No Salary Cap in 2007?

[Puddy]

I was just reading my week old Sporting News and they mention that the NFL will be uncapped in 2007 (the last year of the current agreement). If this is true what does that do to the salaries that year? I mean a lot of guys are signed further out than that but what about those players whose contracts are up in 2006. Do they get huge 1 year deals??

 

This is the first I heard of this. Anyone have some insight?

[SayItAintSoJoe]

Haven't heard that but if it is true then it is going to be a mess. I mean consider all the players that are signed through 2007. Do you think that they are just going to go out and play for a considerable amount less than comparable unsigned players will get that year. If what you read is true then we can start calling 2007 "The Year of the Holdout".

[The Vatican Hitsquad]

Haven't heard that but if it is true then it is going to be a mess.  I mean consider all the players that are signed through 2007.  Do you think that they are just going to go out and play for a considerable amount less than comparable unsigned players will get that year.  If what you read is true then we can start calling 2007 "The Year of the Holdout".

 

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I think this is wrong. I'm pretty sure the cap goes up to about 100mil each team, but there is still a cap.

[Squeegiebo]

If it is true that the current agreement expires in 2007, I am sure a new agreement, which also provides for a cap, will be negotiated before then.

[Chargerz]

If it is true that the current agreement expires in 2007, I am sure a new agreement, which also provides for a cap, will be negotiated before then.

 

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God, I certainly hope you're right!! :eek:

[Fatman]

If it is true that the current agreement expires in 2007, I am sure a new agreement, which also provides for a cap, will be negotiated before then.

 

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This is correct. The current CBA expires in 2006 and a new one will need to be created to address 2007 and beyond. No way Tags will let the NFL devolve into MLB.

[CaptainHook]

There were some rumbling earlier this year that the current CBA would be extended, but it didn't happen. I'm not sure why, or what it means that it wasn't. . .

[Marauders11]

This is correct.  The current CBA expires in 2006 and a new one will need to be created to address 2007 and beyond.  No way Tags will let the NFL devolve into MLB.

 

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exactly- the NFL is the only league that seems to have control over such issues- The Old Boys Network is getting fatter, but the players are also making their dough and everyone is happy. Certainly a rarity in professional sports these days...

[Puddy]

If it is true that the current agreement expires in 2007, I am sure a new agreement, which also provides for a cap, will be negotiated before then.

 

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You're right on Squeegiebo. Here's an explanation in a Tennessee newspaper (save the Spain jokes).

 

Salary Cap

 

 

NFL, players quietly agree to labor deal extension

By JEFF LEGWOLD

Staff Writer

 

 

Taunt them for their fixation about do-rags and roll your eyes at the corporate feel. But don't ever let it be said the NFL and its players don't know a good thing when they see it.

 

Despite the almost constant whining about the confinement of the salary cap and its effect on the league, the bottom line is everybody is making far more money now than they ever have before.

 

The proof is in the collective bargaining agreement extension reached this week.

 

Although the agreement in principle must still be ratified by the owners and players — it will almost certainly be approved by both — the quietly completed extension will keep the labor peace through 2007.

 

Most of the provisions in the agreement begin in 2002. The old deal was set to expire after the 2004 season.

 

By the end of the new deal the NFL will have crafted 20 years of play without a work stoppage — a modern sports business miracle.

 

The new deal will be in place when the current network television contracts run out in 2005. That means the NFL will once again get top dollar in negotiations, and the bandwagon keeps on rolling.

 

The deal will keep the current salary-cap system through 2006, with 2007 being an uncapped year. However, since the inception of the salary cap in 1993 the league and the players' union have always reached agreement on an extension before reaching the uncapped year.

 

The biggest point in the new deal was an attempt to help teams retain veteran players. Because of their higher salaries, veteran backups have almost become non-existent as most teams choose to use up most of the salary-cap space on starters, with rookies and other younger players filling in the gaps.

 

So while minimum salaries will rise — on a sliding scale according to experience up to a 10-year player making a minimum of $750,000 — they will not count as much against the salary cap.

 

In the new deal, however, any minimum salary over $450,000 will count only $450,000 against the salary cap.

 

While the team would still have to pay out the money, veteran contracts would be slightly more cap friendly.

 

The union's hope is teams won't purge veteran players as they did this past March. The Titans alone released nine players, including veterans like safety Marcus Robertson and fullback Lorenzo Neal.