TitansGuru Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 by Cyrus A lot has been made lately of the Premium Joe article which tied the Titans to having a very strong interest in soon-to-be free agent wideout Sidney Rice. There's no question that the 6'-4" deep threat would be an excellent addition given the Titans' vertical play-action scheme, a system that Rice found much success in during the 2010 season in Minnesota. There's little doubt either that the Titans have some concerns at the wide receiver position: 2009 Free Agent signing Nate Washington has largely been a disappointment in Tennessee, the physically gifted WR Kenny Britt has been inconsistent on and off the field and the current roster is full of untested young receivers. Like most things it comes down to money and many fans rightfully have a healthy dose of skepticism when it comes to the organization investing money in Free Agency. Despite the skepticism, there's plenty of evidence to suggest that it could actually happen due to the fact that 2011 will likely have an inordinate amount of quality receivers testing free agency and that the most receiver needy teams filled receiver needs during the draft. Below are a list of teams touted to be "interested" in signing a receiver this offseason (ranked from most to least likely to sign Rice): Chicago Bears - The Bears feel like they are in contention and their window is open to compete in the playoffs. The Bears are a team that are committed to pass and they have a fairly talented, but young and inconsistent receiver corps. They've shown that they're willing to be aggressive in trade/free agency and didn't address the position in the draft beyond a late round pick. It would also be a plus to steal away a talented player from a divisional opponent. Minnesota Vikings - Losing Rice would leave...Why Rice to the Titans Could Actually Happen Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earlers Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Titans mgt think they are set at WR. Britt, Williams, Washington, Mariani. They don't think they have problems at the WR position. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrus Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Titans mgt think they are set at WR. Britt, Williams, Washington, Mariani. They don't think they have problems at the WR position. They certainly could and I suspect they might, but Rice's skill-set fits the team exceptionally well (stretches defense, runs post/fade well, competes for the ball, large catching radius). Britt has a real problem and a serious penchant for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The team needs him to be consistent from week to week and be there for the team. He might not be that person. On the other hand, Washington's skillset doesn't match his current position. He can't find the ball in their air and he limits the route combinations on his side of the field. Best Case Scenario: You have Rice and Britt. Both physical players, run blockers and fit the vertical offense. Britt is a good deep receiver but he's also an excellent short-intermediate receiver due to his ability to break tackles. He might be best off in a Harvin type role if the team brought Rice in. Worst Case Scenario: You have Rice and Britt remains inconsistent for another two years and the team never re-ups him. You add Rice as your feature WR and you're not hamstrung by not having a quality wideout. Remember the losing streak without Britt? The team needs someone if he can't perform. Washington isn't the answer. If the Titans are committed to Locker, they need to give him weapons. Rice is even probably a better fit in terms of skill-set for Locker than Britt. (more hands catcher than Britt, excellent on the sidelines). Anyways, the main idea of the article is to dispel the idea that the Titans are competing with a dozen teams for Rice. I believe that there are only going to be two major competing teams, the Vikings and the Bears and there's a real chance that the Titans could get Rice without paying an arm and a leg. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TitansGuru Posted June 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Titans mgt think they are set at WR. Britt, Williams, Washington, Mariani. They don't think they have problems at the WR position. Its certainly possible that is the case, but I think he did his homework and did a good job with going through the reasons why they might want him. I also agree that Chicago is the place that makes the most sense. They desperately need a receiver and getting their rival's number one guy would be a coup. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrus Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Also, Washington was a mistake. He was brought in to be a #1 type guy. He's barely a #2 type player. Who was responsible for bringing him in? Was it at the request of Heimerdinger/Fisher? We're about to see whether it was Reinfeldt or Fisher calling the shots. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earlers Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Maybe it was the qb fault. After all, they all claim we haven't had a qb since McNair. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMJ Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Britt can flake at any moment during the season and should be viewed as unreliable. The FO would be acting in gross negligence if they didn't hedge their bets and invest in another WR. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abenjami Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 His deal was 6 years, $27M with $9M guaranteed. Anyone know how much of that guaranteed was already paid? Aka, what will it cost to cut him? Might be a situation where he stays another year just because of the numbers. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
VanCityTitan Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Britt can flake at any moment during the season and should be viewed as unreliable. The FO would be acting in gross negligence if they didn't hedge their bets and invest in another WR. This is basically how I view it, too. Which is unfortunate because I think if we knew for certain Britt could be couldnt on we could spend the money used to bring in a Rice/MSW/Homes elsewhere. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrus Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 His deal was 6 years, $27M with $9M guaranteed. Anyone know how much of that guaranteed was already paid? Aka, what will it cost to cut him? Might be a situation where he stays another year just because of the numbers. Because of the higher spending floor and all the money that is coming off from Young and Collins the team should be able to keep Washington as a third receiver. (Remember how much they paid Scaife?). The Titans are actually going to have a lot of money to spend and I won't be surprised if they use a lot of it to add one more piece and re-up a number of players. Gage is most assuredly gone so you can afford to pay him $3.4M in 2012 and re-evaluate in 2013 and beyond when it jumps up to $4M+. He's not a bad player to keep around, it's just that he's playing the wrong spot. Personally I'd keep him for at least another year as insurance (injury, Britt) and let him and Williams compete. He's a useful sub-package guy too if you want to put him in the slot and try and push the ball downfield. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMJ Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 This is basically how I view it, too. Which is unfortunate because I think if we knew for certain Britt could be counted on we could spend the money used to bring in a Rice/MSW/Homes elsewhere. Yup. Especially DT, S or OL. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abenjami Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Because of the higher spending floor and all the money that is coming off from Young and Collins the team should be able to keep Washington as a third receiver. (Remember how much they paid Scaife?). The Titans are actually going to have a lot of money to spend and I won't be surprised if they use a lot of it to add one more piece and re-up a number of players. Gage is most assuredly gone so you can afford to pay him $3.4M in 2012 and re-evaluate in 2013 and beyond when it jumps up to $4M+. He's not a bad player to keep around, it's just that he's playing the wrong spot. Personally I'd keep him for at least another year as insurance (injury, Britt) and let him and Williams compete. He's a useful sub-package guy too if you want to put him in the slot and try and push the ball downfield. Agreed. I was responding to your comment "We're about to see whether it was Reinfeldt or Fisher calling the shots." I took that to mean if it was Fisher calling the shots, Washington would be cut. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrus Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Agreed. I was responding to your comment "We're about to see whether it was Reinfeldt or Fisher calling the shots." I took that to mean if it was Fisher calling the shots, Washington would be cut. I kind of think he might be, just not this year. It's interesting if you've listened to all the interviews with Palmer / Gray / Munchak. You can start to read between the lines. Palmer has barely mentioned Washington, barely, maybe once. Every player is getting a fresh look by the coordinators and I can't imagine that they're all that impressed by Washington running past blown coverage and Cover 1 on film. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMJ Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Both Gage and Washington should be cut. Gage especially. I really hope Britt's BS doesn't allow Gage to stick around. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abenjami Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 I kind of think he might be, just not this year. It's interesting if you've listened to all the interviews with Palmer / Gray / Munchak. You can start to read between the lines. Palmer has barely mentioned Washington, barely, maybe once. Every player is getting a fresh look by the coordinators and I can't imagine that they're all that impressed by Washington running past blown coverage and Cover 1 on film. I haven't listened to any of the interviews. But i'm sure they weren't impressed with some of his horrific drops. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.