[MIJB#19]

General Manager Notes: Delgado stays, Buysse selected
And a whole bunch of renegotiations were accepted.

Let's start with the blockbuster trade, we are the Masters of Trade after all. We sent the 1.18 and 1.20 picks to the Chesapeake Chitterlings in exchange for the 1.7 pick. I actually had the same deal worked out for the 1.4 pick, but just before I gave my final "deal" to it, I checked the cap situation one more time and concluded that pick would be too expensive. The good news: we landed our target player those 3 spots later after all: wide receiver Vinny Buysse.

Earlier that day we were able to renegotiate with just enough players to make the cap space available to sign tackle Isaac Delgado to a 5-year $180M contract. Three players declined our first renewed contract offer, which meant it was pretty close in the end. Odds were that Delgado would otherwise signed a $150M deal with the Gothenburg Giants.

Our talks with players will continue, as it's no secret that we'll need to find cap space to lock up our All Worldly defensive end Richie Piotte and cornerback Ernie Grant. Center Robbie Zinn chipped in today, all that's left is left tackle Johnny Houston and wide receiver Ed Schulz accepting the much bigger signing bonus than they're requesting. It's funny how these player agents' logic keeps these players from getting to sign a better deal than they're requesting...

Giving up two mid-low first round picks for one wide receiver felt like a heavy price to pay, but if Buysse is the complete receiver that we hope him to be, he'll be worth it. My track record is still kind of 50-50 on first round wide receivers, with 4 Hall of Famers to boost my confidence and Theodore Bondy obviously going to join the bunch, quite possibly even with an unanimous vote.

We grabbed Buysse from a group of 5 wide receivers that we looked at. It's true that 3 of them were picked ahead of Buysse, but when we talked with the Frederick Red Menace for the 1.4 pick, that list was still 4 names unspoken for. When I inquired for the 1.7 pick, I already had a close to done deal for pick 1.9 or 1.10, just in case.

I considered trading back up and in for the last wide receiver from our list, but he was promptly taken in the mid first round. In retrospect, moving up was the right decision. All the players that I felt were worthy of a first round pick were taken before the 1.18 pick rolled around, so giving up two first rounders still feels like a better result than trading out for the nth time.

We're still holding the 2.14 and 2.20 picks and I'm convinced I'll be able to plug one hole on our team with it, and am seriously considering to improve one other position with that 2.20 pick, if the opportunity arises. A trade out wouldn't be a loss either, cap space is once again hard to come by.