Our Salary CAP situation: Could we cut Bradford??

[SJ76]

There is going to be a lot of pressure for the Rams to at least look at the
QB options. This is the type of thing that gets GMs fired if they fail and
Bradford definitely has at least 2 or 3 things going against him.

The Rams defense should be good enough to keep the Rams from getting a top 2 pick
for awhile. This is the last chance this regime will get to draft a QB.

Not trying to pick on anyone, but a franchise QB can be found outside the top 10 picks of the 1st round. 2 of the best QB's in our division didn't even go in the 1st round. Brady didn't either. Rodgers was 13th overall or so I believe.

You never know what you are really getting. And yes you can win games with an average QB, running game, and a solid D. You just have to get the right pieces and get lucky I guess..?

If Taj Boyd slips to the 2nd round to us, it's a no brainer. He's been one of the most consistent QB's in college the past 3 years and has beaten some good defenses. His last 2 bowl games against LSU and Ohio St were pretty good.

And I still see no reason to draft Clowney and have 3 DE's.

 

[SJ76]

I love TA but I was also calling for Kennan on the ESPN boards. Everyone
thought i was crazy because he ran a 4.7 40. Siiigh when are team/people going
to start looking at their body of work rather than their 40 time?

Keenan may have ran that at his pro day, but that was after his leg injury. He was the #1 rated WR all year until that injury and everyone just stayed away. It wasn't a life-threatening injury either. It's almost like ALL of the teams in the NFL focus more on the combine or pro day, than they look at his career in college.

Same thing happened to Alshon in 2012, but he didn't get hurt - his QB got kicked off the team, the backup QB sucked, and Alshon saw double/triple coverage all year and his draft stock plummeted.

But don't be fooled. 40 times are huge. Not everything, but the NFL is all about speed to the ball.

Chicago is now calling Alshon - Megashon. And we traded that 45th pick to the Bears for Pead and Rok Watkins.

 

[mutigers1fan]

Restructuring contracts is a short term solution with long term implications. With only 2 years left on his contracts its not possible to lessen the cap hit through restructure without an extension.

 

[jacobarch]

Restructuring contracts is a short term solution with long term implications. With only 2 years left on his contracts its not possible to lessen the cap hit through restructure without an extension.

Problem is he already restructured once. I doubt he does it again. Demoff is kind of an idiot.

 

[Clayton]

I love TA but I was also calling for Kennan on the ESPN boards. Everyone thought i was crazy because he ran a 4.7 40. Siiigh when are team/people going to start looking at their body of work rather than their 40 time?

To be fair, his tape was pretty bad, too. He looked like strictly a possession receiver.

Can we all admit that Philip Rivers makes guys look really good? Danario Alexander was much better on the Chargers. Woodhead is as good or better than he was on the Patriots. Sproles was as good or better than he is on the Saints. Vincent Jackson was better on the Chargers than the Bucs.

Jeffrey...well...yeah, the Rams missed out.

 

[27mtrcougar]

Who are you going to bring in that is better than Bradford RIGHT NOW? IF you cut him, you need a replacement, and a replacement that will better the team!

Until you can answer this question with a good response stop talking about this for THIS off-season. If he is playing bad next season, please bring up the idea of replacing him, but give him this off season to get healthy, lets get him some help in the draft (Watkins and a OT in the first) and see what he can do! If he fails, then we can be done with him. But Bradford has had little help and instability from the organization, and his injuries don't help, but didn't we know that was a chance when we drafted him? Also, terrible line help throughout his career hasn't helped keep him safe.

I agree. To expect Bridgewater or any of these QB's to come in and be this superstar right from the start where he faced no competition at Louisville would be a BIG gamble. you have no idea what your getting at least with Bradford you know what your working with.

 

[zeke2829]

I agree. To expect Bridgewater or any of these QB's to come in and be this superstar right from the start where he faced no competition at Louisville would be a BIG gamble. you have no idea what your getting at least with Bradford you know what your working with.

You guys are missing the point, if that scenario did play out, what would Bridgewater's salary be per season?? ......ummm $17.61 million?? I think not!!

 

[27mtrcougar]

You guys are missing the point, if that scenario did play out, what would Bridgewater's salary be per season?? ......ummm $17.61 million?? I think not!!

I'm sure they have a plan. maybe they will give him an extension. I know middle tier QB's are just expensive jay Cutler will count 22.5m against the cap next year he is no better then Bradford.

 

[ANGELAKERAMS]

Zeke is right

It's not that the Rams can find someone better. It's the fact that they can find someone who is adequate at a much much cheaper price.

Bradford is not worth the money he is getting paid. He is average/slightly above average but is making top 5 QB money. The Rams won 4 games with freakin Clemens at the helm. I think they can win 5-7 games with a rookie QB that can learn and improve as the season progresses.

Unless you think Bradford can stay healthy ( don't hold your breath on that one cause you'll probably die ) and actually get this team into the playoffs next season, then there is no reason to keep him and his ridiculous salary. Because, if he doesn't do that next year, then he is gone for sure.

Do any of you guys honestly think Sam can get this team into the playoffs next season? You're talking about having to jump 3 playoff/playoff caliber teams within their own division to do it.

I don't see Sam as that type of QB. I have never seen that passion and drive in his game that tells me he can make that next step. And if he isn't, then why pay his ridiculous salary for even one more season?

Shop him for the best deal and move on or cut him. Like someone already posted. You don't need a top 10 QB to be successful and make the playoffs. Brees, Kap (2nd), Wilson (3rd), Brady (6th). Even Rodgers went late 1st (24th).

I, for one, do not need to see another season from Bradford to know if he is going to make that next step. I'd rather suffer through a season with the lumps and bruises of a rookie QB than to watch Bradford and the Rams struggle to make it to .500 ( all while wasting draft picks to get "Sam some help" ).

Why not stop looking "for help" for the QB and start looking for a QB "to help" the other players?

 

[Retroram52]

Well here is a wild hair scenario for you. Since the Caboys are having such a problem with Romo both with field play and salary, offer Bradford to the Caboys for their number one pick and take Boyd with it or if he slips to the second, take him then and use the Caboy's first rounder to pick up a need. We have three QB's on our roster. We know what Clemens can do. We have Austin who could compete with Clemens to be a game manager, and we have Brady Quinn who is probably right in that bunch.

We solve two problems. We remove Bradford's salary obligations from the books and we get a future QB and we have three game managers who can get us through the season. Clemens is FA but he ain't going anywhere else. He'll re-sign with us especially if they do indeed trade Bradford or dump him. Same goes for Austin and Quinn. Austin has made it known he wants to come back and Quinn is coming off of back surgery (not that extensive) all of whom will get us through another 8-8 year where Boyd can be the starting guy in 2015.

 

[ANGELAKERAMS]

Retro

It won't happen but it does illustrate a point.

The Boys ( Jerry Jones to be specific ) believes so much that Romo can be that guy that he keeps holding on, and holding on. Wait till next year is all they ever say.

That is exactly where the Rams are at with Sam, except Sam is more fragile and never got this team to .500, let alone a playoff appearance. Are the Rams going to pull a Jerry Jones as well and drag this out longer than it needs to?

 

[Clayton]

I'm not 100% on Boyd slipping to the 2nd. If he has a good combine, someone is going to bite just because of his mobility

 

[Retroram52]

Yea I hear ya AngeLakeRams. It looks that way as Fisher has repeatedly dispelled rumors of Bradford disappearing and the Rams taking a QB unless we have a full blown smokescreen running. If they would engage the Caboys, ya. never know, Goober Jones may bite.

Clayton, what difference does it make. If you get the Caboys first round pick, you take Boyd with it. If Boyd is gone before that, take Bridgewater early and hope Watkins is still around later. If Boyd falls to the second, you have the best of both worlds. If not than it is all a mute point. Thus the term wild hair scenario.

 

[Clayton]

Yea I hear ya AngeLakeRams. It looks that way as Fisher has repeatedly dispelled rumors of Bradford disappearing and the Rams taking a QB unless we have a full blown smokescreen running. If they would engage the Caboys, ya. never know, Goober Jones may bite.

Clayton, what difference does it make. If you get the Caboys first round pick, you take Boyd with it. If Boyd is gone before that, take Bridgewater early and hope Watkins is still around later. If Boyd falls to the second, you have the best of both worlds. If not than it is all a mute point. Thus the term wild hair scenario.

Its all so early at the moment but there are a ton of players that would be good in a Rams uniform and the team is playing with house money because they've already gotten a lot out of the RG3 trade.

But at the same time, the NFC West is going to be the best division in sports going forward and the Rams have to hit on at least 3 draft picks every year to keep up with teams drafting the Honey Badger, Russell Wilson, elite LBers and elite CBs in later rounds. The Cardinals, Seahawks and Niners will be good for awhile. The Rams certainly have the chance to be good for awhile, too

 

[zeke2829]

Its all so early at the moment but there are a ton of players that would be good in a Rams uniform and the team is playing with house money because they've already gotten a lot out of the RG3 trade.

But at the same time, the NFC West is going to be the best division in sports going forward and the Rams have to hit on at least 3 draft picks every year to keep up with teams drafting the Honey Badger, Russell Wilson, elite LBers and elite CBs in later rounds. The Cardinals, Seahawks and Niners will be good for awhile. The Rams certainly have the chance to be good for awhile, too

Pretty soon the Seahawks/Niners will have to anny up and pay their new QBs huge contracts. When they do they wont be able to afford all of these luxury free agents. Hell even the Cardinals don't have a ton of money on 1 guy. Well maybe Fitzgerald. But at least he performs and plays 16 games.

 

[Davis_Mike]

Bradford's contract is an albatross. The last of a dying breed. No one will take on Bradford's contract in trade unless the Rams would be willing to take back less than "fair" value for him, like a conditional 3rd or 4th round pick. And even then, the list of teams would be very small.

So you basically can't trade him. You can cut him but it will cost you a $7.19 mil cap hit. The only realistic choice is to extend him & bring down his cap number.

The NFL is devoid of good QB play right now. Half the teams have a good to elite QB & the other half are always searching, year after year. Whether Rams fans like it or not, Bradford is a good QB. He may not be great, but he is good enough that you can win with him. Take Carson Palmer this year as an example of that. Carson is not a great QB, but he is definitely a good enough QB to win you games.

To extend Bradford, the Rams could easily structure the contract similar to what the Bears did with Cutler & get the next 2 years cap number reduced by $3-4 mil a season. But that would require guaranteeing the last 2 years of his current contact & 1 season of a new contract while converting most of the salary from those 2 seasons into a signing bonus. There are many ways to manipulate the salary cap with contracts.

Bradford to me is better than any QB in the draft. There really aren't better options out there. You could roll the dice and draft another QB, but there is no guarantee that he will be as good as Bradford or any better. And where will you be? Back in the same place in 3 seasons.

 

[BOSS429Mustang]

So why not restructure Bradford's contract, and THEN trade him? I understand some are still on the fence about Bradford, but that seems to have become the motto; "Give him one more year" What is the magic number? Somebody please tell me. How many "one more years" can we afford? As SJ76 and I have pointed out in previous threads on this board---yeah, his stats were better this year. He was on par to have his best year. Unfortunately everybody is overlooking the fact that those so called "great stats" were never accomplished when it meant ANYTHING! He did it during GARBAGE time. Where were his great stats when we were getting 18 yards in one half? Where was Bradford the elite QB when we were getting embarrassed by Dallas' bottom of the barrel defense? I don't care who likes it, and how politically correct it is, I will still say that Bradford sucks.

And to say that Bradford is better than anything in the draft is just ridiculous. RG3 had a better season in his rookie year than Bradford ever had in his wettest dreams. We see rookies come in and light it up all the time. Bradford's latest injury also makes it even more dubious that he comes back better and not worse. And physical issues are not Bradford's biggest red flags. I think we can all agree that he has the physical tools to play the game. He just doesn't have what it takes between the ears to play at the NFL level. How often has his immaturity shown in his body language? Don't you think his teammates pick up on that? And how often after 4 years in the league have we seen him make one fundamental mistake after another? And judging from Bradford's past history, I would be willing to gamble that a player like Bridgewater will mature faster and surpass Bradford in 2-3 years if it even takes that long.

Bradford will remain the Rams QB as long as Fisher remains the coach. And Fisher will continue to win just enough games, and achieve just enough of the occasional upset to tantalize the fans and owner into thinking he will eventually bring a winner to St. Louis, all the while staying mired in mediocrity, which is his historic level.

In 10 years when fans look back and say "Why weren't the Rams able to do anything IN SPITE having all those high draft picks" what do you think the answers are going to be? I'm sure 10 years from now someone will still be saying, "If we had just given Bradford one more year"

 

[ANGELAKERAMS]

 

[27mtrcougar]

So why not restructure Bradford's contract, and THEN trade him? I understand some are still on the fence about Bradford, but that seems to have become the motto; "Give him one more year" What is the magic number? Somebody please tell me. How many "one more years" can we afford? As SJ76 and I have pointed out in previous threads on this board---yeah, his stats were better this year. He was on par to have his best year. Unfortunately everybody is overlooking the fact that those so called "great stats" were never accomplished when it meant ANYTHING! He did it during GARBAGE time. Where were his great stats when we were getting 18 yards in one half? Where was Bradford the elite QB when we were getting embarrassed by Dallas' bottom of the barrel defense? I don't care who likes it, and how politically correct it is, I will still say that Bradford sucks.

And to say that Bradford is better than anything in the draft is just ridiculous. RG3 had a better season in his rookie year than Bradford ever had in his wettest dreams. We see rookies come in and light it up all the time. Bradford's latest injury also makes it even more dubious that he comes back better and not worse. And physical issues are not Bradford's biggest red flags. I think we can all agree that he has the physical tools to play the game. He just doesn't have what it takes between the ears to play at the NFL level. How often has his immaturity shown in his body language? Don't you think his teammates pick up on that? And how often after 4 years in the league have we seen him make one fundamental mistake after another? And judging from Bradford's past history, I would be willing to gamble that a player like Bridgewater will mature faster and surpass Bradford in 2-3 years if it even takes that long.

Bradford will remain the Rams QB as long as Fisher remains the coach. And Fisher will continue to win just enough games, and achieve just enough of the occasional upset to tantalize the fans and owner into thinking he will eventually bring a winner to St. Louis, all the while staying mired in mediocrity, which is his historic level.

In 10 years when fans look back and say "Why weren't the Rams able to do anything IN SPITE having all those high draft picks" what do you think the answers are going to be? I'm sure 10 years from now someone will still be saying, "If we had just given Bradford one more year"

To say a QB in this draft is better then Bradford is just as ridiculous. Not one of them is graded near as high as Bradford when he came out. So why would you think one will be better. Bradford had a pretty damm good rookie season himself and a better one last year. RG3 are you for real he now has more questions then Bradford and they gave up 3 1st to get him. Yes it took the NFL defenses awhile to deal with his speed when he took off but they adapted and now he's hurt. He will probably never be as fast as he was. They had to bench him he was so bad.

 

[BOSS429Mustang]

Its a joke right? You're just yanking my chain right 27MtrCougar? You're going to honestly tell me that you'd take Bradford over RG3??? RG3 had a bad second year because he was hurt, and he had a buffoon for a coach. And he's had 2 less injuries than Bradford if my count is correct. How much they gave up to get RG3 is completely irrelevant to the argument of him being better than Bradford. RG3 has more questions than Bradford??? Please share what you've been smoking with the rest of us. If you took a poll of the GMs in the NFL of who they'd choose between Bradford and RG3 I'd be surprised if you got two out of 32, and those would be Snead for one because it would be politically correct, and the other one would be coaching girl's water polo after being fired within 40 seconds. Put the cap back on the glue 27, you've had enough for one day.