Bring On The Beast

"The Beast" has finally been traded. After months of speculation, wide receiver Brandon Marshall has been traded from the Denver Broncos to the Miami Dolphins. The Broncos will receive Miami's second round pick in the upcoming 2010 NFL draft and a second round pick in next year's draft.


The Seahawks were thought to have been the leading contender for his services, but obviously Jeff Ireland and the Dolphins came up with the right price.

The Dolphins are giving Marshall a new contract with a boat load of guaranteed money. Twenty seven millions dollars of guaranteed money to be exact. I hope the newly married Marshall has put his checkered past behind him. Giving a player with behavior issues a ton of money in a city with a well documented night life is a big risk. It is obvious that the Dolphins feel the possible reward is much greater than the risk.


Marshall is an extremely physical wide receiver and adds to the Dolphins already "smashmouth" offensive identity. The person probably most happy with this trade is fellow Dolphins wide receiver Ted Ginn. He has struggled in his role of being the main target. With Marshall now receiving the lion's share of defensive attention in the passing game, Ginn will see more single coverage and will be able to do what he does best: beat cornerbacks deep.

 Many will say that after this trade, the Broncos are falling apart, and they have given away their best players in the last two offseasons. While I don't totally disagree, it is hard to deny the fact that Jay Cutler struggled with the Bears last year, and Marshall has been a malcontent. 

Josh McDaniels has shipped out most of the unhappy players (with the exception of tight end Tony Scheffler) and now has "control" of the locker room. The question remains, if those in the locker room are going to be talented enough to win football games.


The acquistion of Marshall definitely changes the upcoming draft. As many pundits (including me) had wide receiver Dez Bryant in our mock drafts at one point or another going to the Dolphins with the 12th overall pick on April 22nd. This scenario is obviously dead. The good news for Bryant is teams like the Broncos at pick 11 and the Seahawks at pick 14 are in the market for a talented receiver. 

 


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Could Marshall Spread His Wings?

 The burning interest the Seattle Seahawks once had in Broncos receiver Brandon Marshall has gone mysteriously quiet for a month now.

The top wide outs available in this month's draft have completed their pro days, and the teams have gathered all the information they need. Now the question stands: is this deal still a reality?


Dez Bryant was thought of as a wide receiver with the potential of being a top ten draft pick, but now concerns about his attitude and character have been brought up. Most of it stems from a situation at his pro day where he didn't finish his drills because he apparently forgot his favorite cleats.


Demaryius Thomas, of Georgia Tech, and Arrelious Benn, of Illinois, are widely considered the next best receivers in the draft, but neither of them are good values at the 6th or 14th pick in the first round.

That brings us to Marshall. His character issues can't be ignored. There was the "I slipped on a McDonald's bag" incident and his questionable practice habits. He has been arrested for assault or battery at least four times, has had one DUI, and - the worst of all - the probability that his altercation with gang members fueled the shooting death of Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams.


Should the Seahawks be willing to part with the 14th overall pick for a guy with this kind of baggage? The answer is yes. He is a difference maker on the football field. General managers and head coaches  keep their jobs by winning football games. This is the type of football player that will help you do it. That is if he doesn't end up dead or in prison first. That's the cold, hard truth of football.


 


Every Morning Quarterback by Aharon Williams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at www.everymorningqb.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at www.everymorningqb.com.