Cam Heyward says he was fined for wearing an eye black tribute to his late father, “Iron Head” Heyward.
https://twitter.com/CamHeyward/status/654340648053510144
Craig Heyward died after a short battle with brain cancer in 2006. He was only 39. During his 11 year NFL career, he rushed for a total of 4,310 yards.
The fine for uniform violations of that type is $5,787 for the first violation. Heyward intends to appeal the fine according to ESPN.
The Steelers have signed DE Cam Heyward to a new 6 year deal today.
https://twitter.com/CamHeyward/status/621848187591127042
Heyward was due $6.969 Mil this year after the team picked up his 5th year option in May. The 2011 first round pick had 7.5 sacks, 33 tackles, and batted 4 passes last season.
According to Ed Bouchette (and confirmed by Schefter), the 6 year deal has a total value of $59.25 Mil. I’ll break down the contract details when I have a better idea of the guarantees.
The league has announced this week’s fines, and DE Cam Heyward is one of the recipients. Heyward has been fined $22,050 for verbally abusing a game official. The offense occurred just after the Bucs scored a touchdown in the 3rd quarter.
Heyward was angry that the officials missed a blatant hold on LB Sean Spence which enabled the touchdown. $22,050 is the minimum for non-physical offenses towards officials.
During the loss to the Eagles tonight, Sean Spence and Jason Worilds left the game early with knee injuries. Sean Spence’s knee injury was to his right knee, not the knee he had surgically repaired two years ago. Coach Tomlin described it as ‘probably a PCL’. He didn’t elaborate and probably doesn’t have specifics yet, but often times PCL injuries don’t require surgery. We’ll have to wait and see how significantly it was injured. PCL injuries usually seem better than they truly are at first, but worsen as time goes on.
Tomlin said Jason Worilds had a ‘knee of some description’. This could mean anything, but he was on the sideline icing it during the game, and he didn’t seem to be concerned about it. According to Ian Rapoport, taking him out was just a precaution.
https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/502676079559991296
The only other injury coach Tomlin mentioned after the game was an ankle sprain to Cam Heyward.
Some NFL teams are starting to pick up the 5th year options for their 2011 first round picks. If you’re not familiar with it, the 5th year option is a provision in the new CBA that allows teams to extend a player’s rookie contract by one year. The window to pick up the option is between the end of the 3rd season, and May 3rd of the fourth year.
The cost of the 5th year option varies depending on where the player was selected, and what general position they play. Players selected in the first 10 picks carry a one year salary equal to the transition tag amount. Outside of the first ten picks, the numbers are similar to the transition tag, but the top 3-25 salaries are used to calculate the salary, as opposed to the top ten salaries. The money is only guaranteed due to injury.
Here are the top ten option amounts by position:
Quarterback: $14.666 Mil
Running back: $8.033 Mil
Wide receiver: $10.176 Mil
Tight end: $6.106 Mil
Offensive lineman: $10.039 Mil
Defensive end: $10.633 Mil
Defensive tackle: $8.060 Mil
Linebacker: $9.754 Mil
Cornerback: $10.081 Mil
Safety: $7.253 Mil
Kicker/punter: $3.205 Mil
Here are the numbers for picks 11-32 on offense:
Quarterback: $9.686 Mil
Running back: $5.211 Mil
Wide receiver: $6.776 Mil
Tight End: $3.913 Mil
Offensive lineman: $7.438 Mil
Here are the numbers for picks 11-32 on defense:
Defensive End: $6.969 Mil
Defensive Tackle: $5.477 Mil
Linebacker: $7.038 Mil
Cornerback: $6.898 Mil
Safety: $4.670 Mil
As you can see, if the Steelers pick up the fifth year option for Cam Heyward, his 2015 salary will be $6,969,000. While it’s probable that they will indeed pick up the option, it might not be the smartest action from a management standpoint. If they are going to extend Heyward, which I’m sure they’ll want to do, then they could be smart to avoid the 5th year option and just work towards an extension. I don’t have statistical data to back it up, but when you add a fixed one year sum (ie transition or franchise tag), it can add a complication to the negotiation of a long term contract.
Aside from that possible consequence, there really isn’t any harm in picking up the option. While the money is guaranteed in case of injury, the club retains the rights to the player for another year, and can sign the player to an extension at any point.