Smith joins Blake

[Travis]

Thoughts on the new Cardinal backfield? Not sure if this is wise for Emmitt, they just don't have enough weapons to divert enough attention off of him to put up good to great numbers.

[Fritz]

sadsadsad

[astralhaze]

Hello 4-12.

[Fritz]

you think smith will give them one extra win next season?

[Tasan]

This just goes to prove that it was all about the money for Smith. I guarentee you he'll split time with Shipp and not win more than Dallas. Its a sad day for the NFL that he'll have to end his career as a Card.

[Franklinnoble]

No sadder than OJ ending his career as an axe-murderer, or Jim Brown ending his career as a blaxploitation actor....

[Draft Dodger]

I would really much rather see him in a Raider uniform than a Cards uniform. That just seems really, really wrong somehow.

I could even handle Redskins. (I can't believe I said that).
Arizona? just not right

[Franklinnoble]

Originally posted by Draft Dodger
I would really much rather see him in a Raider uniform than a Cards uniform. That just seems really, really wrong somehow.

I could even handle Redskins. (I can't believe I said that).
Arizona? just not right

Bah. As a lifelong die-hard 'Skins fan, all I wanted this offseason was two things:

1. That Stephen Davis NOT sign with Dallas. He would have killed us twice a year, just as Emmitt always has...

2. That Emmitt NOT sign with Washington. This was pretty much a sure thing, as Spurrier would have little use for a re-tread running back in his offense, and if they wanted a runner like Smith, they could have kept the younger Davis... still, after having to choke on the Norv Turner hiring years ago, this was the last thing I wanted.

Arizona is a doomed, pathetic franchise, and even a former Cowpie like Smith deserves better. But, the fact is, nobody else wanted him. He'll help sell tickets in Phoenix, because they're all friggin' Cowpies fans out there anyway, but that's about it. Fortunately enough, the Cards actually have a respectably solid O-line going into next season, so maybe he won't be too bad off, statistically speaking. But they won't win. And if they do, they'll find a way to screw it up. It's just how it's always been, and how it always will be. Until the Bidwell's sell the team to someone who's not a total ass monkey, it'll never change.

[cthomer5000]

I don't blame him. Not only was it the best money available, more importantly it was the only starting job out there.

Here were the only teams I predicted would possibly be interested the day he was cut:

Philly - they never showed interest
Tampa Bay - seemed to be interested in him, but only to share the load, and probably only for league minimum.
Carolina - were interested, but landed Stephen Davis.
Arizona - landed him.
Houston - never showed interest
Cleveland - never showed interest
New England - reportedly "not that interested", but perhaps could have split time there.


I thought the best situation for him would have been Carolina. If things break right for them they could sneak into the playoffs this year, and certainly could compete for the playoffs next year.

So that left Emmitt with one starting option (Arizona) and maybe Tampa as the best team to take a run at a title with. Since he wanted to start, there was no real option. People keep mentiong the Raiders, but that made no sense from day 1 (other than the obvious, "raiders sign every old player" angle).

[AgPete]

That's some sad shit. If the Skins had kept Boston I might have thought it was a good idea. They have a good offensive line to help Emmitt out. IMO, Plummer is overrated, I don't see how Blake is a downgrade. Of all the teams I thought Emmitt might sign with, the Cardinals were the last on my list. I hoped he would sign with a winner. The Cardinals have made a lot of offseason changes but I don't know if they'll be able to post a winning record. This is GREAT news for Arizona. Emmitt is going to bring fans to the games. Half that stadium is blue when I watch Cowboys games.

[STK]

Arizona has a football team?

[JeeberD]

[Alf]

At least they could get some extra spectators in the stands...

[WSUCougar]

Originally posted by STK
Arizona has a football team?

Not really, no.

My wife was not clear on why I was scoffing at Emmitt becoming a Cardinal, so I explained it by saying that it would be like Mark McGwire signing with the Milwaukee Brewers. She understood.

[Franklinnoble]

Originally posted by WSUCougar
Not really, no.

My wife was not clear on why I was scoffing at Emmitt becoming a Cardinal, so I explained it by saying that it would be like Mark McGwire signing with the Milwaukee Brewers. She understood.

Likewise, had Emmitt signed with the Redskins, it would have been like Roger Clemens signing with the Yankees....

[Pyser]

i dont get this. i really think marcel shipp could be a very good player. now he gets to be a back-up.

someone tell arizona how to run a franchise, please. incidentally, i cant name 1 wr on the cards roster (boston gone, frank sanders and martay jenkins are f/a)...are they planning on doing anything about this? because no wr's, handing off to a 33 or so year old running back......

this aint gonna be pretty.

[Franklinnoble]

Not slapping the Franchise or Transition tag on Boston was acutely stupid. Even if they didn't want to pay him to stick around, the Cards could have gotten something in return for him - instead, they let one of the most talented young WR's in the game go... for nothing.

I've said it before and I'll say it again - the Cardinals will be perennial ass-suckers as long as the Bidwell regime is in command.

[Kodos]

Emmitt should have accepted a non-starter job with a team that is a contender, like the Bucs or Eagles. Or even the Dolphins. Retiring is better than going to the Cards. They are the Bengals of the South.

[ACStrider]

Grr...two things are going to happen here...

1. Smith won't be happy with the pt in AZ

2. Dallas will sign someone either this year or next year at the RB position for MORE money then Smith was asking for once they realize that the guy they have doesn't cut it.

[Arles]

I think everyone is being too hard on the Cards. For the past 15-20 years, the Cardinals have built up a franchise of failure, rivaled only by the Clippers

Now, in the last two seasons, they have brought in Freddie Jones, Duane Starks, G Pete Kendall, Super Bowl MVP Dexter Jackson, Jeff Blake and Emmitt Smith. Plus, for the first time in eons, they had a good draft in 2002. So, atleast the franchise is trying to win and spending some big money on marquee players.

I am a Packer fan and GB was a wasteland for players until Reggie White signed. If Arizona is serious about fielding a contending team, this Emmitt Smith move could give instant credibility to a maligned organization, much like White did in GB.

So, while I think the Cardinals are a long way away from a Super Bowl contender, atleast they are making moves to get closer.

Finally, on the Boston issue, Boston is suspended for the first four games of the season for his "second strike" in the drug program. The Cards did not feel like tying up $5-$6 million in cap room to potentially get a 3rd or 4th round draft pick for a guy they didn't want to stay and won't play for 1/4 of the season. Imagine if no one offered a deal for Boston, the Cards would be stuck paying a huge cancer in the clubhouse and a guy that dogged it all last year $6 million in guaranteed money. I really think that letting both Plummer and Boston go was a good move. It freed up a bunch of cap room for them to sign guys like Jackson, Blake and Emmitt Smith (and remember, they were a finalist for Colvin as well). This might not have been possible if those guys were taking up dead cap space in hopes of getting a mid-round pick in a trade.

Arlie

[bosshogg23]

Not tagging Boston was a mistake, whether it was transition or franchise. He was too good to let go for free.

Having 2 running backs that are above average is NOT a bad thing. Hell Detroit could use that combination(im a Detroit fan).

Smith doesnt have a long contract and I think AZ can only benefit from this situation, financially and in terms of credibility.

[cthomer5000]

Originally posted by Arles
I think everyone is being too hard on the Cards. For the past 15-20 years, the Cardinals have built up a franchise of failure, rivaled only by the Clippers

Now, in the last two seasons, they have brought in Freddie Jones, Duane Starks, G Pete Kendall, Super Bowl MVP Dexter Jackson, Jeff Blake and Emmitt Smith. Plus, for the first time in eons, they had a good draft in 2002. So, atleast the franchise is trying to win and spending some big money on marquee players.

I am a Packer fan and GB was a wasteland for players until Reggie White signed. If Arizona is serious about fielding a contending team, this Emmitt Smith move could give instant credibility to a maligned organization, much like White did in GB.

So, while I think the Cardinals are a long way away from a Super Bowl contender, atleast they are making moves to get closer.

Finally, on the Boston issue, Boston is suspended for the first four games of the season for his "second strike" in the drug program. The Cards did not feel like tying up $5-$6 million in cap room to potentially get a 3rd or 4th round draft pick for a guy they didn't want to stay and won't play for 1/4 of the season. Imagine if no one offered a deal for Boston, the Cards would be stuck paying a huge cancer in the clubhouse and a guy that dogged it all last year $6 million in guaranteed money. I really think that letting both Plummer and Boston go was a good move. It freed up a bunch of cap room for them to sign guys like Jackson, Blake and Emmitt Smith (and remember, they were a finalist for Colvin as well). This might not have been possible if those guys were taking up dead cap space in hopes of getting a mid-round pick in a trade.

Arlie

Actually, there is not going to be any suspension for Boston, making the Cardinals actions even more moronic.

[Arles]

The Transition Tag wouldn't have done anything. All that does is allow you to match a player's offer. but if he leaves, you get nothing. And since the Cards said they had little interest in signing Boston to the type of money San Diego did, it would have been simply an academic exercise.

If he's not suspended, then I can see some rationale for giving him a franchise tag. But, in all seriousness, who was going to pay two firsts for Boston? I don't see anyone. Now, I think that San Diego or Baltimore may have payed a third, but is hampering a big chunk of cap space through the first stage of FA for a player you don't want worth a third round pick?

Plus, if no one wanted to deal for him, the Cards would have been stuck with Boston. A guy that was a huge cancer in the clubhouse last year, dropped numerous easy patches, missed most practices and would bitch to the media after every game in essentially a "lame duck" year. Sometimes, you just cut your losses and move on. Plus, in this day of Free Agency, I think 6-7 mil of open cap space going into FA is more valuable than a 3rd round pick. Especially if you have as many holes as Arizona.

Arlie

[cthomer5000]

Originally posted by Arles
The Transition Tag wouldn't have done anything. All that does is allow you to match a player's offer. but if he leaves, you get nothing. And since the Cards said they had little interest in signing Boston to the type of money San Diego did, it would have been simply an academic exercise.

If he's not suspended, then I can see some rationale for giving him a franchise tag. But, in all seriousness, who was going to pay two firsts for Boston? I don't see anyone. Now, I think that San Diego or Baltimore may have payed a third, but is hampering a big chunk of cap space through the first stage of FA for a player you don't want worth a third round pick?

Plus, if no one wanted to deal for him, the Cards would have been stuck with Boston. A guy that was a huge cancer in the clubhouse last year, dropped numerous easy patches, missed most practices and would bitch to the media after every game in essentially a "lame duck" year. Sometimes, you just cut your losses and move on. Plus, in this day of Free Agency, I think 6-7 mil of open cap space going into FA is more valuable than a 3rd round pick. Especially if you have as many holes as Arizona.

Arlie

I'm sorry Arlie, but the Cardinals are totally indefensible here.

1. If they didn't want him, they could have dealt him to San Diego for anything when they reached that contract agreement with him.

2. The Cardinals had 25 million in cap room going into free agency, easily the most in the league. You cannot possibly convince me they had immediate plans for 18+ million of that. They would have to have been prepared to drop 18 mill immediately to justify not tagging Boston.

Much like the Jets not tendering Laverneus Coles at the highest level, this was a truly bone-headed managerial move.

[Franklinnoble]

Originally posted by cthomer5000
I'm sorry Arlie, but the Cardinals are totally indefensible here.

1. If they didn't want him, they could have dealt him to San Diego for anything when they reached that contract agreement with him.

2. The Cardinals had 25 million in cap room going into free agency, easily the most in the league. You cannot possibly convince me they had immediate plans for 18+ million of that. They would have to have been prepared to drop 18 mill immediately to justify not tagging Boston.

Much like the Jets not tendering Laverneus Coles at the highest level, this was a truly bone-headed managerial move.

Gotta agree with you here. How can anyone say that the Cardinals are spending "big money" to improve themselves when they consistantly remain well under the salary cap. They're not paying out big signing bonuses, they don't pay top-tier salaries, and they negotiate contracts like it's still 1982. Most players (and, more influentially, their agents) like contracts with escalator clauses, incentive bonuses, voidable years, etc... the Cardinals ownership has vehement philosophical objections to modern NFL contracts, and rarely sign anyone to anything but a standard "X years for Y dollars per year, with a modest signing bonus" contract. Good players can't wait to leave (see: Simeon Rice, Larry Centers, Aeneas Williams, etc., etc., etc.), and the only free agents they sign are players that are past their primes or understood by the rest of the league to be entirely over-rated. Dexter Jackson is just another Super Bowl MVP in the mold of Desmond Howard - a guy who played his best game at the right time, but benefitted mostly from being on the best team. Jeff Blake has never won anything. Emmitt Smith is a living legend, but he ain't the same RB he was 5 years ago. As for good draft picks??? What happened to Andre Wadsworth, Eric Swann, and Thomas Jones? You could even throw Garrison Hearst in with that bunch, because he only had a few good years AFTER he left Arizona.

I'm a die-hard Redskins fan, born and raised, and while I think Dan Snyder is a putz, at least he's TRYING, and he's putting real money where his mouth is. Sooner or later he'll figure it out, and, at least, the 'Skins are more interesting now than they were when John Cooke owned them. I lived in Phoenix for ten years, though, and was just totally infuriated at the ineptitude of the Bidwell ownership. As and NFC East rival (though, no longer), I never wanted the Cards to be a powerhouse or anything, but, damn, I didn't want them to be a total embarassment. I could never even become a lukewarm Cards fan because the Bidwell's are strictly in it for the money. They keep their roster under the cap year in and year out because that's more money for them to keep in their pockets. Mark my words, even when the Cardinals move out of Sun Devil Stadium (which, they claim, has always been their crutch), their attendance will still suck because the team will still suck, because the Bidwell's will always put personal greed before winning.

[Arles]

I've spoken with some media guys in Phoenix that cover the team. 99.9% of the time they are very critical of the Cardinals (as am I). Yet, all of us are on the same page regarding the act of not tagging either Boston or Plummer. Here are the reasons I see:

1. Neither is in the plans for Arizona next season. So, the only reason to tag them is to try and get some limited compensation in the form of a trade. Now, no one would have traded much for Plummer, maybe a late round pick. Boston, however, has some value, but it is brought down by his baggage on (missing practice, dogging games, dropping balls) and off (drug test fails, DUI arrests) the field. So, while on talent he is worth a first, I doubt Arizona would have gotten more than a third when you consider his pricetag.

2. If the organization would have tagged Boston, David and his agent would have started a PR campaign that would been devasting and pretty much ended any chance of Arizona signing a key FA. I mean, why would a player want to go to Arizona when all they see on the front page is another player bashing the Cardinals and reinforcing their ideas of the "same ole Bidwells". By tagging Boston they open a PR pandora's box that would have brought a sandstorm of negative press referencing bad negociations with Rice, Eric Swann, Larry Centers, Andre Wadsworth and numerous others.

So, here's my question: Is this negative press that would have severely impacted their PR to get guys like Colvin, Dexter Jackson, Emmitt Smith, Jeff Blake, Vonnie Holliday and other key FAs worth a potential third round pick in a trade?

I say no. The only way this organization is going to work its way back up to even a limited level of respectability is if they can go one offseason without Franchise tag blowups, camp hold-outs, and other negativity usually associated with Arizona. So, the Cardinals decided to forgo whatever compensation they could have gotten for Boston in return for also forgoing the negative press firestorm that would have accompanied the tagging. And, based on that decision, they were able to bring in proven winners like Emmitt Smith and Dexter Jackson, along with other key guys like Blake that have given a sliver of hope to their fan base. This, not surprisingly, has also caused a very large increase in season ticket sales compared to last season.

The reality is that this move was a business decision made to improve the standing of the organization and the morale of the fan base. And, thus far, it has worked as even places like Fox, ESPN and USA Today have made comments on how the signing of Smith has changed the image of the Cardinals in a positive way. Now, this all could have happened had they kept Boston, and they may be a 2nd or 3rd round pick richer had they done that at this point. But, the organization didn't feel the risk was worth that potential pick. And, for once, I agree with them.

Now, if we get to camp and their Number 1 pick is holding out because they are unwilling to sign him to a new contract, all this goes for not. So, it will be interesting to see how the Bidwells treat this upcoming No. 1 pick's contract.

Arlie

[Franklinnoble]

What media guys are you talking to?

I used to write for the Arizona Republic, and it was infuriating to me how FEW media types out there would stand up and publicly criticize the Bidwells.

[Thomkal]

Arlie,

As a longtime fan of my beloved Cardinals, I have to disagree. with your opinions about the move by Arizona not to tag Boston.

For the two seasons he started every game for the Cards (well he didn't start one in 01), Boston was one of the best WR's in football, gaining over 1100 receiving yards in 00, and almost 1600 in 01. And this is while playing for weak teams. Yes he had a completely forgettable season last season, but his QB had the worst season in his career. And he got injured half-way through the year. If he's fully recovered from that injury, he's worth every dollar the Cards would have signed him for, bad attitude or not.

Plenty of teams were interested in Boston and were willing to pay good money to get him. If its true that he won't miss any games this season due to his drug problems, its yet another in a long line of boneheaded moves by Cardinal ownership. To get nothing for what has been one of the best WR's in football is ridiculous and laughable. Especially when your remaining WR's are washed up (Frank Sanders) or nearly unproven. And the vast majority of the media I've seen have been all over the Cardinals for not tagging him. Getting any draft pick for Boston, say a 3rd rounder, in which they could have drafted a potential replacement for him, was far far better than getting nothing.

And I've seen no evidence that either Boston or his agent would have started a PR campaign that would convince free agents not to sign with Arizona. Why would they bother when the tag would be up in a year and he could sign with anyone else rather than the Cards? And if he put out the numbers he did in the season I mentioned, he'd blow his chances of signing a big contract with the Cardinals if he liked playing there. From which I've read, he did. And besides one more player badmouthing the Bidwells and the Cards would be just a drop in the bucket right now, and have next to no effect on other free agents.

And the players you mentioned as "marquee" players like Kendall, Jones and the others you mentioned in an earlier post(with the exception of Emmitt) are not marquee players in my mind. Good perhaps, but marquee? I think not. And Jeff Blake is not the answer at QB. I will say the Cardinals have helped themselves with their free agent signees (did they get Holliday I didn't see that?) this season, but as long as the Bidwells remain in control of the team, free agents will always have doubts about signing with the Cardinals.

As for the Cards signing Emmitt, I have to think its nearly completely a PR move to get fans into the stadium, rather than a move they honestly think will improve the team. Emmitt is not the RB he once was and while he'll likely be a good coach and mentor for Shipp, it also hinders his development as he won't get as much playing time now. Especially if Thomas Jones sticks around. I think its just a pathetic admission that the only time the Cards get a full stadium is when the Cowboys are in town. So who better to get than a former Cowboy star? The fact is not a single other team out there offered him a starting job, and that's the main reason he signed with Arizona. It's hard to disagree with every other team in the league's opinion on Smith as a starter.

I understand and respect your opinions Arlie, but I think your sense of the reality of the situation in Phoenix is far off base.