Quote:You don't shore up the line by replacing the only good player on it. They traded Monroe so they could put Joekel on the left side.

 

Joekel has played LT pretty much his whole life. A redundant pick that Caldwell tried to sell as drafting a premier RT after people worried about what he would be able to do with Monroe. Turns out they had a right to worry. The best he could do was trade him for picks that usually amount to journeymen.

Joekel was widely believed to be one of the very best players available in last years draft.  If a guy is that good at LT, it's a reasonable assumption that he can handle the job at RT, the position he played while Monroe was here.  It wouldn't be necessary to trade Monroe to put Joekel on the left side, that's a coaching decision that can be made at any time.  It's sometimes called competition and the best player wins the spot.  

 

Was Monroe happy about new talent possibly pushing him for a spot? - Probably not.

Did he ask to be traded or make it known that he done here? - Likely.

What was his option? - Put on a pair of big boy pants, get out on the field and prove he was the best!  

 

 

PS  I notice you didn't respond to my question "How do you know Monroe was so happy here?".   I'll assume that was mere speculation on your part without any factual basis or inside knowledge.

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