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Shaun Alexander is released....


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Another bit of news for you guys. Adam Schefter of the NFL Network is reporting

that the Seahawks have released RB Shaun Alexander. This isn't shocking by any

stretch but it's still significant when something like this goes from speculation

to reality.

 

Alexander isn't the player he once was but he's still a guy that could help plenty

of teams. I'd expect most organizations to see how their draft shakes out this

weekend before making any big offers to Alexander though. Should be interesting.

 

Thanks to Footballguy Jeff Pasquino for the headsup on this one.

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I'd rather have him than spend my first rounder on a RB.

 

I'd rather have a 1st round OT, 2nd round WR, and 3rd round Olineman along with Alexander than most of the other ways the Bears could draft a RB.

 

Alexander has also battled through injuries the past two seasons and after signing the big contract, he lost a little desire. Now, if he wants to be a player, he'll have to prove himself again. I'd be content on giving him an incentive laden contract that won't cost us much to cut him and that will reward him if he reaches certain milestones. Give him a one year deal, at least it's insurance if Benson can't rebound from his injury.

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The question here isn't simply whether Alexander in his current state is better than Benson. He might be.

 

The real question is whether you are SURE that Alexander can be the answer long term. I think we all think that we can't be sure of that.

 

The reason I say this is because keeping Benson, Alexander and Wolfe means that there is no room on the roster for a young developmental RB to replace Alexander / Benson next year. If your idea is to simply replace Benson with Alexander, that IS possible, but it will cost you a cap hit to cut Benson, and I doubt that the upgrade to Alexander is worth that much.

 

The main idea here is that Benson has a year left on his deal, so whoever takes that third slot is his eventual replacement. You can't make that Alexander unless you know that he's the man for you for the next three or four seasons, and I don't think even the most optimistic of us can say that.

 

So, while Alexander might be a better choice right now than Benson, if you were picking teams, and had to fill the slot of 'short term vet while the young guys learns', that isn't really the option. We already have Benson signed, so you'd have to really believe in Alexander.

 

No, the more likely scenario is a young RB behind Benson. Try to get the rookie(s) comfortable on the OL, and play to build a winner for the 2009 season and beyond.

 

Keep in mind that the reason we are here is that last year, having just lost the superbowl, we risked taking the same team, as it aged, back for one more shot. This was a sound strategy, but it just didn't work out. Grossman regressed, and the OL didn't make it through the year without getting too old.

 

Had we only gone to the playoffs in 2006, we might have spent picks on OL and WR, and not picked role players to help out immediately as Partiot-esque 'role players'.

 

Then again, we did take Beekman and Olsen, and they should be a help this year.

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Oh, I think he's heads and tails better than Benson! But, so are a lot of runners...

 

I feel pretty sure Alexander cannot be a long term solution. At best, he'll be what TJ was. A good solid back for about 3 years. I want a back with more staying power than that. And there appear to be a number of those guys available in this years' draft.

 

I've stated I do not want Alexander... But I do think he is better than Benson. I simply want us to draft a RB.

 

The question here isn't simply whether Alexander in his current state is better than Benson. He might be.

 

The real question is whether you are SURE that Alexander can be the answer long term. I think we all think that we can't be sure of that.

 

The reason I say this is because keeping Benson, Alexander and Wolfe means that there is no room on the roster for a young developmental RB to replace Alexander / Benson next year. If your idea is to simply replace Benson with Alexander, that IS possible, but it will cost you a cap hit to cut Benson, and I doubt that the upgrade to Alexander is worth that much.

 

The main idea here is that Benson has a year left on his deal, so whoever takes that third slot is his eventual replacement. You can't make that Alexander unless you know that he's the man for you for the next three or four seasons, and I don't think even the most optimistic of us can say that.

 

So, while Alexander might be a better choice right now than Benson, if you were picking teams, and had to fill the slot of 'short term vet while the young guys learns', that isn't really the option. We already have Benson signed, so you'd have to really believe in Alexander.

 

No, the more likely scenario is a young RB behind Benson. Try to get the rookie(s) comfortable on the OL, and play to build a winner for the 2009 season and beyond.

 

Keep in mind that the reason we are here is that last year, having just lost the superbowl, we risked taking the same team, as it aged, back for one more shot. This was a sound strategy, but it just didn't work out. Grossman regressed, and the OL didn't make it through the year without getting too old.

 

Had we only gone to the playoffs in 2006, we might have spent picks on OL and WR, and not picked role players to help out immediately as Partiot-esque 'role players'.

 

Then again, we did take Beekman and Olsen, and they should be a help this year.

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I think it depends on what it takes to sign him. If you can bring him in for relativley cheap and have him compete for one of the 3 RB slots with Benson, AP, and whoever we draft, then why not? Basically, if you can sign him to a deal where it doesn't really hurt your cap too much if you need to cut him, then I'd sign him.

 

I don't know what his value will be, but I know he isn't a long term solution. He may be a decent guy to have for a season or so while we groom a younger guy.

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