When Dumb Teams are Forced to Spend Money

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

NFL free agency is upon us, and with it comes one of the most interesting situations in sports: Dumb front offices with a ton of money they HAVE to spend.

You see, while the NFL has promoted competition through the use of a salary cap, it is the less-often discussed salary floor that makes free agency truly compelling. The base salary cap in the league is just over $143 million this year, but teams carry over unused cap space from 2014 to make their "adjusted caps" far larger.

Just look at the case of the Jacksonville Jaguars, who were around $25 million under the cap in 2014, leading to an absurd cap figure of $168.5 million this off-season!

As one of only three teams with payrolls currently under $100 million (the other two being Oakland and the Jets), the Jags also have the chance, or in this case, obligation, to spend lavishly. Jacksonville has over $69 million in cap space, but the Jaguars front office probably isn't salivating over the chance to build a contender in one off-season. More likely, the Jacksonville brass is stressing about reaching the salary floor for this league period.

NBA Free Agency Fear Rankings

Chris Paul headlines the 2013 Free Agent Class

(Editor's Note: We're happy to welcome a guest post from Josh Garvey, a Pistons fan, facial hair enthusiast, and the unofficial president of the Chris Paul Man-Crush Association)

By Josh Garvey

Instead of just ranking the NBA free agents in a normal fashion, I'd like to discuss the amount of terror hearing "My team just signed (insert name here)!" inspires in you.  All of this is, as always, dependent on contract, but it's my best guess.

Tier 1 – No terror: This is reserved for players who are very likely to meet the value of their contract and not give you excessive headaches

• Chris Paul: Well, he's not going anywhere, but hey, he’s the best, so you knew he would get some love.
• David West: His game seems to be aging well, and I don't think anyone is going to throw a particularly long contract at him. Also, most likely going nowhere.
• Paul Millsap: Doesn't seem the type to get overpaid, good locker room guy, fairly consistent, hustles.
• Chris Andersen: His age means he probably won't get an excessively long contract, one of the best bench energizers, incredibly fun saying "BIRDMAN, BIRDMAN" and "CAW CAW CAW" every time he does anything.
• Timofey Mozgov: HE PUTS FEAR IN HIS OPPONENTS, NOT THOSE WHO ARE ON HIS SIDE.

Early Free Agency Winners and Losers

Receiver Wes Welker leaves one future Hall of Fame quarterback for another, going from Tom Brady to Peyton Manning.

By Joe Parello

Free agency is far from over, but we take a break from March Man Crushes to bring you the obligatory "winners and losers" column for the early portion of NFL free agency. To say this free agency period has been crazy thus far would be an understatement, and some perennial contenders are going to look significantly different next year.

The question is, will it be for better or for worse?

Well, that's why I'm here. You're welcome.

Which Free Agent Will Sink Your Favorite Team?

Receiver Mike Wallace is certainly talented, but he has the tell-tale signs of a free agent headache.

By Joe Parello

Free agency is nearly upon us in the NFL and rather than building through the draft, it's so much more fun to throw a ton of money at the free agent flavor of the month. Just ask the Philadelphia Eagles and former coach Andy Reid how easy it is to assemble a "Dream Team."

So, with that in mind, here are the top-flight free agents that could ruin your team. Please remember that, obviously, players like Mike Wallace and Jake Long are talented, and could help many teams get over the hump. This is simply a "buyer beware" section.

Mike Wallace, Wide Receiver, Pittsburgh Steelers