One of the most frustrating parts of the game-to the fans and also, I would assume, to the people responsible for running the different teams-is the NFL salary cap. Other sports have salary caps, but they have major loopholes. The NFL salary cap is a "hard cap" that severely restricts the offseason mobility of the teams.
Another difference between the NFL and other major sports is the structure of player contracts. While player contracts in most professional leagues are guaranteed, meaning that if a player gets injured or is not good enough to make the team, he still gets paid, in the NFL very few contracts are guaranteed. This means that players can be cut at different times of the year and the team will only have to support a small part of their salary.
What makes this interesting is that in this offseason we will see at least two major moves that result directly from the salary cap constrictions.
The first major move is that Jerry Rice will be cut from the San Francisco 49ers. As I am sure any sports fan knows, Rice is the basic equivalent of God on the gridiron.
Rice currently holds 14 NFL records, and for the most part they are major records. He has the records for touchdowns in a career, total yards, total receiving yards and total catches, among others.
On top of his excellence in the regular season, Rice has also excelled in the playoffs. He currently holds 10 Super Bowl records and has four Super Bowl rings. He is undoubtedly the best wide receiver in the history of the NFL, and it is possible that he is also the best player.
That said, he is nearing the end of his career, has a big salary, and the 49ers have severe salary cap problems. With two good wide receivers-Terell Owens and J.J. Stokes-ready to step in and replace Rice, the 49ers have the luxury of releasing the living legend and letting him play for someone else. But it is still surprising that a receiver who had a productive season-75 receptions for over 800 yards and seven touchdowns-would be released.
In any other major sport this would be unfathomable. Would the Yankees let go of Roger Clemens for nothing? Could the New York Rangers allow Mark Messier to leave without getting anything in return? The answer is-quite simply-no.
The NFL salary cap hurts the players and the fans while it does little to guarantee a fair level of competition.
Another salary cap decision that will be made this offseason will take place in Buffalo. The Bills have two expensive quarterbacks-Rob Johnson and Doug Flutie-and one of them will have to go. With a new administration in place in Buffalo, this decision may very well shape the future of the team.
Johnson is the prototype quarterback. He is young, tall, has a great arm and-on paper-looks like a great player. Unfortunately, the game is not played on paper.
Johnson, who has been effective when he is healthy, has not proven that he can stand up to the rigors of the NFL. So far in his career he has spent much of his time sidelined with injuries.
On the other hand we have Flutie. Flutie has none of the qualities that you look for in a quarterback, save one-the ability to win. Wherever he has gone in football he has won-including the NCAA, Canada and the NFL.
But also, in every place he has ever played, Flutie's abilities have been downplayed. It is constantly said that he is too short to play quarterback, but over his career Flutie has excelled in that role. His combination of guts and determination-a pair of attributes that he showcases every time he plays-and his knack for making the big play when it counts have made him a very good quarterback.
The Bills will probably end up cutting Flutie and designating Johnson the quarterback of the future, and this is the logical decision. What muddles the decision is that it will be made as a salary cap move, and not because either player deserves to be cut.
The NFL salary cap is designed to keep player salaries in the NFL low, but in many ways it has backfired. Star players still receive exorbitant amounts of money, and to fit them underneath the cap limit, sacrifices are made in other areas. Middle-level players and moderately-expensive veterans are strewn by the wayside and rookies-whom owners can pay the minimum salary-are inserted into starting lineups. This weakens the level of play in the game and also punishes teams that are built around veteran players.
The NFL must find another way to limit the salaries paid, because their current system causes more harm than good.