Offensive Line Scoring: Week 9

[RavensMania]

How long did it take for our C play to get to this level?

this is his second year playing center and part of the reason our center play is better is Lamar Jackson. I'm not trying to discredit Skura and I was one of the members who thought Skura needed another year and wasn't as bad as PFF made him out to be and he only needed a better guard playing to his left.

Grim and I both said having two below average lineman playing next to him was making Skura look worse than he actually is

 

[airconteka]

Skura at 4/40 would be a steal imo. Grab a guard early in the draft and hope Bozeman or Powers works out. Then we can focus on defence

 

[Adreme]

well if mitch morse can be let go than we can let skura go.

one of the problems with paying him is that GRo may he offered a HC job in the next couple years if not this offseason and I feel he is a system player. No way he would be as good for all teams or schemes.

If we can get Skura to be a good center, who's to say we can't draft one and make him good as well and have a cheap contract for four years.

Because if drafting and developing OLine was something that was so surefire, you wouldnt have over half the NFL teams citing OLine as their biggest need (including Ravens before the season). The league is littered with high draft pick interior OLIne players who bombed out. 4 for 40 sounds high but if its 8th highest now, by this time next year or even two years from now its a low-level starter contract which if he continues this momentum is a huge bargain.

 

[RavensMania]

Because if drafting and developing OLine was something that was so surefire, you wouldnt have over half the NFL teams citing OLine as their biggest need (including Ravens before the season). The league is littered with high draft pick interior OLIne players who bombed out. 4 for 40 sounds high but if its 8th highest now, by this time next year or even two years from now its a low-level starter contract which if he continues this momentum is a huge bargain.

if it's 8th highest now, Skura isn't signing for 4/40, just sayin. I still don't see him as a 4/40 type center, even if he is the 6th best in the league per PFF. That being said, if Roman wants him and EDC feels we can pay that price and still extend other important players, than I'm cool with that

We are going to need to extend offensive players in the near future, starting this offseason. Sure we have some years left before we do that, besides Stanley, but I'm already thinking Jackson, Andrews and Hollywood will be worthwile. Hell two of those three are already a given.

I'm hoping the new CBA raises the cap a significant amount. Of course salaries will increase along with it also.

I've always been a forward thinker. It's a big reason I'm a fiduciary investment advisor!

 

[Adreme]

if it's 8th highest now, Skura isn't signing for 4/40, just sayin. I still don't see him as a 4/40 type center, even if he is the 6th best in the league per PFF. That being said, if Roman wants him and EDC feels we can pay that price and still extend other important players, than I'm cool with that

We are going to need to extend offensive players in the near future, starting this offseason. Sure we have some years left before we do that, besides Stanley, but I'm already thinking Jackson, Andrews and Hollywood will be worthwile. Hell two of those three are already a given.

I'm hoping the new CBA raises the cap a significant amount. Of course salaries will increase along with it also.

I've always been a forward thinker. It's a big reason I'm a fiduciary investment advisor!

I am thinking about it in more of a "what do you need to be successful kinda vein?" Skura has taken a (unexpectedly) massive leap this year. We have seen what the team is without a average to above average center so if he leaves he has to be replaced. How often are Centers effectively replaced in the draft? As rookies VERY rarely, and overall its less then 50-50 even with high picks. That leaves signing a replacement via FA as the only surefire replacement. I cannot see getting one being cheaper then Skura so that leaves paying him. If you can have the second most important OL position (and probably 3rd most important offensive position) locked up on a below market value deal for years, that opens up deals that would otherwise not be possible.

All the other offensive players are less important then securing the middle of the OLine because with Yanda soon to be gone and Bozeman looking well bad some consistency will be needed. Basically you are simply replacing what Yanda is taking up in cap space with Skura. Several defensive contracts will come off the board as that time comes up so it should be doable, but then again its hard to say if the Ravens draft another HoF player in the front 7 everything gets blown up again.

 

[Willbacker]

Skura at 4/40 would be a steal imo. Grab a guard early in the draft and hope Bozeman or Powers works out. Then we can focus on defence

As an udfa we can offer him a tender either 1st or 2nd rd after 3rd year and truly find out what the market is. 4yr/40 mil would be a great deal but look what Jensen got from the Saints.

 

[Tank]

Yeah I’m not sure where it came from or why, but what a pleasure it is to NOT see the center getting blown back into the backfield.

 

[RavensMania]

I am thinking about it in more of a "what do you need to be successful kinda vein?" Skura has taken a (unexpectedly) massive leap this year. We have seen what the team is without a average to above average center so if he leaves he has to be replaced. How often are Centers effectively replaced in the draft? As rookies VERY rarely, and overall its less then 50-50 even with high picks. That leaves signing a replacement via FA as the only surefire replacement. I cannot see getting one being cheaper then Skura so that leaves paying him. If you can have the second most important OL position (and probably 3rd most important offensive position) locked up on a below market value deal for years, that opens up deals that would otherwise not be possible.

All the other offensive players are less important then securing the middle of the OLine because with Yanda soon to be gone and Bozeman looking well bad some consistency will be needed. Basically you are simply replacing what Yanda is taking up in cap space with Skura. Several defensive contracts will come off the board as that time comes up so it should be doable, but then again its hard to say if the Ravens draft another HoF player in the front 7 everything gets blown up again.

you can say Bozeman is inconsistent, but Skura well below average last year as well, but likely needed a better guard playing next to him. Bozeman is a natural center and would be a likely replacement for Skura if we didn't want to pay him the 4/40 or 4/50 he is going to want after the 4th year.

Let me be clear. I'm not saying I don't want to pay him, but I do believe a big reason he is doing better this year is Lamar Jackson.

 

[RavensMania]

As an udfa we can offer him a tender either 1st or 2nd rd after 3rd year and truly find out what the market is. 4yr/40 mil would be a great deal but look what Jensen got from the Saints.

Jensen got that from the Bucs.

 

[rossihunter2]

Jensen got that from the Bucs.

he also got it 2 offseasons ago... inflation happens and that was top of the market then

 

[RavensMania]

he also got it 2 offseasons ago... inflation happens and that was top of the market then

yes it was and it was after one year of playing the position. That was a crazy contract and I'm glad we didn't sign him at that price.

 

[Willbacker]

Jensen got that from the Bucs.

Whoops lol. My point tho was Jensen being wildly overpaid.

 

[Filmstudy]

This topic is probably worthy of a Filmstudy Short--"What might be a reasonable price for a Skura extension this winter?"

4/40 is too high, because the contract value needs to take into account the fact he is set to make less than $4 million in 2020 with a 2nd round RFA tender. No team will give a 2nd for the right to pay market value for Skura as of this moment.

The primary consideration from Skura's perspective will be the guaranteed money. If he plays under his RFA tender in 2020, he'll be rolling the dice on a huge percentage of his lifetime earnings. That incents him to make a deal with some small discount built in to the on-the-run UFA center market.

Let's say an AAV of $10M is the going rate for a B-/C+ center. I think he'd jump on a deal that was 4/32 with 6-8 million guaranteed with a structure that all but guarantees $20M gets paid out in the first 2 years.

I'll try to look at it from Skura's point of view:
1. I believe in myself and the team is playing well
2. I think I can play well in year 4 and perhaps take another step forward
3. Yanda might retire and leave me with players of unknown quality to either side
4. I've been durable, but I might get hurt
5. This contract is my best chance to cash in on what I've been working on for the last 15 years
6. Brett Urban (like many others) is a cautionary tale of what can happen to a good player that gets hurt at the wrong time
7. On one hand, I could make $10M more over the course of the next 4 years by waiting a year to sign, but I might have to move to do so and there is a big downside risk in #6 that I can't insure (BTW, this would be a great business).

If I'm trying to explain what an actuary does, I often start with a question. If you are offered a proposition to get $1 for sure or roll 1 die and a 6 comes up you get $1,000, what would you do? Everyone rolls the die.

Now let's raise the stakes by a factor of 1,000,000. Would you rather have $1M guaranteed or roll the die for $1B? You'll get a big split along wealth (and confidence in future earnings) lines about how people will choose.

I don't know how confident Skura is about his future both during and after football, but this has all the earmarks of a situation with divisible benefit to an early extension.

 

[RavensMania]

That would be an excellent idea for a "Short". Thanks!

 

[BloodRaven]

I think considering where Bozeman and Skura were drafted theyre doing as well as can be expected, especially Skura. However Im still hoping for an upgrade or two in the interior next season.

 

[RavensMania]

I think considering where Bozeman and Skura were drafted theyre doing as well as can be expected, especially Skura. However Im still hoping for an upgrade or two in the interior next season.

i think we will draft a middle round interior lineman, maybe 3rd round at the highest

 

[BloodRaven]

i think we will draft a middle round interior lineman, maybe 3rd round at the highest

Probably. Chances are it'll be another poor athlete who cant block.