$21.12 million Dead Money: The AB Cautionary Tale

[T-post Tom]

For Pittsburgh Steelers fans like myself who never took the initial rumors of a possible trade Antonio Brown seriously when they first emerged after Week 17, the receiver’s social media posts on Tuesday and the subsequent reports confirming an official trade request had been made were something of a wake up call.

Given the column inches already dedicated to the subject on this site and many others, most fans are already well aware of the salary cap implications of trading Brown, but given the inaccurate reporting by some notable names in the media as of late, it would appear that a reminder might be in order.

A restructure of Browns contract in March of 2018 effectively attached a prorated bonus of $7.04 million to each of the remaining years of his deal, with the entire amount needing to be accounted for financially this season if Brown was released or traded before before June 2.

Set to earn a base salary of $12.652 million in 2019 and a roster bonus of $2.5 million due on March 17, Brown would have a total cap hit of $22.165 million if he remains with the Steelers in 2019. Should he be traded, while Pittsburgh would be off the hook for the $15.125 million in cash due to Brown, they would still need to account for the three outstanding years of prorated signing bonus attached to his contact.

Ultimately, a trade would leave the Steelers with a dead money figure of $21.12 million to account this season and create a cap saving of just $1.045 million, regardless of how some in the media might attempt to spin the numbers to make it appear otherwise.

There remains a possibility of reducing that dead money figure in 2019 by either waiting to trade Brown until after June 2 or simply releasing him outright with a post-June designation. In this scenario, Pittsburgh would only have to account for $7.04 million in dead money this year and then another $14.08 million in 2020, but also find themselves with an extra $12.652 million to work with if he was traded or $15.125 million if released before his roster bonus is due.

Unless the Steelers really want the cap space this offseason, there is nothing to be gained from giving Brown his outright release. The receivers recent antics and legal issues may have diminished his appeal, but if Joe Flacco can generate a fourth-round draft pick via trade, Brown has to the worth at least a third.

https://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2019/2/14/18222818/re-visiting-the-salary-cap-implications-of-steelers-trading-antonio-brown-saving-dead-money-nfl-news

[Simply Red]

Oh I guess i was under the impression you liked The Chiefs.

[threebag]

I also thought he was a Chiefs fan

[T-post Tom]

Oh I guess i was under the impression you liked The Chiefs.
I also thought he was a Chiefs fan

Who me? Sorry if I disabused you of that fact. I am a hopeless Chiefs' homer. With all the talk of a "record setting deal" for Hill, I thought this was something to consider. Hill is amazing, but breaking the bank for 1 WR has its risks. Making Berry the highest paid safety didn't work out so well. Making Houston the highest paid linebacker turned out not to be such a great investment based on his production after the $101M extension. Yeah, I really like Hill. But I like the team more. Just hoping Hill's new contract doesn't hamstring the team. Please don't hate me. I couldn't take that.

[Buehler445]

I’m a fan of boobs. They’re my favorite thing.

[T-post Tom]

I’m a fan of boobs. They’re my favorite thing.

Me too...

https://thumbs.gfycat.com/ShamelessBriefBeagle-max-14mb.gif

[threebag]

I’m a fan of boobs. They’re my favorite thing.

And Herm Edwards LMAO















And Donk

[loochy]

Does AB mean Antonio Brown or does it mean LeVeon Bell? That other thread confused me.

[Eleazar]

Based on how they dealt with Bell being a malcontent, it sounds like Brown might not be playing anywhere this year.

[MahiMike]

Never pay anyone more than 1 year and on an incentive deal.

That's my motto...

[JD10367]

Aside from the obvious (Brady and Belichick), a big reason the Patriots have been competitive for 20 years is because they don't do this shit. The ONLY position worth paying big money to is franchise QB. And those are few and far between. In the past, Brady, Brees, Rivers; today, Mahomes. How many SBs has Pittsburgh won with AB? Oh, yeah, that's right: none. How many SBs has Suh won? J.J. Watt? Aaron Donald? You just don't sink big money into one position. It rarely turns out well. This is why I said elsewhere, it would be great if the Chiefs can keep everyone and keep everyone happy, but if the choice is pay Mahomes or pay Hill, you pay Mahomes. Everything runs through the QB in today's game, and a good one--like Brady--can make chicken salad with chicken shit. The Pats have won six Super Bowls ('01, '03, '04, '14, '16, '18): quick, name 5 sterling offensive players from those teams. Gronk, uh... maybe Edelman, I guess, although he's no superstar... uh...

[FloridaMan88]

So the OP's point is that the Chiefs shouldn't give a big money contract to Tyreek Hill because he may turn into a diva/head case and eventually demand a salary cap-killing trade?

That is beyond stupid if that is your point.

[RunKC]

That’s not too bad considering we gave Eric Berry $40 million guaranteed and won’t get jack shit for it.

[Red Dawg]

So the OP's point is that the Chiefs shouldn't give a big money contract to Tyreek Hill because he may turn into a diva/head case and eventually demand a salary cap-killing trade?

That is beyond stupid if that is your point.

What's stupid is on this board most think keeping Hill by breaking the bank is a need. It's not. High priced WRs, RBs and TEs are not the driving force on SB teams. We lost because at the LOS we got shoved around and poor game planning. Even with that we were a Ford screw up from the SB with Hill doing nothing, Ford doing nothing, Houston and Berry doing nothing. Hill is not an FA, why break the bank on him instead of going for it with some defensive help.

[htismaqe]

What's stupid is on this board most think keeping Hill by breaking the bank is a need. It's not. High priced WRs, RBs and TEs are not the driving force on SB teams. We lost because at the LOS we got shoved around and poor game planning. Even with that we were a Ford screw up from the SB with Hill doing nothing, Ford doing nothing, Houston and Berry doing nothing. Hill is not an FA, why break the bank on him instead of going for it with some defensive help.

Because they can sign him now and NOT break the bank. The longer they wait, the more chance there is of his price going up dramatically. It's called being proactive.

[Hoover]

Never pay anyone more than 1 year and on an incentive deal.

That's my motto...
So then you would let your best talent walk. Got it.

[Hoover]

So the OP's point is that the Chiefs shouldn't give a big money contract to Tyreek Hill because he may turn into a diva/head case and eventually demand a salary cap-killing trade?

That is beyond stupid if that is your point.
Agree.

I think you sign players like Hill and Jones now. But you have to be wiling to walk away from players like that when they are looking for their next contract.

I don't have a problem play 24-25 year old guys who are studs.

[Chief Pagan]

Because they can sign him now and NOT break the bank. The longer they wait, the more chance there is of his price going up dramatically. It's called being proactive.

If Hill signs now without breaking the bank. That would be awesome. I'm not going to believe that (the not breaking the bank part) until I see it.

[T-post Tom]

So the OP's point is that the Chiefs shouldn't give a big money contract to Tyreek Hill because he may turn into a diva/head case and eventually demand a salary cap-killing trade?

That is beyond stupid if that is your point.

:shake: Might want to rethink your use of "stupid" when posting about anything or anyone other than yourself. Look in the mirror...

https://i.imgur.com/3yUib.gif?noredirect

[T-post Tom]

What's stupid is on this board most think keeping Hill by breaking the bank is a need. It's not. High priced WRs, RBs and TEs are not the driving force on SB teams. We lost because at the LOS we got shoved around and poor game planning. Even with that we were a Ford screw up from the SB with Hill doing nothing, Ford doing nothing, Houston and Berry doing nothing. Hill is not an FA, why break the bank on him instead of going for it with some defensive help.

Yes. The Chiefs can control him for 3 years w/o a "record setting deal", which is the likely outcome we've been told about via the media. If that really is true, then we can assume that it's a bigger deal than OBJ received. So if true, you choose to exceed OBJ's contract rather than pay Hill about $2M in 2019 & then negotiate or franchise him for the two years after that. (WR tag for 2018 = $13.9M) After that, he will be 29 years old. A 29 year old speed guy that would already have earned about $53M under the OBJ contract, which is supposedly LESS than what Hill is going to get. So at the end of 3 years, you can walk away from a 29 year old speed receiver having spent approx $23M less than OBJ's contract. (Which again, appears to be less than what Hill will get per media reports. And that would be after franchising him twice. Yes, the tag will probably go up, but so will the cap.) And you are off the hook for the bundle of cash still left on the long term deal. Maybe renegotiate a new deal based on need and value. Seems like a reasonable debate to have if you're running the Front Office.

Note: I really like Hill and hope the Chiefs can keep him for as long as his production matches his cost. And signing him to a record deal may not be the only way, or the best way, to accomplish that.

If Hill signs now without breaking the bank. That would be awesome. I'm not going to believe that (the not breaking the bank part) until I see it.

Agree 100%. Would love keeping Hill w/o breaking the bank or handicapping the team. I too, will believe it when I see it. Hope it happens.

[Reerun_KC]

And Herm Edwards LMAO















And Donk


Wait Buehler likes Herm.

After all these years B. We’re done.

[TribalElder]

AB to the bills ROFL