BarleyNY

Estimates I’ve seen even in med mal, which I was not involved in, were still at 90% settled out of court. Those are the numbers. I’ll leave it there.

I’m sorry. That really sucks and it is very common.

Not currently. After cutdown day they need to have all 53 under contract plus PS players and any in season replacements for IRed players. So the Bills will need to open up some space for the season. As @Rocky Landing said, going into the season with $5M for IR replacement players is about right. Guessing we need to find about $6M in space to be at $5M under when the season starts.

I worked in the insurance industry for a bit and you are 100% wrong about cases going to trial. Insurers almost never allow that. For example, it is so rare for auto related personal injury cases to go to trial that the largest and most well known PI firms don’t even litigate them anymore. They farm them out. lawyers on both sides know what almost all of the cases are worth. You are largely correct that insureds don’t have a say in the handling of a case. The exception is if an aspect falls outside of coverage. Regarding whether something is considered “a loss” did you mean an insurance loss? If so, then yes, that’s correct. I thought you meant it in a win/loss way.

Settlements can benefit either or both sides. Often plaintiffs want a settlement because it gives them a known amount of money. Similarly a settlement limits the financial damages of the defendant. This claim would be covered by malpractice insurance and insurance companies almost never want to go to trial. Plenty of discussion about this up thread. Depends what you mean by a loss. In a suit with obvious merit, a defendant can settle on an agreed amount. That protects them from a catastrophic award. IMO that’s not really a loss for the defendant as they have an obligation to compensate someone they harmed. Even nuisance suits are often settled because defending them would be more costly than paying a small sum of money. While it usually sucks to see money paid out in cases like this, it’s not much of a loss.

Gotcha.

Not sure what you mean by a settlement “likely” being “a loss for Taylor”. If the case concludes with an undisclosed settlement then we won’t know who “won” the case or by how much.

Settlements are usually agreed upon just prior to the start of the trial. Sometimes they even happen during the trial. So the lack of one at this stage means nothing. As mentioned earlier, insurance companies will almost always offer a settlement to avoid the costs of defense and the possibility of a catastrophic decision (more for cases involving juries). This case will almost certainly conclude with a settlement for an undisclosed sum. So those arguing for or against the merits of the case won’t have anything conclusive in that regard.

The other question I see is at DE. So much hinges on Von Miller returning to form (at some point this season). Leonard Floyd is a nice pick up to hold the fort down until Miller is ready - and he’ll be a good player to have in the rotation after. But until Miller is back to his old self we have a clear and obvious downgrade at DE.

thanks for the heads up on this @sullim4 sorry about the bait and switch you’re dealing with. nice job catching it right away. I’m sure that many don’t.

I think the Bills playing Torrence at RG and Bates at C on the second team is a sign of things to come. Or at least a sign of where they’d like things to go. Maybe not this season, but quite possibly next.

Zero chance it would be a Browns move either - unless they have a major injury. The Vikings already traded DE ZaDarius Smith to the Browns this offseason. The Browns are paying him this season, they’re paying Myles Garrett large and they just paid Okoronkwo to be DE3. Really not a fit at all.

Generally there is specific contractual language regarding risky activities. I believe that it is used as more of a deterrent than an effective way of recouping cash (and cap space) however. Not to say that teams can’t enforce those clauses if they choose. I remember when Terrell Suggs tore his achilles playing pick up hoops. Then his story changed to “during conditioning drills”. The Ravens just ate it without a fight. It’s very bad PR to go after players for stuff that happens in every day life. If the Bills were to go after Hines for money in this case, then it would impact future contracts and FA signing. No bueno. They’re not stupid so they’ll just deal with it. But I doubt you’ll see a lot of NFL players skiing or parachuting. On a personal note, I was tobogganing in the Cleveland area in 2009. Alex Boone was next to me on the hill. He’d just been drafted by the 49ers and I heard him comment on what his coach would think of it. Not sure how that would’ve worked out for him if he’d gotten hurt that day.

There are a lot of people looking for an easy payday and wealthy and famous athletes have huge targets on their backs. They have to deal with men who antagonize them with the hopes of getting punched, women looking to have an athlete’s baby, etc., etc. Athletes who don’t learn how to manage those situations end up in bad situations.

Mims has been a bust, but some team will claim him off of waivers to kick the tires on him. He’s got one year at $1.35M left on his rookie deal that the claiming team would inherit. Very low risk.

That’s fair. I don’t think it’s an easy call. Even if Jones disappoints this season they only have to keep him one more year.

Gotta look at what the effective guarantees are: Rodgers: 2 years, $107M Jackson: 4 years, $208M but can be shortened to 3 years, $185M Jones: 2 years, $86M Carr: 2 years, $70M or 3 years, $100M Rodgers and Jackson carry the most risk because they’re the highest AAV. Carr is getting paid market value. Jones is above MV (IMO) so I guess I go with him. Still, it’s only two seasons and he gives the Giants a chance to find their next QB in that time. Still, I think he will disappoint.

Good question about Hines. It’s ridiculous. The issues with RBs are that: - the best only have a small positive impact on their team compared to an average one - the supply outstrips demand - they have a short shelf life (short careers before a big drop off) - they tend to have a high risk of injury and - teams have realized that a stable of good RBs who share the workload is preferable to one bell cow back. That’s due to cost and injury protection.

No, new RB contracts are not setting the market. Obviously that’s the exception to the general rule, but it is what’s happening. RB salaries - especially those at the top of the market - have fallen. For example, the franchise tag peak for RBs was in 2017 at $12.120M. It was $8.655M in 2021 and is $10.091M this season. Franchise tag history for all positions.

Cap spaced used in a single season is not going to give that accurate of picture of how a team is allocating their resources. Something like a rolling three year cash spend would be a better metric.

https://www.nfl.com/_amp/nfl-expands-rule-against-misuse-of-helmet-guardian-caps-required-in-regular-seas “2. The Guardian Caps that were worn during training camps last season will now be mandated at every preseason practice, as well as every regular-season and postseason practice with contact. Players at position groups where head contact is seen most are required to wear the Guardian Cap, with running backs and fullbacks joining the previously included linemen and linebackers. The only positions not required to wear the caps are kickers, punters, quarterbacks, wide receivers and defensive backs. Last season, players were only required to wear the caps up to the second preseason game, although several teams wore them throughout the season. The league's data showed that if one player is wearing the Guardian Cap at the time of a helmet hit, the cap will absorb 11 to 12 percent of the force. If both players are wearing the cap and have a helmet-to-helmet hit, the force of the impact is reduced by around 20 percent.“ Looks like the NFL is moving toward using them more. No word on regular season game use however.

Let me just chime in to say thank you for pointing out your pun. I think a lot of us might’ve missed otherwise.

Yup. $14M in guarantees is nothing. He was already set to make $6.3M this season so it’s effectively guaranteeing next season. And it’s probably back loaded.

Torrence did get mocked in the late first round by some. But I also saw him graded as a late day 2 and even round 4. Concerns include him being power scheme specific and lacking lateral agility - especially in pass pro. Basically that he’s a huge, strong, mauler, but he isn’t particularly fleet of foot. I’m glad that the OL was addressed in the draft, but we will have to wait and see how he pans out.

When fans cry about the team not having cap space they tend to forget that it’s only because it already got spent on something. It’s a choice made, not a random tragedy that’s befallen the team.