Bye Bye Salary Cap

Hazys

In 2 months the current CBA runs out and there is no sign of an agreement being reached between the NFL and Players union, so there will be no salary cap next year and if it goes i dont see it coming back anytime soon.

I think its a lose-lose-lose situation. For the NFL its a loss because the game will become less competitive and less exciting resulting in less tv revenue, etc. For the majority of players its a loss because it removes the salary floor which exists now and the average salary will proabably go down. Its a loss for the fans if your team isn't the Cowboys, Redskins or Patriots, suddenly you are at a huge disadvantage.

As a Pats fan its in theory a good thing as we will be able to spend more than the current salary cap, im guessing somewhere in the region of $170m a year (no doubt Jones & Synder will be nearer the $300m mark)but if your a Packers fan you can expect your team to pay less than the current floor, guessing again around $70m. As a Pats fan we now have a huge advantage over the opposition, but i dont like it. I was proud of the fact that BB and Kraft were better because the outsmarted people now it will become a Premiership situation where money talks.

Also there is a small light to the Pats losing in the wildcard round, we didnt finish in the top 8, which would mean we would be restricted in free agency. This is a ridiculous rule as it punished teams who are sucessful, another reason i'd like to keep the current CBA.

Currently in baseball the Oakland A's spend $50m on salary yearly while the Yankees spend somewhere near $400m...8X as much. Although that hasnt yielded the Yankess much sucess until this year and the A's have always been there or there abouts in the playoff hunt. Baseball is somewhat less a team sport and tactical as Football, so tactics and teamwork generally you cant buy, so will lack of salary cap have that much impact on the game we love?

Hazys

Also the end of the CBA, is pissing off these 212 players.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2009/12/31/the-212-players-who-wont-be-unrestricted-free-agents/

If the current CBA is renewed, these guys will be unrestricted free agents but if its gone they will have to wait another year to become unrestricted free agents.

Another disadvantage to players is that players will have to wait another 2 years to try their hand at free agency. "In a normal year, four years of service qualifies a player for unrestricted free agency. In an uncapped year, the number moves to six."

Take Shawn Merriman for example. He will be a restricted free agent for the next 2 years so the Chargers can put a 1st, 3rd round tag on him each year for $2m salary for a year...what would he earn if he went unrestricted? certainly more than $4m a year.

These disadvantages to player movement, take some of the money talks aspect out of the game and forces teams to draft well or suffer. If the average college player comes out at 23 then the wont hit free agency till they are 29 in the latter end of their prime, so itll only be 4/5 year contracts for these players and not like the 10 year $100m contracts we saw last offseason. So the more i look at it the worse off the players are...i think they may only be realizing it way too late.


Here is an article on what happens if the CBA expires and a list of the URFA if the CBA expires...not many big names.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story?id=09000d5d81423860&template=with-video-with-comments&confirm=true


The more i look at it, the less the negative impact it will have the league.

cooker3

As a packers fan this worries me but what really worries me is the non stop talk that 2011 will be a strike year and a total write off. Adam Shefter seems to think there is a very good possibility it could happen. I really hope not, would be a disaster.

It seems the soul of the game is up for grabs. Some owners with big pockets want something more akin to baseball. The NFL is what is because of the salary cap imo. Teams like the Packers, Jaguars etc with small markets will not stand a chance without it.

eagle eye

Its very likely that there will be a new CBA in place pretty soon. The only thing that is likely to remain the same is FA as the agreement might not be ready before the March 5th FA deadline. The likleyhood now is even it it is signed by then that the FA restrictions from an uncapped year will apply this year.

You should also remember that should there be no new CBA, there is no ceiling and there is no floor either, which would lead to huge gaps developing between the richer and poorer franchises and there would be no onus on a team to pay the minimum wage which currently stands in the league.

The CBA is what makes the NFL great, the sooner there is a new one in place the better.