Larry English done

[Boltx]

As big of a critic of AJ I was....people really underestimate how hard it is to get something for a player especially about to hit FA, and we've had some unusual circumstances surround these players. This isn't MLB, you don't just sign & trade guys.

[Guy Lombardo]

As big of a critic of AJ I was....people really underestimate how hard it is to get something for a player especially about to hit FA, and we've had some unusual circumstances surround these players. This isn't MLB, you don't just sign & trade guys.

Each one of those situations was different and one way or another he botched each one.

[BoltBalls]

I blame the Brees situation on Marty more than anything. Plus we at least got a comp pick from Brees but it was used on a bad draft pick. You can argue about how the Mike Turner situation was also kind of unavoidable with LT still going strong and the face of the franchise. The other lost players are pretty much all on AJ however.

[SDFan]

Don't forget that great Anthony Waters selection for the Drew Brees comp pick.

For all his obsession with getting comp picks, he sure squandered them.

Other than the Whitehurst trade, AJ failed to get decent compensation or leverage our talent we had to an absurd degree. Turner, Jackson, Sproles, Brees gone for absolutely nothing.

False! We got great production helping the team win out of them during their playing contracts with us. Why people criticise for not trading a guy too early while he still helps you win for a future pick makes no sense at all.

[OhioBolt]

As big of a critic of AJ I was....people really underestimate how hard it is to get something for a player especially about to hit FA, and we've had some unusual circumstances surround these players. This isn't MLB, you don't just sign & trade guys.

I believe AJ should of traded players that were about to hit FA who he knew he wasn't going to sign, we get shafted in the compensation picks

Vincent Jackson, AJ knew he wasn't going to seriously sign Jackson in his last year he had offers from Minnesota who desparately need reciever. Net result = 0

Micheal Turner you knew you weren't going to be able to sign a potential starter who was backing up LT and we had Sproles should of traded him. Net Result 4th(comp)

Darren Sproles was franchised in the 2010 season and we drafted Ryan Matthews suppposed back of the future, we should of traded Sproles there was no way you would sign him after the franchise contract and you just drafted the future back in round 1. Net Result 4th(comp)



We could of done way better than a 4th round comp pick trading (Sproles & Turner) and we would of came out better trading Jackson period

[Guy Lombardo]

He blew the Brees compensation pick outright. He had trade offers for Turner, could have easily gotten a 2nd for him, maybe a first had he parted with a pick of our own. Sproles should have been signed anyway, but he franchised the guy for two years and then let him walk. Could have likely signed him to a contract for that money. Jackson was a beast of a talent, you figure out a way to get something for a player like him or you don't let him walk. Just dumb, each one of these guys left and become the best or one the best players on their next team.

The only one I can understand walking was Brees at the time, but then he went and blew the pick on a guy that I don't think ever played a snap at LB for us. Just horrible.

[6025]

I think AJ gambled that hanging on to those guys would help us win a Super Bowl.

[Panama]

Guess who we used that 2nd round pick from Seattle to trade up for... Mr. Mathews.

And this is a bad thing because...?

[MakoShark]

I believe AJ should of traded players that were about to hit FA who he knew he wasn't going to sign, we get shafted in the compensation picks

Vincent Jackson, AJ knew he wasn't going to seriously sign Jackson in his last year he had offers from Minnesota who desparately need reciever. Net result = 0

Micheal Turner you knew you weren't going to be able to sign a potential starter who was backing up LT and we had Sproles should of traded him. Net Result 4th(comp)

Darren Sproles was franchised in the 2010 season and we drafted Ryan Matthews suppposed back of the future, we should of traded Sproles there was no way you would sign him after the franchise contract and you just drafted the future back in round 1. Net Result 4th(comp)



We could of done way better than a 4th round comp pick trading (Sproles & Turner) and we would of came out better trading Jackson period

I agree that AJ should have tried to get something for those guys but its not that simple. Teams don't usually trade for a guy thats going to be a FA at the end of the year unless they know they can sign him to a long term contract. He had a deal on the table for VJ and I think he should have taken it. He blew that one for sure. For Turner why would a team give up a pick for a guy thats entering FA? Sproles had a franchise tag on him requiring a team to give up 1 or 2 high picks for a guy they may not be able to sign at the end of the year. Why give up picks when you can just wait until a guy enters FA and try to sign him?

I just don't think it was as easy as most people think it is or should have been.

[thelightningwill]

False! We got great production helping the team win out of them during their playing contracts with us. Why people criticise for not trading a guy too early while he still helps you win for a future pick makes no sense at all.

Actually Norv Turner underused Michael Turner in the runningback's final year with us.

Other fans used to say that Norv Turner was AJ Smith's puppet, and the U-T reporters used to drone on about how AJ Smith and Norv Turner had some sort of bond of understanding. But I didn't see it like that. There were guys who AJ seemed to value that Norv generally had riding the bench. - M. Turner, Hester, and Neal come to mind.

Michael Turner should have been traded earlier because Norv had no intention of making use of him. In the AFC Championship game, when Tomlinson had to take himself out of the game, Rivers was playing way too hurt, and Merriman was jacked up, Michael Turner only got the ball 17 times. Why? We should have run him on almost every play that day and kept that dirty Cheatriots offense off the field. There was no reason to try to save him up.

[KYBoltsFan]

I think AJ gambled that hanging on to those guys would help us win a Super Bowl.

This. AJ wanted to win it all with that group minus Marty more than anything in the world.

[OhioBolt]

I agree that AJ should have tried to get something for those guys but its not that simple. Teams don't usually trade for a guy thats going to be a FA at the end of the year unless they know they can sign him to a long term contract. He had a deal on the table for VJ and I think he should have taken it. He blew that one for sure. For Turner why would a team give up a pick for a guy thats entering FA? Sproles had a franchise tag on him requiring a team to give up 1 or 2 high picks for a guy they may not be able to sign at the end of the year. Why give up picks when you can just wait until a guy enters FA and try to sign him?

I just don't think it was as easy as most people think it is or should have been.

The Vincent Jackson deal as mention was on the table, absolutely no reason not to get that deal done especially knowing AJ wasn't going to offer him a serious offer to stay.

Micheal Turner was viewed by the league as a starter problem he was playing behind LT in his prime, there was a demand for Turner and AJ should of worked to get that deal done and get better than a 4th round pick, I believe we could of got at least a third round pick or player(s).

I'll give you the Sproles would of been a really hard trade to pull off, if not impossible because he was Franchised and the compensation would be a 1& 3, and Sproles is explosive, but he isn't an every down back. We found this out when LT went down, Sproles started one game and was great, the following week not so great from the physical pounding.