Sunday Notes: Lions Tried to Trade for Cutler?

by Sean Yuille on Mar 1, 2009 3:38 AM EST in Notes Comment 11 comments

The Jon Kitna trade has been confirmed and we now know that no draft picks were part of the deal. The Cowboys got Kitna and the Lions got cornerback Anthony Henry, who presumably will be a starter in Detroit.

I've got to hand it to Martin Mayhew. I don't know what it is with the Cowboys, but Mayhew just has a way with them. Kitna was set to earn a $1 million roster bonus on March 3, meaning he would have been released before then. That's only a couple days away from now, meaning the Cowboys very well could have signed him then. Regardless, they decided to make a trade that gave Detroit a starting cornerback in exchange for a player that would have been off the roster in the immediate future anyways.
I will point out that Kitna restructured his contract with the Cowboys to help Dallas' salary cap. That makes me think that getting rid of Henry was a salary cap move, and the Cowboys figured they would pick up a backup quarterback during the process. If that is the case, the trade makes more sense from their perspective. Still, it is a tad on the odd side.
Lost in the news of the Kitna trade is the deal that both the Lions and Buccaneers reportedly tried to pull off. It involved the Patriots and the Broncos and would have sent Jay Cutler to Detroit or Tampa Bay if a deal had been done. Here are the details:

While New England and Kansas City were agreeing to Saturday’s trade of Cassel to the Chiefs for the draft’s 34th overall pick, there were more teams in the mix. Detroit, Tampa and Denver were involved in trade talks of their own also tied to Cassel, according to sources in the respective NFL cities.

Tampa approached Denver to try to make a three-way trade that would have sent Cassel to the Broncos and quarterback Jay Cutler to the Buccaneers. The Broncos entertained the notion and pondered it but ultimately decided against it.

Also, the Lions approached the Broncos about a trade for Cutler, trying to dangle Cassel as bait. Once again, Denver debated the deal and opted against it apparently. What made it a moot point was that while all Tampa, Detroit and Denver engaged in trade talks with New Engalnd, the Patriots went ahead and dealt Cassel to the Chiefs.
As if the wheeling and dealing going on behind the scenes wasn't surprising enough, the biggest shocker is that the Patriots supposedly turned down Tampa's offer of a first- and third-round pick. Had that trade happened, it would have sent Cassel to Denver and Cutler to the Buccaneers.

I love that Mayhew was in on these talks, as a deal that would have landed the Lions Jay Cutler would have been downright amazing. Although nothing beyond talks developed with the Patriots and the Broncos, I'm not totally shutting the door on the possibility of a team trading for Cutler just yet. It seems highly unlikely, but Cutler thinks the Broncos will continue to shop him, and even if they don't, he seems to be pretty offended by the team's actions. What's more, he used the past tense when describing his time in Denver, leading me to believe that this saga is far from over.
Wide receiver Michael Clayton visited the Lions Saturday afternoon and later headed to Minnesota before deciding to re-sign with the Buccaneers. The fact that he was visiting with the Lions this afternoon tells me that Detroit is still looking to add depth at receiver. Even though Bryant Johnson was signed, we should probably expect an additional transaction involving the WR position during the free agency period.
Jabari Greer visited the Lions Saturday night.
Dave Birkett got some quotes from new Lion Eric King.
Dan Orlovsky visited the Texans, who are now looking for a backup QB since they traded Sage Rosenfels to the Vikings.
If the Lions would have shown serious interest in Albert Haynesworth, he would have considered heading to Detroit because of Jim Schwartz.

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Comments

Unsure

While I’m happy with trading away Kitna, I’m unsure of the quality of Henry. He is a veteren but he seems to have trouble in coverage and last year we picked up a veteren corner and I can’t even remember his name, but he didn’t do too well.

by Hyperion Ecta on Mar 1, 2009 5:55 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

It's a good trade

Henry is a starter. We’ll have to have some succession planning for him, but we should be able to get at least 2 good years out of him. That allows us time to draft some young talent and not have to force them in to starting roles before they are ready. This team was never going to keep both Kitna and Culpepper. There was no reason to do it. The fact that they got a starting, mid-level cornerback for a 38 year old quarterback they were going to cut anyway… is a GREAT deal.

You are referring to Brian Kelly, who was much older than Henry. Henry was traded to free up cap space and was still a starter last year. Kelly was cut due to decreased playing time and skills. Not that Henry is going to come in and have a pro bowl year, but he’s a much needed upgrade.

by DrewsLions on Mar 1, 2009 10:37 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Henry

As I said, for the most part I’m happy. Henry just worries me a little. I hope he plays well and helps to shore up our coverage but it doesn’t change the fact that we’ll probably have to pick up a nice corner in the early rounds of the draft.

by Hyperion Ecta on Mar 1, 2009 5:46 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Echoing Drew's thoughts

I’m not enamored with Henry. He’s on the older side, he’s slowed enough where he can be overmatched in coverage, and having him around will cost about a million or two more than keeping Kitna would have, the real reason the Cowboys made that deal.

But this is a case where the Lions got something for nothing (from their point of view). Kitna was gone in a couple days anyway, and while Henry isn’t really a good starting cornerback, he is still capable to some degree, which is leaps and bounds beyond what the Lions had last season.

What impresses me about Mayhew thus far is this: he’s able to correctly identify the advantages and disadvantages in any given situation, including those of other teams. That sounds simple, but it’s what enables GMs to make the best of any set of circumstances.

As much as Kitna is useless to the Lions, he does possess some value to a team like the Cowboys. The Cowboys could use a capable backup should Tony Romo go down, and, despite the bonus, he’s still cost-effective. By trading for him, the Cowboys keep another team—say the Jets—from pushing to sign him, thus controlling his cost. As for Henry, Mayhew identified a player who had more value to him than his original team. The Cowboys probably need a little extra cap space, they weren’t thrilled with his 2008 performance, and they were toying with the idea of moving Henry to safety anyway (an obvious mistake).

The fact that he was trying to acquire Cassel just to flip him to Denver for Cutler only reinforces this perception of Mayhew as a guy who sees possibilities.

by Alex Nelson on Mar 1, 2009 1:31 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Sean

You’re doing a great job staying on top of all of the news; nicely done!

Peace
Ty

http://thelionsinwinter.blogspot.com

by ty@thelionsinwinter on Mar 1, 2009 7:21 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Ditto, Sean

Excellent work!

by DrewsLions on Mar 1, 2009 10:38 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Warner

We should talk to the best out there. 1st in ypg, top 5 in all other catagories, great accuracy. Better than Culpepper.

by proud to bleed light blue on Mar 1, 2009 10:53 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Lion lost at sea

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AtxOQPAcpo1gLDZA8B7qX8Y5nYcB?slug=txnflplayersmissing&prov=st&type=lgns

Corey Smith on a missing boat. If it weren’t sad and worrisome, it would be an excellent allegory for the season.

by Trysdor on Mar 1, 2009 1:15 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

A Cowboy fan here.

I dropped in on you guys to see what you guys thought of the trade. I posted on the last thread before I saw the new one. Its funny you guys think Jerry got taken. Henry was a good physical corner for us but has been battling knee problems for the last 2 years. We picked up 2 CBs in last years draft and they both look very good. Henry was going to be a 4th corner for us this year. His cap number wasnt going to match his production.

Last year when Romo went down we had Brad Johnson. They say when an athlete loses it he loses if fast. Well BJ fell off a cliff. The guy could barely reach the line of scrimmage without bouncing it once. Many a Cowboy fan blame him for missing the playoffs.(not me) They felt that the Rams loss was unacceptable and that loss was the deciding factor. Truth be told we sucked at the end of the year and didnt deserve to go.

Kitna will be a good fit for us. Martz’s Offense come from Coryell/Zampeeze/Norv turner. Same tree as Jason Garrett our OC. Boller and Rex dont seemed to be able to read a defense and Garcia is a bad fit for anything but the West Coast.

I think this was a good trade for both teams. Both guys would have probably been cut and we both would have overpaid for them in FA.
I can also tell you we will be watching a few Detroit games this year as CJ is a beast and a joy to watch. Good luck next year, after the Millen days you guys deserve it.

by squidlo97 on Mar 1, 2009 2:18 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

I think

a lot of the Jerry Jones bashing was based on some (false?) reports that there were 5th and 6th rounders going from Dallas to Detroit in addition to Henry. It also didn’t make a ton of sense that they’d trade for Kitna when everyone knew he was going to get released next week anyway. Now if Dallas was going to release Henry anyway then it’s a moot point. But as far as talent for talent and need for need, yeah the trade is probably fairly even.

by wumanchu01 on Mar 1, 2009 2:42 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Squidlo97

No offence but if you think your getting a good backup you are wrong, you just traded for a guy who skills are all but gone, if you need a proof get a tape of lions vs packers week 2 I was at that game and trust me you were better off going after Danny O. I do agree the trade will work for both we get a corner we think will help and you get a back you think will help when called upon so in that sense it works.

by msivits on Mar 1, 2009 5:58 PM EST reply actions 0 recs