Best Worst offseason moves so far

[PaCkFan_n_MD]

What point is there in dumping a guy who still has value to the team and getting nothing in return?

There would be no point. You obviously didn't even the thread. But whatever it doesn't matter, just forget it. When it comes down to it I could care less if we trade him or not.

[cheesner]

Drafting Harrell, then letting Williams walk when it's clear that Williams is the far better player makes no sense to me.

C'mon Wist. Harrell has ONE YEAR under his belt, and you are completely convinced that Williams is the FAR BETTER PLAYER?

Also, we didn't let Williams walk...we got a 2nd round pick in return for him.

I'll certainly concede that Williams was a far better pass rusher...the guy had the ability to get after the QB, although not as consistently as you would like from someone commanding a $6M+ salary. Williams was mediocre in terms of stopping the running game though...take away his sacks, and he averaged about 1.5 tackles a game in his career.

Harrell was disappointing last year, but showed flashes of being a sturdy run stuffer. He has a good eye for the football and had a high number of tackles when compared to the amount of time he was actually on the field.

The two guys are completely different. I see Harrell more as an eventual replacement for Pickett. If Favre had returned, then I think I might be more apt to agree that keeping Williams could've helped GB in 2008. However, without Favre, I like the trade even more...since Williams clearly wasn't in the long term plans at the salary level he was going to command.

Harrell may not get many sacks, but it doesn't mean he doesn't have considerable impact on the passing game. Harrell has trouble getting around blockers. He doesn't have trouble pushing them back. By collapsing the pocket the QB must hurry his pass or roll out. This helps the DBs in coverage and the DEs in getting sacks. When JH was at Tenn his final year, their sack total dropped very significantly after he was out. Even though he only had a few.

Regardless, Even though CW is more effective as a player than JH last year, he was pretty much at the top of his game. JH, however, still has a ton of upside. He will likely be considerably better than CW in the few seasons. That is the role of a GM - to envision the future of players to make wise financial/player decisions.

[BooHoo]

Harrell is still unproven. He didn't show enough last year to warrant a first round pick. Let's wait and see how he performs over the next two years.