Coach Tuesday Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 It's not that any of them should be paid more than Byrd, it's how much do you want to pay your free safety? I like Byrd and want him to stay but I don't like him for 9 mil/year. I like him for 7. If they pay Byrd 9 mil then what happens when Darius comes up? Arron Williams? They can't pay everyone. I think $8-$9 mil for 4-6 game-changing turnovers per season is probably worthwhile. I don't give a hoot what position it's for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 I think $8-$9 mil for 4-6 game-changing turnovers per season is probably worthwhile. I don't give a hoot what position it's for. Yup. When you have a verifiable All Pro on your roster, you should do your best to keep him. Of course you can't pay everyone top dollar. But you also don't have a top player at every position on the roster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bills Fan in Beantown Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 I think this has been a common misconception about Byrd. There was nothing that he said that indicates he doesn't want to play in Buffalo. I think Byrd was pretty clear about his interviews after he came off the holdout that he was not happy with the organization and literally had to bite his tongue at times. After being named to the pro-bowl, Byrd made the same type of remarks about being justified, etc. I still think he would take less to play somewhere else. I say figure out what you can offer him and still re-up the big guys that will come up after next season and get it done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALF Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 The Bills can begin to talk long-term deal with Byrd and his camp after the regular season (December 30th), with the 2014 league year starting on February 3, 2014. NFL Free agency begins March 11th, also the first day that trades can be processed - both important dates to the Bills and Jairus Byrd. http://www.spotrac.c...us-byrd-v2-407/ Article has good comparison of Byrd to other top safeties Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 I think Byrd was pretty clear about his interviews after he came off the holdout that he was not happy with the organization and literally had to bite his tongue at times. After being named to the pro-bowl, Byrd made the same type of remarks about being justified, etc. I still think he would take less to play somewhere else. I say figure out what you can offer him and still re-up the big guys that will come up after next season and get it done. That's quite a leap of logic. Why do you dismiss his comments that he likes the team and playing in Buffalo? This is all about the dollars. He feels he should be the highest paid in free agency. There was nothing that came out of his camp that he wants out of Buffalo, no matter what. He will not take a lower deal just to get out of Buffalo, because if he does, it will kill any kind of negotiating leverage that Parker would have with other teams. Parker may be a hard ass, but he's also consistent. He's looking out to get the best deal for his client. He is not going to accept a lesser deal to move Byrd out of Buffalo, because that's not what the negotiation is about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsVet Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 Yup. When you have a verifiable All Pro on your roster, you should do your best to keep him. Of course you can't pay everyone top dollar. But you also don't have a top player at every position on the roster. What team allows All-Pros to leave, either via trade or UFA? If Byrd leaves, it'll be 2 of Buffalo's 4 non-special teams AP All-Pro's from 07-present that left the team. One of those guys (Mario) was signed in UFA, Kyle Williams was re-signed, Peters was traded, and Byrd's situation remains up in the air. Keep your elite talent and figure out how to pay for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramius Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 What team allows All-Pros to leave, either via trade or UFA? If Byrd leaves, it'll be 2 of Buffalo's 4 non-special teams AP All-Pro's from 07-present that left the team. One of those guys (Mario) was signed in UFA, Kyle Williams was re-signed, Peters was traded, and Byrd's situation remains up in the air. Keep your elite talent and figure out how to pay for it. If teams don't allow their all-pros to leave, then how did we get Mario Williams? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
808 Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 My thoughts on Byrd: I understand that the BILLS don't get better by letting good players walk to other teams. But, this team is also not just one or two positions away from being a perennial contender, they need at least five or six signficant upgrades in talent. This overhaul has taken years and by paying Byrd too much - say $8 or $9 mill in guaranteed money the next couple years - they would commit a huge investment into two players, which I'm not a fan of Super Mario's contract either - when others need to be addressed. They would essentially, IMO, place themselves in a golden wheelchair...really nice looking, but still crippled by over-extending money into just two positions, neither of them the QB and one of them at least potentially mitigated by either a Rookie Draft or another player already on team, i.e. Searcy. I have no qualms with Byrd as a player, business man I'm not so happy with, and if he can get that money somewhere else, God Bless him...but IMO, if he doesn't play for the $6.5 mill average, I would rather see the BILLS tag him and trade him...and use that money on the Offensive line and maybe a Corner where a Defense really relies on someone to stick to the WR like wallpaper...... what makes you think the bills will use that money if they don't resign byrd? they didn't try and spend it this past year to fix the OL. legursky we knew was gonna suck. i have no faith that this team will use that money. because we aren't close to the cap now anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papazoid Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 That's quite a leap of logic. Why do you dismiss his comments that he likes the team and playing in Buffalo? This is all about the dollars. He feels he should be the highest paid in free agency. There was nothing that came out of his camp that he wants out of Buffalo, no matter what. He will not take a lower deal just to get out of Buffalo, because if he does, it will kill any kind of negotiating leverage that Parker would have with other teams. Parker may be a hard ass, but he's also consistent. He's looking out to get the best deal for his client. He is not going to accept a lesser deal to move Byrd out of Buffalo, because that's not what the negotiation is about. his agent made it clear they were "open" to a trade.....because they didn't want anyone to think they "wanted" a trade. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 If teams don't allow their all-pros to leave, then how did we get Mario Williams? Because they had another all pro in the wings, and we have? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach Tuesday Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 Because they had another all pro in the wings, and we have? We have Meeks, Williams and Leonhard. The dropoff would be significant. If you're gonna play this kind of game you had better hit on your draft picks - we don't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 his agent made it clear they were "open" to a trade.....because they didn't want anyone to think they "wanted" a trade. So he could go to a team that would pay him his market worth, because they didn't think that Bills would give him a contact like Goldson ' s. We'll see what Overdorf's sharp pencil will produce next week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanInUticaTampa Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 The BiT series is Brandon's baby and I suspect won't be going away given his involvement in setting it up. Perhaps he's serious about undoing the Toronto games, but I seriously doubt it. Buffalo needs added revenue and simply walking away, even if mutually, seems out of the question. And considering that Brandon's background is on the business side of the house, I find it hard to believe they won't work on re-vamping it. As far as Jairus Byrd, well, it's time for the team to put their money where their mouth is. Not retaining key free agents when there are no other players imminently up for contract extensions is inexcusable and not what a team committed to winning does. Where else are they going to spend the money? They have a lot of players up next year. So that would really be the only excuse. But I am with you, he is important, and I think important enough to pay him, even if they over pay. They wasted a lot of money on QBs that never even played for us, and that wasted money could have been used to help retain Byrd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papazoid Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 So he could go to a team that would pay him his market worth, because they didn't think that Bills would give him a contact like Goldson ' s. We'll see what Overdorf's sharp pencil will produce next week. it's been widely reported the Bills did offer "goldson" money (top 4-5). Byrd is holding out for #1 money. and no I do not have sworn testimony from the bills or Eugene Parker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jr1 Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Return some pop bottles and get it done, Russ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuntheDamnBall Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 It's not that any of them should be paid more than Byrd, it's how much do you want to pay your free safety? I like Byrd and want him to stay but I don't like him for 9 mil/year. I like him for 7. If they pay Byrd 9 mil then what happens when Darius comes up? Arron Williams? They can't pay everyone. That's a fair argument, but "you can't pay everyone" is a trope that comes up often from a couple of posters. First you have to provide a real good sense of whom on the team is overpaid. Mario might be. His was a statement signing. Most everyone else is signed to a contract commensurate with their performance, or in some cases - Kiko, Woods, Glenn - to good value rookie contracts. You need to pay your stars, especially when you're letting other strong performers like Levitre go, and especially when you have room under the cap. Let's not even add to this the money and cap room that has literally been flushed down the toilet on players like Fitzpatrick, which is the worst kind of message - "we could afford to waste money on player X, but can't / won't pay you despite the fact that you're an All Pro." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 it's been widely reported the Bills did offer "goldson" money (top 4-5). Byrd is holding out for #1 money. and no I do not have sworn testimony from the bills or Eugene Parker. That's a contradiction - Goldson received $22 million guaranteed, while the reports were that Bills were offering less than $19 million guaranteed. Everything I've read hints that if Bills upped their guarantee to $22 million, the deal would have been done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Because they had another all pro in the wings, and we have? Are you comparing JJ Watt to a shopping cart? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXBILLSFAN Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 (edited) :wallbash: I don't know how many times this needs to be repeated, but let's repeat it again. By being the highest paid safety in 2014 will not make Byrd the best safety in the league. It simply means that he's the best available safety in free agency in 2014, and benefits from the timing. If Bills had signed him to a long term deal last year, chances are there would be a contract this year or next year that would surpass Byrd's as the highest paid. That's how things work, and is not a complicated topic. If you reset the contracts every year, Byrd wouldn't be the highest paid. But that's not the way the world works. Byrd's value was set last year by the Goldson contract. Byrd is better than Goldson, and should have been paid at least as much. Same story will repeat in 2014. Here are the top 20 safeties up for free agency in 2014. Who should be paid more than Byrd? 1. Jairus Byrd 2. T.J. Ward 3. Antoine Bethea 4. Chris Clemons 5. Malcolm Jenkins 6. Stevie Brown 7. Major Wright 8. Nate Allen 9. Charles Woodson 10. Ryan Clark 11. James Ihedigbo 12. Bernard Pollard 13. Donte Whitner 14. Usama Young 15. Kendrick Lewis 16. Mike Adams 17. Michael Mitchell 18. Chris Crocker 19. Yeremiah Bell 20. Quintin Mikell 21. Michael Huff I think you are misunderstanding my post. I think the only way the Bills will be able to resign Byrd is to pay him at or above what he could get in the market if he hits free agency. In other words, Byrd wants MORE from the Bills than he would get on the open market. I believe Byrd wants to play for an organization that is a consistent or proven winner, he is a smart guy with great football pedigree. I think he wants to win and compete for a Super Bowl and I don't think he sees that in Buffalo. In my opinion he won't sign with Bills because Bills won't pay that type of premium, nor do I believe they should. What will prove my point is if Byrd signs with another team that is a contender for a contract that is BELOW that of the top 2 or 3 safeties. Edited January 29, 2014 by TXBILLSFAN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 I think you are misunderstanding my post. I think the only way the Bills will be able to resign Byrd is to pay him at or above what he could get in the market if he hits free agency. In other words, Byrd wants MORE from the Bills than he would get on the open market. I believe Byrd wants to play for an organization that is a consistent or proven winner, he is a smart guy with great football pedigree. I think he wants to win and compete for a Super Bowl and I don't think he sees that in Buffalo. In my opinion he won't sign with Bills because Bills won't pay that type of premium, nor do I believe they should. What will prove my point is if Byrd signs with another team that is a contender for a contract that is BELOW that of the top 2 or 3 safeties. Putting aside the argument that Byrd may want to play for a team with better winning prospects than the Bills, there has been zero contention that he wants a premium to stay in Buffalo. That logic would work if the Bills offered him the same deal as Goldson got, and Byrd's camp turned that down. But all we can surmise is that Bills offered less than Goldosn's deal, and that's where the impasse ended. As for playing for a winner, each top echelon player has enough self confidence to think that he is the missing piece in a SuperBowl run. But in reality, they know their NFL shelf life is limited and they get only one shot at a big contract. How else would you explain Goldson walking away from a SB team to a top 5 draft pick team? That will be Byrd's decision too - take more money from a team that won't be in SB contention right away or take less to win a championship. The way Parker has positioned the negotiations, I'm guessing they're going to maximize Byrd's value. I don't think he signs for less than what Goldson got last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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