Talks push on, but there’s no end in sight. Andrew Brandt
I think we can chill on the hysteria about Michael Crabtree holding out the entire season and forgoing his chance to play with the 49ers. We at the National Football Post are not going to be pulling out the scouting reports on Crabtree that were done for the 2009 NFL Draft and recycle them for the 2010 draft. Despite reports to the contrary, rumors of Crabtree spending the season watching, rather than playing in, the NFL are greatly exaggerated.
APMichael Crabtree
The situation appears to be one in which “herd” has entered the public debate. Having dealt with professional football players for 20 years from both the agent side and the team side, I have always worried about the herd – also known as the “whisper crew,” “posse,” “enable table” and other names – that surrounds players. The herd can include, although is not limited to parents, friends, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, advisers, spiritual advisers, high school coaches, college coaches, AAU coaches, girlfriends, wives, girlfriends of wives, neighbors, godparents, surrogate parents, life coaches, etc. It’s one thing for an agent and/or a team to deal with a player; it’s quite another to deal with the herd.
Now a member of the Crabtree crew has surfaced in a very public way. When asked about the contract negotiations between Crabtree and the 49ers, a fellow named David Wells – not the former pitcher, although just as outspoken – somehow had a forum with ESPN to give his take on the possibility of Crabtree holding out the entire season:
“We are prepared to do it,” Wells was quoted as saying. “Michael just wants fair market value. They took him with the 10th pick and you have Darrius Heyward-Bey getting $38 million? Michael was one of the best players in the draft and he just wants to be paid like one of the best players.”
Mr. Wells, consider the clock ticking on your 15 minutes of fame. Wells appears to be the epitome of the whisper crew/herd I’ve been speaking about: He’s Crabtree’s cousin (we think) and (self-proclaimed) adviser. Sure he is. Too bad Crabtree isn’t Wells’ self-proclaimed advisee.
My first thought after reading this was that Eugene Parker, Crabtree’s agent, must have had steam coming out of his ears. Parker, who is actively engaged in negotiations with the 49ers, is as professional an agent as there is in the business. Having done a dozen deals with him over the years, including the Jason Peters deal this year, there is no agent who serves his clients as well as Eugene in understanding the sensitive process of negotiating of player contracts. Parker would never say anything to the media that was the least bit inflammatory, and certainly not in the midst of negotiations. Now he has to deal with damage control with the media, the 49ers and the Crabtree herd to put the negotiations back on track.
The 49ers have wisely avoided comment. There is nothing to be gained by responding to a member of Crabtree’s crew, as there may be more of them who may also want a forum in the future.
APB.J. Raji
None of this is to say the negotiations on this contract will end any time soon. Parker is going to push the envelope on this deal to try to nudge as close as possible to Heyward-Bey, and it appears that Crabtree has no problem missing training camp. Indeed, with these negotiations quickly gaining a reputation in the industry as producing a contract that will be a strong deal for the player, the picks surrounding this one – B.J. Raji with the Packers and Aaron Maybin with the Bills among them – are clearly waiting to see the “Crabtree market” before closing their deals (Maybin’s agent has told people this strategy). They may be waiting a while, and it will be up to the players to determine how long is too long.
How long with this one go? The answer will not be in the next day or so, nor will it be the entire season, as the “adviser” suggests. My best guess is that Crabtree reports for labor on Labor Day. Stay tuned.
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Wow....holy #@%*. Almost another month from now?
I thought it would be the Niners waiting for the significant others to sign (#'s 8, 9, & 11 say to determine the appropriate $$$) not them waiting on Crabtree.
Somewhat of a mess IMO with this group of high 1st RD'ers headed towards missing the entire TC's. Sorry but I still think for a Rookie who still hasn't done anything in the NFL he's being way too GREEDY. Take your appropriate 10 slot money making sure you tell your agent your #1 concern is to GET IN CAMP ON TIME.
Our Joe Staley did that & our star LB Willis took his appropriated money for the slot he was drafted in. Then AFTER THEY PROVED THEMSELVES TO THE LEAGUE they hit their mega millions payday.
I'm learning as we go along. I heard some news from a fellow blogger at Matt Maiocco's sight of something to the effect that the the owners agreed that the player's future salary will be based on a 25% max ceiling raise every year based on the slot he was drafted in. So it's to the players best interest to get as much as he can now which affects how much more max he can make in his later contract. (I dunno...can't a team pay as much as they want to keep a player? I hope I interpreted what this blogger was saying correctly.)
Still too greedy IMO to miss camp & not be with your teammates because no matter what you're loaded & RICH anyways. It depends on the person's values.
It would sure be nice if all the picks were just slotted. The 1st pick receives X dollars and all subsequent picks get some smaller amount. I wonder how much money/time could be saved during this whole process. At least the rookie wouldn't have to share his money with an agent then.
While I certainly don't begrudge a player getting fair value I also can't help but feel that a team is entitled to a fair return. The chance that Crabtree can provide any meaningful contribution as a rookie is getting slimmer and slimmer...so if i'm the niners I put the hammer down. IF they have in fact put a fair offer on the table then I'd give Crabtree 48 hours to accept it....then start to roll back the offer 1 "slot" per 24 hours....if he doesn't like it then he can sit and see what happens next year.
I'm a vindictive a-hole. if i was on the 49ers side I'd tell him that if they didn't sign this week we wouldn't sign him period because he'd be worthless to us. let's see how well he is really prepared to sit out the season.
My knee-jerk reaction is to tell Parker and Crabtree to bite it and let them sit, then trade the rights for a late first or early second round pick in 2010 and let them negotiate for THAT slot.
My (slightly) more responsible self sez look, we're going to have this guy for 5 years or so, so whatever happens now is just early days and in the grand scheme of things (years 2,3,4 etc.) he MAY just pan out. We'll just have to wait and see.
I have some faith in McCloughan and Marathe to act professionally and pull this one out, albeit with some sore feelings for a little while on both sides. Then I expect Crabtree to perform.
Patience is about my only virtue these days.
If I was the 49's I would hold to my guns. They have almost all the leverage. What else is Crabtree going to do to make seven figures. It doesn't matter if he thinks he is one of the best players in the draft, he was picked 10th and he will paid 10th pick money. He would be stupid to sit out because no way he is picked that high next year and the money he would lose this year would be all but impossible to make up.
On another note the NFL needs to get these rookie deals under control.
Andrew,
Would you review your take on the Rookie salary structure for those of us who are coming in late to this discussion?
Personally, the ludicrous amount of money paid to NFL rookies whose mental abilities are not even close to being accurately tested yet is poor business practice. I realize that the draft is a tool for teams, but in real life what top of the class Harvard Law student immediately makes more than the managing partner of the firm? I realize they do get huge signing bonuses and much more favorable terms of service, but none of them even approach making what a junior partner does right off the bat.
Also, I realize that the NFL can be a short term prospect for players in the draft and they need to get all they can. However, they also need to manage what they get better. It is a privilege to have an opportunity to prove they belong in the NFL. And, once they are proven, they should get open market dollars from their team or someone else who can play them what they are worth. I hate to see teams struggle because they make a huge investment in a top 10 Draft pick that is mentally not tough enough to play in the NFL or gets injured. They did their due diligence and still have to pay for years on the salary cap for a weak player that can no longer help them win.
I just struggle with the current system being so terribly unbalanced against veterans who are not Media superstars. It takes 11 players every play to make it work, yet some players get paid 30 times the salary of the player next to them (Peyton Manning taking snaps from Steve Justice comes to mind last year). I think the most egregious error of the NFLPA is allowing the Superstars to make mega bucks while severely under representing the majority of their union. I have major issues with allowing the stars to get paid huge in order to drive up other players salaries instead of getting real value equivalent contracts for all their players.
We all love the superstars, but they do not do what they do with out major help from the role players around them. Someone has to do the selfless work, and I hate the idea that they are just dime a dozen guys doing it. If that were true, then teams would not be so maddeningly inconsistent from game to game and year to year. That's just my .02 cents.
I respectfully disagree with people who say the 49ers should play hardball. Everyone always wants a team to stick it to the rookie holding out, except that team's fans. Especially if its fans of team that needs all the help it can get.
Maybe New England could afford putting the screws to a holdout, but not a bad team like the 49ers.
Good points, Andrew. His cousin's threats are terrible negotiating strategy. Ultimatums have a place in stalled negotiations, but only if they are credible. This one isn't, but it makes the team look like weenies if they now give him an above-slot deal.
The Niners need to remember that they are not just negotiating this one deal. If they fold to this ridiculous "I'm better than my draft slot" ploy, they can expect their top pick to pull the same crap year after year.
Andrew,
Stop being a flack for the poor, abused rook and the embattled NFL. Don't be a Peter King. Be a man.
The only thing young Master Michael Crabtree deserves are a couple of perpetually broken legs. Crabtree is little more than an ingrate, a prima donna, a punk, and a selfish little mama's boy. May he suffer the rest of his miserable life.
Do like the NHL...impose a Rookie Cap...then there is a standard salary regardless of the fanfare...John Tavares and Steve Stamkos and Patty Kane and the rest make under $1 million...then they are hungery to go out and show why they deserve Crosby money....not a bunch of spoiled morons who sit out due to draft status...go flip burgers Crabtree...see how much McDonald's pays you!! Jack Ass!
mr.Brant why do you not think crabtree will sign in my opinion he will do just about anything 2 get more money and if he has 2 sit out a season and play in another league until the draft.....
Let him sit. We don't need him. As Coach Sing says: DONT TELL ME...SHOW ME.
Crabtree isn't showing us ANYthing.
THIS IS RIDICULOUS.....why of course you deserve more money Michael Crabtree...let's see you have played how many professional games?....oh yeah....ZERO!!!! I can't believe these rookie athletes have this kind of leverage. I don't care how good you are in college, it doesn't mean you will do the same in the pros and even if they do they should see it as a privilege to get to live out their dream and play professional sports. These athletes think they are some kind of gods and the world should be given to them on a silver platter. Go ahead and sit out Crabtree because no one is going to care and if the 49ers have any sense they shouldn't either... move on and find someone who appreciates the game for what it is. In the meantime since I am fresh out of college I am going to hold out on every job offer until I get paid what Bill Gates makes ... because I to deserve all that money for never having proved myself...
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Aug 10, 2009
01:53 PM
Andrew, not that it's going to happen, but I've seen people talking about a trade of Crabtee's rights. With the rookie contract rules and rookie cap rules and the amount of money associated with the #10 overall pick, is this even possible? Is there any way to trade a rookie this late in the process when most teams have already spent up to their rookie cap (as you noted in an earlier article)?