NFL: Offseason Thread

[Mr Janny]

La Canfora thinks it's down to the Jets or the Vikings

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/...takes-will-come-down-to-the-jets-and-vikings/

 

[Cyclone.TV]

Why is Kirk cousins so sought after? How has he proven he can win a super bowl?

 

[JP4CY]

Minnesota is closer to home for him. Get to play inside a beautiful stadium where weather won't be a problem half of the games. Play for a loaded team. The choice is obvious in my opinion.

Kirk Cousins is in a union. Unions don't like their players taking less money.

Not saying he won't go there but it's not as easy as you think just because Minnesota has a good team.

 

[Mr Janny]

Why is Kirk cousins so sought after? How has he proven he can win a super bowl?

When was the last time that a super bowl winning quarterback under the age of 30 hit free agency?

No offense, but are you even paying attention? Quarterback is the most sought after position in the NFL. Middling players who have hardly any starts or stats to their name get big contracts. Mike Glennon got $18 million for playing one year with the Bears and starting 4 games. Jimmy Garoppolo has 7 career starts and just signed a contract with $70 million guaranteed. Cousins is 29 years old, and for the past 3 years has averaged over 4000 yards and 25 TDs per season on a team with average, at best, offensive talent surrounding him.

Guys like that very rarely hit the open market. When they do, there will be a bidding war. It's that simple.

 

[Mr Janny]

Kirk Cousins is in a union. Unions don't like their players taking less money.

Not saying he won't go there but it's not as easy as you think just because Minnesota has a good team.

I highly doubt that's going to be a factor. Look at Tom Brady. He's taken less money to stay with the Pats several times. Did the union give any indication that they supported him any less when they were defending him through DeflateGate? Players take team friendly deals all of the time.

 

[JP4CY]

I highly doubt that's going to be a factor. Look at Tom Brady. He's taken less money to stay with the Pats several times. Did the union give any indication that they supported him any less when they were defending him through DeflateGate? Players take team friendly deals all of the time.

Tom Brady is definitely a unique case, and some players do what he does in taking less money. His desire to continue to win championships is huge.
I know he has also restructured his contract a few times and the Pats have played money games with changing that into signing bonuses too.

But, I will say the majority of players will probably take the higher payday.

Me, weather would be huge. I'd rather take a pay cut and wear flip flops and drive a convertible to practice in Arizona, Atlanta, than thru snow in Buffalo.

 

[Cyclones_R_GR8]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I'm glad I'm not the one having to make this decision.

 

[Cyclone.TV]

When was the last time that a super bowl winning quarterback under the age of 30 hit free agency?

No offense, but are you even paying attention? Quarterback is the most sought after position in the NFL. Middling players who have hardly any starts or stats to their name get big contracts. Mike Glennon got $18 million for playing one year with the Bears and starting 4 games. Jimmy Garoppolo has 7 career starts and just signed a contract with $70 million guaranteed. Cousins is 29 years old, and for the past 3 years has averaged over 4000 yards and 25 TDs per season on a team with average, at best, offensive talent surrounding him.

Guys like that very rarely hit the open market. When they do, there will be a bidding war. It's that simple.

I get that qbs are paid big money in free agency, and how often has it resulted in a super bowl championship?

 

[cmjh10]

What if the Vikes offered less, but guaranteed more?

 

[cyhiphopp]

What if the Vikes offered less, but guaranteed more?

That's how I signed my wife.

 

[jbindm]

What if the Vikes offered less, but guaranteed more?

It's possible. You look at the deal for Garropalo and some of the other recent big money QB contracts and you can see that teams and agents are starting to get very creative with the structure of the deal. If the Vikings are interested then their perfect scenario would be a front loaded deal with a ton of guaranteed money up front that wouldn't completely tie up their cap flexibility later on.

But the reality is that in the salary cap era a team can't invest heavily on both sides of the ball. Paying Cousins big money would restrict their ability to maintain an elite defense. You can't pay everybody.

 

[Mr Janny]

Tom Brady is definitely a unique case, and some players do what he does in taking less money. His desire to continue to win championships is huge.
I know he has also restructured his contract a few times and the Pats have played money games with changing that into signing bonuses too.

But, I will say the majority of players will probably take the higher payday.

Me, weather would be huge. I'd rather take a pay cut and wear flip flops and drive a convertible to practice in Arizona, Atlanta, than thru snow in Buffalo.

I don't disagree with that in the slightest, but I don't think it has much, if anything to do with union pressure.

 

[cyhiphopp]

It's possible. You look at the deal for Garropalo and some of the other recent big money QB contracts and you can see that teams and agents are starting to get very creative with the structure of the deal. If the Vikings are interested then their perfect scenario would be a front loaded deal with a ton of guaranteed money up front that wouldn't completely tie up their cap flexibility later on.

But the reality is that in the salary cap era a team can't invest heavily on both sides of the ball. Paying Cousins big money would restrict their ability to maintain an elite defense. You can't pay everybody.

It's a trade off for sure. If you believe you have the chance to sign a franchise level QB to a long term deal, can you pass on him? The defense is great right now. If they end up only signing a few of their defensive free agents and drafting replacements, can it remain pretty good?

If you have a great front office, you can replace defensive starters in the draft if need be.

 

[CyBroncos]

If Denver is out of the running, I'm not going to shed any tears. Cousins is a good QB and I would have been fine with it if Elway lands him...but he's not worth that kind of money and cap issues. I'll take my chances with Case Keenum and better cap flexibility.

 

[JP4CY]

I don't disagree with that in the slightest, but I don't think it has much, if anything to do with union pressure.

It's a different sport but still a strong Union but have you ever seen the A-Rod 30 for 30? The Red Sox have a signed contract with him.
Guess who said that wasn't going to happen? The players Union.

Any time a player signs a contract for less money it can impact the rest of the union. Again, I'm not saying that's necessarily the case here but I think it happens more than we all hear about.

 

[jbindm]

It's a trade off for sure. If you believe you have the chance to sign a franchise level QB to a long term deal, can you pass on him? The defense is great right now. If they end up only signing a few of their defensive free agents and drafting replacements, can it remain pretty good?

If you have a great front office, you can replace defensive starters in the draft if need be.

Depends on what kind of franchise QB Cousins is. I don't agree with everything Colin Cowherd says, but he constantly harps on the idea that there are levels of franchise quarterbacks and I think there's some merit to that line of thought. A handful of QBs in the league can carry a team, and then there are others who can get you to a Super Bowl if they're surrounded by a great roster. I think Cousins is in the latter camp. So if you pay him top dollar like a guy who can carry a team, are you setting him up to fail by not being able to afford to put a great team around him beyond next season?

You can depend on the draft to replenish your talent, but even the best front offices in the league swing and miss every now and again.

 

[cyhiphopp]

Depends on what kind of franchise QB Cousins is. I don't agree with everything Colin Cowherd says, but he constantly harps on the idea that there are levels of franchise quarterbacks and I think there's some merit to that line of thought. A handful of QBs in the league can carry a team, and then there are others who can get you to a Super Bowl if they're surrounded by a great roster. I think Cousins is in the latter camp. So if you pay him top dollar like a guy who can carry a team, are you setting him up to fail by not being able to afford to put a great team around him beyond next season?

You can depend on the draft to replenish your talent, but even the best front offices in the league swing and miss every now and again.

I agree with you. I was just proposing some alternatives. I'm not guaranteeing that Cousins is one of those true superstars. That's for NFL GMs to decide, and I don't make that kind of money.

I really like the Vikings, so I hope they make the right decision.

It's just hard to know what to do when you have an opportunity to sign a QB like that. Usually you have to be really bad to be able to draft a real quality starting QB. Is it worth paying a premium for one in free agency? I don't know.

 

[jbindm]

I agree with you. I was just proposing some alternatives. I'm not guaranteeing that Cousins is one of those true superstars. That's for NFL GMs to decide, and I don't make that kind of money.

I really like the Vikings, so I hope they make the right decision.

It's just hard to know what to do when you have an opportunity to sign a QB like that. Usually you have to be really bad to be able to draft a real quality starting QB. Is it worth paying a premium for one in free agency? I don't know.

Yeah, I'm glad I don't have to make the call. Pretty much the only thing I'm sure of regarding the Vikings and their QB situation is that they should let Bradford walk. There is zero chance that guy can stay healthy for a full season. But beyond that? Hell, I don't know. I think their best bet is to get Keenum back at a reasonable deal and draft a QB to develop. Let someone else overpay for Kirk Cousins. But it's a tough call. Drafting a QB is no sure bet either.

 

[Mr Janny]

It's a different sport but still a strong Union but have you ever seen the A-Rod 30 for 30? The Red Sox have a signed contract with him.
Guess who said that wasn't going to happen? The players Union.

Any time a player signs a contract for less money it can impact the rest of the union. Again, I'm not saying that's necessarily the case here but I think it happens more than we all hear about.

The NFLPA is absolutely not a strong union. Not when compared to the MLBPA. The MLBPA wouldn't stand for a ton of the stuff that happens every day in the NFL.

 

[Mr Janny]

Salary cap set at just over 177 million.
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2018/03/05/report-salary-cap-set-at-177-2-million/