(04-26-2020, 05:32 AM)The Real Marty Wrote: I think the ideal realistic scenario is for someone like Caldwell or Tony Khan to sit down with Ngakoue and ask him, if it's not about money, what is it?  Ngakoue has claimed it was never about the money.  So what is it?  What did we do that caused this rift?  How can we apologize?  How can we do better in the future?  It's apparent that your salary demands are keeping you from being traded, so is there a face-saving compromise that we can adopt that will allow us to go forward happily on the same team?  

If it's not about money, then there has to be something we can do to make him feel better about things.  

If it is about money, then the last couple of months should persuade him that his salary demands are too high for the market.  

The current path they are on is surely going to be painful for both sides.  Both sides have to see this.  

They have to sit down and talk.  There's still a chance they can work things out.

I can't imagine this hasn't happened already, if not face to face, then a video call.  If they were negotiating, I expect both sides are now re-evaluating their post-draft positions.  That being the case, I expect an outcome soon, either way.

If they're just too far apart on the money, or Ngakoue simply wants out, for whatever reason, I still expect him to report to camp and play like the professional he is.  I think he's smart enough to realize it only helps his trade value.  

If we put together a winning season, he may rethink his position.  If we struggle, then I expect a trade.  Hopefully Dave can make another Ramsey-type deal to a team that sees itself as a player away from the Superbowl and will sacrifice the future for the present.

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