Darrelle Revis Holding Out on Training Camp
The ongoing offseason contract dispute between the New York Jets and cornerback (CB) Darrelle Revis has reared its ugly head and reached one of the Jets worst fears.
After several offers were made to Revis, he didn’t take what was offered and he has not showed at training camp. It is unknown when or if Revis will report.
Revis’ agent has stated that Revis won’t show up until he receives a new contract and that may take some time based on the tenor of the negotiations.
General manager Mike Tannenbaum, who received his own contract extension last week, revealed that he made Revis two substantial offers last week, both of which Revis refused. One was a long-term offer that would have made Revis a “Jet for life,” while the other was a short-term fix to his contract. Revis is scheduled to make $1 million this year in the fourth year of his rookie contract that goes through six years.
"Darrelle's actions speak volumes about the offers." Revis’ agent Neil Schwartz said.
Revis has been saying that he wants to be the league’s highest paid cornerback, an honour that currently belongs to Nnamdi Asomugha of the Oakland Raiders, who received a three-year extension worth $45.3 million last offseason.
The decision to hold out comes with a price for Revis. Each day he misses training camp, he will pay a fine of over $16,000 a day and the Jets could waive future guarantees in his contract. He is set to make $20 million in 2011 and 2012, and now that money may not be guaranteed with him violating his current contract.
Revis is risking a lot by not showing up to training camp, which gives you a hint on how frustrated he is. Reports have indicated he was offered $5.3 million for the coming season, which he refused.
Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson was in a similar position a few months ago but reached a compromise with his team. His deal was given a short-term solution to get him back on the field as the $2.5 million he was scheduled to make in future years was moved up to this year. While it was enough to get him on the field for now, the Titans will be in the same position next year. At least he settled for a lot less than what he wanted, while Revis is not budging.
Coach Rex Ryan is extremely disappointed, claiming Revis is the best cornerback he has ever coached. “I thought he'd be signed by now, and we wouldn’t have to discuss this," said Ryan. Ryan in his brash demeanour still maintained that the Jets still have the league’s best defence without Revis, which he said was no insult to the cornerback.
Tannenbaum has admitted himself that Revis has outperformed his contract so far and deserves compensation.
"We want to reward him, but we have a fundamental disagreement on total compensation. The lines of communication are open and we remain committed to finding a solution that makes sense for him and makes sense for us," Tannenbaum said. "The two things that we've all agreed upon is that Darrelle has outplayed his contract and it needed to be addressed, and he has three years to go on his contract."
Both Ryan and Tannenbaum received big contract extensions, which may have ticked off Revis even further.
Many owners have not given out big contracts due to the uncertainty of the labor situation in the league, but Revis is adamant about receiving his big payday.
Many have to wonder what the Jets will do now if Revis refuses to show up. If he doesn’t report to camp by August 10th, then this season will not be counted as a credited season to him. The Jets may wait him out to see if he gives in, but without Revis, the Jets may lose the foundation of their defence. Things aren’t starting off so good in a season with expectations so high.
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