Raglan Matt, I too don't quite understand how Buddy and Tippett fit under their salary cap. I understand that Buddy is on a 10 year contract with payments getting bigger over time. So maybe there is room for him now. But I'm betting that if for some reason his career were to end next year, that the AFL would magically allow any payments Sydney was contractually obliged to make to him to be outside the salary cap.
I also imagine Sydney's thinking to be, "The salary cap is going to keep growing pretty quickly, so what looks like a ridiculous deal now will be fine". And again, if they get that equation wrong, watch the AFL bail them out.
If Freo made that sort of audacious deal and it fell apart, we'd be on our own.