PLAYER ACCESS PLAN FOR HOUSTON APPROVED
A player access plan for the Houston Texans expansion franchise that begins play in 2002 has been approved by a vote of NFL clubs, the National Football League announced today. The plan will enable the Texans to: · Acquire in February via an access draft 30-42 veteran players (or players with total 2002 salaries of at least 38 percent of the Texans’ 2002 salary cap) from the rosters of the other NFL clubs. · Select a combined total of 14 extra rookie players in the next two college drafts (same as 1999 expansion Cleveland and 1995 expansion Carolina and Jacksonville in their first two drafts). · Sign veteran free agents between February and July 2002 under the same terms as the league’s other 31 clubs and same terms as the expansion Cleveland club in 1999 and expansion Carolina and Jacksonville teams in 1995. “The plan is very similar to the one we used for Cleveland,” said NFL Commissioner PAUL TAGLIABUE. “It is designed to offer the Texans the opportunity to become competitive at an early date.” The veteran access draft will be held on Monday, February 18 (ESPN, 2:00 PM ET). It will require the existing 31 clubs to submit a list of five veteran players for selection by the Texans. Each club can expose only one player who was placed on injured reserve after the start of the 2001 regular season, only one player who has 10 or more years of free agency experience, and no more than two players with “spiked contracts” in 2002 (description below). Neither punters nor kickers may be part of the list. Teams (other than the clubs advancing to the conference championship games) must submit their list of players for the veteran draft by January 22. The two clubs losing in the conference championship games must submit their lists by January 29, while the two Super Bowl teams must submit their lists by February 5. A “spiked contract” is defined as a contract in which:
The Texans must select between 30 and 42 players in the veteran draft or a fewer number of players with total salaries of 38 percent of the cap. An existing club can recall one player from its list after one of its players is selected. After a second player is selected from a club, that club can pull back both of its remaining players. Houston will have 28 choices in the NFL Draft over the next two years, 14 in 2002, and 14 in 2003. If the Texans make the playoffs in 2002, the team will not have extra picks in 2003. In the 2002 draft (April 20-21), the Texans will receive the first pick in each of the seven rounds. They will also receive seven additional picks to be allocated in the following manner: · One selection in each of Rounds 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 after all teams with a 2001 regular-season winning percentage of less than .500. · Final selection in Round 7 (after all compensatory selections). In the 2003 draft, Houston will receive one regular pick per round based on its 2002 record, the same as all other clubs. The Texans will also receive seven additional picks in the 2003 draft – unless they make the playoffs in 2002, in which case they will receive no extra picks. These picks will vary depending upon Houston’s 2002 won-loss percentage, as reflected in the following year’s draft order. These additional picks would be allocated in the following manner:
The first extra Houston pick in any round will fall 16 slots below the club’s original choice in that round, but no lower than the end of the round, after any compensatory picks. The second, third or fourth extra pick in a round will be at the end of the round after any compensatory selections. In 2001 and 2002, Houston will be prohibited from trading any draft picks to acquire rights to sign or obtain the contractual release of any non-player personnel (e.g., coach, general manager). The Texans may begin signing previously-terminated free agents this year. From December 27 until the end of the 2001 regular season, Houston may sign a maximum of 10 free agents (not under contract to other teams) to 2002 contracts. The Texans will be eligible to sign both restricted and unrestricted free agents during the 2002 veteran free agency signing period, which begins March 1. They will have the same access to veteran free agents as the other 31 clubs. During the period from February 18 until July 15, however, the Texans’ roster must include at least 30 players acquired from the veteran access draft or a fewer number of players acquired in the veteran draft with total salaries of at least 38 percent of the 2002 salary cap. Any of these players who are released after June 1 are entitled to a supplemental expansion bonus equal to the player’s minimum Collective Bargaining Agreement salary even if he subsequently signs with another team. Other personnel rules for the Texans: · Roster Size, Cutdowns
· NFL Europe League Exemptions: (description below) · Waiver Priorities: Through the third weekend of the 2002 regular season, Houston will have waiver priority, and thereafter waiver rights will be based on its 2002 record, the same as all other teams. The 2002 Houston Texans access plan is basically the same as that followed by the Cleveland Browns in 1999, with the following exceptions: · There were no limitations on “spiked contracts” in the Cleveland Browns’ 1999 Player Access Plan. · Players with prior injuries who are exposed in the Veteran Draft must be physically able to play by June 1, 2002 (as opposed to July 1 under the Cleveland plan). · The existing clubs have reserved the right to adjust the number and/or position of Houston’s extra picks in the 2003 NFL Draft if Houston were to lose more than the 14 games Cleveland lost in its first season. · In addition to the 2002 extra roster spots listed above, Houston will receive a number of exemptions equal to the average number of roster exemptions earned by other NFL clubs under the provisions of the NFL Europe League Allocation Policy. |