For All Those People Who Say That Benson is a Cheapskate
 

Here's proof of the contrary:

Our Saints aren't that cheap!

For All Those People Who Say That Benson is a Cheapskate
 

O.K.....They may not be cheap, but they\'re not wise spenders. Some of these guys have contracts they don\'t deserve.

For All Those People Who Say That Benson is a Cheapskate
 

I have to say that I have never complained about the Saints spending habits, but that article also displays the flaws in the determination of payroll.
For example: \"Two years ago, when the New York Jets retained three key pending free agents -- tailback Curtis Martin, center Kevin Mawae and wide receiver Wayne Chrebet -- their payroll was artificially higher than normal. A year later, it was back in line with previous years, since the club didn\'t have as many key veterans to re-up.\", and \"It\'s really kind of an up-and-down thing,\" acknowledged Saints general manager Mickey Loomis. \"There are a lot of variables. Usually, if you spend a lot one year, then you might not the following year because you\'ve probably locked up most of your (big-ticket) guys the previous season. And a lot of it has to do with the system being used to calculate the payroll. It sounds like the NFLPA uses cash and we look more at commitment.\"

Also, according to this Arizona is fifth in the league is payroll, but they have more cap room than all but seven teams.
Next year the Saints will drop considerably in the payroll figures, unless they miss the playoffs and make a push for an early pick in the draft, since the article also states that the figure is somewhat inflated due to the large signing bonus given to Sullivan



[Edited on 22/11/2003 by progress]