Pouncey deal details and analysis | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

Pouncey deal details and analysis

where's th'fish

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I apologize if these were known already, some posters mentioned they knew the terms but I never saw them posted here (or anywhere) until now.

http://overthecap.com/player/mike-pouncey/709/

My take is that it is a very unusual deal for us. In the past our modus operandi has been to hand out large bonuses, which of course has a large cost to the organization once you have to move on from a player (which of course is only necessary if you are overpaying). Then last year we went to a hybrid type of contract with Albert, with relatively low bonus money and two years of guaranteed base salary. That is excellent news as far as a growing awareness in the FO of the necessity to moderate our past excesses.

The Pouncey is similar to the Albert contract and it has some interesting details. For example, it seemed unreasonable to give him a juicy contract at this point when he's already under contract for 2015. It would seem more to the team's advantage to let him play 2015 and let him run the risk of injury in 2015 instead of us before giving him a juicy contract. It turns out the extension is very team-friendly in that regard: Pouncey carries a 7m tag this year and can be cut at the end of the year with 4 million in dead money, a very low number for a cut after only one year. If we keep him at that point, Pouncey's base salary for 2016 will become guaranteed but he still could be cut at the end of that season with 5 million in dead money -hardly ideal, but you still reduce his cap hit by about 4m. After 2017 all his guarantees are over and he can be cut with minimal dead money.

In essence it's a contract that gives us flexibility -a very valuable asset. At any point we can reasonably move on from him with some but not excessive pain from dead money. The key year, however, will be 2015 when he carries his biggest cap hit at 10 million. If we can survive that, for the rest of his contract his cap hits will be around 9 million a year. Whether it's too much or not can be decided one year at a time.

A contract of this kind makes me feel more confident that this FO is aware of our delicate situation and of the plight of teams like New Orleans and Detroit, and will act with caution and measure to avoid following in their footsteps. The fact that the first such contract we handed was last season in Hickey's first year, and that we have followed with another of the kind this year also makes me feel much better about the fact that Hickey still has at the very least a strong voice in the FO, which comes as a great relief. It's a solid sign that our worst nightmarebaum may not come true after all.
 
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