OT: From "the cap is crap" to "we are up against the cap, oh crap"

[Rob0729]

For those who know him, they know "The cap is crap" is Michael Felger's favorite tag line. He would point to the Jets as the perfect example of a team that keeps on spending with no cap ramifications.

Well, the rooster has come home to roost for them. Adam Schefter reported today that they have zero cap dollars available. Also, Jenny Vrentis reports that they have decided not to franchise Sione Pouha, not because they don't want him back, but because they don't have the cap to franchise him. They are going to try to get a new deal with him before free agency, but if he tries to test the market they may have no shot at him. They have some big holes to fill at safety, WR, o-line, and OLB; but they have pretty much made it clear that they won't be major players in free agency this year because of the cap.

Looking around the league, the Lions and Steelers are desperately trying to cut cap dollars to keep their own players who are free agents. Others will join suit. Oakland has and will likely continue to cut good, but overpriced players to get under the cap (according to Schefter they are $11 million over the cap today). The Giants are likely to let Mario Manningham and other free agents go while trading Osi Umenyoira because they are over the cap.

The truth was before the uncapped year in 2009, getting in salary cap hell was virtually impossible. Even though Felger wouldn't admit it, there was still such of a thing as salary cap heck where teams had to cut players but not at the rate in the past.

For this year and next year, salary cap hell will be back for several teams. Until the new TV deals kick in, the stagnant cap growth is going to seriously hurt several teams who structured contracts expecting the cap to grow at a big rate from year to year. For the next two, it won't grow much at all.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

For those who know him, they know "The cap is crap" is Michael Felger's favorite tag line. He would point to the Jets as the perfect example of a team that keeps on spending with no cap ramifications.

Well, the rooster has come home to roost for them. Adam Schefter reported today that they have zero cap dollars available.

Awww. . . . I feel sorry for them.

Oh, wait. No I don't. :singing:

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Goodell should be summarily fired by his New York masters. He convinced them that the special Jets cap loophole he put in the new CBA would solve their problems. Remember that? But NOoooo! Now both NY teams are in trouble. Prepare to sleep with the fishes, Roger!

 

[The Gr8est]

Goodell should be summarily fired by his New York masters. He convinced them that the special Jets cap loophole he put in the new CBA would solve their problems. Remember that? But NOoooo! Now both NY teams are in trouble. Prepare to sleep with the fishes, Roger!

Maybe Uncle Roger can have the Pats forfeit a couple of high picks to give the NY teams time to catch up.

It worked before.

 

[NEGoldenAge]

This should have happened to the Jets a couple of years ago, but they used the uncapped year to sign a bunch of big names and dump a ton of cap hits. They also got an 11 million dollar gift in the last CBA, and still only finished .500. If the Jets don't strike gold with a ton of draft picks and UDFAs, they're up shiz creek until the cap increase in 2014.

 

[Rob0729]

This should have happened to the Jets a couple of years ago, but they used the uncapped year to sign a bunch of big names and dump a ton of cap hits. They also got an 11 million dollar gift in the last CBA, and still only finished .500. If the Jets don't strike gold with a ton of draft picks and UDFAs, they're up shiz creek until the cap increase in 2014.

The problem with hitting big in the draft is that the Jets are horrible at drafting since hitting it big in 2006 and 2007. Jets fans love to make fun of Belichick's drafts, but I would take the Pats' collective drafts over the last four years over the Jets' drafts over the same period any day. Jets fans give Tannenbaum a free pass on the draft because he did so well five and six years ago and ignore the fact they haven't gotten an impact player since.

 

[NEGoldenAge]

The problem with hitting big in the draft is that the Jets are horrible at drafting since hitting it big in 2006 and 2007. Jets fans love to make fun of Belichick's drafts, but I would take the Pats' collective drafts over the last four years over the Jets' drafts over the same period any day. Jets fans give Tannenbaum a free pass on the draft because he did so well five and six years ago and ignore the fact they haven't gotten an impact player since.

I'm not a fan of Tanne's drafting philosophy and I am a huge advocate of most aspects BB's. I don't think the Jets can afford to go with just a couple of high picks this year. They will need to use all of their pics, and hit with all the early rounders and most of the later ones. The Jets are screwed without a miracle.

 

[resdubwhite]

i'm sure uncle roger is cooking a miracle right now.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Immediately upon the hiring of Rex Ryan,The Jets set a window to make a good run at the Super Bowl and tried to win a title the past 3 years,but the Colts and Steelers in consecutive years and locker room troubles the following year stopped that dream,now the Jets have 0 SB Titles under Ryan and are in cap hell.

If you throw all your eggs in one basket and they keep on cracking in that basket,you are soon left with no eggs....The Jets are like cracked eggs,the insides are leaking out all over.

 

[cmasspatsfan]

Gresh has tried numerous times to explain the flaw in Felgers reasoning but hes an idiot. I guess if the Jets dont actually explode they're not in cap hell.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

And the Rex window came on the heels of the failed Ratgini window which included the Favre experiment which set their offense back years as predicted.

The thing about teams who attempt to operate within windows is they risk ending up with them slammed on their chubby fingers with nothing more than the memory of some overblown, unachieved hype to soothe their pain.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

Steelers are and they admit it and they say it is the result of doing what Felger lauds as proof the cap it crap, they kept pushing money forward ala Polian in order to keep an aging team together and agument it. Now they are up against it and while they can and will push more money forward they can't push it all forward or they'll be behind the competitive 8 ball when everyone else gets the windfall in 2014 because their's will have been spent already.

There is a real interesting dynamic afoot in Pittsburgh and I think it revolves around falling into the trap of letting the tail (Ben) wag the dog. I've always felt that was one reason Cowher decided to take a sabatical. Ben was pushing for more relevance via the passing game and given his less cerebral style of play and propensity for misbehavior... that was a risk-reward calculation the FO miscalculated on. Now they want to run again, and while they know they have to pass to compete they want to do so in a more disciplined style that is more consistently viable.

Some interesting commentary from one of their beat guys, Ed Bouchette, on the whole Haley situation (he hasn't been in touch with Ben yet...may be pulling a Parcell's approach). And also his observations that the Steelers may not be all that intent on retaining Wallace particularly via tag even if they could make room to use it because they don't want to set a precedent with two other productive young WR's who come 2013 will be in the same circumstance because of their rookie deals, and his observation that Wallace production dropped off dramatically in the second half of 2011 and the Steelers themselves may be questioning just how much they want to invest in this kid at this time...

Roethlisberger says he still hasn’t heard from Haley | ProFootballTalk

 

[BradyFTW!]

Goodell should be summarily fired by his New York masters. He convinced them that the special Jets cap loophole he put in the new CBA would solve their problems. Remember that? But NOoooo! Now both NY teams are in trouble. Prepare to sleep with the fishes, Roger!

In his defense, it would have solved their problems, if they hadn't immediately gone and guaranteed a bunch of money for aging players already on their roster to shift cap hits (Scott and Pace) and then gone and given Holmes and Cromartie huge deals.

Goodell tried his hardest, but there's a stupidity event horizon that, once your FO arrives at it, even the commissioner can't bail you out. The Jets hit that point in 2011 when they looked at their roster and decided that they were a championship contender as constructed.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Hiring "tough love" Haley to reign Big Ben in is a move of desperation and way too late. Hard to change a team's culture and once its gone over to the dark side the only fix is out with the old en masse and in with the new who are totally committed to that culture. Our own Jedi master struggled with the loss of Patriots culture on the defense for several years. I think he fixed the culture. Just needs some more talent.

 

[RelocatedPatFan]

Immediately upon the hiring of Rex Ryan,The Jets set a window to make a good run at the Super Bowl and tried to win a title the past 3 years,but the Colts and Steelers in consecutive years and locker room troubles the following year stopped that dream,now the Jets have 0 SB Titles under Ryan and are in cap hell.

If you throw all your eggs in one basket and they keep on cracking in that basket,you are soon left with no eggs....The Jets are like cracked eggs,the insides are leaking out all over.

Eggs?

just tell Rex, "it's a wafer thin mint". i'm sure he can handle it

 

[BradyFTW!]

Eggs?

just tell Rex, "it's a wafer thin mint". i'm sure he can handle it

Monty Python flashbacks. Can't unsee.

 

[patsinthesnow]

The Jets went 11-5 with a STACKED team in 2010. They had: One of the best O-lines in football, one of the best defenses in football, and a very good supporting cast (Holmes, Edwards, Cotchery, Keller, LT).

Flash forward to 2012, their defense is average (you can argue the pats will be better), their O-line is a mess, the WR core is bad, the RBs are bad, and the safeties are awful.

The Jets had a two year window (09-10) with very good teams but Sanchize held them back. Now, their just a bad team. They went 8-8 with two miracle wins.

And now they're in cap hell.

 

[PatsFanSince74]

....

The Jets had a two year window (09-10) with very good teams but Sanchize held them back. Now, their just a bad team. They went 8-8 with two miracle wins.

And now they're in cap hell.

Ain't it just awful...a veritable tragedy!

 

[PatsFanSince74]

...
Well, the rooster has come home to roost for them. Adam Schefter reported today that they have zero cap dollars available. ...

Looking around the league, the Lions and Steelers are desperately trying to cut cap dollars to keep their own players who are free agents. Others will join suit. Oakland has and will likely continue to cut good, but overpriced players to get under the cap (according to Schefter they are $11 million over the cap today). The Giants are likely to let Mario Manningham and other free agents go while trading Osi Umenyoira because they are over the cap.

...

Well, I guess it's a "The Glass is either half empty or half full" kind of thing.

The Steelers and Giants have a ring in the last few years to show for it.

The rest have a bunch of "not quite" and "almost" stories...

 

[RIpats88]

and this is why as much as the radio personalities call the pats cheap...their strategy works..

The Patriots, a team who went to the superbowl are in a good position to GET BETTER next year and improve their team without having to worry about these things...while teams like the Steelers/Jets are likely to get worse