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Would you trade Highsmith and Okorafor?

Discussion in 'Steelers Talk' started by Steelresolve, Feb 17, 2023.

  1. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

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    Just curious and what do you think we could get for them?
     
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  2. S.T.D

    S.T.D Well-Known Member

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    No. Is Okorafor still under contract???
     
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  3. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    Yup. They gave him a three-year deal before last season.
     
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  4. Brice

    Brice Well-Known Member

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    3 years 30 million.

    No idea why you would think another team would want to trade for Chuks?

    2023 Cap hit will be $13 million
    2024 Cap hit will be $12 million.
     
  5. Brice

    Brice Well-Known Member

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    Highsmith I would keep him in 2023, Tag him in 2024 and then let him walk in 2025 for a 3rd round Comp pick.

    If they can't sign him long-term.
     
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  6. forgotten1

    forgotten1 Well-Known Member

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    I'd rather trade Watt.
     
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  7. mytake

    mytake Well-Known Member

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    Yes, if you want to become like the Pirates, trading solid veterans for the uncertainty of draft picks.
     
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  8. Rollers

    Rollers Well-Known Member

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    I thought Chuks played pretty well?
     
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  9. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

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    Didn’t miss a snap

    Availability is the most important trait

    Otherwise average at best
     
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  10. Mashburn

    Mashburn Well-Known Member

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    Some of y'all would trade this team just so you could be happy with being the browns with always getting #1 pick.
     
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  11. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

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    I’m thinking this post was started by a random question generator
     
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  12. HeinzMustard

    HeinzMustard Well-Known Member

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    :facepalm:
     
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  13. forgotten1

    forgotten1 Well-Known Member

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    I'm kidding
    Colonel Mustard
     
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  14. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

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    The reason I asked is because the team is still building. The salary cap expenses are lopsided in that we are overspending for the defense right now with all of the high salary’s on that side and to add two more with Sutton and Highsmith it makes it difficult to add quality players anywhere else. If you could get a 2nd and 3rd rd pick this year and to have to carry that future salary of Highsmith and then trade Chuks for a 4th this year. Yeah he isn’t a top tier talent but he is young and he is a starter with some upside. You would be freeing up his cap money and now you would be in position to add a blue chip talent like a Deron Payne at DL. Yes I know I said we are already spending a lot on defense but you have to take into consideration the draft is weak at DL but very strong at Edge. So we could pick up an edge in rd 2 this year and have them on a rookie contract for the next 4 years, which makes them attractive when you compare a player like that to Highsmith.

    Under this scenario you would have
    1 -1st rd
    3 - 2nd rd
    2 - 3rd rd
    2 - 4th rd
    All this year. Thats potentially 8 starter capable positions you could fill.
    You could more than likely get the big right tackle from Ohio with one of those picks and a very solid Edge player with one of those picks and still have two additional picks you didn’t have before plus a cost reduction on the salary cap which would be spent on a 26 year old Blue Chip DL.

    Probably unrealistic but just a thought.
     
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  15. forgotten1

    forgotten1 Well-Known Member

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    Get a clue
     
  16. forgotten1

    forgotten1 Well-Known Member

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    You really think so?
     
  17. HeinzMustard

    HeinzMustard Well-Known Member

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    Let's trade Pickens and Harris while we're at it. Hell... throw in Friermuth, too.
     
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  18. TuRnDoWnForWaTT

    TuRnDoWnForWaTT Well-Known Member

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    I'm curious what even made you think of this.
     
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  19. TuRnDoWnForWaTT

    TuRnDoWnForWaTT Well-Known Member

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    Maybe the Steelers could trade Highsmith for Okorafor. That way they could keep them both. :hmm:
     
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  20. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

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    The Steelers are tight against the cap right now. We need the cap space and are we really going to pay Highsmith and have all of that money tied up in the defense and especially into two Edge players. This draft is very deep at the Edge position. If you can trade him and Okorafor whom nobody seems to like and lighten your Salary Cap while accruing 3 additional draft picks (see my other post above) then it could be the type of move that bears a lot of fruit over time. Highsmith is a good player but if you look at when his sacks occurred a lot of them occurred when Watt was in the lineup. I believe Watt’s presence makes the other players on the line significantly better as a result. The question is do we need to spend that kind of money in the edge position or could we save it and spend it elsewhere and use this draft to take a young edge and have him on the cheap for four years while adding additional picks.
     
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  21. forgotten1

    forgotten1 Well-Known Member

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    I'll take that trade for the Library.
    I find myself sitting there longer reading
    Readers Digest
     
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  22. SGSteeler

    SGSteeler Well-Known Member

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    I think the key word is "potentially". In no way shape or form are 2nd-4th round picks guaranteed to be viable role players, let alone starters. It really feels like were trading dollars for dice rolls. We are taking a young guy who is at least a solid starting T in the NFL and a very good young pass rusher for lottery tickets. I understand you're basing Highsmith off the assumption that we will either not be able to afford him or wont want to play the franchise tag game after next season. I doubt the front office will get this aggressive when there is this much risk. We would absolutely gut two positions and HOPE we draft players that will eventually be better than the two we ship out. I get that we would be adding a blue chip talent in FA under this scenario but even that is risky because there's always a real chance that backfires as well.

    This scenario is super, super, super risky... and I hate it. It really puts all the eggs in the 2023 draft, and really means we HAVE to hit on picks (2nd-4th) that generally have low rates of success. Honestly if we end up with 2 guys better than Chuks and Highsmith with 7 picks in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th rounds... then the draft was a great success. Its something to strive for, not to expect.

    This is the type of move you get fired for if it doesn't work out. I doubt Weidl and Khan opt for this route (and seriously hope they don't). Just because we won $1,000 bucks on a lottery ticket, doesn't mean we should invest all that money into MOAR LOTTERY TICKETS. We'd end up with less or nothing way more than we would break even or do better.
     
    Last edited: Feb 17, 2023
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  23. 86WardsWay

    86WardsWay Well-Known Member

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    Wait. What?!?:confused1:

    Cleveland is wondering why you left their fan base.

    Trade Highsmith, Okorafor and someone even suggested Watt. Why not throw in Minkah and Cam while we're at it?:facepalm:

    I thought the goal was to try and win Superbowls. Ughhhhhh. This make my brain hurt.:tequila:
     
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  24. SGSteeler

    SGSteeler Well-Known Member

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    It brings fruit if we have a perfect draft and make the right moves in FA. It also has real downside and opens us up for a massive failure if we draft or sign poorly. We can always use the cap space, but you have to look at the future too. Heyward is IronMan, but even he can't play forever. That will open a ton of money. The way DJ's contract is structured, we will have potential to move him after next season or trade him, etc. We can't just make moves to make them and hope it works out. There has to be a plan behind it all.

    It's easy for people to see 8 picks in the first 4 rounds and think "OMG 8 potential starters!", but the reality is that over 50% of first round picks are busts (which makes the later rounds even more likely to be "busts"). I saw a chart that showed 7 drafts (2011-2017) and the hit rate by pick range for the FIRST ROUND, with a hit being someone that was a regular starter but never being a pro bowler (Think Terrell Edmunds). It gets worse when you look at guys that start earning Pro Bowl/All Pro type honors in the "High End" category (this range could include single time Pro Bowlers to perennial All Pro's).

    PICK HIT HIGH END
    Picks 1-5 - 74% 54%
    picks 6-10 - 57% 46%
    Picks 11-20 - 51.5% 24%
    Picks 21-32 - 34% 14%

    Think of how much worse that would be for rounds 2-4. You would go into it in the second round likely with a 20% or less hit rate, with a 5% or less high end hit rate. A BleacherReport article has less than 12% of 4th round picks earning a second contract at all.

    I understand the thinking in a vacuum, but in reality it often doesn't make sense. Can we do something with Highsmith eventually? Sure. But it doesn't mean we HAVE to trade him simply because we might not afford him.
     
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  25. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

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    Then proper etiquette would have been to use a green sarcasm face palm :smiley1:
     
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