While we all discuss these various personnel decisions, I just want to remind everyone that this franchise has not thrown up a "red number" in over a decade, and we came damn close to doing so for the 2008 year.
That introduces a huge variable that we as fans simply cannot know an answer to. Murphy and Ted can SAY that football decisions are not encumbered by financial considerations until the cows come home...I would expect them to say precisely that.
My guess---and it is a guess---- is that our stock losses did not recover sufficiently to make up for the increased payroll costs for the 2009 year, which were substantial. The ticket price increase is chump change when it comes to paying for salary escalations, and I don't see how our real estate holdings could have increased to make much of a dent either.
I think we are dipping into the franchise preservation fund in order to get the deals done as it stands. This is something the FO has been averse to doing.
Don't underestimate this as a factor, public pronouncements notwithstanding.
This is the year of revenues, not salary caps, and for the Pack, the looming 2011 situation is probably coming just in the nick of time, player-salary-wise, if things go the owner's way, imo.
Philosophically, I'm with just about every fan. "Just pay the man", is what my heart wants the refrain to be. My head says the reality is a hell of a lot more complicated. Call it rain on the parade.