NFL teams are nothing if not greedy, and it's largely resulted in tremendous profit over the last few decades, but the latest trend -- haggling early-round rookies over contract language -- has gotten out of control and needs to be curbed. Specifically, the Jets and Bears did their franchises and fans a disservice by haggling with Sam Darnold and Roquan Smith this offseason. 

The Darnold situation in New York is now settled, with the No. 3 overall pick inking his $30 million rookie deal on Monday after a fairly protracted holdout. Darnold was the next-to-last rookie to sign, but who can blame him? If you look at what the Jets reportedly wanted to include in his rookie contract, he should not just have stayed away from the team, he should have been offended.

For starters, the idea of jamming offset language into his rookie contract is silly. Essentially, offset language keeps a player from double dipping should said player be released by his original team and sign with another team during the course of the rookie contract. Four-year rookie deals are fully guaranteed, but if Darnold was dumped by the Jets before his rookie deal expired and signed with the Giants (hypothetically), if the Jets had the offset language included, they would be only be on the hook for their remaining total owed less what he got from the Giants. 

This misses a very obvious point: if Sam Darnold isn't on the Jets in four years, whatever dollar amount they recoup won't be nearly enough to make up for the disaster that was their draft in 2018. Darnold is the future of the franchise, and at just 21 years old, the Jets are hoping the next time they worry about his contract is when he's 35, not 25. Suck it up and waive the offset language instead of alienating your rookie quarterback, who has already shown a striking maturation and the ability to deal with the pressures that come with being the face of the franchise in a major market. 

According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, Darnold was able to get most of the language involving suspensions, fines, etc., out of the contract. He won't lose out on guaranteed money if he is fined/suspended for initiating helmet-to-helmet contact on a quarterback sneak, and he won't lose money if he is fined/suspended for taking a knee during the anthem or anything else that lands under the wide umbrella of conduct detrimental to the team. He won't lose guaranteed money if he's fined/suspended by the league for a violation of the personal conduct policy. (Kudos to Darnold for getting $20 million up front, though. No one can take that back.)

Not that Darnold would do any of those things, which is sort of the point here. Why are the Jets trying to jam these items into his contract the week before training camp? He was the No. 3 overall pick, he's a stand-up kid with great character. Treat him as such. 

The Bears situation is even weirder. According to multiple reports, including from Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune, the Bears are trying to insert language into Roquan's deal that would cause him to lose guaranteed money should be fined or suspended for being punished by the NFL for a violation of on-field actions. 

More specifically here: if Smith were to be fined or suspended because of the new rule prohibiting defenders from initiating helmet-to-helmet contact, the Bears could go after the guaranteed money in his contract, according to language in the deal they want him to sign.

"That's part of the issue," coach Matt Nagy admitted at the start of training camp. 

Per Campbell, Smith's agents at CAA want a "written assurance" the team won't chase Smith's money should he be fined or suspended by the NFL for any helmet-to-helmet contact. But the Bears only have "informally assured" Roquan and his camp they will not aggressively pursue the money guaranteed on his deal and that "they would be reasonable in assessing disciplinary action" against Smith based on what the league does with the new rule. 

Again, like the situation with Darnold, this is patently absurd. 

The Bears drafted Roquan Smith because he is a heat-seeking missile on the defensive side of the ball, a tone-setting modern linebacker who flies all over the field and makes big, game-changing plays. He will, on occasion, deliver a physical blow to an opponent.

Which is exactly what the Bears want him to do. This is a franchise steeped in defensive history, with an emphasis on the linebacker position. Bill George, Dick Butkus, Mike Singletary and Brian Urlacher are all Hall of Fame linebackers and the Bears are hoping Smith steps in and replicates their success with, quite likely, a similar level of aggression. 

But their contract situation is equally a slap in the face as Darnold's albeit only an assault on Roquan's football character, not his off-the-field character. Drafting him with a top 10 pick and then asking him to change the way he plays -- and the way he plays is technically sound and clean -- is an absurd request.

It's made even more ridiculous by the fact Roquan is entering into a league that doesn't know what it wants from defenders in 2018. The entire Eagles team just left a meeting with NFL officials "frustrated" over "confusion" surrounding how the league will handle the new targeting rule it implemented this offseason. With officials split on what qualifies as a legal hit, signing a contract with that language would essentially put Smith at the mercy of whatever referee/official happened to be working any given week. 

Let's not weep for these first-round rookies when it comes to their salaries. They are well compensated. But it's worth noting that Rolando McClain, the No. 8 pick by the Raiders in the 2010 NFL Draft (the final year of the old CBA), got a $40 million contract with $23 million guaranteed. Christian McCaffrey, the No. 8 overall pick last year by the Panthers, got a four-year, fully guaranteed $17 million deal.

So whatever Roquan is working on here is substantially smaller than the previous CBA and the Bears want to try and take away the most important part of it: the fully guaranteed portion. 

All because of potential on-field play from a guy with no history of anything other than being a tackling machine. It flies counter to the entire point of drafting him and installing him as the top defensive playmaker.

Like the Jets, the Bears don't seem to grasp the importance of their selection in these negotiations. A first-round pick is supposed to sell jerseys, inspire hope and potentially alter the course of the franchise in a positive way. Getting caught up in the weeds with two high-character guys over pedantic contract negotiations is the type of thing that sets a bad precedent, and the sort of stuff you only see from franchise uninterested in moving towards a brighter future.