I’m hearing rumors they are going to slap the franchise tag on him in the hopes of trading him to another quarterback starved team.
Is this a smart move? If no one takes him for what I heard would be ~$14M they are going to look like chumps and will take a huge cap hit in the process, all for nothing.
Is Matt Flynn proven enough for a team to take a chance on the huge paycheck they’d owe him? He’s only started what, 2 games?
It seems like a win-win situation for Flynn because he would make a ton of cash getting franchised or get a big contract somewhere else. I don’t think he would make $14M/yr for another team.
Their center, Scott Wells. It sounds like they will lose him if they put the franchise tag on Flynn. And yes, Flynn has started all of two games. I guess they consider it practically a sure thing that one of the QB-starved teams is going to be willing to swallow that contract and give them a high draft pick in return for Flynn, but it certainly looks risky.
If Flynn gets franchised he gets a ridiculous amount of leverage. That basically ensures him that he’ll earn $14M this year with almost zero chance of injury, meaning he’d have the chance to cash in equally next year. If his agent is smart, he’ll use the guaranteed $14M paycheck as leverage to get a MASSIVE contract from any team who wants to sign him, which coupled with the picks the Packers would want would make him nearly untradeable and unsignable. If Flynn gets franchised, staying with the Packers would be his best case scenario, and you can damn well bet he’d make his demands so onerous that there’s no chance of messing that plum deal up. Then, in 2013, he goes out and signs a Matt Cassel/Kevin Kolb sized contract anyways.
Yup. Because the Chiefs and Cardinals are in better shape than the Browns, Redskins, Dolphins, Seahawks and Vikings of the world. Cassel has been serviceable, Schaub has been great at times and many teams would even be happy to have Ryan Fitzpatrick right now. Kolb in no way has totally undermined the idea of the backup graduating to quality starter with upside. And let’s face it, Kolb might still end up being a heck of a QB in the right system and might even flourish in Arizona with a new OC.
I’m not saying they’ve challenged the idea of backups “graduating.” That makes sense. I’m talking about their mixed performance after getting huge contracts, which, particularly in the case of Kolb, were based on a small number of starts.
I’m not sure about that; you’re right that he would minimize his chance of injury, but presumably he’s as hyper-competitive as any other pro athlete, believes that he could be just as good as anyone else if he got a chance to start, and wants to be out there on the field playing rather than carrying a clipboard around.
Kolb and Cassel got huge contracts because they were successful in just a few starts. This is a reflection of the fact that even being successful after a few starts is exceptionally rare. QBs are nigh on impossible to find. Flynn makes for a safer and more ready choice than just about any other option. He’s more likely to enjoy a modicum of success than even Andrew Luck or RG3 based on the history of the league. Granted Flynn is also less likely to win any Super Bowls or Pro Bowl votes in the long term, but if you asked me to bet on who’s going to have the most wins over the next 2 seasons I’d take Flynn without even knowing which teams they’ll be on.
Teams will pay Flynn not because they think he’ll be a lead pipe lock to be successful, they’ll pay him because he’s better than all other options. That’s why Kolb, Cassel, Fitzpatrick and a whole bunch of other QBs who cashed in on thin credentials got paid, it’s simple supply and demand economics. The rarity of even middling success at the QB position makes Flynn a hot commodity, regardless of how you’ve felt about the value proposition of similar QBs in the past. The only way this stops happening is if teams find a better system to find a QB, and that’s not likely.
Yeah, Flynn wants to start, but he also wants to get paid. Kolb got $21M guaranteed over 6 years, Flynn would be assured of getting $14M guaranteed over 1 year with an almost certain expectation of getting around $20M guaranteed in 2013. I’m sorry, but his pride isn’t worth $14M.
Bear in mind that when they are considering him over a draft pick or something that they are not just considering his two starts. He has also had time learning a pro offense, he has spent time in practice running the practice team against the starting D, he has spent time breaking down tape with one of the best QBs in the league at the moment. These are things that give him an adavantage as well.
Maybe you would start Luck or RGIII over him, but not any of the other QBs in the draft and he has more upside then a Seneca Wallace or AJ Feely or any number of other backups in the league who have more starts.
I believe the Packers can franchise Flynn and not have it count against their salary cap until one week later. So yes, franchising him is a useful tool if they can get two or more teams into a bidding war.
I’m not sure on the whole process, but I think a team can tag and trade a player, and then the other team can immediately re-do the contract to fit their cap. Someone correct me if I’m wrong.