For a few dollars more

Aikman was prevented from earning the big bucks

Dallas icon Troy Aikman is released by the Cowboys, largely thanks to the NFL's salary cap. BBC Sport Online's Kevin Asseo examines American sport's money rules.

In a move that proves just how harsh the NFL's salary cap policy can be, the Dallas Cowboys have let quarterback Troy Aikman, one of the greatest players in the history of their franchise, go.

Aikman spent 12 seasons in Dallas, leading the Cowboys to three Super Bowl championships in that time.

But money is the bottom line in the NFL these days, and Aikman was earning far too much of it.

The salary cap doesn't give a player a gracious way to end his career with a team

  Troy Aikman's agent
Leigh Steinberg

Under the NFL's salary cap rules, Dallas would have needed to pay Aikman a $7m (£4.8m) bonus and extend his contract through 2007.

The Cowboys decided that the 34-year-old Aikman, plagued in recent years by recurring concussions and back problems, was not worth the cost.

"This was as much a salary cap casualty as it was anything else," said Aikman.

Since the salary cap was initiated, the main criticism has been that it forces teams into waiving veteran players in favour of younger, lower-paid players.

The Patriots worked a way of paying Bledsoe top dollar

"The salary cap doesn't give a player a gracious way to end his career with a team," said Aikman's agent, Leigh Steinberg.

"But that's the way it is with this system."

The salary cap was designed to ensure that all the teams in the league are on a "level playing field."

In that regard, there's no question it has been successful.

But as the Aikman release shows, the system is not without its flaws.

Neither he nor the Cowboys organisation had any desire to part ways, but that's just what they had to do.

The National Hockey League and National Basketball Association share similar policies with the NFL in regard to salary restrictions.

The one major American sport that does not have such a policy is Major League Baseball.

The absence of a salary cap in baseball has led to large-market teams, like the New York Yankees, spending seemingly endless amounts of money to bring in the biggest-name players they can find.

Small-market teams, such as the Minnesota Twins or Kansas City Royals are left with virtually no chance to compete with the likes of the Yankee

  Kevin Asseo

The other side of that equation is the fact that small-market teams, such as the Minnesota Twins or Kansas City Royals, are left with virtually no chance to compete with the likes of the Yankees.

Don't expect a change in baseball's policies anytime soon.

The Major League Players' Union is an extremely powerful group, and the implementation of a salary cap would almost surely prevent players from signing the types of contracts like the one Alex Rodriguez received this year from the Texas Rangers (10 years, $252m).

Although the NFL's salary cap makes it difficult for teams to sign players to large, long-term contracts, it is certainly not impossible, as the New England Patriots proved on Wednesday.

The Patriots announced they have restructured quarterback Drew Bledsoe's contract, giving him a 10-year, $103m (£72m) deal.

The move makes Bledsoe the highest-paid player in NFL history.

Although he received a pay raise, New England made the deal with salary cap considerations in mind.

By stretching the payments out over the next ten years, the team will save about $1.5m (£1m) toward the salary cap this year.