How the "uncapped season" will hurt the Ravens

[srobert96]

Just found this, not sure if it has already been posted (and don't plan on checking):



So, we can sign one big free agent even if we don't lose one. This probably means we could trade for a big-time player also, if that is the avenue the FO wants to explore.

I am not 100% sure if you can trade for a player as long as they fall in the 5.5 million first year compensation.

If that is the case there is a caveat and that is Jackson and Marshall are going to want more than 5.5 mil per year. They are going to want closer to 9mil. The value of the base salary cannot increase by over 30% year to year. For example. If you gave them a 5 year deal with a 20 mil signing bonus that would be 4 mil plus 1.5 in base. The next year the base could only go up by 450k and the following year by 600k etc. This would get them nowhere near where they are going to want to be from a compensation standpoint.

[baltimore_hokie]

I am not 100% sure if you can trade for a player as long as they fall in the 5.5 million first year compensation.

If that is the case there is a caveat and that is Jackson and Marshall are going to want more than 5.5 mil per year. They are going to want closer to 9mil. The value of the base salary cannot increase by over 30% year to year. For example. If you gave them a 5 year deal with a 20 mil signing bonus that would be 4 mil plus 1.5 in base. The next year the base could only go up by 450k and the following year by 600k etc. This would get them nowhere near where they are going to want to be from a compensation standpoint.

All teams that lost in the divisional round can sign one guy for anything over 5.5M in the first year. The number of players (1) is limited over that 5.5M threshold, not the value of the contract. That would probably include a trade too. I would front-load the deal to pay a ton during the first year since it will likely be uncapped.

[B-more Ravor]

I am not 100% sure if you can trade for a player as long as they fall in the 5.5 million first year compensation.

If that is the case there is a caveat and that is Jackson and Marshall are going to want more than 5.5 mil per year. They are going to want closer to 9mil. The value of the base salary cannot increase by over 30% year to year. For example. If you gave them a 5 year deal with a 20 mil signing bonus that would be 4 mil plus 1.5 in base. The next year the base could only go up by 450k and the following year by 600k etc. This would get them nowhere near where they are going to want to be from a compensation standpoint.

The way I'm reading it, you can not trade for a guy that you would otherwise not be able to sign as a UFA. That said, it doesn't appear that you would be prohibited from trading for a guy and then signing him to a long term deal.

So, they could IMO trade for a guy like Dwayne Bowe, who is still playing under his rookie deal and is making peanuts. Same would go for Boldin, whose contract is not huge right now. The problem, though, is that under the terms of the Final 8 plan, it does not appear that the player's contract could be renegotiated until he has been on the team for one year. That great for the team, but the player still isn't getting what he wants (at least soon enough, perhaps).

Guys like Jackson, Marshall and Miles are RFAs, so if they are signed to an RFA offer sheet and the Ravens end up giving up draft picks, it's not a trade in the true sense and there is no prohibition against signing RFAs.

RFAs can be traded for less than the tender compensation - Marshall, for instance - but again, the one-year prohbition on renegotiating the deal would apply.

[srobert96]

All teams that lost in the divisional round can sign one guy for anything over 5.5M in the first year. The number of players (1) is limited over that 5.5M threshold, not the value of the contract. That would probably include a trade too. I would front-load the deal to pay a ton during the first year since it will likely be uncapped.

I just reread it and they can only sign 1 player in the 4-6 mil range and could only sign a higher priced free agent if they lost one of equal value(ie sign a big contract elsewhere). You can't front load the contract because the first year can't exceed 5.5 million taking into account roster bonuses, salary and prorated signing bonus.

There are a couple of questions: If you have a second roster bonus in year 3 does that need to be accounted for in the first year figure. Is there a limit to the number of years in which you can prorate the signing bonus. If you could go 6 years It would allow for a larger signing bonus which would be enticing.

The only way I see the Ravens getting a top flight receiver is if they sign another teams franchised or RFA. The UFA list is going to be crap because of the additional year added under the no cap rules.

[B-more Ravor]

There are a couple of questions: If you have a second roster bonus in year 3 does that need to be accounted for in the first year figure. Is there a limit to the number of years in which you can prorate the signing bonus. If you could go 6 years It would allow for a larger signing bonus which would be enticing.

1. You can have a second or option bonus included, but there's a 30% limitation in place. That limitation means that a player's future Salaries (to include base salary and roster bonuses) cannot increase yearly by more than 30% of the first year salary. So, a low first year "Salary" cannot be augmented - too much - by a large option bonus later in the deal, if that bonus would violate the 30% limitation.

2. Pursuant to the CBA, bonus money can only be prorated over 5 years.

EDIT: That 30% limitation was already in effect this past year, so there are plenty of comparables for what those deals would have to look like. A look at Ray Lewis' and Domonique Foxworth's new deals from last Spring shows how such a deal could be structured for that one "middle tier" FA ($5-6M in first year Salary) the Ravens could sign:

http://www.profootball24x7.com/colum...9&view=archive

http://www.profootball24x7.com/colum...6&view=archive