Hometown Discounts Don't Exist, for Russell Wilson or Anyone Else

It’s time to put the idea of the “hometown discount” in the NFL to bed.

I know it sounds cool for a star player to leave some cash on the table in order to help out the team with the salary cap. That’s when words like “loyalty” are thrown around, and we applaud guys for putting the team first.

However, despite all the positive talk surrounding a guy who's in a position to possibly take one of these discounted deals, the impact could dramatically effect the rest of the players in the league.

Look at Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson. He’s a natural leader, a true pro, a champion who has led his team to two straight Super Bowls. Wilson is a unique talent with his best football still in front of him.

And he’s also about to get paid.

But would Wilson take one of those so-called discounted deals to sign a long-term contract with Pete Carroll and the Seahawks?

“NFL agents are concerned about Wilson’s new agent, Mark Rodgers, doing some type of deal that will have negative impact on the market place,” said former agent Joel Corry.

Corry, who is now a salary-cap writer for CBS Sports and National Football Post, said those concerns could be unwarranted given that Rodgers once negotiated the richest deal in Major League Baseball history for Mike Hampton back in 2000 (eight years/$121 million).

However, just hearing the talk of Wilson—or any high-profile player—agreeing to one of these hometown discounts just doesn’t add up.

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“If Wilson’s not getting what he’s supposed to get, that means the players under him can’t get what their supposed to get, and it just keeps going down and down and down,” said Corry.

Think of the cornerback market and the recent deals that were signed by Richard Sherman, Joe Haden and Patrick Peterson. The Seahawks cornerback set the market while both Haden and Peterson used that deal to negotiate new contracts. They benefited from Sherman raising the overall value of the position.

“When Richard Sherman got paid, Patrick Peterson was ecstatic, Joe Haden was ecstatic because the market was 10 (million). Everything was 10,” said Corry. “Then you got Sherman at 14, then its easy for Haden to get 13.5, which he couldn’t get beforehand, and it was easy for Peterson to barely top Sherman after that.”

For Wilson, he can wait for Colts quarterback Andrew Luck to get a new contract. That would allow Wilson to negotiate off that deal and get what he deserves. Again, the market would be set for the quarterback position with Luck raising the value for Wilson. 

“Andrew Luck is going to get a new deal. He’s probably going to be a $25 million-per-year guy. There’s rumors out there that the deal could come sooner rather than later even though they have the option year for 2016 they could exercise,” Corry said. “I would be explaining to Wilson, your best deal could be if we kind of drag our feet, slow-play the negotiations and see where this thing hits first.”

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That’s good advice, experienced advice for a player who has earned some new money, the bonus and the multiyear deal to keep him in Seattle.

On top of the fact that there is no real loyalty between players and management in the NFL, every guy in the league wants to see their peers get rewarded with new deals.

That sets the bar in a business where everyone is replaceable.

These contracts lack total guarantees, and players know they are actually year-to-year deals. Bust up a knee, miss some time and that contract is torn up, discarded while someone else takes your job. 

Get your money while you can (before they kick you out of the league), and think of the next guy in line. That was the drill when I played, the basic understanding in pro locker rooms. The next year isn’t guaranteed, so cash out before it’s too late.

Veteran players will renegotiate deals, but that money is really just bumped into different bonuses or creatively spread out over multiple seasons. It’s not a true discount where the player is agreeing to give back his own money to help the club.

For example, Tom Brady restructured his contract again this past season. But while he was applauded for helping out the Patriots, he is actually making more ($3 million) than he did in his original deal. That's not a discount. Instead, it's a slight raise for Brady. 

For many, this can be hard to relate to because we are talking about players who make millions and millions of dollars. Big money to play a kid’s game on the grass. I mean, what’s a couple of bucks going to do for a guy who is bringing in a massive amount of money to play ball?

I get it. And this sounds arrogant when talking about holdouts or players who take up a sizable chunk of the cap at key positions. Plus, it’s hard to sympathize with pro athletes given the type of money they collect during the season.

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But, as Corry acknowledged, these players are dealing within the context of a specific marketplace—one that is expected to go up with each new deal.

Maybe Wilson does take a deal slightly below the expected value. But if he chooses not to, don't look at it as a selfish move. This game is too hard, too physical, and there are absolutely no real guarantees once the bonus money runs dry on these contracts. Plus, he would be setting up future quarterbacks to get the cash they deserve at contract time.

As I said above, the hometown discount sounds like a good idea. However, it’s nothing more than a false narrative in the eyes of the players and the market place in the NFL.

Matt Bowen covers the NFL for Bleacher Report.

Follow @MattBowen41