Best FA fits - espn

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(02-22-2023, 03:03 PM)Nepa Wrote: I don't know how teams with such huge contracts still manage to sign major free agents, and yet every year I find myself surprised.  I see this comment from Jake Trotter, ESPN's reporter focused on the Browns, " Watson's record contract also will count $55 million against the cap this year, limiting Cleveland's financial options. Still, the Browns should be able to find a way to manufacture enough space to take at least one big swing in free agency."

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/35706001/2023-nfl-offseason-questions-afc-nfc-predictions-free-agency-draft-all-32-teams

It's basically a matter of spending cash now to save cap later that year. You'll probably have to pay for it for a year or two cap-wise, years down the line, but you can kick that can for awhile so long as you don't mind spending more cash now.

For instance, the Browns could turn $20m of Watson's $46m base salary into a signing bonus and then pro rate that bonus over the 4 remaining years of his deal, $5m, $5m, $5m, and $5m. His cap hit this year would drop $15m (the 3x $5m over the next 3 years) from $55m to $40m. In exchange his cap hits would rise from $55m in 2024, 2025, 2026 to $60m and you're just banking on the cap to rise enough that the extra increase isn't too painful. Or you extend him and since he's probably not going to average $60m/yr on the extension, the extension would then be able to lower some of those hits by spreading it out a bit more.

The main downside of it (and why you don't see the Bengals doing it much, besides it requiring a competent and creative FO) is you're giving the player a large chunk of money right then and there. Rather than that $20m worth of base salary in my earlier example being paid out over 18 week installments or whatever of ~$1.11m between Sept 2023 and Jan 2024 if it were part of the base salary, you're instead giving them a $20m signing bonus right then and there in whole in say March 2023. If you're shorter on liquid cash, it can be a problem if your an owner whose main/only source of income is their team. It's also the owner losing the opportunity to make profit/interest off of their $20m for the 7 months or whatnot before they'd have to start paying it out in game checks.