You might be getting confused with the way one person bids in our league, stating the total value. It is not necessary to do so.
4 years, $2m
This is good enough.
It doesn't have to be:
4 years, $2m = $8m total
Just the number of years and the "per year" amount is fine. The "per year" amount will always be the winner.
ie. 1 year at $4m will beat 4 years at $3.5m
To win D.Rose you could just make it 3 or 4 years at $2.1m per year. More years at the same price wins out.
Or increase the dollar amount to $2.3m per year