Mikie2times Posted October 13, 2006 Share Posted October 13, 2006 Almost instantly after we placed Vincent on Minor-IR writers started to bash us. When Vincent recovered we would have to release him and still be on the hook for his contract this year. It sounds like we messed up big time. But when you look at it a bit more, atleast the possibility exists that it wasn't a mistake at all. If the press can be on top of this error that quickly how incompetent would the Bills need to be to not be aware of the rules? Another possible explanation could be us improving our player PR now to look better for the future. This wasn't a normal move, and if done intentionally it was about the classiest way a team could handle this situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IDBillzFan Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 Don't worry. Once we lose to Detroit, the writers will all have new material and Vincent will be old news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oneonta Buffalo Fan Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 Don't worry. Once we lose to Detroit, the writers will all have new material and Vincent will be old news. 803770[/snapback] WE WILL NOT LOSE! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tennesseeboy Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 Its pretty clear Vincent will play somewhere else immediately, and I am pretty sure the Bills admin were aware of that when they released him. I don't think they are on the hook if Vincent signs a contract to play somewhere else..are they? If that's the case it sounds like everyone wins in the deal. Vincent gets to start, whatever team gets him will certainly fill a need, and we get relieved of a highly paid guy who is a backup. On the other hand, we had better hope for no injuries to safeties the rest of the season!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanker Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 Its pretty clear Vincent will play somewhere else immediately, and I am pretty sure the Bills admin were aware of that when they released him. I don't think they are on the hook if Vincent signs a contract to play somewhere else..are they? If that's the case it sounds like everyone wins in the deal. Vincent gets to start, whatever team gets him will certainly fill a need, and we get relieved of a highly paid guy who is a backup. On the other hand, we had better hope for no injuries to safeties the rest of the season!!! 803944[/snapback] I think The Bills will owe him the $2.6 mill (or whatever) on his contract this year. What I'm not so sure about is if he could sign for $1.0 mill with somebody else and Ralphie would have to pay the $1.6 difference. Regardless - the full amount of his bonuses hit our cap this year (it's about $5 mill) and he won't impact our cap next year or beyond... I believe. But something just doesn't seem to line up right here. I think there's more to the story and we won't find out for a couple of years what the deal about his release really was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frez Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 Vincent stunk. Paying him millions of dollars to leave is well worth it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cantankerous Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 I'm pretty sure we have plenty of cap money to waste...since we didn't use it to get any key free agents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 I'm pretty sure we have plenty of cap money to waste...since we didn't use it to get any key free agents. 803992[/snapback] I think this was the reason myself. It's just conjecture but this makes sense to me: The Bills decided that if Vincent was going to miss at least 3-4 games, and they had to start Ko in his place (after seeing that Ko picked up things fast), as well as sign another player (Jim Leonhard), they really didn't see a spot for Vincent anymore on the Bills. Especially at 2.6 mil a year plus 2.5 or so million left on his bonus. If they released him now, they could afford to take the entire 5 mil hit this year (because they still had a lot of room) and be done with it. And then have 2.5 or so extra million next year for free agency. And that's what they did. Yes, they could have just IR'd him and kept him off the field but why do that to a player who still wants to play this season if they knew they didn't want him for next season? It's a difficult choice but the right one, IMO. And I think the Bills are still stuck with paying him the 2.6 mil whether he signs with another team or not. He just makes that much extra money for himself this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikie2times Posted October 14, 2006 Author Share Posted October 14, 2006 I think this was the reason myself. It's just conjecture but this makes sense to me: The Bills decided that if Vincent was going to miss at least 3-4 games, and they had to start Ko in his place (after seeing that Ko picked up things fast), as well as sign another player (Jim Leonhard), they really didn't see a spot for Vincent anymore on the Bills. Especially at 2.6 mil a year plus 2.5 or so million left on his bonus. If they released him now, they could afford to take the entire 5 mil hit this year (because they still had a lot of room) and be done with it. And then have 2.5 or so extra million next year for free agency. And that's what they did. Yes, they could have just IR'd him and kept him off the field but why do that to a player who still wants to play this season if they knew they didn't want him for next season? It's a difficult choice but the right one, IMO. And I think the Bills are still stuck with paying him the 2.6 mil whether he signs with another team or not. He just makes that much extra money for himself this season. 803998[/snapback] Good post. If it keeps us off the hook for next years cap then it makes complete sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Trooth Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 It sounds like we messed up big time. Yeah... we did. Signing him period was a huge gaffe. At age 32 or 33, bringing him in with a rebuilding team was just plain stupid. But, bringing him in at the price the Bills paid was even more stupid. When you pay that kind of $$$ for someone, there are expectations that come with it. He sure didn't leave up to his paycheck. I don't think it was his fault though, it was Donahoe's fault for not looking at the big picture. Vincent's best years were behind him. When you add it all up, signing him was a big mistake, but hanging on to him any longer was a wise decision. The Bills are getting more out of the young guys back there and they can also contribute on special teams. Vincent was also becoming a huge liability in the locker room with his NFLPA UNION attitude. A young team doesn't need a locker room lawyer hanging around. Getting rid of him was smart. It was addition by subtraction and cutting our losses... especially since the bills had the cap room to absorb the hit this season. It will put the Bills in a much better position in Free agency. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikie2times Posted October 14, 2006 Author Share Posted October 14, 2006 Yeah... we did. Signing him period was a huge gaffe. At age 32 or 33, bringing him in with a rebuilding team was just plain stupid. But, bringing him in at the price the Bills paid was even more stupid. When you pay that kind of $$$ for someone, there are expectations that come with it. He sure didn't leave up to his paycheck. I don't think it was his fault though, it was Donahoe's fault for not looking at the big picture. Vincent's best years were behind him. When you add it all up, signing him was a big mistake, but hanging on to him any longer was a wise decision. The Bills are getting more out of the young guys back there and they can also contribute on special teams. Vincent was also becoming a huge liability in the locker room with his NFLPA UNION attitude. A young team doesn't need a locker room lawyer hanging around. Getting rid of him was smart. It was addition by subtraction and cutting our losses... especially since the bills had the cap room to absorb the hit this season. It will put the Bills in a much better position in Free agency. 804020[/snapback] Getting rid of him was the best decision for our future. As Kelly pointed out we did it most likely to be off the hook for any dead cap next year. In terms if him being a liability in the lockeroom I'd ask Ko Simpson and Daunte Whitner how they feel about that. Both have stated that Vincent has been instrumental to there progression even after knowing he would be released. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 Yeah... we did. Signing him period was a huge gaffe. At age 32 or 33, bringing him in with a rebuilding team was just plain stupid. But, bringing him in at the price the Bills paid was even more stupid. When you pay that kind of $$$ for someone, there are expectations that come with it. He sure didn't leave up to his paycheck. I don't think it was his fault though, it was Donahoe's fault for not looking at the big picture. Vincent's best years were behind him. When you add it all up, signing him was a big mistake, but hanging on to him any longer was a wise decision. The Bills are getting more out of the young guys back there and they can also contribute on special teams. Vincent was also becoming a huge liability in the locker room with his NFLPA UNION attitude. A young team doesn't need a locker room lawyer hanging around. Getting rid of him was smart. It was addition by subtraction and cutting our losses... especially since the bills had the cap room to absorb the hit this season. It will put the Bills in a much better position in Free agency. 804020[/snapback] The Bills didn't consider themselves a rebuilding team when they signed him, and the first year he was with the team they went 9-7, which is hardly rebuilding. They had just lost a starting CB and didn't have a veteran or even a solid young guy to start. Vincent was also looked at as a future FS after his first couple years as a CB, a reasonable idea at the time. he also very much helped Lee Evans to blossom as a WR which Evans himself has noted. I agree that he didn't play CB or FS as well as I had hoped, or even expected, but it wasn't close to being a dumb move or a total loss. He simply wasn't great, and it's time to move on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsWatch Posted October 14, 2006 Share Posted October 14, 2006 I think Vincent being President of Players Union was a factor. Bills could have set it up so that if he was waived and picked up team picking him up would be responsible for balance of contract but didn't implying that they had alterior motives for releasing him HOW they did. They could have also released him such that they could have resigned him. Personally I thought he should have been released before game 1 but I never have been impressed with his play for pay. Bills did not want to get on the bad side of the player rep which tells you it is not a good idea to hire the player union president to play for you. Interesting that his injury which was more severe than Spikes is healed already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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