2023 Free Agency Thread

[AMPHAR]

1 hour ago, ArmyBengal said:

Oh I get that.  His comment was specific when addressing Zeke and the RB room.
I don't think he's "fine" with the whole roster as is, but maybe not to the degree fans think he should be.
Maybe the coaches think someone else on the roster is ready to step up and man some of those holes.

Maybe not...

I think they'll add vet RB at some point.    There's a whole lot of local media speculation/assumption that Mixon is toast.   Fine.

To make that happen you need a decent replacement for Perine.     Both can't be rookies, IMO.

They should be adding McKinnon, IMO.     He seems taylor made for what they need.   Can pass block.  Can catch out of the backfield.      Probably older than what they want but I'd assume his price range is what they want.   He'd be under $3m

It would remove 10 TDs and 700 yards from the Chiefs backfield too.

[membengal]

1 hour ago, ArmyBengal said:

That and they still have Tycen Anderson they drafted last year as well, but was injured.
Not to say they may not add another S, but I would bet it won't be in free agency.

agreed.

[membengal]

On off chance they really are interested in Zeke - it would be to fill the Perine role in the RB room.

[HoosierCat]

So the Lamar circus has spun out another clown car in the form of a memo from the NFL to teams instructing them not to negotiate with one of his business partners, Ken Francis. 

Quote

The Lamar Jackson offseason saga took another unexpected turn with the distribution of a league-wide memo and the involvement of a business partner on fitness equipment named Ken Francis.

On Thursday, the NFL sent out a memo to all clubs notifying them that a person not certified by he NFLPA might be attempting to persuade team personnel to enter into contract negotiations with Jackson, the Baltimore Ravens quarterback who received the nonexclusive franchise tag.

Under league rules, teams can speak only with Jackson because he doesn't have an agent.

According to the memo obtained by ESPN's Adam Schefter, the NFLPA informed the league that Francis, who is not a certified agent with the players' union, might be contacting teams regarding Jackson.

Full story here.

Following the report, Francis denied negotiating on Lamar's behalf and Jackson tweeted a denial as well. To which I can only say: LOL.

[AMPHAR]

I think they need a vet for the Perine role.    He played 3rd downs and 2 minute drills over Mixon.    I just don't see them getting comfortable with a rookie from any round taking on the pass blocking duties/hot route assignments in those situations based on any college film.

If you add a decent vet like Zeke in the Perine role.   Then they can realistically entertain replacing Mixon's cap hit.

If you look at the highlights/stats of Hurst, Mixon, Perine.   Defenses are not going to stop defending Chase/Higgins/Burrow with 2 deep rush 4.     They need players that can simply take a underneath pass and get up field.    2 of those players that did it great last year are gone and the 3rd everyone seemingly wants to get rid of.  

Then they have secondary depth/experience.

At the end of the day.   Great team with a couple medium to small holes to fix before the draft. 

[HoosierCat]

A vet backup would be ideal, but it appears it won't be Zeke. Apparently the whole report was BS.

Quote

Bengals head coach Zac Taylor was asked by local ABC affiliate WCPO-TV about the report and implied that Schefter’s tweet was the first he heard of it at all.

“There’s a lot of great players that are available right now,” Taylor said with a smile. “We like our team as where it’s at right now. But it’s always funny when things get thrown around. Sometimes, it’s the first you hear of it. But that’s just the way life works.”

 

[AMPHAR]

16 minutes ago, HoosierCat said:

So the Lamar circus has spun out another clown car in the form of a memo from the NFL to teams instructing them not to negotiate with one of his business partners, Ken Francis. 

Full story here.

Following the report, Francis denied negotiating on Lamar's behalf and Jackson tweeted a denial as well. To which I can only say: LOL.

Ken Francis?  From Funky Finger Productions?   Mo' Money Mo' Money Mo' Money

[ArmyBengal]

For the record, it's not that I personally want Mixon gone.
I would rather him stick assuming all his personal issues are under control, which I am not sure of.
That and having his contract restructured.  I've said this many many times already.

You can't pay a middle of the pack RB 13 million a year on a roster where they are trying to extend Burrow, Chase and Higgins.  Even outside of those three, Mixon isn't worth 13 million a year.  He's just not.

Now, I would love to see a backfield with Mixon and Elliott in it and think it could work out.
If they still want to draft a RB, there's next to no concern in adding to that room.

If Mixon's personal problems are an issue and he won't do the restructure, YES, say goodbye.
That's not what I want though.

[ArmyBengal]

Let me ask this question...

Does anyone think Joe Mixon should be the 2nd highest paid RB in the league for 2023?
You already know my answer.

Dalvin Cook is the highest paid RB in 2023, about 1.3 more than Mixon.

[TJJackson]

They need to reduce the cap hit at the RB1 spot to about 4M

I would presume all a restructuring would do is give Mixon the same or more money but later, which would just delay the issue rather than solve it

if Mixon is willing to toss his existing contract and take a huge pay cut, that'd be fine, but I dont see that happening, which means the only way to go is to release him

He can certainly still play and he could still contribute to the team......but not at his current price. 

Thats really the only problem: the price.

[HoosierCat]

My guess: Perine signing in Denver eliminated any chance Mixon would be cut. Taylor’s strong pushback on the Zeke rumor and the “we like our team” comment were imho aimed squarely at quashing any remaining thoughts that they’d let Mixon go.

I expect they will draft a back in the first four rounds with the hope of moving on from Mixon next year (cap hit $13m vs. dead money $3m).

[ArmyBengal]

Remember that year Leon Hall was due 10 million despite getting to a point he wasn't worth 4 million and they kept him anyway?  He went on to start a whopping 4 games that year and left the next season.  That should have been a lesson learned right there.  If teams are paying players to be top 3 at their position and they aren't even in the top half, that's a problem.  Hence, Mixon's contract is a problem.

[Stripes]

The Ravens signed Nelson Agholor. That’ll definitely resolve their receiver problems!

[HoosierCat]

Joe's contract is indeed an issue but it's not like Mixon is a broke down wreck or something. PFF graded him out at 79 last season (for comparison's sake Austin Ekeler was 81) and he was their seventh-highest graded receiving RB (77 receiving score). Amphar isn't wrong when he keeps harping on that point. Mixon has his flaws: he's not a home run threat, he's not especially fast or elusive and he goes down all too easily...but he still produced more than 1,200 combined yards and 15 TDs last year, and that's a tall order to replace with a rook. Again, they might have taken the chance if Perine was still around, but not now. They are just going to have to eat Joe being overpaid this year.

[TJJackson]

1 hour ago, Stripes said:

The Ravens signed Nelson Agholor. That’ll definitely resolve their receiver problems!

I am sensing sarcasm

[ArmyBengal]

Ekeler had 13 rushing TD’s last year and averaged 4.5 ypg. He had 722 yards receiving with another 5 TD’s.

Mixon’s numbers don’t hold a candle to any of Ekeler’s above.

That being said, I’ve never said I don’t  want Mixon, but he’s not worth 13 million. I get there are reasons he will probably stick around. However anyone making an attempt to justify Mixon being the 2nd highest paid RB in the league is beyond a shadow of a doubt… delusional.

[ShulaSteakhouse]

If the Bengals' release Mixon, I believe they're on the hook for $7.5m, can't see them eating that (if I remember correctly), barring a trade where someone takes it on (doubtful), even if it's less than that.

I suspect it's just Perine's role they want to change for now.   

At least Zeke can pass protect.   Not sure what else he adds, unless a Perine role here revives him for a year somehow, and he wants to make $2.5m.

 

 

 

[HoosierCat]

7.5m is what they save. Dead cap is 5.5m vs a 12.7m cap hit if he stays.

[TJJackson]

so if I have this right,

Option 1: we keep him. The cost of RB1 is 12.7M

Option 2: we toss him.  The cost of RB1 is new RB cost plus 5.5 M, which means that if said new RB1 costs 7.2M or more, our costs actually go up

Option 3, we toss him with a June 1 release designation.  The 5.5M dead money hit is evenly divided between 2023 and 2024, at 2.75M each

Is there an option 4?  I dont see a trade as even remotely possible.

I guess I prefer Option 3

I would like to see them bring in a veteran RB who can catch and block, and of course, no matter what option they go with.  I really dont want to draft a RB high unless some absolute superstar falls to us in r3 or later, but even then I'd prefer a 3 down TE.

[ArmyBengal]

Option 4:

Have a discussion with Mixon and his agent. Tell them we are suggesting not a restructure but a straight deduction in his pay for 2023 to 7-8 million dollar, with incentives up to 10 million. If they refuse that deal, cut Mixon with a post June 1st release. 

Then they bring in Elliott for the same deal they offered Mixon AND draft a RB.

Even though I’ve been saying “restructure” the above scenario is what I’m suggesting.

[TJJackson]

Yeah, it has to be a reduction, not moving money into future years.

I think 7-8M is still not enough of a reduction, but yeah, that'd still help

I suppose I would prefer this option over the others if the money was around 5.5M plus performance incentives (that would optimally include some measure of successful pass blocking) maxxing at perhaps 2-3M, but honestly I dont think Mixon would accept even a dollar being cut from his pay

But....would you make the new pay-cut replacement contract a one year contract to replace the two years he has remaining as things stand, or do a 2 year contract @ 7M per year?

[ArmyBengal]

Reduce it more ??
Sure, why not. I wouldn’t expect him to come off of the money. That being said he would have to ask himself how much another team would pay for a middle of the road RB? Does he know their system? Are they Super Bowl contenders?

IF he were agreeable, yeah 2 maybe even a 3rd year tacked on. I’m still drafting his replacement.

[COB]

Mixon’s camp has to:

A.  Believe that being unconditionally released is a very real possibility if he doesn’t agree to redo his deal.

B.  Have his agent do some homework to determine his value on the open market.  
 

Only if the above two conditions are met will Mixon consider taking less $.  
 

I can’t tell if the Bengals are putting on a push for this or not.

[ArmyBengal]

The Bengals never do this type of thing as loyalty rules the day, so I fully expect Mixon to be here at nearly 13 million for 2023. I’ve been wasting my time talking about to be honest. Oh well…

[ArmyBengal]

Looking into the future, I’m hoping Carolina continues their suckage and Terrace Marshall walks away in free agency. Not only would he be great fit with Burrow and Chase from their LSU days together, but he would be a nice slot receiver with deep speed from that spot. Still a couple seasons off but I’m calling it now.