Packers made calls up to last minute on Arrington

[motife]

Giants | Work left to be done on Arrington deal
Fri, 21 Apr 2006 23:02:15 -0700

Mike Garafolo, of the Star-Ledger, reports there is still work to be done before the New York Giants can sign free agent LB LaVar Arrington (Redskins). The work left to be done likely includes agreeing on how much money will be guaranteed and how much will be packaged as incentives and roster bonuses. Arrington's agents, Carl and Kevin Poston, are undoubtedly trumpeting Arrington as a former No. 2 overall draft pick deserving of a double-digit signing bonus, while the Giants are probably pointing to his last two injury-shortened seasons as reasons to protect themselves from future salary cap hits. Carl Poston expected to talk to the Giants Saturday, April 22, but did not rule out the possibility he will speak to other teams as well. In fact, as soon as he made that statement, Poston received a call from a member of Green Bay Packers front office. "We're still talking to other teams," he said. "We haven't planned (to talk to the Giants today), but we'll probably talk. I think that's what helps get deals done." Both sides want a deal done by this time next week, when the NFL Draft begins. Poston would not say if the Giants are Arrington's top target, but someone who recently spoke to a member of Arrington's camp said they are.

www.kffl.com/hotw/nfl

[motife]

http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1145684570251140.xml&coll=1

Giants, Arrington are as close as ever
Saturday, April 22, 2006
BY MIKE GARAFOLO
Star-Ledger Staff
There were several weeks of limited contact between the Giants and linebacker LaVar Arrington's agents.

There was general manager Ernie Accorsi's Thursday press conference during which he said any "hysteria" resulting from Arrington's physical in New York that afternoon would be inaccurate.

There were rumors the Giants were concerned about Arrington's injury-plagued right knee.

Yes, there were plenty of reasons to believe the three-time Pro Bowl selection wasn't going to land in East Rutherford.

And then there was yesterday, when contract negotiations between the two sides drew much closer than they were early last month, when Arrington arrived for his first visit with the team.

"It's getting closer," Carl Poston, one of Arrington's agents, said last night when reached on his cell phone. "That's a true statement. They can make it happen if they want to. And they're probably saying the same thing about me."

Accorsi refused comment yesterday when asked about the former Redskin, but a team official, who requested anonymity because the negotiations were ongoing, confirmed that the sides were closer than they had ever been.

The suddenly sunny forecasts from both fronts indicate the Giants were satisfied with the results of the physical and Arrington's agents, Carl and Kevin Poston, have finally made a few concessions to their reported demands of $54 million over seven years.

The work left to be done likely includes agreeing on how much money will be guaranteed and how much will be packaged as incentives and roster bonuses. The Postons are undoubtedly trumpeting their 27-year-old client as a former No. 2 overall draft pick deserving of a double-digit signing bonus, while the Giants are probably pointing to his last two injury-shortened seasons as reasons to protect themselves from future salary-cap hits.

Carl Poston expected to talk to the Giants today, but did not rule out the possibility he will speak to other teams as well. In fact, as soon as he made that statement, Poston received a call from a member of Green Bay's front office.

"We're still talking to other teams," he said. "We haven't planned (to talk to the Giants today), but we'll probably talk. I think that's what helps get deals done."

Both sides want a deal done by this time next week, when the NFL Draft begins. The Giants want to know if they need to select a linebacker with the 25th pick in the first round or if they can take a player to help another position, such as defensive tackle.

Arrington, meanwhile, would like to capitalize on the current needs of interested teams such as the Packers, Dolphins and Jaguars before those clubs select a linebacker in the draft. That's why his agents called the Giants this week to set up a physical.

"We wanted to see if they were serious and we knew the draft was sort of a deadline," Poston said. "It's not an absolute deadline because I did Ty Law's deal last year with the Jets after the draft, but we'd like to get it done."

Poston would not say if the Giants are Arrington's top target, but someone who recently spoke to a member of Arrington's camp said they are. The person, who requested anonymity because he is not directly involved in the negotiations, confirmed playing alongside linebackers Antonio Pierce and the recently signed Brandon Short -- his teammates with the Redskins and Penn State, respectively -- as well as facing Washington twice a year are the two main pluses in Arrington's mind.

[motife]

April 22, 2006 -- The Giants yesterday landed a monstrously big free-agent prize that likely will go down as either a huge coup or a major miscalculation with the ink all but dry on a contract for linebacker LaVar Arrington.
The two sides were closing in on an agreement that would allow Arrington to add his name to a linebacker legacy with the Giants and perhaps jump-start a career that not long ago was believed to be destined for greatness.

Thus ends a six-week odyssey and a protracted period of gamesmanship, with the Giants refusing to significantly up their ante and fully prepared to move forward without Arrington if the price wasn't right.

No terms were immediately available, but the Giants did not come close to matching the seven-year, $54 million package or the $18 million in guaranteed money Julian Peterson, another linebacker represented by the Poston brothers, received from the Seahawks. Arrington was seeking a similar deal.

Instead, the Giants put together a deal that is heavily incentive-laden, allowing Arrington to get paid like a superstar only if he performs like one. That protects the Giants in case Arrington's right knee is not sound or if his best days are behind him.

Arrington fills a gaping void at weak-side linebacker and adds more star power to a defense that already has Pro Bowl ends in likely Hall of Famer Michael Strahan and rising star Osi Umenyiora as well as middle linebacker Antonio Pierce, a former Redskins teammate and close friend of Arrington who campaigned long and hard for his signing.

This move allows the Giants to expand their horizons in next weekend's NFL Draft. The Giants own the 25th overall pick and, without Arrington, would have been forced to hone in on an outside linebacker.



A desire to stay in the NFC East (and face the Redskins twice a year) and play in New York made the Giants a frontrunner to land him. The team brought in Arrington for a visit on March 11 but he refused to take a physical, leaving the Giants wary of the health of his right knee, which needed arthroscopic surgery twice in a 20-month period of 2004 and 2005.

The Giants made an offer, but it was not close to the money Arrington was seeking. That was that until Arrington's camp, with his market drying up, relented and he returned to New York on Thursday to take a physical. That sparked what a team source described as "substantive talks" starting that night and continuing into yesterday.

Outgoing and personable, his status as the most popular player in Washington took a hit when Joe Gibbs returned to coaching and his staff immediately clashed with Arrington, who was considered too much of a freelancer in the defensive system.

paul.schwartz@nypost.com

[Bretsky]

Giants | Work left to be done on Arrington deal
Fri, 21 Apr 2006 23:02:15 -0700

Mike Garafolo, of the Star-Ledger, reports there is still work to be done before the New York Giants can sign free agent LB LaVar Arrington (Redskins). The work left to be done likely includes agreeing on how much money will be guaranteed and how much will be packaged as incentives and roster bonuses. Arrington's agents, Carl and Kevin Poston, are undoubtedly trumpeting Arrington as a former No. 2 overall draft pick deserving of a double-digit signing bonus, while the Giants are probably pointing to his last two injury-shortened seasons as reasons to protect themselves from future salary cap hits. Carl Poston expected to talk to the Giants Saturday, April 22, but did not rule out the possibility he will speak to other teams as well. In fact, as soon as he made that statement, Poston received a call from a member of Green Bay Packers front office. "We're still talking to other teams," he said. "We haven't planned (to talk to the Giants today), but we'll probably talk. I think that's what helps get deals done." Both sides want a deal done by this time next week, when the NFL Draft begins. Poston would not say if the Giants are Arrington's top target, but someone who recently spoke to a member of Arrington's camp said they are.

www.kffl.com/hotw/nfl


COME ON TT; OPEN UP THAT WALLET FOR 15 minutes so they dustballs clear out and use the money we have in a nice frontloaded deal !!

[Harlan Huckleby]

ya know, I bet NY is Arrington's dream team. He already wears LT's number 56, and he gets to play the Redskins twice per year. I wonder if he just is using GB for bargaining position.

I won't complain if the Packers outbid the Giants with a hefty front-loaded deal.

[Deputy Nutz]

Its over, forget about Lavar coming to Green Bay. Gee, that was hard to figure out, TT was cheap, the Giants came up with an intelligent contract offer.

[RashanGary]

At least Thompson is driving up the cost for other teams :)

[HarveyWallbangers]

Well, for this contract I can see not matching it.

Giants, Arrington reach agreement in principle
By John Clayton, ESPN.com

The Giants and former Redskins linebacker LaVar Arrington have reached an agreement in principle on a seven-year deal worth $49 million.

Five teams had been in the running for Arrington, but the Giants took a significant step toward getting a deal done Thursday. After Arrington took and passed a physical Thursday, negotiations turned serious and had been ongoing for more than 24 hours.

The Packers, Jaguars, Dolphins and Bengals had also been in the mix. Arrington's agent, Carl Poston, said the Jaguars and Packers made progress with their offers Friday, but the Giants took the lead Friday.

Arrington had hoped to stay in the NFC East in order to play the Redskins two times a year.

[Scott Campbell]

Well, for this contract I can see not matching it.

Giants, Arrington reach agreement in principle
By John Clayton, ESPN.com

The Giants and former Redskins linebacker LaVar Arrington have reached an agreement in principle on a seven-year deal worth $49 million.




I'd like to see the details of the contract, as I heard much of that money was incentive based.

[packrulz]

I'm kind of relieved, Arrington can be a headcase. TT can just draft Hawk now.

[Scott Campbell]

More details on the deal:

Giants sign Arrington to $49 million deal
ESPN.com news services

NEW YORK -- LaVar Arrington signed with the New York Giants on Saturday, giving him a chance to play twice a year against his former team and helping fill a huge gap at linebacker for the NFC East champions.

Arrington agreed to a $49 million, seven-year deal late Friday, according to Kevin Poston, one of his agents. Poston didn't say how much was guaranteed but Giants general manager Ernie Accorsi indicated that it includes performance bonuses.

To get the $7 million-per-year, Arrington and the Giants agreed to load the deal with incentives, ESPN.com's John Clayton reported. Arrington, who will get a $5.25 million signing bonus, will receive a base salary worth around $3.7 million a year. With reachable incentives, Arrington can make $5 million a year and with maximum performance, he can take the deal to $49 million if he completes the seven years of his contract.

Arrington reportedly had been seeking as much as $18 million guaranteed and a $58 million deal, one reason Arrington stayed on the market while dozens of other players signed during the first few weeks of the free-agent period.

"We needed a big, power player to add to our defense and LaVar Arrington is that," Accorsi said. "He has a presence about him and he makes us a better football team.

"The agreement is a fair deal for the player and a fair deal for the organization."

Arrington, the third overall pick in the 2000 draft and a three-time Pro Bowler, bought his way out of Washington in March for $4.4 million after a tempestuous final two seasons in which he suffered from knee injuries and was benched by defensive coordinator Gregg Williams for freelancing. He took a physical with the Giants on Thursday to ensure that his knees were healthy.

He joins a defense that features the defensive end tandem of Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora, who last year combined for 26 sacks. Both made the Pro Bowl and Umenyiora, in his third year, was an All-Pro.

Arrington also fills a huge hole for the Giants, who lost all three starting linebackers late last season to injuries and went into the playoffs with a backup and two recently signed free agents.

Last week, the Giants signed free agent Brandon Short, who played for them from 2000-2003. The addition of Arrington means the team could turn its attention to another position in the first round of next week's draft, perhaps cornerback or defensive tackle.

Poston said Green Bay, Jacksonville and Miami all were in the running for the 27-year-old Arrington. But in the end, he said, his client decided that he wanted to play against Washington twice a season and for Tim Lewis, New York's defensive coordinator.

"It came down to LaVar feeling most comfortable going to a good team in a familiar division with a defensive coordinator that he loves," Poston said.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

[HarveyWallbangers]

I'm not relieved. We were in a position to outbid other teams and not hurt the future cap that much. Now, we might be able to sign a decent corner, but we'll get through FA without upgrading the team significantly. Manuel should be a slight upgrade on Roman. Pickett might be a slight upgrade on Jackson--just because he'll likely play more snaps. That's it.

[Scott Campbell]

I'd say it looks like a pretty fair contract for the Giants. Reasonable signing bonus. Reasonable yearly salary.

I wonder if we outbid them.

[HarveyWallbangers]

I'd say it looks like a pretty fair contract for the Giants. Reasonable signing bonus. Reasonable yearly salary.

I wonder if we outbid them.

I don't think so. The Postons are all about getting as much money for themselves as possible. I'd guess that the Giants were the highest bidders--especially since one of the Postons said that the Packers came on strnog at the end, but the Giants upped them. I wonder what would have happened if we would have made our best offer a week ago. Maybe the Giants would have outbid us. Who knows! Whether got a specific player or not, we didn't do much in FA with all of the money we had. I know FA can be a fool's game, but you can't tell me that none of these FAs will help their new teams out. It's a matter of finding the right ones. Personally, I think Thompson totally misjudged FA this year. I think he thought he could wait out the market, but with the cap going up FAs found new teams at an incredible rate the first week or two--much sooner than in the past.

[packrulz]

The 'skins said he was freelancing, they'd tell him his responsibilities and he was running around doing whatever he wants. Then he got benched & copped an attitude. I've seen him really pound on some RB's though, he is very good, but I think he might end up being an expensive pain in the ass.

[Scott Campbell]

This is a wierd year in free agency. With the cap going up as much as it did, every team had bloated wallets.

Though I wish we could have landed a couple more players.

[MJZiggy]

I also don't think he was expecting all the bidding wars teams got into and the inflated prices they were paying.

[HarveyWallbangers]

The 'skins said he was freelancing, they'd tell him his responsibilities and he was running around doing whatever he wants. Then he got benched & copped an attitude. I've seen him really pound on some RB's though, he is very good, but I think he might end up being an expensive pain in the ass.

He didn't seem to have a problem free-lancing before Gibbs got there. He was a premium playmaker and 3-time Pro Bowler the three years before that. I think Gibbs is old school. Maybe the system was different. The Packers (and they seemed to feel this way because they went after him hard) probably would have suited him--since they don't ask their LBs to fill lanes. They want guys to run to the ball more than other schemes. I think that's why it's easier to learn for LBs than other systems.

[packrulz]

Yes, I remember games when he was a beast, brutal tackler, if his attitude is ok, he'll make the Pro Bowl. I agree with that.

[Bretsky]

I'd say it looks like a pretty fair contract for the Giants. Reasonable signing bonus. Reasonable yearly salary.

I wonder if we outbid them.

I don't think so. The Postons are all about getting as much money for themselves as possible. I'd guess that the Giants were the highest bidders--especially since one of the Postons said that the Packers came on strnog at the end, but the Giants upped them. I wonder what would have happened if we would have made our best offer a week ago. Maybe the Giants would have outbid us. Who knows! Whether got a specific player or not, we didn't do much in FA with all of the money we had. I know FA can be a fool's game, but you can't tell me that none of these FAs will help their new teams out. It's a matter of finding the right ones. Personally, I think Thompson totally misjudged FA this year. I think he thought he could wait out the market, but with the cap going up FAs found new teams at an incredible rate the first week or two--much sooner than in the past.

Thompson's head had been stuck up his @ss all offseason long. 2nd most money in free agency and we've we've slightly upgraded two positions with that.

Harv, all of the above points are right on. TT misjudged just about everything the past two months.