bperk knows her football...
Branch has a contract, play it out, then go where you want to go, shut up, report, and play. Why do we never see players offering to give money back when they underperform, I don't remember anyone reporting that the Patriots held a gun to his head, or his agents head, and forcing them to sign. The Pats may renegotiate contracts, but that is their perogative, they can also NOT renegotiate. Perhaps Mr. Branch should talk to his union about strengthening players rights, not attempt to break a contract negotiated in good faith. Geez, they are paying the guy over a MILLION dollars this year, poor guy, how will he ever get by?
Since no one knows the specifics of the Patriots offer, they could be lowballing him According to the Providence Journal, they're letting Branch seek a deal because they think his agent has convinced him he's worth far more than the market can bear. If he can't find a team willing to sign him to "Reggie Wayne money", maybe he comes back to Earth. There's no risk for the Pats and a very slight chance someone is willing to sign Branch and has talent worth taking in trade.
bperk, I agree with you that the Patriots are "much better at it", but I disagree on one detail. I seem to remember that Tom Brady's contract, as good as it is, was criticized by some as being below that of a franchise quarterback. Brady was willing to forego some money in order to keep a team around him. The fact that football is played by 11 men working together seems to escape far too many players. Richard Seymour did indeed hold out, and he was rewarded for it. The difference between him and Branch is that Seymour is one of the top 3 in the league at his position. Furthermore, he negotiated quietly and in good faith. There was none of the "I'm holding out until you pay me more than you think I'm worth" posturing seen in l'affaire Branch.
The Patriots should have got this deal done last year. Maybe they thought they were getting a good deal paying Branch the second round minimum, but that kind of thing ends up costing you more on the back end. Just because they say they are offering him a fair deal doesn't mean it is so. I have no idea what Branch and his agent think he should make, but I think the "Reggie Wayne money" argument and they "right to seek a trade" nonsense are just ploys by the Patriots. I've heard talk that they want a first round pick in return, so I doubt a trade is workable. Do Belichick & co. really want to play this season with some TEs, Reche Caldwell, and Chad Jackson? I doubt it. And, Tom Brady signed a cap friendly contract, but it is still a lot of money. He makes in the top three at his position. I've heard talk that he could have squeezed more out of the Patriots, but I don't know. Richard Seymour's holdout had less drama because the Patriots caved much sooner.
I have no idea what Branch and his agent think he should make, but I think the "Reggie Wayne money" argument and they "right to seek a trade" nonsense are just ploys by the Patriots. Not sure what you mean. The seek a trade thing is most certainly a ploy. The Reggie Wayne money part comes from Branch and his agent. Again, the Projo (and the soon-to-depart/will-be-missed Tom Curran) has been a good source of info on this.
I keep hearing this Reggie Wayne money thing thrown around, but I haven't heard Branch or his agent say that is what they are expecting. They have made few public comments, and I doubt they would draw a line in the sand like that. Very few teams would think that Reggie Wayne was even worth the money that he got.
In the link above, that phrase is provided by a Pats beat writer in quotation marks. I don't know what more to tell you.
That's not a real quote, yerfatma. It's just slang. That's a phrase that people are using these days to describe the type of money that Reggie Wayne received. They used the same phrase during the Randle El contract discussions.
Doesn't seem like that's accurate. There's a question here: "[Deion] talked about getting Reggie Wayne money" That suggests it's a direct quotation. I realize you can't prove a negative, but from what I've seen it's a direct reference to something the player said.
There are some articles that says he was asking for Reggie Wayne money, but none of the statements seem to be coming from Branch or his agent and none of them have anything in quotes except the "Reggie Wayne money" part. If those are supposed to be a quote of what one of them said, they are pretty poor without any context whatsoever. I read this question and answer (bugmenot) with a Reiss from the Boston Globe and he says it is his impression that Branch is asking for this money. Maybe he asked for it, but I still think it is quite possible that the Patriots said he is asking for Reggie Wayne money. Branch's only public statements have been of the "I think we can work things out" variety.
