A realistic look at finances available for FA?

To begin with, let me say that I am no cap or contract guru. I can't say with any great assurance if the dollar amounts I use are too low or may be too high in some instances. Some of you can probably speak to that better than I, but I don't think I'm way off. I can't guess at signing bonuses or other types of bonuses, but I know that they can raise or lower the cap hit for any one year, and some $s can be pushed into future years. With our own FAs I tried to give reasonable raises, and to other team's FAs was more generous, but may not have been generous enough. Everything depends upon their agents, and how many other teams covet those FAs.

According to Over the Cap.com, the Jets have $48,760,074 in cap space. By cutting Johnson, Harvin, Babin and Cumberland, the Jets would have an additional $17,300,000 in cap space, for a total of $66,060,074. for those who want to keep Harvin, I'll be curious to see if you still want that after you see the numbers in black and white in front of you.

Cuts
Chris Johnson – savings $3,500,000
Percy Harvin savings $10,500,000
Justin Babin savings $1,500,000
Jeff Cumberland savings $1,900,000

Based on the figures I've seen, the Jets will need $7 million to sign their draft picks. I figure that they may want to save $5-$10 million in cap space for any TC cuts or injuries during the season. For argument's sake, let's say that leaves the Jets with $49,160,074 to sign FAs.

IMO the #1 priority is re-signing/extending Mo. He is our best player and I think Mac needs to send a strong, positive message to the team that the franchise appreciates and respects its own.

Extension
Mo Wilkinson - Five years $55.5 million, $11.1 million per year

That takes the amount they have to spend on FAs to $38,060,074

I think it important that the Jets maintain the DL as the team strength if possible, so ideally, Harrison, Ellis & Douzable be re-signed. It will be expensive, however, and could prevent their addressing other needs this year.

Purdum has been an excellent LS, so unless Dalton Freeman can demonstrate that he can take over the LS duties and handle it as flawlessly as Purdum, then Purdum should probably stay. Powell is a nice back, but expendable. The same goes for Jarrett, Ijalana, Salas and Bellore. Bellore is one of their better STers, so he should stick. None of the contracts for the last 5 should be guaranteed. If they find a FA, player in the draft or a UDFA who can unseat them, fine, and that could give them a little more wiggle room. They could boost the amount of money available by $3- $4 million either by letting Snacks or Ellis walk or signing him to a tender and not matching any offers that Snacks receives. Another option would be pushing some of the money into future years when the cap is bigger.

Re-Sign Jets FAs
Damon "Snacks" Harrison - 4 years $16 million - $4 million per year
Kenrick Ellis - 4 years $10.25 million - $2.56 million per year
Leger Douzable - 2 years $3 million - $1.5 million per year
Tanner Purdum - 2 years $2 million - $1 million per year
Bilal Powell - 2 years $3.75 million - $1.87 million per year
Jaiquawn Jarrett - 2 years $1.5 million - $750k per year
Ben Ijalana - 2 years $2.5 million - $1.25 million per year
Greg Salas - 2 years $1.5 million - $750k per year
Nick Bellore - 2 years $3.75 million - $1.87 million per year

Total - $15,550,000

That would bring the amount the Jets have to spend solely on FAs down to $22,510,074. For those of you who want to sign Revis for close to $20 million per season, Iupati for $8 million per season, or Worilds for $11-$12 million per season, or Kareem Jackson for $7-9 million per season, Maclin, Julius Thomas or Demaryius Thomas for probably $12-$15 million per season, that should show you how unrealistic your desires are. That would limit their abilities to address many other needs.

Mac, like most GMs, seeks to build the team primarily through the draft, but also supplement with FA. Many of these GMs seek to add cheaper second tier FAs to increase/improve competition and as insurance so they aren't forced to have to draft a player at a position of need in the draft. One possibility is that he would seek to sign a number of these 2nd tier FAs. He's on record at the Combine, however as saying that the team needs 2 CBs. If they do that, that could eat up $12-$15 million of the roughly $22.4 million left and still have a ton of holes. He has said that they will be active in FA this year, so I am curious and anxious to see what that means.

Following is one possibility where a number of positions would be addressed. I believe that all of the players are 25-26. Aside from Matt Moore, they all were starters last season. Some other options if you don't like some of these players would be Clint Boling or James Carpenter (OGs), Louis Delmas or Kendrick Lewis (FSs), Brooks Reed (OLB), and that could move the amount up or down. You may know some other players at these positions who are FAs that you like better. If the numbers are anywhere near accurate, they could sign the following players for $22,250,000

Orlando Franklin (OG) – currently making $1,089,000, sign him for 4 years $17-18 million $4.5 million
Matt Moore (QB) – currently making, sign him for two years $10.5 million - $5.25 million
Rahim Moore (FS) – currently making, $1,112,032, sign him for four years for $14 million - $3.25 million
Sam Acho (OLB) – currently making $628,607, sign him for five years for $7.5 million, $1.5 million
Jordan Cameron (TE) – currently making $629,350, sign him for 4 years for $6 million, $1.5 million
Antonio Cromartie (CB) – currently making, sign him for 2 years for $10 million - $5 million
Mason Foster (ILB) – currently making $696,093, sign him for 2 years for $2.5 million, $1.25 million

IMO that would be a pretty great FA period. They would upgrade one of their starting OG spots, bring in a vet QB to push Geno or more likely, start, have a real FS, replace/upgrade Cumberland's spot, add a young OLB who knows Bowles' system, and replace Harris, who is likely to sign with Buffalo. The only position that they wouldn't be able to address would be WR, but they wouldn't have to draft a WR since they have some young WRs who never got to play much last season. I hope that they will draft a WR, but they wouldn't be forced to. Personally, I'd much rather the Jets do something like this and address many positions rather than spending 2/3 of their available FA $s on signing two CBs and having little left to address other positions, even if it means Bowles has to change his approach and not blitz so much for a few years. I think upgrading multiple positions on both offense and defense, getting younger and faster would benefit the team much more than signing two CBs or two high-priced players between the WR, OLB and CB positions.

This would leave them free to go BAP/BPA in the draft, and wouldn't force them to draft any position out of need, except possibly WR.

For the draft, there are quite a few players I like and I think would help the team. I think there are only three imperatives entering the draft. One, if either Winston or Mariota drops to them and the Jets view him as a potential franchise QB, they take him; two, if at all possible, find Brick's replacement at LT for next season*; and three, since this draft is deep and strong at OLB and WR get at least one prospect between those two positions, and preferably one of each. That doesn't mean that they should reach for a player or forget taking the BPA/BAP. Mac can seek to trade down, garner an additional pick or picks, get value, and draft players where they are rated.

*Bricks' play has been steadily declining and I don't think they should pay him over $14 million next season for his level of play, and if they should be so fortunate as to get Mariota or Winston in the draft, I don't want Brick protecting his blind side.

 

I know about the calculator, but imo it only helps over a period of multiple seasons, not just one, and when you're bringing in multiple FAs.

I disagree on your second point to some extent. Yes, I know demand and the market can drive prices up, sometimes astronomically, but not always, and I think with younger, lesser-known players, their deals are closer to what they made the previous season. As I said, however, I'm no cap or financial guru. The purpose of my post was twofold: one, to demonstrate that the Jets could address multiple positions; and two, to show those who want the Jets to sign a Revis, Worilds, Iupati, Demaryius Thomas, or Julius Thomas, who ridiculous and impractical that is. The Jets don't have as much cap space to sign FAs as most think. I know that I was surprised how quickly the $66 million in cap space after my cuts was eaten up.

 

Sorry your reading comprehension and attention span are so bad. You're misreading the way I did it. I said I didn't use any bonuses in my figures. It was all straight salary, and I did only count the first year salary against this year's cap. I know that often times salaries are staggered, but there's no way to figure that and it would have made it too complex. My first comments were that I am NOT a cap guru or financial expert and don't claim to be. It was just an example, an intended to stimulate discussion. I expected at least one poster to be an obnoxious, ignorant ass wipe. Congratulations, you, my friend, are that ass wipe, and the only one who is stupid.

 

Thanks for the suggestions. As I said, I'm no cap or contract guru, and as I've said in other threads, I don't follow other teams in the NFL or their players that closely. I did google Franklin, but didn't see the sites you mentioned that tell which teams are interested in him, etc. I didn't realize that Franklin was that elite of an OG. You're probably right then, and that's Iupati range, so I would probably opt for either Boling or Carpenter instead, if they were cheaper.

I discounted Cameron because of his injury. I guess I discounted him too much.

At any rate, I think my initial purposes for creating the thread still stand. The Jets can address multiple positions if they choose, and they're not going to be able to sign a bunch of big name, top-dollar FAs. They can sign one, maybe two, but that will limit what else they can do.