Chris Baker expected to sign with Bengals

[Hoofhearted]

(03-08-2018, 02:29 PM)Shake n Blake Wrote: McGlinchey is the only tackle worth the 12th pick, but I've been reading that this draft is way more heavy with Guard talent. The latest CBS mock has us taking a Guard at 12 (Isaiah Wynn) and a Tackle in the 2nd round (Brian O'Neill). Vea should be considered, but I'm not sure he's a must-grab. CBS has him going at 17. If I knew we'd get serious in FA with the o-line, sure get Vea...but I'm assuming we'll mainly use the draft to fix things, so I want o-line, o-line, o-line.

No shiny prospect is going to change my mind on that.


1. This is reading an awful lot into one incident in Tampa. Did he have a bad reputation in Washington? He spent 5 years there, so I doubt he was very cancerous.

2. $3 million isn't a lot, and FA hasn't even begun. As jaded as I am, I don't think they're done with FA. I don't see any $8-10 million dollar-ish signings coming unfortunately, but it wouldn't surprise me to see another signing for $3-4 million and maybe some cheap reclamation signings sprinkled in. We'll see.

3. I don't think he's a sub-par player. He's an upgrade from Phat Sims and definitely an average player at least, with potential to be impactful. He showed that in Washington. That's why the Bucs signed him to a contract for 3 years, $15.75 million just last year. You don't get a contract like that for being a bum.

I believe he was referencing how some of his teammaters were not so high on him and his work ethic. 

https://www.bucsnation.com/2018/2/20/17033392/the-buccaneers-have-released-dt-chris-baker?_ga=2.185839849.1751759935.1520251679-88411422.1516634890

https://www.bucsnation.com/2017/12/26/16820006/several-bucs-players-confronted-chris-baker-for-blowing-the-game

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/football-insider/wp/2017/03/21/making-sense-of-the-redskins-free-agent-signings-thus-far/?utm_term=.9d59ee8e6125

[Shake n Blake]

(03-08-2018, 02:43 PM)Hoofhearted Wrote: I believe he was referencing how some of his teammaters were not so high on him and his work ethic. 

https://www.bucsnation.com/2018/2/20/17033392/the-buccaneers-have-released-dt-chris-baker?_ga=2.185839849.1751759935.1520251679-88411422.1516634890

https://www.bucsnation.com/2017/12/26/16820006/several-bucs-players-confronted-chris-baker-for-blowing-the-game

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/football-insider/wp/2017/03/21/making-sense-of-the-redskins-free-agent-signings-thus-far/?utm_term=.9d59ee8e6125

Again, I don't see anything from Washington. Just Tampa. From your Washington Post link:

Quote:Chris Baker was popular with the fans because of his personality, but Redskins coaches, officials and even some teammates were just lukewarm on him. The team’s talent evaluators and coaches weren’t always happy with Baker’s work ethic, and they felt like he needed to make more of a consistent impact.

"Lukewarm" doesn't imply that he was hated or cancerous. So basically "some" teammates were "meh" about Baker. That can be said about any player. Coaches questioned his motor or work ethic. That's known. The same things were said about Nick Fairley and he was a very popular FA on the boards a few years back.

Even with the bucsnation article, it sounds like his teammates were stressed out after a close loss and took it out on Baker for jumping offside on a 4th and short. Dumb mistake by Baker, but it sounds more like his teammates are cancerous than him. Seriously, what did he do there that suggests he has a bad attitude?

[*ochocincos*]

(03-08-2018, 12:40 PM)Synric Wrote: Chris Baker is genuinely excited about putting on the orange and black so that makes me excited about having him in Cincy.

Hope you have a career year or 3 in Cincy, Chris.

Who Dey.

Yep. He definitely seems excited.

Also, here's some context for the game in which he jumped offsides last year on 4th down and subsequently got the team pissed at him...

TB was playing Carolina in Week 16.
45 seconds left in the game, 4th and 3 on the TB 5. Carolina down 15-19.
Baker flagged for neutral zone infraction, half-the-distance penalty so 4th and 1 at the TB 3.
Carolina gets the 1 yard and then scores a TD on the next play to win the game 22-19.
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2017122400/2017/REG16/buccaneers@panthers?icampaign=GC_schedule_rr#menu=gameinfo%7CcontentId%3A0ap3000000897854&tab=analyze&analyze=playbyplay

Here's also a report on ESPN that Cam Newton had been working on drawing opponents offside last year, evidenced by 10 neutral zone infractions against his opponents in 2017 through Week 16, which was more than double the total for Carolina opponents the year before (4).
http://www.espn.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/264228/drawing-teams-offside-one-of-cam-newtons-new-tricks-of-the-trade

TB was 4-10 at that point, season was already over, so winning the game really wasn't going to make a difference for TB except push them down the draft order.
Also, people didn't like that Baker smiled after getting the penalty, but it could have been that he was acknowledging Cam got him to jump offsides and he was smiling to admit "he got me." Other players do this from time to time and people don't make anything of it.

What I think/hope: Chris Baker isn't the "cancer" that some are portraying him as. His team had a terrible year and Cam was able to draw him offsides. He may not have been a locker room fit with TB last season either before or after this incident. But he seems excited to be a Bengal and I think his attitude improves, especially because he has familiarity with Burney and Haslett.

[*psychdoctor*]

(03-08-2018, 01:59 PM)Sled21 Wrote: Vea will be long gone before we pick at #12.....

If Vea is gone then Nelson or Edmunds may be there.

[Hoofhearted]

(03-08-2018, 02:49 PM)Shake n Blake Wrote: Again, I don't see anything from Washington. Just Tampa. From your Washington Post link:


"Lukewarm" doesn't imply that he was hated or cancerous. So basically "some" teammates were "meh" about Baker. That can be said about any player. Coaches questioned his motor or work ethic. That's known. The same things were said about Nick Fairley and he was a very popular FA on the boards a few years back.

Even with the bucsnation article, it sounds like his teammates were stressed out after a close loss and took it out on Baker for jumping offside on a 4th and short. Dumb mistake by Baker, but it sounds more like his teammates are cancerous than him. Seriously, what did he do there that suggests he has a bad attitude?

Sh!t dude idk. I was just attempting to translate some of the "issues" people take with this. But if I had to take a stab at it, I would say that he had those problem in Wash, TB said we don't care and still signed him to a 3 year deal (where he was probably their best DL man)....and still cut him. So maybe it holds a bit more merit? Almost impossible to tell. But it does warrant some concern. 

Quote:What's more, some players and coaches feel as if his attitude has been poor from the beginning in terms of effort, especially given what the Bucs are paying him.

Again, i am not beating this as a "terrible" signing, but I do think there's some cause for concern.

[Sled21]

(03-08-2018, 02:56 PM)psychdoctor Wrote: If Vea is gone then Nelson or Edmunds may be there.

Yep, and I'm thinking we take Edmunds....

[jj22]

Vea might not be out of the question. He's down to 300 and may be viewed as a backup 3tech which we do need.

[HarleyDog]

(03-08-2018, 09:41 AM)fredtoast Wrote: At last, finally getting some people to admit that they are happier when we lose and miss the playoffs than when we win more and make the playoffs.

This explains a lot of the posts I see around here.

You did not get anyone to admit they would be happier losing than making a playoff game. But you cannot convince me I have to be happy about losing every-time we get there either.

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(03-08-2018, 02:29 PM)Shake n Blake Wrote: McGlinchey is the only tackle worth the 12th pick, but I've been reading that this draft is way more heavy with Guard talent. The latest CBS mock has us taking a Guard at 12 (Isaiah Wynn) and a Tackle in the 2nd round (Brian O'Neill). Vea should be considered, but I'm not sure he's a must-grab. CBS has him going at 17. If I knew we'd get serious in FA with the o-line, sure get Vea...but I'm assuming we'll mainly use the draft to fix things, so I want o-line, o-line, o-line.

No shiny prospect is going to change my mind on that.


1. This is reading an awful lot into one incident in Tampa. Did he have a bad reputation in Washington? He spent 5 years there, so I doubt he was very cancerous.

2. $3 million isn't a lot, and FA hasn't even begun. As jaded as I am, I don't think they're done with FA. I don't see any $8-10 million dollar-ish signings coming unfortunately, but it wouldn't surprise me to see another signing for $3-4 million and maybe some cheap reclamation signings sprinkled in. We'll see.

3. I don't think he's a sub-par player. He's an upgrade from Phat Sims and definitely an average player at least, with potential to be impactful. He showed that in Washington. That's why the Bucs signed him to a contract for 3 years, $15.75 million just last year. You don't get a contract like that for being a bum.


Lol same here. This thread has me feeling like Denny 2.0. 


Agreed. This guy is our starting DT the moment he signs.

Nate Livings says hey.

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(03-08-2018, 02:51 PM)ochocincos Wrote: Yep. He definitely seems excited.

Also, here's some context for the game in which he jumped offsides last year on 4th down and subsequently got the team pissed at him...

TB was playing Carolina in Week 16.
45 seconds left in the game, 4th and 3 on the TB 5. Carolina down 15-19.
Baker flagged for neutral zone infraction, half-the-distance penalty so 4th and 1 at the TB 3.
Carolina gets the 1 yard and then scores a TD on the next play to win the game 22-19.
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2017122400/2017/REG16/buccaneers@panthers?icampaign=GC_schedule_rr#menu=gameinfo%7CcontentId%3A0ap3000000897854&tab=analyze&analyze=playbyplay

Here's also a report on ESPN that Cam Newton had been working on drawing opponents offside last year, evidenced by 10 neutral zone infractions against his opponents in 2017 through Week 16, which was more than double the total for Carolina opponents the year before (4).
http://www.espn.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/264228/drawing-teams-offside-one-of-cam-newtons-new-tricks-of-the-trade

TB was 4-10 at that point, season was already over, so winning the game really wasn't going to make a difference for TB except push them down the draft order.
Also, people didn't like that Baker smiled after getting the penalty, but it could have been that he was acknowledging Cam got him to jump offsides and he was smiling to admit "he got me." Other players do this from time to time and people don't make anything of it.

What I think/hope: Chris Baker isn't the "cancer" that some are portraying him as. His team had a terrible year and Cam was able to draw him offsides. He may not have been a locker room fit with TB last season either before or after this incident. But he seems excited to be a Bengal and I think his attitude improves, especially because he has familiarity with Burney and Haslett.

You mean like when Dalton throws an INT and grimaces or grins?

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(03-08-2018, 02:29 PM)Shake n Blake Wrote: That's why the Bucs signed him to a contract for 3 years, $15.75 million just last year. You don't get a contract like that for being a bum.

Shake, generally love the stuff you write, but I do need to point out that you just used the exact same argument Fred does when he defends Paul Alexander having Evan Mathis on the bench while Nate Livings started. He points to the contract that the Cowboys gave Livings.

[fredtoast]

(03-08-2018, 05:32 PM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: Shake, generally love the stuff you write, but I do need to point out that you just used the exact same argument Fred does when he defends Paul Alexander having Evan Mathis on the bench while Nate Livings started. He points to the contract that the Cowboys gave Livings.

1.  Paul Alexander started Mathis in front of Livings in 2009 when Evan deserved to start.  In 2010 Mathis was an out of shape slob who did not deserve to start.

2.  It is true that teams don't give big money contracts to players who have played like crap.  Many free agents play like crap AFTER they sign a big contract, but in the ultra-competitive free market of NFL free agents teams do not hand out big contracts to players who have looked like crap.

[fredtoast]

(03-08-2018, 05:23 PM)Wyche Wrote: Nate Livings says hey.

Nate Livings did not play like a Bum.

Care to explain why a team working under a salary cap would just decide to give tons of money to a someone who played like a bum?

[Socal Bengals fan]

(03-07-2018, 01:36 PM)ochocincos Wrote:

(03-08-2018, 05:55 PM)fredtoast Wrote: Nate Livings did not play like a Bum.

Care to explain why a team working under a salary cap would just decide to give tons of money to a someone who played like a bum?

Andrews was a bum n got  paid,  Mauluga same, LT Jones same,  I can go on and on.  getting paid doesn't mean you were good.  

[McC]

(03-08-2018, 05:53 PM)fredtoast Wrote: I said making the playoffs and losing in the first round was better than not making the playoffs and you offered to debate me on the point.

How can we have a debate if you don't disagree with me?

Maybe you could respond to things I actually say.

Making the playoffs is better than not, obviously, but it's more because it means more wins during the season and therefore fewer disgusted Sundays.

But all the playoff losses and especially the nature of most of them have put an enormous stink on the whole notion of being there.

And let's not forget the whole been there, done that, what else ya got theme, the hump Marvin can't get over, the plateau we  fell off of a couple years ago and the self inflictedness that caused the fall.

So, now we're faced with a lot of work just to get back to where we were, the "good old days,"  the stuck in pretty good era.  

I can't see any way that the proof could be any more vivid than it is.

[McC]

I don't know if this guy'll be any good or not. But if you sign enough of these kind of guys, suddenly the FA budget is gone.

[SunsetBengal]

(03-08-2018, 07:38 PM)McC Wrote: I don't know if this guy'll be any good or not.  But if you sign enough of these kind of guys, suddenly the FA budget is gone.

'Round here, we do our shopping at the S.S. Kresge five and dime, thank you.  

[jj22]

(03-08-2018, 03:26 PM)jj22 Wrote: Vea might not be out of the question. He's down to 300 and may be viewed as a backup 3tech which we do need.

Baker that is, not Vea.

[BrownAssClown]

(03-07-2018, 07:08 PM)fredtoast Wrote: Yeah, just look at all the top tier free agents all of the other teams in the league are signing.

Which one of them do you most wish the Bengals had signed, Trademark?

Let's just hope when "real" free agency begins that the Bengals come out "Guns ablazin'" and they can live up to your smug arrogance.

[Socal Bengals fan]

(03-09-2018, 12:08 AM)BrownAssClown Wrote: Let's just hope when "real" free agency begins that the Bengals come out "Guns ablazin'" and they can live up to your smug arrogance.

they won't do Jack,  but Fred will remind us Geno,  Dunlap will be free agents next year n need to roll over money.......