Leftwich or Palmer

With Leftwich's injury concerns and Palmer playing close to flawless in nearly all his appearances the last yr or so - Carson will be and deserves to be #1. He lacks nothing physically and seems to grasp things mentally now - which was his only problem before.

Cincy brass are idiots if they let him go somewhere else.

 

All things aside, my gut tells me Palmer may be the better long term investment, but I'll say up front I'm no QB expert.

The problem is I think the price to trade up to get him will be just too high. We've got far too many holes around the QB position to fill to give away the meat of our draft. But I'm all for trading up into the top 5 for a shot at Leftwich. If we got Leftwich, I'd be almost as ecstatic as I was when Morgan fell to us.

 

Sorry for resurrecting this old thread. I was searching for salary info and found an interesting website, nflpa.org. Its the NFL Players Association website. I have not had time to look it over much, but it has drug policy info, steroid policy, agent info, etc. Looks interesting. Anyways, I was looking to compare the #1 (Carr) contract with #9 (Henderson). Based on the salary info at this site, Carr received a $74.75 million dollar package over 7 years or $10.68 million per year average. Henderson received a $28.92 million dollar package over 5 years or a $5.78 million dollar average. I understand that pure salary is not a good way to evaluate, but in light of the recent rantings of Henning, I simply can't see the Panthers passing on Leftwich if he actually (and not likely) drops to #9. In terms of pure value, Leftwich at #9 would be a much greater value than Palmer at No. 1........simply viewed in terms of likely contracts.

 

That's some good stuff. Outa curiousity, what would the salary have been for the # 5 guy, saying we was to trade up with Dallas?

>>In terms of pure value, Leftwich at #9 would be a much greater value than Palmer at No. 1........simply viewed in terms of likely contracts.

That's probably true if you're not just hot to trot on one over the other. Despite what Henning says about Palmer, I think that's the problem. Both these guys have some question marks around them. I don't see either of them being worth that #1 money (and there probably isn't anyone in the draft this year that is). Possibly Rogers. MaGahee probably was. CIN doesn't really need Rogers and paying a CB that kind of money seems a bit ridiculous. Suggs might be worth it if becomes a big-time sack artist in the NFL but he has size issues. If they draft Palmer and he is a bust, I guess it would just kill their salary cap. CIN is in a tuff spot and I don't think they are going to find a trader.

I read somewhere today that a GM talking of Palmer said that he was a slow study and was expected to take some time to develop into a starter in the NFL.

 

Headcase.........funny you mentioned #5 because I did look at that one as well since I think thats the position Leftwich will be drafted....either by Dallas or a trade-up team. Last season #5 was Jammer and based on that NFLPA site he received $51.6 million over 6 years or $8.6 million per year at #5.

I am not sure how they determine the yearly compensation in terms of base salary and signing bonus. You go to the player and it lists "salary history" and goes the term of the existing contract. For instance, they have Peppers with a total
compensation of $68.5 million, sounds like what I remember, but they have his 2002 compensation at $10 million and his 2003 compensation at $3.5 million. Does anyone remebmer his signing bonus? His 2008 salary is listed at $16 million.

I think Suggs is the one player of the typical top 10 list that has the greatest potential to be a real 1st year impact player. I think Suggs might be a surprise choice by the Texans at #3 should they keep the pick.

 

>> I think Suggs is the one player of the typical top 10 list that has the greatest potential to be a real 1st year impact player. I think Suggs might be a surprise choice by the Texans at #3 should they keep the pick.

Think I saw where the Texans were pissed that Suggs didn't perform at the combines. They are in nearly the same boat as CIN. They need OL to protect Carr but ain't anybody there worth that kinda money. If they can't trade down they've got some tuff decisions with the most likely choices being either Suggs or Johnson. Read somewhere that a poll of 9 outa 10 GMs said that Suggs was going to CHI. Texans may just be seeing if they can scare CHI into a trade. Sorta like CIN now talking about Leftwich (who I think is the one player that is worth the #1 money). Hoping to scare up a trade. I'm with you. Leftwich will not fall below 5. If Hurney gets Leftwich at #5 (or further down), he'll become "shewd" in my book.

 

"If Hurney gets Leftwich at #5 (or further down), he'll become "shewd" in my book."

.......and damn lucky as well!

 

maybe Cincy surprises with Suggs

Are the Bengals trying to pull another Levi?
By Greg Mastin
Date: Feb 25, 2003

Can you say the name Terrell Suggs? If you can, you've just uttered it one more time than the Bengals or their official news service have this entire offseason.


It's an easy name to say. Terrell Suggs. Simple. Yet, in all the talk of what to do with the #1 overall pick, his is the one name you definitely have not heard publicly. Certainly not from the lips of Marvin Lewis and not from the official news source of the Cincinnati Bengals. Even the biggest local paper in town has only mentioned him once, in passing, along with Jerome McDougal and Jarrett Johnson, two players not even close to being the #1 pick.

Turn back the clock ten months to draft day 2002. The Bengals stunned their fans and the media by taking Arizona State left tackle Levi Jones. Chances are, the first time you heard the name Levi Jones in association with the Bengals was when his name passed the lips of Paul Tagliabue. If you were lucky you heard Bengals color analyst Dave Lapham tell his radio audience right before the draft that he would be the choice. Could the Bengals be trying to pull another fast one with a Sun Devil?

Outside of Cincinnati, any mention of the top prospects in the draft includes Suggs, and with good reason. He is an explosive pass rusher who set an NCAA record with 24 sacks. For the record, that is only one less than the entire Cincinnati Bengals team in 2002. When I got a chance to watch him play, I was impressed. He isn't huge, weighing in at 262 at the Combine, but his speed and strength had tackles back on their heels. He brings similar skills to the table that Peter Boulware does, and Lewis used Boulware to maximum effectiveness in Baltimore. In addition, he has a great attitude. He brings a mouth, and a confidence the Cincinnati Bengals sorely need. While confident and mouthy on the field, he also comes across well, and was a media favorite at the Indianapolis combine.

So, why wouldn't the Bengals be interested in him? He generates a ferocious pass rush, which the Bengals need. He has speed, which the Bengals are trying to get. He plays defensive end, which the Bengals are looking for. If they weren't they wouldn't keep talking about Hugh Douglas. So why aren't they talking about him? Simply, they are taking measures to keep it under wraps. A source in Indianapolis told me they spent a good deal of time talking to Suggs in the lobby of the hotel they were staying at, and while I have no official verification, I am confident he was one of the sixty players they interviewed.

To make another point, what purpose does it serve NOT to talk about Suggs if they aren't interested? If they really want to trade the #1 pick, they should be talking up as many people as possible, because it doesn't matter who gets picked....except for the guy they are targeting at their new draft spot. They have already talked up Jimmy Kennedy, Terence Newman, Carson Palmer, Charlie Rogers and Byron Leftwich. Five of the consensus top six players, other than offensive tackle Jordan Gross who is obviously not a target. By deduction we can assume the Bengals, if they trade down, would prefer one of those five players go number one, and hope no one trades ahead of them to take the guy they want.

So let the official news source keep talking about Carson Palmer, Byron Leftwich and Terence Newman the way it did about Jeremy Shockey, Wendell Bryant and Phillip Buchanon. Remember they are the mouthpiece of the organization and paid employees of the Bengals. If the Bengals don't want them to mention Suggs' name, then they won't. It's all part of the game, and there certainly isn't anything wrong with that. The deceit is all part of the dance and gamesmanship that goes on in the offseason. It could be that if his name gets out, they will start talking about him, or they may just continue to act like he doesn't exist. Just don't let them pull you into the game. Remember Terrell Suggs. Keep that name in your mind. You can be sure that in this case, the silence is deafening.