Rapp: Bennett exit . real possibility

[Simpelton]

What about Amendola? He takes less every year to stay. Same as TB in some ways. Edelman would take less to stay here. Bennett should go ask them personally of they would take a pay cut. Bet he wouldn't have the balls to do that.

And that's the problem with people taking paycuts. The fans side with the employers. In any conversation about salary fans and owners are natural allies. We through ownership pay their salaries. We like owners have every reason to want their salaries to be low. So we, like they, have a tendency to, as the Bible put it, "oppress the hireling in his wages." And every time the players give in, the fans, and the owners, use that to try to pressure more players to give in, and to give in by more.

These guys are putting their bodies on the line to make as much money as possible in a VERY VERY short playing window. The fact that some players, inspired by this and that, want to take less than they absolutely should earn in order to allow the team around them to be stronger is absolutely not a reason to condemn those who are trying to make the most of their godgiven talent in order to take care of themselves, their families, their future, or hell, just have 60 cars and a new hooker every night if that's what they want.

It's their bodies they're laying out and accepting permanent injuries (not even the risk of permanent injuries, show me a retired pro baller who doesn't have substantial health issues and I'll show you fairies, unicorns, leprechauns and many other fantasy things that simply don't exist). Let them go get what they can. It's not like if the owners successfully cheap out and crowd down all the players' salaries, ticket prices will go down. Ticket prices haven't been tied to salary in decades.

 

[PP2]

And here is what brings us to the reality of what happens in New England. Julian Edelman probably has one or two good years left in him. Sadly, he is due for another injury or drop off in performance. His peak earning days are pretty much in the rearview at this point. Bill does not pay for past performance.

Edelman worries me far more than Brady in terms of durability and how much longer he will play. He has taken a great deal of abuse and nasty hits over just the last few years.

He is another nasty hit or two away from a sharp decline, IMO.

 

[RIpats88]

I still question if a team will pay him more than what the pats offered which was 7million.

Now ravens are cutting pitta who had a 63 reception season because they dont want to pay him 7million...yet teams will pay bennet as much as kelce/gronk?

Teams werent willing to pay bennett 5.5million which is why no one else traded for him. Now they will double his salary?

We will see.

 

[BelichickFan]

Still not anyone else's place to tell him what job to take and what to ask for.

He chooses to be a public figure, he puts himself out there for public comment. Obviously it's his choice but to compare himself having to choose between, say, $6M and $8M to someone choosing between, say, $40K and $50K is absurd and totally out of touch. Do these guys realize that the vast majority of people would consider it to be a big win to have $1M saved for retirement ? I love sports but the money disgusts me.

 

[Simpelton]

Not a lot I wouldn't do to make 40K/year... currently working in a call center full time, living at home, at a few pennies above min wage. Being poor suuuuuuuuuuuuucks!

When you can make that 50K for 25 years, and in all likelihood he's gonna be out of the league by the time there's 35 candles on his birthday cake. Yeah, you're right, he's out of touch. Because what he does is so different than anything we live with that we really can't judge him for how he chooses to handle his contracts.

Footballers have to concentrate all their earning power into a very small window of athletic success. Really hard to blame any football player for maximizing their cash-in when any given season could mark the beginning of the rest of their lives. None of the rest of us would do anything different given half a chance.

As for being a public figure -- I only partly agree. Being a public figure doesn't excuse the ignorant masses from being ignorant. It just means that Bennett can't do anything about it.

 

[BelichickFan]

When you can make that 50K for 25 years, and in all likelihood he's gonna be out of the league by the time there's 35 candles on his birthday cake. Yeah, you're right, he's out of touch.

50K for 25 years is $12.5M. About what Hightower will get for one year. He is out of touch. All the well paid athletes are. It is what it is.

 

[Simpelton]

You realize the reverse holds true right? WE'RE in no position to tell HIM how to live his life because WE are out of touch with HIM as well.

 

[BelichickFan]

You realize the reverse holds true right? WE'RE in no position to tell HIM how to live his life because WE are out of touch with HIM as well.

I'm really not looking to get in an argument here. I don't care. If he's a Patriot I'll root for him. If not, whatever. I think I have made my point, I won't bother repeating it.

 

[Simpelton]

I don't think you've honestly made a point at all, dood. Why equivalate a 9 to 5 er trying to work a 40, 50 year career and a pro athlete who might if he's lucky work at his "day job" for 5 years? You have to be a lot greedier if you have to do a lifetime's worth of earning in such a short time. You can let the intangibles speak for themselves in a day job you intend to keep forever, because other stuff has a lot more value if you have to live with it indefinitely.

These guys need to grab what they can while the big money is on offer, because that's going to stop at some point, and that point is going to come before they're 45. They're going to have to live a long time and provide for their families on that money, and there's gonna come a point where they fade so much from view that the financial value of their careers is gone, and that time for most of them comes with decades left in their lives.

Hell, you're aware how many of these guys wind up bankrupt, right? Go grab your money while the money is there!

 

[brdmaverick]

It's a tough balance in the NFL.

On one hand you shouldn't want too much money being thrown at rookies because they are 100% unproven.

At the same time look at a guy like Hightower. The guy spent 5 years taking massive collisions in this league, is one of the most respected and talented players on the team, and is even the defensive captain and up until now he's been playing on his rookie/unproven deal making rookie/unproven money. 5 years is an eternity in the NFL


Edit: I guess my statement wasn't entirely true as it looks like he made $7 mil last year, but the point still stands since he only made $1 mil the year before (even though he certainly outplayed it)

 

[The Gr8est]

50K for 25 years is $12.5M. About what Hightower will get for one year. He is out of touch. All the well paid athletes are. It is what it is.

Check your decimal...

 

[patsbrasilpatriotas]

Possibility in portugues means that's a chance. He's 100% gone.

 

[PatriotsPimp136]

Some idiot gm will be foolish enough to give bennett 10 mil per year. You can bet on that. I still feel he's in the 7 to 8 range.

 

[scott99]

Even if he's making more than enough to live comfortably, I think it's human nature to be upset to see others at your office who are less productive but making more money.

And who in HIS office (on the Pats OR NFL) is less productive and making more ? Just a comparison to a person in the real world, I once jumped to another job for 5k more a year (20 years ago), and did it make me happier ? No. In my case, piece of mind was worth more that money, I hated that new job and missed my old job.

After you've made 100 million in your career, what is more important ? A place where you can still make 7 million a year AND have a chance to win EVERY year, or 10 million a year to play in Cleveland ? Guess what, he's gonna take the 10 million a year to go play in Cleveland. Because that's who he is. I don't begrudge that, I just personally wouldn't make that decision.

 

[Jimke]

Rather than play screw around, the Patriots should come out the first day of free agency by signing the next best tight end. They did this with Danny Amendola
when Welker's agents were not reasonable.

 

[brdmaverick]

And who in HIS office (on the Pats OR NFL) is less productive and making more ?

Are you suggesting that if Bennett does take less than his open market value to stay with the Pats (after all, that's the only way he stays with the Pats), that it would completely unfathomable for a lesser caliber player to make more than Bennett in the open market?

You are not seriously suggesting that, are you?

But if you want names just in 2016 alone the following players produced less but were paid more............

Jordan Reed
Julius Thomas
Charles Clay
Jason Witten
Dwayne Allen
Coby Fleener
Vance MacDonald
Antonio Gates

 

[brdmaverick]

Guess what, he's gonna take the 10 million a year to go play in Cleveland. Because that's who he is. I don't begrudge that, I just personally wouldn't make that decision.

We're on the same page here. But guess what, if he doesn't go to Cleveland then Cleveland could still end up overpaying someone else. In this case it's quite possible the person Cleveland does get could make more while producign less......hence my original point.

 

[SalemPats]

Rather than play screw around, the Patriots should come out the first day of free agency by signing the next best tight end. They did this with Danny Amendola
when Welker's agents were not reasonable.

The way Bennett performed this year that wouldn't be too hard to find

 

[Wordsmyth]

You realize the reverse holds true right? WE'RE in no position to tell HIM how to live his life because WE are out of touch with HIM as well.

Not buying that. I'm not being paid millions of dollars to play football. A good chunk of his salary is incumbent upon ticket sales, merchandise sales, etc. In short: he needs us more than we need him.

 

[The Gr8est]

We're on the same page here. But guess what, if he doesn't go to Cleveland then Cleveland could still end up overpaying someone else. In this case it's quite possible the person Cleveland does get could make more while producign less......hence my original point.

The Browns signed Jamie Collins before FA began. That says that to keep Collins they paid more than Collins could have hoped for as a FA.

Overpaying.

It's what the Browns do.