[NC_Skins]

Originally Posted by Lotus

Trading high picks for a coach is not the same as trading high picks for a player, hence Shanahan's oft-quoted comments. If you trade for a coach, you strip him of draft picks, but if you trade for a player you still get a player.

Shanahan's comments about the Gruden hire are not relevant to a discussion about a trade-up for a player.

I think you need to reread the interview. He used the Jon Gruden trade as a comparison to trading up to the No. 1 for 3 first rounders. I think he's telling you that he doesn't think it's worth it be it a coach or a player.

I followed up with a question about the reports and speculation that it could take three No. 1 picks to trade up to the No. 1 spot and take Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck and asked if he considered that realistic or sensible. He responded with a comparison to the 2002 deal in which the Oakland Raiders got two first-round picks, two second-round picks and cash from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in exchange for head coach Jon Gruden.