I don't understand why it's 7 million for 5 years.  Is this official, or just speculation?

At this point it would make no sense to set it up that way.  Why not making it decreasing over time so that we don't have a horrific contract in the future?  We have the cap space, 25 million left over I believe.

His starting salary would be at 8.12 million, but his last two years would be at 6.44 and 5.88 respectively (assuming 8% decreases).  Those final two years might be much easier to trade away than a guy who still has 14 million left on his contract.

Or better yet, why not reconstruct the deal into 35 million for 4.  We all probably agree 35 million is too much for Outlaw, but there is nothing we can do about THAT number right now.  35 over 4 though would give him a starting salary of 9.8 million, with his final two years being 8.4 and 7.7 million.

When you have a rich owner, it doesn't really matter how much you pay a player.. that's at the owner's discretion.  What DOES effect the team, is the DURATION.  If you have an contract that no one else wants, you really tie up your hands with trades and flexibility.  Considering we STILL have 25 million in cap space, it is not that much of a risk to "front load" his contract.  If something transpires during the season, I'm sure 25 million in cap space can get it done.