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Tyrone McKenzie, a third-round pick by the Patriots, suffered a torn ACL in mini-camp last week. And Stanley Arnoux, a fourth-round pick by the Saints, tore his Achilles tendon, also in minicamp. In theory, if the Patriots and Saints were so inclined, they could try to negotiate differently when it comes to hammering out contracts for both players prior to training camp. Andrew Brandt

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Some thoughts on a couple of recent injuries that have flown below the Brett Favre radar this week.…

Tyrone McKenzie, a third-round pick by the Patriots, suffered a torn ACL in mini-camp last week. And Stanley Arnoux, a fourth-round pick by the Saints, tore his Achilles tendon, also in minicamp. In theory, if the Patriots and Saints were so inclined, they could try to negotiate differently when it comes to hammering out contracts for both players prior to training camp. However, the union has been vigilant in requiring agents to obtain injury-protection forms before players participate in minicamps or any other offseason activities that require some activity. The forms state that teams will negotiate with players as if no such injury occurred. Chances are extremely high that McKenzie and Arnoux signed such forms prior to camp.

The verbiage of these forms, although appearing to be standard, has now become a negotiation in itself, especially for first-round picks. Agents want language reflecting an increase off last year’s picks, a locked-in number based on this year’s picks, or any other sort of protection. Teams do not want to be boxed in by contracts from other teams and would like to leave it as broad as possible. The premise is the same: The player will not be disadvantaged at the negotiating table by participating and becoming injured in mini-camps and offseason workouts.

At the Packers, I would always point to the ultimate case of fairness in this regard. The team’s first-round pick of the 1994 NFL Draft was Aaron Taylor, a player who suffered a season-ending injury in his first mini-camp. Not only did the Packers treat him as if the injury never occurred, he received a four-year deal (preferable to the five-year deals that first-rounders usually sign), which allowed him to enter free agency a year earlier than almost all first-round players. With this precedent of extreme fairness, I never met any resistance at the Packers about the wording of our injury-protection forms.

The forms are actually good liability mechanisms for the teams as well. For instance, in the event a player suffered a severe injury in mini-camp or workouts – such as something truly career-ending or even life-threatening – the team would only be liable for the amount described in the forms, pegged at the place where the player was drafted. The limited liability aspect of these forms would protect the team from catastrophic events.

McKenzie will be paid a contract reflecting the 97th player taken in the 2009 Draft (he was also the first compensatory selection in the draft).  In the 2008 Draft, that player – Chad Rinehart, a tackle for the Redskins – received a signing bonus of $611, 350.  Arnoux will be paid a contract reflecting the 118th player taken in the 2009 Draft.  In the 2008 Draft, that player – Quintin Demps, a safety for the Eagles – received a signing bonus of $455,000. McKenzie and Arnoux will be looking at signing bonuses reflecting those amounts, plus a modest increase. 

The area where these players will lose income is in the $95,000 in the “split” portion of their contracts. The minimum active salary for first-year players is $310,000, but both will likely have split salaries in their deals, a lesser amount of $215,000 due to their eventual placement on injured reserve. The Patriots’ third-round pick last year, quarterback Kevin O’Connell, received a split in his first year, although other third-round picks did not. Fourth-round picks typically have splits.

Tough break for McKenzie and Arnoux from a physical and team point of view – but not so tough financially due to the equity provided by the injury-protection forms.

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ScottR.
May 12, 2009
11:49 AM

A team that tried to weasle out of paying a player injured in such a situtation would be "penny wise, pound foolish." No rookie would EVER attend that team's mini-camp again.

dan
May 12, 2009
12:17 PM

Interesting. Thanks.

NFPfan
May 12, 2009
01:05 PM

Tough break for McKenzie. He had to transfer to a few schools so he could work full time nights and help out his Mom. Hope he comes back stronger than ever, and can at least get another shot.

JScott
May 12, 2009
01:35 PM

can i be 'that guy' for just a second, ABrandt? "extreme fairness" is a nice way of positoning the 4yr deal for a 1st rounder, but didn't that also lessen the guranteed portion, the bonus money, of Taylor's contract? and since he'd lose 1 season to the injury + 1 in recovery, isn't limiting the guaranteed portion of the deal more desirous with that kind of uncertainty?

Jayme
May 12, 2009
02:05 PM

While I understand where this is coming from, shouldn't the onus be on the players to have an insurance policy in case they get injured in minicamp? I'm not sure at all how insurance works with NFL injuries, but I would assume something could be done along the lines of McGahee's $2.5 million policy for the Fiesta Bowl in college. How do these agreements really vary from insurance?

Mark
May 12, 2009
08:29 PM

Jayme

I would think that insurance would be a significant cost to the player. In many cases (and McKenzie seems to be a prime example), these players would have no means to pay the premiums on a multi-million dollar insurance policy until they sign their first NFL contract. And if they have already signed their contract, they wouldn't need the insurance.

In my view, players should not be penalized financially by being forced to pay an insurance premium in order to attend mini-camps. If the team wants them there, the team needs to shoulder the risk. And Andrew's article demonstrates that teams have generally agreed with that position.

Jerry in Texas
May 12, 2009
09:49 PM

What always ticked me off about Taylor was the Packers treated him with fairness and respect when he was injured. In return, once Taylor turned FA, he bolted. No, I don't believe in player loyalty in the NFL, generally. But in this case, I believe some sense of loyalty had been earned.

10thcavalry
May 12, 2009
10:00 PM

I remember that Aaron Taylor thing also. Was impressed by how the Packers dealt with him at that time. Yeah as a fan seemed like he didn't rememer it at FA time, but the world works that way. The Packers did the right thing. He turned out to be a pretty good producer for him. He just didn't learn anything about doing the right thing. Recall he was a Domer. They are pretty self-centered.

Mr.Murder
May 12, 2009
11:26 PM

His being offered an early trip to free agency by the Packers was hint enough and the deal was still fair by any competitive measure.

It's a pay to play world in the NFL. Good luck in signing.


Some guys come in hurt or plan faking an injury to take that IR amount anyways if they fear visits by the Turk. The IR can certainly help teams get ahead of the cap to an extent to some extent as well for players in some pay scale ranges.


Somewhere there's a kid with a slide rule and Einstein hair spouting algorithmns while he weezes and tries to keep office pranksters from playing waste basket free throws with his chest as a backboard, aiming three pointers at his pocket protector.

Then Mr.Snyder walks in and wraps an arm around him and has his favorite brain find a new way to pay for this year's superstar signing....

everyone else goes back to work on getting the PR to get ahead of this next big deal!

Miguel
May 13, 2009
01:50 AM

Nitpick - I thought that Andre Caldwell was the 97th overall pick in the 2008 draft.

Sirscorps
May 13, 2009
01:08 PM

I thought Aaron injured his knee in a playoff game too & that was why GB didn't keep him once he was a FA. His knee/knees were shot. I remember him being hauled off the field and he was trying to fight back tears as he was leaving the field. I'm not positive what game it was but i'm thinking it was SF at GB (mud game). After GB, he signed w/SD and played a few years before he had to retire.

Jayme
May 13, 2009
02:08 PM

Mark - they have agents. And why should the team be penalized if the player gets hurt? He's no longer the player that they drafted. McGahee and others were smart enough to take these out in college, so you would assume that the terms aren't completely unreasonable. Also, consider how many injuries occur between the draft and contracts and, even though the payout may be very large, the risk isn't.

Another question I have, though, is what happens with off the field injuries? If a player falls down the stairs and breaks a leg, does the team still have to give him the same contract?

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