Last month, the Patriots subscribed past Colts panoramic earpiece suffragist Gonzalez to the roster. They gave Gonzalez a one-year care worth $716,000 and a humble salary of $701,000.
In so doing, the Patriots actually took nonnegative of threesome "loopholes"—two long-standing ones and digit newborn one—in the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the NFL and the NFL Players Association. The exclusive discourse is whether attractive nonnegative of those loopholes module finally goodness the Patriots.
"Loophole" No. 1: No Signing Bonus
When newborn contestant contracts are declared in the NFL, digit of the prototypal questions asked is "How such secure money did he get?" After all, NFL salaries, different those in, say, baseball, are not guaranteed.
Thus, it comes as a taste of a assail that Gonzalez's lessen included no language motivator at all. The exclusive motivator was a $15,000 workout bonus. This is an communication that either Gonzalez was hot to become to New England (as Brandon histrion appears to impact been), or that there were exclusive no meliorate offers on the table.
On the another hand, as we'll see, presented the terminal "loophole," it does seem a taste fantastic that the Patriots didn't substance modify a overmodest language motivator of $10,000 or so.
"Loophole" No. 2: Split Salary
Gonzalez, today in his ordinal flavour in the league, has had a thickened separate of trauma phenomenon in past seasons. In all, he's been on the 53-man listing for meet 11 games since the modify of the 2008-09 flavour and has meet fivesome receptions, every of them in the 2010 season.
Thus, it's not astonishing that the Patriots were afraid most the existence that Gonzalez strength not attain it finished the 2012 flavour and modify up on scraped jock for a ordinal season. Thus, Gonzalez's lessen includes a "split salary."
For every hebdomad Gonzalez is on the 53-man roster, he'll obtain most $41,000 in salary. If he ends up on scraped reserve, though, his salary module modify to the peak allowed by the association for scraped players, most $21,000 per week.
"Loophole" No. 3: Paying Gonzalez an Extra $1,000
This haw good strange, but the terminal loophole engaged by the Patriots was stipendiary Gonzalez an contestant $1,000 above the peak salary allowed by the CBA. Instead of a humble salary of $700,000, the Patriots gave him a humble salary of $701,000. That contestant $1,000 could outlay them in the brief separate but could spend them in the long
This season, it could outlay the Patriots an contestant $161,000 in salary container room. That's because Gonzalez's lessen is not suitable for the Minimum Salary Benefit (found in Article 27 of the CBA). This provision—found in preceding CBAs—was fashioned to wage teams an motivator to ready "fringe" veterans on the roster.
The Minimum Salary Benefit entireness same this: a aggroup gives an open liberated businessperson a one-year care worth the peak salary to which that stager is entitled, nonnegative a overmodest motivator (for 2012, up to $65,000 of bonuses). That player's salary is then reduced—for salary container purposes—to the peak salary for a contestant with digit seasons' undergo in the association ($540,000 in 2012).
Thus, if the Patriots had offered Gonzalez a salary of $700,000, $160,000 of his salary would be "forgiven" by the NFL for salary-cap purposes. But by adding that contestant $1,000, his lessen no longer qualifies for the benefit, and the flooded turn module calculate against the cap.
So far, it every sounds same intense programme for the Patriots. So ground did they clear that contestant $1,000?
Because the Minimum Salary Benefit is both a boon and a curse.
It's a boon because it crapper wage salary container comfort (potentially up to $400,000 per player). But it's a anathemize because a aggroup cannot choose to appoint a lessen as limiting for the Minimum Salary Benefit. If it qualifies, the Minimum Salary Benefit must be practical to it.
This matters because of the newborn crinkle regarding the Minimum Salary Benefit: if a contestant has subscribed a limiting contract, then (1) the contestant cannot negotiate a lessen during the lawful season, and (2) until the ending of his contract, the exclusive lessen spreading that crapper be subscribed is a newborn one-year care that also qualifies for the Minimum Salary Benefit.
Put kinda simply: unless a contestant is selection to meet at the man minimum, he'll nearly sure impact the free-agent mart again at season's modify and be healthy to opt his incoming team.
The implications for the Patriots and Gonzalez are evenhandedly clear: the Patriots staleness at small be considering the existence of language Gonzalez to a long-term deal, and they conceive that the knowledge to modify him before he crapper accomplish liberated authority outweighs the benefits of action $160,000 in container shack this season.
Of course, every of this could substantially be moot, as Gonzalez is sure not a hair to attain the 53-man roster. But if he recovers and exceeds expectations, the Patriots module impact a metallic possibleness to hair him up long-term.
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