Does anyone still think this is NOT a cheap franchise?

[patmoran2006]

For anyone who is actually not convinced that "trading" Spikes isn't 100% financial. Read the damn article. In fact, To save you the time just read the quotes. You gotta be kidding me.


http://www.buffalonews.com/111/story/39588.html

"Finances are playing a big part in the Spikes move, and they are the reason his trade has been expected for weeks.

The Bills have made big free-agent purchases the past month and have committed about $105 million to this year’s player costs, by News estimates. They do not intend to spend more than the NFL salary cap total of $112 million in real dollars this year. (Teams are allowed to spend cash over the cap because signing bonuses can be spread out over the length of the contract for accounting purposes.)

The Bills still need to spend a lot of money to sign their draft choices. That total could exceed $10 million, depending on how they structure the contracts. They also must keep some money in reserve to replace injured players during the season.

So it’s hard to see how they could avoid spending over the cap in real money with Spikes, who is scheduled to make $4.6 million, on the roster."
========================================================
IN all actuality, we are more than $19 million under the salary cap. We still had plenty of money, if we had an owner who choose to do so, to fill a lot more of the holes that have been left behind or not addressed in previous years. We could've landed minimum 2-3 more quality starters in FA, guys that woulda costed some money but not approached contracts like Dockery got; guys that would've been an upgrade such as a Rod Hood, Nick Harper, Travis Henry, Cato June, Justin Griffith, etc (take your pick of any 2 I guess- they were all clear upgrades)

But the salary cap, by our own owner, has been made different for the 31 other teams in the league than it is for us. For fans who've supported this team through this ridiculously mediocre stretch (longest playoff drought in Bills history), these cheap moves are discraceful and a slap to ticket/merchanise buying Bills fans everywhere.

There is zero committment to winning from wilson. Zero. He is committed to saving money, and that's it.

Groan me all you want, I care about the Bills as much as anybody on this board. But I'm done buying into this horse****. I really hope Wilson sells the team or "moves on"- I dont care anymore. I'll take my chances that someone will want to keep this team in Buffalo, because nobody can possibly do a ****tier job of running this franchise than Wilson has over the past decade.

[camelcowboy]

still alot of offseason left Pat, ill answer you then.

[Stewie]

For anyone who is actually not convinced that "trading" Spikes isn't 100% financial. Read the damn article. In fact, To save you the time just read the quotes. You gotta be kidding me.


http://www.buffalonews.com/111/story/39588.html

"Finances are playing a big part in the Spikes move, and they are the reason his trade has been expected for weeks.

The Bills have made big free-agent purchases the past month and have committed about $105 million to this year’s player costs, by News estimates. They do not intend to spend more than the NFL salary cap total of $112 million in real dollars this year. (Teams are allowed to spend cash over the cap because signing bonuses can be spread out over the length of the contract for accounting purposes.)

The Bills still need to spend a lot of money to sign their draft choices. That total could exceed $10 million, depending on how they structure the contracts. They also must keep some money in reserve to replace injured players during the season.

So it’s hard to see how they could avoid spending over the cap in real money with Spikes, who is scheduled to make $4.6 million, on the roster."
========================================================
IN all actuality, we are more than $19 million under the salary cap. We still had plenty of money, if we had an owner who choose to do so, to fill a lot more of the holes that have been left behind or not addressed in previous years.

You immediately assume the worst. I read what you just posted and I think that maybe the reporter doesn't know what he's talking about, that he's guessing it's finances but doens't really know the cap situation (none of them do, they can't all be ballstieri)

Why you claim to like a team you are so negative about is beyond me.

[jamesiscool]

i think pat should be a redkins fan. that way his team can spend all the money they want just to keep him happy.

[chernobylwraiths]

Getting rid of Spikes is all financial, right. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the major injury that he has yet to fully come back from, the fact that last year after Vincent was hurt and put on IR to be realeased that he basically asked for the same thing and that his mouth was the one quoted when talking about possibly the best defense in the NFL a couple years ago. Spikes was a great player on the field a few years ago (emphasis on was) and even if he may be again, there is virtually no way we would retain him after this year, so they are being proactive in seeing what they could get.

Did anybody really think we would be able to retain MaGahee after this season before the trade? Regardless of his production this year, does anybody think we would have a chance of keeping Spikes?

[Nighthawk]

I do agree with Pat to an extent. Although Ralph has kept this team in Buffalo, he has never really gone all out to put a winner on the field. It always comes down to the old dollar with Ralph and people do get tired of hearing about it...and I'm one of them. Until somebody else buys the team, we are stuck with what the Bills are and will be...mediocre. However, this will not stop me from hoping they win every Sunday during the season, but I will do it knowing that with Ralph at the helm, this team probably won't see another Super Bowl.

[patmoran2006]

You immediately assume the worst. I read what you just posted and I think that maybe the reporter doesn't know what he's talking about, that he's guessing it's finances but doens't really know the cap situation (none of them do, they can't all be ballstieri)

Why you claim to like a team you are so negative about is beyond me.
Mark Gauhgn knows more about the Buffalo Bills than ANY writer you read.. ANY writer from ESPN, any writer from "Football 365".. anybody.

The ONLY person with more access than Gaughn is Chris Brown; who's salary is paid by the Buffalo Bills.

When it come to this; I just dont THINK he has more access and knowledge of Bills' going ons, it's a 100% PURE FACT.

[chernobylwraiths]

Getting rid of Spikes is all financial, right. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the major injury that he has yet to fully come back from, the fact that last year after Vincent was hurt and put on IR to be realeased that he basically asked for the same thing and that his mouth was the one quoted when talking about possibly the best defense in the NFL a couple years ago. Spikes was a great player on the field a few years ago (emphasis on was) and even if he may be again, there is virtually no way we would retain him after this year, so they are being proactive in seeing what they could get.

Did anybody really think we would be able to retain MaGahee after this season before the trade? Regardless of his production this year, does anybody think we would have a chance of keeping Spikes?

[Night Train]

He played like crap last year and missed significant playing time again as our highest paid player. It was sad to watch, since he's one of my favorites but the eyes didn't lie. A 6th round pick outplayed him and his mobility may never return.

The Bills are the only NFL team that practice ROI ( return on investment ) in relation to performance.

Got it.

Would you please get off the emotional roller coaster and visit the middle ground for once. This drama queen act of starting multiple threads to hear yourself ***** is growing old.

[THATHURMANATOR]

The Bills are NOT cheap Pat.

[jamesiscool]

The Bills are NOT cheap Pat.

if thurm said it, it must be true.

[chernobylwraiths]

I do agree with Pat to an extent. Although Ralph has kept this team in Buffalo, he has never really gone all out to put a winner on the field. It always comes down to the old dollar with Ralph and people do get tired of hearing about it...and I'm one of them. Until somebody else buys the team, we are stuck with what the Bills are and will be...mediocre. However, this will not stop me from hoping they win every Sunday during the season, but I will do it knowing that with Ralph at the helm, this team probably won't see another Super Bowl.

Paid Jim Kelly the biggest contract in NFL history when he came here. Made Bruce Smith the highest paid defensive player (maybe twice) and I believe made Thurman Thomas the highest paid RB at one time.

[Stewie]

Mark Gauhgn knows more about the Buffalo Bills than ANY writer you read.. ANY writer from ESPN, any writer from "Football 365".. anybody.

The ONLY person with more access than Gaughn is Chris Brown; who's salary is paid by the Buffalo Bills.

When it come to this; I just dont THINK he has more access and knowledge of Bills' going ons, it's a 100% PURE FACT.

Hmm... wow you got me there. Mark God-aughn said so.

So you don't think that pro football teams would ever put out false information?

nah.. that would be dumb... they just tell the press 100% facts, every time. Especially with 30 days until the draft.

I got it now. Thanks

[justasportsfan]

this years additions were cheap. We stole Kelsay, Dockery and Walker for peanuts.


BTW, Gaughan wasn't the one who said the bills were cheap. PAt did. So take it for what it's worth.

[HHURRICANE]

Yeah, it's financial. It's always financial. So what?

If this was 2003 TKO that we were trading than it would be a stupid move.

This is "not as good as Ellison" Spikes that we are getting rid of.

Dude stop getting your pants in a bunch. The guy sucked last year. What are we missing. If he didn't play a down last year our record would still be 7-9. he was a zero on the field. PERIOD.

[Nighthawk]

Paid Jim Kelly the biggest contract in NFL history when he came here. Made Bruce Smith the highest paid defensive player (maybe twice) and I believe made Thurman Thomas the highest paid RB at one time.

Never paid for a really good Head Coach. Never addressed the defensive problems during the Super Bowl years. Let Wolford go...let Odomes go when he was on top of his game. I can go on and on...Ralph is not the savior that everybody makes him out to be. However, he isn't the beast that some also make him out to be. Like it or not, Ralph wants to pocket as much cash as possible...it doesn't mean he's a bad guy. It's just the way it is.

[patmoran2006]

this years additions were cheap. We stole Kelsay, Dockery and Walker for peanuts.
are we are are we NOT spending "cash to cap" which is about 112 million?

Are we or are we NOT going to spend over that?

So despite having over 19 million in cap room.. When you look at the depth chart tommorow:

IS Kiwaukee Thomas the starting cornerback?
IS Anthony Thomas the starting tailback?
Is Brad Cieslak the starting fullback?
Is Peerless Price still the #2 WR?
Once Spikes is gone, is Coy Wire the starting linebacker?

And the draft is going to fix ALL of that, not to mention adding a run stopping DT and some needed depth at LB..

Uh huh.. We're not "cheap"
http://www.canyoncourt.com/package_images/dennys_logo_lg.gif

[alohabillsfan]

Let see marketing plan (a) We have a player previous pro-bowler with only 1 year remaining on his contract and his current salary of 4.6 million is to much for our owner, we are willing to trade him for a mid 3-4 round pick!

Let's see Plan (b) We have a player, previous pro-bowler with only 1 year left on his contract and his current salary of 4.6 mil is to dam much for a line backer that had a torn achilles tendon, hamstring problems and has lost a step. Any one want to trade?

Everyone stop believeing everything you read, this is not a business decision it is we can do better with a younger draft pick! Quincy Black, Justin Durant, Timmons, Beson, Juwan Simpson, Rufas, etc...

I like Spickes as much as anyone but clearly we need speed and youth at OLB and he does not provide it anymore.

P.S. Might as well get something for him now or all the Marv bashers will come out again!

[ddaryl]

For anyone who is actually not convinced that "trading" Spikes isn't 100% financial. Read the damn article. In fact, To save you the time just read the quotes. You gotta be kidding me.


http://www.buffalonews.com/111/story/39588.html

"Finances are playing a big part in the Spikes move, and they are the reason his trade has been expected for weeks.

The Bills have made big free-agent purchases the past month and have committed about $105 million to this year’s player costs, by News estimates. They do not intend to spend more than the NFL salary cap total of $112 million in real dollars this year. (Teams are allowed to spend cash over the cap because signing bonuses can be spread out over the length of the contract for accounting purposes.)

The Bills still need to spend a lot of money to sign their draft choices. That total could exceed $10 million, depending on how they structure the contracts. They also must keep some money in reserve to replace injured players during the season.

So it’s hard to see how they could avoid spending over the cap in real money with Spikes, who is scheduled to make $4.6 million, on the roster."
========================================================
IN all actuality, we are more than $19 million under the salary cap. We still had plenty of money, if we had an owner who choose to do so, to fill a lot more of the holes that have been left behind or not addressed in previous years. We could've landed minimum 2-3 more quality starters in FA, guys that woulda costed some money but not approached contracts like Dockery got; guys that would've been an upgrade such as a Rod Hood, Nick Harper, Travis Henry, Cato June, Justin Griffith, etc (take your pick of any 2 I guess- they were all clear upgrades)

But the salary cap, by our own owner, has been made different for the 31 other teams in the league than it is for us. For fans who've supported this team through this ridiculously mediocre stretch (longest playoff drought in Bills history), these cheap moves are discraceful and a slap to ticket/merchanise buying Bills fans everywhere.

There is zero committment to winning from wilson. Zero. He is committed to saving money, and that's it.

Groan me all you want, I care about the Bills as much as anybody on this board. But I'm done buying into this horse****. I really hope Wilson sells the team or "moves on"- I dont care anymore. I'll take my chances that someone will want to keep this team in Buffalo, because nobody can possibly do a ****tier job of running this franchise than Wilson has over the past decade.


LMAO

remember the fact you are a fan of a small market team with ticket prices averaging towards the bottom of the league. With limited luxury boxes that cost a fraction of what a Washington or a Dallas gets for their luxury boxes.

You want to spend over the cap then you better find 50,000+ season ticket holder willing to spend $100 per game per seat yearly.

FACT is Buffalo has cap to cash to offset the fact it doesn't have the same revenue streams as the rest of the NFL. So to keep from mortgaging the future for a 1 + 2 year run Buffalo is building itself through the draft, and in the process maintaining some fiscal sanity so they won't have to purge as many players every other year in the future.


I do find it laughable at the amount of people who really believe we can spend like the big markets at levels of Washington, and Dallas.

[camelcowboy]

are we are are we NOT spending "cash to cap" which is about 112 million?

Are we or are we NOT going to spend over that?

So despite having over 19 million in cap room.. When you look at the depth chart tommorow:

IS Kiwaukee Thomas the starting cornerback?
IS Anthony Thomas the starting tailback?
Is Brad Cieslak the starting fullback?
Is Peerless Price still the #2 WR?
Once Spikes is gone, is Coy Wire the starting linebacker?

And the draft is going to fix ALL of that, not to mention adding a run stopping DT and some needed depth at LB..

Uh huh.. We're not "cheap"
http://www.canyoncourt.com/package_images/dennys_logo_lg.gif

http://www.thinkuni.info/images/comingsoonsml.jpg

[gil]

are we are are we NOT spending "cash to cap" which is about 112 million?

Are we or are we NOT going to spend over that?

So despite having over 19 million in cap room.. When you look at the depth chart tommorow:

IS Kiwaukee Thomas the starting cornerback?
IS Anthony Thomas the starting tailback?
Is Brad Cieslak the starting fullback?
Is Peerless Price still the #2 WR?
Once Spikes is gone, is Coy Wire the starting linebacker?

And the draft is going to fix ALL of that, not to mention adding a run stopping DT and some needed depth at LB..

Uh huh.. We're not "cheap"


honestly, where does all of this melodrama get you?

[jamesiscool]

are we are are we NOT spending "cash to cap" which is about 112 million?

Are we or are we NOT going to spend over that?

So despite having over 19 million in cap room.. When you look at the depth chart tommorow:

IS Kiwaukee Thomas the starting cornerback? yes. cover 2 pat, u know that u dont need amazing cover men to start at CB.
IS Anthony Thomas the starting tailback? RB by committee. been there discussed that.
Is Brad Cieslak the starting fullback?a blocking fullback can be picked up for cheap yet or can find one in the draft. if cieslak is the starting fullback i wouldnt have a problem with that. he's a damn good blocker and a better pass catcher than anyother available option.
Is Peerless Price still the #2 WR? until the draft yes.
Once Spikes is gone, is Coy Wire the starting linebacker?DRAFT

And the draft is going to fix ALL of that, not to mention adding a run stopping DT and some needed depth at LB..

Uh huh.. We're not "cheap"
http://www.canyoncourt.com/package_images/dennys_logo_lg.gif


we have four first day draft picks and five second day draft picks. if marv has half as good as a draft as he did last year i think we are going to be FINE. STOP WHINING. OBD CAN'T HEAR YOU.

[Mr. Miyagi]

I do agree with Pat to an extent. Although Ralph has kept this team in Buffalo, he has never really gone all out to put a winner on the field. It always comes down to the old dollar with Ralph and people do get tired of hearing about it...and I'm one of them. Until somebody else buys the team, we are stuck with what the Bills are and will be...mediocre. However, this will not stop me from hoping they win every Sunday during the season, but I will do it knowing that with Ralph at the helm, this team probably won't see another Super Bowl.
How do you mean by "going all out to put a winner on the field"? You mean forking up big money signing free agents?

Oh we did that with Dockery this year.

So you want them to do that EVERY YEAR?

Oh like the Redskins? They're pretty competitive aren't they?

Spend on FAs instead of drafting wisely?

You mean unlike Indy, who has been good year in and year out?

Marv is doing it the right way. It takes time to build a real team, something Donahoe knows nothing about. Sure you get big flashy signings and you get pumped in the offseason. Would you rather have a fantasy football roster and be disappointed at the end of the season, or build a hard working blue collar team and win games?

[patmoran2006]

How do you mean by "going all out to put a winner on the field"? You mean forking up big money signing free agents?

Oh we did that with Dockery this year.

So you want them to do that EVERY YEAR?

Oh like the Redskins? They're pretty competitive aren't they?

Spend on FAs instead of drafting wisely?

You mean unlike Indy, who has been good year in and year out?

Marv is doing it the right way. It takes time to build a real team, something Donahoe knows nothing about. Sure you get big flashy signings and you get pumped in the offseason. Would you rather have a fantasy football roster and be disappointed at the end of the season, or build a hard working blue collar team and win games?
Add this bet to your collection.
I"ll bet you the Bills have at LEAST four blackouts again this year.. Care to make that bet as well?

[jamesiscool]

Add this bet to your collection.
I"ll bet you the Bills have at LEAST four blackouts again this year.. Care to make that bet as well?


soooo you would rather have the donahoe like flashy FA singnings rather than a team that can win consistently and compete with any team in the nfl?

stop contradicting yourself and trying to prove your superior football knowledge. this isn't show and tell dood.

James

[Saratoga Slim]

It's just plain not 100% financial. If Spikes was not an injury concern and was performing at a top level, there wouldn't even be a hint of trading him for any reason. To say this was a purely financial decision is to say that he'd be cut no matter what simply because he is expensive.

The decision to trade IF IT HAPPENS, is a combination of the FO's evaluation of his ability to contribute versus his cost.

That said, I'm not happy about it either.

[Saratoga Slim]

Pat, where do you get your 19 Million number? Gaughn's article, which you're citing as credible, says we currently have about 105M tied up for this year, against a cap of 112 M.

It's Monday and I'm running a little slow, but where' the 19 M? Looks like 7M to me.

[patmoran2006]

105 million is the cash they've spent THIS Year on Free Agents, with their "cap to cash"
philosophy.

If we give someone a signing bonus, we dont use the option to spread it out over the length of the contract. That's why we do the "cash to crap" philosophy.

IE- TO use nice easy numbers.. Lets say we signed DT Saratoga Joe to a contract. The contract is for 5 years and 30 million (6 million per). That contract includes a signing bonus of 15 million dollars.

For pretty much every other team in the league: That 15 million would get spread out over the five years of your contract. Your base salary (again easy whole numbers to make it more understandable) is actually $15 million over five years. Most teams to absorb less of a cap hit early on would give you a cheaper base in the first three years, and a larger base near the end of your contract. But even if not and the salary was the exact same every year, the NFL team would be paying about $6 million in 2007 for your services (by spreading the bonus over length of deal)

With the Buffalo BIlls however, if they sign you to that contract: they are spendnig "cash to cap" which basically means they are taking your signing bonus and counting it ALL UP FRONT to the cap. So by the deal you got, the Bills just used up $18 million to the salary cap (your 15 bonus and 3 million base salary). mathematically, that's a 3-to-1 difference when you count the traditional salary cap vs. "cash to cap".

Now of course, I used nice and round numbers, and there are sometimes "guarenteed money" and other roster bonuses. But you get the nuts of it.

The Bills do still business in regards to being under the cap the same way as every team in the league (signing bonuses spread out, etc). The difference is we will only spend CASH to the CAP. So if you have a $112 million dollar cap, and you sign Saratoga Joe to that deal above, you've eaten up about 18 million of your "cash to cap" space, instead of 6 million regular cap like every other team in the league would do(according to your contract outlined)

Thats the meat and potatoes of it anyway. Don't have it down to an exact science, but you get the point)

[Mr. Pink]

soooo you would rather have the donahoe like flashy FA singnings rather than a team that can win consistently and compete with any team in the nfl?

stop contradicting yourself and trying to prove your superior football knowledge. this isn't show and tell dood.

James


Stats have already been posted about how this team competed with the upper echelon teams. In case you missed it every division winner we played we lost to.

We're 19 million under the cap, as of today, we haven't sniffed a defensive FA worth spit. Sniffed, let alone try to sign. So we cut Spikes and we're gonna be 24ish under the cap. Who is left worth anything to sign? Oh yeah not much of anyone.

So we're sitting here resting on laurels of being the KC Royals of the NFL. You're happy about this? You don't think people have the right to be a little PO'd.

[Philagape]

-- Individual contracts are not a measure of cheapness or noncheapness; the defining factor is what we spend vs. what we could spend.

-- What Ralph has paid out in the past is irrelevant. The fact is this year, we're self-imposing a more restrictive cap than the NFL cap. It's a fact. The team held a press conference to announce it. If you don't believe Mark Gaughan, listen to what the team itself says:

As an example, if a free agent player was signed to a five-year contract with a $5 million signing bonus, the guaranteed money would count only $1 million towards the salary cap because the signing bonus is amortized over the life of the deal. But the Bills view that as a $5 million dollar expenditure this year because they have chosen to deal in real cash dollars.
"I don't think we're going to mortgage the future by going beyond the cap with cash," Levy said. "The decision was made after going over a myriad of things and we decided we'd be willing to spend cash up to this year's cap."
Many NFL teams spend actual cash that exceeds the salary cap, but because money can be amortized over the life of contracts the monies do not fully count towards the cap. The Bills however, have chosen to self-impose a real cash budget to their cap room.
http://www.buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?news_id=4621

-- Just because other teams fail with spending for FAs doesn't mean it's a bad strategy. A good FO can find the right players. If FA doesn't work, then why sign any FA at all? If you badmouth free agency, then you can't be happy about Dockery. It's homeristic hypocrisy to celebrate the good free agents we sign but then say we shouldn't sign too many of them. That's just homer spin on the fact that the only thing keeping us from signing more help is our self-imposed cash-to-crap policy.

[Philagape]

Pat, where do you get your 19 Million number? Gaughn's article, which you're citing as credible, says we currently have about 105M tied up for this year, against a cap of 112 M.

It's Monday and I'm running a little slow, but where' the 19 M? Looks like 7M to me.

19 million = how much we're under the NFL cap

7 million = how much we're under our self-imposed cap

[Philagape]

It's just plain not 100% financial. If Spikes was not an injury concern and was performing at a top level, there wouldn't even be a hint of trading him for any reason. To say this was a purely financial decision is to say that he'd be cut no matter what simply because he is expensive.

The decision to trade IF IT HAPPENS, is a combination of the FO's evaluation of his ability to contribute versus his cost.

That said, I'm not happy about it either.

If it wasn't him, it would have been somebody else.

[jamesiscool]

Stats have already been posted about how this team competed with the upper echelon teams. In case you missed it every division winner we played we lost to.

We're 19 million under the cap, as of today, we haven't sniffed a defensive FA worth spit. Sniffed, let alone try to sign. So we cut Spikes and we're gonna be 24ish under the cap. Who is left worth anything to sign? Oh yeah not much of anyone.

So we're sitting here resting on laurels of being the KC Royals of the NFL. You're happy about this? You don't think people have the right to be a little PO'd.

I'm not saying i'm content by any stretch of the imagination, but instead of spending big money on FA's I would much rather build throught the draft, ala bill polian.

it doesnt matter who we would have kept or signed, the nills wouldnt have been a playoff contender this season IMO. I'm not going to start getting all sorts of PO'd until thye season starts and I can see what kind of team we are fielding.

People can get caught up in all of this off season speculation but until you see how the team performs on the field its just that, speculation.

[Philagape]

soooo you would rather have the donahoe like flashy FA singnings rather than a team that can win consistently and compete with any team in the nfl?


When was the last time this team won consistently? How is that an option?

[jamesiscool]

Pat, where do you get your 19 Million number? Gaughn's article, which you're citing as credible, says we currently have about 105M tied up for this year, against a cap of 112 M.

It's Monday and I'm running a little slow, but where' the 19 M? Looks like 7M to me.

per clumps salary cap page.

[jamesiscool]

When was the last time this team won consistently? How is that an option?

I'm not saying we have but we have an opportunity to. we do every season and i like where levy is headed with the organization. everyone here needs to just take a deep breath and wait until we see a game.

James

[Saratoga Slim]

105 million is the cash they've spent THIS Year on Free Agents, with their "cap to cash"
philosophy.

If we give someone a signing bonus, we dont use the option to spread it out over the length of the contract. That's why we do the "cash to crap" philosophy.

IE- TO use nice easy numbers.. Lets say we signed DT Saratoga Joe to a contract. The contract is for 5 years and 30 million (6 million per). That contract includes a signing bonus of 15 million dollars.

For pretty much every other team in the league: That 15 million would get spread out over the five years of your contract. Your base salary (again easy whole numbers to make it more understandable) is actually $15 million over five years. Most teams to absorb less of a cap hit early on would give you a cheaper base in the first three years, and a larger base near the end of your contract. But even if not and the salary was the exact same every year, the NFL team would be paying about $6 million in 2007 for your services (by spreading the bonus over length of deal)

With the Buffalo BIlls however, if they sign you to that contract: they are spendnig "cash to cap" which basically means they are taking your signing bonus and counting it ALL UP FRONT to the cap. So by the deal you got, the Bills just used up $18 million to the salary cap (your 15 bonus and 3 million base salary). mathematically, that's a 3-to-1 difference when you count the traditional salary cap vs. "cash to cap".

Now of course, I used nice and round numbers, and there are sometimes "guarenteed money" and other roster bonuses. But you get the nuts of it.

The Bills do still business in regards to being under the cap the same way as every team in the league (signing bonuses spread out, etc). The difference is we will only spend CASH to the CAP. So if you have a $112 million dollar cap, and you sign Saratoga Joe to that deal above, you've eaten up about 18 million of your "cash to cap" space, instead of 6 million regular cap like every other team in the league would do(according to your contract outlined)

Thats the meat and potatoes of it anyway. Don't have it down to an exact science, but you get the point)

Thanks man, but I understand the cash-to-cap idea. I just wasn't sure if you were debating the merits of that policy again, or if you were stating that we still had 19M to work with below our own "cash to cap" cap. I see its the former.

[billsburgh]

So despite having over 19 million in cap room.. When you look at the depth chart tommorow:

IS Kiwaukee Thomas the starting cornerback?
IS Anthony Thomas the starting tailback?
Is Brad Cieslak the starting fullback?
Is Peerless Price still the #2 WR?
Once Spikes is gone, is Coy Wire the starting linebacker?

the season doesnt start tomorrow, so all your bitcing and moaning is for nothing

[Philagape]

We need a home-run draft to make up for what cash-to-crap is costing us.

[Nighthawk]

How do you mean by "going all out to put a winner on the field"? You mean forking up big money signing free agents?

Oh we did that with Dockery this year.

So you want them to do that EVERY YEAR?

Oh like the Redskins? They're pretty competitive aren't they?

Spend on FAs instead of drafting wisely?

You mean unlike Indy, who has been good year in and year out?

Marv is doing it the right way. It takes time to build a real team, something Donahoe knows nothing about. Sure you get big flashy signings and you get pumped in the offseason. Would you rather have a fantasy football roster and be disappointed at the end of the season, or build a hard working blue collar team and win games?

Don't get all huffy and puffy...show me proof! How many years since this team has made the playoffs? That's all the proof I need to back me up.

[Dr. Lecter]

Groan me all you want, I care about the Bills as much as anybody on this board. But I'm done buying into this horse****. I really hope Wilson sells the team or "moves on"- I dont care anymore. I'll take my chances that someone will want to keep this team in Buffalo, because nobody can possibly do a ****tier job of running this franchise than Wilson has over the past decade.

So now you "really wish" Ralph dies?

Can you have any less class?

And no, you are not as much of a Bills fan: you want the owner to die and you already said you would root for TKO's new team to beat the Bills.

I don't think many of us agree on either point.