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This stuff is often based on nothing but assumptions.
Free agent safety Vonn Bell signed with the Cincinnati Bengals today. People made a big deal about it because they know the name. He was a star at Ohio State and played for the New Orleans Saints the last four years.
One insider, who gets a ton of signings leaked to him by agents, called the Bell move “another big-time free agent acquisition for Cincinnati.”
How is it a big-time move? The Saints signed Malcolm Jenkins to replace him. Bell didn’t have his first pick as a Saints until last year.
What I’m saying is be careful listening throwing up terms like “big-time signing” when they didn’t look at any film of the player. They are just going off the name, or what the player’s agent told them, and that person isn’t objective about their client.
The insider who called this a “another big-time signing” for the Bengals was also taking into account they signed two former Minnesota Vikings corners, Trae Waynes and Mackensie Alexander. While both of those players were picked high, Waynes in the first round, and Alexander in the second round, both kind of underachieved in Minnesota.
All I’m saying is don’t get caught up in names and insiders promoting some of these signings.
When the Jets signed offensive lineman George Fant and Connor McGovern in free agency, many Jets fans were outraged, wanting bigger names like Jack Conklin and Joe Thuney.
Once again, don’t get caught up in names. Fant is a left tackle who is very athletic and light on his feet. McGovern was the best center available in free agency.
Let’s see how this all turns out.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport announced today that the Jets signed inside linebacker Patrick Onwuasor. After Rapoport tweeted this announcement, a Jets fan responded on Twitter, “I never heard of him.”
That’s irrelevant.
He started 32 games in Baltimore over his four years with the Ravens, after entering the league as an undrafted free agent out of Portland State. He got benched for a few games this past season, and he wanted a change of scenery.
This is a signing from the second wave of free agency, so it was probably cheap. Guys start scrambling for jobs now.
One thing Onwuasor can help the Jets with is their linebacker pass coverage, something that isn’t a strength of most of their ILB’s. Onwuasor runs 4.6, and generally displayed good coverage skills in Baltimore.
The addition of Onwuasor could make Avery Williamson expendable. If the Jets release Williamson, they would save $6.5 million against the cap. That could help them with a Jamal Adams or Jadeveon Clowney deal. Who knows?
But don’t worry about whether you heard of the player. All that matters is that Joe Douglas and the Jets’ player personnel department, did tireless research on the player. Jets personnel executive Chad Alexander with was the Ravens during Onwuasor’s entire stay there. He knows the player and he knows what happened last year.
So forget the name stuff, and forget about the insiders telling you that something is a “big-time signing,” because in most cases, they are just going by the name, or throwing a bone to the agent who leaked the story to them.
March 25, 2020
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