The market for Brandon Spikes has been set by Cowboys

RxJock1120 said:

Comparing Mayo to Sean Lee is ridiculous! Mayo is a constant pro-bowler, durable (for the most part) and the unquestioned leader of this defense. And was a top ten pick. Thats why the Pats gave him 5 year $48.5 mil extension

Sean Lean hasn't made the pro-bowl once or made it through 1 full season and is not the best defensive player on his own team. And was picked in the second round. Thats why the Cowboys gave him a 6 year $42 million extension.

I really believe this is the deal spikes and his agent will use as a comparable.

Not saying the Pats will give it to him, but this will be the deal Spikes will want. And someone will probably give it to him. Again, not saying it will be the smartest move.

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The fault is your own RxJock1120. You can debate as much as you like but the simple fact is Sean Lee is more Jerod Mayo than Brandon Spikes. Lee is a 3 down Linebacker and one who is developing into a very good player. Mayo is one of the best linebackers in the league. As an outright comparison, few are going to surpass Mayo.

Spikes will be lucky to sniff two thirds of that contract as long as his inability to be an effective linebacker in pass coverage continues.. If that improves, then Spikes has a claim to a comparable contract given his run defense.

belichick010405 said:

As much as I like Sean Lee, Lee doesn't deserve a six-year, $42 million deal no matter how productive he is on the field when he is healthy.

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I tell you one thing Jerry Jones will never be excused of under paying guys.

I really think most of these contracts he gives out are because the guys are good, solid players that Jones overrates because he drafted them.

Maybe i'm wrong but Tony Romo wouldn't have gotten that contract from any team other than the Cowboys.

If someone wants to pay Spikes 42M, then more power to him. I won't fault him at all for taking it. I just don't want this team to pay him that

After blowing off the off-season conditioning program in Foxboro, I would be surprised if Spikes gets any contract offer from the New England Patriots. I think they'll shake his hand, thank him for him service, hopefully give him his SuperBowl ring, and wish him good luck in the free agency market.

Spikes might get $42m...... from the Bills.

Sean Lee is a three down linebacker that is exceptional in pass coverage. Brandon Spikes will be lucky to get $5 million on a 5 year deal. I expect a losing team (Jaguars, Bills, Bears, Giants, Raiders) with MLB need that likes his physicality and intensity in the run game to make a splurge.

VrabelJr said:

Sean Lee is a three down linebacker that is exceptional in pass coverage. Brandon Spikes will be lucky to get $5 million on a 5 year deal. I expect a losing team (Jaguars, Bills, Bears, Giants, Raiders) with MLB need that likes his physicality and intensity in the run game to make a splurge.

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I agree that Sean Lee is an amazing player. He's great in coverage and excels at both run/pass defense. An up and coming player who has already proven himself to be worthy of a nice payday. A solid 3 down player much closer to Mayo than Spikes.

Another thing to take into account is that he was due to be a UFA after this year, so while 7m AAV may seem a bit high I don't think he was deserving of anything under 6m AAV either.

I don't personally agree with your prediction that "Spikes will be lucky to get 5 million on a 5 yr deal," but he's also not going to get anything near what Sean Lee got either. I'd think that someone (not us) will definitely be tempted to give him around 4-5m AAV per year.

I doubt Takeo will bring that much money...

Brock Samson said:

Wilfork + Mayo. Brady + Mankins + Gronk + AHern.

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Wilfork is DL ... Mayo is LB

Brady is a QB last I checked and Mankins is OL

Gronk and Ahern (if he was here) were like $5 million this year combined ... not huge money

check the cap page again for 2013 ... my point stands.

He rarely pays 2 people of the same position huge money at the same time.

Not never ... just rarely.

betterthanthealternative said:

Yeah, and that worked out well for him.

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It actually did ... next time visit the cap page.

unless he has 200 tackles this year I don't see him getting more then 4 million per year from any team, I mean I really like the kid but he's a MLB on a bad defense its not that shocking that he had almost 100 tackles and he's not great in coverage

patsfan-1982 said:

unless he has 200 tackles this year I don't see him getting more then 4 million per year from any team, I mean I really like the kid but he's a MLB on a bad defense its not that shocking that he had almost 100 tackles and he's not great in coverage

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Agreed, and $4m/year would be a generous deal. Spikes is probably in that 4-year $3 million/year range with guys like London Fletcher and James Laurinaitis. That's a nice raise for a guy making $837k/year.

Here's the top 50 inside linebacker salaries:

» Over the Cap- Top NFL Contracts: Inside Linebacker

Besides, there's $21 million on Sean Lee's deal he'll never see from 2017 to 2019. Why do they allow teams to print number like that on contracts?

Froob said:

Nobody is giving Spikes that much so I'm not concerned about that. Dunno why everyone is in such a hurry to get rid of him. He's one of the most clutch defensive players in the league and one of the biggest hitters in the league.

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He is good against the run but not very clutch against the pass. I like his physical presence but wouldn't pay 42 million for a one trick pony.

He'll be gone next year, and thats fine with me

I would start negotiations now, if he wants too much then I would trade him!!

Froob said:

Nobody is giving Spikes that much so I'm not concerned about that. Dunno why everyone is in such a hurry to get rid of him. He's one of the most clutch defensive players in the league and one of the biggest hitters in the league.

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I agree. He's a beast against the run and was much better last year at not getting caught out by play action. I'm not sure why everybody is getting prematurely butt-sore about him leaving to get paid. If he leaves next year because someone pays him more than he's worth to us, that's fine, because it means he'll have had a great 2013. I think we have what is likely to be a very special 4-man rotation at LB this year, but half the time only two of them will be on the field, so I expect the Pats' financial resources will be directed elsewhere. That's OK. Hopefully, at the end of the year, he's shown a little progression in terms of maintaining his agression while not getting caught out of position regularly and keeps blowing things up at the point of attack and forcing fumbles. If so, the defense will have a great asset this year and next year, he'll probably get something like $14M for four years with a $4M guarantee. Sounds like a win-win. He's tough, so I doubt he's worried about injury, and an early extension at a discount is probably not going to entice him. Let him play. The trade-him chorus is out-of-tune.

Lee and Ware are the heart of the Dallas defense. Lee is indeed comparable to Mayo, but with more pass-rushing and fewer tackles. More importantly, our two leaders are Wilfork and Mayo. Hopefully, we will soon add Jones and/or Hightower. Spikes may get someone to pay him serious money, just not us.

With regard to Lee's compensation. He received $16M guaranteed and $7M a year over 6 years. Dallas tends to overpay a bit for their own, rather than overpaying for free agents. I don't question that team strategy.

RxJock1120 said:

NFL Source: Sean Lee gets $42M deal - ESPN

Based on Sean Lee's contract with the Cowbows.

Guessing $42 mil is around what Spikes is probably going to want in his new deal

Any thought?

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Maybe half that when since Two Down Thumpers are worth $42Million? Don't get me wrong I like Spikes for what he does but he's too much of a liability in the passing game.

pencilneckgeek said:

I agree. He's a beast against the run and was much better last year at not getting caught out by play action. I'm not sure why everybody is getting prematurely butt-sore about him leaving to get paid. If he leaves next year because someone pays him more than he's worth to us, that's fine, because it means he'll have had a great 2013. I think we have what is likely to be a very special 4-man rotation at LB this year, but half the time only two of them will be on the field, so I expect the Pats' financial resources will be directed elsewhere. That's OK. Hopefully, at the end of the year, he's shown a little progression in terms of maintaining his agression while not getting caught out of position regularly and keeps blowing things up at the point of attack and forcing fumbles. If so, the defense will have a great asset this year and next year, he'll probably get something like $14M for four years with a $4M guarantee. Sounds like a win-win. He's tough, so I doubt he's worried about injury, and an early extension at a discount is probably not going to entice him. Let him play. The trade-him chorus is out-of-tune.

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I tend to agree with this. Spikes, for all his limitations, doesn't get the credit he deserves on this board. That said, Lee and Spikes are not analogues, so I don't think Lee's contract is predictive of much of anything.

JMC00 said:

I tell you one thing Jerry Jones will never be excused of under paying guys.

I really think most of these contracts he gives out are because the guys are good, solid players that Jones overrates because he drafted them.

Maybe i'm wrong but Tony Romo wouldn't have gotten that contract from any team other than the Cowboys.

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You can only spend so much. Annually, the Pats spend up to the cap (or very close to it). They "pay guys" just like every other team does. They just pay their team in a different philosophy. Every dollar that goes to Romo is a dollar they can't use elsewhere. Every dollar that doesn't go to Tom Brady is a dollar that can be used elsewhere.