Looking Ahead: '14 & '15 Cap Space

[GrimCoconut]

Looking ahead to next years offseason I see..

OMG OMG WE ARE SCREWED! WE LOST (insert player name here). NOW WE HAVE NO ONE.
0-16!
Thanks a lot Flacco!
Skip Bayless: I see the Ravens finishing dead last in the division
Heath Evans: I told y'all Flacco could not produce.
Mods:*Get headache*

Lol. The best players next year I see us losing are Dickson, Jones (both) and Oher. I don't know how we can keep McPhee and Jones and Ngata. They will certainly get some nice pay checks. We can't and won't cut Ngata yet. I can't see us paying all those DTs all that money.

We'll probably let those guys go since Oher and Dickson have mostly disappointed and Jones will be the odd man out since McPhee is younger. That is unless we move McPhee to OLB.

[rmw10]

I personally think Suggs had a better chance of staying on this team until he retires than Ngata. I think Haloti either is done the year before his contract expires or the year his contract expires and he's a free agent. I don't think he sees another deal. I don't think he loves the game that much.

 

I just don't know with Suggs.  I don't want to say its forgone that we cut him, but it's not forgone that we keep him either.  That's a lot of money that could be saved.  It's not easy to replace someone like Suggs, but there is talent behind him.  Obviously if he returns to 2011 DPOY form, it's hard to justify getting rid of him, but if he's anything like he was last year (I know he was injured), then it's hard to justify keeping him.  I'd love to keep him, but I don't know if it's possible.

[GrimCoconut]

I just don't know with Suggs. I don't want to say its forgone that we cut him, but it's not forgone that we keep him either. That's a lot of money that could be saved. It's not easy to replace someone like Suggs, but there is talent behind him. Obviously if he returns to 2011 DPOY form, it's hard to justify getting rid of him, but if he's anything like he was last year (I know he was injured), then it's hard to justify keeping him. I'd love to keep him, but I don't know if it's possible.

I think the problem with cutting Suggs is more about the fans. If you think people are mad about Boldin you don't want to imagine the anger with Suggs cut. Even if he had a down year you know the average fan won't get it.

I don't think Suggs has a down year. I really think he's going to benefit big time with all the offseason additions more than any player on defense.

With the secondary we have, the defensive line we have and its depth, and the pass rusher we have searched so long for opposite of Suggs I am really excited for him. I'm more excited for him than Brown and you know how excited I am for him.

Suggs is highly motivated by competition. He does his best when he can compete. To Win DPOY you have to want it. Nobody wins that by accident or happenstance. It comes from the desire to win it.

Due to the team around him, I wouldn't be at all surprised if Suggs has a DPOY year this year.

[Yatagarasu]

I doubt Ed Dickson will get more than $3 million per year. Dustin Keller had to settle for one year, $4.25 M contract, even though he's coming off a career year.

 

Brandon Myers really set the bar low by settling for a $3.5625 M per year contract. I think we have a good chance of keeping Dickson, if he produce good numbers in 2014. Dennis Pitta though might be expensive because teams look for proven commodities.

[Yatagarasu]

Jacoby Jones might be a salary cap casualty because we're banking on Deonte Thompson to be his replacement.

 

It's nice to have Arthur Jones back, but it depends on his market value. The drafting of Brandon Williams and Kapron Lewis-Moore are to provide depth for the D-line.

 

Vonta Leach was a favorite amongst us, but Kyle Juszczyk is going to be groomed as our new FB. 

 

Michael Oher might be a question because RTs' value have gone way down and Ozzie might not see spending $6 per year for a position that is abundant as necessary. However, I might be wrong since the defenses attack from both side of the tackles.

[ravensdan]

I think the problem with cutting Suggs is more about the fans. If you think people are mad about Boldin you don't want to imagine the anger with Suggs cut. Even if he had a down year you know the average fan won't get it.

I don't think Suggs has a down year. I really think he's going to benefit big time with all the offseason additions more than any player on defense.

With the secondary we have, the defensive line we have and its depth, and the pass rusher we have searched so long for opposite of Suggs I am really excited for him. I'm more excited for him than Brown and you know how excited I am for him.

Suggs is highly motivated by competition. He does his best when he can compete. To Win DPOY you have to want it. Nobody wins that by accident or happenstance. It comes from the desire to win it.

Due to the team around him, I wouldn't be at all surprised if Suggs has a DPOY year this year.

I'm not sure if we will be able to keep Suggs or not but I am positive fan reaction will never be a factor in the decision, thank goodness. Come on we let reed walk and we would have let Lewis walk in his contract year as well they will not overpay.

[GrimCoconut]

I'm not sure if we will be able to keep Suggs or not but I am positive fan reaction will never be a factor in the decision, thank goodness. Come on we let reed walk and we would have let Lewis walk in his contract year as well they will not overpay.

Oh, I know. It was more of a way of saying that the biggest problem with cutting Suggs would come from the fans, meaning it may be possible to replace his production if he has dropped off. 

 

Personally, I don't think Suggs is going anywhere. 

[rmw10]

The more I think about it, the more I think Art Jones may be leaving. I completely forgot about Lewis-Moore. All of that depth just makes it seem like we're alright with losing him.

[GrimCoconut]

The more I think about it, the more I think Art Jones may be leaving. I completely forgot about Lewis-Moore. All of that depth just makes it seem like we're alright with losing him.

Yep. He's one of those guys we would let go even though they are very talented because we'll want to get a compensatory pick, avoid overpaying for him, and due to his age (27yo) since we have younger guys (McPhee, 24yo) who are coming due for their deal right after him. 

 

Can't keep them all. I've come to terms that Jones is going to probably be gone after this year. Really sad to hear it, because he's honestly one of my favorites.

[rmw10]

Yep. He's one of those guys we would let go even though they are very talented because we'll want to get a compensatory pick, avoid overpaying for him, and due to his age (27yo) since we have younger guys (McPhee, 24yo) who are coming due for their deal right after him.

Can't keep them all. I've come to terms that Jones is going to probably be gone after this year. Really sad to hear it, because he's honestly one of my favorites.

Long term we have Williams, Kap, Tyson and McPhee/Jones (assuming one of them gets an extension). Not too sure with Ngata, but likely short term as well as Canty and Spears. I'm sure we'll hit the dline at some point in next years draft as well. Signs point to Art leaving us.

[ellicottraven]

2014 Salary Cap: 114.032M – 123M (2013 cap) = 8.968M free.
Under Contract: (39 players) Suggs, Ngata, Yanda, Flacco, Rice, Webb, J. McClain, Koch, McKinnie, Dumervil, J. Smith, Canty, Huff, Upshaw, Spears, T. Smith, D. Reed, Osemele, Cox, Reid, Doss, Pierce, Gradkowski, C. Brown, McPhee, Taylor, C. Thompson, Jackson, Streeter, Tyson, D. Thompson, Juszczyk, Shipley, Tucker, Wagner, Lewis-Moore, Jensen, Mellette, Anthony, Furstenburg
Miscellaneous: (14 players) Levine, O. Brown, Rainey, Simon, A. Brown, Elam, B. Williams, Devey, Copeland, Trawick, Gaines, Sheppard, Pericak, Steelman, M. Williams, Lee, Walker, Carter.
RFA: (5 players) L. Williams, McClellan, Allen, McAdoo, Bynes
ERFA: (10 players) Mims, Hall, Stephens, Berry, Silvestro, Bryant, Cornell, A. McClain, Carr, Hamilton
UFA: (14 players) Oher, J. Jones, Leach, Graham, A. Jones, Pitta, Dickson, R. McClain, Cody, Harewood, Adkins, Ihedigbo, Johnson, Hanie
 
2015 Salary Cap: 84.336M – 123M (2013 cap) = 38.66M free.
Under Contract: (27 players) Ngata, Yanda, Flacco, Rice, Webb, Koch, Dumervil, Canty, Huff, Upshaw, Osemele, Pierce, Gradkowski, C. Thompson, Jackson, Streeter, Tyson, D. Thompson, Juszczyk, Shipley, Tucker, Wagner, Lewis-Moore, Jensen, Mellette, Anthony, Furstenburg
Miscellaneous: (14 players) Levine, O. Brown, Rainey, Simon, A. Brown, Elam, B. Williams, Devey, Copeland, Trawick, Gaines, Sheppard, Pericak, Steelman, M. Williams, Lee, Walker, Carter.
RFA: (3 players) Tucker, Shipley, D. Thompson
UFA: (13 players) Suggs, J. McClain, McKinnie, J Smith, T. Smith, D. Reed, Spears, Cox, Reid, Doss, C. Brown, McPhee, Taylor
 
I can’t get into ERFAs, but you get the idea. These figures are clearly not including cap carryover, so there could very well be more cap space available. These figures also don’t account for the four rookies currently unsigned, as well as the signed UDFAs whose cap figures Spotrac does not have available. In 2 years, we will potentially be losing around 27 players from our team—27 players. That’s a considerable amount of talent. Some very big and important players are on those lists, too.
 
Another interesting trend I have noticed is that WR, CB, DE/OLB are all beginning to be paid more or the same as elite left tackles. Usually, in most cases, the elite LTs are making less than the best cornerbacks, pass rushers, wide receivers, etc. That means that LT is no longer the second-highest paid position next to QB.
 
Anyway, I compiled this list because I always see people say “Let’s extend this guy! Let’s re-sign all of our free agents! Let's sign this free agent!!!” blah, blah. I only did this as a way of showing what our situation looks like in the future, so you can see exactly what kind of cap space we truly have. Granted, even though we’ll have 38M in 2015, it’s not that much, because we would have potentially lost 27 players from our current team.
 
Keep in mind that in 2015 we may have two HUGE free agents in Torrey Smith & Jimmy Smith. Those two positions are some of the highest paid positions in the entire NFL after QB, and I doubt they go down in terms of pay grade. Also recognize that the leech Drew Rosenhaus represents BOTH Jimmy & Torrey Smith and we may have ourselves a problem. We also have some significant RFAs coming due in 2015 as well, the most significant being Justin Tucker. So while we may have 38M right now, that could dwindle very, very fast.

For a kid as decent as Torrey Smith, why in the world would he hire that incompetent fool - Rosenhaus beats me! He needs to drop him like a hot potato like other players around te league are doing...

[The Raven]

For a kid as decent as Torrey Smith, why in the world would he hire that incompetent fool - Rosenhaus beats me! He needs to drop him like a hot potato like other players around te league are doing...

 

"Incompetent fool" is a foolish way to describe Rosenhaus. As much as he is a greedy and corrupt shark, he does his job very well.

[BallHawker]

In Oz we trust.

 

LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[Yatagarasu]

"Incompetent fool" is a foolish way to describe Rosenhaus. As much as he is a greedy and corrupt shark, he does his job very well.

 

Agents have to play hard because back then players were getting sharked by owners who took full advantage of their talent for a fraction of the cost. However, back then everyone was playing the game as a hobby or recreational instead as a full time job.

[ellicottraven]

"Incompetent fool" is a foolish way to describe Rosenhaus. As much as he is a greedy and corrupt shark, he does his job very well.

Does he now? So advising ball players on how to invest their money who then lose most of that investment is not incompetent foolery? I think you suffer from the 'overconfidence effect'! You are a quick draw who says stuff with so much conviction that you want the rest of us to believe you are right, when you are not.

[ellicottraven]

"Incompetent fool" is a foolish way to describe Rosenhaus. As much as he is a greedy and corrupt shark, he does his job very well.

Explain why the following paragraph is not incompetence? You think meting out bad references and financial advice to your clients is competence? You seem to be a gun slinger except with a laptop keyboard as your weapon:

 

"In the February issue of GQ, celebrity wide receiver Terrell Owens claims Rosenhaus recommended a lawyer and an investment firm that lost him millions of dollars. The lawyer, whom T.O. has sued, allegedly pushed him to invest $2 million on an ill-fated Alabama casino entertainment complex that landed the developer and an Alabama legislator in jail on bribery charges. Plus T.O. violated the NFL's policy prohibiting players from investing in gambling.

T.O. blames his agent. I'm not surprised. Rosenhaus, a University of Miami alum and North Miami native, burned Owens in 2005 when the wide receiver was booted off the Philadelphia Eagles. During a news conference, a Philly reporter accurately pointed out, "Drew, what have you done for T.O. -- other than get him kicked off the team?"

The outspoken wide receiver wasn't the only Rosenhaus client to get suckered in the Alabama deal. Former University of Miami standouts Clinton Portis and Roscoe Parrish also lost millions of dollars thanks to Drew's financial references."

[The Raven]

Explain why the following paragraph is not incompetence? You think meting out bad references and financial advice to your clients is competence? You seem to be a gun slinger except with a laptop keyboard as your weapon:

 

"In the February issue of GQ, celebrity wide receiver Terrell Owens claims Rosenhaus recommended a lawyer and an investment firm that lost him millions of dollars. The lawyer, whom T.O. has sued, allegedly pushed him to invest $2 million on an ill-fated Alabama casino entertainment complex that landed the developer and an Alabama legislator in jail on bribery charges. Plus T.O. violated the NFL's policy prohibiting players from investing in gambling.

T.O. blames his agent. I'm not surprised. Rosenhaus, a University of Miami alum and North Miami native, burned Owens in 2005 when the wide receiver was booted off the Philadelphia Eagles. During a news conference, a Philly reporter accurately pointed out, "Drew, what have you done for T.O. -- other than get him kicked off the team?"

The outspoken wide receiver wasn't the only Rosenhaus client to get suckered in the Alabama deal. Former University of Miami standouts Clinton Portis and Roscoe Parrish also lost millions of dollars thanks to Drew's financial references."

 

So basically, Rosenhaus is incompetent because he recommended this a few of his clients invest in a particular firm? That's a laugh. Those players should know that investments are never guaranteed, and they are flat out idiots for blaming Rosenhaus for giving a mere suggestion. Just remember, they made the decision to invest big money in a bad market. Sure, Rosenhaus made the suggestion, but he didn't force them to do it. They are even more foolish than he is, if you ask me.

 

Also, he's very competent. He's one of the best agents in the league at getting his client the best deal he can get. That is his primary objective, no?

 

So yeah, maybe I am a bit of a quick draw. But there's usually logic behind my claims. 

 

Oh, and I'm rarely wrong around these parts. ;)

[ellicottraven]

So basically, Rosenhaus is incompetent because he recommended this a few of his clients invest in a particular firm? That's a laugh. Those players should know that investments are never guaranteed, and they are flat out idiots for blaming Rosenhaus for giving a mere suggestion. Just remember, they made the decision to invest big money in a bad market. Sure, Rosenhaus made the suggestion, but he didn't force them to do it. They are even more foolish than he is, if you ask me.
 
Also, he's very competent. He's one of the best agents in the league at getting his client the best deal he can get. That is his primary objective, no?
 
So yeah, maybe I am a bit of a quick draw. But there's usually logic behind my claims. 


 
Oh, and I'm rarely wrong around these parts. ;)

"They are even more foolish than he is, if you ask me." - There you go! You drew quickly all over again. You admit he is a fool in a two part statement - foolish incompetence! Now for the incompetence part, I'll give you another response to add 'incompetence' to Rosenhaus' coffin! I don't see anything logical in your defense of Drew Rosenhaus' foolish incompetence. Sorry.

Again, competence is not just about getting money for his clients. He risks their deals such that he is personally rewarded. Competence is about a holistic approach to manage your clients so that in the long run, they benefit. He does none of that. The fact that you conveniently ignored the fact that T.O's career was shortened partly due to the incompetence of your competent Mr. Rosenhaus! This does not condone T.O in any shape or manner, because I personally detest him.

[GrimCoconut]

I don't know how debating the competence of Drew Rosenhaus has anything to do with the topic but I'd rather this thread not turn into a fight about him.

Anyway, knowing that we have 8m approximately to work with next year makes things fun. I'm interested in seeing Pitta's deal. I think he is our priority free agent for next year.

[The Raven]

...okay. 

 

I am liking our cap situation in coming years. We may have to part with Suggs and/or Ngata, but if the younger players progress like I  know they will, it'll be okay. Nothing new here.

[Yatagarasu]

...okay. 

 

I am liking our cap situation in coming years. We may have to part with Suggs and/or Ngata, but if the younger players progress like I  know they will, it'll be okay. Nothing new here.

 

Ozzie knows what he's doing. I remember the forum was in such an uproar when Willis McGahee, Derrick Mason, Kelly Gregg, and Todd Heap were all cut in one offseason. However, Oz is doing it for the betterment of the team for the present and the future. A team isn't built around one guy and Ozzie is willing to part ways with seasoned veterans to fit couple young talented players. Only one we might try to hold on as long as possible is Joe Flacco because it's a QB league and we got ourselves a QB.

[GrimCoconut]

...okay.

I am liking our cap situation in coming years. We may have to part with Suggs and/or Ngata, but if the younger players progress like I know they will, it'll be okay. Nothing new here.

True. Ngata or Suggs could become casualties if we feel like younger guys can replace or replicate their production.

An underrated aspect of Ozzie is how he watches all the practices. I don't think there's a general manager with his finger on this team's pulse as hard as Ozzie has his. I feel like that's a big reason why he is able to make these controversial personnel decisions.

I don't think we realize how good we have it as Ravens fans.