So here I am, getting ready for the entertainment armageddon of:
-Game 7 of a bananas NBA Finals
-Game of Thrones’ “Bastard Bowl”
-WWE’s Money in the Bank PPV
and Preacher coming up on Sunday night when I stumble across Vic Carucci’s article on Buffalo News about the Bills not wanting to pay top dollar for Stephon Gilmore. Citing the contract given to Josh Norman – a primarily zone based corner – the Bills feel like they have too much on their plate between Taylor’s contract, Gilmore and Darby in a few years.
Here’s my suggestion for the Bills going forward with these contract cases: if you don’t want to be held hostage by someone else’s deal, make the deal with your player first.
I know, crazy right?
Darby, in 2 years will want a deal more than what’s being offered to Gilmore. I don’t know what that number is, but with the inflation of contracts that is what happens. At one point it was inconceivable the Bills gave a player a 100 million dollar contract; now they’ve done it twice.
That’s not even before I talk about the rising salary cap, the fact that Rex touts Gilmore as being as good as Revis, etc etc. Revis makes 14 million a year on his contract and the Bills do not want to (per Vic) go above 13 million. That alone is strikes one and two. Having a player you pump up that much and depend on as much as they do, adding on his fifth year and saying he’s not worth the money you’ve said he is to me is bad business.
Strike three is what Vic alluded to in that article – that the Bills are prepared to use the Franchise tag to secure Gilmore’s services if necessary in 2017. The cornerback tag in 2016 was 13.9 million dollars, which means that in 2017 it’s going to be conservatively in or around 14.3 million dollars. Much like what happened with Chris Hogan and his tag with the Pats, are the Bills really going to balk contract wise over 700k? What in the name of IK Enemkpali is going on here? Essentially, between the fifth year option and the tag, you’ve given in guaranteed money 25 million dollars. For a a bit more you guarantee (there’s that word again) you have your number 1 corner locked up and can worry about your number 2 later. Unless, of course the Bills are so confident in Darby that they’re willing in 2017 to give him a contract after his third year, commensurate to being their number 1 in waiting. If they’re not going to take that step and instead will play this tired game again, what’s the point?
Dareus, a monster that was played out of “role” moreso than position last year got top 2 money at his position. Glenn, a solid tackle I personally love, got top 3 tackle money. Right now, if Vic’s numbers are right, the Bills want to pay Gilmore more like the 6th-10th corner rather than a top five. If that’s true, great – let him walk in FA or trade him or whatever. But the second you put that franchise tag on him – a tag NFL teams abuse now as a yearlong bookmark moreso than a being the preamble to extending a key player – you are giving him top 3 corner money. In the words of Johnny Cochran…Choose a side?!
Because I do not want to hear that Stephon isn’t hashtag “All In” if his team decides to say he’s one thing and pay him entirely different.
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