I was only trying to make that trade look even. LOL

You might lose Brooks in the FA - I'd in fact state that it is likely since he refused to sign a long term deal with the 49ers earlier due to them low-balling him - and I wouldn't be opposed to see him signing with the Saints either.

It's possible they lose Brooks. The good news is they are around $40 million under the cap. So they have a lot of room. The bad news is they have a lot of guys to resign. Including some key ones. Some big names like Carlos Rogers and Dashon Goldson who had big years. Goldson will probably get the franchise tag. Brooks may be the odd man out. Rogers says he wants to come back but who knows?

I think Brooks is a good player but not a superstar. He could help a team though. He's far from bad.

Isn't Alex Smith a FA too?

Yes he is. I think they will resign him. He has improved albeit he is not great. I think it just comes down to the draft or Free Agency won't provide a better option than an improving Smith.

A lot of things frustrate me about him. I think he can make the throws. We all saw it in the New Orleans game for example. But he is so careful and cautious. He doesn't take many chances. I wish he was a bit more of a gunslinger even if it amounted to a few more interceptions. As it is he keeps his interceptions down but doesn't take chances on 3rd down conversions. Thus they fail to convert. Sometimes you got to chuck it in there. Things aren't always perfect. That's where he is frustrating to watch.

Having said all that their WR corps kind of sucks. So it's definitely not all him. The only real legit threat is the TE Vernon Davis. I think Crabtree is overrated. He is slow.

I agree Smith has improved but he's too timid at times. I think a solid pocket passer can make average Wide Receivers look GREAT!
Alex Smith is just inconsistent. I see more consistency in Matt Ryan.
I still think QB is a component the 49ers need to address if they want to make it to the Superbowl. Alex Smith has taken a lot from Harbaugh, but how far does that go?

It's difficult to say. Because with Smith they mismanaged him as much as he failed. He had 7 offensive coordinators in 7 years. He came in the league at 20. He's still only 27. Not really old for a QB. I almost look at this as year 1 for Smith. It's the first time in his life he had a true QB developer by his side. And he made strides there. Mike Nolan and Mike Singletary (2 previous HC's) were idiot QB developers. They threw him under the bus and damaged his confidence when he was injured. Instead of coaching and developing him.

He sure doesn't have a great WR group. The TE Vernon Davis is great and he has a lot of confidence in him. And they make plays together. Another playmaker on the outside would help this team.

Alex is maddening to watch. He can look brilliant like in the New Orleans game or struggling like in the Giants game. He's just not consistent game to game. But at times he shows you flashes he can do it. But guys like Brees do it every game. He can be inconsistent on individual throws too. A brilliant one and then a real bad one. Just like games. The throws can be inconsistent.

I still don't know what to think of him 7 years later. He just gives you flashes of both sides. Definite improvement overall. He's clearly better than the suckiness I saw when he first came in the league.

I just think guys like Brady, Brees, Rodgers don't grow on trees. And they are never left without the franchise tag. They just aren't available on the open market. You have your elite 3. Then maybe Roethlisburger and Rivers (not this year though...lol). So maybe 5 super QB's in the league. Everybody else is trying to look to improve that area. It's just tough to find guys that good and get them on the open market. You guys got kind of lucky because Brees got hurt and SD gave up on him. Of course they had Rivers waiting too. So that factored into their decision.

I'm not sure he is the answer either. I'm glad to see him be better. I just don't know if we have a better option. It's maddening watching him sometimes. I wish he was more of a gunslinger instead of so scared and tenative. It would be a few more int's but maybe better for more scoring and yards and 3rd down conversions.

I think we should keep Meachem, probably resign him pretty cheap too.

I think that a lot depends on Colston and what happens with him depends on Brees. Brees is gonna command a boat-load of money from somewhere, and if it is here, then we might just see 1 or 2 of his weapons vanish...leaving people like Meachem to fill the gap. I like Meachem and believe that he can pick-up the slack. Colston is good, though...real good.

Having both Colston & Meachum, I gotta' wonder if Meachum becomes expendable under the salary cap. When I think of WR's, you always want to have one, but when was the last time a big name WR took a team to the SuperBowl without an elite QB throwing to him?

What I'm getting at is you secure guys like Brees, Nicks first and then you try to hang onto Meachum. I like the guy, but WR is something you can fill with F/A, the draft, a late season signing and besides, when Brees is completing passes to 6-7 different receivers a game ... and I saw something in the thread on Shaun Rogers, dieting and what-have-you ... take it from me, it don't get no better with that guy ... deal him now if you can, before it's too late ...

Nothing to deal... if my info is correct - and I'm pretty sure it is - Rogers is a UFA as is Franklin.

The only natural DTs the Saints have on their roster for 2012 are Sedrick Ellis, Tom Johnson, Mitch King (futures contract) and Swanson Miller (fc).

Oh yeah, he is ..... good for you guys, if you're gonna' keep him, you'll be able to get him cheap ..... the guy had a great rookie season and never really lived up to his billing since, seems like his first year with a team is always his best. Big guy to clog up the middle if it fits your scheme though.

I was going through his stats awhile back and I seem to recall most of his career seasons being also contract years, so it might just be that he is somewhat of the Haynesworth-type - only motivated to get a lucrative new deal and once it's secured, they'll relax and just do the bare minimum.

I was hoping it would be different with the Saints and that GW would be able to light a fire under his a$$, but I guess I was wrong or he wasn't just utilized as well as he could've been. Who knows?!

I wouldn't be against having him back for the right price (~$2M) and if he's motivated enough to be a competitor, but if I had to choose between him and Franklin - the choice would be obviously to go with Franklin.