Katie
03-22-2006, 05:42 AM
Adam’s exit enough to make Pats fans ill
By Michael Felger/ Patriots Beat
Boston Herald Patriots Beat Columnist
Wednesday, March 22, 2006 - Updated: 01:42 AM EST
Bill Parcells once said that losing felt like throwing up in your mouth. He was talking about games, but you can extend the analogy to what Patriots fans have felt like this free agency season.
And last night, millions of people throughout New England felt like projectile vomiting.
Adam Vinatieri agreed to a contract with the Indianapolis Colts, and the difference between the money in Indy and Foxboro wound up being chump change against Bill Belichick’s salary cap and relative nickels against Bob Kraft’s bottom line. Perhaps the best clutch kicker in the history of the NFL and one of the most popular athletes Boston ever has known now is wearing enemy colors because the Pats refused to budge off their hard-line philosophy.
You can call Belichick and Scott Pioli consistent (although you’d be overrating that; more below). I call them stubborn, foolishly so in this case.
Vinatieri agreed to a multi-year deal that reportedly comes with a $3.5 million signing bonus and is worth $2.5 million a season over the first three years of the deal. When all the numbers are factored in, Vinatieri’s average annual cap value will fall in the $3 million range. The NFL salary cap will be $102 million in 2006 and $109 million in 2007. The Pats currently enjoy around $19 million in cap space. Kraft brings in over $250 million in revenue a year. We could run Vinatieri’s percentages for you, but you get the point.
It’s chicken feed.
There was apparently little dialogue between the Pats and Vinatieri the last several weeks, but the Pats always intended to be below the top of the market, whatever that happened to be. They wanted Vinatieri to make up the difference in local endorsements. That’s insulting.
Meanwhile, here’s another bit of news that’s sure to send you right back to the toilet: The Pats reportedly have expressed interest in former Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt.
Lest you forgot, the last time Vanderjagt was on a football field, he sent the ball into the cheerleader formation on a potential game-tying playoff kick against Pittsburgh.
The last time Adam didn’t come through with a game on the line was 1999.
The Pats certainly have their reasons for passing on Vinatieri. He’s 33 and has battled back problems the past several years. For two years running he’s been the highest-paid kicker in the game, and that has to end sometime. Besides, if you ask Tom Brady to be third-highest-paid quarterback and Richard Seymour to keep his demands in check, how do you justify making Vinatieri the highest-priced player at his position deep into his 30s?
But if the Pats are so bent on consistency, then how do you explain what happened with Corey Dillon last year? Entering the final year of his contract at a fair price of just over $3 million, the Pats felt the need to lavish a multi-year extension on the 31-year-old running back that guaranteed him $10 million over two years. The Pats then watched in horror as Dillon aged in front of their eyes.
The point is that the Pats have been aggressive in the past and have spent when they felt the need to. They spent on Rosevelt Colvin. They spent on Rodney Harrison. They spent on Dillon. They even spent on corner Duane Starks, whose $3.5 million base salary in 2006 was guaranteed.
No one can argue with the impeccable record of Belichick and Pioli when it comes to cutting ties with veterans. They’ve lost armloads of players over the years - Chad Eaton, Drew Bledsoe, Lawyer Milloy, Tebucky Jones, Bobby Hamilton, Ted Washington, Damien Woody, Joe Andruzzi, David Patten, etc. - and not one has come back to haunt them.
But remember, their record of picking players has been more spotty than fans recognize. Last year’s haul - Chad Brown, Monty Beisel, David Terrell, Starks - is a good example. And if anyone can give me an explanation why Starks was worth $3.5 million but Vinatieri wasn’t, I want to hear it.
So how you feel about this move comes down to what you trust more: the judgment of Belichick and Pioli or the accuracy of Vinatieri’s right leg. They’re both pretty good, but if you run the numbers you’ll find the percentages favor Adam.
In the meantime, be sure to clean the puke off your shoes.
:behead:
By Michael Felger/ Patriots Beat
Boston Herald Patriots Beat Columnist
Wednesday, March 22, 2006 - Updated: 01:42 AM EST
Bill Parcells once said that losing felt like throwing up in your mouth. He was talking about games, but you can extend the analogy to what Patriots fans have felt like this free agency season.
And last night, millions of people throughout New England felt like projectile vomiting.
Adam Vinatieri agreed to a contract with the Indianapolis Colts, and the difference between the money in Indy and Foxboro wound up being chump change against Bill Belichick’s salary cap and relative nickels against Bob Kraft’s bottom line. Perhaps the best clutch kicker in the history of the NFL and one of the most popular athletes Boston ever has known now is wearing enemy colors because the Pats refused to budge off their hard-line philosophy.
You can call Belichick and Scott Pioli consistent (although you’d be overrating that; more below). I call them stubborn, foolishly so in this case.
Vinatieri agreed to a multi-year deal that reportedly comes with a $3.5 million signing bonus and is worth $2.5 million a season over the first three years of the deal. When all the numbers are factored in, Vinatieri’s average annual cap value will fall in the $3 million range. The NFL salary cap will be $102 million in 2006 and $109 million in 2007. The Pats currently enjoy around $19 million in cap space. Kraft brings in over $250 million in revenue a year. We could run Vinatieri’s percentages for you, but you get the point.
It’s chicken feed.
There was apparently little dialogue between the Pats and Vinatieri the last several weeks, but the Pats always intended to be below the top of the market, whatever that happened to be. They wanted Vinatieri to make up the difference in local endorsements. That’s insulting.
Meanwhile, here’s another bit of news that’s sure to send you right back to the toilet: The Pats reportedly have expressed interest in former Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt.
Lest you forgot, the last time Vanderjagt was on a football field, he sent the ball into the cheerleader formation on a potential game-tying playoff kick against Pittsburgh.
The last time Adam didn’t come through with a game on the line was 1999.
The Pats certainly have their reasons for passing on Vinatieri. He’s 33 and has battled back problems the past several years. For two years running he’s been the highest-paid kicker in the game, and that has to end sometime. Besides, if you ask Tom Brady to be third-highest-paid quarterback and Richard Seymour to keep his demands in check, how do you justify making Vinatieri the highest-priced player at his position deep into his 30s?
But if the Pats are so bent on consistency, then how do you explain what happened with Corey Dillon last year? Entering the final year of his contract at a fair price of just over $3 million, the Pats felt the need to lavish a multi-year extension on the 31-year-old running back that guaranteed him $10 million over two years. The Pats then watched in horror as Dillon aged in front of their eyes.
The point is that the Pats have been aggressive in the past and have spent when they felt the need to. They spent on Rosevelt Colvin. They spent on Rodney Harrison. They spent on Dillon. They even spent on corner Duane Starks, whose $3.5 million base salary in 2006 was guaranteed.
No one can argue with the impeccable record of Belichick and Pioli when it comes to cutting ties with veterans. They’ve lost armloads of players over the years - Chad Eaton, Drew Bledsoe, Lawyer Milloy, Tebucky Jones, Bobby Hamilton, Ted Washington, Damien Woody, Joe Andruzzi, David Patten, etc. - and not one has come back to haunt them.
But remember, their record of picking players has been more spotty than fans recognize. Last year’s haul - Chad Brown, Monty Beisel, David Terrell, Starks - is a good example. And if anyone can give me an explanation why Starks was worth $3.5 million but Vinatieri wasn’t, I want to hear it.
So how you feel about this move comes down to what you trust more: the judgment of Belichick and Pioli or the accuracy of Vinatieri’s right leg. They’re both pretty good, but if you run the numbers you’ll find the percentages favor Adam.
In the meantime, be sure to clean the puke off your shoes.
:behead: