According to the CBA...

Section 5. Minimum Team Salary:

(a) For the 2006 League Year, there shall be a guaranteed Minimum Team Salary of 84% of the Salary Cap. For each subsequent Capped Year, the percentage set forth in the prior sentence shall increase 1.2%, but in no event shall the percentage be greater than 90%. For example, in the 2008 League Year, there shall be a guaranteed Minimum Team Salary of 86.4% of the Salary Cap. Each Team shall be required to have a Team Salary of at least the Minimum Team Salary at the end of each Capped Year. There shall be no Minimum Team Salary in the Final League Year.

The league salary cap is $116 mil. Following the logic laid out by the CBA, this means the league's "cap floor" is precisely $100 mil. However, each team has its own "adjusted cap" based on the incentive results from the prior season. I'm estimating the Jaguars "adjusted cap" to be $125 mil. I'm not sure if the Jaguars floor would be the $100 mil figure, or if it would be 84.6 percent of $125 mil. If it's the latter, that means they'd have a floor of $108 mil. That's actually rather interesting when you consider that the league's Salary Cap last year was $109 mil.

Jacksonville opened free agency about $30 million under the salary cap.

-http://www.sportsline.com/nfl/story/10676881

This has me thinking that my estimate may be rather close afterall despite media projections from a week ago claiming the Jaguars would be more than $40 mil under.

I'll account for today's moves in a few days after the NFLPA posts their salaries. If any of you can find any details of the Jaguars free agent moves, please post them or the link to those details in this thread. So far all I've seen is that Porter's deal is 6 years worth $30 mil including $10 mil guaranteed. That's slightly less than the contracts handed out to Rasheen Mathis and Brian Williams.

'02 Check out my CAP_INFO, and join my new WEBSITE. Coach Del Rio: "Respect every opponnent, and fear nobody."

Thanks as always for keeping this going.  I have some questions:

1.  Have you heard anything on the structure of the new contracts? 

2.  If Vance does his usual, high guarenteed/low salary in front, wouldn't Porter's work out to about a $6 Million hit in 2008

3.  NFLPA shows Troy W. at 910,000 in salary for 08 - this is all the Jaguars have to pay, isn't it?

4.  I've heard a report of $12 Million guarenteed for Florence, but I haven't heard a total or even the number of years.  Any ideas?

5.  Cleo Lemon - there seems to be some discussion of his contract.  Is it the nearly $9 million plus incentives if he makes them, or is it a lesser total if he fails to meet the incentives? Any clues?

6. I've been ball-parking about an additional 6-8 million for the 2008 cap hit of David Garrard.  sound about right?

7.  Even with Stroud leaving can the Jaguars still pursue an Antwan Odom type player without a major cut somewhere (Hayward or Peterson or both) and still have rookie room and a reserve for injuries?

I understand that I may be asking you to look in a crystal ball, but just trying to start thinking about all this.

Good questions. I'll do my best to answer them, but first I need to get this thread caught up to right where the Jaguars were at the start of free agency. From the prior figure, I have to factor in free agent tenders. I also have to change the amount of the Jaguars "adjusted cap" now that the real figures are in.

Unfortunately I haven't heard any reports of precisely who among the Jaguars RFAs and EFAs were tendered, and with what amounts. But by now the tenders must all be in so I'll just have to guess. Again, if anyone knows the actual answers, please post them.

The Jaguars have two remaining RFAs in Gerald Sensabaugh and Chris Roberson. I'm sure Roberson was not tendered making him a street free agent who can sign anywhere. Sensabaugh was probably given the $1.47 mil second-round tender. It's the only one that makes any real sense to me, but I'd still like to verify this.

I figure that all of the Jaguars remaining EFAs were tendered at their minimum levels. If correct, this means that S Jamaal Fudge, RB Montell Owens, and DEs Jeremy Mincey and James Wyche were each tendered $445,000 while TE Greg Estandia was tendered $370,000.

All of these tenders count immediately, although Estandia's tender does not count among the 51 most expensive cap hits.

The next order of business is to get their "adjusted cap" straightened out. A new article is out listing the incentives adjustments for every team in the league...

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/reuben_frank/03/01/cap.figures/1.html

Where I've listed the league base cap at $116 mil, they point out that the precise number is $116,729. I'm now using this number.

They have the Jaguars adjustment listed at $11,920,898. I was estimating their adjustment at $9 mi, so this means I get to tack on an additional $2.92 mil in available cap space. With all of the above factored in, I now estiamate that at the start of free agency, the Jaguars were $32.73 mil under a $128.65 mil adjusted cap.

In my next reply I'll get to your questions.

'02 Check out my CAP_INFO, and join my new WEBSITE. Coach Del Rio: "Respect every opponnent, and fear nobody."

1.  Have you heard anything on the structure of the new contracts? 

Unfortunately that's the part I'm typically forced to guess, and is often the primary reason for my numbers not matching the real numbers. It would help a great deal if reports included all the nitty, gritty details.

2.  If Vance does his usual, high guarenteed/low salary in front, wouldn't Porter's work out to about a $6 Million hit in 2008

Let's see. He got a 6-year, $30 mil contract with $10 mil guaranteed according to early reports. I don't know the details yet, but let me guess that it breaks down as follows per a typical backloaded contract...

• 2008: $1 mil salary plus $9 mil signing bonus
• 2009: $2 mil salary plus $1 mil roster bonus
• 2010: $3 mil salary
• 2011: $4 mil salary
• 2012: $4.5 mil salary
• 2013: $5.5 mil salary

For this year this would give him a cap hit of $2.5 mil. That is, his base salary of $1 mil, plus 1/6th of $9 mil.

3.  NFLPA shows Troy W. at 910,000 in salary for 08 - this is all the Jaguars have to pay, isn't it?

Correct. Plus, of course, his $1.4 mil salary in '09 should he remain on the roster for a second year.

4.  I've heard a report of $12 Million guarenteed for Florence, but I haven't heard a total or even the number of years.  Any ideas?

I read that he signed a 6-year, $36 mil contract with $12 mil guaranteed.

5.  Cleo Lemon - there seems to be some discussion of his contract.  Is it the nearly $9 million plus incentives if he makes them, or is it a lesser total if he fails to meet the incentives? Any clues?

It's actually $8.1 mil plus up to $4 mil in additional incentives meaning the contract could potentially be worth over $12 mil. His 3-year contract also included a $2.95 mil signing bonus.

6. I've been ball-parking about an additional 6-8 million for the 2008 cap hit of David Garrard.  sound about right?

Keep in mind that he is under contract for this year, and that a good portion of the money in the extension will factor into future seasons. However, you likely have to account for an additional signing bonus hit, so I can picture his cap hit getting up near $5 mil this season.

7.  Even with Stroud leaving can the Jaguars still pursue an Antwan Odom type player without a major cut somewhere (Hayward or Peterson or both) and still have rookie room and a reserve for injuries?

I still have to calculate in all these new additions, but they definitely still have plenty of cap space available to make several more moves in free agency. You have to figure that the Stroud trade also dumped his $5 mil salary on the Bills (who since restructured it) helping to offset some of the spending. They're not done yet. If a guy like Hayward gets cut, it won't be because they can't afford him.

I do the cap page at Billszone.com. I know there have been reports that Stroud restructured but I was hoping that someone could give me a breakdown of his remaining 3 yrs of deal for background info

other than his salaries $5 million, $5.5 million, and $6 million did he have any other bonuses?

Thanks

2008 Bills Cap Page

I believe he also carries a $100,000 workout bonus each year, although it might only by $50,000.

'02 Check out my CAP_INFO, and join my new WEBSITE. Coach Del Rio: "Respect every opponnent, and fear nobody."

As I understand the new rule,  teams are able to declare up to two players as June 1 cuts early provided they do so before the start of the new league year. Since free agency already began, I believe Naeole's dead money hit must count in full. He's now basically a $1.41 mil dead money hit in the books, although the team did save money compared to his prior cap hit of $2.91 mil.

'02 Check out my CAP_INFO, and join my new WEBSITE. Coach Del Rio: "Respect every opponnent, and fear nobody."