RZBR Morning News Dump - Grading the First Wave of Trades, Falcons Victorious, Free Agency
by adelfish | 4 years ago | 0 Comments
RZBR Morning News Dump: Trade Grades, Falcons Win, Free Agency Thoughts...
Trade Season Has Begun + Grades
Trade season in Red Zone is officially underway this season, as a few big names have already come off the board. After the first domino of the offseason in Greg Harris fell yesterday, more pieces were shuffled around the league.
Broncos trade WR Courtland Sutton & 3rd Round Pick to Rams for 2nd Round Pick
The biggest trade of the day was wideout Courtland Sutton being traded to the Los Angeles Rams. Sutton has been on the block for a few seasons, as his role in Denver has diminished, and now with the emergence of young wideout Christopher Alford, he truly became expendable.
Sutton joins Mike Evans in the wide receiver room in Los Angeles, a team that now has a group of pretty impressive weapons, with the aforementioned wideouts, Mike Geisicki, and running back Christian McCaffrey. The story for the Rams this offseason, as usual, will be the quarterback. Meanwhile, Denver gets some value for a talented wideout, in the form of a 2nd round pick.
Unfortunately, the value for Sutton diminished so much, that all they were able to get was a mid-round 2nd, and they had to give up a 3rd to do it. Although, Denver did get the cap relief they desired. The Rams on the other hand, basically moved down 40 spots in the draft for a star receiver.
Grade for Broncos - B-
Grade for Rams - A
Jaguars trade OT Jawaan Taylor to Jets for 1st Round Pick & 4th Round Pick
After moving on from Greg Harris, the Jets used one of the two 1st rounders acquired in the deal to make a swing for a good starting offensive tackle in Jawaan Taylor. The Jets already have star left tackle Mekhi Becton in the fold, so adding another tackle gives them a great pair of blockers.
Taylor isn't a star by any means, but he is dependable, and a better than average pass blocker. He is on an expiring contract as well, so the Jets have the opportunity to extend him.
The Jaguars acquire another 1st round pick meanwhile, and remove a player from their upcoming 3+1. It seems as though they are in a transitional phase as a roster, so moving on from Taylor for a quality draft pick made sense. I like this trade for both.
Grade for Jaguars - A
Grade for Jets - A-
Steelers trade CB Cortez Hardwick to Cowboys for 2nd Round Pick
Pretty amazing that the Steelers were able to get a 2nd round pick for Hardwick, an average cornerback who shouldn't be of starting caliber. Dallas has two corners (Justin Layne & Trevon Diggs) who are better than Hardwick, and there are better options than Hardwick in free agency.
Pittsburgh clearly wants to revamp their secondary, and Dallas was willing to give them a top 60 pick to take on one of the guys who would be towards the bottom of the depth chart. Not sure I understand this one.
Grade for Steelers - A+
Grade for Cowboys - D
Steelers trade CB Artie Tongue to Texans for 3rd Round Pick
If I were to trade for Hardwick or Tongue, I would prefer to acquire Tongue (ha). Seriously though, Tongue is a really good zone cover corner, and is more athletic than Hardwick. He is not a starter, but can be serviceable in nickel and dime packages in the slot. Getting him for a 3rd round pick isn't great value for the Texans, but I like this trade a lot more.
Once again, the Steelers manage to move a middle of the road corner for decent draft compensation.
Grade for Steelers - A+
Grade for Texans - B
Buccaneers trade S Dante Parks to Seahawks for 2nd Round Pick
This has to be a cap or 3+1 move, otherwise I don't get this for Tampa at all.
Parks is a really good safety, who is only 27. Yes, he is in a contract year, but giving up his services for a 2nd round pick (albeit, a high 2nd) doesn't seem to make much sense for me. Yes, the 2nd rounder is going to be mid-30's, but you aren't going to find a safety like Parks in that range.
Meanwhile, Seattle gets a legit starter in their secondary. They have a great young corner, and now a star safety to pair with him. I love this move for the Seahawks.
Grade for Seahawks - A+
Grade for Buccaneers - C
Falcons win RZ Bowl 68
Congratulations to Katie Sowers and Kelly Honeycutt on winning thier second championship with the Atlanta Falcons, and the 5th ring overall for the Honeycutt ownership group. This puts him among the greatest in Red Zone history, and he has a real shot to close out with a third ring for the cycle.
What a year for the Falcons, as they take home the championship, earn Coach of the Year honors for Katie Sowers, Offensive Player of the Year honors for Rich Walker, and Michael Miles Owner of the Year honors for Mr. Honeycutt.
How about the win over the Steelers? The Falcons put up 41 points against the vaunted Steelers defense, as D.J. Carter threw 4 touchdowns and 449 yards (MVP, duh), and Rich Walker accounted for 213 yards and 2 touchdowns. Incredible stuff.
Hats off to the Steelers as well, Coach John has done a great job building that team.
Wave 1 of Free Agency Begins
The first wave of free agency has begun, and a ton of money is about to be thrown around. Expect a few teams to completely reset the guard market, with the likes of Ali Marpet, Hugh Todd, and Elgton Jenkins. With the lack of offensive line talent in the league, I expect these three to be paid very well.
I will have grades sporadically throughout the process, and I will have some more content coming about favorite free agents, and more. Happy spending!!!