I see it much the same way. Keep control without breaking the bank, but at some point that won’t be feasible. If he is strung along I wouldn’t just let him walk, I’d tag him and trade him. I suspect he would bring great draft capital back to the team. I believe if they don’t tag him and he signs elsewhere for a huge amount that they would get a very high compensatory pick. I’d rather keep him, just like Sammy, but if any player prices himself so high that it would be detrimental to the TEAM’s future there’s not much a team can do if it wants to stay competitive year in and year out.
