DJ

[teegre]

Says he wants to be here. Says he won’t hold out, buuuuut… he also likened his situation to TJ’s preseason. :frusty:

SUMMATION:
Expect a holdout… and a trade.

[polamalubeast]

For more details

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1552314051639779330


I hope he will have a new contract but I do not know if the steelers will give one

The worst case scenario will be a hold-In

[Mojouw]

No need to borrow trouble. This team and roster has enough questions and tangible problems without worrying about a WR hold-in or hold-out that may never happen.

Paying DJ what the NFL market will currently support is a total luxury and not a great use of cap $$$ ---- HOWEVER --- the Steelers are going to flush with cap space for a few more years. This is the PERFECT kind of 3 year deal to sign DJ to now and then you can get out of it once more critical players become expensive.

[polamalubeast]

Maybe this is a non story....

1552354652649398280

[polamalubeast]

1552361715764953092

[steelreserve]

I really don't care how this turns out. He's pretty good, but he'd be about the 5th or 6th most impressive receiver we moved on from in the past decade. Plus we just drafted two more.

The only thing that could really hurt us is if we gave out a huge contract that he didn't live up to, or gave out a huge contract and then he turned into an asshole. I guess that moves me slightly into the "don't" column.

[polamalubeast]

1552379483184943105

[tube517]

who is DJ?

1552375696688685056 :chuckle:

[DesertSteel]

He's practicing... he's a hold-in... c'mon, which is it???

[polamalubeast]

Johnson is not the only one in the NFL....

1552412071685492741

[Hawkman]

It is what it is. DJ thinks he’s just as important to the Steelers as Cam, Fitzpatrick, and TJ……He’s not, and he needs to understand that or go away. Frankly, he’s on his rookie deal and still makes some rookie mistakes. Let’s all see how he does with an unknown QB. “How bout cha”.

[teegre]

Practice, no practice, hold out, hold in, et cetera.

The second he compared his situation to TJ’s… I knew that this was going to turn into a sh!tshow.

[steelreserve]

It is what it is. DJ thinks he’s just as important to the Steelers as Cam, Fitzpatrick, and TJ……He’s not, and he needs to understand that or go away. Frankly, he’s on his rookie deal and still makes some rookie mistakes. Let’s all see how he does with an unknown QB. “How bout cha”.

Yeah, I mean, if I was a receiver on a rookie contract, and my team drafted two new receivers, and also had a new quarterback which means anything can happen in the upcoming season ... Nothing about that would make me think the team wanted to tear up my contract and pay me $20 million a year at the start of training camp. More like oh shit, this is going to be a complete free-for-all, so I'd better kick some ass if I want to be back on the team at all, and same if I want a big contract somewhere else.

Like come on, Johnson, read the room. I wonder if this is his idea, or if he has an agent who's one of those idiots that thinks pro athletes are the same as slaves.

Well, in either case, the result will be the same: He feels slighted that he didn't get the big contract before THIS season, so next off-season he won't re-sign with Pittsburgh at any price. Have fun on the stupid Jets, hope you get a big signing bonus because that's about all the money you'll see from that contract.

[teegre]

Yeah, I mean, if I was a receiver on a rookie contract, and my team drafted two new receivers, and also had a new quarterback which means anything can happen in the upcoming season ... Nothing about that would make me think the team wanted to tear up my contract and pay me $20 million a year at the start of training camp. More like oh shit, this is going to be a complete free-for-all, so I'd better kick some ass if I want to be back on the team at all, and same if I want a big contract somewhere else.

Like come on, Johnson, read the room. I wonder if this is his idea, or if he has an agent who's one of those idiots that thinks pro athletes are the same as slaves.

Well, in either case, the result will be the same: He feels slighted that he didn't get the big contract before THIS season, so next off-season he won't re-sign with Pittsburgh at any price. Have fun on the stupid Jets, hope you get a big signing bonus because that's about all the money you'll see from that contract.

Yep

Yep-yep

Yep-yep-yep

[Mojouw]

It’s one day of training camp. Who knows where it goes next. But if I was DJ and all these other WRs, I wouldn’t do diddly poo until the regular season without a new contract.

I’m not risking anything that interferes with my shot at getting paid life changing cash.

[Dwinsgames]

Steelers WR Diontae Johnson not fully participating in camp practice with contract situation lingering

[fansince'76]

He's nowhere near good enough for this to be worth possibly becoming a distraction to the team. It also appears he has a very inflated sense of his worth to the team. Going to the team MVP and reigning NFL DPOY for "pointers" on his "hold-in" was not very a wise move.

Let "Butterfingers" walk. Trade him.

[teegre]

LeVeon Bell chiming in… saying the ONLY difference between DJ and TJ is the color of their skin. :frusty:

As I said… sh!tshow.

[Dwinsgames]

who is DJ?

1552375696688685056 :chuckle:


Trade DJ now ......... the WR room is way to crowded IMO to have a guy like him spoil the barrel .......

we do not have a solidified QB or OC that has proven himself ( if the 5ypc average of practice 1 is any indicator times are not improving ) Ship this cat off to someone who needs a wr and get rid of the headache and butterfingers all in 1 shot while saving money ....

anyone ready to pony up a 2nd round pick I'm all ears

[dislocatedday]

LeVeon Bell chiming in… saying the ONLY difference between DJ and TJ is the color of their skin. :frusty:

As I said… sh!tshow.

I believe you Teegre, but I am going to go see this myself..........if Bell said that then this may be the dumbest thing he ever posted on his social media pages, and he has posted some dumb stuff over the years.

----UPDATE---

Bell did say/insinuate this on his twitter page

[Edman]

All you need to do is torment yourself again watching last January's Wildcard game and you'll see what Johnson brings to the table when the lights are brightest. It isn't good.

Johnson can sit out as long as he wishes. He won't be dropping the ball or running the wrong routes.

[86WARD]

Trade DJ now ......... the WR room is way to crowded IMO to have a guy like him spoil the barrel .......

we do not have a solidified QB or OC that has proven himself ( if the 5ypc average of practice 1 is any indicator times are not improving ) Ship this cat off to someone who needs a wr and get rid of the headache and butterfingers all in 1 shot while saving money ....

anyone ready to pony up a 2nd round pick I'm all ears

Trade DJ and then you have a Barrell of question marks. There’s no stability there. Upside is what? Downside is the Bears?

[steelreserve]

Trade DJ and then you have a Barrell of question marks. There’s no stability there. Upside is what? Downside is the Bears?

Keep him and you've still got all question marks. The guy is talented but still inconsistent as fuck, that doesn't give you "stability."

It's hard to really know from afar, but if all this is a hint of a developing ego, that would also be an instant nope. So one more question mark to add to the mix.

The dude just has not shown enough to be making demands, or staging "hold-ins," or any bullshit like that.

[DuckHodges]

LeVeon Bell chiming in… saying the ONLY difference between DJ and TJ is the color of their skin. :frusty:

As I said… sh!tshow.

Race card always gets pulled when someone has no argument, or a really weak one. Or in Le'Veon Bell's case, dude's never been very bright

[Mojouw]

LeVeon Bell chiming in… saying the ONLY difference between DJ and TJ is the color of their skin. :frusty:

As I said… sh!tshow.

Gotta stay of the socials of dudes that are struggling to avert their slide into irrelevance and financial obscurity.

Plus, Bell has it all wrong. The NFL isn't racist. It exploits players of all races equally.

[DuckHodges]

Gotta stay of the socials of dudes that are struggling to avert their slide into irrelevance and financial obscurity.

Plus, Bell has it all wrong. The NFL isn't racist. It exploits players of all races equally.

I'm willing to bet majority of the highest paid players at every position other than QB are black people

[Mojouw]

I'm willing to bet majority of the highest paid players at every position other than QB are black people

Sure. And whether a player is white, black, or purple -- the NFL will attempt to pay them as little as they can get away with for as long as they can and will stop paying them as soon as they do not perform up to expectations.

NFL teams and NFL players do not really have the same goals. At least when it comes to financials.

[RunNGun]

No need to borrow trouble. This team and roster has enough questions and tangible problems without worrying about a WR hold-in or hold-out that may never happen.

Paying DJ what the NFL market will currently support is a total luxury and not a great use of cap $$$ ---- HOWEVER --- the Steelers are going to flush with cap space for a few more years. This is the PERFECT kind of 3 year deal to sign DJ to now and then you can get out of it once more critical players become expensive.

Agreed. They should throw a 3 year take it or leave it deal at DJ. The problem is if he's set on a 4 year deal he likely won't play another down in Pittsburgh.

- - - Updated - - -


I'm willing to bet majority of the highest paid players at every position other than QB are black people

How dare you speak that kind of logic, but don't forget about TE and OL.

[steelreserve]

Sure. And whether a player is white, black, or purple -- the NFL will attempt to pay them as little as they can get away with for as long as they can and will stop paying them as soon as they do not perform up to expectations.

NFL teams and NFL players do not really have the same goals. At least when it comes to financials.

I mean ... the players are guaranteed a fixed percentage of total league revenue. Not sure how it's possible to be "exploited" when that's the case. Either you pay the money to one player, or you pay him less and pay the rest to a different player. Cut a guy early, and guess what, you're still dividing up the same amount of money among the same number of players.

It sounds like what you are arguing for is higher guaranteed salaries for veterans, which of course would mean it has to come out of some other player's pocket. That would mean lower rookie salaries and a longer wait before being eligible for free agency. Wouldn't that mean those players were being ... EXPLOITED?!?

[BlackAndGold]

1552790567867846656

$24m per year. DJ will continue to hold out

[EzraTank]

Johnson is not the only one in the NFL....

1552412071685492741I would trade DJ for Metcalf in a New York minute and give Metcalf the deal.

[tube517]

Metcalf just signed 3 year $72 million with $30 million guaranteed


1552791756214870016

[Mojouw]

I mean ... the players are guaranteed a fixed percentage of total league revenue. Not sure how it's possible to be "exploited" when that's the case. Either you pay the money to one player, or you pay him less and pay the rest to a different player. Cut a guy early, and guess what, you're still dividing up the same amount of money among the same number of players.

It sounds like what you are arguing for is higher guaranteed salaries for veterans, which of course would mean it has to come out of some other player's pocket. That would mean lower rookie salaries and a longer wait before being eligible for free agency. Wouldn't that mean those players were being ... EXPLOITED?!?

Fully guaranteed contracts.
At least 50 % of revenue to the players. 60 % ideal.
Lower the rookie contract length. Most guys are out of the league before those deals are over.

Let’s not pretend that the economics of the NFL benefit anyone but the owners. They have more and better lawyers and a unified resolve when CBA negations take place.

[steelreserve]

Fully guaranteed contracts.
At least 50 % of revenue to the players. 60 % ideal.
Lower the rookie contract length. Most guys are out of the league before those deals are over.

Let’s not pretend that the economics of the NFL benefit anyone but the owners. They have more and better lawyers and a unified resolve when CBA negations take place.

You want fully guaranteed contracts AND shorter rookie contracts? Well then guess what, either the star players are going to have to take about a 50% pay cut (yeah right) or you are going to have a hell of a lot of guys playing for the league minimum on one-year deals. Because you are basically proposing that every team allocate about a third of its salary cap to dead money being paid to guys who are washed up or injured or just couldn't pull their weight.

If what you are really saying is that the owners keep too much of the pie for themselves, that's another story, but I don't think they do. Tom Cruise makes tons and tons of money acting in movies, but the studio makes more. The other actors in the supporting cast make even less. Is that fair? Well, how much money could Tom Cruise make without the studio? No cameramen, no script, no director, no stunt doubles, no props, no special effects, no budget. I guess maybe Tom Cruise could organize all that himself, but he's not exactly known for being the smartest son of a bitch in the world. How good of a movie do you think he'd put out if you just handed him a camera and said "ok, Tom - GO!"

If you're not convinced by that, how about all the supporting actors? They don't just need the studio, they need Tom Cruise too, or else no one's going to come watch their shitty movie. Just like the NFL, most of them never make it big either; but also just like the NFL - that's showbiz.

So sure, while the players are the ones providing the product on the field - without the stage being provided by the league, they aren't getting paid shit. 50-50 (which is pretty damn close to what it is now) does not seem to me like they're getting hosed.

The hell of it is, even if you are a scrub who doesn't make it past your rookie contract, you already made more money than most working stiffs earn in 20 years. And just like a supporting actor who appeared in a few big-budget movies, you've got plenty of opportunities to continue making a decent living in periphery of the same field, or teaching others the ropes, once your career entertaining people is over. There is plenty of demand for people who know the game of football, just as there is plenty of demand for people who know acting. Or you can use your money and a little bit of recognition as a springboard to become successful at something else. It's a golden ticket for life if you play your cards right. And the smart ones do.

It's no one else's fault that a lot of these people (in both businesses) are just dickheads who can't get their lives together once they're out of the spotlight. And guess what, even if those guys had the benefit of fully guaranteed contracts, they'd still fuck it up just the same. I don't think the pay scale of the NFL has much to do at all with what happens to most players after football.

[Mojouw]

You want fully guaranteed contracts AND shorter rookie contracts? Well then guess what, either the star players are going to have to take about a 50% pay cut (yeah right) or you are going to have a hell of a lot of guys playing for the league minimum on one-year deals. Because you are basically proposing that every team allocate about a third of its salary cap to dead money being paid to guys who are washed up or injured or just couldn't pull their weight.

If what you are really saying is that the owners keep too much of the pie for themselves, that's another story, but I don't think they do. Tom Cruise makes tons and tons of money acting in movies, but the studio makes more. The other actors in the supporting cast make even less. Is that fair? Well, how much money could Tom Cruise make without the studio? No cameramen, no script, no director, no stunt doubles, no props, no special effects, no budget. I guess maybe Tom Cruise could organize all that himself, but he's not exactly known for being the smartest son of a bitch in the world. How good of a movie do you think he'd put out if you just handed him a camera and said "ok, Tom - GO!"

If you're not convinced by that, how about all the supporting actors? They don't just need the studio, they need Tom Cruise too, or else no one's going to come watch their shitty movie. Just like the NFL, most of them never make it big either; but also just like the NFL - that's showbiz.

So sure, while the players are the ones providing the product on the field - without the stage being provided by the league, they aren't getting paid shit. 50-50 (which is pretty damn close to what it is now) does not seem to me like they're getting hosed.

The hell of it is, even if you are a scrub who doesn't make it past your rookie contract, you already made more money than most working stiffs earn in 20 years. And just like a supporting actor who appeared in a few big-budget movies, you've got plenty of opportunities to continue making a decent living in periphery of the same field, or teaching others the ropes, once your career entertaining people is over. There is plenty of demand for people who know the game of football, just as there is plenty of demand for people who know acting. Or you can use your money and a little bit of recognition as a springboard to become successful at something else. It's a golden ticket for life if you play your cards right. And the smart ones do.

It's no one else's fault that a lot of these people (in both businesses) are just dickheads who can't get their lives together once they're out of the spotlight. And guess what, even if those guys had the benefit of fully guaranteed contracts, they'd still fuck it up just the same. I don't think the pay scale of the NFL has much to do at all with what happens to most players after football.

All the dead money stuff could be figured out. Baseball does it and no one complains. The cap is a totally invented and arbitrary phenomena.

The Mets are still paying Bobby Bonilla and it hasn't prevented them from doing anything they want with current contracts.

As to the issue with what happens to players in their lives...not relevant? I don't care what these guys do or don't do off the field.

The economics of their sport is totally skewed towards ownership and I think it sucks for the great majority of NFL players. The NFL, and all pro sports, positions most players as meat for the grinder. Not a shocking or new take.

[steelreserve]

All the dead money stuff could be figured out. Baseball does it and no one complains. The cap is a totally invented and arbitrary phenomena.

The Mets are still paying Bobby Bonilla and it hasn't prevented them from doing anything they want with current contracts.

As to the issue with what happens to players in their lives...not relevant? I don't care what these guys do or don't do off the field.

The economics of their sport is totally skewed towards ownership and I think it sucks for the great majority of NFL players. The NFL, and all pro sports, positions most players as meat for the grinder. Not a shocking or new take.

I'm not sure I fully understand what you want at this point either. What good do guaranteed contracts do for the 85% of guys who only last a couple seasons in the league? For that matter, what good do they do the 15% who hit the big time and don't really need them? It's just a few guys here and there who would really benefit - and mostly highly paid guys who are past their prime, not young hungry players.

If these guys are "meat for the grinder" at an average of like $4M a year and a minimum of close to $1M - is what amounts to a 10-15% pay raise really going to change your opinion that much? Like if the guys at the top get an extra $1M a year and the scrubs get an extra $100K, then we're all good? Somehow I don't think you'd be happy even then.

Unless you think there is some alternate timeline where you can just set down a Super Bowl trophy and several pallets of $1 billion cash in some vacant lot in front of 1,500 guys, and they will not step all over each other to get it - it is ALWAYS going to be a cutthroat business.

[Mojouw]

I'm not sure I fully understand what you want at this point either. What good do guaranteed contracts do for the 85% of guys who only last a couple seasons in the league? For that matter, what good do they do the 15% who hit the big time and don't really need them? It's just a few guys here and there who would really benefit - and mostly highly paid guys who are past their prime, not young hungry players.

If these guys are "meat for the grinder" at an average of like $4M a year and a minimum of close to $1M - is what amounts to a 10-15% pay raise really going to change your opinion that much? Like if the guys at the top get an extra $1M a year and the scrubs get an extra $100K, then we're all good? Somehow I don't think you'd be happy even then.

Unless you think there is some alternate timeline where you can just set down a Super Bowl trophy and several pallets of $1 billion cash in some vacant lot in front of 1,500 guys, and they will not step all over each other to get it - it is ALWAYS going to be a cutthroat business.

There’s always going to be a “stars and scrubs” imbalance in any CBA. Every player will always vote for mechanics that make the high end contracts more lucrative because all elite athletes are wired to think that will be them at some point.

All I’m saying is that players should get 50-60% of the revenue pie and that there should be a method to payout contracts despite injury or degradation in play. Maybe so many can be “hidden” from the cap each year. I’m far too dumb to figure out the process.

And you’re 100% correct that nothing can take the cut-throat nature off the table.

I just think it’s worth acknowledging how lopsided it can be. Take Najee Harris. His whole career could easily be shorter than his rookie contract.

Vince Williams is another example. Maybe some sort of NBA style “vet exception” let’s teams keep players like that another year or two.

I don’t have answers or even sound ideas. But I do think that players have a point when they argue the current economic structure exploits their labor.

[steelreserve]

There’s always going to be a “stars and scrubs” imbalance in any CBA. Every player will always vote for mechanics that make the high end contracts more lucrative because all elite athletes are wired to think that will be them at some point.

All I’m saying is that players should get 50-60% of the revenue pie and that there should be a method to payout contracts despite injury or degradation in play. Maybe so many can be “hidden” from the cap each year. I’m far too dumb to figure out the process.

And you’re 100% correct that nothing can take the cut-throat nature off the table.

I just think it’s worth acknowledging how lopsided it can be. Take Najee Harris. His whole career could easily be shorter than his rookie contract.

Vince Williams is another example. Maybe some sort of NBA style “vet exception” let’s teams keep players like that another year or two.

I don’t have answers or even sound ideas. But I do think that players have a point when they argue the current economic structure exploits their labor.

There are certainly many ways they could improve the cap/contract situation to help players who catch a tough break, and in fact you've named a few of them already. But I would never in a million years say they are "exploited" under the current system either. Even the mediocre players in the NFL are highly paid to do their dream job. They're famous and they get to bang hot chicks. Millions of guys fight each other tooth and nail for a chance at that job. If they were being exploited, don't you think word would get out and people wouldn't be so interested?

Given the violent nature of the game, it really would be better if they did something better to account for injuries. The idea of a cap exception for injured players is a good one (though lord would some coaches find ways to abuse it), and same with some type of veteran exception. They kind of have one now, but only if they sign for the league minimum (you get credit for the difference between the veteran minimum and the rookie minimum), but that does not really apply most of the time either.

I think a big problem is that things got so out of hand in the '80s and '90s with the good teams stockpiling talent and using cheap tricks to add aging veterans who were still good, that they tend to err on the side of not allowing any of that funny business, instead of what might make more sense for the players and the fans. Because if there is one thing that's certain, it's that if there's a loophole in the NFL cap rules, some dickhead will abuse it mercilessly and ruin it for everyone.

[DesertSteel]

Sure. And whether a player is white, black, or purple -- the NFL will attempt to pay them as little as they can get away with for as long as they can and will stop paying them as soon as they do not perform up to expectations.

NFL teams and NFL players do not really have the same goals. At least when it comes to financials.
I am definitely pro-management in this scenario. Players are overpaid.



Let’s not pretend that the economics of the NFL benefit anyone but the owners.

That's really laughable.

[Mojouw]

I am definitely pro-management in this scenario. Players are overpaid.



That's really laughable.

Why? Sure a small number of NFL players make serious life changing money. But the overwhelming majority do not.

https://howtheyplay.com/team-sports/Underpaid-NFL-Players

[DesertSteel]

Why? Sure a small number of NFL players make serious life changing money. But the overwhelming majority do not.

https://howtheyplay.com/team-sports/Underpaid-NFL-Players
As it is with other occupations, one's pay is commensurate with their abilities and contributions to the bottom line. As for the minimum salary players, they still make more in ONE YEAR than an average blue collar worker makes in 10 years. FOR PLAYING A GAME.

[steelreserve]

Why? Sure a small number of NFL players make serious life changing money. But the overwhelming majority do not.

https://howtheyplay.com/team-sports/Underpaid-NFL-Players

Why should every player get life-changing money? You play a smaller role, you get smaller pay.

If you're a backup who lasts a couple years mostly playing special teams, then guess what, you're a bit player. "Grocery Store Customer #2" in the credits, and your one line was "oh shit, man!" Sure, someone needs to play the role, but they're never going to get paid the same as the Oscar-winning lead actress with big tits.

What it boils down to is that the competition for pay is just is stiff as the competition for a championship. You have to be better than other professional football players to make it big. People do not show up to watch Ryan Mundy get pass interference penalties. Does he really need a big pay raise?

Harsh as that may be, it's still a competition where the 1500th-place prize every year is a million dollars. Fuck yeah, most people would sign up for that.

[Mojouw]

I think the players are generating 15+ billion in revenue and they should see more of it.

Sure, we view it as a game. But clearly we also value it to the tune of tens of billions of dollars a year.

Also, I remember watching Bettie struggle to take the stairs in his own home before Thursday of each week. Also read about the totally degraded physical condition most former players find themselves in by middle age.

The game takes a massive toll. I think even pass interference machines deserve a bigger slice of the cash to balance those scales.

A lot of this looks goofy from a Steelers perspective. They’re far better to their players than almost any other organization. Actually paying out contracts and doing things like what they did for Shazier.

The older I get, the less attractive the entire package seems - aside from about the top 5 guys on each team.

Also, because we don’t pay labor enough in one industry (and people wonder why there’s a shortage in the trades) is not a reason to pay another group less.

[DesertSteel]

Why should every player get life-changing money? You play a smaller role, you get smaller pay.

If you're a backup who lasts a couple years mostly playing special teams, then guess what, you're a bit player. "Grocery Store Customer #2" in the credits, and your one line was "oh shit, man!" Sure, someone needs to play the role, but they're never going to get paid the same as the Oscar-winning lead actress with big tits.

What it boils down to is that the competition for pay is just is stiff as the competition for a championship. You have to be better than other professional football players to make it big. People do not show up to watch Ryan Mundy get pass interference penalties. Does he really need a big pay raise?

Harsh as that may be, it's still a competition where the 1500th-place prize every year is a million dollars. Fuck yeah, most people would sign up for that.

Plus, having played in the NFL opens a lot of doors for the rest of your life. Sure, if you're a douchebag, it won't help as much, but if you're a decent person and half-way intelligent, you can profit from your 2-3 years in the league for 40 years in real-world opportunities.

- - - Updated - - -


Why should every player get life-changing money? You play a smaller role, you get smaller pay.

If you're a backup who lasts a couple years mostly playing special teams, then guess what, you're a bit player. "Grocery Store Customer #2" in the credits, and your one line was "oh shit, man!" Sure, someone needs to play the role, but they're never going to get paid the same as the Oscar-winning lead actress with big tits.

What it boils down to is that the competition for pay is just is stiff as the competition for a championship. You have to be better than other professional football players to make it big. People do not show up to watch Ryan Mundy get pass interference penalties. Does he really need a big pay raise?

Harsh as that may be, it's still a competition where the 1500th-place prize every year is a million dollars. Fuck yeah, most people would sign up for that.

Plus, having played in the NFL opens a lot of doors for the rest of your life. Sure, if you're a douchebag, it won't help as much, but if you're a decent person and half-way intelligent, you can profit from your 2-3 years in the league for 40 years in real-world opportunities.

[Dwinsgames]

Why? Sure a small number of NFL players make serious life changing money. But the overwhelming majority do not.

https://howtheyplay.com/team-sports/Underpaid-NFL-Players

a few million a year for a couple years is very life changing for most people ...

you do not have to get Mahomes money for it to be considered life changing ...

I mean the vast majority of the population wont make in a lifetime what the average NFL contract pays per year https://www.statista.com/statistics/675385/average-nfl-salary-by-team/

[86WARD]

It’s not a game. It’s a form of entertainment used to generate money. It’s no different than a blockbuster movie. Really, it’s no different than watching the Jersey Shore, The Bachelor or some dumb reality TV Show. There’s no reason Patrick Mahomes shouldn’t be paid like Robert Downey Jr. They both get paid to entertain and that’s all it is. The NFL is far past “just being a game”. Light years passed that. If you want to watch the sport of football as a game, the best you can do is high school football. Anything above that is an entertainment business. The bottom entertainer in the NFL probably gets paid much more than an extra in the Avengers franchise.

[Mojouw]

The average NFL career is 3 years. That is all rookie deal money.

Use Heyward as an example: After three years, he makes roughly $3 million.
Or Pickens, he cashes out at $6 million or so.

That sounds like a ton of cash....but it just isn't if you never make anymore $$$. Most retirement calculations do not view $5 million as enough to retire on at 65 much less at 28.

Obviously, many young men make the decision that the cost/benefit of a NFL career is worth it for them. And that is great. But no matter how you look at it the economics of the league is slanted to favor the owners not the players.

Remember, most owners do not plow the cash back into the franchise the way the Steelers do. Many teams do not spend to the cap annually - some struggle to make the salary floor. A number of teams play funny games with playing time and stats in order to avoid paying players incentives. Etc.

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The average NFL career is 3 years. That is all rookie deal money.

Use Heyward as an example: After three years, he makes roughly $3 million.
Or Pickens, he cashes out at $6 million or so.

That sounds like a ton of cash....but it just isn't if you never make anymore $$$. Most retirement calculations do not view $5 million as enough to retire on at 65 much less at 28.

Obviously, many young men make the decision that the cost/benefit of a NFL career is worth it for them. And that is great. But no matter how you look at it the economics of the league is slanted to favor the owners not the players.

Remember, most owners do not plow the cash back into the franchise the way the Steelers do. Many teams do not spend to the cap annually - some struggle to make the salary floor. A number of teams play funny games with playing time and stats in order to avoid paying players incentives. Etc.

[86WARD]

A number of teams play funny games with playing time and stats in order to avoid paying players incentives. Etc.

People say that but are there any concrete examples of a player being benched so they don’t hit an incentive? Maybe there are a lot but I don’t remember hearing a player bitch about that.

[Steeler-in-west]

Sheesh, the NFL is just reflective of corporate life in the US today. The owner of CEO’s make a 1000 times or more than what the average worker makes. The strong union days are long over - globalism destroyed that

[steelreserve]

The average NFL career is 3 years. That is all rookie deal money.

Use Heyward as an example: After three years, he makes roughly $3 million.
Or Pickens, he cashes out at $6 million or so.

That sounds like a ton of cash....but it just isn't if you never make anymore $$$. Most retirement calculations do not view $5 million as enough to retire on at 65 much less at 28.

Obviously, many young men make the decision that the cost/benefit of a NFL career is worth it for them. And that is great. But no matter how you look at it the economics of the league is slanted to favor the owners not the players.

Remember, most owners do not plow the cash back into the franchise the way the Steelers do. Many teams do not spend to the cap annually - some struggle to make the salary floor. A number of teams play funny games with playing time and stats in order to avoid paying players incentives. Etc.

If you quit playing football and then never make any more money for 40 years, that is a reflection on you, not the NFL.

If your position is that every player should be able to play a couple years and then be set for life without ever working again - that is so far out of the realm of reality that you will just never be happy. Not that calling someone who makes $1 million a year "exploited" is that realistic in the first place.

Let's do the math - how much do you think a player needs in order to live comfortably for the rest of his life? $10 million? That's $100K a year for 100 years; factor inflation in, and it's probably just about enough to last into your 70s or 80s. Most players don't last very long, so they've gotta make it on their rookie contract - so, you've got to quadruple their pay to get from $2.45M over three years to $10M. Good, now your salary cap is at 200% of league revenue, and on top of that the owners are eating all the expenses of paying the coaches, running the stadium, scouting, paying the game crews, travel, hiring staff, etc. That is, unless you can convince Pat Mahomes and DK Metcalf to take it out of their pockets and spread the wealth around - good luck! Must be those damn greedy owner's fault, not the fact that what you're asking for is impossible.

[Mojouw]

If you quit playing football and then never make any more money for 40 years, that is a reflection on you, not the NFL.

If your position is that every player should be able to play a couple years and then be set for life without ever working again - that is so far out of the realm of reality that you will just never be happy. Not that calling someone who makes $1 million a year "exploited" is that realistic in the first place.

Let's do the math - how much do you think a player needs in order to live comfortably for the rest of his life? $10 million? That's $100K a year for 100 years; factor inflation in, and it's probably just about enough to last into your 70s or 80s. Most players don't last very long, so they've gotta make it on their rookie contract - so, you've got to quadruple their pay to get from $2.45M over three years to $10M. Good, now your salary cap is at 200% of league revenue, and on top of that the owners are eating all the expenses of paying the coaches, running the stadium, scouting, paying the game crews, travel, hiring staff, etc. That is, unless you can convince Pat Mahomes and DK Metcalf to take it out of their pockets and spread the wealth around - good luck! Must be those damn greedy owner's fault, not the fact that what you're asking for is impossible.

That’s a total exaggeration of what I’m saying.

Of course no one can realistically advocate for a three year career that sets one up for life. I was only pointing out that the average NFL player isn’t living a baller lifestyle forever. Plus, we haven’t even looked at vet FA minimums.

The players divvying up less than half the league revenue and playing on non guaranteed deals is a bad deal for them.

Not earth shattering stuff. Most analyses I’ve seen of pro sports CBAs generally conclude the NFL is a poor deal for the players compared to their peers.

[steelreserve]

That’s a total exaggeration of what I’m saying.

Of course no one can realistically advocate for a three year career that sets one up for life. I was only pointing out that the average NFL player isn’t living a baller lifestyle forever. Plus, we haven’t even looked at vet FA minimums.

The players divvying up less than half the league revenue and playing on non guaranteed deals is a bad deal for them.

Not earth shattering stuff. Most analyses I’ve seen of pro sports CBAs generally conclude the NFL is a poor deal for the players compared to their peers.

The average NFL salary is comparatively lower than other sports in large part because there are between double and quadruple the number of players per team, and between 10-20% the amount of games on the schedule. Your rank-and-file player is just never going to earn more money going into a 20-to-1 headwind. Yet they're still paid quite well.

I still don't get why non-guaranteed contracts strike you as such a huge injustice. Either the money goes to this player or it goes to that player, you're just very concerned over which player gets paid when for some reason.

All the players and the agents know how that game is played, why do you think the amount of guaranteed money is always one of the first things listed in the first sentence of any contract announcement? Why is it always one of the big bargaining chips when working out a contract? It's not as if this is a case of the evil owners catching the small guy by surprise and the players get hoodwinked over and over again. Same amount of money split up among the same number of players.

What is the players' "less than half" share of the revenue? 48.8%? Potato potahto. Bump it up 1.2%, which would certainly be within the realm of possibility - are you happy? No, you're somewhere way out there on this one. I've told you why I think roughly 50-50 is a reasonable split between the people who put on the show and the people who set up the stage and the cameras, but if you think it's grossly unfair, I guess we just disagree on what's fair.

[DesertSteel]

It’s not a game. It’s a form of entertainment used to generate money. It’s no different than a blockbuster movie. Really, it’s no different than watching the Jersey Shore, The Bachelor or some dumb reality TV Show. There’s no reason Patrick Mahomes shouldn’t be paid like Robert Downey Jr. They both get paid to entertain and that’s all it is. The NFL is far past “just being a game”. Light years passed that. If you want to watch the sport of football as a game, the best you can do is high school football. Anything above that is an entertainment business. The bottom entertainer in the NFL probably gets paid much more than an extra in the Avengers franchise.I'm glad you made that point. It's very true. Do you think the disparity is greater or less with Hollywood studios and actors than it is with football franchises and their players? Players get roughly half of the pie. Do you think that the actors in a blockbuster film get half of the pie? It's not our problem that their playing career is so short. Welcome to the real world.

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It’s not a game. It’s a form of entertainment used to generate money. It’s no different than a blockbuster movie. Really, it’s no different than watching the Jersey Shore, The Bachelor or some dumb reality TV Show. There’s no reason Patrick Mahomes shouldn’t be paid like Robert Downey Jr. They both get paid to entertain and that’s all it is. The NFL is far past “just being a game”. Light years passed that. If you want to watch the sport of football as a game, the best you can do is high school football. Anything above that is an entertainment business. The bottom entertainer in the NFL probably gets paid much more than an extra in the Avengers franchise.I'm glad you made that point. It's very true. Do you think the disparity is greater or less with Hollywood studios and actors than it is with football franchises and their players? Players get roughly half of the pie. Do you think that the actors in a blockbuster film get half of the pie? It's not our problem that their playing career is so short. Welcome to the real world.

[Dwinsgames]

That sounds like a ton of cash....but it just isn't if you never make anymore $$$. Most retirement calculations do not view $5 million as enough to retire on at 65 much less at 28.



thats crazy talk even a moron who places it in a savings account would earn enough to live on via interest alone ........ nobody has to live a lavish lifestyle , live within your means ... buy a 200-400k house no it wont be LA but who would want to live in that shithole anyways .... lots of NICE homes for 400k or less around here interest on the rest would be around 80k a year if that isnt enough to eat and pay utilities and give you some screw off coin then reevaluate your lifestyle because you are wasting a ton of cash ( per example )
https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/2683-Hillsville-Rd_Edinburg_PA_16116_M44691-12694?ex=2942900755

[Mojouw]

thats crazy talk even a moron who places it in a savings account would earn enough to live on via interest alone ........ nobody has to live a lavish lifestyle , live within your means ... buy a 200-400k house no it wont be LA but who would want to live in that shithole anyways .... lots of NICE homes for 400k or less around here interest on the rest would be around 80k a year if that isnt enough to eat and pay utilities and give you some screw off coin then reevaluate your lifestyle because you are wasting a ton of cash ( per example )
https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/2683-Hillsville-Rd_Edinburg_PA_16116_M44691-12694?ex=2942900755

https://www.northwesternmutual.com/life-and-money/how-much-do-i-need-to-retire-comfortably-at-65/

$3 million to retire at 65. I've seen several that question that benchmark and argue for far more in order to account for unexpected expenses.

It all depends on where you live and what you want to do.

Not everyone wants to live in the middle of nowhere with the associated low cost of living and availability of relatively inexpensive housing.

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thats crazy talk even a moron who places it in a savings account would earn enough to live on via interest alone ........ nobody has to live a lavish lifestyle , live within your means ... buy a 200-400k house no it wont be LA but who would want to live in that shithole anyways .... lots of NICE homes for 400k or less around here interest on the rest would be around 80k a year if that isnt enough to eat and pay utilities and give you some screw off coin then reevaluate your lifestyle because you are wasting a ton of cash ( per example )
https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/2683-Hillsville-Rd_Edinburg_PA_16116_M44691-12694?ex=2942900755

https://www.northwesternmutual.com/life-and-money/how-much-do-i-need-to-retire-comfortably-at-65/

$3 million to retire at 65. I've seen several that question that benchmark and argue for far more in order to account for unexpected expenses.

It all depends on where you live and what you want to do.

Not everyone wants to live in the middle of nowhere with the associated low cost of living and availability of relatively inexpensive housing.

[Dwinsgames]

https://www.northwesternmutual.com/life-and-money/how-much-do-i-need-to-retire-comfortably-at-65/

$3 million to retire at 65. I've seen several that question that benchmark and argue for far more in order to account for unexpected expenses.

It all depends on where you live and what you want to do.

Not everyone wants to live in the middle of nowhere with the associated low cost of living and availability of relatively inexpensive housing.

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https://www.northwesternmutual.com/life-and-money/how-much-do-i-need-to-retire-comfortably-at-65/

$3 million to retire at 65. I've seen several that question that benchmark and argue for far more in order to account for unexpected expenses.

It all depends on where you live and what you want to do.

Not everyone wants to live in the middle of nowhere with the associated low cost of living and availability of relatively inexpensive housing.



invest then and get a job perhaps to supplement the investment?

come down off the high horse like you are a superstar and live like a normal person because if you was a superstar you would have more money in order to live like one ....

I can tell you this I am 59 give me 5 million and I will show you how to live the rest of your life in comfort and have the ability to do pretty much anything I want in the process and when I die I guarantee there will be way more than half of it left

[Mojouw]

The average NFL salary is comparatively lower than other sports in large part because there are between double and quadruple the number of players per team, and between 10-20% the amount of games on the schedule. Your rank-and-file player is just never going to earn more money going into a 20-to-1 headwind. Yet they're still paid quite well.

I still don't get why non-guaranteed contracts strike you as such a huge injustice. Either the money goes to this player or it goes to that player, you're just very concerned over which player gets paid when for some reason.

All the players and the agents know how that game is played, why do you think the amount of guaranteed money is always one of the first things listed in the first sentence of any contract announcement? Why is it always one of the big bargaining chips when working out a contract? It's not as if this is a case of the evil owners catching the small guy by surprise and the players get hoodwinked over and over again. Same amount of money split up among the same number of players.

What is the players' "less than half" share of the revenue? 48.8%? Potato potahto. Bump it up 1.2%, which would certainly be within the realm of possibility - are you happy? No, you're somewhere way out there on this one. I've told you why I think roughly 50-50 is a reasonable split between the people who put on the show and the people who set up the stage and the cameras, but if you think it's grossly unfair, I guess we just disagree on what's fair.

Again you've assigned me a position that I haven't taken for some reason or another.

I've said 50-60% of revenue. This is line with the majority of other large professional sports leagues.
Guaranteed contracts or at least significant protection against catastrophic injury.

I've never said the owners were "evil". It is a collectively bargained thing. The owners job is to get the best deal for them. The players job is to get the best deal for themselves. Since the players suck at CBA negotiations, they have repeatedly agreed to deals highly slanted towards ownership and the roughly 10% of the league that occupies the "star player" portion of the salary cap table.

All of this is totally understandable and to be expected. There is no industry where the workforce is getting their fair share of the revenue pie. That isn't how any of this works.

But when players say they are underpaid and the system (stretching back to college) is set up to profit and exploit their labor and bodily harm -- it is a justified statement.

Will it change? Not anytime soon. Enough players are thriving in the current system to prevent massive work stoppages and the owners are making a ton of cash - so they aren't going to rock the boat either.

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invest then and get a job perhaps to supplement the investment?

come down off the high horse like you are a superstar and live like a normal person because if you was a superstar you would have more money in order to live like one ....

I can tell you this I am 59 give me 5 million and I will show you how to live the rest of your life in comfort and have the ability to do pretty much anything I want in the process and when I die I guarantee there will be way more than half of it left

I got no idea. I'm never going to be able to retire based on my income and savings regime. So none of this applies to me.

[DesertSteel]

The average NFL player who retires after three years at the age of 26 is not going to be able to avoid working for the next 40 years. Is there really something wrong with that??

[polamalubeast]

1553348035438059521

[Mojouw]

Dude is really taking a clear stand with this one!

The Steelers will sign DJ at some point, in the future, but not right now...but maybe soon...or perhaps in the future.

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Dude is really taking a clear stand with this one!

The Steelers will sign DJ at some point, in the future, but not right now...but maybe soon...or perhaps in the future.

[DuckHodges]

a few million a year for a couple years is very life changing for most people ...

you do not have to get Mahomes money for it to be considered life changing ...

I mean the vast majority of the population wont make in a lifetime what the average NFL contract pays per year https://www.statista.com/statistics/675385/average-nfl-salary-by-team/

Depending where you live, even less than a million. Honestly if you're given enough money to pay off a mortgage, you end up in a position where you no longer need to work full-time to pay the bills. A lot of people would either retire or change careers to do something they really want to do instead of one that they feel trapped in just because it pays enough

[teegre]

If it’s as simple as some are alluding to, I’m not sure why more people don’t simply “choose” to play in the NFL (versus breaking their backs for 30 years in a blue collar job).

[DesertSteel]

If it’s as simple as some are alluding to, I’m not sure why more people don’t simply “choose” to play in the NFL (versus breaking their backs for 30 years in a blue collar job).
I think I’m gonna choose to be a Grammy winning singer instead.

[Mojouw]

Deebo, Metcalf, and Scary Terry all have been extended. Steelers likely have to start making overtures soon or pursue a trade.

At least the market has been set. Makes the framework for discussion fairly clear.

[DesertSteel]

If the options are to sign DJ for 3/75 or trade him for a 2, I’m choosing the latter.

[Mojouw]

If the options are to sign DJ for 3/75 or trade him for a 2, I’m choosing the latter.

I want to agree. But who plays the X? DJs the only “proven” option. Pickens likely can get there.

For me, the best option is the 3/75. Not like they’ve got a big set of cap charges coming in that window.

It’s an overpay but they can do a couple of those until they find a QB.

[hawaiiansteeler]

I want to agree. But who plays the X? DJs the only “proven” option. Pickens likely can get there.

For me, the best option is the 3/75. Not like they’ve got a big set of cap charges coming in that window.

It’s an overpay but they can do a couple of those until they find a QB.

I would rather franchise tag DJ next season and draft another WR early than pay DJ $25 mil/yr.

that kind of $$$ is better spent on a stud CB or OT.

[steelreserve]

I would rather franchise tag DJ next season and draft another WR early than pay DJ $25 mil/yr.

that kind of $$$ is better spent on a stud CB or OT.

Ding ding, we have a winner. That's exactly what the tag was made for. Signing a player to a huge deal when you don't even know if he's a reliable #1 guy, just because "who else do we have," is a real loser's move for teams with shit for brains. 3/75 for a blind roll of the dice? No way Jose. 2/25 and you don't even have to pay about 23 of that if you don't want? I'd exploit the shit out of that any day of the week.

[teegre]

A few months back, DJ asked for 5 years / $75 million. No one wanted to give him that (including the Steelers). There’s no way he gets 3 years / $75 million… and there’s also likely no way he doesn’t sit out.

SUMMATION:
Trade

[Mojouw]

I would rather franchise tag DJ next season and draft another WR early than pay DJ $25 mil/yr.

that kind of $$$ is better spent on a stud CB or OT.

Luckily they do not have to make those kind of choices any longer.

Without a massive QB contract on their cap sheet, they no longer have to do A or B. They can do both A and B and likely and C and D to it as well.

Plus, don't think about it as overpaying DJ. Think about it as insulating your new franchise QB. DJ is the kind of gets open on his own safety blanket WR that can really aid in a young QB developing and gaining the confidence necessary to start throwing strikes to the big play guys like Claypool and Pickens.

[DesertSteel]

I want to agree. But who plays the X? DJs the only “proven” option. Pickens likely can get there.

For me, the best option is the 3/75. Not like they’ve got a big set of cap charges coming in that window.

It’s an overpay but they can do a couple of those until they find a QB.
It doesn't take much to complete 5 yards per attempt. That's the Canada offense.

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I would rather franchise tag DJ next season and draft another WR early than pay DJ $25 mil/yr.

that kind of $$$ is better spent on a stud CB or OT.
They can franchise him and then trade him, like GB did with Adams.

[steelreserve]

If we followed the logic of massively overpaying question-mark starters because we have some transitory cap space, right now we'd be eating a nice tasty shit sandwich, in the form of $20 million a year for Bud Dupree, which Khan immediately restructured and made it impossible to release or trade him. How fun would that be?

Stability is a crap reason to pay a "maybe" guy. It's not actually stabilizing anything, it's just hitting the gambling floor. Very rarely does it work out that you have a starter at a position, and then you also have another established veteran starter ready to take over right then and there. We do have Johnson's replacement already on the roster though, maybe two of them. I'd rather spend that money on the line next off-season (either one) or some other position that would actually help us, not have it tied up in a $50 million overpay.

[Mojouw]

If we followed the logic of massively overpaying question-mark starters because we have some transitory cap space, right now we'd be eating a nice tasty shit sandwich, in the form of $20 million a year for Bud Dupree, which Khan immediately restructured and made it impossible to release or trade him. How fun would that be?

Stability is a crap reason to pay a "maybe" guy. It's not actually stabilizing anything, it's just hitting the gambling floor. Very rarely does it work out that you have a starter at a position, and then you also have another established veteran starter ready to take over right then and there. We do have Johnson's replacement already on the roster though, maybe two of them. I'd rather spend that money on the line next off-season (either one) or some other position that would actually help us, not have it tied up in a $50 million overpay.

There’s not another X wr on the roster.

Claypool and Austin have never done it. Both likely can’t.

So the bet would be on Pickens doing it. And that’s a big bet to make on 4 days of football in shorts.

Also, this is totally different than Dupree. Dupree would’ve caused cap casualties across the roster. This time, there’s a 3-4 year window where the Steelers can spend like drunken sailors on shore leave.

There’s little “opportunity cost” here. This is all assuming DJ would take like $18 or so per year.

[steelreserve]

There’s not another X wr on the roster.

Claypool and Austin have never done it. Both likely can’t.

So the bet would be on Pickens doing it. And that’s a big bet to make on 4 days of football in shorts.

Also, this is totally different than Dupree. Dupree would’ve caused cap casualties across the roster. This time, there’s a 3-4 year window where the Steelers can spend like drunken sailors on shore leave.

There’s little “opportunity cost” here. This is all assuming DJ would take like $18 or so per year.

There's always an opportunity cost. What else could that $18 million get you next offseason? A decent center and a CB? A stud DL to replenish the line on that side of the ball? Hell, probably a better receiver than Johnson, if we even turn out to need one.

And this is the exact - the EXACT same argument I heard about Dupree. We don't have anyone else. It won't actually cause cap problems, we can afford it. Trusting a random rookie is too risky. Well, none of that turned out to be true at all. it would have been a bad move then and it would be a bad move now, the only difference is that the rookie is better than a random mid-rounder.

Even franchising Dupree while we were doing all our hand-wringing cost us the chance to retain Hargrave, who it turned out we could've used a lot more. And we were fine without Dupree anyway.

Stop worrying so much. You don't need to spend big bucks on the maybe guys. I'm not worried about who will play the X any more than I was worried who would take Dupree's spot, and for the same reason: Both of them are just a maybe. Well, we could have a maybe for free.

Oh yeah, and why is stability suddenly such a big deal? This is the season you wanted to throw away to get a better draft pick in 2023.

[Mojouw]

There's always an opportunity cost. What else could that $18 million get you next offseason? A decent center and a CB? A stud DL to replenish the line on that side of the ball? Hell, probably a better receiver than Johnson, if we even turn out to need one.

And this is the exact - the EXACT same argument I heard about Dupree. We don't have anyone else. It won't actually cause cap problems, we can afford it. Trusting a random rookie is too risky. Well, none of that turned out to be true at all. it would have been a bad move then and it would be a bad move now, the only difference is that the rookie is better than a random mid-rounder.

Even franchising Dupree while we were doing all our hand-wringing cost us the chance to retain Hargrave, who it turned out we could've used a lot more. And we were fine without Dupree anyway.

Stop worrying so much. You don't need to spend big bucks on the maybe guys. I'm not worried about who will play the X any more than I was worried who would take Dupree's spot, and for the same reason: Both of them are just a maybe. Well, we could have a maybe for free.

Oh yeah, and why is stability suddenly such a big deal? This is the season you wanted to throw away to get a better draft pick in 2023.

Stability is important because they drafted Pickett. For better or worse, every decision needs to cater to his development and success as the next franchise cornerstone. They made their bed - now they have to lie in it.

Dupree and Hargrave were totally different situations. After Dupree they were out of cap space. Even if they gave DJ $20 million per year....the could still sign a premier LT, a stud DL, and a shutdown CB without having to really think about it. This team has more cap space then they have guys to spend it on.

Also...Dupree prior to his knee injury was/is far better than Highsmith or any of the other dirtballs they have brought in to play opposite TJ Watt. I suspect Highsmith will improve, but 6 sacks flanking the DPOY and playing behind Heyward is pretty much the bare minimum. This makes no mention of Dupree's superior run defense in comparison as well.

Hargrave left so he could go be a pass-rushing DT full time. They couldn't have paid him enough to entice him to stay here and play half as much in a role he didn't like.

[DesertSteel]

The only bed the Steelers have to lie in is letting DJ play out the final year of his contract. He doesn’t have the leverage of TJ in his hold-in from last year. Next year they can franchise him if they want.

[86WARD]

They trade DJ and they have a major issue at WR…especially if Claypool gets injured…lol.

People would be comfortable with Pickens, Austin, Boykin, Gunner and White? 3 proven nobodies and 2 possible nobodies?

[teegre]

QB
5 O-linemen
Najee
Muth

That’s 8 starters.

I’m fine with Pickens and Claypool… and some combination of an eleventh player depending on the down-&-distance:
-Watt at fullback
-Heyward at TE
-CAIII in the slot.

[BlackAndGold]

https://c.tenor.com/i-eXwjfaFkQAAAAM/teddy-kgb.gif

[DesertSteel]

They trade DJ and they have a major issue at WR…especially if Claypool gets injured…lol.

People would be comfortable with Pickens, Austin, Boykin, Gunner and White? 3 proven nobodies and 2 possible nobodies?
In Canada’s offense does it really make much of a difference?

[86WARD]

In Canada’s offense does it really make much of a difference?

Good point…

[Dwinsgames]

In Canada’s offense does it really make much of a difference?


when the QBs are throwing 4.87 yards we could go empty and line up 5 TE's and have just as good a chance at a 5 yard gain ...wait should we get more TE's ?? just a thought

[Orion]

I'm willing to bet majority of the highest paid players at every position other than QB are black people

deshawn watson #2 , patrick mahomes #3 , dalk prescott tied #6 , RUSSEL WILSON #8.

so 4 out of the top 10 highest paid qb's are black. do black QB's make up 40% of the 32 starting QB's ? looks to me like contract values are merit based and race isnt a factor. but dont let that get in the way of a race baiters narrative. i wonder if bell thinks black team owners would be doing anything different. you know...because blacks are way more generous.

[cubanstogie]

25 mill for DJ, lmfao. 12.5 IMO. Until he is dependable and averages 15 plus a reception he is not elite. One year removed from leading league in drops, you don’t pay a QB that kind of coin for leading league in INT’s. I’ll retract when I said he’s a dime a dozen, but I still believe he’s replaceable by a few guys in every draft.

[teegre]

when the QBs are throwing 4.87 yards we could go empty and line up 5 TE's and have just as good a chance at a 5 yard gain ...wait should we get more TE's ?? just a thought

I’d actually like to see quite a few plays with Muth, Gentry, AND Heyward (all three) on the field at the same time.

[pczach]

There is a report that the Bears are accepting trade proposals for OT Tevin Jenkins.

How would everyone feel about trading DJ for Jenkins? I know there are still the questions at WR if DJ is gone, but would that help strengthen the offensive line and help the offense as a whole?

There is some talk of Jenkins being extremely talented, but immature. He doesn't see eye to eye with the coaching staff. Does his potential upside at a premium position make it something to think about?

[hawaiiansteeler]

There is a report that the Bears are accepting trade proposals for OT Tevin Jenkins.

How would everyone feel about trading DJ for Jenkins? I know there are still the questions at WR if DJ is gone, but would that help strengthen the offensive line and help the offense as a whole?

There is some talk of Jenkins being extremely talented, but immature. He doesn't see eye to eye with the coaching staff. Does his potential upside at a premium position make it something to think about?

no thanks, Jenkins had back surgery last year and that scares me.

[teegre]

no thanks, Jenkins had back surgery last year and that scares me.

Plus, he was also injured in college.

see: Senquez Golson

[steelreserve]

Our best option if we pursue a trade is to try to put together a package for Juan Soto. Who cares what sport he plays, you just can't pass up a chance at that kind of talent.

[teegre]

Our best option if we pursue a trade is to try to put together a package for Juan Soto. Who cares what sport he plays, you just can't pass up a chance at that kind of talent.

Bwahahaha :lol: Spoken like a true San Diegan.

[hawaiiansteeler]

Our best option if we pursue a trade is to try to put together a package for Juan Soto. Who cares what sport he plays, you just can't pass up a chance at that kind of talent.

it will test Omar's skills as a capologist to fit Soto in though :wink02:

[steelreserve]

it will test Omar's skills as a capologist to fit Soto in though :wink02:

You have any idea how many times you could restructure a 10-year contract worth half a billion dollars? Khan is probably sitting at his desk right now at 3:13 EDT with a 90% empty bottle of Jack Daniels in one hand and a loaded revolver in the other, and a raging hard-on under the table. Poor dude is so confused.

[pczach]

no thanks, Jenkins had back surgery last year and that scares me.


I'm not saying they should. I'm certainly not saying Jenkins alone would be enough. He hasn't shown anything yet, and DJ has #1 WR potential and a shitload of production.

The Bears are actively shopping several players. I suspect they may be willing to give up a draft pick as well for the right player.

I'm just spitballing here!

[Dwinsgames]

need a prospective trading partner ? well here ya go as the Broncos are all in with the acquisition of Russel Wilson .....
Broncos WR Tim Patrick carted off with apparent knee injury at practice

[86WARD]

They aren’t dumb enough to trade DJ…

[DesertSteel]

I just don't see DJ having the same leverage as the other hold-in receivers that got paid. The Steelers have been known to bend their own rules lately, but for guys that were total game changers. DJ and game changer have never been used in the same sentence.

[hawaiiansteeler]

You have any idea how many times you could restructure a 10-year contract worth half a billion dollars? Khan is probably sitting at his desk right now at 3:13 EDT with a 90% empty bottle of Jack Daniels in one hand and a loaded revolver in the other, and a raging hard-on under the table. Poor dude is so confused.

lmao :rofl2:

[vasteeler]

You have any idea how many times you could restructure a 10-year contract worth half a billion dollars? Khan is probably sitting at his desk right now at 3:13 EDT with a 90% empty bottle of Jack Daniels in one hand and a loaded revolver in the other, and a raging hard-on under the table. Poor dude is so confused.

Lol... What picture you painted.

[86WARD]

I just don't see DJ having the same leverage as the other hold-in receivers that got paid. The Steelers have been known to bend their own rules lately, but for guys that were total game changers. DJ and game changer have never been used in the same sentence.

Samuel had one season of Slash-Type play as leverage. That’s not much…

Like they really just paid him on one productive season…lol. He basically just received a Rob Johnson deal…although Johnson’s was based on a single game.

[teegre]

Jerrah was saying that he’s super-duper, wholeheartedly impressed by his receiving corps… which means the Cowboys are super-duper, wholeheartedly looking for a receiver.

I’d take their R2 pick…

[Mojouw]

Jerrah was saying that he’s super-duper, wholeheartedly impressed by his receiving corps… which means the Cowboys are super-duper, wholeheartedly looking for a receiver.

I’d take their R2 pick…

That’d work. Jerrah is goofy enough to T least ask.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[86WARD]

Jerrah was saying that he’s super-duper, wholeheartedly impressed by his receiving corps… which means the Cowboys are super-duper, wholeheartedly looking for a receiver.

I’d take their R2 pick…

That would be a painful season to watch.

[DesertSteel]

Samuel had one season of Slash-Type play as leverage. That’s not much…

Like they really just paid him on one productive season…lol. He basically just received a Rob Johnson deal…although Johnson’s was based on a single game.
I'd disagree re Samuel. It's not about how long anymore when it comes to leverage. Samuel was a rock star last year and he knew exactly when to withhold services.

- - - Updated - - -


Jerrah was saying that he’s super-duper, wholeheartedly impressed by his receiving corps… which means the Cowboys are super-duper, wholeheartedly looking for a receiver.

I’d take their R2 pick…
I heard Skip Bayless, a huge Cowboys fan and friend of Jerry say on his show yesterday that they were super impressed with James Washington before he got hurt. Maybe they'd give a #1 for DJ?

[polamalubeast]

1554876648780177409

[BlackAndGold]

1554518480308813825

1554862285033807875

[Dwinsgames]

to bad stats guy Daniel doesn't own a team he sounds like a likely trading partner

[86WARD]

I'd disagree re Samuel. It's not about how long anymore when it comes to leverage. Samuel was a rock star last year and he knew exactly when to withhold services.

- - - Updated - - -


I heard Skip Bayless, a huge Cowboys fan and friend of Jerry say on his show yesterday that they were super impressed with James Washington before he got hurt. Maybe they'd give a #1 for DJ?

One season doesn’t make a guys career. I’d need more consistency..but…if you are willing to give Samuel that money, you’d have to give DJ that money as DJ has been more productive then Samuel over the same period of time.

[steelreserve]

One season doesn’t make a guys career. I’d need more consistency..but…if you are willing to give Samuel that money, you’d have to give DJ that money as DJ has been more productive then Samuel over the same period of time.

Deebo Samuel completely dominated the game, was a first-team All-Pro, and carried his team to what should have been a Super Bowl appearance,

Johnson dominated nothing, was a first-team nothing, and carried his team to nothing.

Also Samuel had about 50% more yards from scrimmage and 75% more TDs. They are not even in the same ballpark, whether we're talking pure stats or game impact. If it's the consistency, everyone already knew Samuel was good, he just missed half a year. He's never not been a difference-maker.

Johnson is like ... pretty good some of the time, when he's not the invisible man. Deebo kicks some ass and then goes and fucks the prom queen and then fucks your mom. Guess which one is worth more.

[86WARD]

Deebo Samuel completely dominated the game, was a first-team All-Pro, and carried his team to what should have been a Super Bowl appearance,

Johnson dominated nothing, was a first-team nothing, and carried his team to nothing.

Also Samuel had about 50% more yards from scrimmage and 75% more TDs. They are not even in the same ballpark, whether we're talking pure stats or game impact. If it's the consistency, everyone already knew Samuel was good, he just missed half a year. He's never not been a difference-maker.

Johnson is like ... pretty good some of the time, when he's not the invisible man. Deebo kicks some ass and then goes and fucks the prom queen and then fucks your mom. Guess which one is worth more.

One season. The consistency is not there. Not to mention that the Niners pretty much overworked him to the point that he was crying about being overworked. That’s not a guy you give a long term deal to because he probably won survive until the end of it.

Before I gave him that deal, I’d need to see consistency, which he has not shown…maybe this is the beginning. Time will tell…

[DesertSteel]

One season doesn’t make a guys career.
One season at a negotiation point gets you paid. They don’t pay you for careers.

[86WARD]

One season at a negotiation point gets you paid. They don’t pay you for careers.

It’s not really a necessary negotiation point though.

[steelreserve]

One season. The consistency is not there. Not to mention that the Niners pretty much overworked him to the point that he was crying about being overworked. That’s not a guy you give a long term deal to because he probably won survive until the end of it.

Before I gave him that deal, I’d need to see consistency, which he has not shown…maybe this is the beginning. Time will tell…

I don't get the consistency argument. Samuel had a better rookie season than DJ, a way better third season, and missed some games in the other. He looks to me like he's clearly the better player. Whereas with Johnson, the most compelling argument seems to be "who else do we have" or "let's hope he adds stability." That's not who you want to spend $25 million on.

[tube517]

1555226527880683521

Dulac does it again. Dulac tweeted they were "miles apart". SMDH. Retire already...

[steelreserve]

1555226527880683521


That's ... strange.

If you're going to give him an extension, why make it two years? That doesn't even ensure he will be on the team any longer than if you just tagged him next season, and the cost of rookie contract this year + tag next year would be under $25M total.

Unless I am missing something - such as they actually mean a two-year extension added on to the rookie deal, meaning three years total - then we have effectively taken $12-$15 million and set it on fire, nothing to celebrate.

[tube517]

That's ... strange.

If you're going to give him an extension, why make it two years? That doesn't even ensure he will be on the team any longer than if you just tagged him next season, and the cost of rookie contract this year + tag next year would be under $25M total.

Unless I am missing something - such as they actually mean a two-year extension added on to the rookie deal, meaning three years total - then we have effectively taken $12-$15 million and set it on fire, nothing to celebrate.

Extension. He will be a free agent after 2024

[Dwinsgames]

a 2 year extension means 2 years on top of what he was already signed for ... the way this reads on NFL.com its like they tossed out what he was already signed for and signed him through 2024 (that makes almost zero sense financially for the team)

so either they are misreporting the terms of the deal or they have no idea what the word extension means ...

signed through 2024 is only a 1 year extension because he was already under contract for 2023

EDIT brainfart .... for whatever reason to me today this was the 2023 season about to start don't ask why ... I'm old so just leave it there

[tube517]

a 2 year extension means 2 years on top of what he was already signed for ... the way this reads on NFL.com its like they tossed out what he was already signed for and signed him through 2024 (that makes almost zero sense financially for the team)

so either they are misreporting the terms of the deal or they have no idea what the word extension means ...

signed through 2024 is only a 1 year extension because he was already under contract for 2023

Lots of miscommunication on Twitter (Surprise). Some are reporting 2 year deal and some reported extension. Dulac reported some numbers that seemed way off.

Dulac really needs to retire because his sources are crap. Dude said both sides are "miles apart" and only 2 days later they're done. Dulac whiffed on Myles Jack as well.

[Mojouw]

It seems the contract ends after the 204 season. So it locks DJ in for 3 years.

It also helps clear DJ off the Steelers books prior or just after when all the potentially big $$$ extensions will start hitting.

2023: Highsmith and Claypool
2024: Harris, PF, and Moore
2025: Pickett and Pickens

Hopefully in the next few days the actual $$$ terms show up and we can see how it all works.

I suspect that Khan didn't get suckered. It has never happened until now....not going to assume he suddenly got dumb.

[steelreserve]

a 2 year extension means 2 years on top of what he was already signed for ... the way this reads on NFL.com its like they tossed out what he was already signed for and signed him through 2024 (that makes almost zero sense financially for the team)

so either they are misreporting the terms of the deal or they have no idea what the word extension means ...

signed through 2024 is only a 1 year extension because he was already under contract for 2023

Well, they initially reported two-year "deal," not "two-year extension" ... if it actually is an extension that adds two years, it makes a hell of a lot more sense. You often see a team tear up the last year of the rookie deal if I'm not mistaken.

I suppose an average of something like $13M a year is a lot for a guy I'm still not fully sold on, but not the disaster it could've been.

[GBMelBlount]

I would imagine having him guaranteed for 2 years (and not longer) gives them a bit of insurance while they wait to see how Pickens develops.

[polamalubeast]

The tweet in post 104 was almost 100% right.He has even predicted that it was going to be a 2 years extension!

[DesertSteel]

This is from the PG:

The Steelers have signed receiver Diontae Johnson to a new three-year contract, the team announced Thursday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but sources told the Post-Gazette the deal is worth $39.5 million.

$13M a season. Khan is looking good so far!

[SteelMember]

https://steelersdepot.com/2022/08/why-omar-khan-crushed-it-on-diontae-johnson-contract-extension/

I like the 2 year extension just for the simple fact that a longer extension doesn't guarantee he's not asking for more in 2 years anyway...

[86WARD]

I don't get the consistency argument. Samuel had a better rookie season than DJ, a way better third season, and missed some games in the other. He looks to me like he's clearly the better player. Whereas with Johnson, the most compelling argument seems to be "who else do we have" or "let's hope he adds stability." That's not who you want to spend $25 million on.

I wouldn’t give that deal to Johnson either as he’s not been consistent.

[86WARD]

This is from the PG:

The Steelers have signed receiver Diontae Johnson to a new three-year contract, the team announced Thursday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but sources told the Post-Gazette the deal is worth $39.5 million.

$13M a season. Khan is looking good so far!

Much better than trading him for a second round pick. Lol.

[DuckHodges]

Good they signed him, and to a team-friendly contract. I wasn't a fan of the idea of trading your best WR.

[86WARD]

Good they signed him, and to a team-friendly contract. I wasn't a fan of the idea of trading your best WR.

No. Can’t go into a season with that remaining group…it’s just not a good idea.

[steelreserve]

Much better than trading him for a second round pick. Lol.

Time will tell ...