2022 RULES: Contract Restructure Options

[Goodell]

CONCLUSION: The strongest response was to add another contract restructure to the existing limits, so we'll do that and update rosters soon. There was also fairly strong support for the new option of converting salary to SB like the NFL increasingly does, so we'll try to implement that option as the additional contract restructure if technically doable in the short-term this off-season. We won't add voidable years for now, but will look at that in the future depending upon how the limited new restructure does. If you want to restructure contracts and get the most bang for your buck, do not do that yet until we've looked at adding the new restructure option that give the maximum space in the days ahead.

[thunder23]

under franchise tags, the dropdown box shows Von Miller average salary at 31 million. The chart shows LBs at 18 million. So if I signed him to a one year franchise tag, what would his salary be? Also, if I signed him 2 a two year franchise tag, is the "50% of salary" 50% of one years salary or 50% of both years combined?

[Goodell]

under franchise tags, the dropdown box shows Von Miller average salary at 31 million. The chart shows LBs at 18 million. So if I signed him to a one year franchise tag, what would his salary be? Also, if I signed him 2 a two year franchise tag, is the "50% of salary" 50% of one years salary or 50% of both years combined?

I can send you a PM if further needed for your situation, but it's not every LB gets that tag price. It mentions franchise tag price is that OR 20% raise in salary. If that player was making a massive amount of salary last season, they don't get to have a huge discount by franchise tagging them ahead. The franchise tag and LTC can't be a pay cut. In Miller's case, if I'm looking at the right spot, he made 26M last year so franchise tagging him would be 1.2x that amount since it's higher than the franchise tag. That's why it's quoting 31M as it would be in his case.

One useful tool in our leagues for that kind of common situation where a player's last salary might have ballooned too high for a pay raise required for the next extension is the transition tag. For us, that doesn't require a pay raise like LTC or franchise tag. Matching rights if signed by another team and no compensation, but it does return the player to their fair market-determined value and give you a chance to match that market-driven price to retain them.

In general on the 2-year LTC or franchise tag options, if the base salary is 10M for example the 2-year option for SB would be 5M (50% of the base annual salary). So in this example, 12.5M per year against the cap (10M + 2.5M each year). I'm hoping to revise some of those things to make them clearer ahead. Hope that answers questions, but feel free to PM me on your team specific if not. Thanks!

[thunder23]

ok, all cleared up. Thank you.

[thunder23]

ok, one more question lol..... If I transition Von Miller, his salary will be 15 million? or can other teams still bid?

[Goodell]

ok, one more question lol..... If I transition Von Miller, his salary will be 15 million? or can other teams still bid?

Send me a PM if it isn't working for you this way. They will show up at the transition tag value (I believe it's around that for LB), and that impacts what other teams can start their bids for him (ex. you can't bid a minimum contract for a franchised or transition tagged player). If nobody bids on them as transition tagged players (unlikely usually since no compensation required), then you'd have that player at the 1-year transition tag price.

Transition tagged players are on the free agent market, though. Other teams can bid on them. Your advantage is that you can sit back and wait until the player is signed and then you have the option to match the contract to keep them or not.

It isn't ideal to use transition tag because no compensation like a franchise tag, but if your player's salary got up way too high for the raise required for a franchise tag then it may make sense to transition them here. That's a tool we use here to allow teams to kind of reset a player's ballooned salary back to market value and match other offers.

Now a transition tag isn't all that different from just letting them hit the free agency market as a UFA where you'd have unlimited bidding to try to re-sign them. The advantage in that is if you end up not signing them as UFAs, you may get a compensatory pick (up to a 3rd rounder in the next year draft) if you meet other conditions to be eligible for comp picks (like not signing more/better UFAs than you lose). But teams like to tag players and have matching rights, so this option is there for that. It's possible the bidding war may not go as high if you don't have to participate in it, and just sit back and then match or not, so some advantage there to transition tag, but no compensation if don't match. Hope that helps.

[thunder23]

OK, it's pretty much how I thought. Just wanted to make sure. Thanks again.