Can anyone provide me with some examples of a team or teams under the current CBA that have been crippled by handing out too many fat contracts? Crippled as in having to let elite players walk in FA or get traded away for peanuts because they couldn't make it work?
It's weird, the "book response" has always been the Ravens after the Flacco contract, but I've never looked too deep into that. Then there's the Cowboys' release of DeMarcus Ware, but whether he was elite or not at the time of the release is a different matter.
Using the specified definition of "crippled" (and probably ignoring "too many fat contracts"), the right answer could actually be the Patriots. Grabapole, is elite to someone, somewhere, and he was let go for peanuts. Cooks wasn't let go for peanuts, but all reports was that he would've walked in FA. Solder, gone. Malcolm Butler had his fans around here. Unsubstantiated rumors were that they were looking to move Gronk (maybe for peanuts, maybe not).
Maybe a stretch, maybe not, but I just like to think of "Crippled" and "Patriots" together and if I haven't rained on your parade you don't need to rain on mine.
Edit: And I guess maybe the hidden take away is that yes, bad contracts can cripple a team, but also that the salary cap punishes success.