Dear Fantasy Doctor X.

IDPs offseason moves!

By Bryan Brown.

Defense, defense, defense. It is what wins championships every time. If you don’t believe me just ask the record setting offense of the New England Patriots. Brady was sacked more in the Super Bowl than he was all season. With free agents on the move, the question becomes who will get better and who will fall short. I am here to pick the winners, and show the losers of the defensive free agent market.

       The biggest loser is (drum roll please)…the Bengals. I am sure this isn’t news to anybody, but seriously, what are they thinking? The Bengals defense wasn’t that good to begin with. So I ask why let your best player at DE, LB, and safety sign with other teams. They lost their best DE, Justin Smith to the 49ers. I will give them some credit. They did sign Antwan Odom DE from the Titans to replace Smith, but he’s not as good as Smith. Their best LB Landon Johnson signed with the Panthers. Again they did try to replace him with 2 LB’s from Arizona, Brandon Johnson, and Derrick Blackstock.  Quantity over quality never works, and it won’t work this time. Last but not least they let Madieu Williams, their best safety, sign with the Vikings. Wasn’t Marvin Lewis a defensive genius in Baltimore?

      The biggest winner in the defensive free agent market is the Saints. The Saints needed help at every position on defense, and they got it. At DE they added Bobby McCray, formerly of the Jags. McCray should add some depth to an already decent D-line. Linebacker was probably the position that needed the most help. Johnathan Vilma comes over from the Jets, and adds instant quality to the linebacking core. Another linebacker they signed is questionable, but when he plays is a difference maker, Dan Morgan. He was signed to a one year deal, and has had concussion issues the last two seasons. If (and that is a big if) he can stay healthy, he is one of the best in the game. The Saints also signed Randall Gay, CB from the Patriots. Gay is an interesting prospect for the Saints. I say that because he was primarily a nickel back in New England, and will be asked to start opposite of McKenzie. All in all the Saints filled most of their defensive needs with quality players that will help immediately.

     Not the biggest losers but losers none the less. How about the Patriots? Whenever you don’t sign one of the best CB’s in the game, you lose. Letting Asante Samuel go to the Eagles was clearly a money issue. They have signed Fernando Bryant from the Lions to help replace the loss, but that band-aide won’t hide that gaping wound. Another loser is the Falcons, for the same reasons as the Patriots. You trade away your best player on the entire team. I know DeAngelo Hall didn’t want to be there, but that is no reason to trade him. He is too good a player, at a position that few can play at his level. My last loser is the Cardinals. They lost three linebackers, two to the Bengals, and one to the Jets. The two to the Bengals were depth guys and probably won’t hurt them too badly. Losing Calvin Pace to the Jets is the one that will hurt. Not only did they lose three LBs, they have yet to replace any of them. I bet they load up at LB in the draft.

     Here are the other winners. The Raiders get DeAngelo Hall, and Gibril Wilson. Wilson is a safety who came over from the Giants. Not only will Wilson help in the secondary but he will also help shut down the run. These two moves will secure the Raiders’ backfield for the next few years. Detroit quietly signed some good players. Leigh Bodden, a CB from the Browns was acquired in a trade and is an immediate up grade at CB. They also signed Brian Kelly, a CB from the Buccaneers. These two guys should be the starting corners for Detroit, and both can play. The Bills acquired two good defensive players, and didn’t lose anyone. They signed Marcus Stroud, DT from the Jags. Stroud was hurt most of last season and became expendable. If he is healthy this year, then the Bills just got a stud on the D-line. They also signed Kawika Mitchell, LB from the Giants. He is a good fit for the young LB core of the Bills. The Eagles landed the best defensive free agent available, Asante Samuel.  Samuel will help the secondary become one of the best in the league. They also signed LB/DE Chris Clemons from the Raiders. I am not sure how much he will help, but at least they recognize that they need linebackers. The Miami Dolphins made a lot of moves quickly. Their defense needed so much help that the holes they filled may or may not help. I will say Miami is a winner based on Parcells’s reputation alone.  LB Reggie Torbor, and Charlie Anderson have the task of replacing Zack Thomas. It is going to take both of them.

      These are my winners and losers in the Defensive free agent market. If I missed some teams it’s not because I am biased or not paying attention. The teams that I didn’t mention that were active in the free agent market, I feel have done just enough to be as good, or as bad as they were last year. In this era of free agents the teams that keep their players are the real winners. The real losers are those that think offense wins championships. Offense only wins games and puts fans in seats. If you want a championship, build a championship defense.

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