Now for the shopping spree.
The completion of an extension to the NFL's collective bargaining agreement means labor peace for another six years. But it also means a potential bonanza for free agents and draft picks this year. Free agency, delayed twice while the agreement was being negotiated, starts today, and teams have hit the salary-cap lottery. The cap is set at US$102 million for this year, an enormous one-time leap of US$16.5 million over the US$85.5 million in cap dollars teams had available last year. It will be US$109 million next year.
Leigh Steinberg, an agent who represents the Southern California quarterback Matt Leinart, projected to be one of the top three picks in the April draft, said he anticipated that the NFL could ultimately see contracts comparable to those in baseball and basketball. The NFL's new television contracts, worth US$3.7 billion annually starting this year, grow in value in the later years of the agreement. That will put more money into the revenue-sharing stream, giving teams the cash to lavish on big-name stars. The US$37 million in guaranteed money that Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick received in the 10-year, US$130 million contract he signed in December 2004 might just be the start.
This year, Steinberg said, he would not be surprised if the top pick in the draft received nearly US$30 million in guaranteed money. Last year's first pick, San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith, received US$24.5 million. Signing bonuses for veterans and rookies are expected to become larger, in part because they can be amortized over a longer period of time under the new deal than if there were no deal. Steinberg estimated that if an extension had not been completed, it would have been difficult to get a contract with US$15 million in guaranteed money because the amortization period was shorter.
"It's the return of the signing bonus," Steinberg said. "Happy days are here again."
Players already in the league, and the teams that want to sign them, will benefit most from the new deal.
"This mega-increase in the cap affords teams the opportunity to do an extreme makeover of their roster," Steinberg said. "It allows a team that was close to the cap to retain the integrity of its roster. But it also allows a team that wants to exploit the ability to dramatically improve itselfthe ability to be extremely aggressive in free agency. They can do some of what people perceived would happen in an uncapped year, because they have so much cap room."
The teams who will benefit most in the short term are those that had salary-cap problems before. The Washington Redskins would probably have had to make sweeping cuts to get under the cap. Now, they have an opportunity to keep a playoff team nearly intact. With the expansion of the cap, the Indianapolis Colts can at least try to retain running back Edgerrin James, the top running back on the market, although it is not clear whether they will be able to re-sign him. The Raiders can keep quarterback Kerry Collins, whom they had released earlier. Teams that were struggling to get under the cap -- the Redskins and the Dolphins, among others -- can be more active in free agency than if there had been no deal.
"This year, free agency will be a more vibrant and robust market for teams and players," the agent Neil Cornrich said.
And because sweeping cuts will not be necessary for teams to get under the salary cap, as was feared when it was set at US$94.5 million before the extension was completed, there will not be a glut of talent on the free-agent market with few teams in a position to spend. The larger cap number, in turn, could mean less pressure on teams to release aging but still effective veterans. Steinberg said it could lead to more players spending their entire careers with one team.
"There would have been a lot of unhappy guys and a lot of talent on the street," the agent Ralph Cindrich said. "Now, I don't think there's any question it's going to mirror more the past years of free agency. There's an abundance of money."
MARRED FINAL: As most of Senegalese players walked off the pitch after a controversial decision, some supporters threw objects and attempted to get onto the pitch Senegal on Sunday won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as Pape Gueye’s extra-time winner sunk hosts Morocco 1-0 after a chaotic final that saw the eventual champions storm off the pitch late in the game. Brahim Diaz could have won the trophy for Morocco with a controversial spot-kick in the 24th minute of added time at the end of normal time as ugly scenes broke out in the stands. However, Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy easily saved the weak attempted “Panenka” chip by the Real Madrid winger, who was clearly distracted by the long delay that followed the penalty award.
James Harden on Friday scored 31 points and came up big in overtime to help the Los Angeles Clippers erase a double-digit deficit on the way to a 121-117 NBA victory over the Toronto Raptors. Harden scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Clippers pushed their wining steak to five games despite the absence of star Kawhi Leonard with a sprained right ankle. The Clippers trailed by 11 entering the fourth quarter, but Harden drilled a pair of free-throws with 1:24 left in regulation to tie it and after misses from both teams, they went to
Qatar’s Nasser al-Attiyah on Saturday secured his sixth Dakar Rally car title in Saudi Arabia with Luciano Benavides scraping home by two seconds to claim the motorbike title. “We’ve worked very hard since last year. I might not be showing much emotion yet, but it’s there, deep down. We are so happy to win,” al-Attiyah said at the finish. Al-Attiyah, at the wheel of a Dacia, only had to avoid a final day slip-up to top the podium after bringing his career tally of stage wins to 50 on Friday. The 55-year-old, who took clay pigeon shooting bronze at the
Tobias Harris on Monday scored 25 points as the Detroit Pistons held off the Boston Celtics to score a 104-103 victory in their top-of-the-table Eastern Conference showdown. Harris was one of four Detroit players to finish in double figures, with Jalen Duren adding 18 points and point guard Cade Cunningham scoring 16 points with 14 assists. The win sees Detroit extend their lead at the top of the Eastern Conference to 31-10, 5.5 games ahead of second-placed Boston, who fell to 26-16 with the defeat. Jaylen Brown led the Celtics scoring with 32 points and almost snatched victory in the
RSS