What to do with these players next season?

[Heatmiser]

Thomas Keiser. He is a better option than Larry Engllish. He has some pass rush ability, plays the run decently, is cheap.

Tutu. He has quietly become an above average to good gunner. He is humble, hungry, cheap. And unlike Osgood, the guy can actually play WR if you need him to.

Derek Cox. His confidence is totally shattered. He looks lost out there. But he has talent, has played well in the past and has guaranteed money.

Chad Rheinhardt. This guy has been the second best OL on the team when healthy (after Hardwick) in my opinion.

King Dunlap. I was worried about his ability. His ability is fine. But his concussion problems mean he is a ticking injury time bomb. Feel bad for the guy. That is two Auburn LTs from the same era that injuries may prevent from long careers with the Bolts.

Eddie Royal. He has been toughing it out through injuries and making big plays. Can he be kept?

Danario Alexander. Worth the injury risk? So talented. But can he be counted on? And how does he come back from the lastest injury.

English - don't need any help on this one, guys.

Ryan Mathews. Very talented. Seems more confident and more effective with this offense and coaching staff. He is on the cusp.

Cam Thomas. I am disappointed in what I have seen this season. Average to below average play. And NT is such an important position on this defense.

TG

[ArtistFormerlyKnownAsBKR]

English is gone. Royal is worth retaining at a reasonable price. I would trade Cox if there are any takers but otherwise he has to stay because of the cap hit. We need to draft a replacement and maybe use Cox differently to cover his weaknesses. He's an unmitigated disaster. He's so bad that you wonder what we saw in him. Definitely a bad move by TT. At the time, it sounded like a reasonable signing. Mathews stays one more year in this committee role so we dont have to put RB at the top of our wishlist. Hopefully in 2015 we can move on. Alexander would be a nice retention but he cant be counted on, unfortunately, and that had to be reflected in his contract.

The other guys stay as either 2014 hole-fillers or depth. I like Rhinehart. Scrappy, flexible player.

[Heatmiser]

Is Mathews under contract next year? If so, that is perfect. Gives him a chance to show what he can do and Chargers to monitor his progress. For some reason, I thought this was his last year under his rookie deal.

Even more than the money Alexander would get, I am worried about investing in him as a player. Would you cut Tutu or perhaps some other prospect with good potential to keep Alexander on the roster? Knowing that he might be gone in an instant?

TG

[thelightningwill]

We should not cut Cam Thomas. He is a good backup lineman. The next time we get a legitimate starting nose tackle, let's not let him go. Nose tackles are hard as hell to find.

[Buck]

Cut Cox

Keep Keiser, Rhinehart, Royal, Mathews.

Invite the rest to camp at least.

[Mister Hoarse]

With all the concussion issues I don't see players tackling with their noses any more.

[Buck]

English is gone. Royal is worth retaining at a reasonable price. I would trade Cox if there are any takers but otherwise he has to stay because of the cap hit. We need to draft a replacement and maybe use Cox differently to cover his weaknesses. He's an unmitigated disaster. He's so bad that you wonder what we saw in him. Definitely a bad move by TT. At the time, it sounded like a reasonable signing. Mathews stays one more year in this committee role so we dont have to put RB at the top of our wishlist. Hopefully in 2015 we can move on. Alexander would be a nice retention but he cant be counted on, unfortunately, and that had to be reflected in his contract.

The other guys stay as either 2014 hole-fillers or depth. I like Rhinehart. Scrappy, flexible player.

This is another thread but I think we save like $2.5 Million by cutting Cox before March.

[QSmokey]

My take:

Thomas Keiser: Keep

Tutu: Keep

Derek Cox: CUT HIS ASS! Save the $2.5 million (see Buck's post, immediately above). Move on. Cox = Meachump

Chad Rheinhardt: Keep. Even if he's not starting, he's a good backup.

King Dunlap: Needs to retire with all his senses.

Eddie Royal: This is a tough one. His cap hit is obnoxious, so it would be very cool if we could rework his last year, perhaps spreading it out over two (if that's even possible). He has no incentive to do so, however, so he may be a cap casualty.

Danario Alexander: Sadly, I think we need to move on.

English: LOL!

Ryan Mathews: Keep. Nothing to lose.

Cam Thomas: Keep AS A BACKUP.

[Coachmarkos]

My take:

Thomas Keiser: Keep

Tutu: Keep

Derek Cox: CUT HIS ASS! Save the $2.5 million (see Buck's post, immediately above). Move on. Cox = Meachump

Chad Rheinhardt: Keep. Even if he's not starting, he's a good backup.

King Dunlap: Needs to retire with all his senses.

Eddie Royal: This is a tough one. His cap hit is obnoxious, so it would be very cool if we could rework his last year, perhaps spreading it out over two (if that's even possible). He has no incentive to do so, however, so he may be a cap casualty.

Danario Alexander: Sadly, I think we need to move on.

English: LOL!

Ryan Mathews: Keep. Nothing to lose.

Cam Thomas: Keep AS A BACKUP.

I'd agree with this. Except for Cox and possibly Dunlap. If Dunlap wants to play, I'd say keep him here...he has talent...but I'd agree he should think about retiring.

Cox.. I'm not sure we can eat that dead money, while we're still eating Gaither's. Then again... Crezdon Butler replaced him yesterday, and I think he signed for a bag of chips and a mello yellow...so the cap hit shouldn't matter, if guys off the street playing for minimum are outplaying him.

[Panama]

My take:

And mine:

Thomas Keiser: Keep, although he might not make the final cut in TC. We should be looking for a stud pass rusher in the draft, and that would push either the draft pick (Tourek Williams) or the FA (Keiser) out the door.

Seyi Ajirotutu: Keep, although I feel the team should keep Floyd and bring back DX. So, with MF, DX, KA, ER, and VB, Tutu has to fight off any newcomers to make the squad. I think he will, though, because of his chemistry with PR and his ability on ST.

Derek Cox: His problems are all mental. If the coaching staff thinks he is salvageable, especially with an improved pass rush, keep him; but if not, cut him before the guaranteed contract money kicks in.

Chad Rinehart: Do not re-sign. I like Rinehart, but he is a FA after this season. Troutman is young and has demonstrated he can hold down the LG spot very effectively. Therefore, Rinehart's money is better spent elsewhere. He is too expensive to sign to be a backup, as Q suggests.

King Dunlap: If he is medically cleared to play, we keep him. Whether or not we keep him, we need a backup plan. That could be Harris, who is developing into a nice, versatile backup.

Eddie Royal: He can be a game changer. Keep him unless we really need to free up the money for another position -- but we should be in decent cap shape next season, so no need. But the idea of a WR corp with MF, DX, KA, and Royal is exciting -- along with Gates, Green, and Woodhead, there's no way a defense can defend all those options!

Danario Alexander: Keep him! With his injury history, he will be cheap. He will relish the opportunity to prove himself in a system he knows. His upside if he stays healthy is through the roof!

Larry English: He'll be out of the league next season.

Ryan Mathews: Keep. He's under contract and a very good RB. Why add to our needs?

Cam Thomas: Keep. Can be a useful backup/rotational player.

[QSmokey]

And mine:

Thomas Keiser: Keep, although he might not make the final cut in TC. We should be looking for a stud pass rusher in the draft, and that would push either the draft pick (Tourek Williams) or the FA (Keiser) out the door.

Seyi Ajirotutu: Keep, although I feel the team should keep Floyd and bring back DX. So, with MF, DX, KA, ER, and VB, Tutu has to fight off any newcomers to make the squad. I think he will, though, because of his chemistry with PR and his ability on ST.

Derek Cox: His problems are all mental. If the coaching staff thinks he is salvageable, especially with an improved pass rush, keep him; but if not, cut him before the guaranteed contract money kicks in.

Chad Rinehart: Do not re-sign. I like Rinehart, but he is a FA after this season. Troutman is young and has demonstrated he can hold down the LG spot very effectively. Therefore, Rinehart's money is better spent elsewhere. He is too expensive to sign to be a backup, as Q suggests.

King Dunlap: If he is medically cleared to play, we keep him. Whether or not we keep him, we need a backup plan. That could be Harris, who is developing into a nice, versatile backup.

Eddie Royal: He can be a game changer. Keep him unless we really need to free up the money for another position -- but we should be in decent cap shape next season, so no need. But the idea of a WR corp with MF, DX, KA, and Royal is exciting -- along with Gates, Green, and Woodhead, there's no way a defense can defend all those options!

Danario Alexander: Keep him! With his injury history, he will be cheap. He will relish the opportunity to prove himself in a system he knows. His upside if he stays healthy is through the roof!

Larry English: He'll be out of the league next season.

Ryan Mathews: Keep. He's under contract and a very good RB. Why add to our needs?

Cam Thomas: Keep. Can be a useful backup/rotational player.

Don't understand the rationale behind dumping Rheinhart. Talk about adding to our needs. Clary is no sure thing to be retained, which would leave us with ONLY Troutman.

Alexander will be cheap perhaps, but who do you cut to keep him? Tutu? No thanks. Alexander, much as I like the guy, is WAY too fragile for the NFL. Let someone else be teased and disappointed. Another thing: Who's to say Floyd will want to come back, either? Scary, scary injury. Another guy who can't keep up. And I REALLY like Malcom Floyd. Having said that, then perhaps it might be a good thing to re-sign Alexander. AND Tutu. Because you know that Malcom or Alxeander - or both - will never make it through a season (or even TC, for that matter).

[Panama]

Don't understand the rationale behind dumping Rheinhart. Talk about adding to our needs. Clary is no sure thing to be retained, which would leave us with ONLY Troutman.

The rationale is simple. Rinehart is a FA. (Thus, not keeping him is like not keeping English -- we're not creating a hole that isn't already there.) He signed a 1-year contract worth $1.75M, of which $.9M is signing bonus. He's been hurt much of the year, and Troutman has been mostly solid in what is effectively his rookie season. The team has plenty of other needs. It doesn't need to spend $2M or so on an OG who might very well be a backup.

Clary, meanwhile, is under contract. Yes, the team could cut him to save a bit of cap space, but cap space won't be as tight next year, and Clary is more versatile in that he can play both OG and OT. It would make no sense to cut a good player who is rarely hurt and is already under contract and then sign another player who is about the same skillwise and would require spending the money we just saved cutting the first in order to sign the second, who has missed much of the year with injury.

Alexander will be cheap perhaps, but who do you cut to keep him? Tutu? No thanks. Alexander, much as I like the guy, is WAY too fragile for the NFL. Let someone else be teased and disappointed. Another thing: Who's to say Floyd will want to come back, either? Scary, scary injury. Another guy who can't keep up. And I REALLY like Malcom Floyd. Having said that, then perhaps it might be a good thing to re-sign Alexander. AND Tutu. Because you know that Malcom or Alxeander - or both - will never make it through a season (or even TC, for that matter).

Why would signing Alexander to a 1-year vet minimum contract mean we have to cut somebody??? The WRs we have under contract for next year are Floyd (for 2 more years), Allen (for 3 more years), Royal (for 1 more year @ $495K), and possibly Tutu (contract info undisclosed). Are you proposing we go into the season with only 4 WRs??? Come on, Q, you know better than that!

Why wouldn't we take a chance on DX for one season? He would be extremely motivated to stay healthy and prove to the world he can be an all-world WR. If he stays healthy, he definitely has the innate ability to do that, and he has great chemistry with Rivers. This is the sort of deal that is win-win-win. What's the drawback? You gamble and lose, you've lost nothing but an unguaranteed 1-year contract. You win, you're sitting pretty with one of the best WRs in the league and facing the decision whether to sign him to a longer contract the following year.

I also don't get why everyone is so eager to cut Royal. He is only making $495K next season. Chump change for a WR who has produced as he has this season. Let him play out his contract season. Having a game changer at slot receiver is huge, and having one who is hungry and in a contract year is even more huge.

And as for Floyd, everything I hear is that he is eager to come back and do it again. It was a fluke injury. He'll be rested and ready to go. I could see the team cutting him for cap relief, but I don't see Floyd choosing to retire. And given Floyd's chemistry with Rivers, I think cutting Floyd for cap relief would be short-sighted. He'll make $2.75M next season and $3M in 2015, which is not expensive for a #1 or even #2 WR.

As for Tutu, I don't know if he's under contract for next season or not. RotoWorld doesn't have his contract info. If he's signed through next season, it's a no brainer to keep him; but if he's not then it's a matter of bringing him back, not cutting vs keeping. I would, because I like him, but he would just be the #4 WR and a special teamer.

The real wild card is Vincent Brown. He flashed all-world potential before his ankle injury but hasn't been the same since. He's under contract for next year at $645K. The team may very well decide, if Tutu is a FA, just to go with Brown in what would be analogous to a Larry English situation. (Or if Tutu is already signed for next season, Brown likely stays as the #5. It's not as if we have a Mike Willie or someone else to push him.)