Sergio Kindle signs with Baltimore Ravens
Sergio Kindle, the final unsigned rookie of the 2010 NFL draft class, has come to a one-year contract agreement with the Baltimore Ravens.
Kindle did not have a deal in place with the Ravens after he sustained a serious injury in late July. The highly touted rookie linebacker was visiting a home he was unfamiliar with and
fell down two flights of stairs. The fall resulted in a fractured skull.
Earlier in the summer, Kindle was very hopeful that he would return to play this season. He visited Baltimore in mid-September and underwent a battery of neurological tests at Sinai Hospital
and seemed upbeat about his prospects after the six hours of tests concluded.
Less than a week ago, the Ravens received Kindle’s test results and head coach John Harbaugh said, “...the chances of him playing this year are very slim.”
The team was under no obligation to sign Kindle while he was out with his injury. If the Ravens left him unsigned until the 2011 draft he would be able to re-enter the draft and be available
to any NFL team.
By signing Kindle to a one-year deal, the team will likely hold exclusive rights to Kindle for the first four years of his NFL career.
Kindle is expected in Baltimore on Friday to sign the contract. Once the deal is complete, Kindle will be placed on the non-football injury list. That designation to the non-football injury
list will make Kindle ineligible to play during the current season.
Once Kindle is under contract, he will be able to rehabilitate at the Ravens facility, interact with coaches, watch team practices and attend team meetings. In short, he will become a
member of the Ravens team.
No terms were given for the contract, but it is believed to be for the standard rookie salary of $320,000.
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