FA's around the league (Steelers should/could look at)...

Finally a reliable list of FA's around the league was posted recently:

http://www.walterfootball.com/freeagents.php

So I was bored and went through them all and wrote down some names that stood out to me for one reason or another (and not I'm not saying they need to get all these guys or if they are affordable/etc...this is just for discussion....also I tried not to put many/if any "big name"/"big money" guys on the list):

QB

Matt More
Brian Hoyer (RFA)
Drew Stanton

RB

Chris Ivory (RFA)
LaRod Stephens-Howling (replacing Rainey?)
Felix Jones (I think he's has some injury issues but hey who knows)

WR

Ramses Barden (3rd rd pick in 09, 6'7...the Giants cant keep all these young WRs they have, probably in my top 3 on this list)
Kevin Ogletree
Johnny Knox

TE

Delanie Walker
Bear Pascoe
Travis Beckum
Dustin Keller (I know he could demand more money...but still worth thinking about)

OT

Tyler Polumbus (Washington will probably re-sign him though. ?)

OG

Matt Slausen
Chad Rinehart (could be a nice backup)
Eben Britton

DL

Sammie Lee Hill (big NT)
Fili Moala (could play all 3 DL spots)

OLB

C. Barwin
Justin Durant (probably more of an ILB)

ILB

Larry Grant (I remember him playing well versus Pitt...he's stuck behind 2 studs in Willie and Bowman, could come here and have a chance to start...my #1 guy to look at on this list right here)
Ray Maualuga (injuries?)
Jasper Brinkley
AJ Edds (I remember him being highly touted coming out, been injured and on practice squads, if anything maybe a solid bu and STer?)

CB

Sean Smith (again like a Keller probably too much money but still worth mentioning)
L. McKelvin (can be a KR...haven't heard much about him as a DB in recent years so not sure on his status there)
Greg Toler (lets steal an AZ player, haha)
Darius Butler
DJ Moore

S

Louis Delmas (injuries, and probably $$$)
Patrick Chung (a nasty Pat, but injuries a concern)
A Spievey (RFA)


Anyways...

Thoughts? Players anyone else sees on the lists that I might not be familiar with or that could be worth a look/etc (again this is mainly for discussion sake)?

 

I would love to give ramses barden a look... a bit of an injury red flag, but still worth a modest check....i also think conner barwin would do well in our defense

 

i wanted grant before. i thought they signed him to a new contract last year?

 

didnt we have brian hoyer when ben went down and cut him ?

HINES

 

Larry Grant. I know a lot of us were head over heels for him after that game vs SF.

 

Nope just the 1 yr RFA tender.

 

Yup then AZ signed him (imagine that).

 

Yep! Thats why he's my #1 of the list.

 

I thought Barden had a couple injuries but I wasnt sure. And yeah I thought Barwin looked good in Houston especially when they went 3-4. Will they let him walk? Who knows.

 

Cheers for this, gpguy, I was hoping someone would post something along these lines.

I would go for Stephens-Howling as he would fill Rainey's spot well... only problem is, Rainey didn't really have substantially defined enough a spot. Would still ike to see Howling here, though.

I haven't heard about Johnny Knox for a while - maybe just not tuned into things - but he strikes me as someone who would fill Wallace's spot, if Wallace walks.

 

I could live with Matt Moore, Stephens Howling, Barwin. Delmas is very intriguing?

 

i think Johnny Knox could be a decent pickup at WR....he didn't lay this year though anyone know why?

 

ahhh, well sign the man then. larry, it's been real. with rolle and spence behind them we would look pretty good at that spot. interesting.

 

I would flip my sh*t if we grabbed Connor Barwin. I went to UC and met him a couple of times... He was kind of UC's version of Brett Kiesel or how John Kuhn is in Green Bay. The fan favorite, tough, hard working guy of the team.

When Bob Huggins was fired Cronin couldn't fill out the roster so he brought in Barwin from the football team (a tight end at the time) and had him play power forward. He eventually moved to DE in football and became a star.



I think Barwin could be a great under the radar signing. He showed he has potential, when he had 11.5 sacks in 2011 in situational duty. He really had a down year this season with only 3... but I think he'd be perfect fit for our scheme and our locker room.

 

I thought Connor Barwin was a pretty good player too.

 

No problemo! Yeah while Rainey played some O...this year i only seen him as a KR...and I think Howling could be just as good if not better there and a little more durable on O. And same here about Knox...but again could be interesting...

 

How does one flip their sh*t? Hahaha

 

Exactly...Spence could learn more and maybe even play in certain situations...or could be brought in as a 5th LB when a DL goes out (instead of a 5th DB)...who knows.

 

Yeah...there are actually a number of mid to low level players available this year that shouldnt be too expensive and could fill some big holes on the team. A couple on the list...like Barwin...could get bigger pay days but who knows. But guys like Moore, Grant, Toler, Barden, Howling, etc could come reasonable...are all young(er) and will fill holes and would help them come draft time to narrow things down and really build the team back up quickly.

 

Nice post, Thanks for taking the time to put it together. Question, Hoyer has been cut by a couple teams and is still a RFA? How does that work like that? Seems kinda wierd.

 

My FA targets

1) Rolando McClain (he will be a FA shortly)
2) Louis Vasquez (best feet of any G I ever saw at the combine)
3) Sean Smith (I love Smith, but I don't see him getting away from the Dolphins without a lot of $)
4) Ramses Barden (Redzone size, I liked him more than Wallace coming out. I thought he was a leaper with better hands)
5) Jared Cook (Probably to much to invest in both Cook and Miller)

EDIT: Steeler FA's I would try and sign

Long term - Wallace, Sanders, Lewis, McClendon, Dwyer
Short term - Starks, Burress, Foster, Mendenhall, Redman, Legursky, Foote

 

Thanks!

Its not based on teams/etc...its based on years in the league. And he wasnt a FA at the end of the year he was under contract to AZ, so he is an RFA. Though now I'm looking back at the site and its now saying he's a regular FA...so now I'm not even sure, haha.

 

I was going to put Vasquez on the list but I think he's probably going to be one of those bigger money guys just like Levitre probably will be also. But I'd definitely take him in a heartbeat, haha.

 

How about Delanie Walker over Cook? I don't know how much he'll demand, but it figures to be less. He offers a different skillset from Miller. Pretty dangerous guy. I've seen him not just returning kickoffs, but take one back to the house. Not bad for a backup tight end.