Russell Okung signs with Broncos ($53m/5yr OR $5m/1yr)

[themunn]

Wrong side of 30, hurt often.

He 28 - does that make 30+ the right side of 30??

 

[rjdriver]

I was thinking that the one thing no one has really bought up is the potential damage to Elway's reputation among the NFLPA.
I'm sure I'm just being idealistic, but lets assume that Okung plays relatively well, and then is dumped like a boss bitch to avoid the option. Would this not be looked upon by other members of the association as taking advantage of one of their own? Perhaps even enough to distract from acquiring future FA's? I wouldn't want the reputation.

I would rather be known as an organization that doesn't take advantage of a players ineptitude. Who knows? Perhaps I would be singing a different tune if we were the ones benefitting, but as a union member I'm a little biased.

Of course thats why I let my unions negotiating board and lawyers work out the details of my contract. I feel sorry for the big fella. I know it's his own doing, but he's the LT that gave me one of the happiest days of my life, and I wish he would have done better.

 

[Chillax]

Elways is easily in the same GM tier as Schneider and Ted Thompson. I'm suprised PCJS didn't come up with a similar team contract. As it prevents Okung from goin full bum mode.

 

[Hasselbeck]

Our 2016 OL may make the 2015 OL look like the Walt/Hutch/Tobeck line. Fortunately Russell Wilson is pretty damn good to mask a lot of the problems. Guess I'll hold out hope for a rookie in the first round to turn into a complete stud and bring some semblance of stability to the line.

What a disaster (regarding the deal Okung took) though. Yikes.

 

[Zorn76]

Pretty crazy how the Seahawks haven't been able to develop a single OL worth re-signing in Cable's 5-year tenure.

Saw this one twitter - Crazy if you think about it yet Cable is never the problem. Wilson is young but he is also smaller than most QB's. Seahawks need to start getting serious about investing in Oline before their franchise QB gets seriously injured.

Cable has developed Sweezy, Carpenter, Giacomini, to name a few.

Yet the Seahawks felt none of them were worth making a priority to keep. And for a team that's had major OL issues, that's saying something. They simply weren't worth wasting anymore time or money on.

 

[andyh64000]

Pretty crazy how the Seahawks haven't been able to develop a single OL worth re-signing in Cable's 5-year tenure.

Saw this one twitter - Crazy if you think about it yet Cable is never the problem. Wilson is young but he is also smaller than most QB's. Seahawks need to start getting serious about investing in Oline before their franchise QB gets seriously injured.

Cable has developed Sweezy, Carpenter, Giacomini, to name a few.

Yet the Seahawks felt none of them were worth making a priority to keep. And for a team that's had major OL issues, that's saying something. They simply weren't worth wasting anymore time or money on.

or they improved enough that they were no longer within the budget of the offensive line.

 

[HansGruber]

Elway is one shrewd mofo. He sensed a player with a wounded ego and pounced. Okung didn't agree to this deal because it was smart for him, he agreed to it because on paper it looks like a $53 million deal. Okung wanted someone to show the world that he was worth LT money, and he wanted to prove that he could get a big contract without needing an agent. In Okung's own mind, the $53 million number feels like validation, even if it is likely a mirage.

It reminds me of when Revis insisted on $16 million a year and nobody would give him anything close to that. Bill Belichick sensed opportunity and offered Revis "$16m APY" on a 2 year deal that paid $12 million in year one but had a voidable 2nd year at $20 million. Revis knew he was actually only getting paid $12 million, but his ego was satisfied so he took the offer. It was genius move by Belichick, exploiting a player's ego for the benefit of the Patriots.

It's basically the same bag of tricks here for Elway. You really have to hand it to the guy, he knows a mark when he sees one.

You nailed it.

I kept wondering why Seattle wouldn't match that deal (or better). I mean, heck, you coulda offered the guy $10m in guaranteed money on a 5-year deal, which is a freaking steal for a starting LT, even one with an injury history. So what if it doesn't work out? You could have signed a body for basically zero dead money and risk, why not do it?

I honestly don't understand, though, how this could have been the best offer available for a starting LT in the NFL. Yeah, Okung was mediocre at best and oft-injured, but sheeesh, there will be second round picks making more money guaranteed than Okung next season. How does nobody offer something better than the unlubed exam he just got from Elway?

 

[kearly]

You nailed it.

I kept wondering why Seattle wouldn't match that deal (or better). I mean, heck, you coulda offered the guy $10m in guaranteed money on a 5-year deal, which is a freaking steal for a starting LT, even one with an injury history. So what if it doesn't work out? You could have signed a body for basically zero dead money and risk, why not do it?

I honestly don't understand, though, how this could have been the best offer available for a starting LT in the NFL. Yeah, Okung was mediocre at best and oft-injured, but sheeesh, there will be second round picks making more money guaranteed than Okung next season. How does nobody offer something better than the unlubed exam he just got from Elway?

Some guy on fieldgulls said it best. When you go in to negotiate for a new car or new major appliance, it's a negotiation you will only do roughly once every ten years, versus someone across the table who does it every day. The guy who does it every day will make the newbie think he's winning, but in the end will whip out a bag of tricks that will take advantage of the other side's inexperience. The experienced negotiator will always win and the inexperienced party won't even know they were had.

For that simple reason alone, every NFL player should have an agent, since agents negotiate for a living and know all the tricks and nuances of the art form. And in Okung's case the need for an agent is even more so, given his declining performance and his injury history. Okung was the last guy for whom going without an agent would have been a decent idea.

In the end, Okung was taken advantage of by a guy that RUNS A CAR DEALERSHIP and no doubt knows every dirty trick in the book and has no qualms about using them. Everyone saw this coming, except for Okung himself. Just like the guy who goes into buy an appliance and thinks he has the salesman right where he wants him.

 

[Popeyejones]

I think this is basically right, but you have to add in that what happened was that not knowing what he was doing, Okung spent a couple of weeks traveling around to different dealerships, didn't find his perfect car, and in the process all of his other "buying" options he had to begin with left the lot. He got hosed in the end not only because he doesn't know how to negotiate, but also because he spent two weeks spilling his own blood in the water and that last car dealer knew that by the end Okung had to take the car being offered regardless of the cost.

It's like when Master P negotiated that horrible rookie deal for Ricky Williams, but even much worse than that.

 

[LegionHawk12]

Good for him... hope he stays healthy. The guy was always classy. Kind of funny he has a Super Bowl ring playing aganist the Broncos... I"m sure he will show them all as well!

 

[Zorn76]

Pretty crazy how the Seahawks haven't been able to develop a single OL worth re-signing in Cable's 5-year tenure.

Saw this one twitter - Crazy if you think about it yet Cable is never the problem. Wilson is young but he is also smaller than most QB's. Seahawks need to start getting serious about investing in Oline before their franchise QB gets seriously injured.

Cable has developed Sweezy, Carpenter, Giacomini, to name a few.

Yet the Seahawks felt none of them were worth making a priority to keep. And for a team that's had major OL issues, that's saying something. They simply weren't worth wasting anymore time or money on.

or they improved enough that they were no longer within the budget of the offensive line.

I dunno...with the way Okung "negociated" his deal in Denver, just about Anybody could've afforded him. He was determined to move on, and he did.

Meanwhile, yes, Sweezy got a contract that he could've only dreamed of. Beyond grateful we didn't commit that kind of money to a one trick (rush blocking) pony, particularly when RW clearly demonstrated that he's more than capable of lighting it up with marginal pass protection.

 

[Sports Hernia]

Feels like a lot of salt in this thread

If that's what you are reading, your comprehension meter might need to be fixed.