It's the off-season, how many "ifs" are too many to hope for?

[woodbuck27]

i'd say its a bigger "if" for TT to get a competent S in free agency, or even in the draft

Ted Thompson simply has to get that done.

How much CAP space do we have left now that Sam Shields and his agent got that huge contract from the Packers?

TT has to concentrate on ensuring our DL (without BJ Raji's head games) and the safety position. After that I hope he upgrades at ILB.

GO PACK GO !

[denverYooper]

it's far easier to figure out how proteins fold than how Packer dbs do the same.

Someone needs to code up PackerDBs@Home so that some 14-year-old kid from Oconomowoc can come up with a solution that prevents 20+ yard plays and stops the run.

[mraynrand]

Someone needs to code up PackerDBs@Home so that some 14-year-old kid from Oconomowoc can come up with a solution that prevents 20+ yard plays and stops the run.

LOL. We need gamers to AID us! Of course, nothing helps you model something so much as having the solution beforehand! Foresight is 20-20!

[red]

Ted Thompson simply has to get that done.

How much CAP space do we have left now that Sam Shields and his agent got that huge contract from the Packers?

TT has to concentrate on ensuring our DL (without BJ Raji's head games) and the safety position. After that I hope he upgrades at ILB.

GO PACK GO !

27.5 ish, by my math

plenty of room to sign the top safeties available, maybe a mid tier d-lineman, get our draft picks signed up, and resign one if not both of nelson and cobb

[woodbuck27]

27.5 ish, by my math

plenty of room to sign the top safeties available, maybe a mid tier d-lineman, get our draft picks signed up, and resign one if not both of nelson and cobb

It appears from what I'm seeing that TT can sign a top safety for $6-9 million$.

TJ Ward ($7 million$) ; Jarius Byrd (about $ 9 million), Donte Whitner ($7 million$) are top candidates. For less money TT may look to snag Mike Mitchell but Philly is going HARD for a solid Safety and has also looked at seriously at TJ Ward.

TT has to be set to go as the safety market will move quickly.

The Cleveland Browns might try seriously to land Safety Jarius Byrd but the rumor now is that Cleveland may offer a homecoming of sorts for Donte Whitner ( San Fran 49ers) for about 8 million or less.

[3irty1]

27.5 ish, by my math

plenty of room to sign the top safeties available, maybe a mid tier d-lineman, get our draft picks signed up, and resign one if not both of nelson and cobb

I'd be more excited about signing Finley or Garrett Graham than I would have signing one of the "top" 2 safeties. Especially Byrd. He's a great player but he's also got a very unique set of skills that pretty much needs to be built around. I'd rather get someone who can plug in and stop the bleeding without dictating what we can and can't do on defense. Ward is a little bit the same or at least probably would be when paired with Burnett. Whitner is a much more versatile and compatible with the pieces we've got IMO. Mike Mitchell or Chris Clemons would also be options that let us dust off sections of the playbook rather than limiting it further.

[red]

I'd be more excited about signing Finley or Garrett Graham than I would have signing one of the "top" 2 safeties. Especially Byrd. He's a great player but he's also got a very unique set of skills that pretty much needs to be built around. I'd rather get someone who can plug in and stop the bleeding without dictating what we can and can't do on defense. Ward is a little bit the same or at least probably would be when paired with Burnett. Whitner is a much more versatile and compatible with the pieces we've got IMO. Mike Mitchell or Chris Clemons would also be options that let us dust off sections of the playbook rather than limiting it further.

the problem i have whith that, when looking at the other safeties, is the idea i have that we need a "ball hawk", capers system relies on turnovers, int's mostly

we got none from our safeties last year. byrd gives you int's. ward does not (5 int's in 4 years), whitner (10 int's in 8 seasons)and clemons (4 int's in 5 years)really don't give you that. mitchell had 4 last year, but only 2 int's in his first 4 seasons as a pro, which guy is he?

i don't know what the hell burnett is, he's not a ballhawk, he's not a cover guy. we drafted him to be a SS to play along collins, but he's not really physical, or a great tackler.

i mean, any of the guys you listed would be improvements over either of our safeties, but are they what we really need?

[woodbuck27]

the problem i have whith that, when looking at the other safeties, is the idea i have that we need a "ball hawk", capers system relies on turnovers, int's mostly

we got none from our safeties last year. byrd gives you int's. ward does not (5 int's in 4 years), whitner (10 int's in 8 seasons)and clemons (4 int's in 5 years)really don't give you that. mitchell had 4 last year, but only 2 int's in his first 4 seasons as a pro, which guy is he?

i don't know what the hell burnett is, he's not a ballhawk, he's not a cover guy. we drafted him to be a SS to play along collins, but he's not really physical, or a great tackler.

i mean, any of the guys you listed would be improvements over either of our safeties, but are they what we really need?

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000289608/article/earl-thomas-jairus-byrd-top-list-of-nfls-best-safeties

Earl Thomas, Jairus Byrd top list of NFL's best safeties

By Chris Wesseling ... Around the League Writer

Earl Thomas, Jairus Byrd top list of NFL's best safeties

" Top shelf: Earl Thomas, Jairus Byrd, T.J. Ward, Devin McCourty, Eric Berry

Next level: Eric Weddle, Troy Polamalu, Donte Whitner, Glover Quin, Louis Delmas, LaRon Landry, Kam Chancellor

Solid starters: Duke Ihenacho, Antrel Rolle, Dashon Goldson, Chris Clemons, Charles Woodson, James Ihedigbo, Reggie Nelson, Steve Gregory, Barry Church, Morgan Burnett, Matt Elam

Best of the rest: William Moore, Thomas DeCoud, Malcolm Jenkins, Michael Griffin, Bernard Pollard, Will Hill, Antoine Bethea, George Iloka, Aaron Williams, Rahim Moore, Ryan Clark, Kendrick Lewis, Michael Mitchell, Marcus Gilchrist, Ryan Mundy, Reshad Jones, Tashaun Gipson, M.D. Jennings, Yeremiah Bell, Ed Reed "

Published: Nov. 29, 2013 at 09:58 a.m. ... Updated: Nov. 29, 2013 at 02:46 p.m.

[woodbuck27]

http://fansided.com/2014/03/11/2014-nfl-free-agency-best-available-safeties/#!zjOlG

On Tuesday afternoon 11 March, 2014, the NFL free agency period officially opens and teams around the league will be able to sign the players who are available on the open market.

Here are a number of safeties that will be available:

1.) Jairus Byrd, 2013 Team: Buffalo Bills

2.) TJ Ward, 2013 Team: Cleveland Browns

3.) Donte Whitner, 2013 Team: San Francisco 49ers

4.) Chris Clemons, 2013 team Miami Dolphins

5.) Louis Delmais , 2013 team Detroit Lions (signed a 1 year 3.5 Million $ deal with the Miami Dolphins.)

6.) Malcolm Jenkins , 2013 team N. O. Saints

7.) Stevie Brown , 2013 team New York Giants

8.) Michael Mitchell, 2013 team Carolina Panthers

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/M/MitcMi99.htm

9.) Nate Allen, 2013 team Philadelphia Eagles

10. Major Wright, 2013 team

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/W/WrigMa99.htm

11.) Charles Woodson, 2013 team Oakland Raiders

[3irty1]

I'd say the Capers system should produce a lot of opportunities for turnovers compared to the average because its a fire blitz heavy scheme. The whole no interceptions thing for safeties is as much about the lack of opportunities as it was a criticism of their shitty play. Now I don't think the defense is meant to "rely" on ints unless you think the Capers defense was running exactly the way he intended in 2011. That secondary picked off a shitload of passes with Burnett and Peprah as safeties. I don't think its the safest assumption to consider all Burnett's past seasons as the outliers rather than 2013 when judging him as a player either. Burnett got that contract by looking like a player on his way to being one of the best in the league. We have little choice but to hope he bounces back but its not exactly unlikely either.

I think if you get someone who can be trusted to cover more than a deep half or third and not hemorrhage yards like Jennings, McMillian, and Peprah you've solved the biggest problem back there. As far as ball skills if a guy can make a routine play look routine then anything more is icing on the cake.

[bobblehead]

I would gladly take 4 out of the first 6 if's. I think that is reasonable.

[bobblehead]

if TT and M3 decided that capers, perry and whitt were not the reason for our secondary being so horrible, then its on the player, so we better be working hard to fix the problems

lets sum it up

capers- not the problem
perry-not the problem
whitt- not the problem
shields-not the problem
tramon- not the problem
hyde- not the problem
hayward-didn't play, but not considered to be the problem
house- not great, but not bad for your #5 cb
bush- see above, but for #6 cb
burnett- a problem that we can't get rid of, but people think he can work with a better safety partner
jennings- a big problem, needs to be replaced

so, looking at that, we just have one problem that can either be fixed by FA or by drafting one

is one safety really the only problem we have with our secondary?

NO, at least not last year. Raji didn't disrupt, Picket had trouble holding the anchor, Jones/Hawk didn't get off blocks when Picket/Raji didn't gobble up blockers. We need better play all around, and while I have hopes that this D can take a step in the right direction, I don't believe for a second a safety is the biggest panacea ever.

Have you ever changed your water pump and had a hose leak? You don't see every weak spot in your coolant system, only the weakest one because it leaks. When you shore that up, the next weakest spot may prove that it isn't strong enough to handle fully operational pressure. That is my fear with replacing the safety is we might just find out how bad our MLB really are.

[bobblehead]

I'd say the Capers system should produce a lot of opportunities for turnovers compared to the average because its a fire blitz heavy scheme. The whole no interceptions thing for safeties is as much about the lack of opportunities as it was a criticism of their shitty play. Now I don't think the defense is meant to "rely" on ints unless you think the Capers defense was running exactly the way he intended in 2011. That secondary picked off a shitload of passes with Burnett and Peprah as safeties. I don't think its the safest assumption to consider all Burnett's past seasons as the outliers rather than 2013 when judging him as a player either. Burnett got that contract by looking like a player on his way to being one of the best in the league. We have little choice but to hope he bounces back but its not exactly unlikely either.

I think if you get someone who can be trusted to cover more than a deep half or third and not hemorrhage yards like Jennings, McMillian, and Peprah you've solved the biggest problem back there. As far as ball skills if a guy can make a routine play look routine then anything more is icing on the cake.

I disagree about Burnett's deal. I believe he got that deal because he was always "available" (prior to last years beginning). TT and MM seem to really like guys who are always there (see Hawk, AJ).

[bobblehead]

6.) Malcolm Jenkins , 2013 team N. O. Saints

Let me widdle this list down a bit. This is a TT signing. Malcom, I think, was a cb in college, made a good transition, the saints can't possibly offer him anything, he is down the list due to a good FA market, and must be about 26/27 years old.

[3irty1]

That might be an excuse not to expend big resources on a shiny new safety but the position must still be addressed. That secondary plays a lot worse than the sum of its parts yet we have to pay for the parts ala carte. I'm not asking for a new water pump, I want some duct tape so I stop pissing coolant on the ground and my new $39 million dollar radiator, $26 million dollar heating core, and old $33 million dollar thermostat can do what I paid for long enough to get me through a season.