Mr. Scot

All signs say this is one of those that's not.

Not every statement made by coaches and players is posturing. Sometimes they just mean what they say.

But a definitive answer. If it means no more Steve Smith threads, I'd say it's worth it.

PFT had posted an article suggesting the Ravens should trade Smith to the Arizona Cardinals.

Nothing surprises me, anymore. Regardless, if this doesn't end the "bring back Steve Smith" threads, I don't know what will.

You know what gets me? This... Followed by this... Seems like kind of a rude response to his son's post, in my opinion. Mind you, not as rude as his response to Monsta.

After, but I'm not convinced it matters, honestly.

So first "I'll quit if they trade me" and now this. Anybody still on this bandwagon?

No. There was more to it than that. That's not the point, though. It's just an example. The point is that this whole idea that other teams demonstrate some great "loyalty" to their players while the mean old Panthers just toss people aside is ridiculous. You can find examples of beloved players getting cut loose for every single team in the league. You might even find some of the harsher stories come from some of the league's more successful teams. It's a business, and if you want to be successful, you run it like one.

Pretty much. Hero worship is fun when you're a kid, but sometimes when you grow up you learn unpleasant facts about the guys you used to idolize. Part of becoming an adult, I guess.

Sounds more like Steve Smith wasn't playing as well as he had in prior years (especially late in the season).

There was a whole big brouhaha between McNair and the Ravens late in his career. As was stated before, football is a business. "Loyalty" in the NFL is an amusing concept. Teams are 'loyal' to guys who are producing. Players are 'loyal' to whatever team pays them the most. And on both sides, it's justified. That's why people hoping for storybook endings generally wind up disappointed. This isn't a fairy tale.

Maybe you should become a Ravens fan, kid. But before you do, you might wanna look back at the "loyalty" the Ravens showed Steve McNair, for example.

Yeah, about that loyalty...

Well, here's your final answer, Regis. Steve Smith: "I'd quit if the Ravens traded me." So If Smith says he'd rather quit than play for anyone but the Ravens, do people here still want him back?

They haven't given up on the season yet, and I doubt they will have by November 3rd. Throw in that we'd have to be pretty stupid to trade a pick for a guy who's only gonna play half a season.

Letting go of one of their only productive players at a position where they're already majorly thin is beneficial? I think you and I have differing understandings of what that word means. Dude, he's not notng back. You can come up with as many wishful scenarios as you want to, but here in the real world, there's no incentive for either team to make this trade. The trade deadline is November 3rd. All indications are that as of November 4th, Steve Smith will still be playing for the Baltimore Ravens. It's time to let it go.

And what's in it for them? A low round draft pick? We're sure as heck not giving up a high pick for him. They have him under contract. There is zero incentive for them to let him out of it. Said it earlier in the thread. Teams are not in the business of doing favors for other teams or helping players have a happy ending somewhere else. The whole "trade him so he can get a ring" idea is pretty much a fanboy fantasy.

Take a look at the history of players that have tried stuff like that. Good teams rarely let players force their hand on decisions.

They're trying to talk him into coming back and playing for them next year instead of retiring. Given that, what makes you think they'd part with him this year?

Oh, I think it's absolutely zero chance, and not just because of the Panthers. The Ravens trading him for anything less than a good value would essentially equal an admission that the season is over. John Harbaugh and Ozzie Newsome aren't the kind of guys to do that with half the season still remaining. And given that they've already publicly stated that they have no plans to trade him, I think they'd be very hard to convince. These kinds of pre-deadline trade discussions go on all around the league on an annual basis, but hardly ever happen.

Related note: Remember this story? The Wall Street Journal Note that this took place in 2013. Steve Smith was released in 2014. Coincidence? It makes one wonder.

Yep. And again, why should they? Newsome addressing it directly does make me wonder if Smith may have floated a trial balloon himself behind the scenes.

Some of the posts in this thread sound like they were written by kids as well. The NFL is a business, and in the business of putting together the best team possible, chemistry matters. It's not as simple as pulling together as many talented players as you can find. If it were, then 'dream teams' like the ones the Eagles and Dolphins have put together in prior years wouldn't have flopped so badly. If you really think talent covers everything, then answer this: Why did guys like Terrell Owens, Randy Moss and Percy Harvin keep getting dumped by their respective teams when they were putting up great numbers? It's not Madden. In the real world, men not getting along causes problems. If the problems get big enough, the team is forced to deal with it.

Jerry Rice, Emmitt Smith, Steve McNair, Marcus Allen, Tony Gonzalez, Steve McMichael, Brett Favre, Reggie White (remember him) and many other star players finished their careers with teams other than the one they were most closely identified with. Guys like Barry Sanders, Dan Marino, Bruce Matthews, Brian Urlacher and many others toiled their entire careers for one team but never got a championship ring. While others like Troy Aikman and Warren Sapp saw glory but then stuck around long enough to see their teams spiral downward into mediocrity. Happy endings aren't really the norm in the NFL. If Smith's career doesn't end like he'd have wanted it to, he'll be one of many.