Lomardi says the Patriots have to franchise Cassel

[dhamz]

IF Cassel continues to progress, Pioli and BB WILL franchise him with the understanding that he does not sign it and they agree to trade him to a team where he can start. My guess is Minny.

Why is it just assumed he'll agree to this? Does it make any sense for Cassel from a business standpoint? What is he getting in return for giving up some of his leverage?

 

[BelichickFan]

There doesn't have to be an understanding, Cassel can sign the tag to protect himself then still be traded either under the one year deal or a long term deal pre-worked out with the new team.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

Why is it just assumed he'll agree to this? Does it make any sense for Cassel from a business standpoint? What is he getting in return for giving up some of his leverage?

The buzz of being one of the handful of franchise tagged players all the talking heads are a twitter about matching to potential situations entering FA... It doesn't always add to the package but for players who have just apparently had a breakout season it adds legitimacy to what they're doing and elevates thier profile substantially over the retreads and jags who will be a teams alternative to trading for him. I believe it added to Asante's ultimate 2008 value that BB was tagging a guy in 2007 who had double digit picks against some awful QB's in 2006 but had no trade value in 2005 on a secondary so abyssmal it appeared Rodney Harrison and the system were the driving force behind Samuel having any rings...

And i do not believe it costs them a cent. Deion got his $9M deal even as Seattle traded a #1 for the priviledge of signing him... And sometimes having a little more than just money invested in a guy buys them more time and leeway in transition...organizations feeling they have to make it work.

 

[MassPats38]

Why is it just assumed he'll agree to this? Does it make any sense for Cassel from a business standpoint? What is he getting in return for giving up some of his leverage?

I think we are playing by Madden NFL standards. Cassel will be most marketable after this season. He is not old, so he would become slightly less marketable at the end of next season but still marketable. Teams looking to trade for Cassel likely would not be looking to pay $14 million for one season, so would be looking to spread out the damage over a long-term contract with up front signing money before trading for him so they can minimize risks by maximizing non-guaranteed money (an escape clause). Eliminating the additional value the Patriots would be looking to get for him from the trade, Cassel likely could find a home as a starter but in free agency he, not the Pats, dictate the choice of his future club. The only say Cassel would have as to trades would be refusing to renegotiate the contract he is currently under (the one year franchise agreement), which would be preliminary to any trade, and that is how he can kill trades.

From a trade, the Pats look for maximum return irrespective of whether the offensive line for that trading partner will get Cassel killed within a year, or whether the organization otherwise is so poorly run Cassel may find himself out of the NFL in two years. Given these possibilities, there is less risk for Cassel immediately signing the tender and refusing to renegotiate a long-term deal (unless he likes the team), thereby guaranteeing he is a free agent the next year while at the same time can bank far more money than he has made to date. Good trade value tends to come from organizations that make bad decisions and offer more than a player tends to be worth in trade, so Cassel's interests and the Pats' interests likely will not go hand in hand on a trade.

 

[Brarrell]

They will franchise and trade him for a couple picks probably a 2nd and 3rd or two 2's. Even if Brady isn't ready they will go with Gutierrez or O'Connell. They are rebuilding the team while trying to stay championship competitive. You have to look no further than Matt Schaubb the Pats will get compensation for Cassel. This years draft and free agency will be the most important since 2003. In a strange way not winning the division may be the best thing to happen to this franchise I've thought for some time they have depended on Brady to much and let some of the talent slip because they new for the most part Brady will make up for some of their lapses. Watching football this year I now know how good Brady really is its not even close he is the best player in football.

 

[Fencer]

IF Cassel continues to progress, Pioli and BB WILL franchise him with the understanding that he does not sign it

And why would he give them such an understanding? Players usually HATE being franchised.

On the other hand, $14 1/2 million guaranteed is probably as big a guarantee as he can get on a long-term deal. Maybe even bigger. So he could just sign the deal, and plan to be a free agent the following year.

 

[Fencer]

Don't forget we'll probably get comp picks for Stallworth and Gay, too.

If Cassell just walks in FA, he's a 4th round comp pick or so a year later. Assuming that the Pats don't take in more FAs than they lose, of course.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

And why would he give them such an understanding? Players usually HATE being franchised.

On the other hand, $14 1/2 million guaranteed is probably as big a guarantee as he can get on a long-term deal. Maybe even bigger. So he could just sign the deal, and plan to be a free agent the following year.

If people read through threads before posting they might find some rationale that answers their concerns...

If he gets $7M per (and it could be more like $8M) on a 6 year deal it would likely guarantee close to $20M if not more (Eli got that on his rookie contract). If he signs the tag he likely sits for a year and his market cools dramatically in this flavor of the month league...

FYI the tag while guaranteed once signed gets paid out over 17 weeks beginning in week 1. Signing bonus money on a new long term deal on the other hand gets paid out on the day you sign the deal. Option or roster bonus money if any gets paid out up front on the first day of the new season it covers or shortly thereafter but well in advance of another season when you again collect 17 weekly checks. Long term deals for QB's also often include skill and injury guarantees that insure you see a portion of the entire deal even if you suffer a career ending injury. So all in all you get more on a long term deal than you do on a franchise tag.

 

[JoePats]

Say he signs the tender. And we have no deal to trade him. What would be the cap situation if we had to cut him?

 

[MoLewisrocks]

Say he signs the tender. And we have no deal to trade him. What would be the cap situation if we had to cut him?

We wouldn't since the deal is guaranteed if signed and it all hits the cap in 2009. That said, he won't sign it because he wants a long term deal as a starter, THEY ALL DO OR THEY'RE WORTHLESS, not a year of watching his buzz killed as he's the third (inactive) emergency QB for the NEP...and Kevin O'Connell's buzz heats up if Tom is unexpectedly MIA...

Bill has a saying - if you want to hurt players, take away their stage. It matters more to most of them than their $$$. That's why he never resented Drew's attitude towards him - he understood it for what it was - hurt.

 

[RayClay]

What if he has a bad week next week?

 

[Fencer]

Say he signs the tender. And we have no deal to trade him. What would be the cap situation if we had to cut him?

Among other problems -- the deal he signs is guaranteed.

 

[Fencer]

FYI the tag while guaranteed once signed gets paid out over 17 weeks beginning in week 1. Signing bonus money on a new long term deal on the other hand gets paid out on the day you sign the deal. Option or roster bonus money if any gets paid out up front on the first day of the new season it covers or shortly thereafter but well in advance of another season when you again collect 17 weekly checks.

Interest rates have gotten low enough that that's hardly a significant concern. A guaranteed one year contract is within a couple percent of the value of an immediate payout.

As for the rest -- OK. Suppose he could make $6-8 million more guaranteed on a long-term deal than on a franchise one-year tender. What's the chance he can't get at least that in guarantees a year later, even when the buzz cooling?

I agree that he has some incentive to lock up a long-term deal, but it isn't nearly as strong as it is for other players whose franchise tags aren't close to 2X their open-market average annual salary/bonus value.

 

[JoePats]

Among other problems -- the deal he signs is guaranteed.

OK there you go. It's awfully risky to do that unless you have a handshake agreement with another team beforehand.

 

[BelichickFan]

OK there you go. It's awfully risky to do that unless you have a handshake agreement with another team beforehand.

It's not that risky, all you're risking is overpaying a player for one year. They may not do it but the worst case of wasting some money on a backup QB when your starter is coming off major knee surgery isn't THAT bad.

 

[mesoslo]

If the pats tag Cassel, and they dont get trade offers they want and decide to keep Cassel, it will be a burden on the cap, but can the patriots survive and compete next year even if they have Cassel and Brady under the cap?
Also, I dont think there is a lot of UFA that the patriots really need next year, that will force them to get rid of cassel. So most likely the Patriots will tag him, next year, I dont think they can keep tagin him again and again but next year they do have the luxury.

So once again, if the patriots tag Cassel, and keep him for the entire year, will the patriots be over their Salary cap, and will they be able to compete next year, witout bringing in any UFA?? This should determine wether or not they tag Cassel.

 

[BelichickFan]

So once again, if the patriots tag Cassel, and keep him for the entire year, will the patriots be over their Salary cap, and will they be able to compete next year, witout bringing in any UFA?? This should determine wether or not they tag Cassel.

Right now they're $24.5M under the cap, Cassel would eat all but about $10M of that. That's with 38 players signed so it would leave them with little maneuverability. It would make it difficult to resign players early but with the CBA up after next year I'm not sure there would be much of that anyway.

 

[Jimke]

I'm amazed at what is being suggested. After one year of starting,

Matt Cassel is now worth Tom Brady and Peyton Manning money. No

team in football would be willing to pay Cassel $14 million per year.

If the Patriots were not willing to pay market value for Ty Law, David

Givens, Deon Branch, Asante Samuel, Damien Woody, and Daniel Graham,

why would they give Matt Cassel two or three times his market value?

All of the above mentioned players left the Patriots will a gaping hole.

 

[PromisedLand]

Re: Lomardi say the Patriots have to Franchise Cassel

I don't know, maybe Miguel has some insight. Players don't like to be Franchised, maybe they think they're less likely to get the long term deal they want if they sign it.

It's the same thing that keeps almost all players, like Asante Samuel, from signing the franchise tag... they risk getting hurt before getting any long term security. (Of course for me, $14M would be plenty of long term security, but these guys live in a different world.)

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Re: Lomardi say the Patriots have to Franchise Cassel

It's the same thing that keeps almost all players, like Asante Samuel, from signing the franchise tag... they risk getting hurt before getting any long term security. (Of course for me, $14M would be plenty of long term security, but these guys live in a different world.)

True, but Asante signed the tag.