Quote:1. I find it surprising not so much that they missed - because like you stated, every team/personnel man/Hall of Famer misses from time to time - but that they could miss and still end up coming up as a winner in this scenario. I base this on my perception that this is a deep draft, maybe one of the deepest ever, and that means that contributing players can be found later in the draft than normal. Baltimore now has two fewer picks in this draft and the return on that was having Monroe for 11 games, six of which they lost. It just seems like a steep price to pay and it's not a gamble that I would have wanted to make.

 

2/3. Is that extra evaluation period worth two players though?! I get it, you want as close of a look as you can possibly get - see? I know how the evaluation process works! - but that's a bit of overkill. I mean, the guy is a Left Tackle and there are some incredible OT's available in this draft. Baltimore now has fewer 'chips' to use in this draft in order to get one, and they still are going to pay more to Monroe, if he signs, than they would to one of those rookies. Granted, now they can kick the tires just as hard as they want on the guy, but it seems as if they overpaid to do so.

 

4. I'm just betting that Monroe is going to sign a monster contract. I'm also willing to bet that his contract is going to be a lot bigger than any contract signed by a OT drafted in this class.

 

I get your point about wanting to have the guy on the roster etc. etc. etc., I just think that they overpaid to do it. Giving away two draft picks in this upcoming class for what they got in return just seems like a bad deal to me.

You know the old saying about hindsight being 20/20.  Every GM out there has a few deals he'd like to do over.  It does seem like a steep price, but had they made the playoffs and maybe won a game with Monroe contributing, it would look likethe right move. If they resign him without breaking the bank it still looks OK, but if he walks, then not so much.  If he resigns with us, then it's just embarrassing for them.

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