I don't care if he's all but done, I want Bob Sanders

My, my, my. Are we getting a wee bit cranky in our old age?

 

Nope. Entrusting the centerpiece roles of their franchise to Glass Foot and Peanut Brittle is what did the Rockets in. And yeah, I was on record in 2008 wanting to get rid of both of them.

Kubiak did *not* use this approach. He signed these guys *exclusively*, and in some cases gave them freaking ridiculous contracts.

Once again, the argument was for both, not either.

Oh what the hell ever. I don't know if you intended it that way, but this statement comes across condescending.

Your opinion is duly noted. I will note (yet again) your use of the term "rather than", which of course means you're setting these up as mutually exclusive options. The two are not mutually exclusive.

Really--the response in this thread to opinions like mine is as if we had said, "don't waste your time an Champ Bailey or Nnamdi Asamougha; go get Bob Sanders!!! He's all we need; he's the answer!!!!" Look if they're not going to bring in a legitimate free agent for the secondary then Sanders *is* a bad choice.

My thoughts on this were as follows: Although it is highly unlikely, it wouldn't bother me if the Texans a) brought in a good FA in the secondary (like Bailey ) and then b) took a cheap flier on Sanders. And by "cheap flier", I mean *cheap*, perhaps with incentives.

Unlikely that they'd do either? Sure. Will Sanders want more than that? Probably, but he won't get it. Will I be upset if they don't even contact Sanders? Hell, no.

 

Yeah, I knew right after I hit "submit" that I should have thrown an emoticon in there. That post was for entertainment purposes only, and not meant to be a part of the argument.

 

I think they are and here’s why: Bob Sanders carries with him “Defensive Player of the Year Bob Sanders” baggage. If he’s willing to come here for a small wage, you jump on that not because, “Wow, wouldn’t it be great to have Bob Sanders as our 3rd string safety?!” but precisely because of the Siren call of, “Man, if Bob Sanders can just stay healthy…………………………..”

Once that thought enters your mind - and, again, it is 100% the ONLY reason you’re signing him - every single decision thereafter is compromised. “Starting safety X wants to play here for such-and-such amount of money, which would be great but… we’re sitting on a practical steal with Sanders, (if he can just stay healthy)……………………” The bending over backwards has officially begun. You lighten his practice load, don’t risk him playing special teams, sit him for preseason games… It’s a slippery slope. So why burden yourself? *Especially* for a guy who hasn’t been good/healthy in four years? It’s just not worth the effort. If he was, no way Indianapolis lets him go.

Plus, I’m tired of the same ol’ same ol’. I don’t want this team to pin its season on another broke down, past-his-prime veteran. I don’t want them operating on a hope and prayer. I want them to find someone who can definitively play and not have the cloud of “Defensive Player of the Year
Bob Sanders” hanging over everything they do “because, man – if Bob Sanders can just stay healthy……………..”

No, no, no. I think it speaks volumes that two of the NFL’s lamer, more desperate franchises, Buffalo and Jacksonville, are first out of the shoot to vie for his services.

 

Totally agree, but who else is out there? Seems like pretty slim pickings right now, especially since Baily resigned with the Broncos and my money is on Ike Taylor resigning with the Steelers. If he doesn't, surely the Texans won't want to pay for him. Not like we have a need at CB or anything.

LOL, we were 2 wins (against backup QB's) away from having the same record as Buffalo and Jacksonville had 2 more wins than us. You don't think Houston is among the "NFL's lamer, more desperate franchises" right now? I certainly do...

 

Hey! I was there and I remember. You took a bit of heat from the red koolaid drinkers over that position. No, I was referring to what went on before they got Glass Foot and Peanut Brittle aka "It's On Me".

That was not my intention at all. What I see happening is simply this: you go get Sanders and it then becomes an uncertain scenario composed of what-if s and if-onlys: What-if he gets hurt again? How many games can he/will he be able to play given his injury history? How can Wade scheme his defense to take in consideration Sanders' (lack of) dependability? Will that be effective? Who do we cut to keep him around (and who the hell was Tramon Williams anyway???)? If he's on IR (again) what's the backup plan and if that fails, what's the backup plan for the backup plan? And: how does waiting around for him to "heal" make them a better defense?

Maybe not but at this point my position is why waste the effort at all especially on someone with his injury history especially when you consider that everyone over there is on a one year plan.

You do realize that it's the Texans we're talking about here, right? All I can say is that you have a lot more faith than I do in their ability to pull off something like what you are proposing successfully. Competence is not exactly their strong suit so to speak.

 

It's baggage that you're bringing forward. To me, he's a past-his-prime safety who might could provide good depth. The Texans have *maybe* Pollard and *maybe* Quin, assuming they sign a couple CBs and they would even entertain that, at Safety. Oh, and Nolan. Everything else is unknown.

Why does that have to be "100% the ONLY reason"? Why can't it be because the guy in his current state could provide good depth? Because that's what I think. And it may be what others think, too. This "he was DPOY and that's 100% the only reason you're thinking about it" is a condition you've arbitrarily introduced. I hope you're not projecting it onto others. Because that's not my thinking in the least.

Bull****. I've said time and time again, ad nauseum, that they should bring in legitimate secondary help via FA. I belabored it in the very post you quoted. I mean I follow this line of reasoning you're dreaming up out your head, but for you to assign that to myself, the Texans, or anyone else, is silly.

Who asked for that? Nobody wants that.

You've listed some legitimate reasons in this thread why taking a "cheap flier" on the guy may not be worth it. But what you list here in this post is nothing but an inflated strawman.

 

Now, that's the most lucid point anyone's made in this discussion.

 

I just can’t fathom why anybody would proactively advocate filling a depth chart with past-their-prime players. Specifically, past-their-prime players who can’t play special teams. That is such a disconnect for me. More so if you’re truly going to argue that “Defensive Player of the Year Bob Sanders!!!” isn’t a factor.

If I proposed that the Texans should invest in no-name/no-good defensive back who can’t get on the field – Oh, wait: We have that: Antwaan Molden. Anyone up for bringing him back for another year of street clothes modeling?

His current state is injured, msn. It’s ALWAYS injured. And yeah, a lot of people in this thread are using the “cheap flier/if he could stay healthy” justification because they’re in love with a myth. Frankly, if you’re not – if you’re rallying behind an oft-injured/past-his-prime player and you’re NOT hoping against hope he’ll stay healthy and reclaim his glory years - then the stance becomes even sillier, IMO.

I’d much rather they open a window and throw a dart at a pile of healthy safeties.

Yeah, I agree. But Bob Sanders is not legitimate secondary help – so why are you arguing he’s worth bringing in again?

Again, if your position is: Let’s bring in a no-good, injured, past his prime player and you’re NOT leaning on a pipe dream of him staying healthy and reclaiming his now 4-years dormant dominance, then you’ve legitimately taken a stance I can’t even begin to comprehend.

I’ll say it again: The ONLY reason you take a cheap flier on Bob Sanders is because of the “what if”. If it’s not, then he’s not even remotely worth our time, let alone 6 or 7 pages in a thread. He’s Antwaan Molden.

 

You do realize free agency hasn't started yet, right? There's NO ONE out there, not until the CBA is signed.

Maybe they should stop acting like one, followed closely by playing like one. Great first step? Stop pursuing pipe dreams like Bob Sanders.

 

Well, twisted around the way you have, it certainly *is* incomprehensible.

It's very simple. In addition to your other, more meaningful pursuits, sign the guy on the cheap, if he's willing. See if he works out as depth. Play him on ST. If he's disagreeable with that, he can find some sucker out there. Or retire.

 

I understand that....it's just that most of the guys being talked about are just pipe dreams.

I would argue that a great first step would have been not retaining a coach who takes 5 years to go from 6-10 to 6-10, but that's water under the bridge now, I guess.

 

Replace "Bob Sanders" with "Yao Ming" and you just described the Houston Rockets.

 

re: all the "Yao Ming" hysteria in this thread. Please show me one person--just one--who wants the Texans to make Bob Sanders the highest paid guy on the team or who hopes Bob Sanders will be the centerpiece of anything.

Honestly. Way to set up a strawman and then scream against it with all your might.

 

Don't worry msn, classic bait and switch argument. No one in their right mind thinks signing Bob Sanders to some minimum, incentive laden contract is a bad thing. It's not putting all eggs in one basket and it wont effect any other FA signings - (lol like there will be ) even at the Safety position.

It's just taking a flyer. A low risk, cut him in training camp if it doesn't work out move.

 

well, it certainly seems that simple to me.

 

but it's rarely that simple. it will be interesting to see how it all shakes out. But at the end of the day, i have a feeling someone else will offer a better deal than the texans should/could offer.

If the texans go for a top tier CB/safety in free agency then the money they spend on that person will severly cut into what they offer a big question mark that is sanders.

 

I agree.

See, in my opinion they should offer him the same whether they score a big FA (why am I rolling my eyes so hard?) or not: very little. If dude gets more somewhere else, bully for him.

 

salary cap. They may not be able to offer him the same as someone else and still be able to sign other targets.

 

I hear what you're saying--my point is I never advocated for a bidding war for the guy. Regardless of what they're going to spend on other targets, were they to make an offer to Sanders I would hope it would be a "cheap flier" type offer. If he gets offered more elsewhere, bully for him.