Josh Norman Signs With Redskins!

[anacostiakat]

Even with the Redskins needing tons of help in the secondary I was still surprised at this. Happily so!

Article

[Ken Gargett]

been following it closely.

how much fun will the games v the giants be!

[Ken Gargett]

ps - how good is it to finally have a GM with brains and ability.

[anacostiakat]

ps - how good is it to finally have a GM with brains and ability.

Troof!

I only hope Norman can adjust smoothly to our defensive schemes. He has played zone coverage mostly.

[Ken Gargett]

Troof!

I only hope Norman can adjust smoothly to our defensive schemes. He has played zone coverage mostly.

surely skins also play enough zone?

[SCgarman]

been following it closely.

how much fun will the games v the giants be!

Ken, as you know I am a life long Giants fan living in northern VA; Redskins country. I get soooo sick of hearing about the Skins, ughh. Just had to get that off my chest! No malice intended.

[Ken Gargett]

Ken, as you know I am a life long Giants fan living in northern VA; Redskins country. I get soooo sick of hearing about the Skins, ughh. Just had to get that off my chest! No malice intended.

you might be hearing a lot more!

[anacostiakat]

surely skins also play enough zone?

I believe they play some zone but more man. Hopefully it won't present a problem. They must not think it will be a problem or they wouldn't have jumped.

[Yagermeister]

Really liked this guy and really sad to see we didn't shell out the money to keep him. You're welcome, Ken.

[Ken Gargett]

just in case anyone missed this bit of fun, we now have it twice a year. toss in norman and dez.

can't wait for the season to start.

[alloy]

OhYEAH!!! I am so glad we got this done! Now to see what we do in the draft. Trust in McGloohan!

[Mattygukas]

ps - how good is it to finally have a GM with brains and ability.

I wouldn't know, I'm a Bears fan

[Orion21]

I would wonder why Carolina pulled the franchise tag at the last possible moment and allowed him to sign elsewhere. What do they know that none of us do?

[anacostiakat]

I would wonder why Carolina pulled the franchise tag at the last possible moment and allowed him to sign elsewhere. What do they know that none of us do?

Carolina put the franchise tag on him and started negotiations on a long term contract. After negotiating they realized there was a huge gap between what they wanted to offer and what he was asking. Hence, they decided to remove the tag and let him go.

[NCPANTHERZFAN]

His agent wanted too much money. Norman fired him. He tried to comeback to Carolina but it was too late.

[Ken Gargett]

His agent wanted too much money. Norman fired him. He tried to comeback to Carolina but it was too late.

my understanding was that he sort of half fired his agent, if that makes sense. apparently, he needed his old agent still to be his agent for him to sign so quickly with the skins. so he had two agents for a brief while, but the original one is now gone.

but he did offer to sign the franchise agreement so he could come back to the panthers for the year but i gather he still wanted to be paid far more than the panthers would contemplate going forward. and so they chopped him then, rather than have a bloke for a year who they knew they would not sign long term and who would be a distraction. and possibly an unhappy element in the dressing room. what the panthers did makes sense to me, from their point, except i do not understand why they did not try and trade him. you would have to think they could have got something??

another good corner was a huge need for the skins so they jumped on him and happy to pay that amount. and no need to give up any draft pick or other player. they have managed to do this three years in a row - Djax, junior galette and now norman. we are like the hyenas of the NFL, just scavenging after everyone else has had their fill of free agency. .

with norman and breeland, and possibly culliver (depending on the injury and if he is not cut), what was a position of need is now a position of strength so very good for us. also, it was highly likely we could have chased a corner in round 1 or 2 of the draft. this saves us from having to do that.

[El Presidente]

16 Million for a player who is out of play on one side of the field at least half the time?

Andrew Lucks base salary this year $16 Million (thereabouts) and Russel Wilson $21 Million (thereabouts).......and they play every snap.

This may be a good for the Skins......or a good deal for Carolina.......but Norman is certainly the winner

[Ken Gargett]

16 Million for a player who is out of play on one side of the field at least half the time?

Andrew Lucks base salary this year $16 Million (thereabouts) and Russel Wilson $21 Million (thereabouts).......and they play every snap.

This may be a good for the Skins......or a good deal for Carolina.......but Norman is certainly the winner

it is not quite so simple (and every player only plays half the game or thereabouts - at least since that great redskin sammy baugh, who played QB, defensive back and punter - and held national records for all three positions, some of which lasted for 70 years. anyone recently thrown for 4 touchdowns and taken four interceptions in the one game? but i digress).

but you mean he may not be involved in that particular play. i would argue that is, with respect, nonsense. if he shuts down one side of the field then even if he does not make the tackle or an intercept etc etc, he is still very much involved. think of how often sherman is not involved in the actual play but his presence forces the offence to play into the hands of the defence. if romo is too concerned about norman to throw to dez, a big win for the skins. and with breeland, we have an excellent young corner on the other side.

$75 mill for five years but it is adjusted throughout. and that includes the various bonuses etc. and also various incentives - not often a player hits all of them - but from the skins perspective, fabulous if he does as it means he is playing as well as we hoped.

so the cap hit next season is only $8 mill. about twice that the following year but he can be cut after that if he is not performing. there would be some cap pain but nothing like the full amount. .

[wabashcr]

what the panthers did makes sense to me, from their point, except i do not understand why they did not try and trade him. you would have to think they could have got something??

Carolina actually couldn't have traded him until he signed the franchise tender, which he never did. He was technically a restricted free agent as long as Carolina had the franchise tender out there. There wouldn't be any reason for him to sign the franchise tender if Carolina wanted to trade him.

I think it was a mistake for Carolina to pull the franchise offer. Even if they knew he wasn't going to sign a long term deal, he's going to be very difficult to replace. And there's no reason to think he would be disgruntled or a distraction to his teammates. He very much wanted to stay in Carolina. It frees up cap room for them to spend this year, which they obviously value more than one year of Norman under the franchise tag. It's always dangerous when you trade a known quantity, especially one of the best at his position in the league, for cap space. Sometimes you're forced to, but in this case the cap space seems to be more of a luxury. I think they'll come to regret this.

From Washington's perspective, it seems like a no-brainer. It's always a gamble when you take a guy who had a breakout season in the last year of his contract, and then give him the big payday. But there's no indication Norman is the type of player who will ease up now that he's been paid. As far as scheme, when you have a player of Norman's ability, you figure out a way to fit him in. I don't see that as a concern at all. If I'm a Washington fan, with their history of signing big money free agents that don't pan out, I'd be nervous. But since RG3 they've been drafting better, and seem to have a really strong core to build around. Sometimes a move like this can take the team to the next level. Barring any bad luck, I think this is a steal for Washington.

[Ken Gargett]

Carolina actually couldn't have traded him until he signed the franchise tender, which he never did. He was technically a restricted free agent as long as Carolina had the franchise tender out there. There wouldn't be any reason for him to sign the franchise tender if Carolina wanted to trade him.

I think it was a mistake for Carolina to pull the franchise offer. Even if they knew he wasn't going to sign a long term deal, he's going to be very difficult to replace. And there's no reason to think he would be disgruntled or a distraction to his teammates. He very much wanted to stay in Carolina. It frees up cap room for them to spend this year, which they obviously value more than one year of Norman under the franchise tag. It's always dangerous when you trade a known quantity, especially one of the best at his position in the league, for cap space. Sometimes you're forced to, but in this case the cap space seems to be more of a luxury. I think they'll come to regret this.

From Washington's perspective, it seems like a no-brainer. It's always a gamble when you take a guy who had a breakout season in the last year of his contract, and then give him the big payday. But there's no indication Norman is the type of player who will ease up now that he's been paid. As far as scheme, when you have a player of Norman's ability, you figure out a way to fit him in. I don't see that as a concern at all. If I'm a Washington fan, with their history of signing big money free agents that don't pan out, I'd be nervous. But since RG3 they've been drafting better, and seem to have a really strong core to build around. Sometimes a move like this can take the team to the next level. Barring any bad luck, I think this is a steal for Washington.

ta for the info re the trade. did not realise that.

otherwise, very much agree.

the "drafting better" is down to the new GM who has been brilliant and completely turned around attitudes and expectations. and culture. very much a build from within guy, unless something like this falls to him.

given his background, no surprise. his father was a highly respected scout and he travelled with him. first position was with the packers. then helped build both the 49ers into the team that made the superbowl and seahawks into the team that won it. that and the fact that finally, synder seems to understand his talents (read money etc) better utilised elsewhere than on hail mary scoops to pay massive pensions to former greats.

realistically, unlikely to challenge this coming season but you'd hope for the playoffs and a better showing. but over the next 2-3 years, watch out! HTTR.

[wabashcr]

realistically, unlikely to challenge this coming season but you'd hope for the playoffs and a better showing. but over the next 2-3 years, watch out! HTTR.

Why not? They have most of the pieces in place they need, and will continue to address holes through the draft and free agency. A team that won its (admittedly soft) division last season and appears to be on an upward trajectory should definitely expect to be a contender. Things change quickly in the NFL. Wouldn't surprise me at all if they're one of the better teams in the NFC.

As a neutral/outsider, my biggest question is still Cousins. He had a nice year last season. But if he regresses or even plateaus, it's back to the drawing board for them. He needs to progress, or they're going nowhere. An improved offensive line should help. Another year in a familiar system will help. But expectations are higher, and the offense will rely on him to do more. If he continues to improve, Washington should at the very least be a playoff team, and probably win the division again.

[Ken Gargett]

Why not? They have most of the pieces in place they need, and will continue to address holes through the draft and free agency. A team that won its (admittedly soft) division last season and appears to be on an upward trajectory should definitely expect to be a contender. Things change quickly in the NFL. Wouldn't surprise me at all if they're one of the better teams in the NFC.

As a neutral/outsider, my biggest question is still Cousins. He had a nice year last season. But if he regresses or even plateaus, it's back to the drawing board for them. He needs to progress, or they're going nowhere. An improved offensive line should help. Another year in a familiar system will help. But expectations are higher, and the offense will rely on him to do more. If he continues to improve, Washington should at the very least be a playoff team, and probably win the division again.

i think dallas will be a challenge if romo stays fit. giants spent very big.

agree cousins need to kick on. every chance.

my biggest question is gruden. i think the jury very much still out. he needs to do a lot to prove that this was not just us falling over the line in a poor division.