Bills sign Matt Milano to 4 yr, 44 mill deal with 24 mill gtd

[Hapless Bills Fan]

5 minutes ago, gobills404 said:

 

 

I think we'll find that Milano's cap hit this year is ~= Butler's give-back plus cutting Jefferson.

 

2 minutes ago, TheyCallMeAndy said:

If Sal is correct on the Milano numbers, we should still have about 14 million.

 

Time for a Hughes/Addison restructure?

 

If I were guessing: Beane has some DL moves in mind.  If he can get what he wants, Addison might meet the Turk.

[Warcodered]

 

[Mark Vader]

3 hours ago, njbuff said:

 

I think they cut Addison.

Either that or he takes a pay cut.

[NewEra]

3 hours ago, Jerboski said:

Milano was not going to get more than David... David does everything better that Milano excels at and just came off a dominating playoff performance where he killed the chiefs screen game and checked Kelce

 

I see your point but David was also going to get big bucks from the browns but he chose to stay with the champs 

 

 

Whatever you say man.

 

David took less to stay in tampa.  If Milano would’ve hit the open market, the Jets and browns were going to bid each other up and he likely would’ve gotten over 13M a year.  You can think whatever you want..... but that doesn’t mean you’re right.  
 

you basically admitted to that with your bolded.  David took less to stay in tampa.  If Milano didn’t take less.....he would’ve gotten more than david 

[Mr. WEO]

15 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

I might be coming late to the party, but from what Sal Capaccio tweeted Milano's salary is $5.3M this year, plus amortized signing bonus $7M/4.

This means cap hit of $7.05M + "likely to be earned" bonuses.  At a guess, total cap hit if all per-game and workout bonuses earned somewhere under $8M this year.

 

There's a gap of $5.4M between the sum of the signing bonuses and yearly salaries Capaccio lists, and the $44M value cited.  Sal mentions "roster, workout, playing time, and pro-bowl bonuses".

i don’t think they are planning on saving money this year by him not making it to 12 games.  He’s no more likely to miss that many games this year than any of the remaining 3 years after this

[Locomark]

One day I don’t pay attention to Bills news and this pops up... woo hoo!! 

[mbs]

15 minutes ago, Mr. WEO said:

i don’t think they are planning on saving money this year by him not making it to 12 games.  He’s no more likely to miss that many games this year than any of the remaining 3 years after this

That has nothing to do with anything. He is set to earn 7m regardless. If his playing time bonus is over 11 games, then it will be hit against next years cap because he didn't do that last year so it's "unlikely to be earned."

Had he played all 16 last year, they would have to pay out* the bonus now because "likely to be earned" is leveled against the current cap.

Everyone expects him to finish the season.

It has nothing to do with expecting him to play fewer games to save money.

 

* edit: they would have to count it against the cap now, not pay it out.

 

https://frontofficenfl.com/2020/05/25/2020-nfl-cba-explained-contract-incentives-ltbe-nltbe/

Edited March 12, 2021 by mbs
add definitions

[3rdand12]

4 hours ago, Jauronimo said:

Maybe he realizes hes in an ideal situation playing in McD's defense.  A lot of these free agents sign big deals, get put in bad positions and wind up getting axed after under performing.

Or get the snot beat out of them playing that defense./injuries poor stats and sad face emojis
Like playing a 3 tech at a 1 tech. just sucks, even if you are 330 lbs

 he is a perfect fit in Bills defense. and Edmunds + Milano are a plus plus
 

never ever saw this coming !

 Super delighted

 Go Bills !
 

[purple haze]

3 hours ago, C.Biscuit97 said:

Very conflicted on this. Dude is an absolute baller and this is our super bowl window.  But at the same time, he struggles to stay healthy, OLB is one of the “easier” positions to replace, and it will cost us someone at a position I think is more important (OT, pass rusher, or Te).

 

can’t be mad keeping a good player and good for Matt. He is a legit playmaker. But if he left and they drafted someone like Zaven Collins and used the money elsewhere, could that be have been better? 😬

 

it will be interesting to see what they do next.

No guarantees Zaven Collins or someone like him would be available when the Bills pick

or that they will be good.  We know Milano can play.  And the contract was good value too.

Edited March 12, 2021 by purple haze

[3rdand12]

47 minutes ago, JaCrispy said:

It also seems the Bills can get out of it after 2 years if it goes south...

always pull off these smart contracts.
Does Beane take them out drinking and offer them a pen in between shots ?
pretty impressive FO work for sure how they have done on most contracts

[atlbillsfan1975]

Reasons I am concerned about this-

Milano didn’t seem to have a great year. 
Matt was hurt a good bit of the season with two different injuries. Both make me wonder about his body. Hammy and pec concern me. 
I also wonder how much will McD and Beane pay Edmunds.

I have never been a huge fan of paying LB’s, but it does appear in McD’s D they are more valued.

I wonder if McD gets more input on D. I look at the way the O was built and it’s much different than the D. 

 

The main reason I am ok with it-

Beane. I trust him. 

[YoloinOhio]

 

[appoo]

Those are very team friendly numbers for the start. You could see a cap hit next season that ranges from 5M to 11M, which is really good for the Bills

[Rochesterfan]

3 hours ago, In Summary said:

I like that we retained Milano.  Now I'm hoping the Bills develop competitive LB depth such that LB3 isn't a huge talent drop-off.  Klein can do some nice things, but he's not the LB3 with decent coverage ability we need.  

 

Not sure it matters much.  The Bills rarely use 3 LBs on the field at one time.  Predominantly they play a 4-2-5 - with one of the DBs being a bigger guy to act as a LB.

 

They need to get better at their big safety role with a guy that can really cover, but still hit and support.

[BillsMafi$]

[Aussie Joe]

Just now, BillsMafi$ said:

 

Can you please post the link to the tweet next time ?

Cheers

[atlbillsfan1975]

Just now, ScottLaw said:

Not sure they will pay Edmunds after this... 

I think they do, not that I like potentially tying up $25+ mil in two LB’s. I wonder how much McD says to Beane “I can win with these guys on D”? 

[Shaw66]

3 hours ago, Jerboski said:

I agree it isn’t going to solve the issue so that’s why I question spending 11M a year on a guy who doesn’t impact those issues when this free agency class has a lot of pass rushers and possible OL who could help 

 

Milano is a good dude and good player but again committing 11M a year to a player not playing a high value position can be questioned 

That's interesting.   Thanks for responding.  

 

Obviously, I don't know what the Bills are thinking, but I have a theory.   I think building a team from year to year, and it is different from year to year, is a challenge.   You have perceived needs, and you have opportunities to fill those needs.   You don't build to a particular visions; you have to adjust the vision as things develop.   

 

The Bills know they need some work on the defensive line.   They thought Watt could transform the line in a way that fit their vision, and they thought if they had a transformative player on the D line, then they could find solutions at linebacker.   When Watt didn't come to Buffalo, the vision had to change.  They apparently don't think there's another transformative D lineman out there, I guess.  So the next vision is to be outstanding at linebacker and find the right role players on the D line.  As I said, I don't know any of that, but it's a good bet that if Watt had signed, Milano was gone, and McDermott would have been looking for a different solution at linebacker.

I don't know the free agent D line talent at all, but I think that no one out there is a high probability transformative player except Watt. 

Watt was the kind of option you might have wanted the Bills to spend on.   The Bills apparently don't think there's another similar option out there.  Once they lost Watt, they had to pursue a different vision. 

 

That means the Bills likely will do what they did last year - shop for a bunch of different linemen and try to put together an effective line.  Didn't work last year, but in the Bills' defense, losing Star left them with a hole they hadn't planned on. We don't know what they think they can get from Epenesa in year 2.  We don't know what they think they can get from Oliver in year 3.  They  Bills may be looking for pieces that fit with them. 

 

Watt was going to cause some dominoes to fall, like Milano, maybe Hughes.  Maybe without Watt, Hughes is secure. 

 

The point is, building a team is a constant work in progress, and it's fluid and changing.  It seems that Watt was option A, MIlano was option B.  

[3rdand12]

10 minutes ago, atlbillsfan1975 said:

Reasons I am concerned about this-

Milano didn’t seem to have a great year. 
Matt was hurt a good bit of the season with two different injuries. Both make me wonder about his body. Hammy and pec concern me. 
I also wonder how much will McD and Beane pay Edmunds.

I have never been a huge fan of paying LB’s, but it does appear in McD’s D they are more valued.

I wonder if McD gets more input on D. I look at the way the O was built and it’s much different than the D. 

 

The main reason I am ok with it-

Beane. I trust him. 

yet you listed reasons you actually dont Trust him

[The Wiz]

1 minute ago, ScottLaw said:

You can win without them too....so long as Allen is playing at the level he played last year.  Edmunds isn’t worth that kind of money. Not yet at least.

Have to agree here.  Milano has been more of a need on the field than Edmunds has been. He's good at what he does but hasn't been great for what the contract will give him. 

 

[Mat68]

44 mil seemed like a decent deal for both sides.  Am I wrong or is his cap hit in 21 5 mil?  If so Buf still has workable room left.  Imo any updrade on the dline comes at the expense of Addison.  He is good enough to stay but an upgrade makes him expendable.

[CaptnCoke11]

3 minutes ago, Mat68 said:

44 mil seemed like a decent deal for both sides.  Am I wrong or is his cap hit in 21 5 mil?  If so Buf still has workable room left.  Imo any updrade on the dline comes at the expense of Addison.  He is good enough to stay but an upgrade makes him expendable.

It will be just under 8 million this year 

Edited March 12, 2021 by CaptnCoke11

[MrEpsYtown]

Good deal. Middle ground to where I thought it would be. Beane and McDermott talked from day 1 about developing and signing their own and and they are keeping that promise. I love what we are building. 

[BillsMafi$]

 

[atlbillsfan1975]

29 minutes ago, 3rdand12 said:

yet you listed reasons you actually dont Trust him

That is one way to view it. I am really admitting that Beane knows more about it than I do. Brandon has information I do not. He also knows other moves he is making with the roster. I also know somethings about football but I am willing to admit I don’t spend nearly the time or have the resources a NFL GM does. That is why I trust Beane. He has shown he can put together a good team.

[YoloinOhio]

3 minutes ago, BillsMafi$ said:

 

[KGun12TD]

Shocked at how many people on here are shocked. Have you all been following the Magic Beane? No? Well, you better start...

[Sammy Watkins' Rib]

Seems like a lot of money. 

 

Other than our secondary I'm not really convinced we have a single player in our front seven that can't be replaced with a cheaper option with  near identical results. Hope I am wrong. 

 

Milano did play at that level during stretches though. But then of course you have the injury history with him as well. Definitely a gamble. Hopefully we can find or develop a pass rush still.

[BillsCuse]

5 hours ago, RyanC883 said:

 

he may be able to get endorsement deals that a low-key guy like him would not get in other cities, IMO.  

 

also, he balls out on this deal, he is getting a MEGA deal somewhere after this.  

 

Probably not, will be hitting his 30s

[JMF2006]

Looks like I am eating crow

 

I thought for sure he was testing FA and Beane was going to let him.

[JMF2006]

6 hours ago, The Jokeman said:

Nice to have him back, yet that's a big chunk of our cap. Hopefully we can free up more room to fill other needs.

 

Maybe they can restructure him next week  

[Sherlock Holmes]

Told ya'll Milano was a lock

[Punching Bag]

4 hours ago, Virgil said:

Only 7mil cap hit the first year.  Love it.  I think they can bring back Mongo and Williams.  Probably can’t get anyone else and I’m fine with that 

 

I would think Williams would have been signed first if he was willing to sign before free agency.

[Doc Brown]

Bills gave up almost 30 points in the six games he missed.  Only about 20 in the ten games he played.  There were other factors at play but that's an eye popping stat.  This defense is so reliant on their LB's that he was a "must sign" in my mind.  I'm pleasantly surprised he took this deal as it's likely some team wildly overpaying for him in the open market.

[The Wiz]

7 minutes ago, Doc Brown said:

Bills gave up almost 30 points in the six games he missed.  Only about 20 in the ten games he played.  There were other factors at play but that's an eye popping stat.  This defense is so reliant on their LB's that he was a "must sign" in my mind.  I'm pleasantly surprised he took this deal as it's likely some team wildly overpaying for him in the open market.

Playing the devils advocate here, you would think that Edmunds would still hold his own without Milano right? 

[Blank Stare]

1 hour ago, BillsMafi$ said:

 

Still remember Al Michael’s comments during the opener that year where he was yucking it up about how Gillislee got away from the Bills. Don’t get me wrong, I was bummed to lose Touchdown Mike, but the dig at the Bills was a little extra. As long as Milano stays healthy, that trade will be considered pretty damn good for the Bills. 

[Doc Brown]

4 minutes ago, The Wiz said:

Playing the devils advocate here, you would think that Edmunds would still hold his own without Milano right? 

I'm way more sold on Milano than Edmunds and that's one reason why.  This gives me a lot more confidence that the Bills could cut bait with Edmunds without us having a huge hole at LB as a result.  We'll pry have two years to evaluate him.  

 

BTW....PFF was pretty darn close with their free agency prediction with Milano.

 

38. LB MATT MILANO

 

Milano has developed into a modern-day linebacker. He has the 11th-best coverage grade among linebackers since 2018, he’s been excellent matching up with running backs in single coverage and he’s held his own when asked to line up over the slot.

 

Milano’s tackling has been an issue, as he missed 36 over 2018 and 2019, and that adds up to a below-average run defender since entering the league. However, the coverage value makes Milano an intriguing option given the importance of being able to match up with opposing offensive weapons.

 

Contract Analysis: Milano showed he can be one of the better coverage linebackers in the NFL in 2018 and 2019, and his skill set fits well alongside 2018 first-round LB Tremaine Edmunds — a rangier, sideline-to-sideline linebacker with pass-rush ability. Injuries have limited Milano in 2020 so far, but his absence has also perhaps exposed a leaky Bills defense when he’s not available.

 

Prediction: Four years, $45 million ($11.25M APY): $20M total guaranteed, $15M fully guaranteed at signing.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

2 hours ago, Mr. WEO said:

i don’t think they are planning on saving money this year by him not making it to 12 games.  He’s no more likely to miss that many games this year than any of the remaining 3 years after this

 

That was not my contention, and I have no idea where this comes from.  I'm sure the Bills expect and want Milano to start 16 games.

However, if any provision of his contract incentives are labeled by the NFL "unlikely to be met", that portion will count against the 2022 cap even if he meets them in 2021

 

See Morse, Mitch

[JGMcD2]

14 minutes ago, Doc Brown said:

I'm way more sold on Milano than Edmunds and that's one reason why.  This gives me a lot more confidence that the Bills could cut bait with Edmunds without us having a huge hole at LB as a result.  We'll pry have two years to evaluate him.  

 

BTW....PFF was pretty darn close with their free agency prediction with Milano.

 

38. LB MATT MILANO

 

Milano has developed into a modern-day linebacker. He has the 11th-best coverage grade among linebackers since 2018, he’s been excellent matching up with running backs in single coverage and he’s held his own when asked to line up over the slot.

 

Milano’s tackling has been an issue, as he missed 36 over 2018 and 2019, and that adds up to a below-average run defender since entering the league. However, the coverage value makes Milano an intriguing option given the importance of being able to match up with opposing offensive weapons.

 

Contract Analysis: Milano showed he can be one of the better coverage linebackers in the NFL in 2018 and 2019, and his skill set fits well alongside 2018 first-round LB Tremaine Edmunds — a rangier, sideline-to-sideline linebacker with pass-rush ability. Injuries have limited Milano in 2020 so far, but his absence has also perhaps exposed a leaky Bills defense when he’s not available.

 

Prediction: Four years, $45 million ($11.25M APY): $20M total guaranteed, $15M fully guaranteed at signing.

They’re using fancy math and formulas to make their predictions... not all that different than NFL teams do (albeit with their own individual tweaks) folks around here better get used to them fancy models and mathematics... 

[Big Blitz]

33 minutes ago, Doc Brown said:

Bills gave up almost 30 points in the six games he missed.  Only about 20 in the ten games he played.  There were other factors at play but that's an eye popping stat.  This defense is so reliant on their LB's that he was a "must sign" in my mind.  I'm pleasantly surprised he took this deal as it's likely some team wildly overpaying for him in the open market.

 

I wouldn't say must because I think we're at a point we are confident in getting to 30 points a game and wanted that money on the D line.  

 

But....Milano is important just his presence he is the only guy on that D that truly makes everyone around him better.  I feel like he's important against the run more so then the pass but it's close.  Great QB'S and TEs will do well but maybe the Chiefs game was total failure in game plan.  I swear these 2 better not be interviewing in January.   

 

He'd have been tough to replace.

 

Now the biggest thing is staying on the field.  That's always been my only issue with him.