Rochesterfan

I agree - the NFL and the NFLPA have already agreed to the split - if the NFL can show that due to the lack of fans - they lost X amount - they can work with the NFLPA to spread that loss over 3-5 years keeping the salary cap at 0% increase - rather than cutting the cap in 1 year. The NFLPA will go along because the alternative is for the NFL to decrease the salary cap by a significant margin - which would cause a huge impact in FA salaries and more importantly all kinds of players cut to work to get under the cap. The Bills are in pretty good position because of the number of short 1 year contracts and the available space for next year. There are other teams that not getting a 10 million bump in the cap is going to cause major issues.

It is just a random piece, but when you connect it with the piece on what the Dolphins are planning for in terms of fans - a bigger picture begins to come into focus. I am sure just like schools, hospitals, restaurants, etc - football teams are being asked to think about and model ways to play with No fans, 10% of capacity, 25% capacity, and even 50% and full capacity and protect players, other fans, and workers. It would not surprise me in the least if once they allow fans into the game - if we see a cap at between 10-25% capacity ~ 8 - 15,000 fans and that all parking is in stadium lots with little to no tailgating to maintain social distancing. I could also see a limit on what they will sell at the game with fewer vendors and more order/delivery type service to help restrict corridor traffic and specific plans for entering and exiting the stadium. I really expect the 2020 season for fans to be nothing like what we have experienced in the past and maybe once things settle down the old routine can return.

The draft picks are slotted into a salary that covers 4 years (with a 5th year option for the 1st round. There is very little flexibility or guaranteed money for the later draft picks. The UDFAs typically get a smaller GTD “signing bonus” offer to come to camp and that comes out of a pool each team has. Each team has a specified amount of Signing Bonus money for the UDFAs. The teams do have some options of guaranteeing a larger portion of the UDFAs contract meaning they theoretically could get more upfront as an UDFA than a draft pick - especially if both go to the PS. The UDFA contract is also only 3 years - meaning they can renegotiate after 2 years as an RFA and if they outperformed their contract - they can get their second contract sooner and have more guarantees. Finally as an UDFA - you can choose the best fit for your talent versus being drafted by a team that depth wise is worse. In most cases a draft pick will make more than an UDFA if both make the squad and play about 2 years in the league. After that talent and timing on contract will decide which makes more money. Many times the top UDFA will have higher guaranteed money in the initial contract and will make more if both are cut or end up on the PS.

Except it was Sean that told the story on a pod cast. He was being smug about how they screwed the Panthers. He is the one that stated both the Saints and the Panthers were in a bidding war. He is the one that stated the agent stopped fielding the Saints calls. Once they could no longer get the agent to talk more money - the Saints then traded back into the round to screw the Panthers. This is all on Sean trying to show how smart they are and in doing so he admitted they broke the rules. They should be punished.

Except it is not a non-issue. Sean stated that both the Saints and the Panthers were discussing compensation with the agent and a bidding war erupted. They maxed out compensation and the player and agent both felt Carolina was a better fit. The Saints were well within their rights to then trade and draft him, but both teams were illegally offering compensation. Both teams should be punished for breaking the rules. The stupidest part is the Saints already had multiple QBs on the roster and were working out Winston- so why go that far and risk your reputation on an UDFA? Especially one that now has almost no chance to make your roster.

I get the point - as top UDFAs might get more money than a 7th round pick because of the bidding - you do not want these players pissed they were drafted. It is also supposed to keep the competitive advantage limited as teams that are still drafting would have to focus on picks giving advantages to teams that are done. I am sure it happens all of the time - even if it is stupid things like you would be a top priority- there by insinuating you would get top money, but to be open about bidding and the Panthers coming to an agreement is just wrong. I totally agree some teams just assume everyone cheats and justifies their actions and that is the wrong way to do this. Both teams should get hammered for this - just as they should of hammered the Pats.

Nope - Sean admitted they and the Panthers were in a bidding war for the player. Both were offering money compensation- which is against the rules. The difference is it sounded like the agent and the player preferred Carolina - so the Saints made a trade back into the 7th round to get him and keep him away from the Panthers. The Rule as clearly stated is teams can talk to players/agents before the draft is complete, but they are not allowed to discuss any compensation until the draft is complete. This has been the case for years - and I am sure it happens all of the time where teams break or at least sidestep the rule - the difference is one coach this time decided to brag about screwing over a division rival and in doing so entrapped both teams. @GunnerBill you summed it up perfectly - I just do not get the Saints obsession on this. I can not see them keeping 3 QBs and Hill as a gadget guy on the roster. If they waive him for the practice squad - Carolina can pick him up for nothing and probably at a lower cost as many 7th round picks get paid less than the more coveted UDFAs. This was just stupid and petty on the Saints part and I hope the fine and perhaps loss of a pick was worth it for a guy they did not need. The Ego is just unreal with Sean.

oh they all know the rule - just very hard to get caught unless you are stupid enough to blab trying to show how smart you are.

They talked with Bass about this on One Bills Live - that floored Tasker who talked about booten Tuten and the 1990 season. Bass is also coached by John Carney who played in SD for years and Tasker played with him in a few Pro Bowls.

Agree 100% - I especially think the part about LaFleur is spot on. Many thought it was a strange hire because his fit with Rodgers is not ideal. If GB as an organization has a long term view - then the GM and HC are safe to make this pick.

I totally agree with this - their draft was terrible and did very little to help them. I think that is the case regardless of drafting Love in the first. The next WR was not going to push them to Super Bowl heights. They had plenty of chances to improve the offense after that pick and chose not to draft any WRs at all. I just don’t think that and Love have to be intertwined. Picking Love was not their biggest issue, but the rest of the draft was not good and that will be a problem as they move forward.

No - not comparing the players at all, but the situation is very similar. Most “experts” thought KC would have been better off with the 2 draft picks rather than a QB that was not going to help them in that year. They were coming off a divisional round loss and were well in the window. The organization made a decision that the next step needed to be better QB play and that is what they got. Why can GB not be looking at Rodgers and thinking over the next few years we are going to need get better QB play to stay on top. Plus tell me - what WR should they have picked that improves them significantly. Maybe the coach and GM recognize what they want out of the QB position and maybe Rodgers doesn’t give them what they want long term. He will need to be replaced - they are starting the planning before it is to late.

I understand, but why is it different than with Favre? He had 4 years left on his contract when they drafted Rodgers. They let Favre play 3 more years and then moved him to the NYJs using their control on the contract. That gave Rodgers years to get ready and allowed them to have some control over where Favre ended up. I can see this playing out the same - Rodgers really can’t be moved for at minimum 2 years and probably 3 - so you have time to see if Love can be the guy - if not you take another shot. If he seems to progress - then you have the ability to move Rodgers to an AFC team after 3 years and recoup something. If he does not progress you have the 2022 draft to try again.

The pack may have a worse year, but how do the fans in KC feel after they drafted a QB when they were still in the “window”. KC had won more than 10 games 4 out of 5 years with Smith, he was consistently getting better - including have his best season ever the year they drafted Mahomes. They made a choice of a QB - when many thought another stud defender could push them to the top. That decision worked out and many fans were not happy at first, but winning fixes everything. Pretty sure that is what he was saying. What player pushes them over the edge - none - so why is everyone fired up that a potential replacement 3-4 years down the road is so bad.

The league is no more win now than it was in 2005 when they made the Rodgers choice. That choice lead to a Super Bowl win. Yes they have holes, but what player at that point (late 1st round) pushes them to the Super Bowl? They made a choice that they think they are competitive with Rodgers and a QB they liked fell to them much like Rodgers did in 2005. They had a choice in 2005 - load up for 1 more run or begin thinking about the future while maintaining a winning team. They chose to look to the future and that gave them another Super Bowl win and 15 more years of sustained success. GB just chose to repeat that scenario and if I works they might have another decade and a half of success and that is worth way more than the 7th or 8th best WR was going to give them. Interestingly - this is also the choice KC made with a successful QB that had lead them deep in the playoffs and then they decided to draft Mahomes. Many thought they would be better getting some other piece to help propel them during their window and they chose to see if they could get better at a key position to drive them forward for another 2 decades. Now - I think a bunch of the rest of the draft stunk - so who knows if Love is any good- they seemed to reach for a lot of other picks and that pick might be no different, but I get why they took the shot. The shot with Rodgers worked out well for GB and they would like to repeat that success and longevity.

Yet he followed that up with 3 straight ProBowl trips (GB, NYJ, and Minn), his 3 highest years of completion percentage of his career, over 4100 yards his last year in GB and a 13-3 record with a 95.7 qb rating. I would love for our QB to fall off that cliff.

Yes and they were heavily criticized in 2005 for drafting Rodgers with Favre still under contract. Looking at 2005 draft grades - lots of C-, D’s, and even Fs, but when you look 5 years out - that draft in 2005 is now all A’s and one of the best drafts of the year. Did it hurt GB in the short term - maybe, but Rodgers won them a Super Bowl and has made them relevant for over an additional 10 years. This pick is no different - if Love works out they are brilliant and if he fails - they still have time to find another QB before Rodgers retires. The timing is perfect and it is exactly what GB should be doing.

More than anything it was because they had so much extra time to fill with this draft. They couldn’t do the obligatory fan shots and show all of the huge groups Of fans gathered together for the draft. They tried a few Suzy interviews, but they were awkward. They didn’t have the 3-4 minutes of the players celebrating back stage and then getting a hat and hugging Roger. They literally were filling time and the easiest way to do that is to humanize the people with backstory - usually tragic. They didn’t even have nice shots of pro-days or other recent interviews to go to. They had to fill time with research and that is what you get. I actually enjoyed the draft and wished they had focused a bit more on the coaches and GMs and their families also. It made the process seem so much more normal rather than the over the top production of the last few years. I love the look into the homes you got and wish they would do this every year. The picture of the dog sitting in Belichek’s seat was priceless and will be a lasting image of this draft for years to come.

It stopped being private medical information when he Tee Higgins talked about it openly. He has on multiple occasions talked about living with his aunt because of the drug abuse, about her being shot 2x by a boyfriend, and about how proud and strong she is to overcome it. ESPN did not say anything that was already not talked about and reported on multiple times from the combine, to the college interviews, to pro day interviews. It is a part of what makes him - who he is and he accepts that and promotes it as part of his character. ESPN did not need to make it part of the graphic, but the discussion is important and should be discussed.

They would need to send a ton of salary back, but with the dead cap hit - GB could not accept it. NE would need to find spots for Gilmore, Thuney, and probably at least one more big salary and GB would absorb nearly 50 million in dead cap - just not going to happen. I also don’t see it next year as the dead cap is still huge for GB. This is just a chance to see if Love can grow - they have 4-5 years to develop him and allow Rodgers to lead the team. This just does nothing at this point because there is just no way without NE and GB both weakening their teams to the point the trade makes no sense.

Not the least bit worried because of a little thing called the salary cap. The Pats can’t afford Rodgers right now unless they cut or trade about 5-6 guys that weaken the team.

what makes you think Trent Williams is an improvement at all? Where are these rumors of low round picks coming from? Cleveland was in discussion and they made it sound like Washington was still looking for 1st or high 2nd round picks. I am happy with our line and want nothing to do with Washington’s headcase.

Since it didn’t happen - it is somewhat irrelevant, but to answer this: The most likely Minshew result is average play. Minshew is good enough for 5 to 6 wins - much like Fitzy - I think he puts you out of range for Lawerence, but it is not good enough to win long term.

Well Yannick is still a Jaguar and it sounds like they did not get the value for a trade offer (or any legit offers at all). Could it be because he is being a Jack wagon which hurt his value - thereby making it harder to move him. Hmm. I still think he gets traded, but if he had made his wishes known and shut up - he would of had more value and maybe a mid level team takes a shot with a first round pick. With GMs questioning his attitude and the draft pick cost and the new deal he will want - his value is about as low as it will get right now and the Jaguars hold his rights. It looks more like a Bell or Clowney situation every time he tweets.

I agree it will be interesting. I think they build those boards on athletic modeling and RBs tend to model well. When it gets to how the GMs rate them - my guess is there are many factors that pull into that and position is part of that. Based on everything Beane has said over the last several years with regards to the draft - if he has similar rankings and one of those guys is available and is head and shoulders above others - he will take him. If Beane has the RB and a CB, OT, or DE available with similar grades at 54 - then he has stated he looks at positional depth both on the team and on the board. If he looks at the information they have put together and thinks they can get less drop off at RB with a 3rd or 4th round selection because there is more depth in the draft at that position - I would guess he would take a BPA at a position with less draft depth. The hard part is we will never know exactly what his board or his reasoning is. I think the general prevailing ideas around the league is that if there is elite talent (Barkley/Elliott) you take that high - other than that you wait until they are far and away the best talent on the board because even elite RBs barely move a win/loss meter. I think Buffalo may be in a good position for that train of thought. Most teams seem to subscribe to the have 3 or 4 guys and don’t worry at all about where you got them. KC had a terrible running back group and they were Super Bowl Champs, SF running back by committee, NE last year had 4/5 RBs to handle the load. The Rams had Gurley (big time lead back) and replaced him with a mid season street FA to get to the Super Bowl. If the Bills get a guy that falls to them and is highly ranked great, if not the difference with a 3rd, 4th, 5th round guy will be very small - the fit is more important for this team.