NGT: QB Gauranteed money and the rookie wage scale

[zephirus]

I'm not entirely sure how to start this thread but I'll put my thoughts out there and let less preoccupied minds than mine opine.

Maybe it's just me but I look across the league and see a marked trend in quarterback guarantees coming back to bite the team that issued them.  Obviously the cap implications of cutting Daniel Jones are top of mind for wannabe Giants GMs as we look towards the future, but take a look around and I think you'll agree teams are misfiring on QBs more than ever before but hamstringing themselves with bloated contracts.

- Trevor Lawrence is in his 4th year and fresh off a deal that tied him with Joe Burrow as the highest paid player in the NFL.  The Jaguars have the worst record in the league and illustrate an offensive ineptitude that would make even the Giants take note.  He may get shut down for the rest of the season after a vicious concussion yesterday.
- Tua Tagovailoa also inked a massive off-season deal.  He's had at least 4 concussions (probably 5) in the past two years and while everyone seems to be happy he's out there playing again, you do cross your fingers that he doesn't incur another that might ultimately prove career-ending.
- The Cowboys completely misplayed any advantage they might have had with Dak Prescott and have now twice been forced to sign him to extreme deals.  While you can argue that his regular season efficacy is well above average outside of this year, his lack of post-season accolades leave many scratching their head.
- The Browns are stuck with DeShaun Watson for at least 2 more years if not longer based on the guarantees they gave out.  He's been very injury prone in his tenure there and ineffective when healthy.
- Kirk Cousins and Kyler Murray are different stories but both are raking in sizeable money with middling results.  It looks even worse for Cousins coming off a season lost to injury and playing poorly of late.  The dead money cap hits to cut either after this season would be in excess of 60m (although the Cardinals clearly won't do that). 
- Add in Daniel Jones and thats nearly a quarter of the league with issues at QB.  Some can't be cut either because the cap implications are too severe or because the QB is doing just good enough to not warrant it or make you think they're turning the corner.  Some can be cut, but doing so limits your ability to add key free agents or build around the new QB.

This feels like a new problem - I for sure remember QBs flaming out at a high clip in the past but I don't remember it being so franchise-altering to make a bad decision. 

[AYM]

Basically, you have 2-3 years to determine if your QB is the guy. If he's not the guy, you draft another guy and let him go. If you don't know whether he's the guy or not after 2-3 seasons, then he's not the guy, and you get another guy. That's the only way to avoid these traps.

[todge]

The owners have been discussing QB salaries and how they impact the salary cap. They are floating a separate cap for QBs and options for making salaries less impactful.

For once, Schoen did something right when it came to Jones' situation. It didn't make sense to cut him after making the Playoffs, so he wisely negotiated a team friendly deal with an out after two years. Jones' contract was the 16th highest in the league which was actually a bargain considering Trevor Lawrence's salary given the similar stats between the two.

I'm just wondering if the contract was the work of Kevin Abrams who is still with the team as a consultant


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[coggs]

I'm not entirely sure how to start this thread but I'll put my thoughts out there and let less preoccupied minds than mine opine.

Maybe it's just me but I look across the league and see a marked trend in quarterback guarantees coming back to bite the team that issued them.  Obviously the cap implications of cutting Daniel Jones are top of mind for wannabe Giants GMs as we look towards the future, but take a look around and I think you'll agree teams are misfiring on QBs more than ever before but hamstringing themselves with bloated contracts.

- Trevor Lawrence is in his 4th year and fresh off a deal that tied him with Joe Burrow as the highest paid player in the NFL.  The Jaguars have the worst record in the league and illustrate an offensive ineptitude that would make even the Giants take note.  He may get shut down for the rest of the season after a vicious concussion yesterday.
- Tua Tagovailoa also inked a massive off-season deal.  He's had at least 4 concussions (probably 5) in the past two years and while everyone seems to be happy he's out there playing again, you do cross your fingers that he doesn't incur another that might ultimately prove career-ending.
- The Cowboys completely misplayed any advantage they might have had with Dak Prescott and have now twice been forced to sign him to extreme deals.  While you can argue that his regular season efficacy is well above average outside of this year, his lack of post-season accolades leave many scratching their head.
- The Browns are stuck with DeShaun Watson for at least 2 more years if not longer based on the guarantees they gave out.  He's been very injury prone in his tenure there and ineffective when healthy.
- Kirk Cousins and Kyler Murray are different stories but both are raking in sizeable money with middling results.  It looks even worse for Cousins coming off a season lost to injury and playing poorly of late.  The dead money cap hits to cut either after this season would be in excess of 60m (although the Cardinals clearly won't do that). 
- Add in Daniel Jones and thats nearly a quarter of the league with issues at QB.  Some can't be cut either because the cap implications are too severe or because the QB is doing just good enough to not warrant it or make you think they're turning the corner.  Some can be cut, but doing so limits your ability to add key free agents or build around the new QB.

This feels like a new problem - I for sure remember QBs flaming out at a high clip in the past but I don't remember it being so franchise-altering to make a bad decision. 

I have said it once, I will say it again.  These QB contracts are nothing more than dick measuring contests for the owners.