Most Improved Player

[privatepacker]

A surprise Packer leads the list as most improved player in NFL this year.

http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/Features/NFList/2007/nflist2218.htm

Makes me wonder if TT is going to try and sign him to long term contract or wait and use him for trade leverage later.

[MJZiggy]

Last I heard they were in preliminary negotiations but Williams wants to test free agency and get his payday.

[packers11]

tender him...

Use the highest tender... 1st and 3rd...

or resign him...

WHAT EVER YOU DO, DON'T LET HIM GO T.T!!!

[The Leaper]

WHAT EVER YOU DO, DON'T LET HIM GO T.T!!!

TT isn't funnelling money into 2008 for no reason.

[Partial]

I don't get why this is even a debate. Why let someone go for an unknown?!? If you get into his ballpark no way does he not take a deal now. With almost half the season left, an ACL injury and his payday is down the pooper. Lock him up TT. Lock him up!!!!!

[Partial]

tender him...

Use the highest tender... 1st and 3rd...

or resign him...

WHAT EVER YOU DO, DON'T LET HIM GO T.T!!!

He's not a restricted free agent. You can't franchise him. That would be severely over paying. You don't want him to hit the market because some team will throw a ton of money at him. He's a heck of a 4th year player right now. Lock him up.

[mmmdk]

Big test for TT; also I hope Williams wants to be in Green Bay or TT can't do a thing. But TT can't low ball Corey.

[RashanGary]

They can put the transition tag on him, similar to what they did with Bubba a couple years ago. It gives them the option to match any offer from any team and gaurantees Williams the average of the top 10 at his position if nothing gets worked out.

I don't think the franchise is out of the question. I think it would gaurantee him something like 7 mil for one year, but with the way salaries are going to shoot up, it's really not a horrible price for one year of service out of a guy in his prime.

They do have a few options, the best is to sign him now but if Williams refuses (because he really wants to test the market), then they have to move to plan B or C. I don't see Williams hitting the market unrestricted. I would think at minimum (and most likely) he'd have a transition tag restriction when he hits the market.

At this point, I'd just up the price a little to get it done. If he hits the open market (even with the transition tag), his price is going to be astronomical. I wonder if he'd sign for 5 years, 25 mil and 8 of it gauranteed. It's almost the same as Kamp, but Kamp got robbed.

[oregonpackfan]

The bottom line is that Corey Williams is a big factor in the Packers' success this season.

He has earned the big contract, IMO.

[Partial]

They can put the transition tag on him, similar to what they did with Bubba a couple years ago. It gives them the option to match any offer from any team and gaurantees Williams the average of the top 10 at his position if nothing gets worked out.

I don't think the franchise is out of the question. I think it would gaurantee him something like 7 mil for one year, but with the way salaries are going to shoot up, it's really not a horrible price for one year of service out of a guy in his prime.

They do have a few options, the best is to sign him now but if Williams refuses (because he really wants to test the market), then they have to move to plan B or C. I don't see Williams hitting the market unrestricted. I would think at minimum (and most likely) he'd have a transition tag restriction when he hits the market.

At this point, I'd just up the price a little to get it done. If he hits the open market (even with the transition tag), his price is going to be astronomical. I wonder if he'd sign for 5 years, 25 mil and 8 of it gauranteed. It's almost the same as Kamp, but Kamp got robbed.

It will probably be more than 7 million because DL is one position. You've got Peppers, Kearse, NO end, Seymore, etc. making the number really F'in high.

Keep in mind we should have more cap space next year as Hawk had an 11 million dollar bonus paid this year.

[Carolina_Packer]

I didn't know all the details, so I looked it up:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restricted_free_agent#Examples_of_possible_outcome s

It's interesting that if Green Bay were to roll the dice and low tender him and he only found one suitor willing to sign him to an offer less than to his liking, Green Bay could then match that offer, but then you might have an unhappy player. If he gets no offer sheet, he could always agree to play for the tender price and then become a free agent after the year is up.

If they really want him to stay in GB, why not put a first and third round tender on him, so that if a team is hell bent to sign him to a richer offer sheet than TT would, at least we would be well compensated for his departure. I don't know if there is anyone out there who would be willing to not only give him a top dollar contract, but also lose a 1st and 3rd for him. That means the Pack really has the hammer. If they like Williams, I'm sure they'll take care of him.

Low tender -- $850,000
Second-round tender -- $1.3 million
First-round tender -- $1.85 million
First- and third-round tender -- $2.35 million

[RashanGary]

Keep in mind we should have more cap space next year as Hawk had an 11 million dollar bonus paid this year.

http://buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?news_id=4587

[packers11]

First- and third-round tender -- $2.35 million

Thats what I was talking about...

At worst, T.T. can just put this tender on him (I think)...

[RashanGary]

I don't think they have that option CP. After a players 4th year, think he is free of those tenders.

[Tarlam!]

[quote="Partial

He's not a restricted free agent. You can't franchise him.[/quote]

I don't think this is accurate. Franchising UFAs is within the CBA.

[packers11]

[quote="Partial

He's not a restricted free agent. You can't franchise him.
I don't think this is accurate. Franchising UFAs is within the CBA.

You can franchise him... Thats why Briggs was so pissed off, along with Asante...

They both were going to be UFA, until they got franchised...

[RashanGary]

http://www.nflpa.org/CBA/free_agency_System_explained.aspx

Restricted Free Agent – A player whose contract expires when he has three Accrued Seasons (but less than four) is in this category in a capped year. If his old club provides him with a sufficient “Qualifying Offer” on or before March 1, 2007, it retains the right to either match an offer the player may get from another club or to receive draft choice compensation from the club making the offer. The Qualifying Offer is based on the level of draft choices the old club wants to receive. For Example, the Qualifying Offer to receive a first and third rounder in 2006 was $2,096,600. The Restricted Free Agent only has about a week before the draft (April 28 - 29 in 2007) to generate an offer from another club. If he fails to get an offer, his exclusive rights revert to the old club unless the Qualifying Offer is withdrawn.

Unrestricted Free Agent – A player whose contract expires when he has accumulated at least four Accrued Seasons in a capped year is free to sign with any other club if he does so by the beginning of training camp of the same year. If he does not sign elsewhere, his exclusive rights revert to his old club after that date provided that the old club has given him a written tender by June 1 offering to re-sign him for an additional year at a ten percent increase in salary (the “June 1 Tender”). An Unrestricted Free Agent will be restricted in signing elsewhere, however, if he is designated a Franchise or Transition Player.


Williams is finishing year four so he's unrestricted with the only options being franchise or transition tags.

[Partial]

[quote="Partial

He's not a restricted free agent. You can't franchise him.

I don't think this is accurate. Franchising UFAs is within the CBA.[/quote]

They were two indepedenet statements.

You can't franchise him because it isn't worth it. He'd cost too much and other players would be bitter about the amount he'd be making.

You can't tender him w/ a 1st and 3rd round or an offer sheet that you can match because he isn't a RFA. Sorry for the confusion everybody.

[MJZiggy]

I think there's a difference between the tenders these guys are talking about and the franchise tag. Tendering is for RFA's and IIRC, Williams is a UFA. Sure, you could put a franchise tag on him but then if you want to really lock in his services, you have to pay him the average salary of the top 5 players in his position. The lower tag requires the average of the top 10.

[Tarlam!]

An Unrestricted Free Agent will be restricted in signing elsewhere, however, if he is designated a Franchise or Transition Player.


Williams is finishing year four so he's unrestricted.

Which means he CAN be tagged....

[MJZiggy]

He CAN but it'll cost ya.

[RashanGary]

Hopefully something gets done before he hits UFA. If he hits UFA and someone offers him 6 years 50 mil, I'd just let him go. He's a good player, but he's playing in one of the NFL's bettter DL rotations. He's probably overrated and will get paid as such. If he wants the moon, I'd let someone else give it to him, but if he's willing to take 5 years 25 right now, I would just do it and move forward.

IF he hits UFA then we'd get a compensitory pick, but not too many 4th round picks turn out as good as Williams and that is probably all we'd get for him.


I'd do everything I can to sign him now even if it is a little over what the other guys are making on the team. Prices continually go up, it's the nature of the buisness. However, if he's stubborn on Barnett type money or more I'd just let him go. At some point it's not worth it and like I said, he might be a little overrated and his agent knows that.

[Tarlam!]

He CAN but it'll cost ya.
The average of the top 10 annual salaries at the position. I know. :taunt:

[packers11]

He CAN but it'll cost ya.
The average of the top 10 annual salaries at the position. I know. :taunt:

Which is 6.7 for mill for one year...

Thats not to bad considering the packers have a ton of money...

[RashanGary]

He CAN but it'll cost ya.
The average of the top 10 annual salaries at the position. I know. :taunt:

Which is 6.7 for mill for one year...

Thats not to bad considering the packers have a ton of money...

That's top 5 and it would gaurantee the Packers have him becasue that is franchise tag money. You're right, it's not nearly as bad as Partial makes it sound because at the age of 28, that is probably the best year of his career.

[Tarlam!]

He CAN but it'll cost ya.
The average of the top 10 annual salaries at the position. I know. :taunt:

Which is 6.7 for mill for one year...

Thats not to bad considering the packers have a ton of money...

That's top 5 and it would gaurantee the Packers have him becasue that is franchise tag money. You're right, it's not nearly as bad as Partial makes it sound because at the age of 28, that is probably the best year of his career.

Only paidas-you-play. An injury and it's "good bye gravy train". That's why the players hate it. No garanteed money.

[Carolina_Packer]

He CAN but it'll cost ya.
The average of the top 10 annual salaries at the position. I know. :taunt:

Which is 6.7 for mill for one year...

Thats not to bad considering the packers have a ton of money...

So does that buy you one more year of his services and a chance to see if this year was a fluke or if he's that good? That's not a bad outcome if you like to play it conservatively, as TT seems to. He can always re-up him during the season after giving him the approx. 6.7 mil for the one year, right? Of course if a player is not happy to be on this "one year island" where they could get hurt and kill their long-term earning potential, then perhaps he should take Green Bay up on any decent offer if he wants to stay with the team. Kampy may have been underpaid, but I think he put a price on his happiness in Green Bay. If you love where you work and know you can get more elsewhere, but know it's a happiness risk to start over with new people, new circumstances, then you can take less money and be happy.

[MJZiggy]

Only thing is, players seem to hate getting tagged and from what I've read he still wants to see what he can get in FA, so if you tag him, he's still a FA next year. If signing him during the season would work, it would be getting done now because the team's been talking with him.

[RashanGary]

If he is that stubborn, it's still nice to have him for the best year of his career at a price that is only 5% of the total salary cap space. He's taking a lot of risk, he might just loosen up his demands a little.

[Carolina_Packer]

Interesting reading if you're interested in the business side of things:

Franchise Tag:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franchise_Tag

There are two types of franchise tag designations: the exclusive rights franchise tag, and non-exclusive rights franchise tag:

An "exclusive" franchise player must be offered a one-year contract for an amount equal to or greater than the average of the top five salaries at the player's position as of a date in April of the current year in which the tag will apply, or 120 percent of the player's previous year's salary, whichever is greater. Exclusive franchise players cannot negotiate with other teams.

A "non-exclusive" franchise player must be offered a one-year contract for an amount equal to or greater than the average of the top five salaries at the player's position in the previous year, or 120 percent of the player's previous year's salary, whichever is greater. A non-exclusive franchise player may negotiate with other NFL teams, but if he signs an offer sheet from another team, the original team has a right to match the terms of that offer, or if it does not match the offer and thus loses the player, to receive two first-round draft picks as compensation.

It is the team's choice whether it uses an exclusive or a non-exclusive franchise tag. While it may seem that a team would always choose the exclusive option, there are two reasons a team might prefer the non-exclusive option instead. The first is that the salary is based on the top 5 salaries of the previous year instead of the current year, which could be a significant difference. The second reason is that a team may want the opportunity for the two first-round draft picks they would receive if they lost their player.


Transition Tag:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transition_tag

Interesting what happened with Steve Hutchinson coming from Seattle to the Vikings and then Nate Burleson leaving the Vikes to go to the Seahawks. Poisoned Pill, huh? Never knew that. It said transition tag is not often used by clubs. Do you know of any other examples of this poison pill method to sign a guy from another club? I can see where it wouldn't endear you to the other GM's. Was that before they hired Spielman to be the GM?

I wonder if they would slap a non-exclusive transition tag on Corey Williams, so they could match another club's offer, and then walk away with two first rounders if they thought the other team's offer was too high. Hey, two first rounders for a fourth rounder at a position where you are already deep. Might be worth the risk. I'm not sure if another club is going to give too high of an offer knwowing that Green Bay might say "too rich for our blood" and then not only does the signing team have the big contract, but the loss of two high draft picks. So, what is the overall trend for these non-exclusive deals in the NFL these days?

[Joemailman]

I find it odd that Williams is considered the most improved player. I'm thinking they're unaware of how good he was last year. I would say the most improved Packer is Donald Lee.

I expect TT will get Williams signed to a long-term deal. DT's that can rush the passer are a hard to find commodity.

[RashanGary]

With Williams I would do non exclusive. If we got high picks for him, I'd be extatic. That wouldn't happen, so what would happen is Williams would get last years top 5 which isn't through the roof.

I'd do it and force him to either play another year at 6.7 mil (3 mil after taxes) or sign a long term, fair deal to pad his bank account.

[Carolina_Packer]

With Williams I would do non exclusive. If we got high picks for him, I'd be extatic. That wouldn't happen, so what would happen is Williams would get last years top 5 which isn't through the roof.

I'd do it and force him to either play another year at 6.7 mil (3 mil after taxes) or sign a long term, fair deal to pad his bank account.

If the Pack slaps the non-exclusive franchise tender on him (hypothetically), and no team makes a play for him, do you think the Packers would still come back and try and sign him to a long term deal, or do you think they would still have him play for the one year deal and then lose him to UFA. I suppose that one year could just buy time to get a long term deal done. What is a typical way that these things go down for a player like Williams that we want to keep?

[RashanGary]

If the Pack slaps the non-exclusive franchise tender on him (hypothetically), and no team makes a play for him, do you think the Packers would still come back and try and sign him to a long term deal, or do you think they would still have him play for the one year deal and then lose him to UFA. I suppose that one year could just buy time to get a long term deal done. What is a typical way that these things go down for a player like Williams that we want to keep?

I'm just guessing here, but usually players that are just decent like Williams do not get franchised. However, with the huge increase in salary cap space the last two years and the average of the top 5 DT's not raising, it looks like the franchise tag might be a bargain compared to what it usually is. Normally, I would think players like Barnett or Kampman (after he broke out) would be the type of player to get a franchise tag, but this is a unique situation, in that the cost is low in relation to the cap compared to the typical year.

It would put some pressure on Williams to sign a long term deal, but you never know how he and his agent might respond.

[b bulldog]

Definitely can be tagged if they wish to do so