Suh or “$uh?”

That was the question angry fans asked for weeks as the Detroit Lions tried to make a deal with Pro Bowl-level defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh before he became a free agent.

As the free agency deadline loomed, fans began to fear we would lose one of our favorite players. That fear was soon replaced with anger when Suh signed with the Miami Dolphins, despite the Lions virtually matching their offer. Fans were outraged.

But the truth is, I’m not. Suh did what’s good for himself and didn’t hurt anyone in the process. I’m not going to ask, “Where’s the loyalty?” Nor will I question if it’s all about the money.

It cracks me up that people expected Suh to stay loyal to Detroit merely because he has been with them his entire career. Since when does the NFL contain an ounce of loyalty? I’ve never been aware of a player who was willing to stay on his team for a few million dollars less. It’ll never happen, and there’s a reason for that.

The NFL is a cutthroat league. The minute it looks like a team can’t get anything more out of a player, he’s gone. Look at Peyton Manning. Once the Indianapolis Colts thought his ability was dried up, they cut him.

What does this have to do with Suh and the Lions?

According to The Detroit Free Press, both the Lions and Dolphins offered Suh a $114 million six-year contract. But he decided to go to Miami. Why?

The answer is simple: guaranteed money. Just like it suggests, guaranteed money is how much money one is promised in a contract. And while the Lions were offering $58 million guaranteed, the Dolphins offered $60 million.

Not to mention taxes. Michigan has a 4.25% income tax, while Florida doesn’t even have one. That’s another $4.8 million that Suh will be banking by choosing Miami.

There’s no crystal ball telling him how much longer he’ll be playing for. If he knew he would still be playing six years from now, maybe he would have stayed, but that’s not inevitable. If he ends up with some career-ending injury, that $7 million could make a difference.

And let’s not forget, even if one disagrees with Suh’s actions, he can’t take all of the blame. The Lions are at fault, too.

Look at what the Lions pay Matt Stafford. According to www.overthecap.com, he’s been paid an average of around $17.5 million a year, with $41.5 million guaranteed. That’s the ninth highest quarterback contract in the NFL. Now, I love Stafford, but he was guaranteed $8.5 million more in his contract than Tom Brady. Yep, that’s right. Matt Stafford makes more than Tom Brady.

Stafford alone takes up 12% of the Lions’ salary cap. Maybe if they’d had more sense when signing Stafford, they’d be able to afford Suh now.

But in the end, losing Suh won’t hurt too much. The Lions just signed five-time Pro Bowler Haloti Ngata to replace him, and if they manage to keep Nick Fairley and C.J. Mosely, we’ll all be just fine.