Take the trade, Jerry!!
Does Jerry Angelo take stupid pills? Why won’t he accept the Redskins offer of Lance Briggs and the 31st draft pick for the 6th pick? This is way better than Jay Mariotti’s “clump of lint” Angelo got for Thomas Jones.
Multiple sources have confirmed that Redskins owner Dan Synder has offered the Bears the 6th pick in the draft for Briggs and the Bears 1st round pick, the 31st selection. According to the point system teams use in their draft war rooms, the 6th pick is worth 1,600 points and the 31st is worth 600. The 1,000-point difference is equivalent to the 16th selection. This is far more than what Briggs is worth. Washington would be the one getting a clump of lint.
According to Angelo, the 6th pick in the draft will require giving a bonus double what they will be paying Briggs in 2007, $7.2 million. Sounds like Halas Hall is focusing on profits and not winning. They have about $20 million under the cap right now. Letting Briggs go would free up another $7.2 million. Furthermore, a draft pick’s bonus, or any player’s bonus for that matter does not count to the cap in a lump sum unless he’s cut.
Synder is a fool to be offering this. Angelo should realize this and take the deal. He can figure out what to do with the pick later. Having the 6th pick gives him more ammunition than the 31st pick. Briggs and his agent Drew Rosenhaus will certainly make a stink and destroy the Bears season the way he and T.O. did to the Eagles in 2005. He has said he won’t report to the team until week 10 so he can get service and prevent the Bears from putting the franchise tag for 2 more years at linebackers salaries. He sounds very serious about this and will likely make good on the threat. The third year the tag is used, the salary has to be the average of the 5 highest paid players regardless of position.
No one can fault Briggs for doing what he’s doing. He’s trying to look out for his best interests. No contracts are guaranteed in the NFL, only the signing bonus. And in the sport of football, where a player’s career can end with one misstep or one vicious hit, Briggs is simply trying to get a market value deal to set him up for life. He played for 4 years at a salary of $700,000 each year. By not reporting until week 10, Briggs reduces his risk of injury while getting service under NFL rules.
According to Angelo, the money needed to commit to the 6th pick would interfere with their plans to lock up Peanut Tillman, Nathan Vasher, Bernard Berrian, and Tommie Harris, who by the way, is also a Rosenhaus client. It leads to wonder, given how the Bears have handled the situations with Jones, another Rosenhaus client, and Briggs, if Tommie Harris will want to stay with the Bears.
Angelo should realize only Synder would be foolish enough to make such an offer. Synder doesn’t get the concept of building the team through the draft. The Bears do. Who cares if Synder is going to throw Briggs a mega contract? He always does this. It’s how he beat the Bears to recently acquired safety Adam Archuleta last off-season. Furthermore, it should be noted that Briggs is merely a by-product of Urlacher’s freakish abilities, as were Warrick Holdman and Roosevelt Colvin while Dick Juaron was the coach.
With the 6th pick in the draft, the Bears would be in prime position to take Ohio State Receiver Ted Ginn and improve the offense and return game. Or perhaps Angelo could trade down, get 2 first round picks, and still be in position to draft Ginn. His stock has fallen a bit recently, and he is now projected as a mid 1st-round pick. With that extra pick, the Bears can use it on Penn State linebacker Paul Posluzny to replace Briggs, while also being able to take Ginn’s college teammate running back Antonio Pittman at pick 37. Jerry Angelo is a shrewd negotiator when it comes to making draft day deals, and will likely find a way to pull off a deal.
Letting Briggs go sounds better with each passing day. The Bears should do it now before Briggs destroys the season T.O. style later. NEXT QUESTION!!