Mayhew may franchise Suh

[Naughtymax]

Plan B for this kid unless we can get Suh at 4+ years, $17MM or less average. If he'd go for 5 and 18 I might grit my teeth and do it, but it'd hurt paying him more than Watt.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

A quick look at 3 players contracts and you could get a better picture of what Suh should expect to receive... I say offer him a contract similar to what Megatron received in 2012 (meaning years and $ amount with slightly more in guaranteed $).


CJ's 7 yr. 113+MM contract extension
Calvin Johnson Contract, Salary Cap Details & Breakdowns | Spotrac


JJ Watts 6 yr 100 MM contract extension (pretty much gets 51,876,385 guaranteed by being on the roster the 5th day of 2015 league year)
JJ Watt Contract Details and Salary Cap Charges | Over The Cap


Gerald McCoy 6 yr. 95 MM contract extension
Gerald McCoy Contract Details and Salary Cap Charges | Over The Cap

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Give Suh a 7 yr. 119 MM contract extension (avg 17 MM per yr.) and 60 MM in guaranteed $. To which those guarantees would be completed by year 4 (if that could happen). 20 MM signing bonus/ 10 MM in roster bonuses and 30 MM in base salary (15 MM per yr right there).


Where are you DR. Evil-er ?

 

[RobBase]

Disagree. They can work the expected cap increases and likely restructuring scenarios into the structure of the deal they would sign now, not next year.

If he really wants to play here this deal gets done before March 2. If he really wants to be here then he also wants to win, and that means giving the front office enough time to game plan for players other than just himself.

It is beyond idiotic for the Lions to tag and then try again (for the third time) to get a deal done the year after. Actions speak way louder than words so if he is telling the truth about wanting to be here the deal gets done within the next 6 weeks.

Anything less and he is just blowing smoke and the Lions need to be smart enough to see that and walk away.

I'm not talking about waiting until after next season, I'm just saying that maybe future considerations are needed to sign him to the long term they both want.

Maybe they tag him now then get to work on a new deal before or during the season. Not sure they can do everything they need to do restructuring wise before March 2. But I'm guessing.

Here the good news: most of our starters are in place. Don't need much of anything at all in FA other than depth. Suh is the no.1 priority.

 

[TrustMeIamRight]

I'm not feeling the paranoia about him here that others feel. I believe he wants to play here no reason for me to think Mayhew is lying.

If Suh wanted to stay in Detroit -- IMO, he would have signed before the season. Why stick the team with a humongous cap hit, if your end goal is to stay with that team? He could have signed a monster extension, Detroit would have saved money on the cap and signed players to help the team this past year.

As much as I hate to say it -- I think Suh is gone. We can tag him for 27 million (which is absolutely absurd), but in the end, I think he goes the same route he would have, if we hadn't, which is going to the highest bidder at a location he wants to play.

It is wishful thinking IMO, to think Suh will sign long term here, as nothing points in that direction.

 

[themuzzer]

If Suh wanted to stay in Detroit -- IMO, he would have signed before the season. Why stick the team with a humongous cap hit, if your end goal is to stay with that team? He could have signed a monster extension, Detroit would have saved money on the cap and signed players to help the team this past year.

As much as I hate to say it -- I think Suh is gone. We can tag him for 27 million (which is absolutely absurd), but in the end, I think he goes the same route he would have, if we hadn't, which is going to the highest bidder at a location he wants to play.

It is wishful thinking IMO, to think Suh will sign long term here, as nothing points in that direction.

 

[LPinSLC]

If Suh wanted to stay in Detroit -- IMO, he would have signed before the season. Why stick the team with a humongous cap hit, if your end goal is to stay with that team? He could have signed a monster extension, Detroit would have saved money on the cap and signed players to help the team this past year.

As much as I hate to say it -- I think Suh is gone. We can tag him for 27 million (which is absolutely absurd), but in the end, I think he goes the same route he would have, if we hadn't, which is going to the highest bidder at a location he wants to play.

It is wishful thinking IMO, to think Suh will sign long term here, as nothing points in that direction.

That was my initial thoughts as well. After giving more thought I wondered if part of the issue with extending could have been the lack of info/time with the coaching staff. At the time, Teryl Austin had never been a DC. Maybe after seeing the direction he rethinks leaving?

 

[RobBase]

Ya, that was a long time ago.

 

[TBBishop]

I'm personally not concerned with why Suh didn't sign before the season. There could be many reasons that have nothing to do with him having one foot out the door already. My take is that both he and Gerald McCoy wanted the other to sign first because they both wanted to be the highest paid DT. McCoy balked. McCoy didn't deserve the money he got and Suh deserves more than McCoy which puts the Lions in a bad spot. Either way I don't think him not signing means for certain he's not coming back. I also don't really care if they give him more than McCoy or even Watt as long as it's not via the franchise tag.

 

[tpaulus_2]

That was my initial thoughts as well. After giving more thought I wondered if part of the issue with extending could have been the lack of info/time with the coaching staff. At the time, Teryl Austin had never been a DC. Maybe after seeing the direction he rethinks leaving?

That's exactly what I was thinking, as well.

Maybe Suh just wanted to get a feel for this coaching staff before he agreed to be tied down to them for the foreseeable future? If he found that he didn't like playing for Caldwell or playing in Austin's scheme, then he left himself an out.

One thing we all have to consider is that we're Lions fans- we all want Suh to stay because he's awesome and we love our team. Suh was not a Lions fan, we just picked his name on draft day- he has no deep-rooted emotional investment in this team.

Hopefully he bonded with his teammates enough this year, while our defense was awesome, that he's developed enough of a bond to want to stay here, though...

 

[Dr. Evil-er]

∆∆∆∆ completely agree with the above two posts. If he wants to be here he is signed before March 2. If he isn't then he wants to leave, period.

 

[TrustMeIamRight]

McCoy didn't deserve the money he got and Suh deserves more than McCoy which puts the Lions in a bad spot.

Why wouldn't McCoy deserve the money he received? He has always been one of the better run stopping DT's and in the past couple years has become one of the better DT's at getting to the QB too.

Prior to the Detroit game -- he was tied for 1st in the NFL in QB pressures with Suh and even though he was injured early in the Detroit game -- he ended the season with the same amount of sacks as Suh.

I've heard you mention him a couple times as being soft and how he would disappear this year now that he was paid his huge contract. How does he put up the stats he does, if how you talk about him is true? It isn't as if teams aren't doubling him during games or TB is way up on someone and teams are forced to throw every down so he has all these extra chances to get to the QB?

I still stand by my statement with Suh. Offer him minimally more than McCoy received so he will still be the highest paid DT, but nowhere near what JJ Watt received. Something in between those two would be respectable.

And I honestly don't think the coaching change had anything to do with Suh not signing before the season. I don't think if Detroit brought in the greatest defensive minds in the NFL would it matter to Suh. I think he is about building his brand and marketing himself. I think he wants to be in a major city, where this can be achieved much easier than somewhere like Detroit. I PRAY I am wrong and he is back, but I have prepared myself for the worst already.

 

[RobBase]

∆∆∆∆ completely agree with the above two posts. If he wants to be here he is signed before March 2. If he isn't then he wants to leave, period.

Mayhew said the tag is an option and that Suh wants to play here. So idk where u are getting this from.

 

[Dr. Evil-er]

Mayhew said the tag is an option and that Suh wants to play here. So idk where u are getting this from.

And I don't understand why you could even remotely think that the franchise tag would possibly be needed here. He wants to be here and we want him. How in the world could it take more than six weeks to get a deal done?

You keep saying that we might need additional time to do restructures to get ourselves in position to get a deal done. Good grief why? We currently have about $18m in space we could use while staying cap compliant. We absolutely don't need to restructure anything right now. That would come later on for free agency.

Everything is in place for us to easily sign a deal with a guy who apparently wants to be here. So if $ isn't an issue then what in the world could be the problem? The only thing is if he simply doesn't want to play here.

 

[RobBase]

Mayhew said the tag was an option.

I don't think he'd tag him if he didn't want to play here.

That's really it, Tom. I'm sure Mayhew has his reasons and I'm just guessing that maybe it has to do with reworking other contracts.

Don't have much more it say about it.

 

[Dr. Evil-er]

Mayhew said the tag was an option.

I don't think he'd tag him if he didn't want to play here.

That's really it, Tom. I'm sure Mayhew has his reasons and I'm just guessing that maybe it has to do with reworking other contracts.

Don't have much more it say about it.

We are just going to have to agree to disagree here. I think that if he wants to play in Detroit that we have a ton of time to get a deal done. If we can't get it done by March 2 then we won't get it done.

Any reworking of contracts, and there is really only two that we are talking about here IMO, could be done with incredible ease in time to get a deal done before that March 2 deadline. There are absolutely zero impediments to getting a deal done. So IMO there is only one reason it doesn't get done and that would be that Suh doesn't want to play in Detroit.

 

[RobBase]

Agreed. I think he wants to play here. I'm not afraid of tagging him, signing him, paying him top dollar etc. I'm afraid to lose him.

 

[jdwills126]

The way Mayhew broke off negotiations last year left me thinking that Suh wasn't negotiating.

I still am pissed that this could not get done last year when their was an urgency to sign a couple of free agents. An I put more blame on Suh than Mayhew. I could respect Suh's decision if just came out and said I want to test free agency. Then we could start to move on. Instead he makes asinine comments like my agent will tell me where i am playing.

The tag is such a high amount it limits what else Detroit can do and if he really doesn't want to be here then he becomes a distraction. I just don't see Suh as a guy that you force to stay.

I think the Lions d-line would be good enough if they had to replace Suh and Fairley with 2-3 other guys and added elsewhere.

 

[RobBase]

This team sucked last year so bad we fired our HC, why would Suh have signed?

Time and wins bring change.

 

[TBBishop]

Why wouldn't McCoy deserve the money he received? He has always been one of the better run stopping DT's and in the past couple years has become one of the better DT's at getting to the QB too.

Prior to the Detroit game -- he was tied for 1st in the NFL in QB pressures with Suh and even though he was injured early in the Detroit game -- he ended the season with the same amount of sacks as Suh.

I've heard you mention him a couple times as being soft and how he would disappear this year now that he was paid his huge contract. How does he put up the stats he does, if how you talk about him is true? It isn't as if teams aren't doubling him during games or TB is way up on someone and teams are forced to throw every down so he has all these extra chances to get to the QB?

I still stand by my statement with Suh. Offer him minimally more than McCoy received so he will still be the highest paid DT, but nowhere near what JJ Watt received. Something in between those two would be respectable.

And I honestly don't think the coaching change had anything to do with Suh not signing before the season. I don't think if Detroit brought in the greatest defensive minds in the NFL would it matter to Suh. I think he is about building his brand and marketing himself. I think he wants to be in a major city, where this can be achieved much easier than somewhere like Detroit. I PRAY I am wrong and he is back, but I have prepared myself for the worst already.

I'm not sure how else I can make my opinion, and it is just an opinion, any clearer. I think McCoy is soft. I think he disappears for huge chunks of games. Lots of guys rack up stats but aren't necessarily as good as the stats suggest, you know, stats do lie. I think he spends far too much time on the training table. Not just me but a shit ton of people in this area question his leadership. They hate the idea of him always helping opponents up. After McCoy started playing well finally a couple of years ago the talking heads here started saying he was the best DT in football and after Suh stepped on that little bitch Rodgers' ankle, probably half of the talking heads around here were calling Suh the best DT in football. I was shocked frankly but they are finally seeing what I've seen. Anyway, McCoy is a very nice guy. I think too nice as a DT. Suh believes he's a leader and he may be one as far as his play but not much as far as vocal from what I've seen. McCoy fancies himself a leader and he is vocal, always laughing and smiling, keeping the troops upbeat. But that's a problem to me. He's talking but he's never yelling, never in anyone's face, never demanding the best out of anyone. And as the face of the team this is what the team will emmulate. SOFT!!!