Salary cap and the NFL draft

John Clayton has written a pretty good article discussing the merits of the NFL salary cap. Apparently, the salary cap could end in 2008. The NFL salary cap seems to work better than the other three sports, in no small part because of contracts that aren't guaranteed. Unlike baseball and basketball, where unproductive players are dragged along and paid huge sums well past their effectiveness, football players can be cut. Owners and GMs, in any sport, put pressure on coaching staffs to play the expensive players, even when there are better options sitting on the bench. More guaranteed money in contracts given to players, especially unproven draft picks, will continue to handcuff front offices and coaching staffs alike - with the play on the field suffering.

Perhaps more interesting in Clayton's article is his talk of quality teams filling needs through the draft. I thought I had written about this, but wasn't able to find it. A championship team doesn't necessarily need to have great steals in the late rounds of drafts, but just use all of their picks effectively. Look at teams like Indianapolis, New England and the Chargers. All have formed their teams through great use of their first round picks. This, as Clayton says, allows you to fill your team with good, young, cheap players. The good teams fill in as needed through free agency or trades, being careful not to spend too much in any given year. Man, this sounds really familiar, I'm disappointed I hadn't written about this before. This was as close as I got.

Championship teams are made through the draft - regardless of the sport. (See
San Antonio Spurs, New England Patriots)

It seems like a pretty basic idea, but requires foresight from the GM/team president and patience from the owner and fan base.