Redskins trade Archuleta to Bears

[chris_dub 0]

Bears to pay Archuleta $8.1 million over three years

By John Clayton

ESPN.com

 

Lovie Smith has been trying to get safety Adam Archuleta since he arrived in Chicago. Smith was Archuleta's defensive coordinator in St. Louis.

 

On Tuesday, the Bears completed a trade that brings the Redskins safety to Smith and the Bears. The Bears gave up a 2007 draft choice, believed to be a sixth-round choice.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2806226

[VaTerp 0]

Glad to see this get done. Of all the questionable free agent signings that the Skins have made since 2000 Archuleta was by far the worst. Arguably one of the worst free agent signings in NFL history. Got a record deal for a player at his position then falls to 3rd on the depth chart behind people that were basically signed off the street.

 

I wish him the best in Chi and I guess he is a good fit for Lovie's system but IMO Archuleta is garbage. I didnt like him in STL, hated when the Skins signed him, and Im glad he's off the roster. He's basically a LB in a safety's body.

 

The thing that killed me was that when asked about his performance this year he said that the coaches lied to him and said he would be playing close to the line of scrimmage and not in coverage. HELLO!!!!!!!!!!!! Your a focking safety, no matter how much you wanna play near the LOS you just might have to cover someone from time to time. Peace Adam!

 

[BMoney 0]

a good pickup for the bears...

[Walter34 3]

For a 6th rounder.

 

He restructured his deal to soften the cap hit to the deadskins, so I dont know how much he will be paid, but this fills an important need for the Bears. He will be insurance for Mike Brown's health and be a big contributor on run support. This also drops Chris Harris one more rung lower on the depth chart. They were targetting him last year as well.

 

Good move!

 

Next on the list imo is DT. Boone is in KC now and there is a blurb at Kffl that they would like to bring Ian Scott back. I hope so as he fit in well with the rotation. He and Tank Johnson rotated opposite Harris and did well in the committee role. When they had to play fulltime, they struggled. DT depth is the next biggest hole to fill.

 

After that, LB depth and future (Briggs?), youth on the oline and another pass catcher.

 

A pretty quiet off season so far, but this is a nice "minor" move that takes care of safety depth for now.

 

 

 

[Melissa Stark 1]

I was in Walt's thread on this, anyway, Some added depth, I'm not a fan of him.

 

Insurance for Brown is a good move, but he is not in the same class.(IMO)

They need to back him up.

 

Now I'll wait for the Norris rivalries to rear it's ugly head on this signing.

[surferskin 31]

wow, it's amazing they got anything for this POS. bye bye dead weight.

[listen2me 23 1,967]

I dont know what to think of this deal.....I guess a shot with his old D coach could be more upside than a 6th round pick...

[adam smitty 0]

Although he's not the best cover guy, Archuleta is an amazing run stopper, or at least was back in his days on Rams. He has the potential to be an extra linebacker in the secondary if he's used right. Good move for the Bears.

[Riddlen 1]

any trade for a 6th rd pick is a good trade.

[dehaven123 31]

Skins get a huge break on the salary cap with the trade versus cutting him. Relative to Archuleta, this was the most positive development the skins could hope for at this point. As a skins fan, this move hopefully will put to death one the most seemingly regretful FA acquisitions in NFL history. IMO, This signing and its subsequent events are the best illustration of the dysfunction that represents the Redskins decision making matrix currently in place.

 

When will Snyder hire a competent, qualified person to fill a true GM position? The commitee approach, lead by Cerrato, has run its course. Snyder means well and has plenty of zeal and money to commit. Its countered though by his lack of qualifications for his current position and larger than average ego. Both of which compromise his well intentioned quest to be involved and bask in the glow of the resurrection of the glory days of the Redskins, as any owner should.

[VaTerp 0]

Although he's not the best cover guy, Archuleta is an amazing run stopper, or at least was back in his days on Rams. He has the potential to be an extra linebacker in the secondary if he's used right. Good move for the Bears.

 

Ahh, the myth that is Adam Archuleta.

 

From da Bears standpoint this is a good move. Gives them needed depth at Safety and reunites Archuleta w/ a coach and system who can prolly best utilize his talents, whatever they may be. And giving up a 6th rounder and paying him what they are w/ his restructured deal there really isnt any risk on their part.

 

BUT "amazing run stopper" . Lets consider these points.

 

1. It is good to have a Safety who can provide run support but when that is their ONLY asset and they are a TOTAL liability in coverage then they are just a LB in a Safety's body. Not good. Might as well just play another LB since Archuleta is not big, even by safety standards, is NOT a big hitter at all, and has below average game speed with poor lateral movement and quickness.

 

2. I dont see where people think he is so good against the run let alone an "amazing run stopper." NFL.com only post stats back to 2003 and I know the Rams D was very good in Archuleta's first 2 seasons in 01' and 02'. But looking at the last 4 teams that Archuleta was the starting safety on they finished 27th, 28th, 29th, and 21st against the run.

 

3. Basically Archuleta is a good story. He was an average high school athlete who hooked up with an innovative personal trainer, made himself a Division 1 player, became somewhat of a "workout warrior" and catapulted himself into a 1st round draft pick and played on a really good team that reached the Super Bowl early in his career. But he has been exposed. He is not a good football player. He is a backup calibur safety who is decent at run support but again is a liability in coverage and is really a below average LB in the body of a below average safety.

 

I hated this signing from day 1 and it turned out even worse than I expected. I wish him no ill will but good riddance. At least the Skins realized what a mistake this signing was and he wont count agaisnt our cap after this year.

 

And I agree Dehaven, signing Archuleta is one of many terrible moves this franchise has made since Snyder took over the team. Too much to get into in this thread but the Skins need a real GM in the worst way.

[Kellys Heroes 0]

For a team that doesn't like to spend the $$$

 

They picked up an expensive Player..

 

Could be interesting

[Portis26 0]

a good pickup for the bears...

 

it is... he'll help block on special teams for Hester

[NOSRAC247 0]

I like this a lot. The Bears have had anough to deal with with Briggs. Glad to see they're at least still focusing their dollars on defense. I hate the Jones move though

[GhostofMeanMachine99 1]

Ahh, the myth that is Adam Archuleta.

 

From da Bears standpoint this is a good move. Gives them needed depth at Safety and reunites Archuleta w/ a coach and system who can prolly best utilize his talents, whatever they may be. And giving up a 6th rounder and paying him what they are w/ his restructured deal there really isnt any risk on their part.

 

BUT "amazing run stopper" . Lets consider these points.

 

1. It is good to have a Safety who can provide run support but when that is their ONLY asset and they are a TOTAL liability in coverage then they are just a LB in a Safety's body. Not good. Might as well just play another LB since Archuleta is not big, even by safety standards, is NOT a big hitter at all, and has below average game speed with poor lateral movement and quickness.

 

2. I dont see where people think he is so good against the run let alone an "amazing run stopper." NFL.com only post stats back to 2003 and I know the Rams D was very good in Archuleta's first 2 seasons in 01' and 02'. But looking at the last 4 teams that Archuleta was the starting safety on they finished 27th, 28th, 29th, and 21st against the run.

 

3. Basically Archuleta is a good story. He was an average high school athlete who hooked up with an innovative personal trainer, made himself a Division 1 player, became somewhat of a "workout warrior" and catapulted himself into a 1st round draft pick and played on a really good team that reached the Super Bowl early in his career. But he has been exposed. He is not a good football player. He is a backup calibur safety who is decent at run support but again is a liability in coverage and is really a below average LB in the body of a below average safety.

 

I hated this signing from day 1 and it turned out even worse than I expected. I wish him no ill will but good riddance. At least the Skins realized what a mistake this signing was and he wont count agaisnt our cap after this year.

 

And I agree Dehaven, signing Archuleta is one of many terrible moves this franchise has made since Snyder took over the team. Too much to get into in this thread but the Skins need a real GM in the worst way.

 

Well said. The Skins really need a cover safety to play next to Taylor. Having 2 run stopping safeties made absolutely no sense whatsoever.

 

When will Snyder figure it out that great team are built through the draft and not free agency?

[luckdogg17 0]

i wish the nfl's salary and contract structures were a lot less complicated. the salary cap implications are usually the driving force in most transactions but it seems like hardly anyone ever knows what they are because they are so compicated. the archuleta deal really has nothing to do with the 6th round draft pick. sure washington has to get something for him but it was all about them just wanting to rid of him and as much of his salary that they can. the reason there are so few major trades in the nfl is because the team that gives a player a big signing bonus is on the hook for that signing bonus even if they cut or trade the guy.

 

say a guy gets a 5 year contract with a 10 million signing bonus. then their bonus counts 2 million a year against the salary cap. they also get paid an additional amount each year but this is the money that isn't guaranteed, but if they cut or trade the player after the first year then the remaining 8 million of the signing bonus counts against their salary cap the next year so they generally keep the player instead of taking the cap hit. i know many of you already knew this and i also know that it is even much more complicated than this with the roster bonuses and performance bonuses and restructuring and how all of these things factor into different scenarios. basically, i'm not a 'capologist' but i know that the cap is usually the driving force in many of these deals and it's not nearly as simple as a 6th rounder for adam. the bad news is that the people who i'm trying to explain this to either wont read this or wont understand it if they do so i guess this is probably a waste of time.

 

a long time ago, in a league far away......

adam archuleta had a reputation of being a great runstopper, a big-hitter, and that coverage was just not his strong suit. i think over the last 3 or 4 years or so many have formed the opinion that he just isn't a very good football player but apparently some still want the regurgitate what was said about him when he was drafted or during his first few years in the league.

 

at the same time, i'll be the first to admit that i'm not a big x's on o's guy either. the skins just wanted to get rid of him and the bears are getting him for a lot less money than the skins paid last year. maybe he can be serviceable in lovie's system. maybe this is somewhat of a p.r. move by the bears with all of the bad press they've been getting with the thomas jones trade, tank, briggs wants out, and having the reputation of being a cheap organization. so this move makes it look like they're trying to improve the team. you'd think they'd do it with a player that could actually help the team but maybe the bears are that desperate or more likely someone there believes that adam can help them.

[Voice_Of_Reason 0]

Ahh, the myth that is Adam Archuleta.

 

From da Bears standpoint this is a good move. Gives them needed depth at Safety and reunites Archuleta w/ a coach and system who can prolly best utilize his talents, whatever they may be. And giving up a 6th rounder and paying him what they are w/ his restructured deal there really isnt any risk on their part.

 

BUT "amazing run stopper" . Lets consider these points.

 

1. It is good to have a Safety who can provide run support but when that is their ONLY asset and they are a TOTAL liability in coverage then they are just a LB in a Safety's body. Not good. Might as well just play another LB since Archuleta is not big, even by safety standards, is NOT a big hitter at all, and has below average game speed with poor lateral movement and quickness.

 

2. I dont see where people think he is so good against the run let alone an "amazing run stopper." NFL.com only post stats back to 2003 and I know the Rams D was very good in Archuleta's first 2 seasons in 01' and 02'. But looking at the last 4 teams that Archuleta was the starting safety on they finished 27th, 28th, 29th, and 21st against the run.

 

3. Basically Archuleta is a good story. He was an average high school athlete who hooked up with an innovative personal trainer, made himself a Division 1 player, became somewhat of a "workout warrior" and catapulted himself into a 1st round draft pick and played on a really good team that reached the Super Bowl early in his career. But he has been exposed. He is not a good football player. He is a backup calibur safety who is decent at run support but again is a liability in coverage and is really a below average LB in the body of a below average safety.

 

I hated this signing from day 1 and it turned out even worse than I expected. I wish him no ill will but good riddance. At least the Skins realized what a mistake this signing was and he wont count agaisnt our cap after this year.

 

And I agree Dehaven, signing Archuleta is one of many terrible moves this franchise has made since Snyder took over the team. Too much to get into in this thread but the Skins need a real GM in the worst way.

Spot on.

[Tusekan Raiders 0]

I like this move. At worst, he replaces Todd Johnson in a role-playing, run-stopping role. He wouldn't be the first player to fall in the black hole of spending w/o a plan in DC and bounce back after getting out. Obviously Smith knew how to use him well before.

[Apu Nahasapeemapetilon 0]

He suxors. Always has. He has never played on a good defense. NEVER.

 

The Bears will be a good D, but not because of Archuletta. They just already are a very good D.

 

 

AA's only good attibute is his wife, a former Playmate fo the Year who is

[VaTerp 0]

He wouldn't be the first player to fall in the black hole of spending w/o a plan in DC and bounce back after getting out.

 

Players such as???????????

 

I will be the first to admit that the Skins have made some terrible personnel decisions this decade but I resent the black hole statement. We have overpaid average players and superstars on the decline but I'd like to know the names of players who have bounced back after "getting out." As if playing with the SKins is some sort of prison sentence.

 

[Bishop82 61]

any trade for a 6th rd pick is a good trade.

[Apu Nahasapeemapetilon 0]

Players such as???????????

 

I will be the first to admit that the Skins have made some terrible personnel decisions this decade but I resent the black hole statement. We have overpaid average players and superstars on the decline but I'd like to know the names of players who have bounced back after "getting out." As if playing with the SKins is some sort of prison sentence.

 

 

 

Precisely.

 

Clark and Pierce are the only two remotely close on this list, and both of them were minimum wage players while with the Skins.

[surferskin 31]

Players such as???????????

 

I will be the first to admit that the Skins have made some terrible personnel decisions this decade but I resent the black hole statement. We have overpaid average players and superstars on the decline but I'd like to know the names of players who have bounced back after "getting out." As if playing with the SKins is some sort of prison sentence.

 

trotter.

[RLLD 4,283]

Kudos to the Skins for unloading that POS. I must admit, I am more surprised that the Bears would seek to take him than I am that the Redskins were actually able to trade him.

 

Regardless, Washington finally makes a good FA move, and Bears make a poor one....

[VaTerp 0]

Precisely.

 

Clark and Pierce are the only two remotely close on this list, and both of them were minimum wage players while with the Skins.

 

Clark and Pierce dont apply at all. They havent "bounced back." Clark, who they should have resigned instead of going for Archuleta in the first place had his best season in Washington in 05'. He's decent but not great and again bouncing back doesnt apply here.

 

Pierce is another player they should have resigned but he didnt bounce back either. He was drafted by the Skins played well when he got the opportunity and then left for bigger $$$ in free agency.

 

trotter.

 

This is the name I was waiting on. There's a misconception that Trotter didnt play well in Washington. People forget that the guy tore his ACL on Thanksgiving day in his first year here. He was having a solid season before that he just happened to be playing for one of the worst D- coordinators in modern history. His second year he was not fully healthy but still played decently. Of course he has been better back in Philly with a system that fits his skill set and having time to fully rebuild his knee.

 

These three guys are possible examples of poor personnel decisions by the Skins but they are in no way indicative of players who have "bounced back from the black whole" of paying in DC. (or Landover, MD and Ashburn, VA to be precise)

 

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