Just because another team is foolish doesn't make Baker more worthwhile. Teams that consistently make bad cap decisions will inevitably fail. And Baker is a poor cap value compared to his productivity on the field. Baker will never be mistaken for Tony Gonzalez or Dallas Clark.
Well if someone else gives him a big contract so be it. He's a jag and replaceable. If any team pays him $3 million a year I will be shocked.
The NYJETS made a "mistake" in signing him for big money is what is meant in the post. No mistake whatsoever in cutting him.
Tannenbaum knew he'd cut Baker from the minute the "new" contract was signed. I don't think the Jets had any intention of paying this contract off. The deal was structured such that he could be cut now for little to no loss. I think Tanny just wanted to shut Baker up with a sham contract so he would play. That allowed Keller to learn during his rookie year.
They took a flier and a wait and see approach. If Keller doesnt pan out back up plan b Chris Baker. And we all know how Keller performed. See ya Chris Baker.
Though I don't like how he commanded top-flight starter money, I do think we should have kept him around. He is a decent blocker, and will make catches if given the opportunity. Would have been nice to switch it up between Keller and himself, seeing as Mangini didn't give much love to Baker.
Baker was solid but very replaceable. We could get a similar player who could complement Keller very well at a much cheaper price.
Well its nice to see us finally screw somone over.I mean we traded away dewayne Robertson and jon vilma for conditional picks and because of contract loopholes we got back shit!
I read yesterday if Vilma doesnt re-sign with N.O we get a 4th id much rather have Vilma back but a 4th isnt shit!
This is always my gripe too. But I think Keller showed enough in his rookie year for us to be really high on him. That kid has the potential to be one of the all-time greatest TEs ever, IMO. We'll be okay without Baker and we need some room, end of discussion. Tannenbaum is the man!
"Underutilized" After getting the little bit of loot he was looking for. Hey it’s all opinion at this point, so Lets see if Keller gets the reps that Baker never did. Also (a what if) if Baker didn’t get Jobbed in Cleveland, opinions would have been very different around her.
it's funny how there is still so much confusion on this even though it has been talked about so much (not a shot at you personally, just an observation)... here's how i understand it...we got the saints 4th last year already. because vilma won't be resigned before free agency, we will get NO's 3rd and give them OUR 4th. so, in the end, you can look at it like we got a 3rd for vilma which is nice since we lost our 3rd in the favre trade and even though we lose our 4th this year, we have the redskins 4th from the kendall deal... not horrible for a player who was coming off a knee surgery and was a big question mark...
Baker may be back, he'll have another chance to see if teams will pay him(just like he had 2-3 years ago) and if not I think we'll get him back.
It is hard to produce when you hardly ever get the ball thrown your way. Keller is good with the hands but he is way to small to be a "blocking tight end". Baker did all the dirty work on the o line. That will probably be missed more than anybody can predict right now. Baker hardly ever dropped a ball thrown his way and will be very productive for any team who decides to get him involved with the offense.
I liked him and wish him the best as long as he stays out of the AFC. He knew he would get cut after demanding and restructuring his deal. With his production (not entirely his fault with limited opportunities) no team could justify paying the cost to keep him. I hope we're able to get him back at a much cheaper price.
That's a ton of decent tight end free agents. Tannenbaum should be able to sign one of them for a third of what Baker would have cost.
