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Dre offers to restructure... again

the wonger need food said:
With the Texans up against the cap and AJ wanting a championship, it appears that he has offered to restructure his contact again to relieve some of the roughly $15M his salary counts this year.


Per Randy Harvey...

https://twitter.com/randyharvey/status/312775035557396480
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You would think the FO would've already initiated this conversation w/ some players such as AJ as opposed to the player having to offer it & lead the way. Let's hope they can figure something out & get some players signed to assist in getting AJ a championship.
 
tru80texan said:
You would think the FO would've already initiated this conversation w/ some players such as AJ as opposed to the player having to offer it & lead the way. Let's hope they can figure something out & get some players signed to assist in getting AJ a championship.
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You would have thought.
 
Yeah, it's probably never crossed their minds. I mean, the front office really doesn't think about stuff like that.

Meanwhile back on planet earth, the Texans have a history of re-working deals with many of its players, for the purpose of creating more cap space.

If AJ says he wants to do it, it means he might have been unwilling before now. It's their finances, and a player and his agent are going to look out for number 1 first. The front office of any team will be more team-focused than any other department in the franchise.

THINK.
 
I guess AJ is being told that the only way Ed has a shot, here, is to create more cap space to close the gap for it.

Ed Reed might still be our guy yet.
 
I wouldn't be surprised if the FO doesn't want to restructure in order to avoid cap problems in the next couple of years when we have to re-sign some of our core pieces.
 
But restructures just "kick the can down the road" (you know, like with our country's debt problems re the budget), and eventually the Texans will be faced with the big cap hit. So the organization may have considerations over the longer term for not wanting to restructure deals now with key players like JJ Watt and perhaps Cushing coming up for new deals in a year or 2 ?
But I'd think Andre would be more interested in restructuring for the addition of a veteran NFL WR on the roster than a safety, even an old pal from college ?
 
IDEXAN said:
But restructures just "kick the can down the road" (you know, like with our country's debt problems re the budget), and eventually the Texans will be faced with the big cap hit. So the organization may have considerations over the longer term for not wanting to restructure deals now with key players like JJ Watt and perhaps Cushing coming up for new deals in a year or 2 ?
But I'd think Andre would be more interested in restructuring for the addition of a veteran NFL WR on the roster than a safety, even an old pal from college ?
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Andre's been kicking the can down the road for years. This would be (I think) his fourth restructure . He has ALWAYS had a "team, what can I do to help us win now" attitude. Yes, I know he's getting his money but damn... he is definitely losing a lot by letting us "borrow it". Ever think about the interest ramifications of the millions that Andre keeps pushing back to use an example? Even after restructuring, he still has enough fiscal responsibility left over to do his annual Christmas shopping spree.

I guess I'm just saying that I heart Andre Johnson and let's get this man a championship ring.
 
IDEXAN said:
But restructures just "kick the can down the road" (you know, like with our country's debt problems re the budget), and eventually the Texans will be faced with the big cap hit. So the organization may have considerations over the longer term for not wanting to restructure deals now with key players like JJ Watt and perhaps Cushing coming up for new deals in a year or 2 ?
But I'd think Andre would be more interested in restructuring for the addition of a veteran NFL WR on the roster than a safety, even an old pal from college ?
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I'm sure he's offering to restructure to free money to bring anyone in, not just a safety. If that were all we were looking at I would hope he wouldn't need to restructure. If Reed wants more than what we have available we would have to move on.
 
tru80texan said:
You would think the FO would've already initiated this conversation w/ some players such as AJ as opposed to the player having to offer it & lead the way. Let's hope they can figure something out & get some players signed to assist in getting AJ a championship.
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Meh. Andre has been ridiculously selfless throughout his career including a previous restructure. It's hard to ask again and again from a player that has literally been the best example of a football player and good person. Once again dre shows why he is the best when he does stuff like this. I have no issue with FO not asking dre for this.
 
2slik4u said:
Meh. Andre has been ridiculously selfless throughout his career including a previous restructure. It's hard to ask again and again from a player that has literally been the best example of a football player and good person. Once again dre shows why he is the best when he does stuff like this. I have no issue with FO not asking dre for this.
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2nd
 
While I do think Andre is an unselfish person, restructures aren't an act of generosity when it pays the player more money up front. This is why I'm hoping we don't spend too much money in free agency. It'd be nice to get some guaranteed money off the books to pursue Cushing and Watt.
 
2slik4u said:
Meh. Andre has been ridiculously selfless throughout his career including a previous restructure. It's hard to ask again and again from a player that has literally been the best example of a football player and good person. Once again dre shows why he is the best when he does stuff like this. I have no issue with FO not asking dre for this.
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3rd.

But also what others have said. Restructuring would just free up space this next season, but pushes the burden in future years.
 
GP said:
Yeah, it's probably never crossed their minds. I mean, the front office really doesn't think about stuff like that.

Meanwhile back on planet earth, the Texans have a history of re-working deals with many of its players, for the purpose of creating more cap space.

If AJ says he wants to do it, it means he might have been unwilling before now. It's their finances, and a player and his agent are going to look out for number 1 first. The front office of any team will be more team-focused than any other department in the franchise.

THINK.
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C'mon...a history of restructuring deals? I guess technically you are correct since they have restructured a deal or 2 in the past, but Smith & the FO are far from being known to work all angles & create space were space didn't seem to exist like many other FO's whom somehow continue to add pieces as opposed to losing more & more yr in & yr out. These types of moves should've been made early on if feasible & yet they haven't & we have a player saying he is willing....yet hasn't happened as players keep leaving town. Maybe you ought to send the "THINK" memo to Smith quickly because there isn't much getting done & in its current state this team isn't getting better. Thats something to "THINK" about.
 
dream_team said:
3rd.

But also what others have said. Restructuring would just free up space this next season, but pushes the burden in future years.
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It does push some of the burden down the road, but that will effect years in which many expect the salary cap to increase. In other words, the burden in those larger salary cap years might not be that bad compared to relief that it would provide now to help add a piece or 2 to remain competitive.

We don't know the future salary cap numbers, but many expect it to increase as opposed to it remaining the same, it surely won't decrease, so making a move now doesn't necessarily mean complete doom imo.
 
How many times are we going to go the "Andre will restructure" well in order to "win now"? How many times has Andre restructured already?

Maybe I'm missing something, but, is Ed Reed THAT important? I would have given my left testicle for him two years ago. But, now? I don't know. Does he still have any gas left? And, is whatever gas that's left worth it for Andre to restructure (which, as others have said, will only push these issues down the road, which will be worse in the long run)?

I'm not one of those "panic" people, and in no way am I panicking in this case. But sometimes I really don't understand this team.
 
tru80texan said:
C'mon...a history of restructuring deals? I guess technically you are correct since they have restructured a deal or 2 in the past, but Smith & the FO are far from being known to work all angles & create space were space didn't seem to exist like many other FO's whom somehow continue to add pieces as opposed to losing more & more yr in & yr out. These types of moves should've been made early on if feasible & yet they haven't & we have a player saying he is willing....yet hasn't happened as players keep leaving town. Maybe you ought to send the "THINK" memo to Smith quickly because there isn't much getting done & in its current state this team isn't getting better. Thats something to "THINK" about.
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It's more than "a deal or two."

No big deal, man. But all of us on here call out one another on stuff like this. I even get called out on stuff.

The Texans, like any other team, are always thinking of every avenue to save money to then spend in improving the team.

The claim was that AJ reached out when really our front office should have done that first. Do you think that the front office announces any and all communication they have with players and agents? What is gained by publicly announcing you've asked AJ to restructure??? Not only is nothing gained, but you actually lose leverage in early stages of negotiations!

Think.
 
houstonspartan said:
How many times are we going to go the "Andre will restructure" well in order to "win now"? How many times has Andre restructured already?

Maybe I'm missing something, but, is Ed Reed THAT important? I would have given my left testicle for him two years ago. But, now? I don't know. Does he still have any gas left? And, is whatever gas that's left worth it for Andre to restructure (which, as others have said, will only push these issues down the road, which will be worse in the long run)?

I'm not one of those "panic" people, and in no way am I panicking in this case. But sometimes I really don't understand this team.
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After rewatching all 4 Ravens play-offs games, I would say that Ed Reed still has plenty left in his tank.

The Texans don't need AJ to restructure to ink Reed to a contract that cost somewhere between 5-6M, but if they want to acquire another FA, like a number 2 receiver, then they will need to.

There are other things they can do, for example, if they like The Ninja enough, they can extend his contract for a couple of years (at a lower rate than his current contract), gives him some money up front (about $2-3M) to get the cap space.

It doesn't make the burden much heavier.

Once they win the SB next year, they can cut Schaub to make everybody double-happy and still have plenty to redo Cushing's contract. :)
 
GP said:
It's more than "a deal or two."

No big deal, man. But all of us on here call out one another on stuff like this. I even get called out on stuff.

The Texans, like any other team, are always thinking of every avenue to save money to then spend in improving the team.

The claim was that AJ reached out when really our front office should have done that first. Do you think that the front office announces any and all communication they have with players and agents? What is gained by publicly announcing you've asked AJ to restructure??? Not only is nothing gained, but you actually lose leverage in early stages of negotiations!

Think.
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A deal or 2 was an exaggeration because it doesn't hapoen that often w/ the Texans. Last year consisted of 3, if I recall correctly, which included a restructure for Manning & 2 pay cuts to Nolan & Walter. Not ground breaking FO stuff there, but it does qualify. Not all teams announce their intentions to ask players to restructure, but it is done. As recently as Elway saying to the media that it needed to happen w/ Dumervil before yesterdays actions. So it does get announced by some. My point was AJ should not have to reach out. If feasible & helps the team then that option should've been explored beforehand & been done. The FO should know & exhaust its options BEFORE allowing players to continue to leave town. That doesn't seem to be the case here. That was my point.

I think the big difference between us on this is the faith we have in the Texans FO. I don't have much faith in Smith & its not improving, while you seem to have some left in you. The being called out on difference of opinion is not a problem. So no worries there, that's part of it. But you can't honestly say this team is better in its current state based on Smith's recent actions or lack thereof.
 
Most restructures (including every restructure Andre's ever done) consist of paying the upcoming salary above the minimum, as a bonus in one lump sum, and then dividing that sum evenly over the years remaining on the contract for cap purposes. If it involves a pay cut, that's typically a known fact (see Kevin Walter in 2012), and believe me, players don't initiate that conversation.

While I'm guessing most on this board are not "under contract", it would be the equivalent of your employer coming to you and saying we'd like to pay you 80% of next year's salary this minute, with the remaining 20% being paid out like you normally get your salary. And the best part is that it makes it more expensive for your employer to get rid of you, so you'll have that going for you down the road.

The reality is that for these type of restructures, there's actually a benefit to the player, and a very real potential long-term cost to the team for doing them. Best case scenario, the team creates current cap room and uses up future cap room (ie: break even). Worst case, they create new guaranteed money that could either become dead money down the road, or force them to keep someone they'd rather not because it's too expensive to cut them.
 
houstonspartan said:
How many times are we going to go the "Andre will restructure" well in order to "win now"? How many times has Andre restructured already?

Maybe I'm missing something, but, is Ed Reed THAT important? I would have given my left testicle for him two years ago. But, now? I don't know. Does he still have any gas left? And, is whatever gas that's left worth it for Andre to restructure (which, as others have said, will only push these issues down the road, which will be worse in the long run)?

I'm not one of those "panic" people, and in no way am I panicking in this case. But sometimes I really don't understand this team.
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I don't think Ed Reed is that important, BUT I do think filling a hole or 2 on the team with quality players is. If its Reed, then so be it but I think something needs to be done because 1 draft class will not fill all the needs w/ instant quality starters or at least the odds are against it & most of Smith's success stories have been players that have developed as opposed to instant success. I actually believe its time to go to plan B & give players such as Huff & Mikell a call. They could fill the gap & possibly be cheaper. The quicker the better, imo, because a lot of time has been wasted on Reed & the other players surely aren't waiting on the Texans.
 
If Andre restructures and that leads to issues in re-signing Cushing and JJ Watt in the future, then don't do it.
 
ChampionTexan said:
Most restructures (including every restructure Andre's ever done) consist of paying the upcoming salary above the minimum, as a bonus in one lump sum, and then dividing that sum evenly over the years remaining on the contract for cap purposes. If it involves a pay cut, that's typically a known fact (see Kevin Walter in 2012), and believe me, players don't initiate that conversation.

While I'm guessing most on this board are not "under contract", it would be the equivalent of your employer coming to you and saying we'd like to pay you 80% of next year's salary this minute, with the remaining 20% being paid out like you normally get your salary. And the best part is that it makes it more expensive for your employer to get rid of you, so you'll have that going for you down the road.

The reality is that for these type of restructures, there's actually a benefit to the player, and a very real potential long-term cost to the team for doing them. Best case scenario, the team creates current cap room and uses up future cap room (ie: break even). Worst case, they create new guaranteed money that could either become dead money down the road, or force them to keep someone they'd rather not because it's too expensive to cut them.
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Back in the early days of free agency, I believe it was unheard of for a player to play out the portion of his contract where he was due a large sum of money, the $16M+ Mario received his last two seasons here, the $12M Dumerville was supposed to get this year.

I don't know what to think about Andre's $15M cap number. I'm pretty sure much of that is already pro rated from earlier years. I'm not sure that restructuring again would help us as much as you'd think. Maybe only save us $3M & not $8M or $10M.

But yeah, I'm sure the Texans have already talked to a number of players about restructuring if needed.
 
tru80texan said:
My point was AJ should not have to reach out. If feasible & helps the team then that option should've been explored beforehand & been done. The FO should know & exhaust its options BEFORE allowing players to continue to leave town. That doesn't seem to be the case here. That was my point.
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Context is important and we only know a little of it. It is entirely plausible the Texans believe a fair max value for Reed is $6 mil and that they already had that money available so there was no need to ask for a restructure. Remember AJ was actively involved in this. AJ asks how the negotiations are going with Reed and they tell him we are still a mil apart and AJ says heck I'll restructure to close that gap. That isn't a lack of planning thing. Any GM would be stupid to walk into a negotiation with no upper limit on what they wanted to spend.
 
infantrycak said:
Context is important and we only know a little of it. It is entirely plausible the Texans believe a fair max value for Reed is $6 mil and that they already had that money available so there was no need to ask for a restructure. Remember AJ was actively involved in this. AJ asks how the negotiations are going with Reed and they tell him we are still a mil apart and AJ says heck I'll restructure to close that gap. That isn't a lack of planning thing. Any GM would be stupid to walk into a negotiation with no upper limit on what they wanted to spend.
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You are correct. Context is key & we know only a small portion of it, but my point was not just for signing Reed but creating space to sign others as well. That's why I mentioned "players" as opposed to player. If they truly wanted room to wiggle to resign players such as Quin, Barwin, & Casey then the FO should've already reached out to certain players & at least have accomplished 1 or 2 task to create space & retain or sign players. Being that nothing has truly happened as far restructures or extentions & players continue leave as opposed to staying then it does not seem Smith is accomplishing much. The same cannot be said about others such as the Pats, Broncos, & even the Colts. They have all seemingly gotten better as it seems the Texans have gotten worse. My concern goes beyond just signing Reed.
 
tru80texan said:
You are correct. Context is key & we know only a small portion of it, but my point was not just for signing Reed but creating space to sign others as well. That's why I mentioned "players" as opposed to player. If they truly wanted room to wiggle to resign players such as Quin, Barwin, & Casey then the FO should've already reached out to certain players & at least have accomplished 1 or 2 task to create space & retain or sign players. Being that nothing has truly happened as far restructures or extentions & players continue leave as opposed to staying then it does not seem Smith is accomplishing much. The same cannot be said about others such as the Pats, Broncos, & even the Colts. They have all seemingly gotten better as it seems the Texans have gotten worse. My concern goes beyond just signing Reed.
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Apparently they didn't think it was worth restructuring anyone to resign those players. I am not in favor of restructuring just to create space unless there is a perceived specific need for it. I am just more patient about this. I'll judge it at the end.
 
infantrycak said:
Apparently they didn't think it was worth restructuring anyone to resign those players. I am not in favor of restructuring just to create space unless there is a perceived specific need for it. I am just more patient about this. I'll judge it at the end.
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Although the one guy I thought they would mess with was Antonio. I thought they would re-sign him (lower his cap this year) and extend his deal 2 seasons.
 
Brisco_County said:
While I do think Andre is an unselfish person, restructures aren't an act of generosity when it pays the player more money up front. This is why I'm hoping we don't spend too much money in free agency. It'd be nice to get some guaranteed money off the books to pursue Cushing and Watt.
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Ready to throw in the towel in the season then just because we have other guys to re-sign in other seasons? What sense does that make then? With that approach we'd have to do it every season because there will always be guys to re-sign.
 
Texecutioner said:
Ready to throw in the towel in the season then just because we have other guys to re-sign in other seasons? What sense does that make then? With that approach we'd have to do it every season because there will always be guys to re-sign.
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LOL I think you're taking way too far OR you don't fully understand the cap. Most deals are back loaded, we have a lot of contracts already getting ready to EXPLODE in value (Matt, Andre, JJo, SMith etc) and if we keep re-structuring their deals eventually we will owe 20 million for someone (like Andre) and then we will be handicapped in our ability to sign Cushing and Watt and guys will be cut (like Winston and Ryans were). Its a very complex system that got really tight the last 2 years thats why so many teams cut players. Notice MOST of the teams spending money sucked for a long time (some are good now) and the great players they have are young and haven't gotten their full contracts (Niners, Lions, Chiefs). Those teams will struggle in a few years when it comes time to keep their great young talent.
 
the wonger need food said:
With the Texans up against the cap and AJ wanting a championship, it appears that he has offered to restructure his contact again to relieve some of the roughly $15M his salary counts this year.


Per Randy Harvey...

https://twitter.com/randyharvey/status/312775035557396480
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this is utter BS. in fact this whole taking pay cuts is freaking unconstitutional and its a travesty that the nfl players union is getting screwed over because demaurice smith is a sheep in wolves clothing.

nfl players are getting screwed over and they need to redo their deal. the nfl is the #1 sport in america yet nfl players dont have guaranteed contracts and they are always taking pay cuts.

If anybody needs to restructure their contract its matt schaub.
 
Jules Winnfield said:
this is utter BS. in fact this whole taking pay cuts is freaking unconstitutional and its a travesty that the nfl players union is getting screwed over because demaurice smith is a sheep in wolves clothing.

nfl players are getting screwed over and they need to redo their deal. the nfl is the #1 sport in america yet nfl players dont have guaranteed contracts and they are always taking pay cuts.

If anybody needs to restructure their contract its matt schaub.
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Dre has restructured his contract more than once. He never took a pay cut. He wouldn't be taking one this time either.

Restructurings usually aren't pay cuts - or if they are, it's made clear that a reduction is part of it.
 
Jules Winnfield said:
this is utter BS. in fact this whole taking pay cuts is freaking unconstitutional and its a travesty that the nfl players union is getting screwed over because demaurice smith is a sheep in wolves clothing.

nfl players are getting screwed over and they need to redo their deal. the nfl is the #1 sport in america yet nfl players dont have guaranteed contracts and they are always taking pay cuts.

If anybody needs to restructure their contract its matt schaub.
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Regular everyday people don't sign contracts for their job either

"Son welcome to Walmart we are gonna sign u to a 3 year deal at 25000 a year with no money guaranteed and no signing bonus"

Give me a damn break..... NFL players got it so hard haha

Dude in the real world we don't get contracts they can fire us anyway they want, but ohhh these poor nfl players in making millions a year. Get real dude
 
Jules Winnfield said:
this is utter BS. in fact this whole taking pay cuts is freaking unconstitutional and its a travesty that the nfl players union is getting screwed over because demaurice smith is a sheep in wolves clothing.

nfl players are getting screwed over and they need to redo their deal. the nfl is the #1 sport in america yet nfl players dont have guaranteed contracts and they are always taking pay cuts.

If anybody needs to restructure their contract its matt schaub.
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Nice job of displaying a lack of NFL knowledge. Restructures benefit the players. They get their money earlier. They convert salary into bonus which is paid immediately and then is spread across the years of the contract lowering this year's cap hit (but increasing it in later years). Otherwise that was a great rant.
 
Restructures are beneficial for both sides in the short term. It's not a pay decrease, restructures free up cap room and typically accelerate payments to the player.

No need to shed a tear for Andre or any other NFL player for that matter. In no other business in the history of the world do employees get 50% of a company's revenue without risking a single penny of their own.
 
This piece from NationalFootballPost covers anything you need to know about restructuring in detail.

Ten players who could restructure their contracts

by Joel Corry
February 27, 02013


Contract restructurings have been on the rise since the lockout ended because there has been minimal growth in the cap. With the salary cap expected to only increase from $120.6 million to $122 million this year, there could be plenty of restructurings before the 2013 league year begins on March 12 when all teams must be under the cap.

A contract restructuring is different from a pay cut. In a typical restructuring, a player will convert some portion of his base salary or roster bonus (without reducing salary) into a signing bonus because it can be prorated or spread out evenly over the life of a contract (most other salary components usually can’t be prorated) for a maximum of five years. The team gets a lower cap number in the current season while the player gains more short-term security and potentially a better payment schedule in the current year of his contract. The player’s cap numbers in the remaining contract years also increase, which can make him more susceptible to becoming a cap casualty in the future.

For example, Eli Manning created $6.75 million of cap room for the New York Giants when he lowered his 2012 cap number from $16.35 million to $9.6 million by converting $9 million of his $10.75 million 2012 base salary into a signing bonus. As signing bonus, the Giants were able to prorate this $9 million over the four years left on his contract. Manning’s 2013, 2014 and 2015 cap numbers each increased by $2.25 million to $20.85 million, $20.4 million and $19.75 million with the restructuring.

Players can restructure their contracts at any time, including multiple times in the same season. There isn’t a limitation on how many consecutive years a player can restructure his contract. However, once a player receives a salary increase when reworking his contract, he can’t receive another salary increase for one year.

Here’s a look at ten players—with their 2013 cap numbers—who could be candidates to restructure their contracts in the coming weeks.
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The candidates they write about include AJ
 
It sure seems like they could be doing some creative things to free up cap space with overpriced contracts like Antonio Smith, Owen Daniels and Joseph. Instead it just seems like they're content with being slightly above mediocre as long as the seats are sold. There are now tons of holes and little proven depth on this roster with no indication that anything is being done to fix it.
 
Jules Winnfield said:
this is utter BS. in fact this whole taking pay cuts is freaking unconstitutional and its a travesty that the nfl players union is getting screwed over because demaurice smith is a sheep in wolves clothing.

nfl players are getting screwed over and they need to redo their deal. the nfl is the #1 sport in america yet nfl players dont have guaranteed contracts and they are always taking pay cuts.

If anybody needs to restructure their contract its matt schaub.
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LOL. Wow.

Unconstitutional?

It is often a chance to alter the payment SCHEDULE, not always a chance to reduce the pay itself.
 
2slik4u said:
Meh. Andre has been ridiculously selfless throughout his career including a previous restructure. It's hard to ask again and again from a player that has literally been the best example of a football player and good person. Once again dre shows why he is the best when he does stuff like this. I have no issue with FO not asking dre for this.
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Well he did ask for a raise when he still had 5 years left on a team friendly contract. That plus a restructure last year has made his contract extremely cap prohibitive for 2013.
 
JamesBill said:
Well he did ask for a raise when he still had 5 years left on a team friendly contract. That plus a restructure last year has made his contract extremely cap prohibitive for 2013.
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Still, he's only the 7th or 8th highest paid receiver in the league.
The cap hit of a certain player in a certain year is not as important as the over all cap for the team going forward.

It looks to me like the Texans have been quite responsible in the way they spend money.
 
76Texan said:
Still, he's only the 7th or 8th highest paid receiver in the league.
The cap hit of a certain player in a certain year is not as important as the over all cap for the team going forward.

It looks to me like the Texans have been quite responsible in the way they spend money.
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Been thinking about some things, going to share them now:

Three guys upstairs: Bob, Rick, and Gary.

Out of these three guys, which guy has the most pressure upon him?

Bob is the owner. What REAL ramifications await him on a daily basis? I mean, at the end of the day if his team is profitable, if it's valued as high as we all know it is by Forbes' standards, and if fans are pouring through the parking lots and stadium doors on almost a religious basis...Bob is fine. He's good to go.

Gary is the head coach. He has to be responsible for the football product on the field. So he obtains his assistants, he pinpoints what players we need, he trusts he scouting departments and the guidance of his owner and GM to shape what he thinks is the best team he can create out there.

Rick is the general manager. His role is to manage practically everything, in a sense, especially things affecting MONEY now and MONEY later. Sure, there are departments headed up by other important personnel. But face it, at the end of the day it's Rick's ass on the line for the operations side.

I think the toughest job of the three is Rick's. He's between the owner and the head coach. Rick has to juggle a lot of balls, if you know what I mean.

We've got an owner and a head coach who don't operate in the world that the general manager operates within. On either side of Rick, it appears he's got two guys in Bob and Gary who each want us to be as loyal to guys as we can be...and I see Rick as a guy who is ruggedly opposed to wasting time and resources for such things as loyalty and honor.

When we hear of players being pissed off at the Texans, when they go to their new teams, who are they pissed off at? They aren't mad at Bob. They aren't mad at Gary. I'd bet a donut they're aiming the barbs at the GM.

Rick is an assassin. He gladly relishes the "bad cop" role. Before him, we had so much dead money on the books...via Casserly's incompetence...that it affected us for about three or four years after Casserly left. I think Rick has managed the team well. Not perfect, and sure...it could be that Rick has pushed for some of the bad contracts such as Schaub's...at the end of the day, though, taking everything into consideration, I'd say Rick Smith is doing a pretty good job of things so far.

Anybody here think it was Bob or Gary who decided to not even make an offer to Mario? Which guy of those three do all of you think was the one pushing for Winston to get unceremoniously released? Who do we think pushed to trade Ryans and get value out of him...Bob? Nah. Gary? Nah. A-hole Rick Smith? Yep.

Good heavens, I don't even want to think about what type of wussy-centric team we'd have right now if we had a noodle-wristed GM at the controls. We'd be so dysfunctional, we'd be at the bottom of our division and wondering why were still there.
 
76Texan said:
Still, he's only the 7th or 8th highest paid receiver in the league.
The cap hit of a certain player in a certain year is not as important as the over all cap for the team going forward.
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What numbers are you basing that on? I think with the escalator kicking in he earns more than everyone except Megatron and Fitz on the monster deals they signed.
 
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