Carl

Nicks

“I don’t want to be franchised!!!” he wrote. While no details were tweeted, it begs the question of whether a standout might ensue should the Saints tag Nicks. Nicks has gone on record saying he wants to be the NFL’s highest paid guard.

“I plan to be the highest paid guard in the NFL,” he said. “You can take that whatever kinda way but that’s my goal. So more than Logan Mankins got I guess.” Mankins received a six-year, $51 million contract with $30 million guaranteed last August. “I don’t wanna sound cocky or anything but I busted my butt for four years, I made a couple Pro Bowls,” Nicks added. “For my first three years I was the lowest paid guard of all the starting guard in the NFL.”

Nicks believes the Saints didn’t make an offer before Monday because they understood they couldn’t meet his demands and didn’t want to insult him with a low-ball offer. Eager to become the highest-paid guard in the NFL, Nicks will sleep on the Saints’ offer before the start of free agency on Tuesday.

According to Profootballtalk.com, teams were warned “at least six times” they would face “serious consequences” for using the uncapped year as an opportunity to dump salaries. The Cowboys will lose $10 million compared to the Redskins’ whopping $36 million hit. Dallas was reportedly $4.7 million under the $120.6 million cap while Washington was in better shape at $31.3 million under. The franchises have the option of splitting the damage over 2012 and 2013, but it’s still going to have a deleterious effect on the Cowboys’ speculated interest in major free agents such as LG Carl Nicks, DE/OLB Mario Williams, and CB Cortland Finnegan and the Redskins’ pursuit of Vincent Jackson.

With roughly $60 million cap space available, Bucs GM Mark Dominik expects to be active in free agency. The Saints will have a hard time keeping Nicks unless Drew Brees agrees to a long-term deal, freeing up the franchise tag.

It sounds like Nicks is adamant about the asking price, too. While GM Mickey Loomis has a history of working the salary cap to keep homegrown talent, it would be unprecedented to commit more than $100 million long-term to a pair of guards. Nicks revealed Tuesday that he’s yet to have any discussions with the Saints about a new contract.

“In my mind, I pretty much am gone, to be honest,” said Nicks, the top offensive guard on the market. The Saints still haven’t so much as made a contract offer, and appear to have washed their hands of the two-time Pro Bowler and 2011 first-team All Pro. Nicks should have no shortage of suitors in free agency. At the very least, Nicks should expect bidding from Chicago and Dallas.

The Saints would almost certainly face stiffer competition for Nicks than Colston if both reached the open market. New Orleans is believed to be roughly $21.3 million under the projected salary cap, but more than half that space figures to be taken up by Brees. It’s highly unlikely both Nicks and Colston will be back in New Orleans next season.

Trotter also confirms the Saints are making a late push to re-sign LG Carl Nicks. Bryant is expected to draw heavy interest on the open market after emerging as one of the league’s better run stoppers in 2011.

The Cowboys have been connected to Nicks since the end of the season, but they took a big hit under the league’s salary cap punishment. Their No. 1 free-agent priority has shifted to cornerback, specifically Cortland Finnegan or Brandon Carr.