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Source: LB Matt Milano looking for “top dollar” in FA


YoloinOhio

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20 minutes ago, BuffaloBills1998 said:

Just like when Arizona overpaid for Philips and just like when the saints overpaid for Byrd. This is one of the reasons I don’t respect the players of today vs the NFL players from back in the day. It’s all about the money now and less about wanting to win and bringing good culture to the locker rooms. 

Also That’s not an excuse for Philips playing like Crap in Arizona. I’m glad Beane didn’t overpay for him like other on here wanted. Look at his stats for this year vs his last year in Buffalo. It wasn’t him it was the system here that helped him. Take him out of the system and you get the same old Philips from Miami


For one thing, I don't blame men who put their physical health on the line for wanting to get the most money they possibly can for them and their families. Playing football is a JOB, after all. I'm guessing you wouldn't knowingly take much less than you're worth in YOUR occupation just to "support a good culture".

Another thing: Players "back in the day" literally did not even have the option to go anywhere else. Free agency didn't exist. It was either take what you're offered and play for your team, or don't play at all. 

If a free agent is weighing a few options and the money difference between Team A and Team B is negligible, then sure, leave a little money on the table to stick with or move to the team with the best chance of winning and the good culture. If it's a BIG difference, though, and this is maybe your one and only shot to secure a life changing contract that can set your family and your children and their children up for life? I can't blame these men one bit for thinking family first.

Edited by Logic
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1 minute ago, Tortured Soul said:

Story says nothing about whether the Bills will use the tag, right?

I dont believe it does.  But the franchise tag for Milano is somewhere north of 15 million dollars.   No way the Bills can swing that, nor should they.   He is a good football player but those contract estimates that have him in the 14 milllion dollar range are absolutely bloated.   Given his inability to stay on the field, I wouldnt pay him a penny over 10, and even that is a bit of an overpay.

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4 minutes ago, thenorthremembers said:

I dont believe it does.  But the franchise tag for Milano is somewhere north of 15 million dollars.   No way the Bills can swing that, nor should they.   He is a good football player but those contract estimates that have him in the 14 milllion dollar range are absolutely bloated.   Given his inability to stay on the field, I wouldnt pay him a penny over 10, and even that is a bit of an overpay.

 

Transition tag him then?

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Milano doesn't deserve top dollar and the team that pays him at that level will be disappointed. His cover skills are not as good as the Warners, Whites, David's and Leonard's of the world and his run defense is not as good as Van Noy , Queen or even Demario Davis. QB pressure is not on par with Barrett, Ingraham, TJ Watt or many of the guys mentioned already. Why waste all that cap space on a oft injured, not overly physical, good LB.

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4 catches 74 yards.  Rams TDs.

 

9 catches 88 yards.  Darren Waller.

 

16 targets 14 catches 1 TD 136 yards.

Colts TEs in the playoff game.  

 

13 Catches 118 yards 2 TDs 

Travis Kelce AFC Championship.

 

Often hurt. 

 

But definitely made the D better vs mediocre to decent offenses.

 

 

We thank you for your service Matt it's just a money issue.

 

Our D needs upgrades at more important positions.   

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There was a story about Milano a year ago saying he doesn't care about money, he only wears plain white t-shirts & has almost no furniture in his home, minimalist everything, etc. Now after another injury-plagued year, he wants to be one of the higher paid LBs or bust? This could just be his agent talking.

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29 minutes ago, 947 said:

There was a story about Milano a year ago saying he doesn't care about money, he only wears plain white t-shirts & has almost no furniture in his home, minimalist everything, etc. Now after another injury-plagued year, he wants to be one of the higher paid LBs or bust? This could just be his agent talking.

Could be a respect thing. Just because you don't spend a lot doesn't mean money doesn't mean a lot also. 

Edited by Buffalo_Stampede
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In fairness, Milano hasn't exactly been breaking the bank on his rookie deal.

 

Under normal circumstances, I think the Bills would be happy to give him a long term deal at good money, i.e. the $10 -12 million per range.

 

That might have been enough to keep him.

 

As things stand, I feel his desire to maximise his $, is more a function of the fact that he hasn't earned that much so far, relatively speaking, and he knows the Bills can't really afford to pay him in the range he deserves.

 

That's neither his fault, or the Bills.

 

Ultimately, this next contract, is his future, and his overall performances mean he deserves a shot at the best one he can get.

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10 minutes ago, CaliBills said:

we need to move Tremaine to OLB and sign a true MLB that is younger than Klein. Or Draft a true MLB.  

 

I do believe Tremaine would be better fit OLB as many believe in here.  

I agree as well but this administration are too proud/bullheaded to admit to that error. Sucks.😡

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1 hour ago, 947 said:

There was a story about Milano a year ago saying he doesn't care about money, he only wears plain white t-shirts & has almost no furniture in his home, minimalist everything, etc. Now after another injury-plagued year, he wants to be one of the higher paid LBs or bust? This could just be his agent talking.

Maybe the injuries made him realize how everything could be over in a second.

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1 hour ago, 947 said:

There was a story about Milano a year ago saying he doesn't care about money, he only wears plain white t-shirts & has almost no furniture in his home, minimalist everything, etc. Now after another injury-plagued year, he wants to be one of the higher paid LBs or bust? This could just be his agent talking.

 

I don't think it said he didn't care about money. 

 

It said he was a minimalist in his possessions and decor.

 

Different.

4 hours ago, BuffaloRebound said:

Timing is kind of weird on this story.  Free agency is still 4 weeks away.  Either Bills have no interest in bringing him back or they are so far apart in negotiations they’ve mutually decided to move on.  

 

It's hard to see it as "so far apart mutually decided....".....

 

Formally other teams can't negotiate, of course the agents and the gm's/staff from different teams chat at the Sr Bowl and so forth...but until an actual offer is in hand, it's hard to say for sure what "far apart" really looks like, because the devil is in the details with all these player contracts.

 

So I agree, the timing is weird

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6 hours ago, Draconator said:

 

 

https://apnews.com/article/nfl-football-coronavirus-pandemic-matt-milano-buffalo-bills-78e5474366e94f75bf9ce7f5d26bfe50

 

actual article

 

He does point out that Beane said it was likely:

Quote

General manager Brandon Beane last month raised the prospect of not being able to afford re-signing Milano.

“Listen, we want to keep good players. Matt’s a good player, so we’d love to keep him here,” Beane said. “But, again, he’s earned this right and we’ll just have to see how it plays out.”

 

The quote I had written down was "He intends to, and he's earned the right to, test free agency" which makes it sound as though the Bills knew it was a done deal that Milano intended (at the point of Beane's presser) to test the FA market.

 

Some aspects I find a little strange about this:

1) Wawrow "teased" it on twitter, as if it were big news, instead of incremental news "Beane said he intended to do it, now there's a source with direct knowledge saying it's gonna happen".  That's up to him, of course, but the next time I see this kinda tweet from him

Imma be 🙄

2) The timing, as someone else pointed out - with FA actually 4 weeks away

 

It's probably not in the Bills interest to tip their hand this early.  But, if I were Milano's agent and wanted to drum up more business with limited opportunities for F2F contact with club personnel (limit on Sr Bowl, virtual combine), it makes perfect sense.

 

3) the rationale given

Quote

Milano has been a starter since his rookie season in 2017, and his decision is based on the Bills not being in position to match the offers he is expecting to receive once the NFL’s signing period opens on March 17.

Milano and his agent probably have some idea what offers have been "hypothetically" floated his way and how sure of a bet they are.  Would the Bills?  🤷‍♂️

 

Some of the stats brought up are strange -

Quote

In 2018, he was the NFL’s only player with at least 75 tackles, three interceptions and three fumble recoveries.

I'm sure it's truth, but it seems like something someone comes up with when they're looking for a way to highlight their guy, y'know?

 

2019 was by far Milano's best year, with 15 games played, 101 combined tackles,  9 PD, a forced fumble, 7 TFL, 7 QB hits, and 1.5 sacks.  But he didn't have any picks and only 1 fumble recovery.

 

My feeling is if Milano had had a similar sort of year this season, the Bills would have been turning over rocks in their cap situation to find the money to sign him. 

 

But instead, the "11 games this season" Wawrow cites (I find 10 regular season plus 3 playoff games) over states his availability.  Milano has generally played 100% of the defensive snaps plus substantial ST snaps since becoming a starter.  But this season, that was true in only one (1) of the regular season games, Week 3.

 

Total speculation: I'm wondering if the Bills made Milano an offer he considered insulting - not because of $$ because that's always going to start apart and get negotiated, but because the Bills made a bunch of contingent, in per-game and performance bonuses.

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34 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

https://apnews.com/article/nfl-football-coronavirus-pandemic-matt-milano-buffalo-bills-78e5474366e94f75bf9ce7f5d26bfe50

 

actual article

 

He does point out that Beane said it was likely:

 

The quote I had written down was "He intends to, and he's earned the right to, test free agency" which makes it sound as though the Bills knew it was a done deal that Milano intended (at the point of Beane's presser) to test the FA market.

 

Some aspects I find a little strange about this:

1) Wawrow "teased" it on twitter, as if it were big news, instead of incremental news "Beane said he intended to do it, now there's a source with direct knowledge saying it's gonna happen".  That's up to him, of course, but the next time I see this kinda tweet from him

Total speculation: I'm wondering if the Bills made Milano an offer he considered insulting - not because of $$ because that's always going to start apart and get negotiated, but because the Bills made a bunch of contingent, in per-game and performance bonuses.


I find it interesting  that Beane says Milano “ earned the right to test FA” .. correct me if I’m wrong but similar comments were made about Lawson & Phillips last year and they moved on...

 

Since last year we have had Tre and Dion “ earn the right to get a nice contract extension and not have to test FA”...

 

We don’t know the answer but I wonder if they have made him Milano an offer as yet.. maybe not  but if they did I agree that he mustn’t have thought a lot of it ... however given how this played out with the other two last year I would say the odds of him coming back seem slim...

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he's gone. 

I really like Dodson though. 

Depending alot on Edmunds at MLB or not. If you make that transition,  you do it asap but It looks like coaching and Front Office feels he is fine in the middle 

He's kinda like Josh, physically is just a monster . Just need to fine tune a few aspects of his game and he'll be a superstar 

Edited by JerseyBills
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1 hour ago, Aussie Joe said:


I find it interesting  that Beane says Milano “ earned the right to test FA” .. correct me if I’m wrong but similar comments were made about Lawson & Phillips last year and they moved on...

 

Since last year we have had Tre and Dion “ earn the right to get a nice contract extension and not have to test FA”...

 

We don’t know the answer but I wonder if they have made him Milano an offer as yet.. maybe not  but if they did I agree that he mustn’t have thought a lot of it ... however given how this played out with the other two last year I would say the odds of him coming back seem slim...

 

They made Lawson and Phillips each offers, from what I remember...I'm sure about Lawson and that it wasn't for all that much less than he signed for in Miami.

 

1 minute ago, JerseyBills said:

I really like Dodson though.

 

Why do you really like Dodson?  What aspects of his play in particular grabbed you?

 

As noted in another thread, with Dodson healthy for the week 17 Miami game, Matakevich took over for Edmunds at MLB (and I thought he looked terrific) and Klein and Andre Smith took over for Milano.  Dodson played ST and like 2% of the defensive snaps

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4 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

They made Lawson and Phillips each offers, from what I remember...I'm sure about Lawson and that it wasn't for all that much less than he signed for in Miami.

 

 

Why do you really like Dodson?  What aspects of his play in particular grabbed you?

 

As noted in another thread, with Dodson healthy for the week 17 Miami game, Matakevich took over for Edmunds at MLB (and I thought he looked terrific) and Klein and Andre Smith took over for Milano.  Dodson played ST and like 2% of the defensive snaps

Good points 

I guess I'm judging him more on his college film. Instincts is probably my favorite attribute of his. But ya , you're right about the Mia game..

Hoping he can step it up though 

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11 minutes ago, JerseyBills said:

Good points 

I guess I'm judging him more on his college film. Instincts is probably my favorite attribute of his. But ya , you're right about the Mia game..

Hoping he can step it up though 

 

I think the Bills really liked him too or they wouldn't have stuck with him this long.   So I don't know if Matakevich has really bumped him on the depth chart, or if they were "we want to see what we've got on defense in our ST guys"

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On 2/1/2021 at 8:36 AM, TheFunPolice said:

 

Williams depends on the $$ he will command, I think. We might get lucky with teams strapped for cash and get him back for another 1 year deal with the idea that he can cash in next season when there's more $$ to be had. That allows us time to draft and develop a guy at tackle. 

Don’t count on that.  Williams had a good bounce back year and before he got hurt was an All Pro.  He’s getting more than one year from some team.  The need for OL help is too great.

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7 hours ago, BuffaloBills1998 said:

Just like when Arizona overpaid for Philips and just like when the saints overpaid for Byrd. This is one of the reasons I don’t respect the players of today vs the NFL players from back in the day. It’s all about the money now and less about wanting to win and bringing good culture to the locker rooms. 

Also That’s not an excuse for Philips playing like Crap in Arizona. I’m glad Beane didn’t overpay for him like other on here wanted. Look at his stats for this year vs his last year in Buffalo. It wasn’t him it was the system here that helped him. Take him out of the system and you get the same old Philips from Miami


I doubt the players of today respect fans like you either.  Such a shame a man wants to get paid for putting his health on the line, by a billionaire owner.  So selfish!

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Why let him test FA? Cut Addison, Quentin Jefferson, Vernon Butler and John Brown. That's nearly $40 million in cap space and actually goes over when you count the final cap figure. That's your Matt Milano and JJ Watt money right there. If the contracts are structured right, they can still have $15-20 million in cap space. 

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Gonna add to this 25 pages of the same thing to add the same thing - let him go then. I love Milano but as is typical we overrate him a bit as a fanbase. He's a nice player, not a blue chip you build your defense around. I wouldn't cut multiple players for him as suggested, as if our future rests on the shoulders of Matt Milano.

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17 hours ago, TheBeaneBandit said:

Good. Like the guy but as others have said you find guys like him in the 3rd round every year for way less money.

 

 

Nonsense.

 

There are not that many cover LBs as good as Milano in the league period, much less third round and below. Which is the very reason he seems likely to get big money.

 

This is a money-related decision. If COVID hadn't nose-dived the cap, we would have kept him, and it's still possible we might. It'll hurt the team to lose him, but cap constraints force teams to try to find the least bad way to distribute scarce funds. Milano may end up leaving, but Beane already said that they want him and they've told Milano that. They want him because they're a lot better with him on the field. But the cap limit isn't a voluntary thing.  If he goes, it'll reduce the effectiveness of this D.

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7 hours ago, Buffalo03 said:

Why let him test FA? Cut Addison, Quentin Jefferson, Vernon Butler and John Brown. That's nearly $40 million in cap space and actually goes over when you count the final cap figure. That's your Matt Milano and JJ Watt money right there. If the contracts are structured right, they can still have $15-20 million in cap space. 

 

 

First, no, that's not nearly $40 million. You're leaving out dead cap entirely. 

 

Second, if they cut three DLs, they will only have to bring in another one or two in FA to replace the ones they don't replace in the draft in the first two rounds or so, and that will chew up money.

 

And third, there are presently about 40 - 45 guys on the roster who stand a chance of being on the final 53. We will have to spend more money on guys like a #2 QB whether it's Barkley or not, on a punter whether it's Bojo or not and on and on. 

 

And fourth, our draft class will cost about $6 to $7 mill.

 

There seem to be about 50 posts saying this same thing each day - just cut the same list of guys and we'll be swimming in it - as if it's a new idea or makes sense. And it's just not true. They've got cap troubles. They will absolutely cut and/or re-negotiate most of those guys you mentioned, but when they do so, their troubles will not be over.

Edited by Thurman#1
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