What would you give up for Donovan McNabb?

[Azul e Oro]

I guess the nattering nabobs of the NFL on Inside The NFL did their job tonight because they got me thinkin'...always a dodgy proposition this early in the off season but what else is there to to do but gas?

If you didn't see it, there was talk of whether Philly would trade DM & if so, for what kind of compensation.

I say we could give our #1 this year which means no Suh, and another high pick next year-maybe 2d round...and, hold onto your horns, Atogwe.

Suh may be the next great DT but has a DT ever been #1? I guess the Raiders came closest with D. Russell but after a strong career start he had faded for a number of reasons even before his death.

It's the Anti-Curry argument redux, I'm afraid. The position is a great need & the prospect is a tremendous potential talent but will it ever be a franchise spot? Especially in a year when I think it will be more difficult than ever to get a deal done before camp that doesn't hang a huge financial anvil over the team's future in case of a bust. Is it worth the risk & who's gonna clean up all the exploded Ram fan heads across the world if he blows a knee early or even holds out a la Crabtree?

I like OJ plenty & think he got better in some important ways this year even though the big plays were down. Certainly worthy of a good longterm contract but as a guy going into year 6 & other possibilities around, perhaps low enough on upside to be expendable for this deal,methinks. And if there's no CBA, he will be RFA so we could get a 3rd round pick from Philly. They have two this draft. I think we would get their 3rd rd#6 which they got from The Hags last year. Philly badly needs a FS to replace Dawkins. We already pick #1 in Rd3, of course.

Which brings me to the object of this exercise; Donovan.We let Bulger go, take a 2nd Rd QB or wait for Locker or whoever next year & have McNabb for the interim. The guy had a great season this year & I don't think he was the reason they got beaten last week at all.I think he's got plenty of football left & we all know what he brings that all the currrent Rams QBs lack; the mobility,the big arm, the vocal leadership, familiarity/success in the system. Huge instant supercharging of the offense,in other words.

Now, DeSean, Avant,Maclin, & Celek had a lot to with his success which will help ease Kolb's promotion. But are they really that much better than Avery, Robinson, Burton/Gibson/Amendola, and Fells/Bajema ? And DM would have SJ in the backfield...I'm drooling a bit...'scuse me while I wipe the keyboard before I electrocute myself.

And even asuming a heavily front-laden deal of ,say, four years for DM, The Rams would still have a lot of money saved in this scenario to go into cutdown shopping season to find some vet depth that we badly need at so many spots but can't fill because FA will be gutted by the no-CBA rules. Maybe a vet Dler like Cofield who I think is UFA, maybe a vet Qb for the #2, a vet DE or WR, 2nd RB, or any of a gazillion other options.And still have a nest egg for mid season injury replacements.

Am I nuts or what ? What would you give up then?

[molar_pistol]

a #1, #2 and atogwe for donovan mcnabb? are you crazy?

[r8rh8rmike]

I think you might be nuts Azul. You're talking about mortgaging the franchise for a 33 year old stop gap?? Personally, I would not even look McNabb's way, let alone give up the #1 pick in the draft. With the Rams a few years away from being competitive, what would be the point? The Rams need building blocks, as many as they can get.

[Azul e Oro]

a #1, #2 and atogwe for donovan mcnabb? are you crazy?

I appreciate the,uh, detailed thoughtful rebuttal. What's crazy about getting a dynamic game-changer at a critical position of need for 2 unknowns and a DB who may have peaked & may cost more than he's worth to either tag or sign longterm?

I think my argument for McNabb is detailed enough except to say that it's definitely not crazy to contend that MCNabb would be the best QB the Rams have had since Gabriel except for Warner's brief heyday.

I also think that The Spags/Shurmur factor makes such a deal less improbable than you might think.And I think the tv guys were right; if he wants to play after that 2 yr extension for a payday, he's probably going to have to leave & soon before his trade stock drops. Why not go be the hero on a team with the same sysytem ,familiar trusted coaches,in an easier division where he can get a better longer deal? Maybe The Rams would be a hard sell as an upcoming team but Philly's O-line is in rebuild mode, whereas ours is solidifying & also with likely a much better running game now that Westbrook is fading. This may have been his last shot at a SB in Philly, anyway.

Maybe I am crazy but this could be the Faulk deal of the new decade...LOL.. And I'm sure he'd have more impact on the win/loss column than Suh in his rookie season.

[#39 Fan]

I'd rather wrangle away Kevin Kolb from Philly..... but aint gonna happen.

All this Eagles QB talk, and nobody ever brings up the one of the three (the only one) I'd want to see in horns

[Azul e Oro]

I think you might be nuts Azul. You're talking about mortgaging the franchise for a 33 year old stop gap?? Personally, I would not even look McNabb's way, let alone give up the #1 pick in the draft. With the Rams a few years away from being competitive, what would be the point? The Rams need building blocks, as many as they can get.

I disagree that the "mortgage" for a QB still playing at an elite level who would so easily mesh in STL is any riskier than dropping $30+ mill guaranteed on a DT & a big deal for OJ .

Any stopgap QB is going to be of a similar vintage or older & none will bring such current productivity & be such an easy transition,imo.


There will probably be a rookie cap next draft, saving the Rams megabucks as well if they are indeed as far away as that from winning & have another high pick. You could be looking at Locker for a relative song to groom behind DM.

Or keeping Bulger at roughly the same dough DM is getting in Philly per year & no where near as likely to produce equally.

Nor do I think The Rams are that far away if they can fix the QB problem with such a good fit.They would have more money & instant credibility to attract more of the few worthy FAs out there to shorten the road to Winville as well.

The proposed deal also fattens up the 2010 draft crop as well. I think the biggest difference between the traded mid second rounder 2011 rookie, assuming a reasonable win bump from DM, and a well-chosen top o' the 3rd guy with a year of development under his belt isn't that great.And you could concentrate on really building the D for the future because of the extra mileage you'd get from DM under center.

In most cases, I'd agree that a steady approach through the draft,esp in such a messed up FA year ,would be the smart way to go but I think such an exceptional player at a key spot like DM could clarify/ simplify where those draft resources need to be spent, if Shurmur's approach will translate at all in STL, and bring out the best in what we have offensively at WR and RB & reduce the strain on well-known pressure points.

[molar_pistol]

donovan is a good qb, but he is not elite among qb's today and is already pretty old. i understand the need for a good qb on this team, and for the ONE year it might indeed impact the w/l column more, but the guy isn't peyton manning or marshall faulk and that effect won't last more than the one year. if we were trying to compete for a superbowl next year i could see this, but adding mcnabb certainly doesn't bring us to that level and we're much better off building for the future..

[MdRam29]

I don't know if I would give anything for McNabb, maybe a late round draft pick. We are a rebuilding team and would rather go with a young QB that will be in the organization for a very long time.

[Goldenfleece]

Definitely nuts. The problem here is age, and it's a big one. You don't see many quarterbacks over 35 still starting. I know of three in the NFL this season: Kurt Warner, Kerry Collins, and Brett Favre. That is to say that it would not be surprising if we were procuring McNabb's services for only two to three years.

That might be worthwhile if you are say the Jets trading for Favre when you think you just need a quarterback to put you over the top, but it would be incredibly short-sighted for a rebuilding team. Giving up more than one first day pick and one of your best defensive players would be fairly crippling to the rebuilding effort. If the plan was to draft a quarterback in the second round this year or the first next year, there would be no reason to invest heavily in what would amount to a stopgap option until our qb of the future was ready to start.

[tomahawk247]

We need players at more positions than just QB, so we cant afford to give up two high draft picks and Atogwe (thus creating another hole to fill)

Considering his age, id give up a fourth for McNabb. At most.

Id rather take a QB at number 1 overall than give up two picks and one of our best defensive players for a QB the wrong side of 30

[RamsFanSam]

Late round pick, a six-pack of Bud, and Boller.

[Nick]

I would not give up anything close to that compensation to acquire Donovan McNabb. He's surrounded by pretty good talent and still manages more inconsistency than you'd like. That'd probably increase on our roster. He's 33 years old now and turns 34 next year; how long is he playing at a high level, if his high level of play even translates onto another team? I just don't see much sense in that deal when we could use those picks on legitimate players that could be here contributing at a high level for the next decade.

[txramsfan]

Bacon Cheeseburgers?

[RamFan_Til_I_Die]

Bacon Cheeseburgers?

Cheeseburgers maybe, but BACON...heck no.

[Nick_Weasel]

Are you by chance related to McNabb?