Cassel and the CBA

[Miguel]

I figured that it would be helpful to list the following CBA tidbits and how they may affect tagging Cassel.

1.) As soon as the Patriots place the franchise tag on Cassel, the amount of the franchise tag (I project it to be $14.651 million) will immediately count against the Patriots cap. That is, Cassel does NOT have to sign the tender in order for it to count against the cap.
2.) If the Pats tag Cassel and wish to reach a long-term deal with him, they and Cassel have to come to the long-term agreement by 4PM, July 15th.
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3.) If the Patriots tag Cassel and wish to trade him after July 15th, Cassel has to sign the franchise tender before 4PM July 15th. I got this information from reading about the 49ers' tampering with Briggs in 2007.
4.) If Cassel were to sign a two-year deal with the Patriots, his 2010 salary can not be more than 130% of his 2009 salary. Example, if his 2009 salary is $1,000,000 then his 2010 salary can not be more than $1,300,000.
5.) If Cassel were to sign a two-year deal with the Patriots, any 2010 off-season roster bonus and any 2010 off-season reporting bonus would be treating as a signing bonus in 2009
6.) If 2010 is uncapped and Cassel had signed an one-year deal for the 2009 season, he would be an RFA in 2010.
7.) If Cassel is an RFA in 2010, the Patriots' tender offer has to be at least 110% of his 2009 salary. 110% of $14.651 million is $16,116,000.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

I figured that it would be helpful to list the following CBA tidbits and how they may affect tagging Cassel.

5.) If Cassel were to sign a two-year deal with the Patriots, any 2010 off-season roster bonus and any 2010 off-season reporting bonus would be treating as a signing bonus in 2009

Isn't there a provision saying that it counts against 2009 unless his 2009 salary is fully guaranteed, or am I confusing that with something else?

 

[maverick4]

To free up cap room for the Cassel tag and to also be able to play in free agency and the draft, perhaps we will see some guys like Rodney, Bruschi, and others released... =(

 

[Va_Pats_Fan]

7.) If Cassel is an RFA in 2010, the Patriots' tender offer has to be at least 110% of his 2009 salary. 110% of $14.651 million is $16,116,000.

If Cassel signs the franchise, he would not be an RFA...correct? I'm thinking the possibility of a 1 year contract is pretty low (other then the franchise tag).

 

[DefenseRules]

To free up cap room for the Cassel tag and to also be able to play in free agency and the draft, perhaps we will see some guys like Rodney, Bruschi, and others released... =(

I thought that Rodney was a free agent this year?

 

[Patsrock]

To free up cap room for the Cassel tag and to also be able to play in free agency and the draft, perhaps we will see some guys like Rodney, Bruschi, and others released... =(

Rodney is a UFA.

 

[BPF]

I thought that Rodney was a free agent this year?

Correct he a UFA.

RFAs: Eric Alexander, Wesley Britt and Pierre Woods.
UFA's: Matt Cassel, Heath Evans, Jabar Gafney, Chris Hanson, Rodney Harrison, Russ Hochstein, Larry Izzo, LaMont Jordan, Detha O'Neal, Lonie Paxton, James and Lewis Sanders, Tank Williams and Mike Wright.

Here's a list of players with 1 yr remaining on their deals. High price deals can be extended to lessen cap hit or players released for cap savings:
Player, 2009 Cap #
Seymour, $9.79 mil
Green, $5.00 mil
Vrabel, $4.39 mil
Faulk, $4.00 mil
Neal, $3.40 mil
Wilfork, $2.14 mil
Bruschi, $2.00 mil
Hobbs, $1.66 mil
Mankins, $1.51 mil
Watson, $1.43 mil
Kaczur, $1.42 mil
Gostkowski, $1.12 mil
Washington, $1.08 mil
Aiken, $802K
Yates, $791K
D.Thomas, $697K
L.Smith, $555K
O'Callaghan, $514K
Connolly, $467K
Levoir, $467K
Spann, $467K
Gutierrez, $467K
Guyton, $398K
Richardson, $392K
Redd, $392K
Devree, $392K
Adams, $392K
Green-Ellis, $392K
Craig, $317K
Malone, $317K
Robertson, $317K
Wendell, $317K

 

[MassPats38]

Good stuff, Miguel. Thanks for the summary.

 

[Miguel]

Isn't there a provision saying that it counts against 2009 unless his 2009 salary is fully guaranteed, or am I confusing that with something else?

Must be the latter

From the CBA:
"In a Player Contract, or any renegotiation or extension of a Player Contract, that is executed in the Final Capped Year, each of the following, if it is to be earned or paid to the player in the Final League Year (which is an Uncapped Year): (a) any Salary advance which the player is not and cannot be obligated to repay;(b) any off-season workout bonus that is contingent upon the player’s participation in less than 32 days of the Club’s off-season workout program; (c) any off-season roster bonus; and (d) any off-season reporting bonus;"

 

[Miguel]

If Cassel signs the franchise, he would not be an RFA...correct?

If Cassel signs the franchise tender, plays the 2009 season under the tag, and the 2010 season is uncapped, then Cassel would be an RFA in 2010.

 

[Va_Pats_Fan]

If Cassel signs the franchise tender, plays the 2009 season under the tag, and the 2010 season is uncapped, then Cassel would be an RFA in 2010.

really? I didn't know that..Thanks!

 

[BradyBranch39]

If Cassel signs the franchise tender, plays the 2009 season under the tag, and the 2010 season is uncapped, then Cassel would be an RFA in 2010.

At first I was like huh... that isn't right. Then I saw the word uncapped.

 

[Miguel]

I figured that it would be helpful to list the following CBA tidbits and how they may affect tagging Cassel.

1.) As soon as the Patriots place the franchise tag on Cassel, the amount of the franchise tag (I project it to be $14.651 million) will immediately count against the Patriots cap. That is, Cassel does NOT have to sign the tender in order for it to count against the cap.
2.) If the Pats tag Cassel and wish to reach a long-term deal with him, they and Cassel have to come to the long-term agreement by 4PM, July 15th.
ProFootballTalk.com -- The Best Pro Football Scoop on the Internet
3.) If the Patriots tag Cassel and wish to trade him after July 15th, Cassel has to sign the franchise tender before 4PM July 15th. I got this information from reading about the 49ers' tampering with Briggs in 2007.
4.) If Cassel were to sign a two-year deal with the Patriots, his 2010 salary can not be more than 130% of his 2009 salary. Example, if his 2009 salary is $1,000,000 then his 2010 salary can not be more than $1,300,000.
5.) If Cassel were to sign a two-year deal with the Patriots, any 2010 off-season roster bonus and any 2010 off-season reporting bonus would be treating as a signing bonus in 2009
6.) If 2010 is uncapped and Cassel had signed an one-year deal for the 2009 season, he would be an RFA in 2010.
7.) If Cassel is an RFA in 2010, the Patriots' tender offer has to be at least 110% of his 2009 salary. 110% of $14.651 million is $16,116,000.

8.) The first day that Cassel can be tagged is February 5th.
9.) The last day that Cassel can be tagged is February 19th.
10.) The first day that Cassel can be traded is February 27th.

 

[billdog3484]

it seems to me that getting franchised isnt the worst thing in the world for MC. he probably wouldnt start or play many games for us, but he would be a rich man. and look at the market for schaub when he became available. he hadnt even ever played really

 

[Water Boy]

Thanks for this post. Can someone explain to me in laymans terms the feasibility or infeasibility of the Patriots signing Cassell to a 2 year deal for say $20 million garaunteed? I assumed this would be a win/win for Cassell and the Pats.

- He gets $20 million garaunteed vs $14 million

- The Patriots get some cap relief in '09, time to assess Brady's knee, and they get more time to shop for a deal for Cassell.

- The terms of the existing deal would not be cost prohibitive for teams looking to acquire Cassell and they could obviously restructure the deal into a long term contract as part of a trade to alleviate the threat of Cassell walking at the end of the 2010 season.

I asked this question on the Sunday morning football show on EEI but they summarily dismissed me and hung up before I heard their reasons as to why this would not/could not happen.

Thanks

 

[Miguel]

8.) The first day that Cassel can be tagged is February 5th.
9.) The last day that Cassel can be tagged is February 19th.
10.) The first day that Cassel can be traded is February 27th.

11.) As soon as Cassel signs the tender and if he plays under the tender his 2009 salary is guaranteed to be the amount of the tender even if he is injured or if there are far better quarterbacks on the Patriots roster.

 

[Miguel]

Thanks for this post. Can someone explain to me in laymans terms the feasibility or infeasibility of the Patriots signing Cassell to a 2 year deal for say $20 million garaunteed? I assumed this would be a win/win for Cassell and the Pats.

- He gets $20 million garaunteed vs $14 million

- The Patriots get some cap relief in '09, time to assess Brady's knee, and they get more time to shop for a deal for Cassell.

- The terms of the existing deal would not be cost prohibitive for teams looking to acquire Cassell and they could obviously restructure the deal into a long term contract as part of a trade to alleviate the threat of Cassell walking at the end of the 2010 season.

I asked this question on the Sunday morning football show on EEI but they summarily dismissed me and hung up before I heard their reasons as to why this would not/could not happen.

Thanks

What would be the terms of this deal???
Signing bonus amount??
2009 salary??
2010 salary??

Why do the details matter??

I think that if the Pats were to offer Cassel a two-year deal that pay him a $15 million signing bonus, a 2009 salary of $2,000,000 and a 2010 salary of $2,600,000 he would immediately sign such a deal. On the other hand if the Patriots were to offer Cassel a two-year deal that pays him no signing bonus and salaries of $10 million in 2009 and 2010 that he would reject the deal because he is not getting compensated in 2009 for giving up a year of free agency and because he would be getting $4.6 million less in 2009 than he would under the franchise tag.

 

[Water Boy]

What would be the terms of this deal???
Signing bonus amount??
2009 salary??
2010 salary??

Why do the details matter??

I think that if the Pats were to offer Cassel a two-year deal that pay him a $15 million signing bonus, a 2009 salary of $2,000,000 and a 2010 salary of $2,600,000 he would immediately sign such a deal. On the other hand if the Patriots were to offer Cassel a two-year deal that pays him no signing bonus and salaries of $10 million in 2009 and 2010 that he would reject the deal because he is not getting compensated in 2009 for giving up a year of free agency and because he would be getting $4.6 million less in 2009 than he would under the franchise tag.

Would it make sense for the Pats to do a 2 year deal to lower a potential cap hit in 09?

 

[BradyManny]

I think that if the Pats were to offer Cassel a two-year deal that pay him a $15 million signing bonus, a 2009 salary of $2,000,000 and a 2010 salary of $2,600,000 he would immediately sign such a deal.

Wouldn't that - or any deal w any significant guaranteed upfront money - make Cassel pretty much untradeable as a Patriot then? Whatever signing bonus money we give him, we have to incur that much in a cap hit if we trade him, correct?

 

[Urgent]

So, to convert some of these rules into the specifics of the Patriots, Cassel, and the CBA - Miguel, can you confirm the following statements:

It will cost around $14mm or so to franchise Cassel, should the Patriots choose to.
The Patriots currently have enough space to handle that ~$14mm.
The Patriots currently have enough space to handle the ~$14mm franchise and still re-sign a couple players (Mike Wright, James Sanders, for example) should they choose to, but not enough to be active in free agency for a top corner, OLB, or other needs in addition if they are holding the Cassel franchise figure.
The Pats will be forced to carry the franchise tag figure for at least Feb 19 through Feb 27, should they choose to franchise him, but that precedes the opening of free agency.

If & when Cassel is traded, his residual cap impact from the franchise tag would be $0.

The Feb 27 date when Matt Cassel could first be traded coincides with the opening date of free agency.
That means the Patriots could trade Cassel to another team and then compete in free agency for a bigger ticket free agent, should they so choose, from the opening bell.

Teams are allowed to negotiate trades prior to the Feb 27 date, but not enact them until that date.

Another team can immediately convert the one-year franchise tag into a multi-year contract, allowing a lower salary cap figure than the ~$14mm cap fee. Say, for example, Cassel signed a four-year, $50mm deal, with $20mm guaranteed bonuses and salaries of $6mm, $7mm, $8mm, and $9mm. His cap figure under this hypothetical approach would be $6mm salary + $5mm bonus recognition = $11mm, or ~$3mm less than the franchise figure, in 2009. The acquiring team need not recognize the $14mm franchise figure.

Thanks. ALways appreciate your understanding.