I’ve said this for awhile now, NFL rookies should get paid a set amount for a one year contract based on their draft position.  Negotiating huge deals for rookies who haven’t done anything in professional sports is absolutely ridiculous.

Alex Smith makes the case for a rookie salary cap – Shutdown Corner – NFL – Yahoo! Sports

It’s the 49ers bad luck that they got the top pick in a thin draft, just like the Dolphins did this year. I mean, I’m sure Bill Parcells is happy with Jake Long, but you know it killed him to have to fork over all those dollars to a kid who was getting pushed around by a dude on App State at this time one year ago. The element of draft luck won’t change with a salary structure, but teams will stop getting penalized when there aren’t any worthy players to pick.