"Things can be so manipulated" - Colin Cowherd slams NFL's salary cap following Rams super-team's success
The Los Angeles Rams proved themselves to be the best team in the NFL last season. Their victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI saw General Manager Les Snead's ten-year plan come to fruitian.
Matthew Stafford finds Cooper Kupp for a HUGE gain 🔥
Rams charging ahead vs. the Bengals defense #SuperBowl
https://t.co/qQcF7u6Ccz
However, NFL analyst Colin Cowherd believes the tactics employed by the Super Bowl champions have been questionable. Speaking on his podcast, Cowherd had the following to say:
"But it is remarkable how teams like the LA [Rams] just figure out a way to do it. You know, this, this thing can be so manipulated by the really smart GMs."
Cowherd continued:
"The Rams signed Bobby Wagner on top of Ramsey and Donald and they're paying Goff and they're paying Stafford and they're paying OBJ and Cooper Kupp and they paid Allen Robinson and literally the Bears are like: we can't pay Khalil Mack, and I'm like, you're not paying your quarterback. You don't have a second good receiver. Like, some of these teams don't know what they're doing."
For several years, Sean McVay's side have enacted a game plan at odds with the rest of the league. GM Snead placed little value on high-round draft picks. Instead, the team traded them away to acquire proven talent such as Jalen Ramsey, Von Miller and Matthew Stafford.
It was a high-risk strategy, but they have been rewarded handsomely for their gamble. However, a majority of the NFL community, just like Cowherd, have struggled to understand why they have not fallen foul of the dreaded cap.
How have the Rams stayed clear of cap issues?
For years, NFL fans have cried foul about the Los Angeles Rams and their manipulation of the salary cap. Despite taking on a seemingly endless list of mega contracts, they managed to balance the books. How?
During an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show, former Green Bay Packers VP Andrew Brandt provided an explanation:
"Baked into the NFL salary cap is this loophole: For cap purposes, signing bonuses are prorated over the life of the contract. Although treated as cash in the year of negotiation, only the prorated amount is treated as cap each year. The mechanism creates short-term cap savings, with low early cap numbers that escalate later. It is a method of doing business that is very short-term oriented, but how L.A. has been operating for years."
this is a perfect way to understand how teams like the Rams are “avoiding” the salary cap
the cap isn’t fake…but it HAS A LOOPHOLE that allows for proration & void years (NBA & NHL do not allow)
highly recommend you spend 2 mins & learn from @AndrewBrandt on the @PatMcAfeeShow https://t.co/56Q48ODq2D
However, this has not convinced the NFL community, who often counter with a very reasonable argument. If McVay's side is doing this, then why aren't the other 31 franchises also doing it?
For those concerned about the #Rams and the salary cap:
LAR uses a double bonus structure in almost every major contract. This spreads cap out immensely.
Cooper Kupp's $18.6M current cap hit is almost certainly going down.
Stafford: $23M->$13.5M
Donald: $26.75M-> $24M
The question would appear legimate enough. If LA were simply spreading the cost over a greater number of years, surely there would be a day when that becomes unsustainable. Maybe there will be, but by then, LA could have a few more Lombardi's in the trophy cabinet to cover the spread.
If you use any of the above quotes, please credit The Colin Cowherd Podcast, The Pat McAfee Show and H/T Sportskeeda.