Are we in Win Now mode or not?!?

[CalgaryFan05]

Maybe it's working - maybe PC and JS are just trying to hoodwink the world, myself included.

I thought we'd be in a "win now" mode aka: Rams year before last mode.

I haven't listened to the JS radio from this week, but I keep reading things like: "not kicking the can down the road on the cap. We're kinda tapped out. responsible year over year cap and cash management".

With the couple of Defensive pieces that we've added, with Geno locked up, and the fact that we've got quite the pair of kickass WR dudes when used properly - I just thought that WIN NOW would be where we were. I mean Jesus - if you didn't think Lock was the answer for a few years - why is he 4MM?

With the bargain that Geno is, and with the ability to restructure or cut guys like Adams and a few others - WHY the hell are we not getting Poona and Woods back, and then going after a running back like D Henry - or some finishing moves - EVEN IF it's on the credit card? Trade down in the draft, and get a ton of talent through - some of it's gonna stick.

I don't care if the can needs to be kicked or deferred for a couple 3 years, and then we went into a drought. Why not now when we have some of the pieces and the draft capital?!

Arg. I don't get it. But, then maybe I just don't get it. This is the first year I've even moderately payed attention to FA and the Draft.

And, oh yea, to answer my own thread topic - 'apparently not'.

 

[CactusJack]

What do you mean by win now? You're always looking to improve.

Win now mode is mortgaging the future for Jamal Adams. How has that worked out?

Hopefully they've learned their lesson.

Trading for an aging RB with a lot of miles is never a good idea. Poona didn't really fit the scheme.

 

[sutz]

I don't think Pete and John think that way.

 

[CPHawk]

Pete has to be in win mode now. He doesn’t have much time left.

 

[EverydayImRusselin]

The defense is nowhere near close enough to being in win now mode, IMO. Additionally, the cap space is already mortgaged. They have to make some moves just to get under the cap by week 1.

 

[CalgaryFan05]

Pete has to be in win mode now. He doesn’t have much time left.

That's kinda my point;

I suppose I should have said: "If we're not in Win Now mode, why not?".

 

[Chukarhawk]

LOL what? no JFC, do we look like were even close? We're not, we need to fix the trend of being one of the worst defenses in the league first.

 

[CalgaryFan05]

What do you mean by win now? You're always looking to improve.

Win now mode is mortgaging the future for Jamal Adams. How has that worked out?

Hopefully they've learned their lesson.

Trading for an aging RB with a lot of miles is never a good idea. Poona didn't really fit the scheme.

Well, and I didn't say 'do free agency stupidly' - like the Adams trade. That was insanely stupid.

And I'll take Henry in a New York second. And twice on Sundays. Please and thank you.

And if Poona and Woods didn't fit - why the hell let them go, and now say "we'd sure like them back".

I do not get it.

 

[CactusJack]

Well, and I didn't say 'do free agency stupidly' - like the Adams trade. That was insanely stupid.

And I'll take Henry in a New York second. And twice on Sundays. Please and thank you.

And if Poona and Woods didn't fit - why the hell let them go, and now say "we'd sure like them back".

I do not get it.

Woods was a cap casualty. It's a questionable move. Hopefully they have a replacement in mind.

The team is currently up against the cap. So not a ton of room for signings.

Henry is 29 with a ton of miles. Which is precisely why Tennessee has put him on the market. They're trying to get value in return before he crashes. Investing in older RB's never works out.

 

[kidhawk]

I think that John and Pete are a win always duo and the front office works within that structure. I don't think they will do anything that they believe would damage our chances of winning in the future. I do think there is a sense of urgency to get the team back into contention, just not at ANY cost.

 

[sdog1981]

The defense is nowhere near close enough to being in win now mode, IMO. Additionally, the cap space is already mortgaged. They have to make some moves just to get under the cap by week 1.

That is not true at all. By league rules, the team must be under the cap every day of the league year. They send in a report every day showing they are under the cap.

 

[AgentDib]

It's mind boggling to me that some think we are not in win now mode. We spent a huge amount in free agency, have the least effective cap space in the NFL, and will need to do a bunch of extensions or restructures in order to sign our rookie class.

I mean Jesus - if you didn't think Lock was the answer for a few years - why is he 4MM?

This is Lock's 5th season in the league and he has 21 NFL starts under his belt; he isn't here as a project QB. Paying for a veteran backup QB is what you do when you are in win now mode. In a long-term view you'd hand the team off to a rookie or be willing to just try again the following year.

WHY the hell are we not getting Poona and Woods back, and then going after a running back like D Henry - or some finishing moves - EVEN IF it's on the credit card?

Why do you want Poona back? Woods is likely shuffling towards retirement; he only played 1/3 of the snaps last season and that number wasn't going up this year at age 36.

Running back is one of the positions where draft picks can make an immediate impact in year 1. Why should we trade for an expensive 29 year old who has missed 9 games over the last two seasons, when we can draft one or more kids who are going to be highly motivated to make the most out of every touch?

Trade down in the draft, and get a ton of talent through - some of it's gonna stick.

I'm 100% on board with this, but it's a long-term strategy so I'm not sure how that fits into the rest of your vision.

 

[EverydayImRusselin]

That is not true at all. By league rules, the team must be under the cap every day of the league year. They send in a report every day showing they are under the cap.

They currently have $4m in cap space. The draft class will cost between $8-10m. The practice squad will cost more as well. Ryan Neal just had his tender removed to free up cap space. Not sure what you are arguing.

 

[hox]

If they draft a QB, then no they are not in "win now" mode despite their "always compete" approach. They are in "win later" mode and understand that they are at least 2 years out from being a true SB contender.

 

[AgentDib]

That is not true at all. By league rules, the team must be under the cap every day of the league year. They send in a report every day showing they are under the cap.

What's being referred to is the eventual cap space that we will need to sign our rookie draft class. With all of our draft capital this year we will need an extra $17,165,340 in cap space if we stay put and draft at every selection. So it's true that we are under the cap right now, and also true that we're negative in terms of cap space that we are going to need.

Most teams right now have negative effective cap space, which is why free agency has almost completely dried up over the last few days.

 

[James in PA]

I think we're closer than the negative nellys will have you believe. Hell, we led the Niners at halftime in the playoffs with a trash defense. Well, now the defense should be significantly improved thanks to FA and the draft (and that's even if we take QB with the first pick). There is so much parity in this league. We have a chance to contend for a SB this season. Stop acting like we're so far away. Pete isn't thinking "2 or 3 years from now."

 

[toffee]

Why let Ryan Neal go?

 

[FrodosFinger]

Yes we are and can win a SB with this

 

[hox]

I think we're closer than the negative nellys will have you believe. Hell, we led the Niners at halftime in the playoffs with a trash defense. Well, now the defense should be significantly improved thanks to FA and the draft (and that's even if we take QB with the first pick). There is so much parity in this league. We have a chance to contend for a SB this season. Stop acting like we're so far away. Pete isn't thinking "2 or 3 years from now."

The moves in FA have been great, but is it enough to shore up that 30th ranked run defense? The incoming rookie class could help, but will it be enough to leap from 30th to top 10? Not so sure about that.

Now if the offense continues to improve, then maybe a top 10 defense is not necessary. But if you want to win a SB, then generally you need a top 10 defense.

 

[Jegpeg]

Pete has to be in win mode now. He doesn’t have much time left.

Even we we assume Pete doesn't expect to HC when he hits 80 I would hope he puts the team ahead of personnal glory.

Throughout the whole JS/PC era we have been contenders and during the time with only one losing record since 2011 and 2 SB appearances.

I would much rather we continue that way for the next 10 years than bankrupt ourselves for Pete's personnal glory in 2023 (which may or may not lead to a SB win) leaving his replacement with a huge chunk of dead cap and most of our draft picks traded away.

Given the choice of:
A. We make the playoffs nearly every season and make the SB every 6 or 7 years
B. We go into win now mode so we have a 50% chance of getting to the SB this season but condemn ourselves to a losing record for the next 5 seasons

I would be choosing option A.