Incognito's Retirement? [update: Now Released]

[Hapless Bills Fan]

6 minutes ago, NoSaint said:

 

In theory if we release a willing to play player, we would be on the hook for that bonus. 

 

 

I understand the way you’re looking at it.  

 

There seems to be a lot of churn here.  If ‘Cog actually filed retirement papers, which I believe would be required for the Bills to place him on the reserve/retired list and not count him against their expanded offseason roster,  then at that point, he would need to apply for reinstatement with the NFL.  I can’t find it, but at one point, Beane said something to that effect in an interview.  At that point, he owes the Bills any pro-rated bonus.

 

On the other hand, if he never filed those papers and the NFL was letting the Bills roster number “skate”, then yes, we released a willing-to-play player and we’re on the hook.

 

15 minutes ago, Peter said:

 

Richie did not actually retire.  In fact, McBeane cut him because he was not going to retire.

 

1) the NFL places a roster limit on teams in the off-season.  to my understanding, it is 90 players

2) the Bills have been listing ‘Cog on reserve/retired, which does not count against roster limit

3) why would the NFL allow the Bills to do that, if ‘Cog had not in fact, retired?

4) in an interview, Beane stated that if ‘Cog wanted to play again, he would have to apply to the NFL for reinstatement or words to that effect. (Can’t find the link, it was an interview around the draft)

 

So did Richie actually retire?  Well, I don’t know, but the Bills have had a full roster I believe.   Maybe it’s just logical that the NFL would allow the Bills to place any players they like on the retired list regardless of whether or not they’ve actually filed retirement papers with the NFL

 

15 minutes ago, Peter said:

 

"By releasing him, the bonus money the Bills had previously paid to the offensive lineman can no longer be recouped."

 

https://www.wkbw.com/sports/bills/buffalo-bills-cut-all-ties-release-richie-incognito-from-reserve_retired-list

 

Joe B is usually reliable on these things, Thanks.

[Your Brown Eye]

I thought he wanted to stay in Buffalo because of that Wegmans grocery store?

[oldmanfan]

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

When all is said and done the Peters fiasco worked out for Peters and it was a major failure for the team. The organization was more than willing to overpay for mediocre talents such as Dockery and Walker but were not willing to be more flexible with the player they drafted and developed. 

 

The NFL is a business. The interest of a team isn't always in the best interest of a player. And the interest of a player isn't always in the best interest an organization. Contracts are contracts but in this business there isn't anything sacred about it because terms are frequently reworked as circumstances change. Negotiations and accommodations are part of the landscape. 

 

When the Peters situation is reviewed in hindsight there is no other way to look at it as a bad loss for the organization. Winning the battle when it costs you the war is dumb. 

Which I said.  They should have kept him.  But quit acting like Peters and his agent were blameless.  He signed a contract then didn't want to honor it.  And when the team he was under contract with said they were open to renegotiation if he'd only come in to get checked out what did he do?  Ignored them.  He and his agent.  Really professional.

 

Regarding Richie, I suspect the team knows more than we do.  I imagine his health issues are pretty relevant.

[Kelly the Dog]

7 minutes ago, oldmanfan said:

Which I said.  They should have kept him.  But quit acting like Peters and his agent were blameless.  He signed a contract then didn't want to honor it.  And when the team he was under contract with said they were open to renegotiation if he'd only come in to get checked out what did he do?  Ignored them.  He and his agent.  Really professional.

 

Regarding Richie, I suspect the team knows more than we do.  I imagine his health issues are pretty relevant.

The Bills offered Peters $9m. They knew everything they needed to know about him and the injury and his agent and the marketplace. They just didn’t want to pay him the market rate. Philly not only was willing, they gave the Bills a #1 pick to have the pleasure and honor of paying him $10m. 

[oldmanfan]

Just now, Kelly the Dog said:

The Bills offered Peters $9m. They knew everything they needed to know about him and the injury and his agent and the marketplace. They just didn’t want to pay him the market rate. Philly not only was willing, they gave the Bills a #1 pick to have the pleasure and honor of paying him $10m. 

They did not know everything about his injury.  He was injured and didn't finish the season, then would not come to town to get checked in the offseason.

 

I agree they should have figured out a way to sign him, but he and his agents were completely unprofessional during this.  Takes two to tango.

[K-9]

1 hour ago, oldmanfan said:

Peters signed a contract then he and his agent decided he didn't have to honor it.  As I recall the Bills  were willing to renegotiate but wanted him to come in first to have his injury evaluated and he refused.

 

I agree they should have kept him and done a different deal.  But let's make sure both sides of the equation are.  Peters and his agent weren't choirboys.

He not only refused, he didn’t even bother to answer his phone the entire offseason when the team tried calling him numerous times. And to top it off, he screwed his teammates and the fans, by showing up grossly out of shape after skipping camp. He was the picture of unprofessionalism. 

 

Yes, it was a damned shame we couldn’t find a way to keep a future HOF player. And we definitely screwed the pooch in many aspects of the relationship. But it takes two and he made it clear he wanted out the entire time. And why? Because the Bills had the temerity to ask him to own up to the deal he had only recently renegotiated? 

[oldmanfan]

1 minute ago, K-9 said:

He not only refused, he didn’t even bother to answer his phone the entire offseason when the team tried calling him numerous times. And to top it off, he screwed his teammates and the fans, by showing up grossly out of shape after skipping camp. He was the picture of unprofessionalism. 

 

Yes, it was a damned shame we couldn’t find a way to keep a future HOF player. And we definitely screwed the pooch in many aspects of the relationship. But it takes two and he made it clear he wanted out the entire time. And why? Because the Bills had the temerity to ask him to own up to the deal he had only recently renegotiated? 

Well stated

[Kelly the Dog]

1 minute ago, oldmanfan said:

They did not know everything about his injury.  He was injured and didn't finish the season, then would not come to town to get checked in the offseason.

 

I agree they should have figured out a way to sign him, but he and his agents were completely unprofessional during this.  Takes two to tango.

You don’t offer a guy $9m a season without knowing what his injury is about. The Eagles don’t make a trade for a #1 pick without knowing. That’s ludicrous. That story was played out to make the Bills not look bad in their negotiations. I recall arguing about this here non stop when it happened. 

[Kelly the Dog]

 

And it was the season before. He came in late and we won the first four or five games. 

[DriveFor1Outta5]

2 hours ago, Golden Goat said:

His liver and kidneys made a spectacular recovery!

Gives me hope. 

[Bills Pimpin']

38 minutes ago, Peter said:

 

I love it when you are passive aggressive and say "link please."  I know that is your thing.  When I read that, I think of Chad Johnson's line.

 

You should have been able to figure this out without a link by the way.  Richie did not actually retire.  In fact, McBeane cut him because he was not going to retire.

 

In any event, I would hate for you to continue to be confused . . . .

 

"By releasing him, the bonus money the Bills had previously paid to the offensive lineman can no longer be recouped."

 

https://www.wkbw.com/sports/bills/buffalo-bills-cut-all-ties-release-richie-incognito-from-reserve_retired-list

I find it hysterical how you are inferring "Richie" is some victim in this situation based on his very public past and his very public tweeting and erratic behavior during the time of his so called retirement. "Richie" is not a child although he does often act like one and it is my opinion that is the reason he is no longer a Bill. Evidently this regime likes to deal with young men who act like adults both on and off the field. History says Incognito has issues with both of those tasks. Addition by subtraction is what someone said in this thread, that's exactly what it is. It will be very interesting to see if he finds employment elsewhere after he was basically kicked off his 3rd team for off field actions towards fellow teammates, coaches or management and if he does find that employment if he will make as much as the Bills offered. I would guess no.

[IDBillzFan]

1 hour ago, Peter said:

The Bills asked or demanded he take a pay cut even  though he was one of a couple pro bowlers, he did it, and regretted it. 

 

He signed the freaking contract. That's all you need to know. Everything else sounds like you need a reason to be upset with the front office. I mean, did they ask or did they DEMAND? When they DEMANDED, did they do it with a scowl while twirling their Snidely Whiplash mustache and laughing with a sinister Muahahahahah?

 

The front office gave this guy a second chance when the rest of the NFL told him to piss off.  Did everyone forget this?

 

He then signed a restructured contract. He then acted like a big baby, threw a hissy fit, and finally got what the release he wanted.

 

Sounds to me like he's just the kind of player who is welcome to be someone else's headache.

 

He would make the team better, yes, but he's not worth the whine that comes with the cheese.

 

 

[Doc Brown]

Meathead.  I'd be surprised if another team signed this guy for more than the Bills offered.

[Peter]

6 minutes ago, Bills Pimpin' said:

I find it hysterical how you are inferring "Richie" is some victim in this situation based on his very public past and his very public tweeting and erratic behavior during the time of his so called retirement. "Richie" is not a child although he does often act like one and it is my opinion that is the reason he is no longer a Bill. Evidently this regime likes to deal with young men who act like adults both on and off the field. History says Incognito has issues with both of those tasks. Addition by subtraction is what someone said in this thread, that's exactly what it is. It will be very interesting to see if he finds employment elsewhere after he was basically kicked off his 3rd team for off field actions towards fellow teammates, coaches or management and if he does find that employment if he will make as much as the Bills offered. I would guess no.

 

I did not mean to "infer" anything actually.

Edited May 22, 2018 by Peter

[RichRiderBills]

The worst part is Richie lied. Multiple times actually. 

 

Let me just recall a few:

 

-Said he was overjoyed to continue playing in Buff and be part of next season on a reworked deal.

 

-said his kidneys were shot and his life was in danger.

 

-said he was going to retire. Said he was done.

 

Now all lies, I'm afraid. Integrity is important in life.

[Peter]

4 minutes ago, LABillzFan said:

 

He signed the freaking contract. That's all you need to know. Everything else sounds like you need a reason to be upset with the front office. I mean, did they ask or did they DEMAND? When they DEMANDED, did they do it with a scowl while twirling their Snidely Whiplash mustache and laughing with a sinister Muahahahahah?

 

The front office gave this guy a second chance when the rest of the NFL told him to piss off.  Did everyone forget this?

 

He then signed a restructured contract. He then acted like a big baby, threw a hissy fit, and finally got what the release he wanted.

 

Sounds to me like he's just the kind of player who is welcome to be someone else's headache.

 

He would make the team better, yes, but he's not worth the whine that comes with the cheese.

 

 

 

As I said, he regretted taking less money after being one of the few Bills pro bowlers and the toll that the body takes.  I guess you have not ever regretted anything.

 

This front office did NOT give Incognito a second chance. The prior GM and coach did.

 

In the end, Richie may have outsmarted McBeane . . . depending on what kind of contract he gets with a new team. He got his release and he got to keep his bonus.

[Maine-iac]

My own opinion but I think this is just the beginning.  Veterans do not want to lay their last years on the line for a team that has no chance out of the gate.  Say what you want but Rex left a team that just needed to learn how to play defense and last year they played defense and surprise, made the playoffs.  Now a season later they have gone from a team that had a top ten scoring offense with a bottom half defense to a team that can make stops and get turnovers but averaged 18ppg last season.  I'm not at all confident that they will average any better than that this year or next so I will not be surprised at all if veterans start to jump ship or end up mysteriously on IR by game 6.

[HOUSE]

My guess is Brandon Beane negotiated his release. I doubt the Bills agreed to lose 1.5 mil just to be nice

 

The Bills certainly got something in return

 

My guess would be the ability to match

[Doc]

4 minutes ago, Maine-iac said:

My own opinion but I think this is just the beginning.  Veterans do not want to lay their last years on the line for a team that has no chance out of the gate.  Say what you want but Rex left a team that just needed to learn how to play defense and last year they played defense and surprise, made the playoffs.  Now a season later they have gone from a team that had a top ten scoring offense with a bottom half defense to a team that can make stops and get turnovers but averaged 18ppg last season.  I'm not at all confident that they will average any better than that this year or next so I will not be surprised at all if veterans start to jump ship or end up mysteriously on IR by game 6.

 

Last year says "hi."  And was seemingly worse in terms not having a chance. 

[IDBillzFan]

1 minute ago, Peter said:

 

 I guess you have not ever regretted anything.

 

This front office did NOT give Incognito a second chance. The prior GM and coach did.

 

In the end, Richie may have outsmarted McBeane . . . depending on what kind of contract he gets with a new team. He got his release and he got to keep his bonus.

 

I've regretted plenty, and once I was an adult, I stopped blaming others for my regrets.

 

That's what an adult does. Admit a mistake, then doesn't make it again.

 

An adult does not regret a mistake, go batschitt crazy on social media, whine, cry, and throw a temper tantrum until mommy and daddy give him a freaking lollipop.

 

You desperately sound like a person who is cheering against the organization. I can promise you one thing: based on the body of work put forth so far, there will never be a day when a whiny-ass child like Incognito outsmarts McBeane. Not today. Not ever. Incognito is a lot of things, but smart isn't one of them.