Quote:
Originally Posted by Chromeburn
You don't need to apologize for the tone of your post. You aren't going to offend me and I don't think you are angry, I'm not. Message boards are for things like this, no one is forced to read it. They can easily scroll past it.
I did not say the collective bargaining agreement, I said the franchise tag. The concept of the tag is over 20 years old, it was created around '93 for a situation that has largely changed due to the rookie draft scale and positions settling under certain values. The strictures it uses are dated because the cap has outpaced them. No negotiation is fair and balanced, some sides have more leverage than others. That is life, and if you don't agree with that I don't know what to tell you.
The RB position was devalued for around a decade, it has evolved somewhat since then and hence become more valuable. You can see that reflected in the draft. But not all RB's are the same, the position name covers a wide range of players and their level of contribution and the scheme that uses them. QB's are largely the same, WO's are largely the same, Oline is largely the same, TE's and RB's are all over the place in terms of use and contribution. Some are much more valuable than others and I do not believe that is reflected in the franchise tag salary estimates.
You keep explaining how the system works as if by explaining it in further detail it will suddenly change my opinion. I understand how the franchise system works and whence it came. How it was negotiated. I understand the Steelers are going by the rules negotiated, I understand Bell is asserting the only leverage he has. I find it unfair and ineffective in this instance, regardless whether the player's union agreed to it in negotiations or not. They did not anticipate a situation like this, and I am sure they will look at it when they go back to the table in 2020. As I said, I think the Steelers are violating the spirit of what the tag was created for. The tag is designed to force both parties to the negotiating table and come to a conclusion. It is not working in this case. However, instead of both sides moving on, the Steelers would rather force Bell into playing for them or not playing at all. That hurts both sides but really hurts the individual player more. It is utterly relevant because that is the very heart of the matter and what is motivating his holdout. Bell has a perceived value of his contribution, the Steelers do not agree or are simply not willing to meet it. Things have ground to a halt. If Bell did not have a value attached to his services, we would not be having this conversation.
I just explained, in length, why your Cousins analogy does not work. Just because two players are tagged doesn't make their situation the same. I will ask a simple question "Are QB's and RB's paid the same amount of money and does that money impact the cap in the same way?" If they do in your mind then it is a valid comparison. I do not think it is and explained why. Yet they are held to the same strictures.
Connor has been hot and cold this year, that's it. He did little to nothing last year. Bell has done more for much longer. If Connor does the same then you can put him in that category. Skill and style wise... He is a bigger back and runs a little high. That type of running style takes a lot of hits IMO. Lot of hits doesn't usually equate to a long career.
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Well, I wasn’t really apologizing for the tone of my post – more like trying set the tone of the post at the outset because I was going to disagree with most of what you said. People with thin skin can get irritated with that, and it ends up getting in the way of a meaningful discussion because they assume that I’m trying to insult them. To your credit, you don’t seem to be that way.
As to the substance of your response, I disagree. I am resisting the urge to put together a really long – and perhaps boring – post (but it’s far too late, I sense many of you thinking), so I’ll just set out the points of my disagreement for simplicity’s sake:
1. The franchise tag is part of the collective bargaining agreement, so it has been revisited, tweaked and renegotiated as well. It is current just like the collective bargaining agreement.
2. The RB position is subject to the same market forces as the QB position, and the market currently values RB much less than QB. By the way it’s calculated, the franchise tag will naturally adjust whatever the market value of a particular position is, so it doesn’t make sense to saying that it’s been outpaced by the cap. According to this NFL.com article, the highest paid RB in 2018 is Todd Gurley at $15 million. Second highest is Davonta Freeman at just over $8 million.
http://www.nfl.com/photoessays/0ap30...-running-backs
3. Yes, I suppose Bell is free to take his ball and go home, but I think it’s really unwise for several reasons:
a. He’s giving up a year’s salary in his prime. And that salary would be the second highest RB salary in football.
b. By staying he would have forced himself into free agency like Cousins did.
c. He alienates his former teammates, most of whom work just as hard as he does but aren’t lucky enough to earn a cap designation, so his actions will look selfish.
d. He’s basically giving the NFLPA and their negotiators the finger
e. It won’t improve his market value to other teams if he’s viewed as a malcontent.
f. I really don’t think he’ll get a better contract through free agency, but I guess we’ll see.
4. Sorry, I just don’t understand the point you are trying to make regarding the differences between the salaries paid to QBs and RBs. They are both subject to the same market forces, and the tag works the same as to both of them. If you think RBs should be paid more, the market disagrees with you.