The decision of the agent: what is the next step for the Veon Bell and the Steelers, including seven potential candidates for the RB?

The structure of the Pittsburgh offer was more problematic than that of money. That's because Pittsburgh veterans' contracts have a vanilla structure. Outside quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, the only money guaranteed in transactions with Pittsburgh is usually a signing bonus. Roethlisberger's basic salary guarantees only cover injuries. The most important contracts contain an alignment bonus for the third or fifth day of the league in the second and third years. From time to time, there is a freshman first year bonus, as would have been said in Bell 's bid. Alignment bonuses are meant to replace the additional contractual guarantees. Overall guarantees for Pittsburgh contracts are generally lower than those of other teams.

(To learn more about the Bell saga, including our NFL Insider talk, Jason La Canfora, on how Bell could actually return to Pittsburgh, check out today's episode of The Pick 6 Podcast, below.)

Pittsburgh had demonstrated its desire to radically review a back that has been steadily declining in recent years. The current benchmark for the cut-off date was the $ 41.25-million extension over five years, with just over $ 22 million worth of guarantees Devonta Freeman had received from the Falcons in the 2017 preseason.

Bell becomes the first franchise player to have spent a full season since the late 1990s. Redskins defensive tackle Sean Gilbert made it in 1997. Chiefs defenseman Dan Williams followed suit one year later. later. Sitting season ensures that Bell will be completely healthy for the off season. Bell and his agent feared that another season of intensive use, following the same pattern as last year, would affect his ability to land a huge contract in 2019. In 2017, he led the NFL with 321 rushing attempts and 406 hits (combined receptions and rushed attempts) despite the end of the season for precautionary measures with the playoffs imminent.

Immediate economic implications

Bell was already giving up 1 / 17th of its franchise offer of $ 14.544 million, or $ 855,529 per week. The Steelers get a weekly credit capped at the corresponding salary. Bell loses the balance of nearly $ 6 million from its bid, bringing its total lost revenue to $ 14.544 million. Receiving the full franchise label would have almost doubled Bell's career revenue. Bell earned just over $ 15.875 million through its NFL contracts. The Steelers will get $ 14.544 million in relief this year. The maximum unused space can be carried over to the 2019 year of the league.

Steelers options

There is no need to play this season for Bell to qualify for the unrestricted free player contract in 2019. He had the four seasons or years of service accumulated for the free player contract needed to become unrestricted when his rookie contract expired after the 2016 season. Bell currently has five cumulative seasons.

The Steelers will have exclusive bargaining rights with Bell from the end of the regular season, from December 30 to March 11, the date of the two-day bargaining period prior to the start of the free time period – when agents can have contract discussions with the entire league about their customers the imminent free agent – begins. Bell will be an unrestricted free agent in 2019, provided the Steelers do not award it a franchise or player in transition during the designation period, which extends from February 19 to March 5, 2019.

The procedures outlined in the NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) stipulate that Bell's third franchise tag will be the highest of 144% of its second franchise designation or the highest number in any position. which almost always corresponds to a quarter. A player can only be franchised three times during his career. Assuming that the 2019 salary cap is in the $ 190 million neighborhood, the quarterly figure should be about $ 25 million. The third and last franchise tag at around $ 25 million would be too expensive. It would work as the exclusive Bell received this year. Bell could not solicit an offer sheet from other NFL teams.

The Steelers assigning a transition designation to Bell is a realistic possibility, according to Jason LaCanfora of CBS Sports Insider. This number is equal to the greater of 120% of Bell's previous year's salary or the sum of the number of slices in the rollover ratio (average of the 10 highest salaries annually) over the last five years divided by by the cumulative salary ceilings of the same period. the percentage is multiplied by the salary cap of the current year (known as the cap percentage average). Given that the number of withdrawals from the average cap percentage is about $ 9.2 million if the 2019 salary cap is set at $ 190 million, Bell's previous salary would apply. . The precise wording of the ABC defining the calculation of the previous year's salary indicates that the 120% will be measured from the $ 12.12 million deductible under which Bell played in 2017 because it is absent this season. Bell's transition number would equal the same amount of $ 14.544 million as its current franchise label.

The Steelers have most often used the player designation in transition in recent years. Offensive tackle Max Starks and linebacker Jason Worilds played under this designation in 2008 and 2014.

A transition label would give the Steelers only the right to match an offer sheet from another team. There would be no clearing plan of choice, as with the non-exclusive franchise label, if the Steelers did not exercise their corresponding rights. Although the Steelers are vulnerable to a bid sheet that is not structurally consistent with their other contracts, both parties could inquire about the value of Bell.

Creating an offer sheet that the Steelers would not want to match would be fairly easy given the structure of the Pittsburgh contracts. The Steelers would likely cancel the label with a high degree of certainty that an unacceptable bid would be presented, just as the Dolphins did with Olivier Vernon in defense in 2016. Bell would become an unrestricted free agent where the Steelers could get a compensatory choice. in 2020 with him go to another team. Pittsburgh would need a significant net loss of players until 2019 in free agency with Bell signing one of the most lucrative contracts of the NFL to qualify for a third round maximum compensation.

Bell could be a luxury, not a necessity, in Pittsburgh, thanks to James Conner, who is making $ 578,000 this year. The third round pick of 2017 appeared in the absence of Bell. Conner is third in the NFL with 771 yards rushing. His 10 touchdowns rank third in the league. Connor is on the pace of 2,059 yards of scrimmage (combined yards in race and receiving). This is a total that Bell has exceeded in 2014 only 2,215 yards of the fray.

The Steelers get Connor's comparable production for about 1 / 25th of Bell's franchise bidding. The Connor rookie contract covers the entire 2020 season: $ 668,000 and $ 758,000 in salaries the following year and the following year.

The expected contractual requirements of Bell

Bell's exact financial requests have never been disclosed. He apparently claimed the $ 17 million a year that Antonio Brown had received from the Steelers at an extension of contract last year at the start of the off season. The triple All-Pro mentioned needing $ 15 million a year in a rap song last year.

Bell will surely be looking to supplant Todd Gurley as the highest-paid NFL runner. The agreement reached between Gurley and the Rams is raising an average of $ 14.375 million a year. Its $ 45 million guarantee is the largest of all time. David Johnson's recent $ 39 million three-year extension of the David Cardinals allowed a veteran half-board contract to win a record $ 24,682,500 at the signing.

Pretenders 2019

Bell, who will turn 27 in February, will be the most talented ball carrier available in a while while visiting the open market. He has amassed distance at an unprecedented and unprecedented rate. Bell's 129 rushing yards per game are the most successful in the NFL's history (minimum 50 career games). Hall of Famer Jim Brown is second at 125.5 points per game. No one has ever been so talented to pick up rushing yards in the first five seasons of an NFL career. Edgerrin James and Eric Dickerson are right behind Bell with 126 and 125.7 yards per game.

Bell does not necessarily need to generate a lot of interest for a free agency for a big salary. Only one team is enough to consider it as a decisive talent. Teams with significant room for maneuver and a quarter on a low-cost recruiting contract could be the most intrigued by Bell. The salary cap for 2019 is expected to be about $ 190 million if the growth rate of the cap for the last few years is maintained.

The Jets could have more than $ 90 million in training space when the league's 2019 season begins in March, after taking into account 51 players registered under the accounting rules in effect during the off-season and postponement. the space reserved for existing teams. Bilal Powell is in a contract year. Isaiah Crowell signed a three-year, $ 12 million contract with the Jets in March. Crowell's presence should not affect Bell's pursuit, even though he broke the Jets franchise record with 219 rushing yards against the Broncos in the fifth week. Quarterback Sam Darnold, third overall pick in this year's NFL draft, is stuck in a rookie contract for the 2021 season, averaging just over $ 7.5 million a year.

Bell would be the type of double threat that Texans have not had since Arian Foster at the beginning of the decade. The addition of Bell would probably be at the expense of Lamar Miller; 2019 is the last year of the $ 26 million contract signed by Miller in 2016, worth $ 26 million. The Texans are expected to have just over $ 73 million in 2019. An additional $ 6.25 million gain would be achieved by reducing Miller's offseason. Deshaun Watson is in his second year as a quarterback. Texans would not have to deal with the 2017 12th Choice contract until 2020 at the earliest.

The Ravens could be a team in transition next year. Head Coach John Harbaugh is on the hot seat. Baltimore lost 4-5 after losing four of its last five games. Lamar Jackson has not been caught with the 32nd overall pick this year to sit behind Joe Flacco at the quarterback indefinitely. Alex Collins, who will be a restricted free agent in 2019, regressed after almost winning 1,000 rushing yards last season. The Ravens should have a little more than $ 38.5 million of leeway for the off season. Separating from Flacco would open an additional 10.5 dollars.

Bell is the type of offensive toy that Raiders head coach Jon Gruden, who is the main stockbroker in the organization, would like to have. The two year old Marshawn Lynch contract, 32, will be canceled next year. The Raiders should have close to $ 70 million in space due to the radical overhaul of the Gruden alignment. Currently, there are only 31 players under contract for 2019.

The Colts should have about $ 117 million in reserve funds, an NFL record, during the upcoming off season. Only two teams took out less than $ 115 million in 2019 commitments from the Colts. The Colts are also on track to rank second, with just over $ 50 million. The Indianapolis halfback trio, the choice of the fourth round 2017, Marlon Mack, the choice of the fourth round 2018, Nyheim Hines, and the choice of the fifth round 2018, Jordan Wilkins, have been surprisingly effective.

Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst is much more aggressive in free mode than his predecessor Ted Thompson. It will be armed with nearly $ 47.5 million of space ceiling for the off season. A lack of money guaranteed in the Pittsburgh bid was a problem for Bell. Green Bay structures veterans' contracts as Pittsburgh does, except with quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The same problem would probably arise among the Packers and make Green Bay an unattractive destination. Aaron Jones recently gave a boost to the Green Bay racing game. He leads the NFL with 6.8 yards per run.

Rumor has it that the Eagles would be on the market for a semi-final before the October 30 trading deadline. Pursuing Bell will be a challenge as the Eagles have $ 208.579 million in cap commitment for 2019, with 44 players under contract. There are natural exit points with many of the Philadelphia contracts. For example, denying the 2019 options for quarterback Nick Foles and defenseman Timmy Jernigan while freeing left tackle Jason Peters would collectively create $ 36.3 million in space, leaving Philadelphia close to $ 20 million. under the ceiling.