[sportscurmudgeon]

If the Skins were to sign McNabb to a new contract this afternoon, they would owe him a tidy sum as a signing bonus. Just for fun, let's say it's $10M because that is a round number.


There is a possibility that there will not be a season next year - - or if there is one it might be an "abbreviated season" that begins in mid to late October. Just for fun, let's say the season starts in mid-October.


When the next season starts, there will be at least some new wrinkles in the salary cap rules because there will be a new CBA. Just for fun, let's say one of the changes is that teams can still pro-rate signing bonuses over the life of the contract BUT there is also a limitation on the total amount of signing bonus money and roster bonus money that can be spent in any single football year- - and that amount is $40M. [That kind of limitation is one of the proposals on the table at the moment. I don't think it will make it into the final agreement but you never know...]


Now, with that kind of uncertainty why would the Skins want to hand McNabb a contract today instead of waiting to see which way the wind is blowing in the contract talks that will start for real in Feb 2011.? Why would Danny Boy want that putative $10M in McNabb's "bank account" instead of his for the next few months?


If the Skins sign McNabb to a new deal this season, you can be certain that Mike Shanahan is 200% sure that Donovan McNabb is the answer as the Skins' QB for at least the next 3 seasons - - because it will take 3 seasons to amortize enough of the signing bonus it will actually take to get a deal with McNabb in order to avoid a "cap collapse" down the road.

And Mike Shanahan is not going to deal with any "cap collapses"...