The NFL should have a soft salary cap with a luxury tax like the NBA

[Flamma]

Free agency was the bigger culprit.

Well sure, but only with a cap. Without a cap, a team could theoretically pay all of the players they wanted to keep.

 

[atlantacowboy]

Free agency was the bigger culprit.

Well, if you had the flexibility to re-sign players without cap restrictions, it would blunt a lot of free agency making over the league every year.

 

[kskboys]

Well sure, but only with a cap. Without a cap, a team could theoretically pay all of the players they wanted to keep.

Which would mean the richest teams would win every year, which would mean decreased revenue and interest for everyone. The cap is good for everyone.

 

[Flamma]

Which would mean the richest teams would win every year, which would mean decreased revenue and interest for everyone. The cap is good for everyone.

Except the richest teams haven't won every year. I think the Yankees lost to the Marlins that were 1/5 their pay scale. It happens in football too. In 2010, a non cap year, the Steelers and Packers were in the SB. The Cap's intent is to make every team average. You have to fight to be above that. There is nothing good about every team being 8-8. The league needs consistency. It needs villains and heroes. And competition between the better teams on a regular basis.

 

[kskboys]

Except the richest teams haven't won every year. I think the Yankees lost to the Marlins that were 1/5 their pay scale. It happens in football too. In 2010, a non cap year, the Steelers and Packers were in the SB. The Cap's intent is to make every team average. You have to fight to be above that. There is nothing good about every team being 8-8. The league needs consistency. It needs villains and heroes. And competition between the better teams on a regular basis.

Baseball and football are not comparable in this sense at all.

Of course, but if you want fans in the stands, you want all teams to be competitive. Blowouts = lower revenues.

The cap's intent is not to make every team average, it's to make every team competitive against every team. There is a lot of good about every team being 8-8. More competitive football is the biggest good.

The salary cap is simply good for the sport and the league and the fans.

 

[Flamma]

Baseball and football are not comparable in this sense at all.

Of course, but if you want fans in the stands, you want all teams to be competitive. Blowouts = lower revenues.

The cap's intent is not to make every team average, it's to make every team competitive against every team. There is a lot of good about every team being 8-8. More competitive football is the biggest good.

The salary cap is simply good for the sport and the league and the fans.

The only area I disagree is in every team being 8-8. I'd stop watching. The great thing about sports are rivalies and great teams. Remove that and we're left with garbage.

 

[INCowboysFan]

my solution is to exempt the QB's from the salary cap total. The QB salaries are skyrocketing and teams are and will be hamstrung by these contracts. Don't count them against the cap and if Jerry wants to sign Dak for $50M/year we can at least sign other good players. You'd probably have to lower the overall cap initially to make this work.

 

[plasticman]

All 32 teams should pool their salary cap and every player should get a basic salary. Bonuses are added on a per player basis depending on position, experience, team success, personal stats, awards, etc, until the full amount of the combined, total cap has been reached.

Shouldn't the most productive players get paid more? Shouldn't the players on the more successful teams get paid more?

You still have the agreed amount of money going out but it is more evenly and fairly distributed.

Yeah....it'll never happen.......

 

[kskboys]

The only area I disagree is in every team being 8-8. I'd stop watching. The great thing about sports are rivalies and great teams. Remove that and we're left with garbage.

The 8-8 thing was merely an exaggeration to make a point. That's not a realistic outcome.

There will always be rivalries and better and worse teams.

 

[erod]

The hard cap is insane. If a team drafts a player they should be able to go over the salary cap to re-sign them just like the NBA (Bird Rights). The hard cap should only apply to outside free agents (you can't go over the cap to sign them). A team that drafts well shouldn't be penalized by losing their players. If team is over the salary cap after signing their own players they should simply pay a luxury tax penalty. This should seriously be discussed at the next CBA negotiations.

It is a soft cap. Teams can sign anybody they want by just moving money around.

Owners use the cap as an excuse to placate their fan base. Some more than others.

 

[Truck]

Its fine for teams who know what they’re doing…

Correctamundo. If the Cowboys knew how to play with the cap like the Rams, this wouldn’t be a problem.

 

[Flamma]

Correctamundo. If the Cowboys knew how to play with the cap like the Rams, this wouldn’t be a problem.

It's a game in itself, separate from the actual game. Putting the better team on the field is like 75% of the game. If they're going to restrict how you can do that, that's a totally separate challenge.