Droughns traded to NYG for Tim Carter (1 Viewer)

[geoff8695]

I am a Bear fan as well. Briggs has said he will not play for the Bears under ANY circumstance. Ogunleye has been under a lot of fire. You must understand that while Briggs may be more valuable than Strahan for his career, what can they get for Briggs if he wants to sign an 8 mil a year contract? His "value" is not that high if he gets paid like the one of the top linebackers in the league

I am not saying that this will happen (I doubt it will), but those are the types of trades that make sense when teams must move players. The Bears should be in the deep playoff mix again and would you rather have Briggs sit out or get Strahan and let him help in winning a title?

I was more throwing out a concept, not stating it as fact.

I'll admit that when I first heard Briggs make that comment I was because he is one of the best linebackers in the NFL and an integral part of the defense that has driven the Bears success in the last couple of seasons. Do you remember the old "Joe Isuzu" commercials where the guy was always lying? That's what I believe Briggs is doing here. If he were to actually follow through on his threats then he would be costing himself millions of dollars both in the present and in the future as he destroys his own market value.

Regarding this issue I've heard a few times now on local sports radio that over the last several years there have been 42 instances in which the 'franchise tag' has been used. In none of those circumstances did a player miss a single regular season game. 30 players make up those 42 instances and only 3 of them were traded before the season began.

Briggs is pretty much powerless in this situation. The Bears can tag him both this year and next (and I expect them to do so), and then in 2009 he will be able to leave as a free agent. Meanwhile Briggs will make about $15 million dollars if they place the 'franchise tag' on him in 2008 as well as 2007. That means Briggs will get paid at the level of the top linebackers in the NFL. What he won't get is a long term contract with a boatload of 'guaranteed' money up front.

It sucks for him to watch lesser linebackers cash in on huge paydays in the meantime, but there is simply nothing he can do about. Sitting out will only cost him money now and bring down his market value next season. IMO he will remain a Bear until 2009, unless the Bears decide they can afford to give him a long term deal between now and then.

 

[fatness]

Just a feeling, but I think we'll see a significant increase in the number of rush attempts by New York this year.

Isn't Kevin Gilbride the offensive coordinator there?

 

[Liquid Tension]

I am a Bear fan as well. Briggs has said he will not play for the Bears under ANY circumstance. Ogunleye has been under a lot of fire. You must understand that while Briggs may be more valuable than Strahan for his career, what can they get for Briggs if he wants to sign an 8 mil a year contract? His "value" is not that high if he gets paid like the one of the top linebackers in the league

I am not saying that this will happen (I doubt it will), but those are the types of trades that make sense when teams must move players. The Bears should be in the deep playoff mix again and would you rather have Briggs sit out or get Strahan and let him help in winning a title?

I was more throwing out a concept, not stating it as fact.

I'll admit that when I first heard Briggs make that comment I was because he is one of the best linebackers in the NFL and an integral part of the defense that has driven the Bears success in the last couple of seasons. Do you remember the old "Joe Isuzu" commercials where the guy was always lying? That's what I believe Briggs is doing here. If he were to actually follow through on his threats then he would be costing himself millions of dollars both in the present and in the future as he destroys his own market value.

Regarding this issue I've heard a few times now on local sports radio that over the last several years there have been 42 instances in which the 'franchise tag' has been used. In none of those circumstances did a player miss a single regular season game. 30 players make up those 42 instances and only 3 of them were traded before the season began.

Briggs is pretty much powerless in this situation. The Bears can tag him both this year and next (and I expect them to do so), and then in 2009 he will be able to leave as a free agent. Meanwhile Briggs will make about $15 million dollars if they place the 'franchise tag' on him in 2008 as well as 2007. That means Briggs will get paid at the level of the top linebackers in the NFL. What he won't get is a long term contract with a boatload of 'guaranteed' money up front.

It sucks for him to watch lesser linebackers cash in on huge paydays in the meantime, but there is simply nothing he can do about. Sitting out will only cost him money now and bring down his market value next season. IMO he will remain a Bear until 2009, unless the Bears decide they can afford to give him a long term deal between now and then.

I think Briggs has played better than Urlacher the last two years as Urlacher misses a lot of tackles or takes himself out of plays. Regardless, the Bears do hold the cards on Briggs, but they did with Thomas Jones as well and they traded him away even with a great contract (for the Bears) at around 2.5 mil for the year.BTW, I could be wrong but didn't Walter Jones miss some time in a Franchise tag dispute?