Rams not allowed to negotiate... (1 Viewer)

[obxlegends]

Not sure if this has been covered yet. I did see some questions about this before.

(Rotoworld) The Rams are not currently allowed to negotiate with potential draft picks.

Impact: There has been some confusion in the press about this, but the NFL has let St. Louis know they aren't "on the clock." The league is talking about whether this could change, but we suspect they don't want to ruin the suspense of the draft.

 

[KellysHeroes]

WHY

 

[KellysHeroes]

Seriously.. I think it would be awesome if we could get 2 or 3 picks signed before the draft... whats the Problem NFL?

 

[Godsbrother]

I don't think the Dolphins should have been allowed to negotiate or at the very least, announce it.

 

[Boone22]

WHY

From PFT...THE RAMS APPARENTLY ARE NOT ON THE CLOCKPosted by Mike Florio on April 22, 2008, 10:18 p.m. We have long presumed — apparently based on reports we read when the Texans struck a deal with David Carr in early April of 2002 or when the Bengals agreed to terms with Carson Palmer prior to the 2003 draft — that the team with the No. 2 overall pick would acquire the ability to negotiate with one or more players after the first overall selection is under contract.And we’re not ashamed to admit that our understanding apparently was wr-wr-wr-wr-screwed up.Chris Mortensen of ESPN reports that the league has informed the St. Louis Rams that they are not permitted to negotiate with any of the other draft prospects between now and Saturday. The decision reportedly came from the league’s management council.Apparently, however, the league is engaged in “internal discussions” that could eventually allow the Rams to negotiate with one or more players before being on the clock at of Saturday afternoon.We’re surprised that the league hadn’t already addressed this issue before today, and we don’t understand why the Rams wouldn’t be permitted to negotiate with any player whom they choose now that Jake Long is signed, sealed, and delivered.Hopefully, we’ll get some answers to those questions soon.

 

[Michael Fox Fan]

I'm sure that the Rams won't have any conversations with potential draftees or their agents.

 

[Dolfan]

Makes sense..

Theoretically, until 3:10pm Saturday, the Dolphins can still trade the pick..

I'm pretty sure they can still negotiate with other players and if they get someone to sign for less, they can take them instead and tear up Jake's contract..

That won't happen, I'm just saying, I don't think the Dolphins are technically locked in to Jake Long yet...

 

[Dolfan]

I don't think the Dolphins should have been allowed to negotiate or at the very least, announce it.

Why?They are the only team in the league who can truly pick whoever they want Saturday...Other teams can't negotiate with players because it could interfere with a team selecting before them who may be interested in the same player...

 

[super sleeper]

Interesting. Alot of guys in the Long thread who were absolutely certain the Rams could negotiate.

Upon reflection, this makes sense to me, for a couple of reasons. The draft is a show, and all these picks signing publicly would affect that. But more importantly, if #2, #3, etc. could negotiate also, they could seriously sabotage the process.

 

[Deranged Hermit]

Makes sense..

Theoretically, until 3:10pm Saturday, the Dolphins can still trade the pick..

I'm pretty sure they can still negotiate with other players and if they get someone to sign for less, they can take them instead and tear up Jake's contract..

That won't happen, I'm just saying, I don't think the Dolphins are technically locked in to Jake Long yet...

Huh? WTF are you talking about? Tearing up the contract? You just entered into a legally binding contract with an employee, which said employee signed. There's no 'tearing up the contract'.

 

[obxlegends]

Makes sense..

Theoretically, until 3:10pm Saturday, the Dolphins can still trade the pick..

I'm pretty sure they can still negotiate with other players and if they get someone to sign for less, they can take them instead and tear up Jake's contract..

That won't happen, I'm just saying, I don't think the Dolphins are technically locked in to Jake Long yet...

Huh? WTF are you talking about? Tearing up the contract? You just entered into a legally binding contract with an employee, which said employee signed. There's no 'tearing up the contract'.

I can buy it.I can imagine something like this is incorporated: "upon being ratified by our selection of you in the 2008 NFL draft."

 

[Deranged Hermit]

Makes sense..

Theoretically, until 3:10pm Saturday, the Dolphins can still trade the pick..

I'm pretty sure they can still negotiate with other players and if they get someone to sign for less, they can take them instead and tear up Jake's contract..

That won't happen, I'm just saying, I don't think the Dolphins are technically locked in to Jake Long yet...

Huh? WTF are you talking about? Tearing up the contract? You just entered into a legally binding contract with an employee, which said employee signed. There's no 'tearing up the contract'.

I can buy it.I can imagine something like this is incorporated: "upon being ratified by our selection of you in the 2008 NFL draft."

The players union would roast them over an open fire. There's zero chance they would let Jake Long sign a contract that said that.

 

[BuckeyeArt]

This takes a ton of leverage away from St. Louis. They should be allowed the same leverage given to Miami. Once the Rams make their pick, the player gains the upper hand.

 

[coolnerd]

Interesting. Alot of guys in the Long thread who were absolutely certain the Rams could negotiate. Upon reflection, this makes sense to me, for a couple of reasons. The draft is a show, and all these picks signing publicly would affect that. But more importantly, if #2, #3, etc. could negotiate also, they could seriously sabotage the process.

yeah, I was one of those and posted the PFT article in the Long thread last night. I am kinda of in a wait and see why, but the "he could be traded" makes the most sense. Thr other possibility I am thinking about is the undermining of the whole draft. Otherwords, if a team signs a player in February and each team does the same down the line, who needs an actual draft day? The draft is arguably the third biggest even of the NFL calendar behind the Superbowl and Opening night.

 

[Deranged Hermit]

Interesting. Alot of guys in the Long thread who were absolutely certain the Rams could negotiate.

Upon reflection, this makes sense to me, for a couple of reasons. The draft is a show, and all these picks signing publicly would affect that. But more importantly, if #2, #3, etc. could negotiate also, they could seriously sabotage the process.

yeah, I was one of those and posted the PFT article in the Long thread last night. I am kinda of in a wait and see why, but the "he could be traded" makes the most sense. Thr other possibility I am thinking about is the undermining of the whole draft. Otherwords, if a team signs a player in February and each team does the same down the line, who needs an actual draft day? The draft is arguably the third biggest even of the NFL calendar behind the Superbowl and Opening night.

Who cares if he's traded? Miami would still have to draft him to trade him.....

 

[fatness]

This is done for TV ratings reasons only.

The NFL wants the drama to happen Saturday when the draft is broadcast, not spread itself out over the week before the draft.

 

[FUBAR]

Interesting. Alot of guys in the Long thread who were absolutely certain the Rams could negotiate.

Upon reflection, this makes sense to me, for a couple of reasons. The draft is a show, and all these picks signing publicly would affect that. But more importantly, if #2, #3, etc. could negotiate also, they could seriously sabotage the process.

yeah, I was one of those and posted the PFT article in the Long thread last night. I am kinda of in a wait and see why, but the "he could be traded" makes the most sense. Thr other possibility I am thinking about is the undermining of the whole draft. Otherwords, if a team signs a player in February and each team does the same down the line, who needs an actual draft day? The draft is arguably the third biggest even of the NFL calendar behind the Superbowl and Opening night.

There is absolutely no chance of that happening. Teams don't work that way.Sure, Jake could be traded, but unless that's to St. Louis, who cares?

A few picks being signed before the draft wouldn't ruin anything, it may even add to the experience.

 

[FUBAR]

This is done for TV ratings reasons only. The NFL wants the drama to happen Saturday when the draft is broadcast, not spread itself out over the week before the draft.

Granted, many fans watch NFL network all week before the draft anyway, but a few signings would add intrigue, viewers, ratings and ad $.

 

[GroveDiesel]

I'm not sure how the Dolphins' contract with Long can actually be official yet. Until Goodell walks to the podium and announces it, I don't think the pick is official. For instance, what if the Dolphins committed some major infraction today and the league decided to take away their first round pick? It's farfetched, but there are rules in place in order to eliminate any bad situations, no matter how far-fetched they are.

 

[BuckeyeArt]

I'm not sure how the Dolphins' contract with Long can actually be official yet. Until Goodell walks to the podium and announces it, I don't think the pick is official. For instance, what if the Dolphins committed some major infraction today and the league decided to take away their first round pick? It's farfetched, but there are rules in place in order to eliminate any bad situations, no matter how far-fetched they are.

I'm sure if they were given permission to negotiate, the pick would be taken away next year.

 

[Lord of the Rings]

The Dolphins are the ones taking a risk here by signing him 4 days before the draft. What if over the next couple days they discover something that would have caused them to change their minds and go different direction with the #1, ie. undisclosed injury, something that slipped through background check, etc. Now I realize that they've done their homework, but what if something happens and they are no longer interested in Long. I realize the real answer here is "TOUGH!", but go with me on this...

Now let's say that the Rams begin negotiating with a player and sign him to a contract.

If the Dolphins have the ability to void their contract before Saturday with Long, because of these 'new' circumstances (which I'm not sure they could do anyway) then what if the next player they were targeting happens to be the one the Rams just signed to a contract?

I think these are questions the NFL is asking themselves.

This early signing is unprecedented so the contingencies probably haven't been explored until now.

 

[coolnerd]

Interesting. Alot of guys in the Long thread who were absolutely certain the Rams could negotiate.

Upon reflection, this makes sense to me, for a couple of reasons. The draft is a show, and all these picks signing publicly would affect that. But more importantly, if #2, #3, etc. could negotiate also, they could seriously sabotage the process.

yeah, I was one of those and posted the PFT article in the Long thread last night. I am kinda of in a wait and see why, but the "he could be traded" makes the most sense. Thr other possibility I am thinking about is the undermining of the whole draft. Otherwords, if a team signs a player in February and each team does the same down the line, who needs an actual draft day? The draft is arguably the third biggest even of the NFL calendar behind the Superbowl and Opening night.

There is absolutely no chance of that happening. Teams don't work that way.Sure, Jake could be traded, but unless that's to St. Louis, who cares?

A few picks being signed before the draft wouldn't ruin anything, it may even add to the experience.

In theory, there is nothing that is stopping a team from signing a draft pick that early, especially if you know who your guy is. I know as a Texans fan that Davis Carr was committed as the pick really early the process although I don't really remember how far from the draft he was physically signed. Overall, I am more thinking as I type than a committed to those reasons as being good, because I want to hear the NFL's excuse. As for draft day versus a "signing period," while not the case with us on a board like this, there are many more first round, top 10-15 players in the draft followers than hardcore type. It would certainly make a marketing difference if there is no "drama" for the first say 6 or 7 picks.

 

[massraider]

It seems incredibly unfair to allow one team to negotiate for the entire offseason, and not allow the the team at #2 to negotiate if the guy at #1 is signed.

 

[Andy Herron]

As surprising as it is for the NFL to be caught off-guard with this dilemma, it's still pretty much uncharted territory having this signing of Long take place so early in the week. On previous ocassions, it was within hours of the start of the draft as opposed to days. In any case, it is certainly something the NFL needs to look at and address at some point.

On the positive side for the Rams, at least it unclouds some of the picture at the top of the draft with Jake Long now off the board. With that, although they can't negotiate with players, they can still negotiate with teams for that #2 pick if somebody wants to jump up. As it stands, they are afforded days to entertain trade talks as opposed to 10 minutes. They are not only on the clock, but in the driver's seat. They are still gaining some advantage with this, so they can't complain all that much.

 

[obxlegends]

I'm not sure how the Dolphins' contract with Long can actually be official yet. Until Goodell walks to the podium and announces it, I don't think the pick is official. For instance, what if the Dolphins committed some major infraction today and the league decided to take away their first round pick? It's farfetched, but there are rules in place in order to eliminate any bad situations, no matter how far-fetched they are.

I'm proclaiming it's not official, but inevitable.

 

[Marc Faletti]

As surprising as it is for the NFL to be caught off-guard with this dilemma, it's still pretty much uncharted territory having this signing of Long take place so early in the week. On previous ocassions, it was within hours of the start of the draft as opposed to days.

Actually, wasn't Mario Williams signed on Thursday night? I seem to recall throwing my cell phone into a wall and I don't think it was on a Friday.

 

[Marc Levin]

Assume the worst: Jake Long somehow is removed from earth or unable to play football after tomorrow morning.

Does that mean the Dolphins are screwed out of their first round pick? Under the CBA, it might mean they are if St Louis has already signed a player to a contract. I am making a guess that is the logic being used here.

 

[Christo]

It seems incredibly unfair to allow one team to negotiate for the entire offseason, and not allow the the team at #2 to negotiate if the guy at #1 is signed.

Well, the the team with the No. 1 pick does set the bar for the rest of the league if it negotiates early. This benefits the entire league. The same can't be said for the second pick

 

[Andy Herron]

As surprising as it is for the NFL to be caught off-guard with this dilemma, it's still pretty much uncharted territory having this signing of Long take place so early in the week. On previous ocassions, it was within hours of the start of the draft as opposed to days.

Actually, wasn't Mario Williams signed on Thursday night? I seem to recall throwing my cell phone into a wall and I don't think it was on a Friday.

I can't recall exactly as to when he was actually "signed".In any case, this would have left roughly a 24-36 hour period. Not really comparable to 4 days.

 

[BuckeyeArt]

It seems incredibly unfair to allow one team to negotiate for the entire offseason, and not allow the the team at #2 to negotiate if the guy at #1 is signed.

Well, the the team with the No. 1 pick does set the bar for the rest of the league if it negotiates early. This benefits the entire league. The same can't be said for the second pick

It doesn't benefit the Rams if they have to pay 2nd pick money anyway. If they are allowed to negotiate, say between Ellis and Gholston, one of them may be inclined to take 3rd pick money instead of maybe 6th to 8th pick money. It absolutely hurts the Rams and gives Miami an unfair advantage.

 

[EBF]

If the top few picks are signed before the draft every year then less people will watch the draft. Less viewers = less advertising money for the NFL. I suspect they'll try to do what they can to nip this trend in the bud.

 

[Mr Capicollo]

Technically, because the draft has not started (the "on the clock" stuff is after all a figure of speech and not literally true) the 1.01 pick has not yet been made, meaning that the Jake Long contract is by necessity conditional upon him being selected.

Now, why St. Louis could not also enter into conditional negotiations just as Miami did I don't have a good explanation for. The question also is, why would they want to? Yes, it helps to nail down a contract, but it also tips their hand and while unlikely, someone may get panicky now that Jake Long appears to be off the board and want to trade up with St. Louis.

I guess I'm asking, "What's the rush here?"

 

[Christo]

It seems incredibly unfair to allow one team to negotiate for the entire offseason, and not allow the the team at #2 to negotiate if the guy at #1 is signed.

Well, the the team with the No. 1 pick does set the bar for the rest of the league if it negotiates early. This benefits the entire league. The same can't be said for the second pick

It doesn't benefit the Rams if they have to pay 2nd pick money anyway. If they are allowed to negotiate, say between Ellis and Gholston, one of them may be inclined to take 3rd pick money instead of maybe 6th to 8th pick money. It absolutely hurts the Rams and gives Miami an unfair advantage.

You're being too myopic. The benefit the entire league receives by having the 1st pick signed before draft day outweighs the detriment you believe is inflicted upon St. Louis. At some point, some team is going to have to make a pick without having negotiated with the player yet.

 

[BuckeyeArt]

It seems incredibly unfair to allow one team to negotiate for the entire offseason, and not allow the the team at #2 to negotiate if the guy at #1 is signed.

Well, the the team with the No. 1 pick does set the bar for the rest of the league if it negotiates early. This benefits the entire league. The same can't be said for the second pick

It doesn't benefit the Rams if they have to pay 2nd pick money anyway. If they are allowed to negotiate, say between Ellis and Gholston, one of them may be inclined to take 3rd pick money instead of maybe 6th to 8th pick money. It absolutely hurts the Rams and gives Miami an unfair advantage.

You're being too myopic. The benefit the entire league receives by having the 1st pick signed before draft day outweighs the detriment you believe is inflicted upon St. Louis. At some point, some team is going to have to make a pick without having negotiated with the player yet.

But the effect is far less the further you get into the draft. The difference between 2nd and 6th place money is much less than between 16th and 20th place. Eventually, you get to the point where there is no significant advantage for a team to sign a player or for a player to sign with a team. Allowing only the 1st to sign is being myopic. Having only the 1st pick doesn't nearly benefit the league as much as having the 1st two (or even 3) picks signed. Just think what the benefit to the league becomes when the top 2 or 3 places are given a value.

 

[Christo]

It seems incredibly unfair to allow one team to negotiate for the entire offseason, and not allow the the team at #2 to negotiate if the guy at #1 is signed.

Well, the the team with the No. 1 pick does set the bar for the rest of the league if it negotiates early. This benefits the entire league. The same can't be said for the second pick

It doesn't benefit the Rams if they have to pay 2nd pick money anyway. If they are allowed to negotiate, say between Ellis and Gholston, one of them may be inclined to take 3rd pick money instead of maybe 6th to 8th pick money. It absolutely hurts the Rams and gives Miami an unfair advantage.

You're being too myopic. The benefit the entire league receives by having the 1st pick signed before draft day outweighs the detriment you believe is inflicted upon St. Louis. At some point, some team is going to have to make a pick without having negotiated with the player yet.

But the effect is far less the further you get into the draft. The difference between 2nd and 6th place money is much less than between 16th and 20th place. Eventually, you get to the point where there is no significant advantage for a team to sign a player or for a player to sign with a team. Allowing only the 1st to sign is being myopic. Having only the 1st pick doesn't nearly benefit the league as much as having the 1st two (or even 3) picks signed. Just think what the benefit to the league becomes when the top 2 or 3 places are given a value.

 

[BuckeyeArt]

It seems incredibly unfair to allow one team to negotiate for the entire offseason, and not allow the the team at #2 to negotiate if the guy at #1 is signed.

Well, the the team with the No. 1 pick does set the bar for the rest of the league if it negotiates early. This benefits the entire league. The same can't be said for the second pick

It doesn't benefit the Rams if they have to pay 2nd pick money anyway. If they are allowed to negotiate, say between Ellis and Gholston, one of them may be inclined to take 3rd pick money instead of maybe 6th to 8th pick money. It absolutely hurts the Rams and gives Miami an unfair advantage.

You're being too myopic. The benefit the entire league receives by having the 1st pick signed before draft day outweighs the detriment you believe is inflicted upon St. Louis. At some point, some team is going to have to make a pick without having negotiated with the player yet.

But the effect is far less the further you get into the draft. The difference between 2nd and 6th place money is much less than between 16th and 20th place. Eventually, you get to the point where there is no significant advantage for a team to sign a player or for a player to sign with a team. Allowing only the 1st to sign is being myopic. Having only the 1st pick doesn't nearly benefit the league as much as having the 1st two (or even 3) picks signed. Just think what the benefit to the league becomes when the top 2 or 3 places are given a value.

So, you agree?

 

[ScottyFargo]

It seems incredibly unfair to allow one team to negotiate for the entire offseason, and not allow the the team at #2 to negotiate if the guy at #1 is signed.

I agree. The Rams are now in the same position the Dolphins were, so there isn't a real reason to not let them negotiate with players other than the afforementioned "drama" of the draft that occurs on Saturday. For that reason, I find it hard to believe that they allow the dolphins to announce their pick early, even if they are allowed to sign players early.

 

[Lash]

If the top few picks are signed before the draft every year then less people will watch the draft. Less viewers = less advertising money for the NFL. I suspect they'll try to do what they can to nip this trend in the bud.

they will NEVER take away the right of the 1st pick team to do thisthe NFL wants these players in camp and on the field, not pulling a JaMarcus and wasting a year holding out halfway thruthe first picks sets the market and the others, except for a few primadonna QBs that fell or think they are worth more BECAUSE they are a QB, usually fall in linenow i do understand that they do want the actual draft day to not be drastically affected so i doubt they let #2 negotiate

 

[T Man]

The decision of the NFL Management committee is not final at this point according to Mort. They were just not prepared to answer the question, so "No" was the answer until they could discuss it amongst the members.

IF Long has signed his contract, the Rams should be able to commence negotiations. THe same rationale that applied to the Dolphins now applies to the Rams. AND the Rams should be able to work on getting the advantage of not having a contract holdout with their pick.

The only reason for saying "No" is the irrational belief that it eliminates suspense. However, the NFL will likely do just that. If I recall, at some point in the past 5 years one of the draft picks signed early at #1 and the NFL (or ESPN) asked the team to withhold its "formal" choice until almost the end of the 15 minute period to allow the pre-draft build up on the networks.

If they stick with the "NO", the NFLPA will jump for joy (and the agents).

 

[CommuterMan]

There is a certain status appeal to being drafted #1 in any professional sport. Not to minimize the $$ involved but everyone remembers who #1 is...

That being said I am not so sure if I were an agent that I would be excited to 'underbid' my client to a prespective team so as to guarantee that he is the #2 draft pick. The incentive for the player and agent is not as great after the #1 pick is off the board IMHO.

 

[Jason Wood]

This really comes down to protecting against unlikely possibilities. Let's say (pardon the grim example to follow), Jake Long were to pass away between today and Saturday; but that the NFL had allowed St. Louis to negotiate with players. Now let's say that, amidst a really said situation, the Dolphins have to also make a legal claim that THEY are entitled to draft someone else (because the contract with Long was contingent on their selecting him 1st overall), but meanwhile they would've selected Vernon Gholston and, as it turns out, STL has already signed him to a deal. Can you imagine what an ungodly mess that would be for the league on so many levels?

Yes, we're talking about an absurd scenario that is on the farthest reaches of a probability tree. BUT, things happen. The ONLY certainty in the NFL draft is that the Miami Dolphins can choose any player they want. From there everything else is contingent on things happening beforehand.

 

[Lord of the Rings]

This really comes down to protecting against unlikely possibilities. Let's say (pardon the grim example to follow), Jake Long were to pass away between today and Saturday; but that the NFL had allowed St. Louis to negotiate with players. Now let's say that, amidst a really said situation, the Dolphins have to also make a legal claim that THEY are entitled to draft someone else (because the contract with Long was contingent on their selecting him 1st overall), but meanwhile they would've selected Vernon Gholston and, as it turns out, STL has already signed him to a deal. Can you imagine what an ungodly mess that would be for the league on so many levels?Yes, we're talking about an absurd scenario that is on the farthest reaches of a probability tree. BUT, things happen. The ONLY certainty in the NFL draft is that the Miami Dolphins can choose any player they want. From there everything else is contingent on things happening beforehand.

Kind of what I was getting at in my earlier post (#21). What a mess that would be.

 

[T Man]

This really comes down to protecting against unlikely possibilities. Let's say (pardon the grim example to follow), Jake Long were to pass away between today and Saturday; but that the NFL had allowed St. Louis to negotiate with players. Now let's say that, amidst a really said situation, the Dolphins have to also make a legal claim that THEY are entitled to draft someone else (because the contract with Long was contingent on their selecting him 1st overall), but meanwhile they would've selected Vernon Gholston and, as it turns out, STL has already signed him to a deal. Can you imagine what an ungodly mess that would be for the league on so many levels?Yes, we're talking about an absurd scenario that is on the farthest reaches of a probability tree. BUT, things happen. The ONLY certainty in the NFL draft is that the Miami Dolphins can choose any player they want. From there everything else is contingent on things happening beforehand.

I disagree as I think it comes down to the perception that having the teams negotiate before the draft undermines the value of the draft as an event. I understand the unlikely possibility; however, even in that sad scenario, the Dolphins would still be forced to pick Long. Long signed the deal and he (or his estate) became entitled to the gurantees at that point. I seriously doubt the Dolphins could then say they pick someone else and that the contract with Long is not valid. And, in order to be valid, the Dolphins HAVE to select Long. They have no right to sign and pay Long unless they draft him because of the language in the CBA.The NFL would be far worse from a public relations standpoint if the Dolphins were able to reneg on the selection. COuld ou see Long's mother in front of all of the cameras saying what the Dolphins and NFL are conspiring to eliminate the contract?

 

[Godsbrother]

I don't think the Dolphins should have been allowed to negotiate or at the very least, announce it.

Why?They are the only team in the league who can truly pick whoever they want Saturday...Other teams can't negotiate with players because it could interfere with a team selecting before them who may be interested in the same player...

I like the drama of the announcement. I also think it opens up a can of worms. If you allow the Dolphins to negotiate terms of a contract before picking their #1 pick and basing that decision on the contract then you really should allow each team that opportunity. Since that really can't be done in the 10 minute format then the only fair solution would be to start the draft in Feb and after each selecteion give the next team a couple of days to contact players their interested in and make their selection.

 

[CommuterMan]

I don't think the Dolphins should have been allowed to negotiate or at the very least, announce it.

Why?They are the only team in the league who can truly pick whoever they want Saturday...Other teams can't negotiate with players because it could interfere with a team selecting before them who may be interested in the same player...

I like the drama of the announcement. I also think it opens up a can of worms. If you allow the Dolphins to negotiate terms of a contract before picking their #1 pick and basing that decision on the contract then you really should allow each team that opportunity. Since that really can't be done in the 10 minute format then the only fair solution would be to start the draft in Feb and after each selecteion give the next team a couple of days to contact players their interested in and make their selection.

This gives the team the leverage. The Rams say "Here is the contract, the first agent to get their player to sign on the dotted line gets the $$." The offer may be fair market but the leverage is definitely with the team. Assuming the agents recognize that the Rams are negociating with only two or three players the agents know that the money will not be that different from the #2 spot to the #5 spot but any bonuses, performance perks and guaranteed money will be at the Rams determination. But if the player waits a couple of days then the leverage swings to his advantage and his agent can negociate a contract that is more 'beneficial' to his client.Again I go with the thought that once the #1 spot is off the table the incentive for players and their agents to negociate prior to the draft is really not that great.

 

[mozzy84]

I don't think the rams should be able to negotiate. The phins have the first pick and its an advantage to have it, everything in life does not need to be fair, I don't see the problem myself.

 

[BuckeyeArt]

This really comes down to protecting against unlikely possibilities. Let's say (pardon the grim example to follow), Jake Long were to pass away between today and Saturday; but that the NFL had allowed St. Louis to negotiate with players. Now let's say that, amidst a really said situation, the Dolphins have to also make a legal claim that THEY are entitled to draft someone else (because the contract with Long was contingent on their selecting him 1st overall), but meanwhile they would've selected Vernon Gholston and, as it turns out, STL has already signed him to a deal. Can you imagine what an ungodly mess that would be for the league on so many levels?

Yes, we're talking about an absurd scenario that is on the farthest reaches of a probability tree. BUT, things happen. The ONLY certainty in the NFL draft is that the Miami Dolphins can choose any player they want. From there everything else is contingent on things happening beforehand.

The section in bold is the problem with your argument. If that were allowed, Miami could sign the 1st 10 guys and then decide who to make their #1 pick. No agent would ever allow their client to sign a contract like that.

 

[Jason Wood]

This really comes down to protecting against unlikely possibilities. Let's say (pardon the grim example to follow), Jake Long were to pass away between today and Saturday; but that the NFL had allowed St. Louis to negotiate with players. Now let's say that, amidst a really said situation, the Dolphins have to also make a legal claim that THEY are entitled to draft someone else (because the contract with Long was contingent on their selecting him 1st overall), but meanwhile they would've selected Vernon Gholston and, as it turns out, STL has already signed him to a deal. Can you imagine what an ungodly mess that would be for the league on so many levels?

Yes, we're talking about an absurd scenario that is on the farthest reaches of a probability tree. BUT, things happen. The ONLY certainty in the NFL draft is that the Miami Dolphins can choose any player they want. From there everything else is contingent on things happening beforehand.

The section in bold is the problem with your argument. If that were allowed, Miami could sign the 1st 10 guys and then decide who to make their #1 pick. No agent would ever allow their client to sign a contract like that.

OK, choose "contingent on being alive" then if you will. The rationale still holds.

 

[Buckna]

As surprising as it is for the NFL to be caught off-guard with this dilemma, it's still pretty much uncharted territory having this signing of Long take place so early in the week. On previous ocassions, it was within hours of the start of the draft as opposed to days.

Actually, wasn't Mario Williams signed on Thursday night? I seem to recall throwing my cell phone into a wall and I don't think it was on a Friday.

I can't recall exactly as to when he was actually "signed".In any case, this would have left roughly a 24-36 hour period. Not really comparable to 4 days.

Mario was signed and it was announced the Friday before the draft.

 

[Christo]

It seems incredibly unfair to allow one team to negotiate for the entire offseason, and not allow the the team at #2 to negotiate if the guy at #1 is signed.

Well, the the team with the No. 1 pick does set the bar for the rest of the league if it negotiates early. This benefits the entire league. The same can't be said for the second pick

It doesn't benefit the Rams if they have to pay 2nd pick money anyway. If they are allowed to negotiate, say between Ellis and Gholston, one of them may be inclined to take 3rd pick money instead of maybe 6th to 8th pick money. It absolutely hurts the Rams and gives Miami an unfair advantage.

You're being too myopic. The benefit the entire league receives by having the 1st pick signed before draft day outweighs the detriment you believe is inflicted upon St. Louis. At some point, some team is going to have to make a pick without having negotiated with the player yet.

But the effect is far less the further you get into the draft. The difference between 2nd and 6th place money is much less than between 16th and 20th place. Eventually, you get to the point where there is no significant advantage for a team to sign a player or for a player to sign with a team. Allowing only the 1st to sign is being myopic. Having only the 1st pick doesn't nearly benefit the league as much as having the 1st two (or even 3) picks signed. Just think what the benefit to the league becomes when the top 2 or 3 places are given a value.

So, you agree?

If by what you said you meant "I am making mountains out of molehills," then, yes, I agree with you.