LaRon Landry got paid, is large, etc.

by Skin Patrol on Aug 1, 2007 2:32 PM EDT in Analysis

Hat tip Extreme Skins on this Adam Schefter article:

Salaries have skyrocketed throughout the offseason, but the truest measure at how wacky they've become is in rookie deals...

No NFL safety -- not Ronnie Lott, not Ed Reed, nor even Troy Polamalu, who signed an extension last week that included $15 million worth of guaranteed money -- ever signed a deal with more guarantees than the one Landry landed from Washington.

So the rich did not get richer; rookies did. But the Redskins had little choice; this is the system under which they were playing. The player picked at No. 7, running back Adrian Peterson, signed a five-year, $40 million deal that included $17 million worth of guaranteed money. Picked at No. 6, one slot ahead of Peterson, Landry received numbers that much higher.

I don't know if the level of salary increases have reached "wacky" yet, though I'm not sure what that qualification would mean here anyways. I don't know if my numbers are right, but the salary cap went from ~ 75M in 2003 to nearly 109M now -- an increase of 45%. As Schefter points out, we don't really have a choice given that rookie contracts are largely decided by placement and how those other picks get paid. We didn't spend through the roof relative to what Adrian Peterson got, for example. Neither Ed Reed nor Troy Polamalu nor even Ronnie Lott were drafted as high as Landry.

Salaries are exploding, but I have every confidence that Landry can play to a level concurrent with his draft placement.

Speaking of Landry...

He's large. He's already intercepted a pass (which also means JC has already thrown one), and is receiving positive reviews from the likes of Steve Jackson, who praised his endurance. Also, Landry seems to have accepted the fact that, as a rookie, he'll have to carry some shit for his teammates.

By the way, there is no pushing allowed at this year's training camp, apparently. JimmiJo (of Skinscast) reports that Greg Blache used some adult language to make this point to Anthony Montgomery, who saw fit to push an unnamed offensive lineman in the back yesterday.

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