Leonard Williams or the 44th pick in round two?

[seabowl]

The trade amounted to roughly the 44th pick in this year‘s draft. Would you rather have that pick or Leonard Williams and his contract?

 

[CallMeADawg]

Leo Williams

 

[Rat]

I honestly wouldn't fault anyone for being on either side of that debate. Leonard is a phenomenal player, but we just landed Murphy, and that second rounder could have been used on a cost-effective rookie, and his money used to have addressed LB and/or iOL in free agency. You also have to wonder if we could have signed him this off-season without having traded for him first. It obviously didn't move the needle enough last season, not that any fault whatsoever lies with him for the team's failure to make the playoffs.

 

[sutz]

I'm good with Williams. Having said that I do wish we had a 2d today. We'll see. Maybe Trader John can pull a rabbit out of a hat.

 

[Jac]

I thought the draft compensation was an issue of how much of his salary they wanted to pick up. I may be wrong...but if not, I'd rather they manage their money a bit better and give up less draft capital.

 

[CallMeADawg]

I honestly wouldn't fault anyone for being on either side of that debate. Leonard is a phenomenal player, but we just landed Murphy, and that second rounder could have been used on a cost-effective rookie, and his money used to have addressed LB and/or iOL in free agency. You also have to wonder if we could have signed him this off-season without having traded for him first. It obviously didn't move the needle enough last season, not that any fault whatsoever lies with him for the team's failure to make the playoffs.

But Leonard Williams did play extremely well for Seattle last year even though he was overused like crazy. One man wasn't going to fix all the issues on that defense though.

By trading for him and signing him, there was no market war for his services.

 

[sutz]

I thought the draft compensation was an issue of how much of his salary they wanted to pick up. I may be wrong...but if not, I'd rather they manage their money a bit better and give up less draft capital.

You're not too far off base. Part of the deal was that NY ate much of his salary for last season. I don't think we had the cap room to do the trade otherwise.

 

[Shane Falco]

I love having Williams, he's a good player. But I think the price was too steep. And that's factoring in where we are as a franchise. We weren't one piece away looking for that edge. Long term, I think the money and the pick would have been healthier for the team.

If we go deep into the playoffs this season, maybe my view will change.

 

[chris98251]

Known commodity that is one of the top in the league at what he does versus a unknown and take a chance guy, I will take Williams.

 

[seabowl]

For me, it’s a wait and see approach because if a guy like Powers is available at that pick, I would’ve preferred that. Additionally, I think by the time this team gets very competitive again, Leonard Williams will be passed his prime.

 

[Rat]

By trading for him and signing him, there was no market war for his services.

There was nothing preventing other teams from signing him this off-season. It might have helped the case that he got to see the culture first, but these things almost always come down to who is willing to pay the most.

 

[seabowl]

There was nothing preventing other teams from signing him this off-season. It might have helped the case that he got to see the culture first, but these things almost always come down to who is willing to pay the most.

100%. The Seahawks pigeonholed themselves because once you pay high capital in a trade for someone but don’t have them locked up, you need to be the highest bidder just so you don’t have egg on your face. You almost need to pay whatever it takes to retain that player. Think the Jamal Adams deal, and you’ll see the same result. I negotiate for a living, however, I think how the Seahawks treated both of these situations was not smart.

 

[toffee]

(+) on Leo: pro bowl level performance.
( -) on Leo: old therefore limited shelf life.

(+) on draft: if picking the right guy, at least 5-6 years of service with cheap rookie years.
( -) on draft: what if we pick the wrong guy?

 

[CPHawk]

Williams is a sure thing. Draft picks are 50/50.

 

[Rat]

Williams is a sure thing. Draft picks are 50/50.

If it were that simple, we would never make any picks.

 

[warden]

I am glad we used our second round pick on Big Cat. Great interior lineman. Put him beside Murphy and rotate Reed in and out to keep the fresh. Those three will make the players job on he outside so much easier

 

[James in PA]

In this draft? Williams. We can still get a great guard in rounds 3 or 4. That's why Im not sweating the trade too much. This draft is not deep at Dline.

 

[Jville]

The trade amounted to roughly the 44th pick in this year‘s draft. Would you rather have that pick or Leonard Williams and his contract?

That's easy. I'd rather have Leonard Williams and the juice he brought to the defensive line. Looking forward to his great leadership carrying over into this year.

 

[Maelstrom787]

Williams is a sure thing. Draft picks are 50/50.

Not even 50/50 in the second.

 

[CPHawk]

If it were that simple, we would never make any picks.

It wouldn’t be that simple, but he proved it in a Seahawks uniform already. It’s not like we just traded for him, and are hoping he plays well