National Football League: Denver Broncos reach deal with Elvis Dumervil
The Denver Broncos have given linebacker Elvis Dumervil a multi-year extension along with a hefty raise. The Broncos did not reveal the particulars of the deal to the press and their email, late Thursday night, said nothing more than that an extension had been given to Dumervil.
Sources within the league however have been giving unconfirmed reports regarding the details of the contract. Though at present it cannot be confirmed but the deal is expected to be worth around $60 million and signs Dumervil to the Broncos for at least the next five years. It is being said that $43 million of that is guaranteed against injuries. For the Broncos this contract would be the biggest deal since Champ Bailey signed a $63 million deal for 7 years in 2004.
The long awaited deal follows $3.168 million tender offer that the Broncos initially gave to Dumervil. His decision to sign the tender that Broncos gave him proved his goodwill and loyalty to the team he has been playing with since the beginning of his career. “The way he has handled this lengthy negotiation this offseason is a great example of the type of player and person we want on our team,” the Broncos Coach, Josh McDaniels said in a statement reciprocating Dumervil’s commitment to the Broncos.
Since the tender offer was signed, he went off to the team’s offseason camp. His agent Gary Wichard got into countless meetings and discussions to get Dumervil an extension. Dumervil’s patience paid off and now he finds himself among some of the most highly paid defenseman in the league and rightly so. Dumervil is one of the most impressive players in the NFL and leads all NFL defenseman with 17 sacks to his credit. His 43 career sacks rank him fourth in all of NFL.
Dumervil was a fourth round pick in 2006, something that he has strong feelings for. He said that before he was picked 126th by the Broncos, a lot of other teams passed on him. He now wants to show those teams how wrong their decisions were and what a talented player they have missed out on. The deal is an opportunity for Dumervil to make that point anew. “Now I want to prove to other teams that the Broncos were right in wanting to reward me by extending me,” he said.
The Broncos General Manager, Brian Xanders, was as pleased with having Dumervil, as Dumervil was pleased to be with the Broncos. Brian said that Dumervil had proved himself to be among the NFL’s premier pass rushers. He said that the team was excited at having him as an integral part of their defence for the years to come adding that Dumervil would be an important part of the foundation they are building their team on.
The paycheque he will be getting reflects those sentiments. $60 million is distinguishing even in the NFL but his $43 million guaranteed money puts him over players like Chicago’s Julius Peppers with $42 million guaranteed and Raven’s Terrell Suggs’ $38 million guaranteed. Let us not forget that that Suggs is the highest paid linebacker in NFL history. Dumervil’s $60 million would be right up there with Suggs’ $63 million.
“Money is not everything, and that's the way I was brought up,” Dumervil said after the announcement was made. He said that he was taught that a person gets rewarded according to the effort they put in. “As long as you conduct yourself as such, good things will happen for you,” he said.
Dumervil expressed relief that with the contract signed he would not have to worry about being able to take care of his family but what really drove his performance was the love of the game. He said that he will try again this season to make double-digit sacks.
That will not be as easy this year though. The blockbuster extension makes him a marked man on the field and the opposing team will pay special attention to Dumervil. Knowing Dumervil, he is probably relieved this season will be a greater challenge than last year making it a better opportunity to prove himself again.
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