PA Season Ticket Holder
05-12-2003, 08:00 PM
May 12, 2003) -- The weekend after the draft, 26 teams held a minicamp to get a look at their draft picks. And this past weekend, the remaining six teams had their sneak preview at the unproven talent they just acquired.
In the NFL before the salary cap, the drafted players were brought in and warned that making the team would be tough and veterans would fight them tooth and nail for roster spots in late August. Nowadays, personnel decisions are made on paper or in shorts long before the pads are put on. Here are a few examples of the ripple effect the draft has on franchises because of the salary cap.
No sooner did the New Orleans Saints draft DT Johnathan Sullivan in the first round, then they traded Norman Hand to the Seahawks. Hand didn't have a very good year in 2002, but had been effective inside for coach Jim Haslett, historically. No time to waste -- Sullivan is in and Hand is out.
The Saints weren't done with the cause-and-effect of the Sullivan pick. Haslett promptly announced that DT Grady Jackson was moved to second string and needed to get in better shape. Still not done with their personnel decisions, the Saints released offensive guard Wally Williams with the drafting of Montrae Holland in the fourth round.
In the era before salary cap, veterans would look at the draft to see who they would compete against. Now they look to see who is taking their job.
Roster cuts the days after the draft are more common than ever before. Quarterback Chris Simms falls to the third round and into the lap of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and then Shane Matthews is cut the next day. Carson Palmer signs as the top pick with the Bengals and Joe Germaine is the first to go in Cincinnati. Others will follow in time.
Teams can't afford to have players under contract who may get hurt and count against the salary cap. If a veteran has too many contract issues and will hurt a team's cap, the club will now wait for June 1 to cut him. However, they will not let them come to minicamp with the risk of injury.
Imagine being a member of a team but being denied the right to compete for a job. It's the way business is done after the draft these days. It's nothing personal. Teams use their draft picks in April to make decisions about September. Miami drafted LB Eddie Moore from Tennessee and Derrick Rogers will be playing for another team next year. Steelers safety Chris Hope called it a slap in the face that the team drafted Troy Polamalu in the first round. My advice is to get over it and just "hope" the Steelers let you stay long enough to compete for a job. That's not the case most of the time in the league. Receiver Brandon Lloyd, taken by the 49ers, makes it easy for them to let J.J. Stokes go after June 1.
http://www.nfl.com/rookies/story/6367162
In the NFL before the salary cap, the drafted players were brought in and warned that making the team would be tough and veterans would fight them tooth and nail for roster spots in late August. Nowadays, personnel decisions are made on paper or in shorts long before the pads are put on. Here are a few examples of the ripple effect the draft has on franchises because of the salary cap.
No sooner did the New Orleans Saints draft DT Johnathan Sullivan in the first round, then they traded Norman Hand to the Seahawks. Hand didn't have a very good year in 2002, but had been effective inside for coach Jim Haslett, historically. No time to waste -- Sullivan is in and Hand is out.
The Saints weren't done with the cause-and-effect of the Sullivan pick. Haslett promptly announced that DT Grady Jackson was moved to second string and needed to get in better shape. Still not done with their personnel decisions, the Saints released offensive guard Wally Williams with the drafting of Montrae Holland in the fourth round.
In the era before salary cap, veterans would look at the draft to see who they would compete against. Now they look to see who is taking their job.
Roster cuts the days after the draft are more common than ever before. Quarterback Chris Simms falls to the third round and into the lap of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and then Shane Matthews is cut the next day. Carson Palmer signs as the top pick with the Bengals and Joe Germaine is the first to go in Cincinnati. Others will follow in time.
Teams can't afford to have players under contract who may get hurt and count against the salary cap. If a veteran has too many contract issues and will hurt a team's cap, the club will now wait for June 1 to cut him. However, they will not let them come to minicamp with the risk of injury.
Imagine being a member of a team but being denied the right to compete for a job. It's the way business is done after the draft these days. It's nothing personal. Teams use their draft picks in April to make decisions about September. Miami drafted LB Eddie Moore from Tennessee and Derrick Rogers will be playing for another team next year. Steelers safety Chris Hope called it a slap in the face that the team drafted Troy Polamalu in the first round. My advice is to get over it and just "hope" the Steelers let you stay long enough to compete for a job. That's not the case most of the time in the league. Receiver Brandon Lloyd, taken by the 49ers, makes it easy for them to let J.J. Stokes go after June 1.
http://www.nfl.com/rookies/story/6367162