TheOak

Its premature but since we are discussing drafts and free agency ... Why not

I will start with my basis.

Presently with out restructuring we are $10 over neat years projected cap, and even with restructuring of Brees contract (noted because that is the first place people go) we still have some severely bloated cap numbers in comparison to production.

Lets say Drew takes a 10M cut and we are flush going into next year. Would anyone gripe about an 8M Drew Brees? I will not

These people are free agents: (listing only names I feel notable)
Full List - New Orleans Saints Free Agents - 2014
Jimmy graham
Malcom Jenkins
Zach Strief
Charles Brown
Jed Collins
Parys Haralson
Johnathan Vilma
Joe Morgan
DLP
To resign the free agents you would have to "Find" at least $25M.


Players not preforming to their cap figure (my opinion)
Jabari Greer $6M <- Jury still out but Corey White is handling business.
Will Smith $13M <--Dude will just not go away
Lance More <- Love you Lance but its business and your $5m is difficult to swallow with Stills preforming the way he is and if its between Jimmy graham and you... You would keep Jimmy also. (Lance has no dead money associated)
2014 Cap hits- New Orleans Saints Salary Cap - 2014 Breakdown


The point of this thread is that we need to get ready to see some old favorites gone.

Has this season taught us that the old familiar names of the players we have Jerseys for do not cripple us when they are gone?

Look where we are with out:
Will Smith
Johnathan Vlma
Jabari Greer

mutineer10

No argument here.

Vilma's been showing his age for years, and Greer is really starting to. Not sure if Smith ever had "it," but he sure don't have it anymore. Obviously we wanna keep Graham, and it wouldn't hurt to keep Strief & Collins around, too.

Jack Vegas

Was looking at this last night. Currently $11.13 million over for next year.

-Cutting Will Smith alone will get you under the cap, but that is before signing any free agents.

-Cutting Harper is another 2.1 million. I wouldn't be surprised if Jenkins is gone as well, that's 1.65 million.

-As much as we all like Lance Moore, is he really worth his contract? Cutting him is another 2.5 million, although I think we would see him restructured rather than cut outright.

-The contract that is really killing this team right now is Ben Grubbs. IMO. His cap number is over 9.1 million and his performance is maybe worth 1/3 of that. Cutting him would provide almost no cap savings, but I think he would be a major candidate for a pay cut restructure.

-I am hardly an expert but from what I gather roughly 90% of Brees' 10.75 million base salary can be converted to signing bonus. So let's call that 9 million savings.

-I love Jabari Greer. I would absolutely hate to see him go. But we have a true #1 corner and multiple candidates for a good #2. This would save 3.175 million.


I am using the calculator at Salary Cap Calculator - Over the Cap . That doesn't account for all the various loopholes in the cap structure like dead money rollover that Loomis exploits every year, nor does it account for the cap increase next year which should be 3 or 4 million. BUT, I think it gives you a pretty good idea how we could go from 11 million over to 20 million under, giving us a fair amount of money to sign our own guys. Strief, Haralson, De la Puente, Graham, Collins, Bush are the guys that strike me as worth being re-signed.

As long as we have Brees there is a window to be competitive. I think a lot like the Colts with Peyton Manning, you keep pushing it back and pushing it back, then when he goes you blow the team up, take it on the nose for one year and put yourself back in position to be good again after a rebuild.

Choupique

they've done a pretty good job of staffing the saints in the SP era.

i trust the coaches and staff decisions. they get people like colston outta nowhere.

greer is nearing the end of his career. hate to see it, but life goes on.

jnormand

I know we are gonna see some favorites gone next year. I just don't wanna think about it.

Jack Vegas

Looking at the site above, I can re-sign Strief, Herring, Bush, Haralson, Meachem, Humber, De la Puente, Collins and Quddus, and franchise tag Graham. Even though my guess is they will replace several of the above with younger, cheaper players.

Then restructure Brees 90% base salary and cut Smith, Harper, Greer, Moore and Ingram. You come out roughly 4.5 million under the cap with 47 players signed.

There are a couple other fairly high dollar players you could cut too - Jenkins, Bunkley, even somebody like Victor Butler and restructure Grubbs' terrible contract - and that would save another 8-10 million or so.

Boutte

Anybody think Lelito could would be an adequate replacement for Grubbs?

Stills for Moore?

Do we stick with DLP just because of the money?

What do we do with Ingram? Is he cuttable? Is he any good?

I see people talking about letting Malcom Jenkins go. Is that wise? The guy has had his best year as a Saint and if Greer doesn't make it back he's the most experienced DB on the team. (assuming Harper walks)

Strief isn't going anywhere.

Do we keep both Haralson and Butler? Is that economically feasible?

SaintLeonard

Why all the negative Greer talk? I realize he is getting up there in age, and he may not come back the same player after his ACL tear, but we owe him that chance imo. As good as White has been (and I'm a huge White supporter), Greer was also playing really well before his injury.

Danno

6 Mill cap hit and we'd save 4 million by releasing him.

We're bumping the cap. If he wants to restructure, fine. But he's probably not a $6 million player, even if he came back healthy.


Every high dollar player we keep makes it harder to sign Graham, Jenkins, Brown, Collins, Haralson and Strief. Not to mention potential free-agents we may desire.

SaintLeonard

Eh.. I suppose that is a good point.

I still hope we can find a way to keep him though. (without losing other big names..) I'd hate for him to go out a Saint with that injury.