Miami Herald: NT Soliai to Hit Open Market

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our defense will be pretty crappy without him at NT. throw the bank at him, or franchise him. It's a little expensive for him, but IMO he's worth it. way too hard to find a young strong NT for a 3-4.

 

Dude wants to get paid, how can anyone really blame him?

 

Wonder if we reached out to his agent at any point during the season? If not that could prove to be a devestating mistake.

 

You're telling me you wouldn't do the same as him? It says he's looking to maximize his earning potential... not looking to be the highest paid nose tackle in the NFL.

 

Well this is a pointless debate, now isn't it?

"What would you do if you were in situation X?"

"Well I wouldn't get myself into situation X, so there's your answer."

Tsk, tsk.

 

He deserves a good deal and there will be a lot of teams ready to give him one.

He has been steadily blossoming for the past 2 years, to the point where he was becoming one of the best NT's in the NFL by the end of the season. Questions about his motivation because of suspensions for his weight have mostly gone by the wayside. He has admitted that the light has come on for him, and teammates have spoken about the increased dedication.

If we let him go we're playing with fire. Quality NT's are hard to find, and often can take a number of years to develop.

 

Does anyone think he is going to get a monster offer? I know I don't. He picked up his game a lot last season but before that he was average and had weight issues.

So he will probably get offered a good deal but nothing major and imo if he does not sign before FA starts, Miami will still have a good shot at signing him back.

Or draft Kenrick Ellis ....

 

We supposedly did, but because an extension would limit the percentage of the increase they couldn't come close on a signing bonus. Without a proper set of rules to use as guidance due to the expiration of the CBA, practically no team is able to extend their quality free agents at this time. What you might see once a new CBA agreement is in place is a window of opportunity for teams to negotiate new deals before a lot of these players hit the open market.

 

Tag him.

 

I think the decision with Soliai is harder than it looks. If they've got reason to believe that he might turn back into a lazy manbaby as soon as he gets the paycheck, they should most certainly let him walk. I'd rather they sign someone like Barry Cofield or Gabe Watson or John Henderson.

 

Really hope this guy is wrong.

 

Right. Because I am the only one who wants to make the most money possible. What a stupid idea to think trying to maximize your earning potential is something no one would do.

 

Yep, he is going to get paid by the Dolphins or by some other team, big men with his movement are difficult to find at DE let alone NT.

As for signing him, we are still under the 30% rule atm, we cannot really offer that much of a raise, as for FA we can tag or tender him, if and when there is a FA.

I much prefer Soliai to Starks at NT, that was a disaster waiting to happen, but this Regime is so stubborn that it would not surprise me if we see Ireland's goofball mug saying the same crap about how Starks would love to play NT for us again this yr.

If Ross said the checkbook was open, then by all means, just hit him with the tag if we must.

 

Cofield isn't a 3-4 tackle and Watson/Henderson are scrubs.

In my opinion, (if we want to keep the D strong up front) it's either Soliai or Aubrayo Franklin from SF. Either is going to break the bank. Might as well keep the guy that knows the scheme and the defense behind him.

 

eh, I'm not as smitten with Soliai as some. I think he's a capable NT, but not the type you imagine in a dominant 3-4 defense. Those defense always have star NTs

If Soliai jets, I would trade down, recoup the second rounder, and draft Paea in the 20s

 

It might be wiser for them to just lock him up by upping the signing bonus. They could get him in a cap friendly deal for the first couple of years that way.

Solai can be a big time player but I'm almost afraid of what he might do once he gets paid.

 

It seems like some of you are talking about tagging him. Does that mean using the Franchise tag? And therefore we would have to make him one of the top paid NT in the league?

Seems like a lot for him. Is the market that dry?

 

This guy was a beast at the NT position and has become one of the best. I don't think his initial issue was laziness as much as it was inexperience. There will be some sort of tag prior to next season - and make no mistake, this guy will get tagged.

 

I'll give him the money he deserves relative to what hes accomplished in the proper time frame...Only they know if weight was an issue for him, and whether or not that weight affected his playing time...If it did, then dont break the bank for him..offer him top 10 at his position.

 

Same here, Soliai can pack on weight, but I also think this Regime can outthink themselves at times, you run a 3-4, you need a NT, we currently have a NT, don't overthink it just retain the man.

"Oh, but we can save 3 million against the Cap"

Meanwhile the Run D collapses as Starks plays out of position.

At least tender him if nothing else, a #1 and #3 on Soliai to me would be perfect for both parties, he'd get a nice raise, we'd make sure he is not a 1yr wonder, if someone signs him we get some much needed draft pick ammunition moving forwards.

 

Tag him.

 

You are not understanding the point. I'm not saying "give the man a big payday." I am simply saying that in our capitalist society, I UNDERSTAND why Soliai is trying to maximize his value. Am I saying that we should give up what the max is? NO! I am just saying I understand where he's coming from... I am not speaking on behalf of what I would do if I were the one spending the money.

If Miami was that damn worried about his weight, they'd put in a weight clause.

 

This. I wouldn't give him huge money without a lot of out-clauses.

Somebody will; but I wouldn't.

 

That guy just screams "Played for a big contract."

I think he's a big *** risk.

 

Man is not worth the franchise tag, plain and simple. He is an Unrestricted FA, there is no tender for that. They can do a deal even with the 30% rule. His salary can only go up 30% but they can make the rest up with guaranteed bonus money that avoids the 30% rule ( 30% only pertains to salary, not bonus money )

But as I said, Soliai is not a franchise type player, no way.

 

Guys. NT's generally take a LONG time to develop. Him coming on this past year isn't out of the ordinary for NT's. You just can't draft and play a NT in this league. As long as they keep heavy workout/weight clauses in his contract he deserves a very solid contract. Teams don't let young NT's go. It's foolish. End of story.

 

Valid concern, and one that I think just about any team willing to sign him would have.

A good part of the answer to that is structuring a contract that lessens the impact if he gets soft again, perhaps through a combination of incentives and roster bonuses.

 

I think someone will give him a "monster" offer, depends what you call monster. I can see us loosing him though. Big guys like him are hard to find, he's coming off a real good year, someone is going to cough up some big cash for him to get him into their lineup. Whether he is worth it or not once he gets paid is what remains to be seen.

 

For me it just comes down to the fact that you can't pay every player huge sums of money. So let's make sure we spend it on the correct ones (Wake, Dansby, ect.).

If we can get Paul to sign a deal that is incentive based and has weight clauses, etc. Sure let's do it. But if the market gives him a better deal are we stupid for letting him go? Everything is relative to price.

For the record I am not against signing him. I just heard the "franchise tag" phrase come up, and just thought to myself if he is worth 'elite' NT money. I think not, but I am complete idiot when comes to judging 3-4 NT talent. :lol:

 

The thought that he was a scrub for three years and suddenly turned it on is dead wrong. This is a guy that got better every year. Two years ago he never had a BAD game. He had good games with flashes of greatness. That says something to me. Last year he played great with flashes of all pro. IMO he only gets better still. No way we replace him. It takes several years for a NT to develop, and we have one that just developed. Please do not let him go.