Review #3 of Stillers' Moves in Free Agency (Mar. 21st, 2004)
This is a follow-on article to my previous two articles (Mar. 7th and Mar. 14th) regarding
the Stillers' moves in free agency thus far.�
Since the 2nd article, the Stillers have made the following
moves:
- Re-signed Safety Mike Logan.� As I'd noted in my Offseason Analysis,
"I like Logie's skills and instincts, but he
slowed down last season, and he's getting a bit long in the tooth.� Try to re-sign for small dollars; if not,
bid adieu."� Logie ended up getting
a 3-year, $3.1M deal, including an $800K bonus.� Given Logan's solid skills, I can live with this deal.� I doubt Logan will ever see the third year
of this deal, but then again, no coach in the NFL prefers to hold onto old,
slow safeties (see Perry, Darren and Alex, Burnt) than does Billy Cowher.� Logan, of course, is far superior to Burnt
Alexander in every regard, and he gives the team a heady veteran who can either
start or chip in on the nickel or dime.�
����
- Re-signed DE Chris Joke.� This joke of an NFL player is a three-year veteran who has yet to
play a single NFL game, yet the Stillers rushed out like rabid wolves to sign
The Joke to a two-year, $1.45 million contract.� This deal frees up $178,000 and dropped Joke's salary cap figure
from $628,000 -- the foolish one-year tender he was given as an RFA -- to
$450,000. He also was given a $50,000 signing bonus.� This is one of the most embarrassing, stone-stupid signings in
Stiller history.� Hoke is a joke, yet
the Stillers are clinging to this guy as though he's a former Heisman winner or
a guy who had rabid success as a rookie before being injured.� Joke is a weak, undersized, under-talented
DE who has no business taking up oxygen at any NFL complex.� This move simply validates the long
established truth that Billy Cowher prefers a known commodity -- no matter how
poor or putrid the player is -- to an unknown player, regardless of talent,
pedigree, production, or potential.� The
Stillers could snare USC stud DE Keneche Udeze in the draft, and under the Billy
Cowher school of player utilization, Udeze would sit the pine behind Aaron
Smith, Kimo, Travis Kirschke, and Piss Joke, all because Cowher is familiar
with these 4 players and he doesn't know Udeze, and Udeze hasn't proven himself
to Lord Billy.�
- Re-signed G/C Chukky Okobi.� The ex-Boilermaker was inked to a 4-year, $6M
contract, with a $692,000 signing bonus as part of the deal. The Stillers structured
this RFA's deal to pay him like a backup in his first two years and as a
starter in the next two. �Okobi will
receive annual salaries of $455K, $853K, $2M and $2M. �He can earn $700,000 in incentives. �This is an acceptable move.� Okobi isn't to be confused with Mike Webster
or Dermontti Dawson, but he's a capable center who can get the job done.� It comes down to opportunity cost;
how much money do you want to fritter away on a center, when far bigger impacts
are at OT, CB, etc.?� Frankly, having a
mega-million dollar center is a poor use of limited cap money.� The Patriots, in fact, won the Super Bowl
this past season with a rookie center (Dan Koppen) that was drafted in round
5.� Additionally, Hartings'
knees are getting too creaky, and I'd just as soon cut bait with Hartings and
go with Okobi.� However, even if
Hartings is retained for 2004, Okobi can chip in at guard and will most
assuredly have to spell Hartings from time to time.� ���
- Cut RB Amos Zereoue.� Once Staley was signed, in addition to the retention
of Bettis, this move was a given.� Clearly,
Amoz was going to pull in too much dough commensurate with his workload.� For his own sake, hopefully Amoz will latch
on with a team that either has a turf field -- which would be the optimal
situation for a scatback, stutter-bug runner like he is -- or at the very least
a grass field that has more grass than the shores of Daytona Beach.� The sand pit known as Heinz Field was never
going to be conducive for a runner with Amoz' style, and he'd be well served to
find a team that has the surface that fits him best.� One of his better games as a Stiller, in fact, came on the Sunday
nite game at Baltimore late in the 2001 season.�
Other fronts worth mentioning:
- Jason GilDong on the trade block:� The Stillers announced that Jason "The
Human Traffic Barrel" has been placed on the trading block.� This is certainly tremendous news, but the
joy was dampened a bit when the Stillers revealed that they are seeking a
2nd-round draft pick in exchange for Big Jason.� Aside from the fact that a traffic barrel can be had for
a mere $79.64, asking for a 2nd rounder for The GilDong is as absurd as
asking for $100 for a quart of milk.� ��
The Stillers would be incredibly lucky to obtain a mere 6th
round pick for Jason, and that's quite possibly a pipe dream.� The fear here is that some team might offer
the Stillers a 5th or 6th rounder, and the Stillers might foolishly decline the
trade and end up keeping the most over-rated farce in the NFL, Jason GilDong.
- Cornerback:�
Because of Colbert's ineptitude and "the market moved so
fast", the Stillers were essentially shut out of the CB market and have
done absolutely nothing.� Remember, this
is a position where a team needs 2 starters, plus at least another 2 CBs to
help out on the nickel/dime defense. ��
�
- Clancy:�
Unbelievably, this sorry sack o' dung hasn't been re-signed as rabidly
as Chris Joke, and Clancy still remains at large as an RFA.� A NT who is awful against the run and has no
redeeming qualities should never be retained by a team employing the 3-4
defense.�
- Burnt Alexander.� The best
part of the Logan signing, is that it should spell the end of Burnt Alexander's
career as a Stiller.� The safety spot is
bloated, with Troy Pola, Chris Hope, and Logie.� That's plenty enough.�
What this team doesn't need is to waste a roster spot on the NFL's
slowest safety, and a player who does absolutely nothing on special teams.�
�
Synopsis:� Retaining Logan and
Okobi were acceptable moves.� But
keeping Chris The Joke was grossly unacceptable.� And, lest we forget, the team has added very, very little -- just
Travis Kirschke, Duce Staley, and a punter -- to the woeful 2003 6-10 team.� But Cowbert really know what
they're doing, so sit back and enjoy the ride, even if Cowbert the Conductor
has no idea where they're going and when they'll get there.���
�
(Still Mill
and Stillers.com -- the only nationally read coverage on the Pittsburgh
Stillers that has accurately predicted the how's and the why's of the past 3
Stiller playoff losses�.)