also understand Broncos boss John Elway being wary of Thomas because he misses time with injuries, but that is Peyton Manning’s security blanket right there. Virgil Green had better be good—and Elway will need to strike gold with a mid-round tight end in the draft.

I feel like every offensive player is described as Manning's security blanket. Julius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders are security blankets, while Wes Welker used to be. I know Peter wants his buddy Peyton to be loaded at every offensive position, so I can understand why Peter is nervous for Peyton.

10. I think these are my non-football thoughts of the week:

a. The time away allowed me to finish a really good book: “Without You, There Is No Us: My Time with the Sons of North Korea’s Elite,” by Suki Kim (Crown). I love books about hidden lives and secret societies, and the 2011 view into North Korea, by a journalist embedded as a teacher/missionary, is painful and vivid and wonderfully real. Suki Kim is a hero for risking her life and writing it. I plan to have a further review when I write about books for my annual Fathers Day book review column in early June, but if you have a curiosity about a world you simply cannot know, I’d get it.

So during the three month period between now and Father's Day, a span of time so long that you could go purchase the book and read it several times, Peter will be able to get a review of this book together. So just wait until June and Peter will tell you more about the book...you know, or just go purchase the book right now and have it read with a few months to spare.

"I saw a really great movie the other night. I'll give you my review of the movie next year when it comes out on Blu-Ray."

d. And so I saw a couple of good movies while on my time away.

Peter will reveal these good movies in three months during his Father's Day column.

e. “Whiplash.” Wow. What a job by Miles Teller. Never heard of him before this movie.

I can't believe Peter hasn't seen "Divergent," "The Spectacular Now" or "That Awkward Moment" and doesn't recognize Teller's name from the new "Fantastic Four" reboot. What a shock to me.

f. J.K. Simmons reminds me of Bill Parcells. He really does.

Of course he does. When I was watching the old "Spiderman" movies I was always thinking, "Is that Bill Parcells playing the part of J. Jonah Jameson or are my eyes, ears and every other sense that can differentiate between two humans fooling me?"

The music teacher in “Whiplash” is an abusive type. And so many of you out there will recognize someone you have known in Simmons—which is why he won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.

This reminds me of Simmons' work in "Juno" when I kept mistaking him for Bill Parcells. I kept waiting for him to get in the face of Juno and tell her to just abort the baby, rub some dirt on it, and GET BACK ON THE FIELD where he can get more credit for the job he does because he works for NFL teams that have a higher profile.

g. “Birdman.” Wow. Michael Keaton needs to win awards, multiple, for his portrayal of a fading actor trying to remake his life on the stage—while trying to make up for being an absentee dad to his daughter, Emma Stone (who is wonderful as a disaffected stoner).

No pun intended here?

I am not a big fan of cinematography,

PETER THINKS CINEMATOGRAPHY IS A VITAL POSITION BUT EVERYONE HOLDS THAT POSITION ON A MOVIE SET IS OVERPAID, BUT LET HIM NOW TALK FONDLY ABOUT THE CINEMATOGRAPHY HE HATES SO MUCH!

but the way the camera follows Keaton through the theater to the streets of Broadway, and Edward Norton through the theater, is just brilliant.

Not Meryl Streep or Philip Seymour Hoffman brilliant, but more Lake Bell in that one movie Peter saw her in brilliant.

h. Beernerdness: If you have a chance to try Einstok Icelandic White Ale, do it. It’s a classic white ale, the kind with coriander and spices you’d pay $3 for a bottle of in America, and you do not have to pay $3 for many beers in the store in America.

Next time I'm in Iceland, I'll buy it. But only if I can find my phone.

Adieu Haiku

Free Agency’s here!  
False hope. Dan Snyder. Haynesworth.
Big winners draft well.

And yet, even though Peter thinks the big winners draft well more than half of this MMQB was about free agency and he has his THE MMQB employees working hard on stories about the blockbuster free agent signings. Weird how what makes teams big winners differs from the exciting stories of free agency that the media prefers to cover. 

10 comments Gregg Easterbrook Is Never Actually Wrong, He Just Doesn't Understand His Own Argument

Gregg Easterbrook helped ESPN introduce ESPN Grade last week in TMQ. It was the disaster that I was anticipating it would be. ESPN Grade only took the academic and football rankings of teams ranked in the Top 25, then ranked these teams against each other in order to see which college programs took academics seriously. I find it to be a useless metric. Gregg also "previewed" the AFC, while not really providing a preview of any kind, and more was reviewing what happened last year. This week Gregg "previews" the NFC, finds out he was wrong about Jacksonville giving money to build a new scoreboard instead of giving the money to the Jacksonville public schools and talks yet again about "creep." It's the topic some idiot readers write into Gregg claiming to notice and then this gives Gregg cause to continue writing about it. Make it stop.

The 2013 NFL season ended with the Seattle Seahawks crushing Denver in the Super Bowl. But will they even reach the playoffs this season?

No, because they have too many undrafted, hard-working players who have become highly-drafted glory boys who only care about themselves and look into the backfield while trying to cover a receiver. It's been decided.

The two prior Super Bowl victors, the Ravens and Giants, failed to reach the postseason the following year. Those two clubs were a combined 17-15 in the seasons following their confetti shower after the final contest. Fifteen of the 48 Super Bowl winners -- nearly a third of those to hoist the Lombardi Trophy -- didn't make the playoffs the next year.

I can't speak for other NFL teams who have won the Super Bowl, but as I explained in MMQB on Tuesday, the Seahawks may be different because they were a dominant team over the entire season who is bringing back the core of their team. Both the Giants and Ravens weren't dominant over the course of the entire season they won the Super Bowl and also lost key players from that Super Bowl-winning team. The Seahawks lost players like Golden Tate, but a healthy Percy Harvin more than makes up for that loss. So I would think the Seahawks have a better chance than recent Super Bowl winners of repeating as champs.

More than that, the 16-game season means a break here or a bounce there can be the difference between a playoff run and January on the couch. MLB teams play 162 regular-season contests, and NBA teams play 82; in that many the impact of luck washes out, and the best teams earn the postseason invites. Just one of the NBA's 68 title teams, the 1998 Chicago Bulls, failed to reach the next postseason. Then baseball and basketball play five- or seven-game postseason series. Luck might determine the victor in any one game; after seven games, the best team almost always wins.

Which explains perfectly why five Wild Card teams have won the World Series since it was instituted in 1995 and five other Wild Card teams made the World Series, but lost. You know, the better team in MLB almost always wins because the season is so long and a seven game series takes removes the variable of luck. Maybe Gregg thinks the better baseball team just isn't the team that won it's division.

Since football's relatively small number of regular-season contests are followed by a postseason knockout round, practically anything can happen.

Baseball also has a one-game knockout Wild Card round. Gregg does have a point about the small number of regular season contests and how that impacts which teams make the playoffs, but baseball does now have the one-game Wild Card game where anything can happen. 

For the Ravens in their Super Bowl year, two long, fluky, last-second gains at San Diego and Denver were the difference between a magnificent season and also-ran status. For the Giants in their Super Bowl year, every bounce of the ball went their way in the NFC title contest at San Francisco, and then again in the Super Bowl versus New England.

Lady Luck smiled on the Seahawks in 2013 and perhaps will again this year -- but don't count on it.

I don't recall the Seahawks having luck like the Ravens had with Rahim Moore allowing the long pass to Jacoby Jones two seasons ago and the fumble by Kyle Williams of the 49ers three seasons ago that benefited the Giants (was that really luck?). I know, facts are malleable things Gregg enjoys bending to his will.

Conventional wisdom holds that first- and second-round draft selections are the essence of football success. Yet the Seahawks won the Super Bowl the past season with the league's second-lowest total of games played by first- and second-round selections;

So this must mean that first round draft choices are useless because the Seahawks didn't have many players who were first or second round picks. That's the only logical conclusion here.

Seattle got fine performances from mid-round and late-round selections, while seven of the top 10 teams for games by high draft picks failed to make the playoffs.

A little-known guy who goes all-out can be a better NFL performer than a highly drafted star, and Seattle had little-known guys going all out in 2013. This was best exemplified by seventh-round draft selection Malcolm Smith's winning the Super Bowl's MVP trophy, while Peyton Manning (No. 1 overall pick in 1998) and Champ Bailey (seventh overall in 1999) had their heads in their hands.

If anyone should have their head in their hands, it is Gregg Easterbrook for intentionally misleading and lying to his audience. He picks two high draft choices from the Broncos when he wants to prove the Broncos have highly-paid glory boys, but he'll also be sure to talk later this season about little known Julius Thomas and undrafted Wes Welker when it's convenient for him to do so. The Seahawks had first round pick Marshawn Lynch running the football and first round pick (and highly-paid glory boy) Percy Harvin return a kickoff for a touchdown in the Super Bowl.

Here are the most games played by first- and second-round choices in the 2013 season:

Cincinnati 263
Kansas City 255
Jersey/B 254
Jersey/A 253
San Francisco 243
Detroit 224
Baltimore 223
Tennessee 222
Minnesota 220
Atlanta 219

Over the last three years, eight of these ten teams have made the playoffs.

Buffalo 217
Indianapolis 216
Pittsburgh 214
Arizona 214
St. Louis 210
Carolina 208
Denver 204
Cleveland 204
Washington 203
Houston 198
Chicago 193
Philadelphia 192
New England 190
San Diego 188
City of Tampa 175
New Orleans 173
Jacksonville 163
Green Bay 160
Oakland 158
Dallas 146
Seattle 141
Miami 124

Over the last three years, 12 of these 22 teams have made the playoffs. the results change a bit when you extrapolate the data past one season.

Now, onto TMQ's NFC preview

It's a review, not a preview. Nothing is being previewed.

Atlanta: Was it really just a year and a half ago that the Falcons, hosting the NFC title contest, came within a couple snaps of the Super Bowl? It seems so much longer, especially to those who endured the team's 2013 tailspin.

Gregg Easterbrook earlier in this column: "NFL teams may not make the playoffs one year and then make the playoffs the next year because of the 16 game schedule This is normal."

Gregg Easterbrook here: "I can't believe it's been one season since the Falcons have made the playoffs! It seems so long ago! Who would have thought the Falcons would miss the playoffs the year after almost making the Super Bowl?"

Since they took their home field for the NFC title game, the Falcons are 4-13. General manager Thomas Dimitroff gambled the club's future on the 2011 kings' ransom trade for Julio Jones, and the gamble failed. Not only did Atlanta fail to reach the Super Bowl, but Jones also has failed to justify the trade.

The Falcons are 27-21 since acquiring Julio Jones. Jones has 174 receptions in 34 games played, with 2,737 yards and 20 touchdowns. Gregg is absolutely lying that Julio Jones hasn't justified the trade. Any team in the NFL would trade for a player who averages 5 catches, 80 yards and 0.58 touchdowns per game. Any team. That is 80 catches for 1280 yards and 9 touchdown catches in a 16 game season. Gregg is annoying as hell when he downplays a first round pick's performance simply because he wants it to fit his narrative.

Now the Falcons are on the downward side of a talent cycle. The defense was among the league's worst in 2013 and offered a raft of has-beens.

Gregg linked the Falcons defense for the 2014 season, but he wouldn't know that because he doesn't read the links he posts. The Top 15 defensive players (in terms of tackles) on the Falcons 2013 team had an average of 4.8 years in the NFL (which puts them at the age of 26-28 years of age) and started three rookies on defense. ESPN has to do better than give Gregg Easterbrook a forum for his lies.

The Falcons' running game is expected to make another try at featuring Steven Jackson. But with the most carries in the league in the past decade -- 2,553 -- it's hard to believe Jackson's body can withstand much more.

Which is probably why they drafted Devonta Freeman to back up Jackson. I can't wait until Freeman has a great year and Gregg talks about how Freeman wasn't picked until the fourth round behind glory boys like Bishop Sankey and Carlos Hyde, yet on August 26 Gregg Easterbrook had no idea Freeman even existed on the Falcons roster. He's such a fraud.

Network politics note: Atlanta finished 4-12 the past season and gets a Monday Night Football appearance in 2014; Washington finished 3-13 and gets two MNF dates; Buffalo had a better record than either and will not appear on Monday Night Football.

It's almost like nationally televised games are based on ratings and not a team's record the previous season.

Arizona: The past season, the Cardinals finished 10-6, then stayed home as 8-7-1 Green Bay and 9-7 San Diego advanced to the postseason -- yet another point in favor of TMQ's contention that the NFL postseason should be a seeded tournament, a la March Madness. Because west-of-the-Rockies NFL teams don't seem to impact the national sports consciousness during the regular season, Arizona's 2013 performance is a blank spot in the minds of all but the team's fan base and the most ardent football enthusiasts.

Just last year Gregg Easterbrook wrote a TMQ about how West Coast football was in style and now he's claiming no one pays attention to the West Coast NFL teams, despite the fact two of the four teams in the AFC and NFC Championship Games played west of the Rockies and the Broncos are just east of the Rockies. Consistency is not Gregg's thing.

The Cactus Wrens played stout defense in 2013 and finished sixth overall. Three of the league's top six defenses of 2013 were west-of-the-Rockies, which leads to TMQ's theory that the West Coast Offense has given way to the West Coast Defense. The West Coast Defense is back to basics -- few gimmick fronts, little blitzing, disciplined linebackers.

Yeah, but the 49ers run that 3-4 defense that Gregg referred to as a "fad" a few years ago. I guess that's a fad defense, but not a gimmicky one?

Carson Palmer revived his fading career with Arizona in 2013 but threw 22 interceptions. 

Julio Jones is one of the best receivers in the NFL and he hasn't justified the picks given up to acquire him, meanwhile Carson Palmer threw two more touchdowns than interceptions, had the 20th best QB rating, and 19th best QBR rating and Gregg thinks he revived his fading career. There's no logical reason for his points of view.

All coaches claim to face killer schedules -- this helps set expectations low -- but Arizona has an actual killer schedule: eight contests versus playoff teams from the past season, including four games versus Seattle and San Francisco, last year's two strongest teams, and a date at Denver.

Yeah, but since some NFL teams have a hard time making it back to the playoffs in back-to-back years this killer schedule may not mean much due to these playoffs teams from 2013 possibly taking a step back during the 2014 season and not making the playoffs.

Unified Field Theory of Creep: Reader Randall Pierce of Fredericksburg, Virginia: "On August 15th, my wife received an email from Pottery Barn urging her 'not to miss out' on 'spooktacular Halloween costumes.'" Get your Halloween shopping done before Labor Day!

I feel like I need to find a shorthand for, "Retail stores try to create urgency in consumers in order to get them to purchase items as early as possible in order to make as much money as possible." As I've said a thousand times, the fact Gregg Easterbrook and Randall from Virginia don't understand how retail works is more of a reflection on them than it is an example of "creep."

Carolina's defense plays a Tampa 2 with press corners, deep safeties and little blitzing. As in the original Tampa 2, Carolina's fast linebackers are the key.

Carolina does play a Tampa 2, but they really don't. Sean McDermott's defense is inspired by Jim Johnson's attacking defense, so there are definite differences. Still, when the front four can get pressure and the corners are horrendous, that team plays a lot of Cover 2 or Cover 3.

He will be protected by left tackle Byron Bell, an undrafted free agent from a University of New Mexico team that went 1-11. A classic late bloomer, Bell is outperforming several highly touted tackles from his draft year, including first-round selections Gabe Carimi and Derek Sherrod.

Is Bell outperforming these guys? Bell has a -2.8 rating at right tackle last year and he is now protecting Cam Newton's blind side (in related news, Newton is going to be murdered this year by a pass rusher). The only ones who are really confident Byron Bell can play left tackle is the Panthers coaching staff and I bet most of their confidence is because there are few other options. Just because he's undrafted and starts doesn't mean Bell is a good football player. His performance last year and against Chandler Jones in the preseason says differently.

Half the plots on the many "Star Trek" serials boiled down to this formula:

1. Crew notices something interesting.
2. Captain leads away team that investigates.
3. The thing is not what it seemed! Captain is in grave peril.
4. Remainder of the episode is a rescue mission.

Then stop watching "Star Trek." It's that easy.

Female personnel have served on United States surface combatant vessels for about 20 years and on submarines for about two years, so the show's depiction of a casually mixed-gender complement is accurate. But the women of the James, on active duty aboard a warship during the apocalypse, wear eye makeup and lipstick. Don't they know loose lips sink ships?

That's a great point, Gregg. All women in the military are ugly and never wear any type of makeup. If "The Last Ship" was realistic it would not have the women wearing any makeup and they would spend most of their time on the ship being sexually harassed. Gregg had to admit the show had a realistic battleship depiction, so he was stretching to try and find something to criticize about the show.

New head coach Lovie Smith cut Pro Bowl tackle Donald Penn without even discussing the situation with him.

No way! This must be the first time a person was fired without a three hour long conversation about why he's being fired.

Going into the past season, a scout might have said Tampa's best players were Darrelle Revis, Josh Freeman, Carl Nicks, Mike Williams and Penn. When Smith arrived, all were unceremoniously shown the door -- four waived, one traded for a late-round draft choice.

A scout might have also said different players were the Buccaneers best players. Josh Freeman was traded before Lovie Smith showed up, but again, I wouldn't want facts to get in the way of the narrative that Gregg is pushing. God knows he doesn't give a shit about facts. Carl Nicks was perpetually injured, Darrelle Revis was expensive (highly-paid glory boy who only cares about himself alert!), Josh Freeman had conflict with Greg Schiano and Mike Williams seemed to have some troubles that led to his being traded. It's not like these players were released or traded for no reason.

City of Tampa enters the new season on its third head coach-general manager combination in six seasons. By unloading high-profile players from the previous regime, Smith and new general manager Jason Licht set the bar low: If the team wins, all is well; if it loses, they can't possibly be expected to win now, considering the mess they inherited!

Or they are trying to clean up the mess they inherited, but that couldn't possibly be the case could it?

The Windy City is known for its sports curses -- the Billy Goat Curse on the Cubs (no pennant since tossing the owner of the Billy Goat Tavern and his pet goat from a game in 1945), the Shoeless Joe Curse on the White Sox (no World Series win for most of a century because Shoeless Joe could not say it ain't so) and the Honey Bears Curse on the Bears (no Super Bowl victory since abolishing their cheerleader squad in 1985 for the crime of "being too sexy"). Soon the Devin Hester Curse might be added.

Great, so if the Bears don't win the Super Bowl this year then Gregg will blame it on a fake curse and only on a fake curse.

This offseason, Jerry Jones agreed to $110 million ($40 guaranteed) for Tyron Smith. Last offseason, Jones agreed to $108 million ($55 million guaranteed) for Tony Romo. Thus, in about 12 months, Jones promised $218 million ($95 million guaranteed) to two players who have combined for a career total of one postseason victory.

When Gregg hands out facts like this, it makes me want to punch something. He's now blaming an offensive lineman for the Cowboys not winning but one playoff game. I almost don't even know what to say. I can't fathom how Gregg combines the career total of playoff wins of an offensive lineman and a quarterback and then thinks he has a point.

Romo is 1-3 in the playoffs; Smith has never made a playoffs appearance. So let's break the bank to make sure we keep these guys together!

Tyron Smith is 23 years old, has been in the NFL for only three years and was named to the Pro Bowl, as well as was named second team All-Pro. It's fun to bash Jerry Jones, but he paid for a left tackle who isn't even close to being in his prime. Playoff victories have nothing to do with it.

The Lions have spent lavishly on their defensive line -- three recent high No. 1 picks -- and don't have much to show for it, having finished 28th in sacks in 2013. Even this modest performance might decline; high No. 1 draft choice defensive tackle Nick Fairley showed up for camp overweight and out of shape and was introduced to the bench. Last season Detroit was sixth on offense and 16th on defense --

Green Bay has used its last three first-round choices on defenders Nick Perry, Datone Jones and Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix. Clinton-Dix has not had a chance to play, but Perry and Jones have -- and combined for just 11 of a possible 51 starts. The past season the Packers were third in offense and 25th in defense. Green Bay was the sole playoff team that allowed at least 30 touchdown passes. It does not matter how flashy Aaron Rodgers is if the defense can't stop a stiff breeze. And think about this: in 2013, in the traditionally bruising NFC North, Chicago, Green Bay and Minnesota all had bottom-quintile defenses.

Remember, Gregg calls this a "preview" and he just can't stop only talking about what happened last season.

The summer's chart-topper was Iggy Azalea's "Fancy," but this song is like gulping an icy drink -- nice for a moment, but soon you wish you hadn't.

Great analogy, Gregg. Reading TMQ is like eating a shit sandwich. There's no reason to do it other than to prove you hate yourself.

If "Fancy" were the song of summer 2014, what would that say about the human condition?

It would say that humans like catchy songs.

But today's short-passing tactics and strict enforcement of the chuck rule -- which TMQ continues to think should be called the Charles rule -- 

Gregg gets paid to write this shit. Paid. To write the "chuck rule" should be called "the Charles rule."

Manning has two Super Bowl rings and is 8-3 in the postseason; Tony Romo is 1-3 in the postseason and has becoming really proficient at watching the Super Bowl on television. Guess who has the bigger contract.

Guess who signed their contract five years ago and the amount a good quarterback receives per season in a contract has increased since then?

Gregg is great at comparing apples and oranges, as long as the apple has been sitting out on the counter for two months, while the orange was just picked, and then he will marvel this orange tastes better than the apple so all oranges must taste better than apples.

Last season, Minnesota finished 31st in defense and 23rd in passing offense. Despite a huge investment of draft picks in their secondary, the Vikings allowed a league-worst 37 touchdown passes and were second worst in passing yards surrendered.

The Vikings started a 3rd round pick, 7th round pick, 1st round pick, and 2nd round pick last year. They were backed up by a 5th round pick, 1st round pick, and two undrafted players. I'm not sure I would consider that a huge investment of draft picks.

Now the Vikings might start a rookie quarterback along with a rookie coach, Mike Zimmer, who has never been a head coach at any level, not even in high school. What could go wrong?

If Gregg had been paying attention, he would know the Vikings named Matt Cassel the starter prior to TMQ being posted. I recognize it's not Gregg's job to actually know what he is talking about, rather it is his job to react to what just happened and then criticize the parties involved. Also, Mike Tomlin was not a head coach at any level before he coached the Steelers, John Fox had never been a head coach prior to coaching the Panthers, and Tony Dungy wasn't a head coach before coaching the Buccaneers. So not having been a head coach at any level doesn't mean anything in regard to whether a rookie NFL head coach will have success in that position.

Unified Field Theory of Creep #2: Reader Tony Manganello of Upland, Indiana, writes, "I teach as an adjunct at a small Midwestern liberal arts university and on March 12, 2014, received an exam copy of a textbook called Cases in International Relations: Pathways to Conflict and Cooperation. It's copyrighted 2015."

I hope this guy doesn't teach copyright law, because this isn't "creep." My understanding from researching copyrights is this just means the publisher mis-marked the date of production and this could be a defense against infringement on this copyright. But what a cutesy little mention of "creep." Very fanciful.

From earlier in this TMQ:

Boys PR watch: New Dallas defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli is likely to be praised this season for doing a great job. Why? Last season the Cowboys had the league's worst defense, so the numbers can only improve.

In 2012 the Boy Scouts' defense was egregious and allowed the most yards in NFL annals. In 2013, that defense was excellent and finished fourth against yards. This one-season jump from 32nd to fourth, moving up 28 places, is the second-best defensive improvement ever by rank; 2001 to 2002, the Panthers improved from 32nd to second against yards. That team allowed 81 fewer yards per game in its improved 2002 season; the Saints of 2013 allowed 135 fewer yards per contest than the previous year. In essence, the 2013 Saints gave up three fewer drives per game -- spectacular improvement.

The early 2013 arrival of defensive coordinator Rob Ryan was the most obvious change, because Ryan is such a visible presence on the New Orleans sideline.

While there is reason to compliment Ryan's improvement with the Saints defense, I just thought this was funny. The ranking can only improve so that's true, but it's fine for Gregg to praise a defensive coordinator when he improves the defense from worst to 4th in the NFL, but silly and egregiously dumb when someone else praises for a defensive coordinator increasing his defense's ranking from worst in the league the season before.

And now the party is joined by Jairus Byrd, one of the league's top defenders. He and last year's first-round choice, Kenny Vaccaro, should give the Saints an outstanding pair of safeties.

Outstanding safeties drafted in the first and second round. Very interesting.

Unwanted by San Diego and Miami, Drew Brees continues to spin the scoreboard at New Orleans and at this point is a slam-dunk for Canton.

I've debunked this myth so many times, I'm not going to do it again. Okay, I will. Both San Diego and Miami made contract offers to Brees and he chose to go to New Orleans, where in no coincidence, he was being offered the most guaranteed money. Gregg has pushed this narrative for a while now, but Brees chose the team that offered him the most money. He wasn't unwanted by Miami and San Diego, New Orleans was just willing to offer him more money to show they wanted him more.

Not bad for a guy who's too short to play QB!

He was the first pick of the second round in 2001. He was considered too short, but it didn't hurt his draft stock too dramatically.

Brees squats in the huddle, gazing up at his teammates then leaping to his feet at the break. This extra exertion -- not many quarterbacks would want to get down then get up before every play -- seems a byproduct of Brees's cross-fit-style offseason conditioning program, which emphasizes core strength rather than bicep and quad strength.

Oh yeah, anecdotal evidence proves this as true.

Jax Tax: Last week I excoriated Jacksonville for spending $43 million in taxpayers' money on Jaguars scoreboard upgrades rather than on improving the city's sketchy public schools. Many Jax fans countered that I did not understand local law. For example, JD tweeted: "The $43 million comes from a hotel tax that is specifically obligated for sports facilities and promoting tourism."

That's true, but what difference does it make?

It makes a difference because you stated this money went to the Jaguars instead of going to the public school system, when this money would NEVER have gone to the public school system because it was earmarked for tourism. Quite frankly, if you don't know the difference then you are being willfully stupid or are just actually stupid. Money earmarked for sports facilities and promoting tourism won't ever go to the schools. So the idea this money could have gone to the public schools was wrong. That's the difference. Just say you were wrong.

If local law taxes hotels to support professional sports, it's still public money underwriting NFL profit.

But that wasn't your argument. Your argument was this money should be going to the schools, not to the NFL. You can't change your argument now that you have been proven wrong. It is public money underwriting NFL profit, but that's not the argument you were making. You made the argument it was NFL money underwriting profit at the expense of the public schools, when this was proven to be incorrect.

Gregg doesn't even understand his own argument he was making. Either that or (surprise!) he's lying and misleading his readers as he is prone to do.

Plus, bear in mind that market theory says whatever you tax, you get less of. Taxing hotel use discourages hotel use, which is bad for tourism. If Jacksonville politicians insist on discouraging tourism by taxing hotel beds, the proceeds should serve a public purpose, not private profit for the one percent.

Gregg is wrong because he didn't do sufficient research on this topic, so he changes the subject to make himself look right and talk about a subject he knows more about. I don't see how someone can read TMQ and not see the fraud that is Gregg Easterbrook. He's a phony. When he's wrong about criticism he makes, he changes the subject. He can't just say he was wrong or say, "You know I didn't even read the article I linked or do any research prior to making the criticism."

Football columns are unlikely to be your best source of information on social trends.

Or in the case of TMQ, football columns aren't likely to be the best source of information about football.

St. Louis: Like the Vikings, the Rams are swimming in high draft selections -- nine first- or second-round choices over the past three drafts. And like the Vikings, Les Mouflons don't have much to show for it, having gone 14-17-1 since the mega-trade that sent Robert Griffin III to Washington for a draft bounty.

It hurts the Rams that their starting quarterback has gotten injured and they had to try and win games with their backup quarterback. Yes, that is Les Snead and Jeff Fisher's fault, but the Rams lack of success isn't tied to their ability to draft well. Also, Gregg is including three picks that haven't played a game yet this year, which not only is nonsensical, but a little unfair. As always, Gregg wants to lie and mislead his readers in order to prove his point and push his narrative. He's a liar and misleader. ESPN loves it.

So not counting the three 1st/2nd round picks the Rams had this year, they have drafted the following players in the 1st/2nd round over the previous two years:

Tavon Austin
Alec Ogletree
Michael Brockers
Brian Quick
Janoris Jenkins
Isaiah Pead

Four of these six guys are projected starters for the 2014 season. Poor drafting hasn't led the Rams to a 14-17-1 record over the last two seasons. Their inability to make the right personnel moves at the quarterback position has done that.

Is all that new talent about to bust out? Stats from the past season don't suggest that. The Rams finished 15th on defense and 30th on offense.

How about a 1/3 of these players get a chance to take at least one snap in the NFL before saying they won't "bust out"? Gregg is throwing out numbers from the previous season when five of these nine players either were rookies or had not taken an NFL snap yet as reason these players won't "bust out." It's very misleading. Of course, Gregg's lazy readers will think he makes a good point. That's what he is counting on.

The torn ACL of quarterback Sam Bradford might mean another forgettable season is in store. Bradford has now torn his left knee twice in less than a year; athletes who experience the same knee injury twice might not come back the second time.

Or they might come back! Aliens might not take over the Earth in the next 100 years...or they might.

The hopes of Les Mouflons' faithful ride on the fact that, according to pro-football-reference.com, St. Louis has the youngest roster in the league and the fewest players who will be 30 by season's end.

Doesn't matter because stats from the past season show these young players won't improve from season-to-season. That's a logical train of thought.

Florida and Texas are football hotbed states, little known for basketball. Yet with this year's Spurs-Heat NBA Finals collision there have now been five Texas-versus-Florida NBA finals, while there's been only one Texas-versus-Florida Super Bowl, the 1972 game between the Cowboys and the Dolphins.

I'll just allow the stupidity of this statement to go understated. Is this statement more stupid or more pointless?

San Francisco: TMQ warned of the Crabtree Curse when San Francisco drafted this gentleman. Consecutive San Francisco seasons have ended on failed throws to Michael Crabtree -- three straight incompletions targeted him at the Baltimore goal line in the Super Bowl, then an interception on a pass aimed at him at the Seattle goal line in the NFC title contest.

Except the 49ers made the NFC Championship three years in a row and made the Super Bowl one year over that span. So if being the best or second-best team in the NFC or AFC is a curse, then it is a curse most NFL teams would like to have on their organization.

Playing a conventional, position-oriented defense in 2013, rarely blitzing -- in the Super Bowl, Seattle blitzed six times on 64 Denver snaps, well below the league average of 20 percent blitz -- the Seahawks not only allowed the fewest points in the league, but they also allowed just 131 second half points in 19 games.

But to be clear, not blitzing isn't a strategy every NFL team should adopt. It only would work well for teams who have a great secondary and/or a strong defensive line that can put pressure on the quarterback. This is very important to know.

Next Week: The crystal anniversary (15th year) of America's original all-haiku NFL season predictions.

Do I usually say the next week's TMQ is my least favorite TMQ of the week? If so, I really mean it this week. Also, these are season predictions that Gregg will in no way stand by, while he mocks others for making bad predictions in his yearly "Bad Predictions" TMQ.