Diner Morning News: Contract Disputes

FROM MICHAEL LOMBARDI:

05 May 2009

QUOTE:  "The most difficult thing for individuals to do when they become part of a team is to sacrifice; it is much easier to be selfish." -- Coach Pat Riley

FROM KENT SOMERS OF THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC... Mike Jurecki of XTRA-910 reported (Darnell) Dockett’s latest request, and a source close to the situation confirmed it. Dockett, who made the Pro Bowl as an alternate after the 2007 season, signed a five-year, $22-million contract extension with team in October of 2006. He received $7 million in the initial months of the contract and is due to make $3.5 million this year with salaries gradually increasing to $4 million in 2011, the final year of the contract. The Cardinals have refused to renegotiate Dockett’s contract because of the number of years remaining on the deal.  Boldin also wants a new contract, and both players sat out the recent mini-camp, claiming they had hamstring injuries.  Boldin has two years left on a contract that he signed in 2005, two years into his career.  He received $10 million in bonuses at that time and is due to make $2.75 million this year.

When he was with the Los Angeles Lakers, Pat Riley, president of the Miami Heat, developed a list of symptoms that he called the “Disease of Me.” Every time I read about what’s going on in Arizona, I can’t help but think of Riley.  Here is his list:

SIX DANGER SIGNALS OF THE DISEASE OF ME:

1. CHRONIC FEELINGS OF UNDER-APPRECIATION – FOCUS ON ONESELF.
2. PARANOIA OVER BEING CHEATED OUT OF ONE’S RIGHTFUL SHARE.
3. LEADERSHIP VACUUM RESULTING FROM FORMATION OF CLIQUES AND RIVALRIES.
4. FEELINGS OF FRUSTRATION EVEN WHEN THE TEAM PERFORMS SUCCESSFULLY.
5. PERSONAL EFFORT MUSTERED SOLELY TO OUTSHINE ONE’S TEAMMATE.
6. RESENTMENT OF THE COMPETENCE OF ANOTHER – REFUSE TO ADMIT HIS CONTRIBUTION.

I feel badly for head coach Ken Whisenhunt as he enters the 2009 season facing a difficult situation -- all the result of winning. His team is spinning out of control as everyone wants more money, more fame and more entitlement. His offseason moves of changing the coaching staff and not keeping the status quo were great. They were “hard” decisions to make after winning to show the players that the leader is not afraid to continue the search for excellence.  He’s been in this situation before after winning the Super Bowl with the Steelers. They struggled and went 8-8 in what was Bill Cowher’s final year as coach. Those lessons learned will benefit Whisenhunt greatly as he proceeds in 2009.  However, some obstacles remain out of his control. 

Our man Matt Bowen (a former player who knows a thing or two about the locker room) did a wonderful job laying out the landscape of the Anquan Boldin situation to explain that no one wants to enter into the $9-million-a-year market. So after being on the market and involved in nearly every trade scenario possible, Boldin remains an unhappy camper who doesn’t know what his next move will be, except to sulk. Boldin is frustrated and has outplayed his contract, but the market won’t yield $9 million a year and he must re-evaluate his position. 

Today, we wake up and find Darnell Dockett is also unhappy with his deal. Is there a pattern here? The two teams that seem to place an importance on doing deals early, the Eagles and the Cards, are both having trouble with their locker rooms now. Dockett signed a long-term contract and now he’s unhappy, as he and agent Drew Rosenhaus have watched the landscape of the defensive tackle market shift dramatically. Dockett did play a huge role for the Cards, but what makes him think he’s going to force a trade? We know this is Rosenhaus’ pattern, to demand a trade when a player is unhappy with his contract. But by saying they would explore a trade for Boldin, the Cardinals’ front office set a bad precedent for all other players in the locker room.  They opened the trade door, and Rosenhaus will claim he forced it open.  So is anyone surprised with this new demand? It’s now May in the NFL, and this is the time for everyone to complain about their deal. This is usually the time for the wide receiver formerly known as Chad Johnson to complain and dominate the contract news in the NFL. 

The Cards have never won before, so knowing how to deal with success can be as hard as learning how to avoid losing. The Cards have a huge problem in their locker room, in large part because of the absence of leadership from the players. As great as Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald are as players, they are not going to dominate the locker room -- which is not to imply a weakness on their part but is more about their personality. Based on my experience, I’m sure they’re viewed by other players like this: “They got their money, now I need my money.” 

How does this end?  We all know the curse of the Super Bowl loser -- and I know it firsthand, having dealt with a similar situation in Oakland in 2002. It’s the hardest situation in all of sports to handle for the coach and the front office. After the loss, we had some players who left for more money with other teams, some who were unhappy with their deals and some who didn’t handle success well and lost their appetite for hard work. 

From that learning experience in ‘02, I would say the best solution for the Cardinals is to concentrate on the players in camp and under contract. Apply the “Law of Threes” from this day forward (I’ve written previously that every organization has three groups of people -- one that will do whatever is asked all the time, a second that is always undecided what to do and a third that will never be happy.  The leader tries to make group three happy, but all that does is make all the people in group two move to group three.  So the leader must focus on group one. ). Pay no attention to the unhappy players and focus on the willing players. Do everything possible to ensure that everyone associated with the team maintains an appropriate level of focus. The Cards must take a positive, firm approach to guarantee individual compliance and never lose sight of the TEAM. 

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