Betts sucks. He’s averaging less than 3 yards a carry. I realize Portis isn’t doing much better, but they’re not gonna bench him. But Betts has become a liability in the running game. Most GOOD #2’s average MORE than the starter.

With NFL contracts, you only count against the cap for the current year and your bonus is averaged over the course of the contract.

Most of the time they’ll give a player a huge number that is entirely back loaded. When he’s cut you don’t have to pay the salary anymore and the remainder of the bonus is counted against your cap.

So for example, I give you a contract for 5 years that pays a $10 million bonus, and $15 million salary over the course of the contract. However, the yearly salary will be structured $1 million, then $2 million, then $3 million, then $4 million, then $5 million. Your cap hit will be $2 million from the bonus every year + your salary for that year.
so: first year: $3 million, second year $4 million.

Lets say I tire of your antics after 3 years and cut you before your 4th season (ignoring free agency rules and other contract clauses you may have negotiated). Your cap hit for salary will be $0 because I’m not paying you this season. However, your bonus comes due in full this year because I cut you, therefore your cap hit for the 4th year (which you aren’t playing) is $4, which is the remainder of the bonus I paid you.

So the last few years of his contract can be written off as, he won’t be here so we won’t have to pay him that and it won’t hit us for the salary cap numbers (however his bonus may)

Is he worth less than 1.5 million a year? That’s the difference between having him and not having him this season and next! Why eat the over 6 million a season by letting him when you will have to fill that void with a difference on less than 1.5 million? Not saying the guy deserves 6-8 million a year….but because of his contract….that is how you have to look at the value! Now……if we would save 2-4 million by cutting ties…..I would be on the other side of the argument!

That we need a good, young complimentary back for Portis. But a good O-line can make an average back look good, just as much as a bad O-line can make a good back look bad. I wouldn’t be so quick to say that Portis has lost it all just yet (I’m not saying you specifically pas493 said this, but for anyone that thinks that) especially considering the line he’s running behind.

Go look at the stats…..they show them every game….we have like an 85% win percent with Portis carrying 20+ times! He doesn’t need to get tons of yard as long as he is going forward. The running game sets up play action and the rest of the passing game. If teams know you have to pass…they will just sit back in a soft zone and go after the QB! We don’t have a line……so…no…..CP will not break and big ones or get tons of yards this year. You still need it to get anything out of the passing game! I am on board with CJ!

I don’t care how many yards you get, you still need to run the ball. I’m not sure if you noticed, but we don’t have Dan Marino at QB. Without the threat of the run, the passing game won’t go anywhere.
So, now I’ll go back to what I said before. First, the fact that we win when Portis runs 20+ times has yet to be proven false. Through 5 games, he’s only done it once, and we won that game. Second, I really don’t care who gets it, but we need to run 25-30 times. That said, say what you want about Portis, he’s WAY better than Betts. And since they refuse to put Mason (or even Alridge) over Betts on the depth chart, I’d rather give the ball to CP the 20+ times.

as I have repeated ad nauseam, I am stuck with highlights and radio broadcasts online in Australia…but I did see the Eagles game and I gotta say to me, it really did look like CP was running into the ground and not into the gaps

Still you see a lot more than me so I will assume it was one bad game but yeah he did not look good to me against the Eagles