Tannehill's Contract - Offset Language Snag

i have this problem with firefox on a lot of websites, i need to clear cookies and cache daily now to fix this, if chrome would have the option to show the favorites in a list on the left like firefox, i would have switched already

 

Not that the language is such an outrageous concept. We're committing to pay Tannehill all these millions, regardless of how he actually performs. That's what "guaranteed" means. Say, for example, that the guaranteed amount were four million in his fourth year. If he doesn't work out; in fact, if he stinks it up, and we have to cut him at the end of the third year, we will have failed again at getting a franchise QB and still have to pay him the guaranteed four million after he's gone.

Now say he signs up with another team, which also agrees to pay him four million. He would end up with our four million and the new club's four million in his pocket for the fourth year, while the club gets nothing but dead cap space for its last four million..

It's bust insurance. The offset language allows the club to set what the new club pays Tannehill off against our guaranteed obligation. If Tannehill makes four million with the new team, he doesn't get to double-dip, and we're off the hook for that last four million.

Who is going to pay four million for a failed quarterback? Most probably no one, so it's really a non-issue. But it is an attempt to re-introduce accountability for a player's performance into the guaranteed money; or in other words, to condition the back end of the guarantee on his performing well. I can sympathize with the club for wanting this language, but the end result is that the last year is no longer really guaranteed. Tannehill is probably not going to be the first to accept it unless he feels he's in a weak negotiating position because of his performance at OTAs, which is highly doubtful. It could get ugly.

 

Ryan Tannehill?

 

I don't follow you on this one CK. The only way the player makes $3 or $4 million extra with this language is if he is cut and some other team is willing to sign him to a new contract of $3 or $4 million. How likely is that scenario? More likely a team will look at the player as a reclaimation project and sign him to a vet minimum or something near it. So the incentive to the player is about the same as it is to the team. Also the offset language doesn't lower a players earning potential (the original contract $$ is still guarunteed) it only spreads out the burden of the contract to multiple teams.

 

The point is this. When/if Tannehill is cut with let's speculate around $4 million remaining on his contract in 2015, if there is offset language in his contract then that creates a dead zone between the veteran's minimum (presumably $500k) and that $4 million mark. Tannehill is now completely neutral on his compensation from his new team within that dead zone. The team could offer him $3.5 million, or $0.5 million, he really wouldn't care, because he's getting $4 million regardless. Therefore, the team WILL ONLY offer the veteran's minimum. As a measure of good faith, he'll accept it, because he gets $4 million regardless. The Dolphins therefore have saved only $0.5 million because they have to pay the $3.5 million in order to make him whole. On the other hand, let's say Ryan Tannehill did NOT accept offset language in his contract, yet finds himself in the same position. Suddenly, he has every incentive to bargain for whatever payment he can get from his new team. If he's worth $3 million then he'll demand $3 million. If he's worth $4 million, he'll demand $4 million. If he's worth only $2 million, he'll get $2 million, etc. If it just so happens that he is ONLY worth the veteran's minimum, then that's what he'll get. But either way, whatever money he gets ($0.5 million, $1 million, $2 million, $3 million, $4 million)...is on top of his original rookie contract. Backup quarterbacks on the free agent market TYPICALLY get at least a couple million dollars, between $2 and $4 million. That could be inflated even more by 2015. So yeah, if Ryan Tannehill accepts this offset language, he is accepting the possibility of losing anywhere between $1-4 million, whereas the Dolphins can ONLY count on saving that $0.5 million. What's even worse, is $0.5 million means more to Ryan Tannehill (whose total compensation in this contract will be around $12.5 million) than it does the Dolphins. The Dolphins are paying out $120.0 million in salary cap every year, whereas Ryan Tannehill is looking at making like 2 percent of that. Dollar for dollar, the money means more to Ryan Tannehill than the Miami Dolphins. Yet it's even worse because it's not dollar for dollar, the Dolphins stand to maybe gain $0.5 million where Tannehill stands to gain UP TO $3-4 million.

 

CK..

Do you think we would've had this issue if we had drafted Brandon Weeden??

 

Probably. If they're inclined to insist on offset language for Tannehill, they probably would've done it for Weeden.

 

I get what you're saying but the entire premise is that the player wants insurance that if he fails during his original contract than he can earn more money on a second chance. Doesn't that strike you as a bit odd? How does an agent argue that with a straight face? Seems to me the negotiation process got to simple and they are looking for ways to haggle.

 

Yeah, breaks my heart . . .

 

The Dolphins better stick to their guns on this one....

 

It's all about how you package it. You are putting some nice wrapping on the argument with a pretty little bow to make it seem like the agent and the player are the one coming up with this weird machination to try and protect them in case he sucks and gets cut. That's simply not the case. Under the old CBA, Ryan Tannehill would have been getting a 5 year deal worth $40 million with $23 million in guaranteed. Now he's looking at (a reported) 4 years and $13.5 million. For that reason, ever since the new rookie wage scale went into effect, top draft picks have been having their entire salaries fully guaranteed. It's the least teams could do after gobsmacking their total compensation by anywhere from 2/3rds to 3/4ths. By fully guaranteeing the contract, at least the guaranteed portions of the contract have *only* been reduced by about half.

It's the NFL that has come up with this new machination of offset language saying hey, if we decide to cut you, we don't want your guaranteed money to actually be guaranteed. Doesn't that strike you as a bit odd? Trying to cover themselves in case THEY decide to cut YOU? How does a team argue that with a straight face? Seems to me the negotiation process got too simple and the NFL are looking for ways to haggle.

 

Get Opera

 

This seems like such a waste of time/effort, other than the team wanting to set a precedent with future high draft picks in accepting offset language in their contracts.

The issue that REALLY matters here is that Ryan is successful as a QB. Does Ireland get to keep his job if it turns out he wasted the #8 pick and millions of dollars -but got back vet minimum from some team who signed Tannehill after he was cut by us? I mean, seriously? Why create hard feelings with your future franchise QB and disrupt his learning curve over a detail that wont matter compared to the continued failure of the team to compete at a high level?

 

lolwut?

 

Hard Knocks drama. Fml.

 

This should not be an issue. Just sign the ****ing guy. A few million dollars, in the big picture, is **** all.

This team really pisses me off sometimes. It's like they make it difficult on themselves purposely.

 

It's all just talk until Thursday. I'm willing to give everyone the benefit of the doubt until there's actually a problem.

 

The #6 overall pick Morris Claiborne just signed a contract fully guaranteed with no offset language.

Now only 7 first round picks remain unsigned...one of them being Ryan Tannehill.

#03 - RB Trent Richardson, Cleveland
#04 - OT Matt Kalil, Minnesota
#05 - WR Justin Blackmon, Jacksonville
#08 - QB Ryan Tannehill, Miami
#11 - DT Dontari Poe, Kansas City
#20 - WR Kendall Wright, Tennessee
#23 - QB Brandon Weeden, Cleveland

To my knowledge the only prospect that signed a contract which included the controversial offset language is #26 overall DE Whitney Mercilus. I could be wrong though. Not every team has guaranteed the 4th year of their draft picks' salary period, especially the late 1st round picks, but that's not abnormal.

 

The bottom line is all these teams seem to be willing to forego the offset language with the picks they made right around Ryan Tannehill's pick. Immediately bracketing Tannehill is Morris Claiborne at #6, Mark Barron at #7, Luke Kuechly at #9 and Stephon Gilmore at #10, and all of them have contracts without offset language. Dontari Poe at #11 still isn't signed yet, and I don't know if Fletcher Cox's contract included offset language or not, but I'm pretty sure Michael Floyd's didn't and I know Michael Brockers' didn't.

The Dolphins still have a couple of days to do the right thing, though.

 

isn' t egnew also unsigned still can' t remember ?

 

the browns have signed richardson just got the info via team stream

 

Here's the link:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/07/23/browns-get-deal-done-with-trent-richardson/

Been seeing that sentence written a lot by PFT lately...seems every time a 1st round pick signs on the dotted line, here comes that sentence again.

The only top 10 picks aside from Tannehill that haven't gotten contracts with fully guaranteed base salaries in year four, are the two that still haven't agreed to terms. One of them just got himself a DUI while waiting to sign his contract and I have no doubt that's what is putting a crimp in the process. In that particular case, Blackmon made his own bed and I wouldn't be opposed to the Jaguars insisting on some kind of qualifying language, offsets or whatever.

 

Pretty calculating, actually. The league wants offset to become the norm, so the teams demand the offset language from players who are in weak negotiating positions, for whatever reasons: DUI charges, or seeming to be a long-term project. The more players accept it, the more likely it is to find its way into rookie contracts generally. The league is looking to start a domino effect.

Quite a battle. First, you get the NFLPA to secure benefits for vets and end the lockout by selling out the rookies, letting the league impose a salary schedule that cuts rookie deals to a mere fraction of what they were. In response, the rookies' agents move to make up the loss, at least partially, by asking that the fraction the rookie now receives be guaranteed. Then the league starts chipping away at the guarantee.

The NFLPA must be burning up the phone lines with these rookies' agents, asking them to stand together and not accept the offset, regardless of how badly the rookie needs to play and get paid and regardless of any weakness in negotiating position.

Heck of a thing, collective bargaining. Lots of conflicts of interest going on.

 

I don't think T-Hill is in a weak negotiating position at all, they took him Top 10 and is a QB to boot...It doesn't matter what Miami perceives him to be, that is just one teams opinion...

Ultimately I always said with the team over any player and if there were say a 60/40 or 50/50 split of players in the 1st round have offset as opposed to not, I would say yeah Miami do it.....but there isn't one instance of offset anywhere in the 1st round...Miami is coming off as cheap and petty...something players around the league are looking at.

You wanted the kid you got him, just pay him....

especially when it is going to be cheaper than this, with less than 13M guaranteed...

 

I think Justin Blackmon is in a weaker negotiating position because of his DUI.

I don't see how Ryan Tannehill is in a weak negotiating position. He and his agent have to know there was tremendous outside pressure on Jeff Ireland prior to selecting Ryan. They're aware by now of the protests, the banners, the Fireland posters, etc. The fans want Ryan Tannehill practicing early and often. How do you think they're going to react to Jeff Ireland when/if their prized quarterback is kept from practicing because Ireland insists on offset language that NO other top ten pick has in his contract?

Fans HATE holdouts and contract disputes. They hate them. They blow them out of proportion. They throw all kinds of blame around even if it's not rational. Look how much they HATED the lockout even though from a fan's standpoint there was almost ZERO difference between that off season and a normal off season.

The problem is almost no rational person could look at this potential holdout objectively and say that Ryan Tannehill, wanting to sign a contract with no offset language just like every other top 10 pick, is being unreasonable. Some homers who always see things in the team's favor, and some devil's advocates who just want to argue for the sake of argument, will probably disagree. But I think objectively speaking you look at the fact that Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin, Trent Richardson, Morris Claiborne, Mark Barron, Luke Kuechly and Stephon Gilmore have all signed contracts with no offset language...and you have to say, just give him the damn contract and stop trying to hedge in case you made a bad pick.

So this irrational fan hatred for holdouts and contract disputes will be directed for the most part at a familiar target for the hate and venom of the fans...Jeff Ireland. This would be the same Jeff Ireland who we're all well aware is staking his career on the pick of Ryan Tannehill.

Is that really a situation in which Ryan Tannehill has weak leverage?

Again I do think weak leverage exists. I think after getting a DUI during contract negotiations, Justin Blackmon probably ought to just accept whatever language the Jaguars want to insert in his contract. He did that to himself. But I don't think Tannehill is in that same boat.

 

I think the fact that most people that have spoken on the matter believe that Tannehill will start the season on the bench hurts his position here. Its clear that the team has plans to bring Tannehill along slow. Is the aggregate development of Tannehill over a 2 year period going to be that affected by missing a week of TC? I would think he feels more pressure to get himself into the QB race as much as the team does to sign him.

In regards to Ireland, I think its clear that Ross isn't necessarily going to make a decision on him based off public perception. If he were to ever do that, I think it would have been when fans were protesting his existence. I don't think Ireland will make a decision on Tannehill's contract because of fan reaction, primarily because Ross doesn't want decisions to be made like that.

 

I've seen it reported in a couple of places that it's Dawn Aponte insisting on the offset. Wonder if Ireland is on board with that?

 

She reports to him. If he doesn't want a holdout he can end the holdout. Blaming Dawn Aponte is just yet another creative way of alleviating blame from Jeff Ireland for something that he's clearly in charge of.

 

Scratch Brandon Weeden off the list of unsigned. He signed a 4 year deal worth $8.1 million with a partial guarantee in the 4th year, as expected of the #22 overall pick.

The unsigned I believe are:

#04: OT Matt Kalil, Minnesota
#05: WR Justin Blackmon, Jacksonville
#08: QB Ryan Tannehill, Miami
#11: DT Dontari Poe, Kansas City
#20: WR Kendall Wright, Tennessee

It's doubtful the Kendall Wright deal is being held up by the offset language issues as the players being picked that low are only receiving partial guarantees in the 4th year anyway. They appear to be haggling over just how much of that 4th year money will be guaranteed, no doubt Wright bolstered by the news that he will probably be a starter while Kenny Britt continues to suffer through injury woes. Wright is officially the first holdout I believe, because Titans rookies reported today.

I have a feeling that Minnesota, Miami and Kansas City are the three teams holding firm on the issue of offset language. The Blackmon delay is probably due to his DUI.

 

thanks for clearing that up, i had no idea dawn aponte is a woman....lol

 

Two more days for Ireland to do this.

 

So PFT got the issue right. As you say DJ, there's 2 days...we'll see if the Dolphins do the right thing, or not.

 

Yup CK, that's what it comes down to..doing the right thing.

 

Armando is tweeting that Ryan Tannehill believes his contract should be done soon. Good news.

Weird that it's being reported the contracts of Vernon and Tannehill are close but no such report on Egnew's.

 

FWIW - theres a TON of addons for Chrome that deal with bookmarks. I didnt see any that specifically make the left side list - but they make a drop down out of an icon in the upper right. Not sure if thats a workable solution, or if you really want it on the left. FF served me well for a long time, but its just gotten too bloated and slow lately in my experience. Very happy chrome user...though sometimes I wish there was a bit more flexibility in what you could do with addons.

 

The reports that Aponte wants the offset language is because she's the cap person in the organization and as such, she looks out for the $$, so the question asked of her might very well include an answer that she wants the offset language...Yes, she reports to Irish... Bottom line is Irish can make it happen or not happen, as you said...

 

Of course he's on board, Ireland gets off on "winning" the contract.

 

thatta boy, stay in what little good graces you have, then prove you have an eye that we need to respect, and I'll stick up for you moving forward when the media Portrays a false image and miss informs the public.

 

I think that's unfair at this point, has a day and a half to get it done..If he does get it done will you retract your generalization?

 

Does it really matter if Tannehill comes in a few days late? I don't see a need for any urgency. I'd hope that most of the snaps would go to whomever they feel will be the starter.

The #1 thing on Philbin's agenda right now should be winning football games as soon as possible. Developing Tannehill should be important but shouldn't take away from that.