If we franchise anyone, it'll be to trade them. None of our FAs are going to deserve Top 5 money at their positions, nor should we be thinking about paying it. Someone will get franchised, then shipped off to another team.
I had heard rumors of possibly franchising Harris, and we aren't going to trade him. Plus, I think Harris might be worth paying a little extra if it would help us keep some guys this season to get to a Super Bowl. Then if we sign him long-term in the future (which would obviously be the main goal) we could use the fact that we paid him 9.6 mill this year as leverage to knock a couple bucks off the deal. I really think it could work.
The thing is, if you sign Harris to a 5 year 40 million dollar deal it's not a 8 million dollar cap hit for 2011. If you franchise him it's a straight up 9.6 million dollar hit
How would paying Harris 9.6 on a franchise tender HELP us keep guys this season? You realize that makes no sense whatsoever, right? If we pay that much to him, we'll lose at least two other top FAs.
Signing Aso would be like buying a new driveway a week after the roof blew off. Ngata? Like buying new tires for a car with no engine. Ah, the off season....
The Jets can bring back a WR, Harris and sign Ngata if they want to. Ngata won't be a free agent tho, he'll cost at least a first round pick.
Well, I never really understood the franchise tag anyway. I thought that if a player is franchise tagged he doesn't count against the cap, but I could be totally wrong. Wikipedia says that a franchise tag can help teams keep "valuable free-agent players while seeking talent through the NFL draft or other acquisitions without exceeding the League's salary cap." I still don't exactly get it though. Anyway I keep hearing Harris may be franchised, these are not my own words or ideas.
Pretty sure we drafted a guy in the first round last year. And in the Pat's game we dressed what? 11 DB's Their are more pressing needs than another shut down corner on this team.
Basically when a team "franchise tags" somebody, they are automatically given a one year contract for the average monetary value of the top 5 salaries for their position throughout the NFL. It helps teams sometimes because there is no negotiating, the player has to come back as if it is the last year on their contract.
Okay that makes sense, but how exactly then does that help teams sign draft picks or free agents? Or does it not help at all?
Is that necessarily a bad thing? He has traded up in the first round to get Revis, Sanchez and Keller, traded away a few picks for Cromartie, Edwards and Holmes and traded up to get Shonn Greene. I am probably missing a few of these trades but I don't have a problem with the trades quality over quantity.