Time to Burn It All Down

[dreamcastrocks]

You can’t be about burning it all down if you’re for saving big moneyed salaried players staying here when cutting them now would truly level their effect on the team in 2024 when we’re starting to build back up. If this season doesn’t matter and we’re burning it all down, why push the pain forward where their salaries will continue to hurt the team next year instead of ripping off the band-aid this one? From a financial standpoint that makes no sense if we’ve truly only got an eye for the future.

But even from a competitive standpoint moving forward, it doesn’t make sense to keep them because they will be taking snaps from guys you should be hoping are young and developing so those young guys are ready to step up next season.

You can make that argument about Ertz for sure. (McBride) Who is the RB that we want taking snaps from Conner? We don't have that on the roster at the moment.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

If you believe this then you simply aren’t for tearing it all down.

Not true at all. I have been one of the ones championing the tear down.

 

[Stout]

Not true at all. I have been one of the ones championing the tear down.

Then why would you keep aged players who are not part of the long-term plan when cutting them gets all the cap hit out of the way THIS year? You're advocating still having the on the books next year. That is the opposite of a tear down.

 

[BritCard]

People complaining on one thread they don't really want to burn it down and we are attacking FA wrong are now complaining that if we are burning it down we are burning it down in the wrong way.

There's a theme here somewhere...

 

[Cheesebeef]

Not true at all. I have been one of the ones championing the tear down.

Then you’re championing something you don’t understand. Keeping high salaried players who will hurt next years cap AND stunt the development of young talent needed to replace them is the polar opposite of a tear down.

 

[MadCardDisease]

You can’t be about burning it all down if you’re for saving big moneyed salaried players staying here when cutting them now would truly level their effect on the team in 2024 when we’re starting to build back up. If this season doesn’t matter and we’re burning it all down, why push the pain forward where their salaries will continue to hurt the team next year instead of ripping off the band-aid this one? From a financial standpoint that makes no sense if we’ve truly only got an eye for the future.

But even from a competitive standpoint moving forward, it doesn’t make sense to keep them because they will be taking snaps from guys you should be hoping are young and developing so those young guys are ready to step up next season.

But I am about burning it all down. Maybe I wasn't clear in my original post?

I'm also about making smart decisions in this complete rebuild. Yes this is a complete rebuild, sorry to break that to you. You are not going to be able to completely burn it down in one season. Some things are going to smolder for this season until you can finish the job next season. You also have players who are still on their rookie contracts. It makes no sense to get rid of those guys when you can evaluate them on the cheap. Then if the glove don't fit then you must acquit.

 

[MadCardDisease]

Then you’re championing something you don’t understand. Keeping high salaried players who will hurt next years cap AND stunt the development of young talent needed to replace them is the polar opposite of a tear down.

But the cap hit this season is mostly guaranteed. If it was just salary then yeah cut them and move on.

 

[Stout]

But I am about burning it all down. Maybe I wasn't clear in my original post?

I'm also about making smart decisions in this complete rebuild. Yes this is a complete rebuild, sorry to break that to you. You are not going to be able to completely burn it down in one season. Some things are going to smolder for this season until you can finish the job next season. You also have players who are still on their rookie contracts. It makes no sense to get rid of those guys when you can evaluate them on the cheap. Then if the glove don't fit then you must acquit.

Except it's been pointed out that two players--JC and ZE--can be burned off the roster this season and all their cap hit will be absorbed this season, so they are off the books next season. Cutting them would be the epitome of burning it down this season. Not cutting them smacks of half measures.

 

[Cheesebeef]

But the cap hit this season is mostly guaranteed. If it was just salary then yeah cut them and move on.

Right… but we’re still going to get hit with some of their money on the cap NEXT YEAR and could save more if we cut them NOW. If this year is truly all about building for the future and tearing things down, don’t you make the financial decision to give yourself more cap flexibility moving forward and eat what you can this year?

 

[ASUCHRIS]

Signing a 39 year old kicker to make almost 4 million per year is a curious burn it down move.

Edit - 39!

 

[Dayman]

But the cap hit this season is mostly guaranteed. If it was just salary then yeah cut them and move on.

The point of a "burn it all down" model is to absorb those cap hits for this year AND next year before Kyler's contract fully kicks in next season.

 

[Cheesebeef]

But I am about burning it all down. Maybe I wasn't clear in my original post?

I'm also about making smart decisions in this complete rebuild. Yes this is a complete rebuild, sorry to break that to you. You are not going to be able to completely burn it down in one season. Some things are going to smolder for this season until you can finish the job next season. You also have players who are still on their rookie contracts. It makes no sense to get rid of those guys when you can evaluate them on the cheap.

WTF are you talking about? We’re talking about getting rid of salary albatrosses like Conner and Ertz who if we cut them now, it won’t hurt next season AND it will give guys on rookie deals the chance to get a better sense of who they are. But no one was even talking about rookie contracts. That said, you bringing them up only makes my point even stronger. If you want to evaluate the rookie deal guys, you DONT want older vets eating up their ability to grow on the field. Keeping Ertz and Conner this year not only hurt next years cap but ALSO get in the way of developing and evaluating players on rookie deals.

You can ABSOLUTELY burn it down in one season and the BEST way to do so is getting rid of the high priced talent that really has no future. There’s literally nothing stopping this team from cutting Ertz and Conner. It makes sense from an evaluation of the young guys and a financial decision to bite the bullet on their contracts in a lost year instead of letting their contracts hamstring this year AND next year.

 

[Dayman]

Signing a 34 year old kicker to make almost 4 million per year is a curious burn it down move.

Prater will be 39 by the start of next season.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Signing a 34 year old kicker to make almost 4 million per year is a curious burn it down move.

39 year old kicker.

 

[MadCardDisease]

Except it's been pointed out that two players--JC and ZE--can be burned off the roster this season and all their cap hit will be absorbed this season, so they are off the books next season. Cutting them would be the epitome of burning it down this season. Not cutting them smacks of half measures.

Oh Jesus Christ. Call it whatever you want.

A Purge.

A refresh.

A complete rebuild.

A controlled burn.

It's happening and if you can't see it then you are blind.

 

[RON_IN_OC]

Except it's been pointed out that two players--JC and ZE--can be burned off the roster this season and all their cap hit will be absorbed this season, so they are off the books next season. Cutting them would be the epitome of burning it down this season. Not cutting them smacks of half measures.

They do not need to be cut at this point in time, to still be burning it all down.

 

[BritCard]

Zach Ertz has an additional $3m of guaranteed money for injury this year which also becomes permanent on the 19th.

If we cut or trade him now while he's injured it adds an additional $3m to the dead money and it doesn't clear anything in 2024. His dead money is $10m this year and $4m next year no matter what we do. Keep him or not.

Conner's money is a wash this year (only 700k saved vs $9.75m dead cap) and his dead money in 2024 is only $2m so is neither here nor there.

Neither make any sense at all to cut.

Trading Ertz relieves some dead cap this year (reduces it to $6m) because the trading team takes on some of his guarantees. But doesn't affect future dead money.

Trading Conner makes a bigger difference on this year. Would cut dead money from nearly $10m to $4m. But no difference to future dead money. But a trading team would be on the hook for $6.5m this year and $4.5m next year so not an easy trade.

 

[MadCardDisease]

Yeah… see you’re wrong. You can ABSOLUTELY burn it down in one season and the BEST way to do so is getting rid of the high priced talent that really has no future.

Because what you’re talking about finishing the job next season DOESNT NEED TO BE PUSHED TO NEXT SEASON.

Sure. You could cut Kyler as well.

But it would be stupid!

 

[Stout]

SMH We could get them completely off the books this season or pay them money next season, and the "burn it down" crowd thinks the latter is burning it down. Solid gold comedy. How can clearing aged veterans off the books for next season be anything but burning it down this season? Clinging onto the past, I swear.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Then you’re championing something you don’t understand. Keeping high salaried players who will hurt next years cap AND stunt the development of young talent needed to replace them is the polar opposite of a tear down.

Get out of here. I completely understand it, and have differing opinions. But you keep being you.

 

[BritCard]

SMH We could get them completely off the books this season or pay them money next season, and the "burn it down" crowd thinks the latter is burning it down. Solid gold comedy. How can clearing aged veterans off the books for next season be anything but burning it down this season? Clinging onto the past, I swear.

You can't get them completely off the books this season.

The dead money next year is exactly the same. Whether we cut them now or cut them after this year.

And both are pretty much a wash in cap savings this year. So what's the point?

The ONLY saving is $3.3m this year. Nothing next year. And we have to find to replacements that cost less than $3.3m.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Oh Jesus Christ. Call it whatever you want.

A Purge.

A refresh.

A complete rebuild.

A controlled burn.

It's happening and if you can't see it then you are blind.

Keeping the Conners and Ertz of the team intact flies in the face of everything you’re advocating for. If you can’t see that YOU are blind.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

Sure. You could cut Kyler as well.

But it would be stupid!

The irony is that the same people saying this franchise sucks (we know it does) because they didn't re-sign our good talent and mentioned that we need to fill a roster... is now not using the same logic when it concerns other players like Conner and Ertz.

(for the record, I have always agreed that Ertz contract isn't good and that Conner's isn't great. It isn't this huge albatross that it is made out to be.) Especially since Conner is essentially on a one more year deal and the Cards can easily get out of it after next year.

 

[BritCard]

You can't get them completely off the books this season.

The dead money next year is exactly the same. Whether we cut them now or cut them after this year.

And both are pretty much a wash in cap savings this year. So what's the point?

The ONLY saving is $3.3m this year. Nothing next year. And we have to find to replacements that cost less than $3.3m.

Someone probably needs to copy and paste this to Cheesebeef as I'm pretty certain he has me on ignore.

 

[MadCardDisease]

WTF are you talking about? We’re talking about getting rid of salary albatrosses like Conner and Ertz who if we cut them now, it won’t hurt next season AND it will give guys on rookie deals the chance to get a better sense of who they are. But no one was even talking about rookie contracts. That said, you’re making my point even stronger. If you want to evaluate the rookie deal guys, you DONT want older vets eating up their ability to grow on the field.

I referenced the rookie contracts as players who wouldn't be part of the purge this season. A bunch of you are implying that I want to cut the entire team and start over from zero. That is not what I'm saying. You get rid of what makes sense this year. Getting rid of the rookies would make no sense. Just like cutting players who you have to pay right now makes zero sense.