Long Live Russ! Great QB and a better man. I hate to see him go.
But it's a business, winning is the goal. The Hawks did not have the complementary pieces to win in '22 & '23, Russ' last 2 (large) contract years. Time to reload!
PC & JS played "win now" after the 2014 Super Bowl. To "win now", they traded draft picks for good pending free agents, most of whom left for better pay. Hawk core got older, Bobby & Russ contracts take a lot of cap space. Hawks had to scrimp, especially on O line. Russ paid the price. Especially the last 3 seasons, even if not sacked, even if he got rid of the ball, opponents made sure he got "touched" on nearly every pass play. There's a cumulative effect: Russ got slower, wanted to be a pocket passer. Hawks literally can't afford to buy Russ an O-line pocket.
For 2022, with few picks and many D & O needs, PC & JS know they can't win EVEN with Russ. "Win now" didn't work, they know it's time to rebuild ground up.
This means BWags and some pending FA's are gone too. All we can do is hope the drafts, side trades and any compensatory picks add up to a dynamic competitor in 2023.
Long Live Russ! Great QB and a better man. I hate to see him go.
But it's a business, winning is the goal. The Hawks did not have the complementary pieces to win in '22 & '23, Russ' last 2 (large) contract years. Time to reload!
PC & JS played "win now" after the 2014 Super Bowl. To "win now", they traded draft picks for good pending free agents, most of whom left for better pay. Hawk core got older, Bobby & Russ contracts take a lot of cap space. Hawks had to scrimp, especially on O line. Russ paid the price. Especially the last 3 seasons, even if not sacked, even if he got rid of the ball, opponents made sure he got "touched" on nearly every pass play. There's a cumulative effect: Russ got slower, wanted to be a pocket passer. Hawks literally can't afford to buy Russ an O-line pocket.
For 2022, with few picks and many D & O needs, PC & JS know they can't win EVEN with Russ. "Win now" didn't work, they know it's time to rebuild ground up.
This means BWags and some pending FA's are gone too. All we can do is hope the drafts, side trades and any compensatory picks add up to a dynamic competitor in 2023.
They have to rebuild now or later?
Maybe you could write a post to compare this to other superstar blockbuster trades.