I'm beginning to hate free agency.

Free agency is getting out of control. As I watch average player after average player get signed to record deals and the really good ones get even more it really is out of control. This is something the NFL should look into. I dont know how they can do it but they need to figure this out. Performaced based maybe? Do you think the Whiners believe Clements is worth his contract from last year. He's a nice player sure but he's not worth more money than Bailey. It's just getting out of control every year the free agents get rediculous contracts that set the price tag for an even higher payoff the next year. Most of the time it isnt even worth what you paid. The draft is almost the same way, the number one pick get all this money and for what? Being the best college player? I like the NBA's system where there is a cap on how much you can make based on how long you've been in the league. It can be tough on older vets but it's not getting out of control anymore. I want the Rams to get some good players but I hate to see them get an average player for top tier money and that is free agency in a nutshell.

Just wait till next year when the cap is gone....then it will REALLY be a free for all.

I very much understand how you feel, rammiser, but it's not just free agency's fault. It's a perfect storm if you will.

The first problem is the immense TV deal that Tagliabue got done along with the new CBA, giving players a greater share of the revenue. That got us from the 80 some odd million dollar cap to the one above 100 million a couple years ago. This leads to tons of spending cash as teams still have a number on contracts that are from the "old days" when 6 million a year was crazy for anyone but a QB.

The second problem is that teams are getting better and better at identifying what players to keep and which to shove off, and how to keep those players. Incentive laden contracts, poison pill contracts, backloaded to all hell contracts in addition to the franchise tag. This leads to the number of free agents dwindling and the quality plummeting.

So, on one hand you have teams flush with cash(unfortunately, not us), and on the other, you have a crappy free agent pool. Those teams with cash suddenly feel they have to overpay to get what little they can out of free agency, which then causes super inflation for everyone else.

Now, as for the rookies, I blame the agents, not the players themselves. For the most part anyway. The crazy increase in the cap a couple years ago, made them crazy for cash and have driven the top of the draft prices up unimaginably high in my opinion. I am very very much in favor of scaling those down to a set value set up every year by the league. Then you don't have holdouts, and you don't have super inflation with them either. The argument is that the players union won't back it. Well guess what, if the money that is used on rookies suddenly goes into the veterans' pockets, my guess is that they'll approve it unanimously.

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As I watch average player after average player get signed to record deals and the really good ones get even more it really is out of control.

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We have not signed anyone, so I think it's great. The real value will come later when the dust settles, the early birds will over pay big time.