[Aargyle]

Roto:

Quote

NFL Network's Jason La Canfora agrees with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the Steelers are "more likely" to place a first-round restricted tender on Mike Wallace, rather than franchise tag him.
Placing only the tender on Wallace would leave Pittsburgh open to being poached for its top wideout by teams willing to fork over a long-term contract and a first-round draft pick. One such club could be the division-rival Ravens, who draft 29th overall. The cap-strapped Steelers may see the monetary difference between the tender ($2.742 million) and tag ($9.6 million) as worth the risk.

For the tag, teams only have to pay a 1st (no longer a 3rd) to get the player, though the first team can match. And there had been questions if other teams would pay that cost.

If they are only going to tender Wallace, it is going to cost them more than the tag number. Some team is going to step up and pay 10mil/year -- 49ers, Broncos, Ravens, Pats x2 all have low first round picks and need at WR.

[Stalker711]

Can a team actually franchise a player going into his fourth year? I thought all they could do was a RFA tender. AFTER the '12 season, they can/could/would/might franchise him. I didn't think there was an option for franchising a young'un.

[MTskibum]

Stalker711, on 17 February 2012 - 04:04 AM, said:

Can a team actually franchise a player going into his fourth year? I thought all they could do was a RFA tender. AFTER the '12 season, they can/could/would/might franchise him. I didn't think there was an option for franchising a young'un.

I think you can franchise any free agent, but in most cases it makes more sense to tender restricted free agents, rather then franchising them.

[Aargyle]

Roto:

Quote

ESPN's Adam Schefter believes there's a "50-50" chance someone tries to sign restricted free agent Mike Wallace away from the Steelers.
Still roughly $11 million over the 2012 salary cap despite a recent spate of restructurings, Schefter says the Steelers are in a "vulnerable" position with Wallace. "Poison pill" offers were banned under the new CBA, but it wouldn't take a poison pill deal to lure a player away from a team as far over the cap as the Steelers are, just someone willing to make a fair offer and surrender a first-round pick. One team that could be in position to make a play for Wallace is the Ravens. Baltimore is still searching for a true No. 1 receiver, and surrendering the No. 29 overall pick would be well worth it if it meant getting Wallace.

[Aargyle]

One report has steelers "worried" about Wallace's status. Here is a report (roto) that says they won't sign him if another team puts up to much money. It looks like their cap numbers just wouldn't allow it.

Quote

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Steelers are willing to let restricted free agent Mike Wallace test the open market.
The Steelers will reportedly place a first-round restricted tender on Wallace and "see what develops." If he "signs a contract and they deem it too high," they will apparently take the first-round compensation instead of matching. Once unthinkable, it's now very possible the Steelers will let their 25-year-old No. 1 receiver walk instead of digging themselves into an even deeper salary-cap hole.

[Football_Scooter]

God Wallace would be a great fit in SF

my wish list goes
1. VJax
2. Bowe
3. Wallace







10. DJax

lol

[letsgoblue]

Quote

Restricted free agent Mike Wallace says contract talks are "ongoing" with the Steelers, but conceded Wednesday that he may not return to Pittsburgh due to the team's salary cap situation.
"[Pittsburgh is] where I would like to be, but we all know that it is a business," said Wallace. "... So if I have to go elsewhere, you know Pittsburgh will always be in my heart, but I have to do what I have to do." The Steelers are trying to sign Wallace to a long-term deal in order to avoid extending him a first-round tender. He is not expected to be franchise tagged.

I wouldn't mind Wallace going to SF either.

This post has been edited by letsgoblue: 22 February 2012 - 10:01 PM

[Football_Scooter]

Apparently he was asked about the 49ers an he responded that he thought it'd be a great fit.

Added to that, he & Patrick Willis seem to be buddies on Twitter (for whatever that's worth?)

[MTskibum]

I would rather see Wallace go to San Fran than either the Ravens or Pats.

[Aargyle]

Roto:

Quote

Ben Roethlisberger is the latest Steelers player to restructure his contract.
The move lowers Big Ben's cap number from $16.92 million to $8.895 million, putting the Steelers close to the $120 million limit for 2012. GM Kevin Colbert confirmed Thursday that more salary cap casualties are coming, as the Steelers want to ensure that restricted free agent Mike Wallace stays in Pittsburgh.

If they can free up enough cap space, they can just franchise Wallace.

Quote

Steelers GM Kevin Colbert confirmed Thursday that the team will extend "at least" a first-round tender to restricted free agent Mike Wallace, and that using the franchise tag remains a possibility.
Colbert promised to do "everything (he) can" to re-sign Wallace. "We want Mike to finish his career with the Steelers and we're pretty sure he wants to end his career (with the) Steelers," Colbert added. The Steelers are still over the cap, but Colbert's bold comments suggest they're optimistic about retaining their No. 1 wideout. The Steelers have until March 5 to use the franchise tag.

[Aargyle]

Another report that the tender tag is coming. PFT:

Quote

But now that teams are free to use the franchise tag, the Steelers have reportedly decided against it.

Instead, the Steelers will use the first-round restricted free agent tender, not the franchise tag, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.

It’s easy to see why the Steelers wouldn’t use the franchise tag: They’re cap-strapped as it is, and the franchise tag costs about $9.4 million. The first-round restricted free agent tender only costs about $2.7 million.

But it’s also easy to see why this makes it more likely that Wallace could leave: A team that signs him away will only have to give the Steelers one first-round pick, whereas if they had used the franchise tender the Steelers would have received two first-round picks from a team that signed him.

And so we’ll soon see whether some team thinks it’s worth spending a first-round draft choice and a lot of money on one of the best deep threats in the league. And if some team does, we’ll see whether the Steelers decide that they simply can’t afford a big contract for Wallace, and that they’ll be content with an extra first-round pick

The Steelers are right up against the expected cap, and that's after restructuring guys like Ben and dropping Heinz. They may just be trying to not drop more people until they know exactly how much they'll have to pay. I still say teams like the 49ers and Pats could do worse with their late first rounders, and if nothing else it would force the Steelers to pay more to keep their guy.

[Football_Scooter]

No tag.

49ers here he comes!

[chad@ffLiveWire]

Football_Scooter, on 02 March 2012 - 03:42 AM, said:

No tag.

49ers here he comes!

No tag?

[Football_Scooter]

chad@ffLiveWire, on 02 March 2012 - 04:08 AM, said:

Football_Scooter, on 02 March 2012 - 03:42 AM, said:

No tag.

49ers here he comes!

No tag?

I was shocked too. Brown/Wallace was tremendous - I cannot imagine not making room for Wallace.

I think he goes to #1 on my wish list. VJax 2....Jackson scares me character-wise. Bowe likely to be in KC.

God I hope Jed can pull himself up by the nuts and pull the trigger on a FA - Wallace takes a long pressure off of Crabtree. Crabtree was better than people think last year.

Big Wallace mancrush.

[Football_Scooter]

Quote

http://profootballta...n-mike-wallace/

[Aargyle]

They have till monday to change their minds, but they won't. Like I mentioned: I think they will just wait for offers (he is expected to be tendered) on Wallace, see who they have to drop to keep under the cap, and then match that offer.

Or not...the steelers let plax and (was it cotchery) walk, they let their WR's go.

[Football_Scooter]

They also let Holmes go, who was coming off the SB winning catch.

[dagame]

Football_Scooter, on 02 March 2012 - 03:57 PM, said:

They also let Holmes go, who was coming off the SB winning catch.

Holmes was and is a cancer. PIT traded him for a bag of peanuts when they could have had 2 bags of peanuts.

[Stalker711]

dagame, on 03 March 2012 - 12:40 AM, said:

Football_Scooter, on 02 March 2012 - 03:57 PM, said:

They also let Holmes go, who was coming off the SB winning catch.

Holmes was and is a cancer. PIT traded him for a bag of peanuts when they could have had 2 bags of peanuts.

Wasn't Holmes also busted for something at that time? Bar fight? DUI? I can't recall what it was, but they certainly fire-saled his ass out of town.

[Football_Scooter]

There are dozens of "cancers" who are talented enough to stay on their teams. Since we're talking PIT how about Big Ben, pulls the "hold my beer & watch this" motorcycle stunt, then rapes a chick - I mean, really. Holmes little DUI is a nothing comparatively. Ben didn't get shipped out.

Steelers just don't think they need to pay WRs - and so far they've been right. And they do have depth behind Brown - maybe they're confident in Brown as. #1 with Enmanual Sanders healthy & Cotchery in the slot? Seems like a downgrade but still a very solid WR corps. Except Sanders is kinda fragile.

With all the veterans they're letting go on defense I think Wallace plays elsewhere in 2012. They have depth at WR, they have a draft, and they need to fill a lot of higher priority holes.

[Stalker711]

Football_Scooter, on 03 March 2012 - 02:12 AM, said:

There are dozens of "cancers" who are talented enough to stay on their teams. Since we're talking PIT how about Big Ben, pulls the "hold my beer & watch this" motorcycle stunt, then rapes a chick - I mean, really. Holmes little DUI is a nothing comparatively. Ben didn't get shipped out.

Steelers just don't think they need to pay WRs - and so far they've been right. And they do have depth behind Brown - maybe they're confident in Brown as. #1 with Enmanual Sanders healthy & Cotchery in the slot? Seems like a downgrade but still a very solid WR corps. Except Sanders is kinda fragile.

With all the veterans they're letting go on defense I think Wallace plays elsewhere in 2012. They have depth at WR, they have a draft, and they need to fill a lot of higher priority holes.

Interesting. Why would you defend your idiot, rapist, white franchise QB and jettison your idiot, rowdy drunk, black 'franchise' WR? Ben continues to be one of the most hated professional athletes around, while Holmes is just a bit of a pain in the ass to his franchise.

Anyhoos, with the aged core of the Steelers team being purged, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to let one of the most exciting young WRs in the game walk, when you have some massive contracts that could either be reworked, or purged. Any rebuilding phase has to start out with SOMETHING in the cupboard, and Wallace has had one of the best first three-year runs of WRs all-time.

[dagame]

Stalker711, on 03 March 2012 - 03:18 AM, said:

Football_Scooter, on 03 March 2012 - 02:12 AM, said:

There are dozens of "cancers" who are talented enough to stay on their teams. Since we're talking PIT how about Big Ben, pulls the "hold my beer & watch this" motorcycle stunt, then rapes a chick - I mean, really. Holmes little DUI is a nothing comparatively. Ben didn't get shipped out.

Steelers just don't think they need to pay WRs - and so far they've been right. And they do have depth behind Brown - maybe they're confident in Brown as. #1 with Enmanual Sanders healthy & Cotchery in the slot? Seems like a downgrade but still a very solid WR corps. Except Sanders is kinda fragile.

With all the veterans they're letting go on defense I think Wallace plays elsewhere in 2012. They have depth at WR, they have a draft, and they need to fill a lot of higher priority holes.

Interesting. Why would you defend your idiot, rapist, white franchise QB and jettison your idiot, rowdy drunk, black 'franchise' WR? Ben continues to be one of the most hated professional athletes around, while Holmes is just a bit of a pain in the ass to his franchise.

Anyhoos, with the aged core of the Steelers team being purged, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to let one of the most exciting young WRs in the game walk, when you have some massive contracts that could either be reworked, or purged. Any rebuilding phase has to start out with SOMETHING in the cupboard, and Wallace has had one of the best first three-year runs of WRs all-time.

HMMM..because good white Qb's are hard to find and black talented WR's are sime a dozen.

[Football_Scooter]

Stalker711, on 03 March 2012 - 03:18 AM, said:

Football_Scooter, on 03 March 2012 - 02:12 AM, said:

There are dozens of "cancers" who are talented enough to stay on their teams. Since we're talking PIT how about Big Ben, pulls the "hold my beer & watch this" motorcycle stunt, then rapes a chick - I mean, really. Holmes little DUI is a nothing comparatively. Ben didn't get shipped out.

Steelers just don't think they need to pay WRs - and so far they've been right. And they do have depth behind Brown - maybe they're confident in Brown as. #1 with Enmanual Sanders healthy & Cotchery in the slot? Seems like a downgrade but still a very solid WR corps. Except Sanders is kinda fragile.

With all the veterans they're letting go on defense I think Wallace plays elsewhere in 2012. They have depth at WR, they have a draft, and they need to fill a lot of higher priority holes.

Interesting. Why would you defend your idiot, rapist, white franchise QB and jettison your idiot, rowdy drunk, black 'franchise' WR? Ben continues to be one of the most hated professional athletes around, while Holmes is just a bit of a pain in the ass to his franchise.

No idea man - just telling it like I see it.

[Football_Scooter]

Hate to say it but dagane might be right.

They have depth at WR - Brown broke out in a big way. I still think a lot of that had to do with Wallace drawing coverage. But the Steelers might think Sanders/Brown/Cotchery is good enough.



Again - I don't have the answers - but it sure looks like they're gonna build without Wallace.

Hell, they still need a RB and another capable TE. Steelers have a LOT of holes and WR isn't one.

If I were the steelers if do whatever it took to keep Wallace but they seem to have a different approach. I never said it was the right one!

[Aargyle]

Some teams cant' find WR's at all - the Jags keep trying and missing, the lions spent what, four first rounders before they found one?

I think the Steelers have shown they have good WR talent scouts, and I think they also showed that they didn't have good QB talent. Remember they wanted Eli or Rivers over Ben, they kind of got stuck with their third choice. It worked out, have to keep him when you get lucky.

[Aargyle]

Roto:

Quote

The Steelers are believed to be "at least" $10 million below the expected 2012 salary cap following their wave of veteran releases.
According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the "three days of bloodletting" that saw the Steelers release Hines Ward, DE Aaron Smith, ILB James Farrior and G Chris Kemoeatu has come to an end. However, it is still unclear if they have cleared enough cap room to match any offer for restricted free agent Mike Wallace. NFL.com's Mike Lombardi reported Friday Pittsburgh still couldn't match offers for Wallace that include a first-year cap hit of $12 million or more.

[Aargyle]

Roto (on franchise day):

Quote

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has confirmed the Steelers will not place the franchise tag on restircted free agent Mike Wallace, and will instead extend a first-round tender.
The tender will guarantee Wallace $2.7 million, and allow him to negotiate with other teams. The Steelers have the right to match any offer, but are still believed to be in danger of losing Wallace if he's offered a deal that pays him $12 million or more in 2012. The Steelers would receive a first-round pick as compensation if Wallace signs an offer they decide not to match. The Patriots and Ravens are among the potential predators.

[dagame]

Why is no one attempting to make a run at this guy?

[ft_ball_fan]

dagame, on 28 March 2012 - 02:54 AM, said:

Why is no one attempting to make a run at this guy?

At 2.7M he'd seem to be a steal.. and many teams need WR help (MIA, JAX, IND to name a few).

[MTskibum]

dagame, on 28 March 2012 - 02:54 AM, said:

Why is no one attempting to make a run at this guy?

Because he wants to get paid more than larry fitzgerald.

[ft_ball_fan]

MTskibum, on 28 March 2012 - 03:26 AM, said:

dagame, on 28 March 2012 - 02:54 AM, said:

Why is no one attempting to make a run at this guy?

Because he wants to get paid more than larry fitzgerald.

but if PIT can retain him for just 2.7M... wanting Fitz money and no one is biting is stupid.. he should be seeing what the market will bear and going with the highest bidder to see if PIT will match or let him go.. either way he gets a payday... right now he gets 2.7M which is less than many average WR's (Pierre Garcon anyone?)

[Football_Scooter]

It's 12 million. Where did you hear 2.7?

[Aargyle]

Football_Scooter, on 28 March 2012 - 04:34 AM, said:

It's 12 million. Where did you hear 2.7?

They just tendered him, so they are only going to pay him around that much (under $3 mil due this year).

If another team made an offer for him, that team would surrender their first and offer him a new contract. That contract would pay him at least $10 per year, possibly the team trying to get him would make it $15 the first year to try to keep him away from the Steelers.

Then the Steelers could match the offer if they wanted to. Rumor had it he wants Fitz type money though--and no team should want to pay him THAT much.

[Aargyle]

PFT:

Quote

A month ago, it looked like a good bet that the Steelers would lose restricted free agent receiver Mike Wallace. But with two weeks to go before the April 20 deadline for a team to sign a restricted free agent to an offer sheet, it’s appearing increasingly likely that Wallace will stay in Pittsburgh.

Adam Schefter noted on ESPN today that before free agency started, the 49ers and Patriots were the two teams seen as most likely to go after Wallace. However, the 49ers have added Mario Manningham and Randy Moss, the Patriots have added Brandon Lloyd, Donte Stallworth and Anthony Gonzalez, and both teams now appear set to stick with the receivers they have.

It’s still possible that some team we’re not aware of is planning to swoop in and sign Wallace to an offer sheet at the last minute, but if so that team is doing a great job of keeping it quiet. There are no reports of any teams planning to do so.

One thing this shows is how much NFL teams value their first-round draft picks. Wallace is a tremendous receiver, one of the best deep threats in the league, but even his talent isn’t enough to make many teams interested in shipping a first-round pick to the Steelers as compensation, which is what it would take to sign Wallace away.

It also may show that Wallace is asking for more than he’s worth. If the reports are true that he’s expressing a desire to make more money than Larry Fitzgerald, that could dissuade even the teams that would be perfectly happy to give up a first-round pick to acquire him.

Once the April 20 deadline passes, the Steelers don’t have to worry about losing Wallace, at least not this year. Ultimately, Wallace may end up playing the 2012 season for the one-year tender of $2.74 million. Which is a bargain for the Steelers.

Not a ton of great RFA's out there, but PFT points out that none of the forty-some RFA's have been given an offer. So Tender == Tag?

[Football_Scooter]

That's just crazy. I cannot believe no one wants to lock this guy up. Steelers seem pretty fortunate here.

[Portis26]

Football_Scooter, on 08 April 2012 - 08:31 PM, said:

That's just crazy. I cannot believe no one wants to lock this guy up. Steelers seem pretty fortunate here.

Maybe he isn't a locker room guy?

[dagame]

Apparently some teams are now going after him. No mention of who is but teams are at least trying to get him.

[Aargyle]

Now is when it might start getting ugly. Roto:

Quote

Unsigned restricted free agent Mike Wallace isn't attending Steelers minicamp.
Wallace is wringing out his last bit of leverage before the Steelers can slash his $2.742 million tender to $577,000 beginning on Friday. ESPN's Chris Mortensen has reported the Steelers are unlikely to take such a drastic step, but they can hold it over Wallace's head if he isn't willing to budge in long-term talks.

If dude doesn't sign his tender by Friday and Steelers do decide to slash it, I could see him holding out the season.

[chad@ffLiveWire]

Aargyle, on 12 June 2012 - 05:28 PM, said:

If dude doesn't sign his tender by Friday and Steelers do decide to slash it, I could see him holding out the season.

Yeah. He wont play for 600K...

[Aargyle]

PFT:

Quote

Not only did a teammate jump the gun in saying Steelers receiver Mike Wallace had a new contract, but the Steelers have reportedly decided to stop even talking to Wallace about a new contract.

Wallace is not reporting for the start of training camp, and the Steelers’ response will be to suspend negotiations on a long-term contract, according to Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

According to Bouchette, the Steelers are willing to let Wallace make the decision of whether he’ll sign his one-year, $2.7 million restricted free agent tender or stay away. If those are his two choices, Wallace will surely take option B, at least for now. Wallace only has to sign the tender by Week One to get his full base salary.

But even if the Steelers’ position now is that they won’t negotiate with Wallace, it’s still possible that a long-term deal could get done. Wallace is an extremely talented player who’s still just 25 years old, and the Steelers would benefit from having him locked up to a long-term deal. They may not be negotiating that deal now, but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen eventually.