bubba9497 Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 Ravens, McAlister talk long-term deal Team to use franchise tag on cornerback if contract not agreed on by Feb. 24 By Jamison Hensley Sun Staff http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/football/bal-chris05,0,58728.story?coll=bal-sports-headlines A month away from the start of free agency, Ravens officials said cornerback Chris McAlister will not hit the open market. The Ravens are "heavy" in negotiations on a long-term contract with the Pro Bowl defender, but they plan to name him their franchise player again if no deal can be reached by Feb. 24, the NFL's deadline for assigning the tag. Since McAlister was the team's franchise player last year, he would receive a one-year deal worth $7.2 million (a 120 percent raise from last year's contract). The tag virtually locks him into returning since no team is expected to match the offer and give the Ravens two first-round draft picks as compensation. It also doesn't stop the Ravens from reaching a long-term deal at a later date. When asked if the Ravens are willing to franchise McAlister if no long-term agreement can be made, coach Brian Billick said, "We're prepared to do either. As they would, we'd prefer to get a [long-term] deal done. That's what we are trying to get done." McAlister's agent, Mitch Frankel, did not return phone calls. A day after the Ravens' 20-17 loss to the Tennessee Titans in the playoffs, McAlister seemed confident he would remain with the Ravens. It is believed that McAlister is seeking a signing bonus on a long-term deal between $16 million and $19 million. McAlister enjoyed a breakthrough season last year after bottoming out in Week 3, when he missed curfew and got benched. Over the final three months of the regular season, he went on to silence such top-notch receivers as Denver's Rod Smith, Jacksonville's Jimmy Smith, St. Louis' Torry Holt, Miami's Chris Chambers and San Francisco's Terrell Owens. He earned his first invitation to the Pro Bowl, where he is currently practicing. "I've been a Raven since they drafted me, and I'm going to retire a Raven," McAlister, the 10th overall pick of the 1999 draft, said last month. Meanwhile, the Ravens are looking to sign running back Jamal Lewis to a new contract. If a deal is reached, it probably would occur around training camp in August. The NFL's Offensive Player of the Year has two years left on his current contract and is scheduled to earn $2.4 million next season, which is not among the top 10 highest paid running backs in the league. Lewis ran for 2,066 yards last season, the second-highest total in NFL history. "We see Jamal just as we saw Jonathan [Ogden], Peter [boulware] and Ray Lewis," said general manager Ozzie Newsome, alluding to three Pro Bowl players the Ravens signed to new contracts over the years. "If there is an opportunity to extend his contract, we will." NOTES: The Ravens offered their director of player development position to O.J. Brigance Thursday. Brigance was a key special teams player on the Ravens' Super Bowl team. The job became open when Earnest Byner left to join the Washington Redskins as a running backs coach. Ravens officials said linebacker Ray Lewis is scheduled to have his shoulder examined when he returns from the Pro Bowl. The NFL's Defensive Player of the Year wore a harness on his right shoulder for the final month of the season. The team is currently talking with fullback Alan Ricard on a long-term extension. The Pro Bowl alternate is a restricted free agent this season. Offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh considers the addition of senior consultant Jim Fassel as a positive. Fassel was Cavanaugh's quarterbacks coach with the New York Giants in 1991. "Under the circumstances, this will probably work out better than most people think it will," Cavanaugh said. "Anytime you get an outsider's view of your system, someone who is familiar with the NFL and offense, I think it's worth doing. It's rare that you can get someone to come in like this as a consultant and have a good relationship with the coach and the coordinator." Newsome recently had hip replacement surgery. Remarkably, it's the first surgery of any kind for Newsome, who played tight end for the Cleveland Browns for 13 seasons. "Don't worry, I'll be able to run at the combine," he said jokingly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TC4 Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 I didn't think you could use the franchise tag on the same player 2 years in a row? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaFunky1 Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 Originally posted by TC4 I didn't think you could use the franchise tag on the same player 2 years in a row? Unless they changed the rule we did it with Shawn Gilbert. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tenaciousd Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 I'm with TC4 on this. I didn't know you could use the tag on the same player back to back. If you could do that, why wouldn't teams like Indy just franchise Manning every year? So, the price escalates every year, but so what...you're only bound to a one year contract in case of devistating injury. Why wouldn't the Rams just franchise Pace every year? The guy wants a $25 mil signing bonus. Just franchise him every year. Something's not right. I've never heard of a player being franchised two years in a row. I thought Gilbert, frustrated from getting tagged refused to play, or "retired or whatever. When he decided to come back to football the tag was still in place because he didn't play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCS Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 Well, I'm betting since the Ravens are in fact pondering tagging him, and nobody from the agent to the player have yelled and screamed, it's fair to say that the Ravens can in fact tag him again. Article even says they can. Even mentions why it's not a good idea not to do so on a regular business. Kinda. "Since McAlister was the team's franchise player last year, he would receive a one-year deal worth $7.2 million (a 120 percent raise from last year's contract). The tag virtually locks him into returning since no team is expected to match the offer and give the Ravens two first-round draft picks as compensation. It also doesn't stop the Ravens from reaching a long-term deal at a later date." Of course, one can always ask John Clayton. http://espn.go.com/nfl/columns/clayton_john/1514182.html Franchise tags: These are more restrictive. Teams offer players the average of the top five cap numbers at their position to restrict their movement. If a team signs a franchise player, they may have to give a team two first-round choices or work out a trade satisfactory to that team. One problem with the franchise tag is that teams like to keep them year in and year out. If a team re-signs their franchise player before July 15, they lose the ability to franchise future players for the length of the contract. What teams do is sign the player to the one-year offer and then renegotiate an extension after July 15. Teams who use the franchise tag have until the middle of March to reach an agreement to a long-term deal, and if they do, the team will get the ability to franchise a player again for the next season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tenaciousd Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 "Teams who use the franchise tag have until the middle of March to reach an agreement to a long-term deal, and if they do, the team will get the ability to franchise A player again for the next season. " But they didn't do that. They didn't reach any agreement. And that just says A player, not the same player (and of course you wouldn't do that if the player already had a long term contract). Oh, who knows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubba9497 Posted February 6, 2004 Author Share Posted February 6, 2004 yes you can franchise the same player over & over again. but you have to take the entire cap amount, instead breaking it up over the period of a long term deal. Plus the money is guaranteed I believe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RabidFan Posted February 6, 2004 Share Posted February 6, 2004 I think Seattle has franchised OT Walter Jones at least 2 years in a row now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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