Do you pay?

With the cap rules, the league is really designed to be mediocre. The NFL calls it competitive balance, but frankly it's pretty watered down. A lot of teams go through cycles because they aren't very gifted in the art of foresight, while other organizations just aren't good at anything (Raiders, Jaguars, Browns, etc). But there are a couple of teams that have been good at managing the cap and sustaining success (Patriots, Colts). The Saints and Steelers are very similar over the last decade (decade plus, for Pitt) in how they fluctuate between being contenders and just being average, but they don't completely fall apart.

The Saints did well for a while with finding hidden gems that allowed them to keep the cost down and retain a certain core of players. But once guys started looking for a big pay day we over-payed on some players, and it's bit us in recent years. The offense keeps us competitive but we really haven't been able to keep up with the elite.

It really all boils down to finding the right QB when you make a transition, and building around him. Just look how quickly the Colts went right back to winning after one bad season.

pay? What do you mean?

To have all those girlfriends.

pay? What do you mean?

To have all those girlfriends.