GBFavreFan wrote:You don't spend $45 million on Greg Jennings if you're "building through the draft", you don't actively pursue 35 year old Antoine Winfield if you're building through the draft. You don't spend $25-$30 million on John Carlson if you're building through the draft. You don't give up 4 picks for 1 if you're building through the draft. You can say the words all you want. You can write articles and forum posts all proclaiming that but the Vikings are not building through the draft. And I couldn't be happier. To clarify I consider "building through the draft" when all of your key players were drafted, and if you dip into free agency/trades at all, its only for depth and not a ton of money is put forth.
"Building through the draft" is such a marketing buzzword, that teams say because fans go crazy for that, like they just bought a great life insurance plan, or bought the mini-van instead of the sports car, as this wonderfully "sound decision" that will ensure their families will be disease-free and avoid the quick temptation of that hooker down the street named "free agency". All BS straight from PR 101, because the Vikings, like most winning teams get their starters from free agency, trades, AND the draft.
Ted Thompson's Packers won a Super Bowl in large part because of key free agents like Charles Woodson and Ryan Pickett as the cornerstones of that team, despite their boasts of "building through the draft". When they choked in the 2011 playoffs, Ted got a little scared and pursued more free agents, but by 2012, things got too pricey for tightwad Ted (Steven Jackson) and they're back to being a build through the draft team now, and guess what, their window that opened in 2007 is closing, and their stubborness in the free agency dept, the past few years has cost them playoff wins with their roster weaknesses so blatantly exposed, that could've been addressed with only a handful of proven commodities. And now the window that crashed open in 2007 is closing as our new WR so eloquently stated, and they're about to be supplanted by a certain team in purple.
The Patriots are always active in free agency yet always draft guys they need, and as soon as they're done with them, they cut them loose and don't hold on to drafted players just so they can claim they "built their team through the draft". They don't care where their players come from they just care about winning. Same goes for the World Champion Ravens who have the best GM in football in my opinion (though Spielman might be closing in depending how 2013 goes!) acquired a key LT through free agency. Smart teams address their team needs through all facets of player acquisition as long as they get the right guy.
Who are the best players on the Bears? Jay Cutler? Julius Peppers? I don't remember them being drafted by Chicago. I don't think their problem has been not building through the draft, its just not drafting the right players, in particular QB. Honestly would you really trust those knuckleheads to draft your QB? They clearly don't have the judgment for that and are much better off looking at other teams for their guy and to cling to some philosophy would be stupid.
People often blame the free agency mentality on why the Redskins have perpetually failed. The problem with them hasn't been signing free agents, the problem has been signing the WRONG free agents. Spending big money on a DE and CB isn't a dumb move. But signing over the hill Bruce Smith and Deion Sanders is dumb. Yet the 1994 49ers, the greatest display of free agency of all time dominated their way to the Super Bowl that year. And if not for Jon Gruden, the 2002 Raiders with free agents as their cornerstones would've won the Super Bowl. Do you think the "greatest show on turf" could've made two Super Bowls without Marshall Faulk?
The Steelers are probably the only team that truly builds throught the draft anymore. I think the last name outsider I can think of for them is Jerome Bettis. But you know who else builds through the draft? The Panthers, Jaguars, Dolphins, Lions, and at least 10 other LOSING franchises.
The overall point I'm trying to make is that acquiring your cornerstone players through the draft or free agency doesn't make you any more or less likely to win. Let me repeat, getting your players from the draft does not make you any more or less likely to win. What makes you win is having a GM who picks the RIGHT players with the knowledge and open-mindedness to realize that those guys can come from the University of Miami or the Miami Dolphins.
Just because they don't have a snappy marketing phrase for teams that effectively use draft AND free agency, doesn't mean we have to claim one or the other. We should just be happy we have a GM who realizes that Donovan McNabb is a bad idea, Greg Jennings and Harrison Smith are good ideas, and that his 2012 free agent blitz on fullbacks that seemed so silly at the time, ended up being the genius move of the season!
So really, our window is closing? Lol, please. Our QB was not even producing at half the level he is now, when we won the SB. Our defense dropped off sharply in 2011, and now seems to be on its way back up.
I assure you TT wasnt 'scared' of anything. You really think a GM is going to be "scared" after 15-1 season that ended with a lost to the eventual SB champs? Please, most of the free agents he signed didnt even make the roster, I admit, that he went a little harder on the free agents in response to the awful D from 2011, but to say he was scared is simply foolish.
Steven Jackson? LOL, dude, the guy would have been an alright pick up but hes old as dirt, what if he got injured? Not to mention he only had a 3.9 Yards per carry if i recall correctly. Id MUCH rather draft not one, but TWO of the top 5 rated RBs in the draft on most people draft board, then give up too much money for Steven Jackson, if he was a vet minimum guy fine, but otherwise? Ill go with the youth, what if one of the rook RBs the Packers draft becomes a HOFer or even a Pro Bowler? Then that Jackson thing seems like a pretty good idea.
Cost us playoff wins? Since we won the SB we have gone 1-2 in the Playoffs, not good, but if you think a SB Ring and 2 playoff losses to the eventual NFC champ both times is is bad, then Im very interested to hear what your thoughts on the Falcons are, surely you dont think that they have bad managment?
The Packers entire draft strategy is based on keeping the window open, if you would have claimed that the Packers lack the needed mindset to "Put them over the top so to speak." maybe your claim would have had some legitimacy, based on your entire post, I can surmise that you dont really pay attention to how the cap works, the Bears have plenty of star players that they got from free agency, and what has it gotten them? They are going through a regime change, and their cap is a mess, they can delude themselves all they want, they are going to be going through a cut and gut phase in their roster these next few years, not to mention that overrated QB that every body likes to pretend is a top QB, is probably going to be gone in a year unless he absolutely tears it up this year.
What you also need to understand is that free agency in 1990's was different, teams were just figuring out how the cap worked and really didnt have free agency figured out yet, im not saying free agency is bad, because that is obviously not the case, but the Charles Woodsons of the world simply are not common.
You CAN win with a little bit of free agency here and there, but you will NOT win if free agency is your primary means of building a team, I think thats all the 'experts' mean when they preach their draft and develop strategy.
You may be right about the Vikes taking over the North, but ill take my chances with the guys that won 6 out of the last 7 matchups.
