(04-19-2020, 07:32 AM)The Real Marty Wrote: Some people have been complaining that this supposed one-year deal would cause Caldwell and Marrone to make short term decisions.  Now that they seem to be making long-term decisions, we're complaining that they're not making short-term decisions.  

What specifically triggered this angst about whether we're "officially" rebuilding or not?  

What probably happened is Khan asked Caldwell and Marrone for a plan for the upcoming season.  So they went in and presented a plan that included trading or releasing players who are expensive and/or don't have a long term future with the team.   So they presented that plan, which they are now executing, and Khan said, that appears reasonable, go ahead and do it.

Are we "officially" rebuilding or not?  The better question is, are we making logical moves?  Dumping Foles, trading or releasing old/expensive players, yes, those are logical long term moves, the type they should be making.  Does it mean the previous build failed?  Yes.

I don't think they're purposefully tanking.  I just think they're making some very logical long term moves.

When I reacted unfavorably to the Ramsey deal, I reiterated the possibility of a rebuild.

I was specifically charged with overreacting.

I always intended to come back to this topic after that.  Here it is.

I never said there was no long term benefits to this approach.

But I also don't think the execution of this plan is flawless (Ngakoue).

As for angst, initially I was going to say angst did not motivate this post, but as I continue through it and think about it, there is ample reason for angst.

Consider the following:

2013  Joeckel-Gone
2014  Bortles-Gone
2015  Fowler-Gone
2016  Ramsey-Gone
2017  Fournette-possibly traded or released
2018-Bryan-disappointing to date

Just looking at that list, at face value, it's ugly.  But it doesn't begin to tell the story.

Busts and disappointments happen to every team, and we're certainly no different.  Joeckel and Bortles certainly fall into that category.

The bigger problem is that guys we hit on, or at least who have had a modicum of productivity, aren't even making it to the end of their rookie deals without being shipped out.

One of the advantages of utilizing first round picks under the CBA is the 5th year option a team can exercise to keep a first rounder for a 5th year.  Rookie contracts of players drafted after the first round are limited to 4 years in duration.  By shipping out productive guys, we aren't even getting the most basic advantage of the first round draft choice, much less build a nucleus to help make a team better for the longer term.  Why even bother to pick in the first round at all?  

This is exacerbated by the team's limited success at best in retaining productive players taken later.  The team's best second round or later players since 2013 are Allen Robinson (Pro Bowler), Brandon Linderm Telvin Smith (Pro Bowler), Myles Jack and Yannick Ngakoue (Pro Bowler).  Two of the Pro Bowlers are no longer on the roster, and Ngakoue is trying to force his way out after not getting a new longer term deal.  Yes, Telvin Smith retired, but he has also been outspoken on social media about the Jaguars' front office.  People have argued that Ngakoue wants too much money, but very few have problems when the team overpays for UFAs from other teams when the contracts are first announced.

We're all celebrating Josh Allen now.  But if he continues to perform at this level or higher, he's going to want his deal reworked.  If this team continues to play hardball when it comes to retaining its own top tier talent-the few top tier players we draft, there will be holdouts.  Then, the same sad, predictable dynamic of lauding the productivity of a player until it comes to re-signing him, trashing the same player for wanting a new deal that rewards him for his productivity, watching him leave then finally wonder why we root for a team that loses so prolifically.

That's not long term planning to win.  Guys like Fowler, Ramsey and Ngakoue are all in their primes.  Robinson was in his prime when he left, and Smith was in his prime when he retired.

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