[QuikSand]

Ok. Fairly big news over the real-life weekend. Arizona calls, they’re a strong franchise coming off a rough season, and they want WR Stallings, whom we have blocked. We quickly agree to a deal, and we deal him for their pick at 1.11. So, that’s a pretty big, impactful move at this point of a tough offseason.

Context matters. First - this works out great on its surface. stallings came aboard via pick 1.17, gave us three seasons of well-over-replacement caliber play, and the nets us a higher pick. so, tough to complain there.

Now, the downside. He was a meaningful part of ano overpowering offense last year, and we’re letting him scamper away? He’s younger then Duran, shouldn’t he be the heir-apparent there, the guy good enough to let us keep running this silly offense even after Duran hangs em up? Fair points, there’s a strong case to be made that Stallings is a keep-forever guy, a guy you work backwards from (like I am with Duran this offseason).

My setup is basically this: the cost of re-signing Stallings would be pretty big. He’s likely to require $24m/yr, perhaps more. This offseason, affording that definitely means we can’t extend OG Corwin Mason, a star for us at LG. I know, guards are guards, but this guy is elite. I’d be cap crippled this season, and awfully thin, for years to come, if we re-did a long term deal with Stallings to be our WR2.

Now, that role presumably goes to WR Clayton Vukmir. He’s signed for 9/yr this season and next, and could possibly extend longer this offseason because he was little-used last season. Vukmir has good skills on paper — 88 BPR, 59/59 overall, solid endurance. This guy will be, on paper, one of the top handful of WR2s in this eagle, I’d guess. So...that is come comfort.

Also, it bears mentioning...Vuimir is an affinity, Stallings was not. Right or not, it matters in my thinking.

So...it’s done. With an earlier draft pick than I had anticipated, we have a chance to add a foundation caliber player (at pick 11, not likely at WR, more likely at OL or LB) but that’s good. So, we will plug in that assumption as we think about this season ahead.