As much as the NFL marches to the tune of parity, the way trades are handled has to be addressed.
There are at least 5 problems.
First, let me say I am a big big proponent of Hard Salary Caps in all sports.
The problem in the NFL IMO is that the Signing bonus accellerates when a player is released. IMO, the team should have the option of writing it off right away, or for as long as the contract was, or limit it to 5 years.
If a Ray Lewis suffers a career ender, Baltimore has to absorb 19 million right away? not right.
Also, you should be able to negotiate portions of the signing bonus to the team that a player is being traded to. This should be open to negotiation.
Asking a team to absorb 5 million dollars just to trade Bledsoe was unfair to New England.
This allows players to basically rape teams and draw two paychecks. This year, Bledsoe got to keep what he recieved from New England, and get another bonus from another team.
I also don't really like the way the IR is constructed. Denver puts Clark on IR, yet when he is released he can play in week 6?
I think the PUP rules need to be relaxed. You will be surprised how good Clark is, except he isn't a clutch player.
I think you will continue to see expanded use of roster bonuses spread out over time if the teams can get away with it, especially with injured players that are trying to come back.
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