Quote:
Originally Posted by chiefzilla1501
In the example you listed above, if you are spreading $15M over 5 years, you are essentially guaranteeing the contract for 4 years. It isn't until year 4 that the dead money becomes remotely reasonable and even then, to cut the guy you'd be paying $6M in dead money. In the second example, you have the flexibility to cut the guy loose. Restructuring a contract prematurely is the same deal (Berry is different, because his contract is actually in prime position for a restructure). You are creating a little more guarantee in future years of the contract. It's why a lot of teams don't rely on free agency as their primary offseason strategy.
|
Cap hit to cut in Year 4 would be $3 million, with $3 million hitting the following year.
Not ideal, but not an insurmountable obstacle (and still a significant savings over what the cap hit otherwise would be).