Rookie Wage Scale in NFL CBA changing the game

[Carl Spackler]

I disagree Carl. Otherwise what prevents the best individual rookie WRs from trying to recruit themselves on to the Patriots, Saints, or Broncos? The draft is essential for at least 7 rounds. Besides, the NFL make a crap ton of money on the draft and related events. It's not going anywhere. Plus the CBA doesn't expire until at least 2021.

NFL Contracts are not guaranteed and Players must adhere to both salary cap and salary floor regulations. Also, given adequate performance, many players are now subject to contract restrictions into fourth and potentially fifth years. As a result and all things being equal, the 3rd year player has just as much chance of being cut as the 5th year player. It seems to me that a player has to be cut in order to take advantage of their second contract.

The real issue is the number of underclassman declaring early. While those that go undrafted can sign UDFA deals, many believe they have to leave early to because they can't prove anything in college and if they get hurt, they might as well make money at it. This of course is short-term thinking because unless an athlete is truly elite as a RS Sophomore or Junior, they run the risk of washing out and never hitting that pay day. As I said last week however, this is a decision that much be made by himself and support circle. If he allows himself to be influenced by shady individuals and ne'er do wells, that really can't be put on the NFL. The kids go through their pro day and some get invited to the combine. He is choosing to grow up faster than "society intended." There are now consequences for his actions.

Good points. I've been saying that I'm concerned where all the advice is coming from. It's just interesting discussion stuff for me. Better than the other stuff going on around here now. The real solution to all this stuff, is to do one of three things: Either remove the salary cap, or remove the roster limits, or remove both.

Those two things exist for one reason only - to maximize ownership profit margins. It's done under the disguise of maintaining a competitive league. Kind of like how the chosen 5 conferences in college football are working to keep as much TV money as possible, under the disguise of a review governance structure around issues of student athletes.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Good points. I've been saying that I'm concerned where all the advice is coming from. It's just interesting discussion stuff for me. Better than the other stuff going on around here now. The real solution to all this stuff, is to do one of three things: Either remove the salary cap, or remove the roster limits, or remove both.

Those two things exist for one reason only - to maximize ownership profit margins. It's done under the disguise of maintaining a competitive league. Kind of like how the chosen 5 conferences in college football are working to keep as much TV money as possible, under the disguise of a review governance structure around issues of student athletes.

Come on, that's not the only reason for the roster limit. It's very much so that a team can't just stock-pile projects who never see the field. It gives them a chance to try to latch on elsewhere. Regardless though, we both know how much power the owners hold at the table in the NFL (polar opposite of MLB), so these things are not going to happen for the foreseeable future. And I'm not sure where your doomsday thinking is going. Do you really think the NFL is going to tank because more underclassmen are declaring?

 

[Carl Spackler]

Come on, that's not the only reason for the roster limit. It's very much so that a team can't just stock-pile projects who never see the field. It gives them a chance to try to latch on elsewhere. Regardless though, we both know how much power the owners hold at the table in the NFL (polar opposite of MLB), so these things are not going to happen for the foreseeable future. And I'm not sure where your doomsday thinking is going. Do you really think the NFL is going to tank because more underclassmen are declaring?

Technically, the 53 man active roster limit, and the salary cap were both created for the same purpose and are redundant, but the NFL ownership liked what they created. I think it would be a good idea to keep the salary cap and lift roster limits. I think it would be beneficial for the league in many ways. But whatever. Yeah, it's coming across like doomsday prophecy, but that wasn't my intention, I was just making some discussion. There is definitely a trend developing in how the draft is functioning after the rookie wage scale was changed. What the long term and short term effects of change will be is what I was bringing up.

I do think that the league is walking a fine line between seriously diluting it's talent pool and by extension it's competitive level of play.

That probably seems immediately contrary to what I was writing before, but you are correct in the that there are definitely different strata/levels of players in the league. There is a huge difference between experienced, mid 20-late20s veteran playes and early 20s rookies and 1st 2nd year players though, and that's what I'm talking about here now. I think that, because football is game, that players can pick up at any time really, but to play at the most elite level, takes a ton of experience and game time reps, and I think that the league is going to have a lot of players that are on the low end of experience in the future.

One of the most important things, I think, that goes into evaluating the quality of a player, is the volume and simple number of successful, winning plays - game time reps - that they have. The more consistent a player is during game time play, the more reliable your predictions get. It's a catch 22 though, because coaches just don't hand out game time reps and plays to anyone - you got to earn your way there, which is why the college game is so important to the health of the NFL.

As whaler noted, the draft, handcuffs franchises to players that they have invested in, and underclassmen, most of them, are lacking in an adequate volume of game time reps to get really good evaluations.

Good talk though. THanks.