Gumbo
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- Mar 19, 2019
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Drafting well is the single best way to keep the books balanced in the NFL, as those cheap rookie contracts allow you to pay more stars.
At least until it comes time for those draft picks to get paid like the stars they have become.
Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis is aware that his problem is a good problem, as he approaches payday for his 2017 NFL Draft class.
“There’s challenges when you’re not successful, and there’s challenges when you are successful,” Loomis told Mike Triplett of ESPN.com, “I prefer the latter.”
The members of his 2017 draft class are now eligible for contract extensions, having served their three years at rookie scale.
They can squat on first-rounders Marshon Lattimore and right tackle Ryan Ramczyk for two more seasons by exercising the fifth-year options this spring, which they’d certainly seem inclined to do. But they’re also faced with the reality of running back Alvin Kamara heading into a contract year, along with safety Marcus Williams and linebacker Alex Anzalone.
At a time when they just paid Michael Thomas a huge deal, and are facing a quandary at quarterback (specifically, how to keep Taysom Hill if Drew Brees comes back for another year), things could get tricky.
Of course, no one is feeling sorry for them, but that doesn’t make Loomis’ looming financial crisis any less real.