What If: Could Ted Have Kept Wahle, McKenzie and Walker?

[MJZiggy]

Is TT the one who WROTE their contracts??

do you really not know the answer to this question ????????????????????????

Hypothetically. I'm asking if TT is the GM under whom the contract was originated because if TT wrote it or signed off on it, there's no way it is written the way it was.

I'm sure you knew these were well before Turtle Time

Of course I did. I am asking about Scott's hypothetical situation. If in his scenario, TT has been here long enough to do these deals, then the answer becomes easy as the contracts would have been done differently than they were.

[Scott Campbell]

Is TT the one who WROTE their contracts??

do you really not know the answer to this question ????????????????????????

Hypothetically. I'm asking if TT is the GM under whom the contract was originated because if TT wrote it or signed off on it, there's no way it is written the way it was.

I believe you are "nuts on" if this is in reference to the Wahle deal. I can't see Ted ever backing himself into a corner with a monsterous roster bonus due in the latter year of a up and coming young players contract.

[Scott Campbell]

Is TT the one who WROTE their contracts??

do you really not know the answer to this question ????????????????????????

Hypothetically. I'm asking if TT is the GM under whom the contract was originated because if TT wrote it or signed off on it, there's no way it is written the way it was.

I'm sure you knew these were well before Turtle Time

Of course I did. I am asking about Scott's hypothetical situation. If in his scenario, TT has been here long enough to do these deals, then the answer becomes easy as the contracts would have been done differently than they were.

Probably not Walker's or McKenzie's. They were pretty conventional at the time.

[Bretsky]

Well, to be honest...

I think there is a question here that DOES beg asking.

If Thompson had worked hard at keeping Walker in town, rather than ignoring his demand to talk about his contract, where would we be now? This team would be markedly better with Walker on the roster...and with $9M in cap space, we certainly could've afforded it.

I'm asking the same thing, though in a different way. If Thompson had today's cap flexibility on Day 1 of his job, would he have behaved differently than he did given the cap mess he inherited from Sherman?

fwiw that is not how I interpreted your question.

Looking at it like that, I do believe if we had those players its likely we'd still have them today. TT would have never went for the gusto with a guy like Joe Johnson with the cap situation we were in IMO, and IMO he probably would not have structued that Wahle Deal like it was structured.

[MJZiggy]

Well then Wahle loses the balloon payment in his contract and stays which also creates more cap room down the line. If McKenzie goes south (literally) then TT learns from it (as he's shown he did after the Walker fiasco) and Walker is placated before he has a shot at getting pissy and whining like a four-year-old. That's my insane prediction.

[Scott Campbell]

Well, to be honest...

I think there is a question here that DOES beg asking.

If Thompson had worked hard at keeping Walker in town, rather than ignoring his demand to talk about his contract, where would we be now? This team would be markedly better with Walker on the roster...and with $9M in cap space, we certainly could've afforded it.

I'm asking the same thing, though in a different way. If Thompson had today's cap flexibility on Day 1 of his job, would he have behaved differently than he did given the cap mess he inherited from Sherman?

fwiw that is not how I interpreted your question.

Looking at it like that, I do believe if we had those players its likely we'd still have them today. TT would have never went for the gusto with a guy like Joe Johnson with the cap situation we were in IMO, and IMO he probably would not have structued that Wahle Deal like it was structured.

Given what he did with Harris and Driver, I wonder if he would have managed the McKenzie and Walker situations differently.

We've all been assuming that he just learned from his early mistakes. What if he behaved differently purely because he built the cap flexibility to do so?

This seems far more intuitive to me than the various Ted's Stupid, Ted's Cheap or Ted Just Wants Favre Gone theories.

[MJZiggy]

Interesting idea...

[Merlin]

I am not getting into this one, not at all!

[retailguy]

Well then Wahle loses the balloon payment in his contract and stays which also creates more cap room down the line. If McKenzie goes south (literally) then TT learns from it (as he's shown he did after the Walker fiasco) and Walker is placated before he has a shot at getting pissy and whining like a four-year-old. That's my insane prediction.

Your point inherently assumes that Wahle and his agent would have accepted and signed that deal without the bonus. As I recall, they refused to sign any deal that did not include that bonus because they didn't want to miss the 'window' for Wahle to get a monster deal.

[Freak Out]

I remember the first SNL crew had a skit called "What if". I loved the "What if" Napoleon had a Hound dog missile at Waterloo? Lol....
Old Boney (Belushi) was flying around on a B52 necking with Josephine while Akroid was touting the merits of the Hound dog.

[Scott Campbell]

I remember the first SNL crew had a skit called "What if". I loved the "What if" Napoleon had a Hound dog missile at Waterloo? Lol....
Old Boney (Belushi) was flying around on a B52 necking with Josephine while Akroid was touting the merits of the Hound dog.

On the other hand, too bad we didn't play "What If" prior to Pearl Harbor or 911. Maybe we would have defended them a little better.

[retailguy]

On the other hand, too bad we didn't play "What If" prior to Pearl Harbor or 911. Maybe we would have defended them a little better.

Perhaps Ted could engage in a game of "what if" prior to the 2008 draft? :P

[PaCkFan_n_MD]

With great cap, I think he would of structured Whales contract so that he would get a big bonuses paid year one so that he avoids cutting him later on. With McKenzie, I still don't know what his problem was. I heard money, and I also heard something about him not liking the team. If his problem was with the team, theirs not a lot TT could have done. As for Walker, I think if you throw money at him he stays on the team. However, same as McKenzie in that if he just plain wanted to leave then their is not a lot TT or anybody could do.

Bottom line is think he would of kept Whale. Maybe Walker only because that would have been his own pick and probably would of felt different about re-signing him.


I still get mad when I think of Walker leaving, he was one of my favorite players.

[Scott Campbell]

With McKenzie, I still don't know what his problem was. I heard money, and I also heard something about him not liking the team. If his problem was with the team, theirs not a lot TT could have done.

I'm not so sure. Ted eventually fired Sherman. If Sherman the coach is gone, and Sherman the GM is gone, would McKenzie have considered staying if Ted threw him a bone the way he threw Harris a bone?

[Charles Woodson]

Personally i dont think all 3 of them would still be here. But also, remember if we still had Mckenzie then we wouldnt have Woodson. I really wish we would have worked something out with Walker.