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Cut Urbik (not a real loss). It's up to $21 million.
So, even without restructuring that's still a good sized hunk (and you don't know that they haven't approached somebody about a resturcture. It happens all the time all around the league. It's a pretty routine thing. (which, BTW, isn't smart to do until it's necessary because you might as well take the hit if you can in the current year.)
So, with $21 million in cap space they can:
1. Sign a guard with a cap hit of 4 million. Shoul be a decent guy. Not Iupati, but a decent guard 17 million remaining)
2. Sign a TE with a hit of 4 million. Gresham? (13 million remaining)
3. Sign rookies (about 4.5 million - perhaps less but I'll use that number) (8.5 million remianing)
4. Sign a QB. This is the tricky part. Who do they get? The pickings are slim. So I'll say a hit of 6.5 million. More than Orton. ( 2 million remaining)
Of course, they can create more space. Cut Chris Williams. The re-sctructure thing. And so on.
It really isn't the end of the world.
Well, in that scenario, you have (a) not replaced Hughes, Searcy or Spikes (I think those three combined for a cap hit of around $8.5 million last year), (b) still need money for restricted free agents like Hogan and Bryant, and (c) still need depth/special teams guys to replace Wynn, Rivers, Easley, etc.
Well, in that scenario, you have (a) not replaced Hughes, Searcy or Spikes (I think those three combined for a cap hit of around $8.5 million last year), (b) still need money for restricted free agents like Hogan and Bryant, and (c) still need depth/special teams guys to replace Wynn, Rivers, Easley, etc.
Cassell's cap hit is 4.75.
So add another 1.8 million to my 2 million. Up to 3.8
That will take care of most of that - the RFA and ERFA don't get much, nor will replacing the guys you mentioned.
At most, they might need to create a few million of room
When has this team ever not had a Pro Bowl caliber halfback? This team has invested more picks and energy at the halfback position then probably any other franchise. What has it gotten us? It hasn't gotten us to the playoffs, it's barely even gotten us to winning seasons or above average offenses.
This is this the same foolish mistake we've been making for years. We just took an expensive halfback and put him behind a garbage offensive line with no quarterback (Cassel is at best a bridge option). Its entirely backwards. Halfbacks should be like mistresses: young, cheap, and quickly replaced when either of those things change. McCoy might "only" be 27, but he's already played 6 seasons with 5 as a featured back. He might play two more years and drop off a cliff, like so many halfbacks do at age 29. If we're unlucky it might be sooner than that. Maurice Jones-Drew went from franchise halfback to a busted committee back before his 29th birthday. Ditto Chris Johnson. Ray Rice looked a little worn out in 2013, and that dude was only 26. Would people still be ecstatic about this trade if we only got two good seasons out of McCoy and then had to cut him over his cap hit?
So let's talk about his cap hit. We don't carry over his bonuses, so his cap hits are 9.75 million / 6.9 million / 7.6 million. As of 2015, with Jackson and Dixon both making 7 figures, that puts us as $14 million in cap on halfbacks. That is the second highest in the league and 10% of our total salary cap. We could mitigate that figure severely if we cut Fred Jackson, but how many people are on board with that? Meanwhile, this NFL draft is thick with halfbacks who would cost about 1/10th of McCoy's contract, on top of being 3-6 years younger.
So what about Alonso? I've read some ridiculous things on this board since the trade, like this right in the original post:
But the team is stacked at LB, and could afford to trade him.
In what way is this team "stacked" at LB? Even if you assume all our DEs are OLBs in the new scheme, our current lineup that's under contract is:
Preston Brown
Nigel Bradham
Mario Williams
Manny Lawson
Randell Johnson
Ty Powell
Johnson and Powell are nothing special, Preston Brown has never played in the 3-4 that I can find, and Bradham was (charitably) average in Pettine's scheme. I think it's also telling that people are slamming Alonso because he only played one good season, and yet convinced that Brown will be a stud even though he's only played one good season.
I'm sure they'll attempt to address it. But they may not get the guys they want because FA is the player's decision in the end. As of right now, we don't have the OL to make this work and it's a huge gamble to just assume we can fix it in FA.
Ok, so that means it would have been better to first adress the O Line and then trade for Shady. Are you kidding me. You do realize that FA is just about to start and there was no draft. So they will still have a possibility to fill the holes. Even without a first rounder.
But if they had waited for that the trade might not have been available anymore. Think about that.
its the age/cost/value equation that is a question mark to me
historically this is the season for him to start losing abilities reflected in stats. should still be highly productive for a couple seasons but is what the bills are giving up in an excellent prospect and a 7/8/9+ million salary difference the next few years worth it?
tough call. pretty much depends on what happens with the bills the next few years, as well as how well kiko does in philly. so we really wont know how good/bad a move this was for a couple seasons
I heard on WGR yesterday that the Bills are not worried about the long term for McCoy.
I think what both of these trades show is that the Bills will make any move that gets them into the post season, NOW, while this is still a top defense.
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