Last year marked the first time that Immersion players were eligible for restricted free agency. There were some bugs to work out and a little bit of miscommunication, but at the end of the day all of the tendered RFAs stayed with their teams, albeit at higher salaries.
This year we have set rules to be more proactive about heading off any confusion. Each RFA will get his own day in the sun to be bid on. So, if you don’t win him, then you can plan accordingly for the next available free agents.
I think the biggest RFA winner last year was Tom Rothfus. In
2011, the Chitons drafted Emmanuel Sanders in the 7th round.
After 3 years of the kind of production you’d expect out of a 7th rounder, the Chitons slapped a 1st round tag on him. And why not? It cost them $1.67, and nobody was going to bid him up and risk losing a first rounder. Of course, Sanders joins Denver and Manning and goes crazy for almost 200 points.
In the two years of tagging players, no team has gone with anything other than a first round tender. It might be something to think about. Perhaps we could make the first round tender pricier, say 30% raise, to encourage more teams to go with 2nd and 3rd round tags.
Tomorrow marks the beginning of our restricted free agency period. Unless we get some last minute tenders today, it looks like there will be 12 players on the block, starting with Andrew Luck.
Luck is an interesting player. He’s young and is expected to be a top-3 QB for years to come. What price will he command? A first rounder as compensation is nothing for a player of that caliber. I’d trade all 3 of my first rounders for him if I could keep his salary under control.
Since he has a 1st round tag, the following teams will be out of the sweepstakes, as they don’t have the requisite compensation to offer the Battery:
- Bestine Banthas
- Sweet Home Gridiron Gang
So, who’s likely to bid on him?
The Batavia Colliders have Colin Kaepernick on the roster, but they also have Russell Wilson up for RFA later. Will they make a play for Luck? They traded Aaron Rodgers to the Fransburg (r)EvoLUtion when his salary got too high, so they might not have the stomach for paying Luck.
Since the (r)EvoLUtion have Rodgers, it’s hard to see them making a play for Luck.
The Madtown Marauders seem likely suitors, as they currently have the following quarterbacks on their roster: Mark Sanchez, Teddy Bridgewater, and Jimmy Garroppolo.
The Marshfield Pirates have the suspended Tom Brady on the roster (in his final year) and up-and-comer Derek Carr. They also have Johnny Manziel – a spectacular first round pick. I could see Enright making a play for Luck and then pawning off Brady on the Gridiron Gang, only to see Brady’s suspension increased on appeal.
The Silvertips already have a serviceable (and likely way cheaper) quarterback in Cam Newton. I can’t see them giving up the first overall pick after an 0-13 campaign. Their roster needs a lot of help, and even though Luck is great I can’t imagine Weldin sacrificing the structural needs of the rest of his team for a shot at Luck.
The Holley Hawks can’t afford Luck, and can’t even try to get him until they are under the cap.
The North Point Chitons invested a decent amount in Matt Ryan, an he’s been pretty serviceable. With replacement-level QB Andy Dalton backing him up, I don’t see the Chitons making a play for Luck.
The DownState CornChutes have a murderers row of unproven young quarterbacks in Blake Bortles, Zach Mettenberger, and Logan Thomas. It would be irresponsible for management NOT to go after Luck.
The Oregon Dream Team have three very good quarterbacks in Matthew Stafford, Ben Roethlisberger, and Philip Rivers. Absolutely no reason to go after Luck.
So how will it turn out? My guess is that the Cleveland Battery will match any price to keep Luck. They have no other QBs on the roster and a whole lot of cap room.
© 2015, Josh Hammond. All rights reserved.
Dont hate on the Manziel pick. I was panicked after Franssen drafted Benjamin right in my eye. I didnt know what to do until he text me and said “hurry up and draft me”. I decided to pull the trigger. Whoops.
Ha, no hate. I just read an article today about how they’re “moving on” from Manziel.
Sucks. But I’ve been known to draft one or twenty bums in my day. That trade for Terrance West is looking pretty money now that the Browns drafted another RB who should take the starting job away from West AND Crowell.
Moral: Avoid Browns Always
Bid Luck up! It’s like when we bid up Weldin on AJ – there was no way Green was moving from the Silvertips.