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CONTINUITY AND DEPTH IN THE CAP ERA
BY RAMMED FOR LIFE (Feb 24)

USING THE "D" WORD. With all the whining about the 49ers and Vikings being hurt by the cap, the national press goes with the easy remark: you can't maintain continuity in the era of the cap. Well, the Rams have the perfect plan in place to set that canard on its head. They have a plan to build for quality that can renew itself steadily over time.

Here's why the Rams will be a dynasty--Armey's key to living in the cap era:  "We tried to build some depth from the inside. That is one of the things we try to do for the whole football team, is build from the bottom up as well as from the top down."

Between them, Charley Armey and Dick Vermeil have established a functioning plan for continuing to thrive in an era in which you cannot lock up your top 25 players. This plan is evident going back for 3 years. The Rams have a profound commitment to developing young guys from the draft and the undrafted ranks WITHIN THE SYSTEM so they have people in place as they lose starters.

Look for it to continue.  The pattern may be at work at DE. Lionel Barnes was a definite project, but I suspect they hope to get production from him to replace Jay Willaims.

Similarly at CB. That is a position that must be taught. We have developed Allen and McCleon, 2 servicable guys, and brought Bly along carefully. Now we can let Allen go and work with McCelon, Lyght, and Bly. I expect to see them draft or sign another young, developmental CB this year.

I expect to see us draft D early. But late in the draft and in those undrafted FAs they always sign--expect to see us get more young OLmen.

There's a a pattern here, too. What do Froh and Tucker have in common? Both were highly touted OLmen who plummetted because of injury. Clearly, the Rams feel that they, unlike most teams, are willing to be patient with a talented guy's injury. As he heals, they can teach him the system. By the team he is healthy, there is a place to play, or back up.

The plan has worked perfectly with Tucker. Notice how HAPPY he was that the Rams matched. This team took a chance on him when he was hurt and shadowed by his legal mistakes. Three years later, he is a starter with a multiple-year contract. And, as has been said, the way it worked out is positive, since we locked him up for 3 years for a price that will probably seem a bargain within a year. While some of that is luck,  over-all, it is brilliant managment of young talent.

Froh could well be the same way. I am eager to see Froh get on the field this year. Yet, probably, he is at least a year or two away. So, when Pace's and Tucker's deals run out, Froh may well ease the pressure to sign both.

Obviously, there will be ups and downs along the way. We won't be serious Super Bowl contenders every year. I see perhaps a drop off after next year, because SO MANY of our FAs will come up for contracts. But I expecct this personnel plan to keep us at or near the top for many years to come. It is a model the whole league should copy. But I suspect that few teams have the patience to do so.

And the Rams have already WON a title--a year or two ahead of schedule!

SPEND WISELY ON YOUR OWN PLAYERS. As for Carter, Bruce, Lyght, and Warner, the key is to spread the money out over time, but without big bonuses.

Now Warner and Lyght need contracts for this year. That will count against the cap in any event because the salary for 2000 is not accounted for yet in the 2000 cap number. (Actually, Lyght's is, because the tendered amount will have to come out of it.)

Yet, depending on how the contracts are set up, Lyght's number could change. They might sign him to a longer contract for a bit less per year, and the 2000 cap hit could go down. (Of course, that would not be attractive to Lyght, who is beginning to age and would face the possibility of being cut and losing money.)

With Warner, a multi-year contract allows you to spread serious money over several years. Again, as long as you don't do bonuses, you don't kill your future. Remember--Warner can be kept for another 2 years with tenders (he will be an RFA after next year, won't he?) so he has a big incentive to take a good deal now. Maybe 2-3 years at 2 mill--maybe with options both ways.

As long as you pay as you go, you retain some flexibility. You have contracts that are cuttable or tradable without a big cap hit.  I also like the idea of negotiating options that protect both the player and the team. Options--re-sign options, extention options, buy-out options--can be set up for certain circumstances which would guarantee the player a good situation whether the team keeps, trades, or cuts and at the same time protect the team's flexibility.

Again, the key is to pay as you go and give the team options.

No player on earth is worth huge guaranteed money that will kill the team if he gets hurt or retires or fades away so the team wants to cut him. I don't care WHO he is--I do NOT WANT the Rice/Young syndrome on the Rams. I would rather have us drop off but with a cap situation that allows us to re-build than commit to players whether or not they play for us.

SIGN THEM EARLY. Carter and Bruce already have a fairly large number for the 2000 cap. So, they could be signed to EXTENSIONS at higher amounts. The current salary remains the same, but the raised salary kicks in next year.

Now, they may want some up-front money added to 2000. So a raise would have to be added to the 2000 number. But ONLY the portion that is the raise.

Theoretically, by signing extensions rather than tearing up the current contracts, Bruce and Carter could be re-signed this year without hurting the 2000 cap too much but yet not backloading to set up 49er-type problems for the future.

Remember. Money now is worth more than money tomorrow. Always. That's what interest rates are all about.

Listen. Take Bruce. With another year like this one, he can command a very high price. He also may tear up a knee--knock on all available wood--and be worth nothing when his contract is up. That is why a re-negotiation before the contract expires is always pegged at a lower price than one with a FA.

Now--COULD an individual player decide to take the chance and wait? Sure. No guarantees. But by and large you can drive a good bargain re-negotiating early because the TEAM assumes more of the risk of injury. Also, money invested well in 2000 is worth more than the same, even somewhat more money invested well in 2001. Time is money!

ARE THERE BARGAINS IN THIS YEAR'S FA MARKET?  George, Porcher, Frerotte, Barber, Rice, Gilbert, Sparks, Jim Miller, O'Donnel and more. What do they all have in common? They are FAs that you might expect people to want. AND ... so far, to my knowledge, nothing is happening. This is a weird FA market. Very odd. It is like an auction where no one can afford the oil paintings, so they are bidding up the brass candlesticks. This is a strange market. And by the end, it will be a real buyer's market.

The early flurry of action all centered on lesser players and OLmen. The remarkable thing to me is not that the Rams are being raided by Miami, but that so much activity centers on those brass candlesticks.

This market has not BROKEN yet. There are a LOT of well known FAs, many unrestricted, just sitting there waiting for the phone to ring. And it isn't ringing.

Jeff George is the most amazing. A QB comes off a huge year, is RELEASED by his team ... and has no takers. Even when it is ol' headcase Jeff, that is still weird.

Look. We KNOW that a number of teams simply have no cap space whatever. We also know that some teams, notably TENN and TB, have made their moves. (In my opinion, neither team helped itself much at all.) How many teams have any money left to spend? If I were the agent for a FA trying to score this off season, I would be extremely worried. You cannot make a sale without a buyer.

When most players have spent their money, the people with money left in their pockets have a LOT of buying power!

And...the Rams still have the bulk of their cap money in their pockets! They may be one of the last to be in this position.

Now, things haven't changed all that much, really. They still must re-sign Lyght, Carter, Warner, etc.

But, a couple of things.

1st, in this market, I would say that the Rams can be pretty sure that they will be able to sign these guys within the budget they foresaw. When lesser players got larger money than expected, people said the stars' contracts would be out of sight. I question that. If Robert Porcher can't get anyone to make an offer, then Kevin Carter is not going to be able to count on a huge salary. I mean, he will be expensive. But I don;t see him or anyone else being stupid expensive.

2nd, in this market, there may be some AMAZING bargains. Go through the lists of FAs available. Few of these people are seeing any action. You may be able to get a remarkably good player very cheap. How about a Ronde Barber--maybe instead of Lyght?

3rd. I continue to think that the Rams are still plotting. They are trying to work out an overall strategy. And a key component is Warner. Why isn't Warner re-signed yet? Simple. They have not decided whether to go long or short-term with his contract. And they CAN'T really decide that until they work out the over-all puzzle.

4th, the national media, as usual, are missing the story. They keep following the action, such as it is. They are missing the big picture. The STORY in this market is that few people are buying and fewer people are buying big ticket items.