Why the Colts should avoid Free Agency like the plague....

[Mouthfire]

It's about the worst crapshoot ever.... particularly with unrestricted free agents.

http://www.18to88.com/2011-archives/march/free-agency-is-a-bust.html

Less than 10% chance a FA will be a Pro Bowler. About 60% chance they'll be a bust. Does that sound attractive to anyone?

Keep in mind, most of these guys will be looking for lots of money invested in long-term contracts. So if they don't pan out, you'll be paying for that mistake for years (a la Corey Simon).

[Mouthfire]

Also noted in the article: it's easy enough to keep your own free agents through restricted tenders and franchise tags. If they've hit unrestricted free agency, then their own team felt they weren't worth keeping, let alone investing a lot of money into.

[manningstheman]

yeah cori simon was a dud. that dude was suppose to blow up the middle of our defensive line. what he got hurt or something and ended up never even really playing.

[Coffeedrinker]

yeah cori simon was a dud. that dude was suppose to blow up the middle of our defensive line. what he got hurt or something and ended up never even really playing.

Long term the Simon deal didn't work out, but for the one year he did play he helped a lot. But that is the point of not going for the big name free agents. Rarely do they work out long term.

I just said something very similar in the thread asking if the Colts front office has failed the last 5 years.

my statement was,

They do bring in proven players, every year the Colts bring in some free agents, sometimes they work out (AV, Booger until the injury) sometimes they don't (the two Olineman last year than many on the forum penciled in as starters as soon as they were signed). What the Colts don't do is, to paraphrase Irsay, spend big money on other team's problems. When was the last time a high priced, high profile free agent worked out for the new team? Brett Favre? maybe, not for the Jets. TO to the Bengals? umm no. Rarely do teams let superstars walk for any reason. Why spend big money on a player when the team that is most familiar with that player does not think they are worth it.

Reading through it I guess I should clarify that Booger was not a free agent, he was an in season trade.

[coltsuser21]

only free agent i want is RANDY"Freak" MOSS

[nicky6times]

u can find game changers in free agency

that stat is a little skewed because there are so many players..every1 is not gonna 2 b a pro bowler but u can find quality guys in free agency for sure..colts just like to keep it in house cuz its a little cheaper so when they do have a game changer they can keep him along w all the other not so great guys..it works itself out n u have a better idea of what u got when u develop a guy from the ground up so u tend not 2 sign a "bust" that u already have in ur system..yeah i get why the colts do it but they gotta realize that u gotta beef up ur team every once in a while as well because from what im seein (like every yr), teams r makin moves, lubeing the deals, blowin ish up!!!

i think every1 needs to calm down on the whole theres no money thing..theres always money..cut guys..restructure guys..etc..i mean for the 5 mil that diem is costing us we coulda had reggie bush..now i know reggie isnt on the top of every1s radar..but think how nice it would b 2 watch special teams just because u cut an older player u dont really need anymore..i know the colts had their eye on bush but w the trade n the money they were out (according to espn bloggers)..just throwin out examples..diem for moss..whatever u wanna do u get the point..theres money in the system somewhere we just gotta make the most outta it

Your friend,

Kelvin Hayden

[Mouthfire]

u can find game changers in free agency

that stat is a little skewed because there are so many players..every1 is not gonna 2 b a pro bowler but u can find quality guys in free agency for sure..colts just like to keep it in house cuz its a little cheaper so when they do have a game changer they can keep him along w all the other not so great guys..it works itself out n u have a better idea of what u got when u develop a guy from the ground up so u tend not 2 sign a "bust" that u already have in ur system..yeah i get why the colts do it but they gotta realize that u gotta beef up ur team every once in a while as well because from what im seein (like every yr), teams r makin moves, lubeing the deals, blowin ish up!!!

i think every1 needs to calm down on the whole theres no money thing..theres always money..cut guys..restructure guys..etc..i mean for the 5 mil that diem is costing us we coulda had reggie bush..now i know reggie isnt on the top of every1s radar..but think how nice it would b 2 watch special teams just because u cut an older player u dont really need anymore..i know the colts had their eye on bush but w the trade n the money they were out (according to espn bloggers)..just throwin out examples..diem for moss..whatever u wanna do u get the point..theres money in the system somewhere we just gotta make the most outta it

Your friend,

Kelvin Hayden

Thanks, Kelvin! Also, thanks in advance for restructuring your overbloated contract.

Sincerely,

Chris P.

[Balzer40]

only free agent i want is RANDY"Freak" MOSS

And he is really one of the ones the Colts should stay away from. If they were to actually spend money on a free agent, an old, troubled, and lazy WR would be about the worst choice they could make.

[Mouthfire]

And he is really one of the ones the Colts should stay away from. If they were to actually spend money on a free agent, an old, troubled, and lazy WR would be about the worst choice they could make.

The key is: for the right price. Which is usually not the case when FA is involved.

[21isSuperman]

I don't think you need a Pro-Bowler, you just want a guy who will have a positive impact on the team. Dawan Landry coming here wouldn't make him a Pro-Bowler, but he would certainly help our run defense. Same with Mebane. Looks like Landry is going to JAX though...

[everybodysgotone]

It's about the worst crapshoot ever.... particularly with unrestricted free agents.

http://www.18to88.com/2011-archives/march/free-agency-is-a-bust.html

Less than 10% chance a FA will be a Pro Bowler. About 60% chance they'll be a bust. Does that sound attractive to anyone?

Keep in mind, most of these guys will be looking for lots of money invested in long-term contracts. So if they don't pan out, you'll be paying for that mistake for years (a la Corey Simon).

This is the one year when an exception or two to the Colt Rule might be had. We almost always address team needs via the draft and most definitley before looking into free agency. This year, of course, the entire league had to do it the Colt way, and with all of the FAs and UDFAs available in this market corrected salary/cap environment the team might actually be able to improve in areas we might not have had on our needs-radar in April. This is most particularly the case since we drafted for need and "not best player available" this year. However, "best player available" is exactly what the team might realize at other positions with this huge FA and UDFA pool....it's like having another complete draft board available. I like our savvy front office in this situation and fully expect it to hit another homerun, just like was done in April. Things are looking up on the cap dynamic with Manning expressing desire to make room for Addai, CJ and others we need to bring in order to contend for a SB.

[Mouthfire]

This is the one year when an exception or two to the Colt Rule might be had. We almost always address team needs via the draft and most definitley before looking into free agency. This year, of course, the entire league had to do it the Colt way, and with all of the FAs and UDFAs available in this market corrected salary/cap environment the team might actually be able to improve in areas we might not have had on our needs-radar in April. This is most particularly the case since we drafted for need and "not best player available" this year. However, "best player available" is exactly what the team might realize at other positions with this huge FA and UDFA pool....it's like having another complete draft board available. I like our savvy front office in this situation and fully expect it to hit another homerun, just like was done in April. Things are looking up on the cap dynamic with Manning expressing desire to make room for Addai, CJ and others we need to bring in order to contend for a SB.

Don't get me wrong. I wouldn't be surprised if the Colts did pick up a few free agents this year. If it's any year that they do it, it's this year. The FA agent class is over saturated because of the lockout situation, so the supply > the demand. Which means some free agents can be had on the cheap.

Whatever FA signings that occur with the Colts, however, I wouldn't expect to make any headlines... And I certainly wouldn't expect it to appease the fans wanting a big name FA signing.

[EdBriggs]

I don't think you need a Pro-Bowler, you just want a guy who will have a positive impact on the team. Dawan Landry coming here wouldn't make him a Pro-Bowler,

You KNOW THIS how? Gotta love it. I'm happy with the colts as they are, If they don't win the super bowl this year, I'm still happy, and my life goes on. My colts are a side gig, not my main life. It's entertainment. People that live and breathe colts need to get a life, unless you work for them.

[21isSuperman]

You KNOW THIS how? Gotta love it. I'm happy with the colts as they are, If they don't win the super bowl this year, I'm still happy, and my life goes on. My colts are a side gig, not my main life. It's entertainment. People that live and breathe colts need to get a life, unless you work for them.

I just said my opinion, that's what (among many things) a forum is for. People with some knowledge about a certain topic post and discuss with others. Who really needs to get a life, the people discussing a topic of interest or the person who spends his time making fun of them for it?

[everybodysgotone]

Don't get me wrong. I wouldn't be surprised if the Colts did pick up a few free agents this year. If it's any year that they do it, it's this year. The FA agent class is over saturated because of the lockout situation, so the supply > the demand. Which means some free agents can be had on the cheap.

Whatever FA signings that occur with the Colts, however, I wouldn't expect to make any headlines... And I certainly wouldn't expect it to appease the fans wanting a big name FA signing.

No, it's definitely not going to ever be a fan placating - thing. That's never gonna be the case & I'm glad; however, when it comes to function we might actually benefit from this situation. We'll not see another Corey Simon deal....Irsay learned his lesson. But an upgrade at any given position at moderate cost, that could be a good thing. With the UDFAs, Colt history says one or two guys in this year's class will be a success.