nfoligno Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 Last week, there was some discussion as to Hester's value, and how it may stack up against Berrian, on the field and financially. W/o getting into the on field contributions, I was thinking about the contracts now that Hester has signed. Berrian signed a 6 year deal. Hester signed a 4 yr extension on a deal w/ 2 years remainings, thus essentially a 6 year deal. Berrian's deal has a max value of $42m. Hester's deal has a max value of $40m. Berrian got $16m in guaranteed money. $5m SB, $8m 2008 roster bonus and $3m 2009 roster bonus. Hester got $15m in guaranteed money, though I have not read yet how that money is broken up. The two deals are pretty darn similar. Now I will say there are two aspects of the deals I do not know about which can seperate them more. (a) Berrian's deal calls for him to receive (I believe) $23m in the first three years. $16m of that comes in the form of his bonuses, while the other $7m would come from base salary. We know Hester's deal has $15m guaranteed, which would factor into this, but I have not read what the rest of his first three year structure would look like. ( Hester has that $10m incentive tied to his final season, which I think it unlikely he triggers fully. I read he would have to play like Fitzgerald, and sooner rather than later. Per the Sun Times, he is far more likely to earn $2-3m of that (more obviously depending on how fast he develops). But the point is, a sizable chunk of his contract is tied up in incentives. I know some of Berrian's deal is tied up in incentives, but no idea how much. In the end, I think more of Berrian's deal is solid (non-incentive), but the two deals are not "that" far apart, and if Hester does in fact develop as a WR, the gap could pretty quickly close. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
balta1701-A Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 Ok...assume for a moment the 2 contracts were identical. And assume you only got to choose 1 of the 2 guys to keep. Pick one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nfoligno Posted July 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 Easy, for me at least. Hester every day. I was never a Berrian fan, and always thought he was too inconsistent and over-rated. He looked good to bear fans, but that is more relative. He was the best looking chic in a room full of ugly chics. Still ugly, but compared to the rest, freaking Miss America! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
balta1701-A Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 Easy, for me at least. Hester every day. On this one I totally agree. The Hester of last year is worth probably more to me than Berrian, just in terms of how much damage he did, and that's with only a handful of big plays on offense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrunkBomber Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 With proper coaching Hester can be the same threat as Berrian on top of his return ability. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZ54 Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 Between the two it's Hester hands down. I don't think Hester will fully replace Berrian's WR production this year (I hope so) but I think it's reasonable to see him come close next year. I say come close because he'll always be splitting time with his KR/PR duties so he should see less plays than Berrian. I think Hester's YAC will be far better than Berrian's once he settles into the offense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Connorbear Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 Ok...assume for a moment the 2 contracts were identical. And assume you only got to choose 1 of the 2 guys to keep. Pick one. Got to be Hester. Outside of his potential to be a very good WR, he changes the game with his return skills. Peace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Connorbear Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 Ok...assume for a moment the 2 contracts were identical. And assume you only got to choose 1 of the 2 guys to keep. Pick one. Got to be Hester. Outside of his potential to be a very good WR, he changes the game with his return skills. Peace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DABEARSDABOMB Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 With proper coaching Hester can be the same threat as Berrian on top of his return ability. Two different players. Both can be simliar deep threats, Hester can be a bit more of a threat in a slot position, but Berrian had much more size and physical presence to be a more legit/natural #1 WR where as Hester will have to use his unique skill-set to turn into a Steve Smith (much fewer #1 WR's like Smith than there are like Berrian/TO/ETC who have more size, albeit I'm not comparing Berrian/TO in any way shape or fashion). Plus its not like Berrian truly is that big. That said, this deal makes sense to me. Hester is getting the same as Berrian if he proves to be a #1 (Berrian is getting his regardless) and if he doesn't, than he's getting paid 10M less than Berrian, which to me is pretty fair cause i still think at worse (assuming health) he'll be a solid slot WR and a special returnman. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mongo3451 Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 I don't think they are all that similar. Berrians' is much better. Berrian doesn't have to become a stud reciever to earn his contract. Hester stands to lose a greater deal of money, if he under-performs. I like Hester's contract for us and Devin's growth. I think Berrian would have laughed at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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