Dysfunction at it's finest

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(06-12-2025, 10:57 PM)THE PISTONS Wrote: Yeah...I mean the average person is happy to make $100k a year. These guys get millions and there's some wording in a contract they won't sign.

Don't get me wrong, I dont like how the Bengals negotiate sometimes, but if other teams have the wording...we should.

This is the most cliched terrible argument that exists when fans talk about players money. If the average person could do what an NFL player could do, they would no longer be an average person and they would no longer be happy to make $100k a year.

There's ~25,000,000 people in the US age 20-25 who the Bengals could have drafted instead. They chose Stewart as the 17th best of them at football. He's not an average person. There are only 32 people in the entire world each year who are NFL first round picks. 

As a general rule, not even professional athlete-wise... if there's wording in a contract you don't like? Don't sign that contract. Signing a contract you don't like is about the worst advice you can give someone. That's a terribly weird take.

- - - - - - - -
Besides, the average person gets to choose who they work for, and they get to negotiate for their salary and their companies generally aren't guaranteed profitability through huge tax breaks and anti-trust exemptions.

So unless you want to get rid of the draft, the rookie wage scale, the salary cap and revenue sharing... and open up the NFL to an actual free market system, I don't think you want players being held to the "average person" standards.

We would have never gotten Joe Burrow. He would have signed out of college with New Orleans for hundreds of millions of dollars and a minority share of the team if he were able to get his services bid on by companies like a true "average person" in the job market.

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(06-12-2025, 10:59 PM)THE PISTONS Wrote: I think the NFLPA had a hand in negotiating that as it took money from veterans. The veterans are who make up the unions.

Yes, and they negotiated for 1st round picks to get fully guaranteed contracts. Back-dooring a way to take that away is going to lead to problems with the union down the road.

[t3r3e3]

(06-12-2025, 07:28 PM)Cosmokramer Wrote: While it’s very easy to be upset when we see other franchises go through dynasties and we just want 1. Sometimes I think it’s lost that this is a for profit business. In the end, it’s business and they want to make the most profit. They are going to handle their finances as they see fit. Sucks for us. But it is what it is.

Revenue sharing ensures a yearly profit no matter how badly Mike, Katie and Troy dick things up. Consistently fielding a winning franchise would earn more revenue, but that has never been the Family jam. They run the team like a family-owned gas station selling Kratom and fake weed.

[sandwedge]

(06-12-2025, 03:55 PM)c766 Wrote: Forget the 0 super bowl wins, The endless botched draft picks, The myriad of 10+ loss seasons

And Generally being regarded as one of the most incompetent and poorly run pro sports franchises in the world.....


What they are doing right now is truly remarkable.

- Hendrickson multi year contract saga

- Drafting 2 First Round DEs in the span of 24 months who cant sack the QB  

- Shamar Stewart Saga

- Inability to work with the city on the stadium lease - Deadlocked

- Current Cap Space of 31.9 Mll (9th most in the NFL as of today)


This team continues to be an absolute embarrassment for the fans and people of Cincinnati.    They are the same level of ineptitude as the Reds

If you are so broken up over this team, WTF are you here? I'm sure there is a cliff near you can jump off.

[sandwedge]

(06-12-2025, 10:12 PM)c766 Wrote: Rice was a second round selection.

Is that supposed to make a difference? 

[t3r3e3]

(Yesterday, 12:24 AM)sandwedge Wrote: If you are so broken up over this team, WTF are you here? I'm sure there is a cliff near you can jump off.

Don’t be hating. He’s reached the end of his Mike/Katie rope, some of you haven’t. Doesn’t mean he’s not a fan, just means he sipped slightly less Kool-Aid than you….

[wanga]

(Yesterday, 12:24 AM)sandwedge Wrote: If you are so broken up over this team, WTF are you here? I'm sure there is a cliff near you can jump off.

It wouldn’t be high enough or too high, not scenic enough, made of the wrong rocks, in the wrong place or something else. 
Whingy people gotta whinge. 

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(06-12-2025, 10:59 PM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: Lol, you say this about him. Another poster says that about Hendrickson.

Weird how the Bengals keep getting surrounded by problems, who knows WHY it happens. You know how the saying goes: "If you run into an asshole in the morning, you ran into an asshole. If you run into assholes all day.... there's a strangely large amount of assholes around you, weird."

 Trey Hendrickson isn't a rookie that's never taken one damn snap. I think you know me well enough to know that I'm certainly not a front office homer. 

This cat has ran his unproven mouth, and then left camp. I was fine with him avoiding physical activity to minimize risk to his body while not signed.  This is not that. **** that guy.

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(06-12-2025, 10:57 PM)THE PISTONS Wrote: Yeah...I mean the average person is happy to make $100k a year. These guys get millions and there's some wording in a contract they won't sign.

Don't get me wrong, I dont like how the Bengals negotiate sometimes, but if other teams have the wording...we should.

Yeah, I'm not even liking how the Bengals are handling this....but this clown is somehow handling it even worse than them. I think it's key to remember that ALL of the news regarding this is coming from HIS camp. 

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(06-12-2025, 10:54 PM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: Just hope players aren't getting tired of having their rights drafted away and then forced to sign an artificially lowered value slotted value contract rather than go to the workplace of their choice after an open market bidding war for their services.

-Sam Bradford got a 6yr/$78m (but it wasn't all guaranteed) as a rookie 1st overall pick and was (theoretically) able to get a raise/extension after 1 year.
-Then 10 years later Joe Burrow got 4yr/$36.2m (fully guaranteed) as a rookie 1st overall pick and couldn't get a raise/extension until he finished 3 years in the league.

He led the Bengals to the Super Bowl and then proceeded to make $3.9m in 2022 because of the artificial suppression and he also artificially wasn't allowed to get more money yet.

Don't rock the boat too hard on your cushy deal of vastly underpaying high end talent for the first few years of their career. The price of that is 1st round picks getting guaranteed deals. Once you get greedy and want to take even more from them, that road leads to labor disputes.

Guys like Sam Bradford are why we have rookie contracts these days. It protects the teams financially from busts like him, and super busts like Ryan Leaf or Jamarcus Russell.

[THE PISTONS]

(Yesterday, 05:55 AM)Wyche Wrote: Yeah, I'm not even liking how the Bengals are handling this....but this clown is somehow handling it even worse than them. I think it's key to remember that ALL of the news regarding this is coming from HIS camp. 

It just seems like one that either side could just give in on for the good of all.

Like he has to realize he won't be a knucklehead. And the Bengals have to realize the risk of him doing something like that is low.

We'll see if this leads to a camp holdout. That would be very bad.

[THE PISTONS]

(Yesterday, 05:53 AM)Wyche Wrote:  Trey Hendrickson isn't a rookie that's never taken one damn snap. I think you know me well enough to know that I'm certainly not a front office homer. 

This cat has ran his unproven mouth, and then left camp. I was fine with him avoiding physical activity to minimize risk to his body while not signed.  This is not that. **** that guy.

Even at that too...camp wasn't even wearing pads, right? The guys were in shorts and t-shirts.

[TecmoBengals]

(Yesterday, 09:30 AM)THE PISTONS Wrote: And the Bengals have to realize the risk of him doing something like that is low.

I'm assuming it isn't about just Shemar to them, but rather them wanting to establish how they handle business with all draft picks and players moving forward.

[THE PISTONS]

(Yesterday, 09:45 AM)TecmoBengals Wrote: I'm assuming it isn't about just Shemar to them, but rather them wanting to establish how they handle business with all draft picks and players moving forward.

Absolutely.

[c766]

(Yesterday, 12:30 AM)sandwedge Wrote: Is that supposed to make a difference? 

The guaranteed money is vastly different.

The bengals want to protect their 1st round rookie deal money (20m)...if this was a second round 7M 4 year rookie deal, they would not care as much.

They need to tell agents and draftees - next year we are making the language standard in our contracts...and get Shemar deal done now like Mims and Murphy 

[SunsetBengal]

Wow, this is helpful.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/bengals-shemar-stewart-could-re-enter-nfl-draft-thanks-to-cba-loophole/ar-AA1GAW2g?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=16403fbe81b444da882871b94aa42709&ei=34

Quote:The Cincinnati Bengals enter camp with some looming questions. One is the contract status of star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson, who is holding out in hopes of a new deal.

But, another is the status of rookie Shemar Stewart.

The Bengals selected Stewart 17th overall after a stellar career at Texas A&M. At the time, he was expected to be some insurance in case they weren't able to bring back Hendrickson.

However, Stewart decided to leave camp on Thursday due to his contract situation. As of now, he has not signed his deal, and the rookie has been frustrated by some language in the contract from the team.

In an interesting loophole, there is a path to Stewart sitting out the entire year, not signing a contract, and then re-entering the 2026 NFL Draft, as Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio laid out.

Florio mentioned a few scenarios in general. One is that he could refuse to sign and demand a trade, and the other is that he could wait until right before Week 11 and still play in 2025. But the last two options are the most wonky ones.

"Third, he can refuse to sign at all until the 2026 draft begins. At that point, he'd re-enter the draft pool. During the 2026 draft, he could be drafted by any team except the Bengals. Fourth - and this is something that we contemplated during the 2025 draft both as to quarterback Shedeur Sanders and quarterback Quinn Ewers - Stewart could try to return to college for the upcoming season."


So, in theory, Stewart could sit out and re-enter the 2026 NFL Draft, which would be a crucial blow after the Bengals used a first-round pick on him.

Even more surprising is the fact that he could go back to college, but Florio says there are some legal battles that would have to be fought on that front.

Right now, there are some options for Stewart, and it will be interesting to see if the Bengals budge and end this holdout.

[Millhouse]

(Yesterday, 10:18 AM)SunsetBengal Wrote: Wow, this is helpful.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/bengals-shemar-stewart-could-re-enter-nfl-draft-thanks-to-cba-loophole/ar-AA1GAW2g?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=16403fbe81b444da882871b94aa42709&ei=34

Imagine if he decides to go back to college ball, assuming Florio is correct, the impact it could have. That's obviously worst case scenario, and I don't think the Bengals will let it go that far by being stubborn.

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(Yesterday, 09:31 AM)THE PISTONS Wrote: Even at that too...camp wasn't even wearing pads, right? The guys were in shorts and t-shirts.

Yes....but you could still tweak a hammy or something. I fully understand his thought process there. Now, I'm not onboard.

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(Yesterday, 11:04 AM)Millhouse Wrote: Imagine if he decides to go back to college ball, assuming Florio is correct, the impact it could have. That's obviously worst case scenario, and I don't think the Bengals will let it go that far by being stubborn.

You would hope not, but nothing would surprise me regarding their stubbornness.

[*Nately120*]

(Yesterday, 11:04 AM)Millhouse Wrote: Imagine if he decides to go back to college ball, assuming Florio is correct, the impact it could have. That's obviously worst case scenario, and I don't think the Bengals will let it go that far by being stubborn.

Even for us, that'd be a pretty low point.