Whit & Zeitler Vs Geno & Carlos

[*SHRacerX*]

(08-30-2018, 02:24 AM)Shady Wrote: I've never put any effort into understanding the cap, and I don't keep tabs on how much $$$ the Bengals organization is under the cap, but I was just wondering about something.

Had we paid Whit and Zeitler the money needed to keep them, would we have been able to extend Geno and Carlos?

I kind of doubt it. Does anybody here have a more definitive answer?

If we couldn't have afforded to keep all 4, which 2 would you have preferred? I'd go with Carlos and Geno. Defense wins championships.

BTW, I hate how the rising salaries are destroying the game. If you build a good-great team, you'll never be able to afford to keep them together for very long.

I think it is an excellent question.  And I had no problems with letting the very average Zeitler go for the ridiculous $12 million per year that he got in Cleveland.  Whit was a tough call, but he was 35 years old and wanted a three-year deal?  The real issue wasn't that the Bengals didn't try to be prepared for his departure, but the picks of Ogbuehi and Fisher were giant whiffs.

I wouldn't worry too much about the escalating salaries.  The cap keeps rising each year as well and it has always been a superstar-driven league.  I also think that the league will eventually go to the 18 game regular season and bump the cap even higher with expanded rosters.  

The Bengals have been very smart (and get little to no recognition for it) in their cap-ology by not overpaying contracts with ridiculous back end money for their top tier players that they would have no intention of paying and ultimately lose the player.  The upfront money on Carlos and Geno's contracts gets them the average per year they deserve without bankrupting the cap down the line.  That is why they will be able to sign AJ next year and Dalton the year after that.