Will Next 8 Games Determine AJ's Fate?..............
Nov 9, 2016 6:24:08 GMT -6
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Post by Deleted on Nov 9, 2016 6:24:08 GMT -6
Last half of season to determine Alshon Jeffery's future with Bears
Mike Mulligan
It doesn't take an fabulous business brain to conclude the Bears haven't gotten much bang for their buck this season — not with just one of their five highest-paid players available for every game in the first half of the year.
In fact, the Bears have lost 18 of a possible 32 games from Jay Cutler (five), Pernell McPhee (six), Kyle Long (one) and Lamarr Houston (six). Alshon Jeffery, the second-highest paid Bears player behind Cutler, is the only one of the five able to line up for every game.
Houston is on injured reserve, but the rest, along with a host of other players will be ready to start the second half of the year against the Buccaneers on Sunday in Tampa. Maybe the team's fortunes will change. Perhaps the rest the off week provided won't last beyond the Bucs game.
Regardless, Jeffery is the player to rest of the year. He's the franchise player, after all, making a cool $14.599 million after being tagged to keep him off the free-agent market. In sports terms, that's more money than all but three of the World Series champion Cubs: Jon Lester, Jason Heyward and John Lackey.
In football terms, it's around 9.7 percent of the Bears salary cap. There is no hard cap in baseball so the money you pay comes down to a team's bottom line. The Bears, like all NFL teams, have to split the salary cap pie carefully so everyone gets a slice.
The decision on Jeffery is whether to reward him with a long-term deal that includes massive money upfront serving as the guarantee on any multi-year NFL deal, tag him again season at a cost projected to be around $17.5 million for a single season or simply say goodbye as he searches for a big contract elsewhere.
Jeffery, a former Pro Bowler with a catching radius the size of a three-car garage, is fated to be paid big somewhere. The rule of free agency is that it only takes one team to create a market. A half dozen would line up to pay Jeffery today if he were available, especially since the market next year is thin with one NFC personnel boss listing Jeffery "a mile ahead'' of the other big wide receivers expected to be available.
The Cardinals' Michael Floyd, a Notre Dame product, has three touchdowns but just 19 catches this season, while former Bears practice squad player Kamar Aiken has been decent for the Ravens. Maybe the most intriguing prospect is Terrelle Pryor, the former Ohio State quarterback, who the Browns re-signed for this season with a low tender offer as a restricted free agent.
Jeffery, on the other hand, was named the top potential free agent of 2017 in Pro Football Focus' early look at the entire class.
Bears players already have checked in on Jeffery, naming him a team captain. That move will be well-received by other teams looking for reasons to sign him.
The player seems to blow hot and cold on staying with the Bears. No one seems quite certain if he wants to be here. And the team is in a real kerfuffle because they have no real bargaining power other that giving him another big pay check.
To further complicate matters, the teething problems of high draft pick Kevin White, coupled with two years of injury, means there isn't a viable option currently on the roster. Of most importance, the team can't continue to dispatch productive players with little or no return as was the case with Matt Forte, Brandon Marshall and Martellus Bennett.
The only way to get better is by adding to the mix, not continually trying to reinvent the recipe. And how much faith do you have that the Bears can fix their problems through the draft and free agency? What if they sign another Antrel Rolle or Bobby Massie, or fork out huge money for damaged goods like Pernell McPhee?
The Bears have eight games to come up with a long-term deal that Jeffery can stomach. Here's hoping he gives them a reason to do so.
Mike Mulligan
It doesn't take an fabulous business brain to conclude the Bears haven't gotten much bang for their buck this season — not with just one of their five highest-paid players available for every game in the first half of the year.
In fact, the Bears have lost 18 of a possible 32 games from Jay Cutler (five), Pernell McPhee (six), Kyle Long (one) and Lamarr Houston (six). Alshon Jeffery, the second-highest paid Bears player behind Cutler, is the only one of the five able to line up for every game.
Houston is on injured reserve, but the rest, along with a host of other players will be ready to start the second half of the year against the Buccaneers on Sunday in Tampa. Maybe the team's fortunes will change. Perhaps the rest the off week provided won't last beyond the Bucs game.
Regardless, Jeffery is the player to rest of the year. He's the franchise player, after all, making a cool $14.599 million after being tagged to keep him off the free-agent market. In sports terms, that's more money than all but three of the World Series champion Cubs: Jon Lester, Jason Heyward and John Lackey.
In football terms, it's around 9.7 percent of the Bears salary cap. There is no hard cap in baseball so the money you pay comes down to a team's bottom line. The Bears, like all NFL teams, have to split the salary cap pie carefully so everyone gets a slice.
The decision on Jeffery is whether to reward him with a long-term deal that includes massive money upfront serving as the guarantee on any multi-year NFL deal, tag him again season at a cost projected to be around $17.5 million for a single season or simply say goodbye as he searches for a big contract elsewhere.
Jeffery, a former Pro Bowler with a catching radius the size of a three-car garage, is fated to be paid big somewhere. The rule of free agency is that it only takes one team to create a market. A half dozen would line up to pay Jeffery today if he were available, especially since the market next year is thin with one NFC personnel boss listing Jeffery "a mile ahead'' of the other big wide receivers expected to be available.
The Cardinals' Michael Floyd, a Notre Dame product, has three touchdowns but just 19 catches this season, while former Bears practice squad player Kamar Aiken has been decent for the Ravens. Maybe the most intriguing prospect is Terrelle Pryor, the former Ohio State quarterback, who the Browns re-signed for this season with a low tender offer as a restricted free agent.
Jeffery, on the other hand, was named the top potential free agent of 2017 in Pro Football Focus' early look at the entire class.
Bears players already have checked in on Jeffery, naming him a team captain. That move will be well-received by other teams looking for reasons to sign him.
The player seems to blow hot and cold on staying with the Bears. No one seems quite certain if he wants to be here. And the team is in a real kerfuffle because they have no real bargaining power other that giving him another big pay check.
To further complicate matters, the teething problems of high draft pick Kevin White, coupled with two years of injury, means there isn't a viable option currently on the roster. Of most importance, the team can't continue to dispatch productive players with little or no return as was the case with Matt Forte, Brandon Marshall and Martellus Bennett.
The only way to get better is by adding to the mix, not continually trying to reinvent the recipe. And how much faith do you have that the Bears can fix their problems through the draft and free agency? What if they sign another Antrel Rolle or Bobby Massie, or fork out huge money for damaged goods like Pernell McPhee?
The Bears have eight games to come up with a long-term deal that Jeffery can stomach. Here's hoping he gives them a reason to do so.
