LeRon McClain Signs Tender

[berad]

Our two-time Pro-Bowl fullback is officially signed. Hopefully he gets the long-term deal he is hoping for, he's a large reason for the success of our running game.

[url="http://blogs.baltimoreravens.com/2010/06/09/mcclain-signs-tender/"]LINK[/url]

[MsMarvel73]

Man I am so darned happy right now

[Ed_Reed20]

Good news. Another key player has been signed.

[marek0393]

Great news! I was beginning to get nervous lol

[svt2nv04]

I'm sure the Ravens wouldn't have let him go. He's a significant contributor to the team.

[JO_75]

[quote name='berad' date='09 June 2010 - 12:48 PM' timestamp='1276102111' post='419971']
Our two-time Pro-Bowl fullback is officially signed. [b]Hopefully he gets the long-term deal he is hoping for, he's a large reason for the success of our running game.[/b]
[url="http://blogs.baltimoreravens.com/2010/06/09/mcclain-signs-tender/"]LINK[/url]
[/quote]

Agreed. Just two questions

1) What is the going rate for a Pro Bowl Full Back(meaning how much would we have to pay him)

2) How Can We get around the 30% rule to give LeRon McClain his long term deal that he wants?

[berad]

[quote name='JO_75' date='09 June 2010 - 02:12 PM' timestamp='1276107134' post='420017']
1) What is the going rate for a Pro Bowl Full Back(meaning how much would we have to pay him)
[/quote]

Couldn't really find many listings but Greg Jones, in Jacksonville signed a [url="http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2008/02/13/jacksonville-jaguars-sign-fullback-greg-jones-to-5-year-17-4-m/"]sizable deal[/url] a couple of years ago - he's the highest paid FB in history. Five years for ~$17.4 million. So a little more than $3 million/year. I would think McClain should get more.

[quote name='JO_75' date='09 June 2010 - 02:12 PM' timestamp='1276107134' post='420017']
2) How Can We get around the 20% rule to give LeRon McClain his long term deal that he wants?
[/quote]

It's the 30% percent rule and teams can maneuver around it through guaranteed money i.e. a signing bonus. The only trouble is that teams don't want to guarantee 70+ percent of a deal [i](maybe higher because of how little LeRon was paid in 2009)[/i] because it gives them very little wiggle room and the money automatically goes to the player.

[Brendan Ayres]

[quote name='JO_75' date='09 June 2010 - 03:12 PM' timestamp='1276107134' post='420017']
Agreed. Just two questions

1) What is the going rate for a Pro Bowl Full Back(meaning how much would we have to pay him)

2) How Can We get around the 20% rule to give LeRon McClain his long term deal that he wants?
[/quote]

Since he's a FB, I would be reluctant to give him a huge paycheck. This is very similar to a few years ago when we eventually let Ovie Mughelli go. Remember how much money the Falcons gave him? I'll bet they wish they could take that one back.

Basically, FBs are replaceable and I'll bet that we're already thinking about grooming an eventual replacement.

[eandb17]

[quote name='Brendan Ayres' date='09 June 2010 - 01:51 PM' timestamp='1276109512' post='420042']
Since he's a FB, I would be reluctant to give him a huge paycheck. This is very similar to a few years ago when we eventually let Ovie Mughelli go. Remember how much money the Falcons gave him? I'll bet they wish they could take that one back.

Basically, FBs are replaceable and I'll bet that we're already thinking about grooming an eventual replacement.
[/quote]Heres the thing , Running and Blocking Fullbacks are rare in this league now. The last one I can think of is Lorenzo Neal in his prime. McClain not only opens the holes for Ray Rice's TDs, but also drives it in on 3rd and one. I'm not saying he should make RB money, but he should be definitely one of the most paid FBs in the league if not the highest

[Brendan Ayres]

[quote name='eandb17' date='09 June 2010 - 03:57 PM' timestamp='1276109859' post='420044']
Heres the thing , Running and Blocking Fullbacks are rare in this league now. The last one I can think of is Lorenzo Neal in his prime. McClain not only opens the holes for Ray Rice's TDs, but also drives it in on 3rd and one. I'm not saying he should make RB money, but he should be definitely one of the most paid FBs in the league if not the highest
[/quote]

Lorenzo Neal never got more than a handful of touches each season; he was a straight-up blocking FB (and a damn good one). McClain definitely deserves as much money as a FB should get; I'm just saying that it may not be in the Ravens' best interest to give him that much money. Good FBs (even as good ball-carriers) are way easier to find in the draft than RBs or WRs or QBs.

[JO_75]

[quote name='berad' date='09 June 2010 - 02:21 PM' timestamp='1276107685' post='420028']
Couldn't really find many listings but Greg Jones, in Jacksonville signed a [url="http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2008/02/13/jacksonville-jaguars-sign-fullback-greg-jones-to-5-year-17-4-m/"]sizable deal[/url] a couple of years ago - he's the highest paid FB in history. Five years for ~$17.4 million. So a little more than $3 million/year. I would think McClain should get more.



It's the 30% percent rule and teams can maneuver around it through guaranteed money i.e. a signing bonus. The only trouble is that teams don't want to guarantee 70+ percent of a deal [i](maybe higher because of how little LeRon was paid in 2009)[/i] because it gives them very little wiggle room and the money automatically goes to the player.
[/quote]

Oh OK, thanks for correcting me. Yeah the reason I asked how we could get around it is because Jahri Evans, Chris Kuper and Patrick Willis all got new long term contracts despite the rule. I was thinking McClain will be given the highest contract for a FB and it will be more than the 5 years 17.4 million Greg Jones got.

Edit: I googled Leonard Weaver and he got a 3 year deal worth $11 Million with $6.5 Million Guaranteed and that is a new deal that begins this season. It said that deal made him the highest paid Fullback in NFL History.


[quote name='Brendan Ayres' date='09 June 2010 - 02:51 PM' timestamp='1276109512' post='420042']
Since he's a FB, I would be reluctant to give him a huge paycheck. This is very similar to a few years ago when we eventually let Ovie Mughelli go. Remember how much money the Falcons gave him? I'll bet they wish they could take that one back.

[b]Basically, FBs are replaceable and I'll bet that we're already thinking about grooming an eventual replacement.[/b]
[/quote]

Your right, Fullback is probably the easiest position in the NFL to replace and we have gone through FB after FB. This time it's not that easy to just say McClain is another Fullback and is replaceable, we went through Fullbacks to find our Franchise FB and now we have him and he is not replaceable. I hope we can give McClain a good reasonable contract where he primary blocks but does get some carries, catches some balls from Joe, and we can give him what he wants.

[Brendan Ayres]

[quote name='JO_75' date='09 June 2010 - 04:30 PM' timestamp='1276111826' post='420062']
Oh OK, thanks for correcting me. Yeah the reason I asked how we could get around it is because Jahri Evans, Chris Kuper and Patrick Willis all got new long term contracts despite the rule. I was thinking McClain will be given the highest contract for a FB and it will be more than the 5 years 17.4 million Greg Jones got.

Edit: I googled Leonard Weaver and he got a 3 year deal worth $11 Million with $6.5 Million Guaranteed and that is a new deal that begins this season. It said that deal made him the highest paid Fullback in NFL History.




Your right, Fullback is probably the easiest position in the NFL to replace and we have gone through FB after FB. This time it's not that easy to just say McClain is another Fullback and is replaceable, we went through Fullbacks to find our Franchise FB and now we have him and he is not replaceable. I hope we can give McClain a good reasonable contract where he primary blocks but does get some carries, catches some balls from Joe, and we can give him what he wants.
[/quote]

I'd love to sign him long term, too. But you know the team is not going to do that if they think a big-money deal will prevent them from signing someone long-term that plays at one of the skill positions. I think they want to keep McClain, but they are definitely making preparations in case some team throws a huge contract at him.

[JO_75]

[quote name='Brendan Ayres' date='09 June 2010 - 04:10 PM' timestamp='1276114248' post='420097']
I'd love to sign him long term, too. But you know the team is not going to do that if they think a big-money deal will prevent them from signing someone long-term that plays at one of the skill positions. I think they want to keep McClain, but they are definitely making preparations in case some team throws a huge contract at him.
[/quote]

Good Point, Though McClain won't take as much cap(when we get it back) as someone like Ngata where even if McClain gets a long term contract they will be able to sign another key player at the same time. McClain won't take up too much. Hell with no cap, give McClain the richest contract for a FB with a 5-6 year $12-$18 million deal and front load the contract in the first couple years. I just don't see why we haven't took advantage of this uncapped year, give McClain a good sized contract, front load it, lock up Ngata long term front load it. Come on Ozzie take advantage of this uncapped year and give majority of the money over the first 2-3 years so it won't hurt us when the cap comes back.

[Brendan Ayres]

[quote name='JO_75' date='09 June 2010 - 05:37 PM' timestamp='1276115879' post='420118']
Good Point, Though McClain won't take as much cap(when we get it back) as someone like Ngata where even if McClain gets a long term contract they will be able to sign another key player at the same time. McClain won't take up too much. Hell with no cap, give McClain the richest contract for a FB with a 5-6 year $12-$18 million deal and front load the contract in the first couple years. I just don't see why we haven't took advantage of this uncapped year, give McClain a good sized contract, front load it, lock up Ngata long term front load it. Come on Ozzie take advantage of this uncapped year and give majority of the money over the first 2-3 years so it won't hurt us when the cap comes back.
[/quote]

I wish I could remember what Atlanta gave Mughelli. It was a huge sum (more than $12-$18 million, I think). If McClain gets offers like Mughelli got, we'll be drafting his replacement next spring. 5-6 years at $12-$18 million would be great; I have a feeling that some team will offer more than that given that McClain is a great blocker and has proven that he is also capable of 15-20 carries per game.

[BuckWilds]

[quote name='Brendan Ayres' date='09 June 2010 - 02:51 PM' timestamp='1276109512' post='420042']
Since he's a FB, I would be reluctant to give him a huge paycheck. This is very similar to a few years ago when we eventually let Ovie Mughelli go. Remember how much money the Falcons gave him? I'll bet they wish they could take that one back.

Basically, FBs are replaceable and I'll bet that we're already thinking about grooming an eventual replacement.
[/quote]

Fullbacks are replaceable. Great fullbacks are not. This is true for every position on the field. Just because the position isn't currently well-used in the NFL doesn't mean McClain isn't an extremely valuable player - I dare say he's not common at all.

There's hardly a day when fullbacks don't go underestimated. Fullbacks that can run, catch and add yards to your RB's average... priceless.

[Brendan Ayres]

[quote name='Zhamtao' date='09 June 2010 - 06:42 PM' timestamp='1276119769' post='420155']
Fullbacks are replaceable. Great fullbacks are not. This is true for every position on the field. Just because the position isn't currently well-used in the NFL doesn't mean McClain isn't an extremely valuable player - I dare say he's not common at all.

There's hardly a day when fullbacks don't go underestimated. Fullbacks that can run, catch and add yards to your RB's average... priceless.
[/quote]

I get your argument. The deal that Atlanta signed Mughelli to was about 3 mil per year with a 5 mil signing bonus. That was a few years ago, so I would think that the best FB in football could command a contract of 5 mil per year. If his asking price is 5 mil + per year, would you still want us to sign him long term?

[berad]

[quote name='JO_75' date='09 June 2010 - 03:30 PM' timestamp='1276111826' post='420062']
Oh OK, thanks for correcting me. Yeah the reason I asked how we could get around it is because Jahri Evans, Chris Kuper and Patrick Willis all got new long term contracts despite the rule. I was thinking McClain will be given the highest contract for a FB and it will be more than the 5 years 17.4 million Greg Jones got.

Edit: I googled Leonard Weaver and he got a 3 year deal worth $11 Million with $6.5 Million Guaranteed and that is a new deal that begins this season. It said that deal made him the highest paid Fullback in NFL History.
[/quote]

Cool, I knew my article was old and I had forgotten Weaver signed.

[RavensAllTheWay]

[quote name='Brendan Ayres' date='09 June 2010 - 02:51 PM' timestamp='1276109512' post='420042']
Since he's a FB, I would be reluctant to give him a huge paycheck. This is very similar to a few years ago when we eventually let Ovie Mughelli go. Remember how much money the Falcons gave him? I'll bet they wish they could take that one back.

Basically, FBs are replaceable and I'll bet that we're already thinking about grooming an eventual replacement.
[/quote]
Well we did try Edgar Jones at FB during camp. He might be in the plans as a long term replacement, but honestly, do we really need to focus on a long term replacement right now? Leron's only 25 and has a magnificent future ahead.

[BuckWilds]

[quote name='Brendan Ayres' date='09 June 2010 - 06:04 PM' timestamp='1276121073' post='420165']
I get your argument. The deal that Atlanta signed Mughelli to was about 3 mil per year with a 5 mil signing bonus. That was a few years ago, so I would think that the best FB in football could command a contract of 5 mil per year. If his asking price is 5 mil + per year, would you still want us to sign him long term?
[/quote]

I'm not getting into the financial issues, simply because I think every pro athlete is overpaid. What I am saying is that the fullback position isn't a throw away position.

[BloodRaven]

Not for us, and not when he has a lot more versatility than Ovie.

[DocMartin]

[quote name='PARavensgirl' date='09 June 2010 - 12:52 PM' timestamp='1276102373' post='419973']


Man I am so darned happy right now
[/quote]
Awesome!
All the pieces of puzzle are coming together
[b]Is it time to start[color="#4B0082"] SUPERBOWL BANDWAGON[/color][/b] ???

[Malkavian Raven]

[quote name='DocMartin' date='09 June 2010 - 09:17 PM' timestamp='1276129061' post='420265']
Awesome!
All the pieces of puzzle are coming together
[b]Is it time to start[color="#4b0082"] SUPERBOWL BANDWAGON[/color][/b] ???
[/quote]

I'll drive it! All the way to Dallas, baby!

[JO_75]

[quote name='Malkavian Raven' date='09 June 2010 - 08:22 PM' timestamp='1276129338' post='420269']
I'll drive it! All the way to Dallas, baby!
[/quote]

I Call Shotgun!

[DocMartin]

[quote name='Malkavian Raven' date='09 June 2010 - 08:22 PM' timestamp='1276129338' post='420269']
I'll drive it! All the way to Dallas, baby!
[/quote]
Come on Raven, I'm drivin' it, you know it. You are in, hold on tight.

[1/28/01]

[quote name='DocMartin' date='09 June 2010 - 11:14 PM' timestamp='1276139698' post='420381']
Come on Raven, I'm drivin' it, you know it. You are in, hold on tight.

[/quote]
How are you driving? Aren't you piloting the Ashton Hall bandwagon?

[DocMartin]

[quote name='1/28/01' date='09 June 2010 - 11:21 PM' timestamp='1276140079' post='420385']
How are you driving? Aren't you piloting the Ashton Hall bandwagon?
[/quote]
That one had a flat and it's parked for the moment....LOL

[Ed_Reed20]

[quote name='DocMartin' date='09 June 2010 - 11:46 PM' timestamp='1276141573' post='420401']
That one had a flat and it's parked for the moment....LOL

[/quote]



I'm still holding out hope he makes the team.

[BOLDnPurPnBlacK]

I agree with the comment about taking advantage of this uncapped year. I understand that from a business standpoint a lot of the owners are using this year to go under the minimum and save some money. BUT, for a team looking at the long term, why not use it to lock up your key players!!

Sign em all for 5-6 years with a good amount of money. Give them a bunch of it for this year, nothing gaurenteed next year (in case theres a lock out) and then pay 'em a lower amount for future years when the cap is back in place so you can sign other players. We could be using this year to really stack our team in 2 years. If we locked up all our key players now, in 2 years theyd all be making little amounts of money which would give us a lot to play with to sign a bunch of the top-notch guys that hit free agency in the future. Granted it's a risk for most teams, but with the culture that exists here in Baltimore and the leaders we have I don't see many guys letting their level of play drop since they got gaurenteed money.

[Rav'n Maniac]

[quote name='BOLDnPurPnBlacK' date='10 June 2010 - 01:05 AM' timestamp='1276149924' post='420433']
I agree with the comment about taking advantage of this uncapped year. I understand that from a business standpoint a lot of the owners are using this year to go under the minimum and save some money. BUT, for a team looking at the long term, why not use it to lock up your key players!!

Sign em all for 5-6 years with a good amount of money. Give them a bunch of it for this year, nothing gaurenteed next year (in case theres a lock out) and then pay 'em a lower amount for future years when the cap is back in place so you can sign other players. We could be using this year to really stack our team in 2 years. If we locked up all our key players now, in 2 years theyd all be making little amounts of money which would give us a lot to play with to sign a bunch of the top-notch guys that hit free agency in the future. Granted it's a risk for most teams, but with the culture that exists here in Baltimore and the leaders we have I don't see many guys letting their level of play drop since they got gaurenteed money.
[/quote]
I totally agree with you there! Let's take advantage of the situation and get some of these guys signed to long term deals now and front load them enough so it won't come back to bite us when the cap resumes.

[Ed_Reed_Pick_Six]

Great, great news!

Welcome back big man, look forward to many more years of solid production!