Since the Green Bay Packers declined to use their franchise tag on reserve quarterback Matt Flynn, the Aaron Rodgers understudy will become an unrestricted free agent this month. Then came news Tuesday that the Indianapolis Colts will release Peyton Manning into free agency, mostly to avoid having to pay him a $28 million roster bonus if he remained on the roster Thursday.
If you were the Seahawks, would you pursue Flynn, Manning or neither?
Had the Packers franchised Flynn, they could have matched any offer another team made, or attempted to trade Flynn and his one-year, $14 million salary — more than Rodgers makes — for draft picks. Instead each NFL team now has a chance to bid for him.
The Miami Dolphins are considered the favorites to land Flynn, who will be 27 in June, but now that Manning, 36 this month and coming off spinal fusion surgery, is officially available, the intrigue deepens for all teams with immediate needs at QB who don’t have one of the top two picks in the draft, which includes the Seahawks.
With the No. 1 overall pick in April’s NFL draft, the Colts are expected to select Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck and build around him, not Manning, who intrigues the Dolphins perhaps more than Flynn does. The No. 2 pick, owned by St. Louis, is for sale, if you believe the Rams in their claim of sincere happiness with third-year QB Sam Bradford and will trade away the pick that is almost certain to be Robert Griffin III of Baylor.
Flynn has appeared in just 34 games in his four-year NFL career since 2008, making two starts. But in those two starts, Dec. 19, 2010 vs. New England and Jan. 1 vs. Detroit, Flynn threw for 731 yards and nine touchdowns. In the second start, Flynn lit up the Lions with 480 yards and six touchdowns, finishing with a passer rating of 136.4.
Those numbers are expected to sweeten Flynn’s bank account by millions. Manning already has his millions, and is looking for the right fit to close out his stellar 14-year career.
The issue is whether Flynn or Manning, who did not play in 2011 after three neck surgeries in 19 months, should do their branch banking in Renton, where the Seahawks train.
Your yea or nay vote here will stem from the confidence, or lack thereof, you have in Seattle’s incumbent, Tarvaris Jackson, and whether you believe he played himself into the role of long-term solution during the 2011 season.
Jackson did a respectable enough job in quarterbacking the Seahawks to a 7-9 record, throwing for 3,091 yards with a 60.2 completion percentage and a 79.2 passer rating. He offset 14 touchdown passes with 13 interceptions, eight of which came in a five-game stretch between Sept. 25 and Nov. 11.
Jackson had his most efficient performance in a 31-14 win over Philadelphia Dec. 1, when he completed 13 of 16 passes and threw one TD and no interceptions. Jackson was also the biggest reason Seattle got itself hosed at Dallas Nov. 6, tossing three interceptions and ending with a 40.4 passer rating.
No one believes that Jackson, now a six-year veteran, will develop into a Pro Bowl quarterback, much less a franchise one. But most also believe that Jackson is good enough to steer Pete Carroll’s run-oriented offense until someone better comes along (many draft “experts” have encouraged the Seahawks to take a quarterback relatively high, if for no other reason than to give Jackson competition).
The availability of Flynn and Manning changes the Seahawks equation: As a team well under the salary cap, they can afford either veteran, but would have little left to pursue other free agents. They would, however, hold into their first-round pick, 12th overall.
Manning has been given medical clearance to resume his career, but he is a shorter-term answer that comes with higher injury risk. Flynn is younger, healthier and comes from a franchise that has employed Brett Favre, Matt Hasselbeck and Rodgers in the past decade. His time is now.
Jackson, who likely will improve with a full training camp and a second season here, makes only $4 million for one more year, meaning the treasury can be expended to fix other holes.
Tough call. Make one.
[polldaddy poll=6012266]
11 Comments
sign manning if reasonable. if he is healthy, good things can happen with marshawn edgerrin james lynch and a qb who reads defenses. if he is injured, tarvaris runs left, tarvaris runs right, tarvaris throws a 90 mph pass and we hope.
sign manning if reasonable. if he is healthy, good things can happen with marshawn edgerrin james lynch and a qb who reads defenses. if he is injured, tarvaris runs left, tarvaris runs right, tarvaris throws a 90 mph pass and we hope.
It would be a growth-stunting, short-sighted mistake for Seattle, a young team on the rise, to go after Manning (or anyone else) in the twilight his career. It just doesn’t seem like it would be a good chemical match nor the direction Schneider and Carrol are going. If the Seahawks are serious about long-term, dynasty type success, they hsould go after a younger talent that will grow with the guys around him. Both Flynn and Tevaris Jackson fit that bill, but Flynn gets the nod because in all of Jackson’s starts he has not measured up to Flynn’s mere two. …Having said that, it would be dangerous for Seattle to see Manning go to Arizona and throw to Larry Fitzgerald… as spectacular as it would be to watch.
It would be a growth-stunting, short-sighted mistake for Seattle, a young team on the rise, to go after Manning (or anyone else) in the twilight his career. It just doesn’t seem like it would be a good chemical match nor the direction Schneider and Carrol are going. If the Seahawks are serious about long-term, dynasty type success, they hsould go after a younger talent that will grow with the guys around him. Both Flynn and Tevaris Jackson fit that bill, but Flynn gets the nod because in all of Jackson’s starts he has not measured up to Flynn’s mere two. …Having said that, it would be dangerous for Seattle to see Manning go to Arizona and throw to Larry Fitzgerald… as spectacular as it would be to watch.
The Hawks are THIS far away from being a succesful playoff team. Manning could get the team over that hump but he isn’t getting any younger. When the Chiefs signed Nick…I mean Joe Montana they spiraled when he left after a couple years. Flynn would be a nice long term investment and GB has been good to us before on the QB front. Flynn could back up Tavaris for a season or two and Tavaris had a decent season.
I agree that Manning going to the Cardinals would be disasterous for the Seahawks. It’s not like the NFC is a powerhouse division. He’d make all the QB’s in the division look like Division II players.
The Hawks are THIS far away from being a succesful playoff team. Manning could get the team over that hump but he isn’t getting any younger. When the Chiefs signed Nick…I mean Joe Montana they spiraled when he left after a couple years. Flynn would be a nice long term investment and GB has been good to us before on the QB front. Flynn could back up Tavaris for a season or two and Tavaris had a decent season.
I agree that Manning going to the Cardinals would be disasterous for the Seahawks. It’s not like the NFC is a powerhouse division. He’d make all the QB’s in the division look like Division II players.
Being a Packers fan, I like Matt Flynn for obvious reasons, but I think I’d like to see more than two starts in four years out of a guy before throwing millions of dollars at him. I’ve mentioned my reservations about Peyton Manning in other posts, so I’ll leave those issues be.
I’d like to throw another name, a free agent quarterback who has has terrific success at the collegiate level and reasonable success as a pro, a guy whose physical skills are as unquestionable as the concerns about his maturity level: Vince Young. Since we’re dealing with multiple “ifs” while discussing Flynn or Manning, let’s look at VY from that same perspective. “If” Vince Young (who would not cost a huge amount after the year he had in Philly) came to Seattle in the right frame of mind under a coach who has witnessed up close what breathtaking talent he brings to the table, signing him could be the steal of the year…IF he doesn’t cut it, cut him.
There are other somewhat intriguing free agent QBs out there, including Kyle Orton, and it would be a huge roll of the dice with Young. Unlike Flynn, he’s had enough NFL experience to prove he’s capable of starting and winning at this level. Unlike Manning, there are no large questions about his health…the guy’s a flat-out stud. The question is whether it’s in him to give a sustained, high-level effort over the course of a season without the sidebar issues that have continually gotten in the way.
Depending on how much it would cost to sign him to a one-year deal (let’s face it, he doesn’t have a lot of leverage), Vince Young is intriguing. The risk wouldn’t be as high as Flynn or Manning, but the rewards could be considerable…IF…
Being a Packers fan, I like Matt Flynn for obvious reasons, but I think I’d like to see more than two starts in four years out of a guy before throwing millions of dollars at him. I’ve mentioned my reservations about Peyton Manning in other posts, so I’ll leave those issues be.
I’d like to throw out another name, a free agent quarterback who had has terrific success at the collegiate level and a fair amount of success as a pro, a guy whose physical skills are as unquestionable as the concerns about his maturity level: Vince Young. Since we’re dealing with multiple “ifs” while discussing Flynn or Manning, let’s look at VY from that same perspective. “If” Vince Young (who would not cost a huge amount after the year he had in Philly) came to Seattle in the right frame of mind under a coach who has witnessed up close what breathtaking talent he brings to the table, signing him could be the steal of the year…”if” he doesn’t cut it, cut him.
There are other decent free agent QBs out there, including Kyle Orton, and it would be a huge roll of the dice with Young. Unlike Flynn, he’s had enough NFL experience to prove he’s capable of starting and winning at this level. Unlike Manning, there are no large questions about his physical health…the guy’s a flat-out stud. The question is whether it’s in him to give a sustained, high-level effort over the course of a season without the sidebar issues that have continually gotten in the way.
Depending on how much it would cost to sign him to a one-year deal (let’s face it, he doesn’t have a lot of leverage), Vince Young is intriguing. The risk wouldn’t be as high as Flynn or Manning, but the rewards could be considerable…”if”…