Four years after the NFL's economic system was revamped for liberalized free agency and a salary cap, teams remain challenged to maximize investments. USA TODAY examines how one team tries surviving on the NFL's financial landscape.

Bad gambles put dent in salary cap

OWINGS MILLS, Md. - Enthusiasm ripples through the dark office as Marvin Lewis clicks the controls during an NFL version of home movies.

Ghost accounts Amounts that NFL teams are paying against their 1997 salary caps for players no longer on their active rosters: Baltimore $7.254M Miami $4.998M Washington $3.368M Seattle $2.947M Denver $2.641M Minnesota $1.977M Oakland $1.933M Indianapolis $1.906M Arizona $1.762M New England $1.372M N.Y. Giants $1.356M Houston $1.331M San Francisco $1.240M Green Bay $949K New Orleans $929K San Diego $900K Carolina $892K Buffalo $842K Atlanta $818K Tampa Bay $771K Chicago $727K N.Y. Jets $686K St. Louis $685K Jacksonville $620K Philadelphia $423K Pittsburgh $359K Detroit $353K Kansas City $286K Dallas $277K Cincinnati $174K

Lewis, the Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator, is showing a workout video of No. 1 pick Peter Boulware.

It's a linebacker drill.

''Look!'' Lewis says, expecting Boulware to switch from defensive end. ''I want him to lead with his hand and let his feet follow. This is why Greg Lloyd is great: His feet are so quick, so damn explosive.''

Boulware, drafted fourth after posting an NCAA-best 19 sacks last season, is very key to plans to upgrade a unit ranked last in the NFL on a 4-12 team last season.

''It's almost a mandate,'' says Ozzie Newsome, the Ravens vice president of personnel. ''A first-round pick, except for a quarterback, has to start as a rookie in this day and age.''

With expectations compounded by learning a new position, linebacker, the Ravens say it's critical that Boulware get as much training camp work as possible.

Which leads us to . . . Money.

The heart of the matter

The Ravens also had the draft's fourth pick in 1996 and rewarded UCLA tackle Jonathan Ogden with the largest signing bonus of any 1996 rookie, $6.794 million.

Although owner Art Modell sees the bonus as part of a winning commitment, Boulware's agents, Eugene Parker and Roosevelt Barnes, might see Ogden's seven-year, $15.439 million deal as a takeoff point.

Says Barnes, ''That will be part of the formula, but we're not married to that deal.''

Modell grumbles when the subject of agents is broached.

''The name of the agent is as important as a player's 40-yard dash,'' he says. ''I don't like holdouts. It impedes progress.''

While both sides predict smooth negotiations for Boulware, the Ravens have had bad luck with some of Parker's clients. Last year's second-round pick, cornerback DeRon Jenkins, reported to camp a few days late because of negotiations. In March, Dallas linebacker Broderick Thomas backed out of a $7.5 million free-agent deal.

Figures Modell: ''A bad experience. Jerry Jones sent a plane for him. . . . I sent a Model-T Ford.''

Modell is kidding. But it brings to mind pre-draft speculation that Baltimore needed to trade down in an economics-driven Round 1 to avoid another high rookie price tag.

While dismissing cash-dry theories, Modell and Newsome admit the obvious: The Ravens are in salary-cap jail.

Never mind the NFL's largest rookie pool ($4.23 million) and any so-called safety net of a $41.45 million salary cap.

Baltimore's cap includes the NFL's highest hit for departed players, $7.254 million.

''We were $24 million over the cap in '95,'' says Modell, including bonuses for players considered vital by ex-coach Bill Belichick and ex-personnel head Mike Lombardi. ''When we started releasing players, it put us in a deep hole.''

Paying for the past

Remember Andre Rison? The Cleveland Browns/Ravens signed Rison to a five-year, $17 million deal in 1995. It included a $5 million bonus, for which Modell took out a loan.

In July the Ravens cut the former Pro Bowl receiver, who never clicked with quarterback Vinny Testaverde.

Under cap rules, if a player is released after June 1, prorated bonus money vs. the cap accelerates to the next year's cap. Thus, Rison costs $3 million vs. the Ravens' 1997 cap.

''You pay the piper, eventually,'' Modell says. ''In Rison's case, I have only to blame myself. . . . I thought he was a home-run hitter.''

Also gone but counting for more than $4 million vs. Baltimore's '97 cap because of accelerated bonuses: cornerback Don Griffin, running back Leroy Hoard, linebacker Pepper Johnson, tackle Tony Jones and safety Eric Turner.

''Come hell or high water,'' Modell says, ''we had to impose self-discipline on ourselves, on cash versus the cap and borrowing against the future.''

The Ravens aren't the only team paying now. The current average cap hit for teams on ex-players is $1.493 million.

''We've learned from mistakes,'' San Diego Chargers general manager Bobby Beathard says. ''Maybe teams are more reluctant to give the big signing bonuses. We've seen some teams burned. If a couple don't work out, it can really put you at a disadvantage.''

After Baltimore, Miami pays the next-highest total against its '97 cap for ex-players: roughly $6.5 million for 18 players, according to Dolphins figures.

''We'll get out of it,'' Miami coach Jimmy Johnson says. ''Had we not drafted well and had production from lower-salaried rookies, we might not have won a game last season.''

The Ravens also see a productive draft as a key to beating their salary-cap blues. It's an efficient weapon in the system: find lower-salaried players later in the draft to provide impact, while established veterans and high picks eat up large chunks of cap room.

Still, the Ravens must find the cap room to fit a 12-member crop that ESPN analyst Mel Kiper rated after the draft as the best of any NFL team.

In free agency, they scraped to sign defensive linemen Michael McCrary and Tony Siragusa by restructuring contracts and releasing players.

Yet Newsome says, ''If you continue to restructure, it's like buying on credit cards.''

To keep Pro Bowl receiver Michael Jackson (due a guaranteed '97 salary of $2.5 million), the Ravens dodged a bullet. They released him in February and had to compete with others in re-signing him to a three-year, $8.4 million deal with a $3 million bonus.

Net effect: The '97 cap figure was cut 50%, to $1.25 million.

''We knew that it would cost that amount of cash,'' Newsome says. ''It didn't have to cost that much versus the cap.''

The Ravens also restructured Testaverde's contract with a four-year, $19 million deal. It costs an extra $400,000 under the '97 cap but creates $1.3 million vs. the cap in '98.

Room also was created with Jones' trade to Denver (about $1.6 million) in February, restructures with Earnest Byner and Rob Burnett, and the release of Turner, who had a $3 million '97 cap figure.

More cutdowns loom to create room for rookies. In limbo: defensive linemen Dan Footman and Anthony Pleasant.

By next year, the Ravens hope their salary-cap woes will be another gray memory in the transition from Cleveland.

Compounding the cap-management woes were cash-flow problems that escalated after Modell announced in 1995 that he was moving the Browns.

Move-related expenses were estimated at $120 million.

Says Modell, ''We knew it would be tight as long as we were in Memorial Stadium.''

A new downtown Baltimore stadium (with luxury box revenues) won't be completed until 1998, which left Modell to borrow millions to keep the franchise afloat. He won't reveal the amount but says, ''We are not borrowing any more.''

The Ravens want the same rule for salary-cap management: avoiding deals that provide instant relief at the expense of future cap weight.

Says Newsome, ''Art's made it very clear: He no longer wants us in a credit card-debt type of situation.''

By Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY
-originally published on 5/7/97

The Baltimore Ravens gambled that they can when they gave the big defensive tackle a four-year cap friendly $6 million deal that has a modest $525,000 first-year cap number.

Siragusa missed six games in Indianapolis last year with a knee injury that eventually required arthroscopic surgery. In 10 games, he made 57 tackles, his lowest output since 1991.

The concern about his knees is one reason why teams were reluctant to bid for him.

Baltimore, which pulled out of the Brock Marion deal when he flunked the Ravens' physical, gave Siragusa a thorough examination before declaring he was fit to play.

"Baltimore took so many X-rays of me that my neckwear glows in the dark. I'll probably have a lawsuit against them. I feel 100 per cent right now. I'm working out hard with no problems,'' he said.

Siragusa, who got a $1.3 million signing bonus and a $200,000 first year base, said the chance to play for coach Ted Marchibroda was a major factor in his decision to sign with the Ravens.

He also likes being closer to his home in Kenilworth, N.J., and is eager for a chance to play on natural grass.

Since the Ravens have been adding undersized pass rushers to their defense, they're counting on Siragusa to stop the run.

"The first thing we want to do on defense is stop the run, and we've added a run-stopping impact player,'' said Marchibroda, who coached him from 1992 to 1995.

Jacob Burney, the team's defensive line coach, said, "We can stop the run on first and second down to get us into a third-down situation. Then, we've got a chance to go get the quarterback. There's tremendous optimism in the organization about the defense and (Siragusa) is certainly a big part of that optimism.''

Marchibroda said, "I saw Goose rise. He was a free agent no one knew about and now he's a free agent we're holding a press conference for. He made it on his own, the hard way. He's been on a 1-15 team and a team that almost made the Super Bowl. He'll provide the leadership we need.''

Siragusa said, "Some people get caught up in the money. I'm not a plastic doll. I'm straightforward and I'll tell you what I'm thinking. I hope to get to Little Italy soon. I love crabs. I never miss a meal. I like to play the game hard, and I don't like to lose.''

He also took a shot at the Colts.

"I feel a little strange here, but this is fun. (The Ravens) gave me a free hat and stuff. I always had to pay for them in Indy,'' he said.

SETBACK: The Ravens suffered a serious injury at a position they could least afford to lose a player when center Wally Williams ruptured his right Achilles' tendon during a drill Tuesday morning. It could cause him to be out six months and miss at least the first six games, although he could be out for the year.

Williams' injury means the Ravens will be missing four of the top seven players from last year's line, including three starters. Steve Everitt went to Philadelphia, Tony Jones was traded to Denver and Herman Arvie was forced to retire for medical reasons.

Quentin Neujahr is listed as the No. 2 center and the team drafted a rookie center, Jeff Mitchell, on the fifth round, but they're likely to sign a free agent.

Three free agents, Jerry Fontonet of the Chicago Bears, Kirk Lowdermilk of the Colts and Jeff Uhlenhake of the Redskins, are on the list of players they're considering.

LOOKING GOOD: The Ravens had their rookie minicamp last week and it was no surprise that coach Ted Marchibroda said he was pleased with the athleticism of this group, particularly running back Jay Graham of Tennessee, the team's third-round pick. Coaches traditionally like their rookies at first glance.

All four rookie running backs -- Graham, Texas' Priest Holmes and fullbacks Steve Lee of Indiana and Kenyon Cotton of Southwest Louisiana -- were impressive, but Graham caught the eye of the coaches in the first 10 minutes of the opening practice Friday while returning kickoffs.

"It's hard to evaluate defensive guys, especially without equipment, but at this point, Graham was the most impressive player on offense,'' Marchibroda said.

The Ravens were looking at Graham as an outside runner or a passing threat out of the backfield who could spell Bam Morris.

But he may be able to do more than that.

"There are no limitations on calling plays when he is in there,'' said running backs coach Al Lavan. "He also catches the ball outside, which is a tremendous plus in this type of offense. He is the type of runner who is much faster than he looks. He goes faster beyond 30 and 40 yards. I'm interested in seeing him going into minicamp. I'm real excited about him,'' Lavan said.

ROLE MODEL: Quarterback Vinny Testaverde showed up at the rookie minicamp to set a tone for the rookies and he even gave them a speech Friday night.

"This is my team. Why should I stay home? I don't want anybody stepping forward for me. I have to make that step myself and be a leader ... so we can get better. We had some injuries last year that made it tough, but I don't like to lose. My intention wasn't to come in and learn about every guy. This was a time to work. We have a lot of talent from the draft. If some of the younger guys see me here, then maybe they want to get better. We need more guys to step up,'' he said.

He added, "I told the rookies to study their plays, practice hard and listen. Come to training camp in shape and ready to play. With four preseason games, 16 regular season games and the postseason, that's 24 games to play if you reach the Super Bowl. It's much different than college.''

MONEY MATTERS: The Ravens were allotted more money than any other team -- $4.2 million -- to sign their 12 draft picks. But they're only $580,000 under the cap after signing Siragusa so they have to clear more than $3.7 million simply to sign the draft picks.

They plan to cut Dan Footman and restructure the contract of Rob Burnett and possibly Orlando Brown, but they'll likely have to make more moves.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "There's a Baltimore face on this football team. It's almost like we've forgotten Cleveland.'' -- Coach Ted Marchibroda on the influx of new players.

Although the offensive line was one of the stronger points of the team last year, it's taken a hit this year. The Ravens will open camp missing four of the top seven players from last year, including three starters.

Tony Jones has been traded and Herman Arvie has been released because three doctors warned him not to play again because of neck and shoulder injuries. They lifted the transition tag on Steve Everitt and he went to Philadelphia as an unrestricted free agent. And Wally Williams ruptured an Achilles tendon in an off-season workout. They will sign a free agent to replace Williams, but won't have much depth in the line. They signed Leo Goeas to play one guard spot and Jeff Blackshear will play the other guard spot.

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