Hunter's release and Rams' contracts

[News Bot]

[wrapimg=right]http://i.imgur.com/0hurrih.png[/wrapimg]Mike Sando
<a class="postlink" href="http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcwest/post/_/id/93131/wayne-hunters-release-and-rams-contracts" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcwest/post/_/ ... -contracts</a>


Wayne Hunter, one of 16 players to start on the St. Louis Rams' offensive line over the past two seasons, was scheduled to earn $4 million in 2013.

The Rams weren't going to pay that much for a backup tackle. They made it official Wednesday by releasing Hunter, according to Jim Thomas. The Rams and the New York Jets have now released the two offensive tackles they swapped last season. The Jets had sent Hunter to St. Louis for Jason Smith.

Hunter was one of 10 players scheduled to count at least $4 million against the Rams' salary cap in 2013. Another, running back Steven Jackson, will reportedly void his contract when free agency begins Monday. That will remove a $7 million charge from the books for 2013.

Of the other players listed, safety Quintin Mikell jumps out the most. His $9 million cap charge is more than double what it was in each of the previous two seasons. The team must account for $6 million in prorated bonus charges over the next two seasons whether or not Mikell is on the roster.

Teams must comply with the $123.9 million salary cap by March 12. Releasing Hunter and having Jackson hit the market will allow the Rams to comply with millions to spare.

 

[CGI_Ram]

I don't have much time to look into this; is Mikell a better candidate for a June cut? I. E. Ability to spread losses over 2013 and 2014?

Personally, I do not want him cut.

Just wondering where this could go.

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[shaunpinney]

I don't really want to see Mikell on an opposing defence...

 

[fearsomefour]

It doesnt make sense to me that Mikell would be cut either. If the Rams are able to bring in a S like the cat from the Texans or Phillips that move would be offset by letting Mikell walk. At a position in need of an upgrade letting go of the one known commodity for not much cap relief doesnt make sense to me.

 

[shaunpinney]

It doesnt make sense to me that Mikell would be cut either. If the Rams are able to bring in a S like the cat from the Texans or Phillips that move would be offset by letting Mikell walk. At a position in need of an upgrade letting go of the one known commodity for not much cap relief doesnt make sense to me.

I think we need to keep Mikell and draft an S. Didn't Demoff say the other day, if you have $8m, it may be better spent on a guy on $7m and another at $1m than two at $4m... or words to that effect - We saw them do it last year with Finnegan and Jenkins

 

[Wonderboy]

So where are the Rams overall in relationship to the salary cap as of right now (assuming Jackson's contract is voided, which hasn't officially happened yet)? I'm just trying to figure out how much room the Rams have. Is it $10M, 20? If the Rams have $20M of space, maybe they could still figure out how to bring back SJ39, Amendola, and pick up the guy the Chiefs just dumped, Winston to play RT. Then we could focus the draft on a playmaking WR and a safety or two to take over the back end of our secondary. At least it would put us in more of a position to take the best player available, instead of having so many needs.

 

[shaunpinney]

Source Bleacher Report: "As things stand, the Rams will have $11,966,165 million to spend in the offseason—roughly six million more than it will take to sign just their draft picks. If they want to sign more than one other player, which they do, they're going to have to free up some money somewhere.

The Rams will certainly try to restructure Quintin Mikell's deal to get his $9 million cap hit in a more acceptable range. If Mikell doesn't respond favorably, he may end up following Hunter out the door, though with $6 million in dead money, the Rams would only be saving $3 million dollars."

I'd definitely keep Mikell after reading this, can we really get a better Saftey for $3million???

They continue, "Harvey Dahl may also be cut from the roster. The Rams desperately need to keep the $4 million he is owed in 2013, and with the return of the Rok (Rokevious Watkins) and their ability to draft another guard at a much lower price, the move makes total sense.

If all that happens, the Rams will suddenly have $18,966,165 million in cap space.

What's more likely is that Mikell agrees to restructure, and his cap hit goes from $9 million to somewhere in the $2-4 million range.

Either way, the Rams will have somewhere between $14.9 and $16.9 million to spend this offseason.

Subtract roughly five from that for draft picks, and you're left with $9.9 to $11.9 million to spend on free agents—their own and other teams'—and for extending players currently on expiring contracts."

<a class="postlink" href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1552366-the-complete-guide-to-st-louis-rams-free-agency/page/2" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1552 ... ncy/page/2</a>

 

[Wonderboy]

Source Bleacher Report: "As things stand, the Rams will have $11,966,165 million to spend in the offseason—roughly six million more than it will take to sign just their draft picks. If they want to sign more than one other player, which they do, they're going to have to free up some money somewhere.

The Rams will certainly try to restructure Quintin Mikell's deal to get his $9 million cap hit in a more acceptable range. If Mikell doesn't respond favorably, he may end up following Hunter out the door, though with $6 million in dead money, the Rams would only be saving $3 million dollars."

I'd definitely keep Mikell after reading this, can we really get a better Saftey for $3million???

They continue, "Harvey Dahl may also be cut from the roster. The Rams desperately need to keep the $4 million he is owed in 2013, and with the return of the Rok (Rokevious Watkins) and their ability to draft another guard at a much lower price, the move makes total sense.

If all that happens, the Rams will suddenly have $18,966,165 million in cap space.

What's more likely is that Mikell agrees to restructure, and his cap hit goes from $9 million to somewhere in the $2-4 million range.

Either way, the Rams will have somewhere between $14.9 and $16.9 million to spend this offseason.

Subtract roughly five from that for draft picks, and you're left with $9.9 to $11.9 million to spend on free agents—their own and other teams'—and for extending players currently on expiring contracts."

<a class="postlink" href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1552366-the-complete-guide-to-st-louis-rams-free-agency/page/2" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1552 ... ncy/page/2</a>

Fantastic.... Just what I was looking for... Thanks!

 

[-X-]

They're by no means done. Demoff has said for two years now, that they keep $10M or so aside for signing free agents during the season (if need be, due to injuries or some other factor).

 

[CGI_Ram]

They're by no means done. Demoff has said for two years now, that they keep $10M or so aside for signing free agents during the season (if need be, due to injuries or some other factor).

I think you are right.

When you look for the "remaining places"... the list is dwindling; (1) Mikell and Dahl (2) converting JL's roster bonus to signing bonus (3) another restructure?

I'm going to guess #2.

Maybe there is a surprise #3.

But, I'm thinking Mikell and Dahl are back restructure or not.

 

[jap]

If they opt to let Mikell walk, I hope they try to sign Kenny Philips, then go after another safety in the draft.