Posted on Wednesday 8 June 2005 by G @ 11:29 am
As expected, the Browns have offered Ross Verba his release in exchange for Verba’s agreement to repay $465,000 of a roster bonus. Meanwhile, the Browns added another veteran tackle by signing Marcus Spears. This should give them some depth and insurance after signing tackle L. J. Shelton last week.
Savage and Crennell continue to remake this troubled roster. Verba was overrated as a left tackle, and his contract demands were ridiculous. Savage has shown he will not be intimidated by contract demands, and that no individual player is more important than the team. Expectations are low for the upcoming season, and they are rebuilding this team for the long term, so guys like Shelton and Spears just need to be adequate for now. Who knows, they might even be better than Verba.
Why is it guys like Verba, average to good players who are infinitely replaceable, have this bloated sense of worth? What makes Verba think he deserves the kind of contract he’s asking for? Does he honestly think some other team is going to throw all that money at him once the Browns release him? It’d be nice to keep him around this year from a pure depth and talent standpoint but if he’s going to bitch and moan all season, Savage is doing the right thing by just dumping him. We don’t need the headache.