01-10-2017, 10:47 AM
(01-10-2017, 09:29 AM)Crazyjdawg Wrote: What players have left here and gone on to be stars?
If you look at most of our free agents, they go on to underachieve or just get approximately to where they were while here.
Michael Johnson and Anthony Collins crashed and burned as soon as they left the team.
Stacy Andrews, TJ Houshmandzadeh, Jermaine Gresham, Andrew Hawkins, Andre Caldwell, Jonathan Fanene, Jerome Simpson, Eric Steinbach, Andre Smith, Madieu Williams, Mohamed Sanu all had mediocre to good careers once leaving the Bengals...even Marvin Jones was only approximately as good in Detroit as he was here.
Reggie Nelson had a good year in Oakland, but even he was a BUST before getting here. The Bengals and their "losing ways" literally turned him into an amazing player.
Justin Smith was a star in San Francisco, but he was a star here as well so, you can't count him.
Looking back as far as 2010, the only two players that may have actually improved after free agency were Jonathan Joseph and Evan Mathis.
Jonathan Joseph is debatable because we saw him flourishing in his final year here (similar to what we're seeing with Dre this year). So not sure you can count him.
And Evan Mathis was great when played here but wasn't given playing time. That is the one I could see an argument for "players have left here and have gone on to be stars" but...I wouldn't say he became a star. He just became what he was when he was playing here. A good guard.
So who am I missing? I feel there has to be someone that I'm missing in order for you to make that statement. I just couldn't find it. Free agency information is very spotty before 2005, so maybe someone between 2003 and 2005?
I'd say many more washed out with their new teams and were waived after a year.
Steinbach was pretty good for a while when he left.
Justin Smith was the big one that left and while his play was around the same as it was here...he was defensive MVP level in SF. Of course, he was on a really good team at the time.
Spikes gained more notoriety too than he would of here.
A lot of it was these guys just gained more media exposure because they were on winners.
The guy that was average here and became a star once he left was Evan Mathis. Had he stayed here, I doubt he developed like that. I've read an interview where he credited the Eagles line coach and their blocking scheme with his development.
