I guess the Pats aren't the only tightwads...

[Slagathor]

One NFL insider believes the Vikings' reluctance to provide quarterback Brad Johnson with a new contract could result in a cheapskate reputation for the team and affect its effort to attract free agents.
-- St. Paul Pioneer Press

 

[I'm Ron Borges?]

One NFL insider believes the Vikings' reluctance to provide quarterback Brad Johnson with a new contract could result in a cheapskate reputation for the team and affect its effort to attract free agents.
-- St. Paul Pioneer Press

Yeah, that's the franchise you want to be associated with.

 

[brady2brown]

Do you really thing free agents care what OTHER players got? They care what's in it for them. Free agents are attracted to teams based on what that team can provide them. Money, location, opporitunity to start or gain playing time, chance to go to superbowl.

What Free Agent would say, "Sure you are offering me more money than team B, but last year you wouldn't pay Brad Johnson, so forget it."

Or, "I have business interests in Minneapolis, and my wife wants me to move there, but there is no way I will go to a team that wouldn't pay Brad Johnson.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Do you really thing free agents care what OTHER players got? They care what's in it for them. Free agents are attracted to teams based on what that team can provide them. Money, location, opporitunity to start or gain playing time, chance to go to superbowl.

What Free Agent would say, "Sure you are offering me more money than team B, but last year you wouldn't pay Brad Johnson, so forget it."

Or, "I have business interests in Minneapolis, and my wife wants me to move there, but there is no way I will go to a team that wouldn't pay Brad Johnson.

ROTFL

Your technique is called "Reductio ad absurdum" good job!

 

[RayClay]

Yeah, that's the franchise you want to be associated with.

Hey Ron, are you really Ron? That's kind of funny.

Let me ask this.

With the devastating loss of Deion Branch, do you think we could get a top receiver like David Terrell or Koren Robinson for Seymour?

 

[stinkypete]

Question: if you were the Vikings, in the middle of rebuilding the offense, and you just drafted a 2nd round QB, would you extend the 38 year old Johnson's contract?

Didn't think so.

 

[SeanBruschi54]

Question: if you were the Vikings, in the middle of rebuilding the offense, and you just drafted a 2nd round QB, would you extend the 38 year old Johnson's contract?

Didn't think so.

Dead on..........

 

[zarakotas5]

Johnson should be happy to get a few last chances to play. If he wants a couple more million, lead the Vikes to the playoffs and start a local car dealership a la Marino, Elway, et al.

Or, perhaps have the foresight to negotiate a contract (his final contract in all likelihood [George, Jeff...] with incentives that would be met in the event that he does have to bear the responsibility of being the starting QB.

I do see his point of being upset about the situation, but all things are relative. He's hardly working for peanuts.

As far as the Vikes rep, someone summed it up perfectly: what can you do for ME, not Brad. Like the Pats, speculators say the Pats are cheap. They refuse to pay outrageous sums to names or those not worth it. Yet, solid vets make more here than anywhere else. NE has more $1M players per annum than any other team (the last time I looked it up, at least). For a solid pro, and more importantly, his agent, this is well known. Think of Rosie Colvin.

 

[DaBruinz]

One NFL insider believes the Vikings' reluctance to provide quarterback Brad Johnson with a new contract could result in a cheapskate reputation for the team and affect its effort to attract free agents.
-- St. Paul Pioneer Press

The Vikings have had that reputation for years. This is nothing new.

As for the Pats, the Pats are probably working on extensions for Samuel, Graham, and Koppen. They need to keep that money free as well as money to pay Seymour's bonus.

 

[Miguel]

One NFL insider believes the Vikings' reluctance to provide quarterback Brad Johnson with a new contract could result in a cheapskate reputation for the team and affect its effort to attract free agents.
-- St. Paul Pioneer Press

I guess that the NFL insider neglected to ask Steve Hutchinson, Bryant McKinnie, Fred Smoot, Pat Williams, Darren Sharper or Antoine Winfield if the Vikings are cheap.

 

[Amnorix]

All I need to do to understand the Pats tight salary cap management is think of the situation Belioli inherited when they arrived.

I can't even think of the names of those two heinously overpaid guards we had. I'm probably intentionally blocking it from my memory. All I know is that they were making WAAAY too much money for their performance.

Besides, their approach is PROVEN successful. Even fi Branch is a "miss", they have so many other "hits" that it's very hard to argue with their long term philosophy.

 

[Amnorix]

Edit: Deleted.

 

[Pattie]

I certainly wouldn't classify the Patriot's as "tightwads". They have a financial plan they stick to and a system that works. Get a kid (especially from the lowers rounds) coach him up, get 5-6 years from them and then let them go to get the big pay day...with someone else. Do I mind that? Hell no. Branch flourished in our system because a) he had talent the scouting dept. didn't miss b) the Patriots coaching helped to bring his innate talents even further c) he had Tom Brady the best QB in the game working with him. Now Deion has moved on, got his money and has a SB ring(s) as well. I wish someone would be that kind of "tightwad" with me.

 

[Weishuhn]

All I need to do to understand the Pats tight salary cap management is think of the situation Belioli inherited when they arrived.

I can't even think of the names of those two heinously overpaid guards we had. I'm probably intentionally blocking it from my memory. All I know is that they were making WAAAY too much money for their performance.

Besides, their approach is PROVEN successful. Even fi Branch is a "miss", they have so many other "hits" that it's very hard to argue with their long term philosophy.

Todd Rucci and Max Lane is my guess as the guards you refer to.

 

[RayClay]

All I need to do to understand the Pats tight salary cap management is think of the situation Belioli inherited when they arrived.

I can't even think of the names of those two heinously overpaid guards we had. I'm probably intentionally blocking it from my memory. All I know is that they were making WAAAY too much money for their performance.

Besides, their approach is PROVEN successful. Even fi Branch is a "miss", they have so many other "hits" that it's very hard to argue with their long term philosophy.

Sweet, I looked up on Google and found the link in my own post, (from "another" forum).

Read 'em and weep ye olde "money solves everything" crowd.

(Buschbaum was a revered draft and football analyst, by the way.)

http://archive.profootballweekly.com/content/archives/features_2000/nflist_030501.asp

Patriots the team that's most set up for failure
By Joel Buchsbaum, Contributing editor
As published in print March 5, 2001


The question posed to NFL insiders was: Which team had the least chance of making the playoffs or going to the Super Bowl in the next five years? The Patriots were a unanimous choice, but several other teams will have more than their share of obstacles to overcome as well.

Almost all the scouts we spoke to gave the following reasons for picking the Patriots.

1. The Patriots are in salary-cap hell because they spent money unwisely due to their inability to evaluate their own talent.

It continues...................

 

[TNPatsFan]

I guess that the NFL insider neglected to ask Steve Hutchinson, Bryant McKinnie, Fred Smoot, Pat Williams, Darren Sharper or Antoine Winfield if the Vikings are cheap.

Just what I was thinking, Miguel. It's not like the Vikes have had any trouble signing high-priced free agents the last few years.