Asom-Wow

At 6:00pm on Friday evening, I, like the rest of the NFL world, had my eyes glued to Twitter to see where Nnamdi Asomugha would sign.  The All-Pro cornerback was linked to a number of teams all week, and the rumors were running rampant.  And yet, once free agency officially opened, the Eagles came out of nowhere to scoop up the prize of the offseason.  Once the dust settles, it might go down as the best signing in free agency history.

All free agents have a red flag attached to them.  If they didn't, they wouldn't be free agents.  Every year, even the top player available has a “BUT” next to his name.  Last March, Julius Peppers was an elite defensive end, BUT did he take plays off?  The year before that, Albert Haynesworth was dominating offensive lines, BUT was he only motivated by his next contract? In 2008, Asante Samuel had just had an All-Pro season, BUT how much of his success came from Bill Belichick’s system?  The questions aren't always justified, but they're there nonetheless.  BUT...

...once every few years, a free agent comes around that has no questions attached to him; a Hall of Fame talent, in his prime, with no concerns about his character, health, or work ethic.  Only four free agents have fit that bill in the past 20 years: Reggie White, Deion Sanders, Curtis Martin, and Steve Hutchinson. And now, you can add Asomugha to that select group.

Elite talent?  In a league where passer-friendly rule changes are making the shutdown cornerback extinct, Asomugha is one of two players (the other being Darelle Revis) that can erase an opponent's top receiver week after week.

In his prime?  At 29, he is experienced and yet still has a few years until the age when cornerbacks typically decline.

Character?  A renaissance man, Asomugha is the consummate teammate on the field and an active community leader off it.

Health?  He has missed five games in the last six seasons, with no major injuries.

Work ethic?  While being the highest paid player in the league, in a dysfunctional Raiders franchise, Asomugha has only continued to improve over eight seasons.

In short, Asomugha has no red flags.  Whatever team acquired him would be making a huge upgrade to their roster.  But such a purchase doesn't come cheap.  White, Sanders and Hutchinson all signed record-breaking deals, and so it was only logical to assume that Asomugha would carry a similar price tag.  At the very least, he would maintain his $15 million annual salary.

So you can imagine my shock when I saw that he signed with the Eagles for a mere $12 million per year for five years, with $25 million guaranteed. That's 25 percent less than what he was making with the Raiders.  It's less than what the Panthers just paid for defensive end Charles Johnson (feel free to ask: "Who?").  It's only one-and-a-half million more guaranteed dollars than cornerback Johnathan Joseph received from the Texans the day before.  It was a steal.

Given the contract that Houston gave Joseph, I have to assume that they offered more than $12 million per year to Asomugha.  But my guess is that Nnamdi spurned them, and every other suitor, for what he thinks is his best chance to get to the Super Bowl.  And so Philadelphia not only grabbed the best free agent of the last five years, but did so at a discount.

In the coming weeks, I'll address the Eagles' championship odds (good), their offseason strategy (brilliant) and whether Vince Young has become the Mario Chalmers of the NFL (definitely).  But right now, with free agency still not quite over, we can call the fight and declare Philly the winner.  Getting Asomugha for the price that they did is nothing short of spectacular.  And if he indeed is hoisting Philadelphia's first-ever Super Bowl trophy next February, it'll be tough to argue that it wasn't the best free agent signing in NFL history.
Image found here.