Every year, it seems as if there is at least one star in the NFL holding out for a contract he thinks he deserves. Last year it was Darrelle Revis, a player who demanded big bucks right up until the end of negotiations. He later tore his ACL after playing only one full game of the 2012 season. Now he’s on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Maurice Jones-Drew also gave the NFL Network something to talk about in late July and early August with his puzzling demands from the Jacksonville Jaguars.
This year, however, Alabama’s own Dee Milliner and Chance Warmack might have been the highest-profile holdouts.
Without some perceived prima donna sitting on his hands until his agent breaks the big deal for the big bucks, training camps would be without their signature drama. That’s just what 2013 has brought, however.
Before the season, a few high-profile players were “under-the-radar” for a possible holdout, as rumblings might have been picked up by the media as disagreements between the player and his respective organization. Percy Harvin, Victor Cruz, Clay Matthews III and Eric Decker were near the top of many such lists.
Harvin, however, signed with the Seattle Seahawks March 11 before the fireworks ever really began with his former team, the Minnesota Vikings. It seemed as if the Vikings were thrilled someone took the troubled offensive weapon off their hands, not wanting to provide further distractions.
Cruz, a player whom many thought would not budge for the longest time, broke down and inked a shiny new five-year contract extension July 8. Matthews quietly agreed to a contract extension of his own in April.
It’s Decker’s situation, however, that highlights what may be the reason behind the lack of holdouts this offseason.
In 2014, there will be numerous star athletes in the league who will be able to sign new contracts. Several include Julio Jones, Colin Kaepernick, Andy Dalton, J.J. Watt and Cam Newton, among many others. Most are young and will not be shy about the money they want to make.
Teams recognize that holdouts are not always fair toward franchises. With the competition among NFL agents more fervent than ever, athletes are, in turn, routinely expecting the big bucks. Though 2013 has been no indication of that, next season could implode on many teams at or just under the salary cap.
Season-ending injuries have attempted to fill the void on the bottom scroll on ESPN for now, with Jeremy Maclin and Dennis Pitta going down before even one preseason snap.
Though it might be just the result of a cycle, the lack of high-profile holdouts in the 2013 training camp phase could be in preparation of things to come in 2014.
