Rookie Salaries - Out of Control

[jdlea]

I have to say that I think all NFL contracts are starting to get out of control. They'll be seeing baseball money soon enough. I am also in agreement that rooks make way too much. It disturbs me that Landry got so much money because I don't know how Taylor is going to react. His agent (Rosenhaus?) has got to be pissed. Hopefully it doesn't cause too many hard feelings and the two sides can come to an agreement on an extension when the time comes, but it certainly makes me nervous.

I've said a few times that I think the NFL should enact a rule similar to MLB's 10/5 rule. However, I don't think it should be 10/5, maybe 7/5. Essentially a player would have to have been in the league for at least 7 years and on the same team for 5. That team would then be able "tag" him to excluding him from being counted against the cap. The spirit of the rule being to keep Montana and Rice in SF, Emmitt in Dallas and Art Monk in Washington. However, I'm sure that it would somehow become a slap in the face to a player to be designated with such a tag, much the same way the franchise tag is today. I would grant each team 1 or 2 of these tags. Maybe it could be the same salary structure as the franchise tag (average of the league's top 5 highest paid) that wouldn't count against your cap.

However, that system would benefit fans and players more than owners, so it will probably never happen...this is, after all, the NFL we're talking about.