The state of the NFL

I’ve had a few of you email me this year about some of the bigger names in the draft and what I thought of their potential NFL impact. I’ve also gotten the obligatory ‘what should the bears do other than OL?’ I’ll address those in my next posts, but first I want to touch on how the labor unrest in the NFL will affect this Draft season.

The first thing to say is that this draft will be entirely different than any other we have seen as free agency and player trades will not be in effect until a new Collective Bargaining Agreement is signed, or the first day of the new football year starts (which is March). This may not seem like a big deal, but this really does hamper some teams who may fill needs with high-profile free agents and then draft for best player available in the draft (like the Bears). It also means that draft picks can only be traded for other draft picks, and not for players. So while player trades for draft picks are not something that happens often each year, it does happen and now prevents teams from having one other method of making something happen on draft day. I assume what we will see are teams making ‘hand-shake’ trades of a player for a pick, with the team trading the player telling the other team who they want them to pick in that draft position. One thing you can count on in the NFL is that teams will be creative and find ways around the rules.

I also think that a rookie wage scale will absolutely be in place for this draft class. So you may find teams more willing to take a player who might not give you the best positional value for the pick. For example, the past few years the players being drafted in the top five are often times one of the highest paid at that position once their contract is signed. So it made some teams shy away from taking say an Eric Berry last year as those teams may not want to make him the highest paid Safety in the league before he steps on the field by taking him with the second overall pick. This will slot salaries like the NBA does, so I believe teams will be more willing to just take the best player available to fit their need. Now, this may not have any impact at all and I’m reading too far into this, but I do think this is the right thing to do. Make rookie contracts shorter, say two to four years, and control how much they can make. Once they have proven they are worth it, then let them get paid appropriately where they fit in the grand scheme of the NFL for their position. I think teams like the Rams and Lions who drafted near the top several years in a row will be hamstrung by the amount of salary cap space they have dedicated to only a few players. And should one of those players bust, you’ve set that franchise back a year or two in their development.

I hope something gets done though as you all must really love football if you are reading this blog, and like me, you hope we have something to watch next season. I don’t see how something doesn’t get done in time, as deadlines have a way of making things happen quickly, and the amount of money to be had or lost is astronomical. Players and owners know that, and that’s what makes me certain something gets done. I just don’t think it will be before the Draft occurs.