Asante Samuel and the "no franchise tag" agreement

[Dragda]

They do not get that one big contract with the big bonus.

Since they could be injured and washed up at anytime, they want that one multi year contract while they are a hot commodity.

Supply and demand. The American way...(right or wrong)

 

[patsox23]

The word "cave" comes from those who think Samuel was powerless and the Pats had all the leverage. He had the leverage of witholding his services. They compromised and he is playing. I really don't see anything to get upset about.

The Pats did have all the leverage. I can't believe they actually bought the idea that Asante Samuel would pass on half a million dollars EVERY WEEK. How is this hard to imagine?

 

[dhamz]

The Pats did have all the leverage. I can't believe they actually bought the idea that Asante Samuel would pass on half a million dollars EVERY WEEK. How is this hard to imagine?

Clearly the folks in the room had no trouble imagining it.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Please remember that If Asante injures himself badly this season, his value and future paydays drop since he only has a 1 year contract. Asante is taking substantive personal risk here.

Excellent observation. As I hear it... and maybe I am a little behind on the posts here... Asante got a conditional guarantee.

If it's based on playing time, he's SOL, if the Pats did want to franchise him, his darkest fear.

So whoever says a little tweak or a twinge becomes an issue didn't get the memo, or I haven't seen the latest and greatest news. It looks like they covered that base, and assigned the risk to Samuel.

I have flip flopped from "getting medieval on his buttocks," in the case of an in-season holdout scenario, to being okay with this deal.

I also liked the observation that the Pats do "give up something to get something," as substantiated above. We love them, but they're not magicians. They're negotiators, without any more tools in the toolkit than other FOs. They are, however, very good at using the tools.

So here are the risks:

- Asante is as good as he thinks he is. Now he has a 2-year track record. Asante is right, we are wrong, he IS a special player. Then we either act like a CB is worth the kind of money he wants, or someone else will. Most likely, off he goes -- but that's a great risk to have, because it means he's in all likelihood on the way to getting that 4th Super Bowl with the rest of the team in 07.

- Asante is not as good as he thinks he is. Disaster for Asante. Not bad for the Pats, unless he really sucks. You don't have to be elite/a worldbeater/whatever to be a very valuable contributor in the Pats' secondary. He plays well enough to help the team win, but there are no magical Champ Bailey offers. Waaah. Suddenly NE doesn't look so shabby versus the free market.

- Asante gets injured. Well, this would be bad, because we might not have our answer, and even if we do, the injury itself could skew his future play. So we could slap the franchise tag on a guy who isn't all the way back... or, we could let him go... or, we could sign him to a lesser contract, if nobody else beats our offer.

But it seems like the injury risk produces a fielder's choice for the Pats; the "middling good" scenario is great for the Pats; and only the Asante Samuel, Superstar scenario is "bad" for the Pats -- but come on! You still get a SB cornerback!

In one way, the incentive is so perverse it's almost beautiful -- play your way out of "enforced loyalty." Win for us because you hate us. (An overstatement... obviously he is happy, but he wants the option to leave.)

Of course, another part of me wants to sit his happy ***** down for a game or two, come what may. But I bought that part of me a bottle of gin, and I am good with the whole thing again.

Hey do kool-aid and gin go together?

PFnV

 

[Water Boy]

Bill is actually more of a real players coach than any of the huggers who get to wear that tag. He's honest with them and never BS's them.

I think Drew Bledsoe and Ty Law would beg to differ.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

I think Drew Bledsoe and Ty Law would beg to differ.

If they did they'd be wrong, and it wouldn't be the first time for either. But I don't think they would. Drew was blindsided by the concept that franchise QB wasn't a job for life. Belichick never told him it was, it was just an assumption made by an entitled player. Bill never threw Ty under the bus like Herm did in November of 2005. Never threw Drew or Lawyer under the bus either, and he could have...

Josh Miller commented last week after he was cut that Bill is a straight shooter who will do what is best for the team. He doesn't shine on his boys privately or through the media and or bs them and then cut their legs out from under them. He is at times brutally honest, but always in private. Most self confident self motivated players, who are the only ones Bill is really interested in investing his time in, will tell you all they want from a HC relationship wise is honesty. Whiners want some kind of consideration or a break or a do over.