Brandon Beane on "easily" creating more Cap Space, as popularly stated

[Warcodered]

I mean yeah he can do it if he has too but he's going to balance it with everything else, seems pretty straightforward.

[Beerball]

49 minutes ago, BillsFanForever19 said:

One thing I keep seeing over and over is fans saying that Brandon Beane can "easily" create more cap space without detriment. Every time someone becomes available - it's the same thing. 

 

But I think you all should listen to Brandon's words. Just because you feel he "can" doesn't mean he will or he wants to. 

 

Below, you'll find his latest press conference. From 37:15 - 38:47 he discusses this thought process. I've also transcribed it if you can't watch the video atm:

 

 

 

People here know better.  Only circumstances beyond their control keep them tied to a keyboard instead of running the Bills.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

48 minutes ago, BillsFanForever19 said:

 

I'm not saying it's impossible. I'm simply saying this rampant "he can make money" like it's a thing he'll definitively do - his words and actions (not doing it while the market dries up) speaks otherwise.

 

I don't think anyone has said it's a thing he'll definitively do, or that it could be done without detriment.

 

Most of us anyway, understand that you can't "kick the can down the road" forever.

 

But we also understand that the Bills do need to try to get better and not just "tread water" from next year.  Accepting Sanders as an upgrade on Brown (which as far as the "need for speed", he probably isn't), that means (at a minimum) an upgrade on DL, CB#2, and either OL or RB or both

 

Right now, on spotrac, the Bills are in arrears by -3.4M on cap space, which is obviously not where they are in real life as the NFL doesn't allow it.  Matakevich extension is not captured yet, but that will save us at most ~$1M

 

That means that either

1) Beane has cut someone without it being announced - extremely unlikely since the minute a guy is cut, their agent will make it known they're available

2) Beane has already re-negotiated someone's contract and transferred either roster bonus or salary to signing bonus that can be amortized across the length of the contract.

[BuffaloRebound]

I find using actual numbers takes some of the scariness out of the ‘mortgaging the future’ and ‘kicking the can down the road’ argument.  I’m fine shifting $22m in cap space for Diggs, Dawkins, and Tre White from this year to the next 3-4 years.  I can’t see us cutting any one of them before then.    Yes there’s some risk if one of them has a career ending injury but we were one game from the super bowl.  
We kept the band together.  Now it’s time to add a couple veteran ring chasers along with the draft to put us over the top 

[BADOLBILZ]

 

Brandon Beane started out the offseason saying not to expect any "big splashes" .............and then immediately chased hard after JJ Watt.

 

He says what he feels that he needs to say to control the narrative (and thereby expectations).

 

If you have followed the NFL salary cap for........I dunno'......25+ years.......you know how he can "easily" make cap room if he wants to.

 

And as for declaring what he will or won't do.........if you think there are absolutes then I guess you haven't paid much attention to what he's done.

 

[Don Otreply]

I am very happy certain posters here are not making these decisions...

[ProcessTruster]

2 hours ago, Rochesterfan said:

 

Nice.  The issue isn’t that he can’t create the space - the biggest issue that there is still uncertainty in the Cap levels for the next 2 years before the new media package takes place.  He is being smart and saving it unless the perfect player or trade lines up that could really help ensure the future of the team.

 

The NFL has nearly 30 million in lost cap space per team to recoup after this year.  The Cap would have dropped into the 150 million range and instead they agreed to 183.  No one know exactly how much of the CAP will be pulled from next year after the pandemic to start to balance out the lost revenue.

 

If you make a general assumption that the Cap would have risen to the expected levels for this year - that would put the Cap at 212 million and if they recollect all 30 million lost - the Cap could stay flat at 182/183 million and the teams that kicked a bunch into next year suddenly have a lot more kicking to do. 
 

If they split it over 2 years - the Cap could be 195 and basically back to what it was before the pandemic.  This is all assuming that everything in stadium returns to normal.  If there are issues and stadiums are reduced - that Cap could shrink.  With the additional regular season game the Cap could rise - although they are losing a preseason game - which was free revenue.

 

The other issue is with our current roster - unless The Cap goes up toward 215 million - we are already getting up against it for next year and he has Josh and Edmunds contracts to deal with - both 5th year options that will get exercised.  He will be using the restructures next year to gain the space and if he uses them this year - he already kicked some into next year and has to kick even more into the following year.  
 

He is not afraid to do it, but eventually kicking the bonuses and salary forward gets you hamstrung until 2024 and the new media that will blow up the current Cap level and start things resetting.  Don’t blow it all this year and make it hard to do things next year and cost yourself a shot in FA next year.

 

Beane is not just looking at 2021 - he is planning 2022 and 2023 to ensure he can keep the team together, improve it, and most important bring home a championship without losing your core.

"Beane is not just looking at 2021 - he is planning 2022 and 2023 to ensure he can keep the team together, improve it, and most important bring home a championship without losing your core." --- Agree, he is not going chase shiny objects and put himself in cap hell... he's just not going to do it... for example , he would trade a # 1 for Diggs, but would never give Golladay the deal the Giants just game him,  just won't do it.. and the fan base needs to support that decision... go bills

[Mr. WEO]

If he wants more cap space, he can just drill another well.....

[Buffalo_Stampede]

58 minutes ago, Don Otreply said:

I am very happy certain posters here are not making these decisions...

I've never had cap problems in Madden. 

[thurst44]

1 minute ago, ProcessTruster said:

"Beane is not just looking at 2021 - he is planning 2022 and 2023 to ensure he can keep the team together, improve it, and most important bring home a championship without losing your core." --- Agree, he is not going chase shiny objects and put himself in cap hell... he's just not going to do it... for example , he would trade a # 1 for Diggs, but would never give Golladay the deal the Giants just game him,  just won't do it.. and the fan base needs to support that decision... go bills

The thing is we might be looking at a strawman here. How many people in this thread have said "go for the shiny stuff"? Most have said there are probably small moves that could be made that would not strangle us. Let's say Carlos Dunlap or Justin Houston or Melvin Ingram say they're curious about the process, but the lowest they can take is 5m/yr. I could see them pushing the 8m or however much it would take into the future if they think one of those veterans could help. 

 

On the other hand, he was never going to sign one of the big-ticket CB options as there are teams willing to overpay there. Yes, clearing out 12+m for one player would be a bad football decision and was never going to happen after we signed our guy. 

[Thurman#1]

3 hours ago, Aussie Joe said:

 

So he is prepared to do if need be

 

 

Yes, if need be. Not if he sees another shiny toy and could get it if he just pulls out the credit card.

3 hours ago, Aussie Joe said:

 

I predict he will end up doing it

 

 

 

Yeah, he said he does it sometimes. 

 

But he won't do it every time he wants to. And he especially won't do it every time the fans want him to.

[Thurman#1]

13 hours ago, Rochesterfan said:

 

Nice.  The issue isn’t that he can’t create the space - the biggest issue that there is still uncertainty in the Cap levels for the next 2 years before the new media package takes place.  He is being smart and saving it unless the perfect player or trade lines up that could really help ensure the future of the team.

 

The NFL has nearly 30 million in lost cap space per team to recoup after this year.  The Cap would have dropped into the 150 million range and instead they agreed to 183.  No one know exactly how much of the CAP will be pulled from next year after the pandemic to start to balance out the lost revenue.

 

If you make a general assumption that the Cap would have risen to the expected levels for this year - that would put the Cap at 212 million and if they recollect all 30 million lost - the Cap could stay flat at 182/183 million and the teams that kicked a bunch into next year suddenly have a lot more kicking to do. 
 

If they split it over 2 years - the Cap could be 195 and basically back to what it was before the pandemic.  This is all assuming that everything in stadium returns to normal.  If there are issues and stadiums are reduced - that Cap could shrink.  With the additional regular season game the Cap could rise - although they are losing a preseason game - which was free revenue.

 

The other issue is with our current roster - unless The Cap goes up toward 215 million - we are already getting up against it for next year and he has Josh and Edmunds contracts to deal with - both 5th year options that will get exercised.  He will be using the restructures next year to gain the space and if he uses them this year - he already kicked some into next year and has to kick even more into the following year.  
 

He is not afraid to do it, but eventually kicking the bonuses and salary forward gets you hamstrung until 2024 and the new media that will blow up the current Cap level and start things resetting.  Don’t blow it all this year and make it hard to do things next year and cost yourself a shot in FA next year.

 

Beane is not just looking at 2021 - he is planning 2022 and 2023 to ensure he can keep the team together, improve it, and most important bring home a championship without losing your core.

 

 

No, he's not saying that. This isn't a "this year only" thing.

 

It's how he operates. He's never been a guy who kicks a lot of cans, never. 

 

This is the way he is going to try to operate. And we've seen one thing about him and that's that he doesn't compromise his principles because he sees a cookie in the store window that looks delicious. 

 

12 hours ago, BADOLBILZ said:

 

Brandon Beane started out the offseason saying not to expect any "big splashes" .............and then immediately chased hard after JJ Watt.

 

He says what he feels that he needs to say to control the narrative (and thereby expectations).

 

If you have followed the NFL salary cap for........I dunno'......25+ years.......you know how he can "easily" make cap room if he wants to.

 

And as for declaring what he will or won't do.........if you think there are absolutes then I guess you haven't paid much attention to what he's done.

 

 

 

Yeah, he chased hard after JJ Watt ... and then immediately backed out when it turned out the contract Watt wanted was a big splash.

 

He does indeed want to control the narrative. He has also followed that rule since he got here. 

 

And you're right that there are no absolutes, but this rule isn't an absolute. He's going to kick some cans down the road. But not too many. Not as many as a certain group of the fans would like him to ... check that, it's more than that those fans wouldn't just like him to, it's that  they're constantly barking for him to do it.

 

And explaining how he can create $30M more in cap space.

 

 

Edited March 24, 2021 by Thurman#1

[BarleyNY]

5 hours ago, BillsFanForever19 said:

One thing I keep seeing over and over is fans saying that Brandon Beane can "easily" create more cap space without detriment. Every time someone becomes available - it's the same thing. 

 

But I think you all should listen to Brandon's words. Just because you feel he "can" doesn't mean he will or he wants to. 

 

Below, you'll find his latest press conference. From 37:15 - 38:47 he discusses this thought process. I've also transcribed it if you can't watch the video atm:

 

 

 

Couple points:

- Beane has already used some of the avenues to create space to sign/re-sign players and maintain a proper cushion.  Details haven’t come through Spotrac and OTC yet, but we’d be over our cap limit if Beane hadn’t already done so. 

- I don’t think anyone is saying anything about Beane going on a big spending spree.  If he needed or really wanted to spend on a player, he could.  This is what I said and Incidentally this is what Beane said in the article. 

[Rochesterfan]

9 hours ago, Thurman#1 said:

 

 

No, he's not saying that. This isn't a "this year only" thing.

 

It's how he operates. He's never been a guy who kicks a lot of cans, never. 

 

This is the way he is going to try to operate. And we've seen one thing about him and that's that he doesn't compromise his principles because he sees a cookie in the store window that looks delicious. 

 

 

.

 

 

 

I totally agree with the sentiment, but he has renegotiated several contracts to kick the can down the road in his limited time - he just is very prudent about it and the money is minor.
 

The way I take everything Beane has said is that he knows there are ways to free up money, but he is only going to do it for specific things.  My guess is that if he is looking for a solid young DE (sort of like The Diggs trade) and something shakes free then he would make the move to free up money.  
 

He is not going to do it to sign a flash in the pan player like Lawson at DE that has produced less than Addison, but got paid 3X his salary for the year.

 

I agree that this is not a one year thing - as I stated - Beane is constantly looking at contracts and impacts 1, 2, 3 years down the road.  He is constantly factoring in money available now and the impact and FAs coming up.  This is not a win at all costs approach that will cost us players in a few years - this is a steady long term approach that will sustain us even when Josh gets paid. 

[BillsPride12]

Translation...don't expect a lot of splashy free agent signings going forward....but expect them to resign the players they've drafted who deserve the second contract.  After the Bills being a farm team for so many years and knowing we have our franchise QB I am totally ok with this

[Thurman#1]

21 minutes ago, Rochesterfan said:

 

I totally agree with the sentiment, but he has renegotiated several contracts to kick the can down the road in his limited time - he just is very prudent about it and the money is minor.
 

The way I take everything Beane has said is that he knows there are ways to free up money, but he is only going to do it for specific things.  My guess is that if he is looking for a solid young DE (sort of like The Diggs trade) and something shakes free then he would make the move to free up money.  
 

He is not going to do it to sign a flash in the pan player like Lawson at DE that has produced less than Addison, but got paid 3X his salary for the year.

 

I agree that this is not a one year thing - as I stated - Beane is constantly looking at contracts and impacts 1, 2, 3 years down the road.  He is constantly factoring in money available now and the impact and FAs coming up.  This is not a win at all costs approach that will cost us players in a few years - this is a steady long term approach that will sustain us even when Josh gets paid. 

 

 

And I agree with most of your sentiment too, but not all of it.

 

Yeah, he's renegotiated several contracts, and yeah, he is very prudent about it.

 

But I don't think he'd tell you the money was minor. And I don't think he would suddenly increase the money he's eyeing freeing up this way depending on what's available. It's not the way he works.

 

He methodically and thoughtfully figures out money issues beforehand. It's in the way he offers contracts ... he gives his offer and if they want more, he's fine with that and wishes them well. Seems likely that's what happened with Lawson, assuming they had interest ... they kicked the tires and said "Oh, hey, we really like you, but that doesn't fit the budget." The things he does must fit his budget. He's a planner. Dollars to donuts he figured out how much he wants to be available to him next year to sign Josh and Tremaine or any other moves he wants to make, and then he figures out how to maximize this year's team while still leaving him what he thinks he's going to need next year and beyond.

 

8 hours ago, BarleyNY said:

Couple points:

- Beane has already used some of the avenues to create space to sign/re-sign players and maintain a proper cushion.  Details haven’t come through Spotrac and OTC yet, but we’d be over our cap limit if Beane hadn’t already done so. 

- I don’t think anyone is saying anything about Beane going on a big spending spree.  If he needed or really wanted to spend on a player, he could.  This is what I said and Incidentally this is what Beane said in the article. 

 

 

I don't think this is clear yet. It certainly could be that he's already created space. Alternatively it could be that Spotrac doesn't have all the details yet on a bunch of things and the numbers aren't what we are guessing they are and they don't need the space we think they do, or that he's going to cut somebody before officially registering a contract ... we just don't yet know.

 

You've got a very reasonable guess there, but I don't think it's the clear truth yet. We'll know when all the details finally come in.

 

Fairburn just tweeted this 14 hours ago:  "If my bookkeeping is correct, the Bills are under $1 million in cap space after re-signing Isaiah McKenzie."

 

Who's right? I don't know, myself.

Edited March 24, 2021 by Thurman#1

[Back2Buff]

13 hours ago, CaptnCoke11 said:

Step 1 to cap jail... restructure contracts to push money to future years.  

 

Not with the cap skyrocketing.

 

Step 1 to not improving... remaining status quo when status quo wasn't good enough.

 

Teams that restructed a ton of money this year: Chiefs and Tampa.  Teams in the superbowl last year: Chiefs and Tampa.  Good organizations know what needs to be done right now.

[Big Turk]

16 hours ago, Aussie Joe said:

 

So he is prepared to do if need be

 

He already kinda of did this with Emmanuel Sanders contract by adding a voided 2nd year that helps with spreading the cap charge for the bonus out over 2 years instead of 1...not a huge deal since it isn't a ton of money being spread out, but it helped for this year a little bit.

10 hours ago, BarleyNY said:

Couple points:

- Beane has already used some of the avenues to create space to sign/re-sign players and maintain a proper cushion.  Details haven’t come through Spotrac and OTC yet, but we’d be over our cap limit if Beane hadn’t already done so. 

- I don’t think anyone is saying anything about Beane going on a big spending spree.  If he needed or really wanted to spend on a player, he could.  This is what I said and Incidentally this is what Beane said in the article. 

 

Also added a voided 2nd year to Sanders deal to help spread the cap charge out over 2 years that wasn't widely reported...not a big deal since the bonus isn't that big but every little bit helps this year.

[Rochesterfan]

2 hours ago, Thurman#1 said:

 

 

And I agree with most of your sentiment too, but not all of it.

 

Yeah, he's renegotiated several contracts, and yeah, he is very prudent about it.

 

But I don't think he'd tell you the money was minor. And I don't think he would suddenly increase the money he's eyeing freeing up this way depending on what's available. It's not the way he works.

 

He methodically and thoughtfully figures out money issues beforehand. It's in the way he offers contracts ... he gives his offer and if they want more, he's fine with that and wishes them well. Seems likely that's what happened with Lawson, assuming they had interest ... they kicked the tires and said "Oh, hey, we really like you, but that doesn't fit the budget." The things he does must fit his budget. He's a planner. Dollars to donuts he figured out how much he wants to be available to him next year to sign Josh and Tremaine or any other moves he wants to make, and then he figures out how to maximize this year's team while still leaving him what he thinks he's going to need next year and beyond.

 

 

 

I don't think this is clear yet. It certainly could be that he's already created space. Alternatively it could be that Spotrac doesn't have all the details yet on a bunch of things and the numbers aren't what we are guessing they are and they don't need the space we think they do, or that he's going to cut somebody before officially registering a contract ... we just don't yet know.

 

You've got a very reasonable guess there, but I don't think it's the clear truth yet. We'll know when all the details finally come in.

 

Fairburn just tweeted this 14 hours ago:  "If my bookkeeping is correct, the Bills are under $1 million in cap space after re-signing Isaiah McKenzie."

 

Who's right? I don't know, myself.

 

I agree he is methodical, but he just did the Tre’ White restructure- most likely to give them space after the McKenzie signing.

 

They will need a couple of million for draft picks (minimum amount because they are picking late and only top 51 count), the will want some in case of injury - most teams like a 3-4 million buffer for in season signing for injuries, and finally most likely there will be 1 or 2 additional vets, either before the draft or after the July 1st cuts, that Beane might have an eye out for - that having a couple of million available will allow them to go after.

 

This is exactly what I expected after listening to Beane and reading the articles.  A few small restructures - just to keep his flexibility open, but not to go after a shiny toy - it is to keep the team and be prepared.

 

I totally agree - he already has designs on the Josh extension and although people will hate to hear this an Edmunds option also.  He has also I am sure already put together a full list of next years FA’s, next years expected draft picks, and exactly how much money the Bills expect based on various scenarios in cap space.  He is totally thinking 1, 2, 3, and 5 years out and trying to ensure he is ready.

 

The planning for next year will help drive his draft picks for this year.  He will draft people this year that will be available to fill holes on the roster for next year.  He knows what positions appear to be strong and works to position the team needs to fit the drafts (and FA) strengths.  He is nothing if not methodical.

[Aussie Joe]

17 hours ago, Aussie Joe said:

 

I predict he will end up doing it

 

Dont you get tired of being correct all the time?

Edited March 24, 2021 by Aussie Joe