BJ RAJI

[Bretsky]

pb,

I can't agree with you. You take the #9 salary from last year as a basis and negotiate what type of pay raise you get from there. I'm confident GB is being fair and BJ not being signed indicates they are asking for the moon or holding out because they lack kohones !

If all these guys are waiting for each other to set the value I hope every single dang one of them has a crappy year (except Raji).

Somebody needs to grow some stones and get things done here.

Get your ass into GB, sign the dam deal, do about 25 one hundred yard sprints for leading us on to think you weren't one of the douche bags who holds out per your interview and show me why Green Bay didn't draft Crabtree for gosh sake !!!!!!

[pbmax]

You take the #9 salary from last year as a basis and negotiate what type of pay raise you get from there.

That sentence tells you all you need to know about the situation. Its a negotiation and people who are talking about money often, in fact, usually, are at pains to say it isn't all about money. Because it isn't. Although for this moment, it mostly is.

You think the Packer offer you imagine is fair. I doubt the agent believes it is. Do you think the Packer's are offering Heyward Bey's 20% markup on their (imaginary) offer? I doubt it. And until Raji's reps are convinced the top 10 isn't getting 20% raises, Raji will not sign. It might be in Raji's short term interest to sign, but its not in the agent's or NFLPA's interest long term.

If all but Raji get 20% bumps, then Athletes First (or CAA whatever they are called now) will lose clients next year to Eugene Parker. For good reason: Eugene Parker was better than they were in 2009.

[Bretsky]

You take the #9 salary from last year as a basis and negotiate what type of pay raise you get from there.

That sentence tells you all you need to know about the situation. Its a negotiation and people who are talking about money often, in fact, usually, are at pains to say it isn't all about money. Because it isn't. Although for this moment, it mostly is.

You think the Packer offer you imagine is fair. I doubt the agent believes it is. Do you think the Packer's are offering Heyward Bey's 20% markup on their (imaginary) offer? I doubt it. And until Raji's reps are convinced the top 10 isn't getting 20% raises, Raji will not sign. It might be in Raji's short term interest to sign, but its not in the agent's or NFLPA's interest long term.

If all but Raji get 20% bumps, then Athletes First (or CAA whatever they are called now) will lose clients next year to Eugene Parker. For good reason: Eugene Parker was better than they were in 2009.

So who is the first draft pick to sign then ? ; by this logic they might all be sitting for a while. Not everybody is as stupid as Al Davis

And if that's the case and they all sit I hope none of them are worth a shit

Raji should not have opened his trap about no way being a holdout

[pbmax]

Raji should not have opened his trap about no way being a holdout

Always a good plan in public negotiations. Say nothing of consequence.

By the way Rastak, according to PFT and Twitter, Bryant McKinnie has signed on with the Human Press Conference, Drew Rosenhaus. My condolences.

[LP]

I hear tell that Teddy is dangling a free Packerrats membership and Raji is pressuring his agent to take it, pronto.

I don't care where they were drafted. Nobody's worth that much!

[pbmax]

From the National Football Post/Andrew Brandt

For those teams that wait until the week of training camp – which some teams do – the bonus amounts will have likely filled in around the pick, and it’s simple to fill in a fair number for both sides. As mentioned, some teams will look around the rounds of their picks in the week of training camp, call the agents and fill in the numbers. That’s a relatively stress-free way of doing the contracts; my nature would not allow me to do that because I’d be worried if we hadn’t signed most of our rookies by early to mid-July. For those like myself who tried to lock in contracts early in the development of the round, filling in a number becomes a task based on the previous, rather than the current, year.

Thus, in negotiating among the first deals in a couple of the rounds, the markers used this year were from the 2008 draft, examining the increase in bonus from 2007 to 2008 in various data points:

• the exact slot of the selection;
• the overall selection in the draft;
• the area three picks above and below the slot;
• the quadrant of the round;
• the half of the round;
• the full round.

In the lower rounds, the increases in bonus amounts are typically in the 3-4 percent range. In the second round, the range is broader and higher, anywhere from 6-8.5 percent.

Two things: Brandt is discussing everything here but the first round in this three part series. So there are undoubtedly some details missing. But I think what he does mention applies and points to what is missing for some of the first round.

There are few numbers around the #9 pick, so slotting based on this year is not available.

Crabtree is trying to crack the slotting, which is making other agents hesitate to sign what might, in short order, look like a bad contract. This is especially true of the #9 pick, right in front of Crabtree and Parker.

For Brandt's attempt to set the bar on slotting and raises based on last year's numbers, the agent has to agree on your estimation. Given Crabtree's situation, they may be less willing to jump the gun.

[Lurker64]

Looks like Raji just got harder to sign, since Eugene Monroe's agent is apparently trying to pull the insanity of the top 7 wages all the way down to the #8 spot, and the Jags have no interest in budging.

From PFT.

So apparently neither the guy before us nor the guy after us is anywhere close to signing.... great.

Raji should just fire his agent and negotiate his own contract.

[Noodle]

I agree with PBMax. This is a tough situation for BJ, and I don't blame him for doing what he has to do. You gotta know the guy wants to be out there, but with the unsigned guys in front and the CF created by Crabtree behind, he would be crazy to sign too soon.

As to firing his agent, I'd be on board with that if the Packers grabbed some schmo off the street to negotiate for them. Fair, right?

We'll just have to wait. And for a change, don't blame the player. Blame the game.

[Rastak]

Raji should not have opened his trap about no way being a holdout

Always a good plan in public negotiations. Say nothing of consequence.

By the way Rastak, according to PFT and Twitter, Bryant McKinnie has signed on with the Human Press Conference, Drew Rosenhaus. My condolences.

I did hear that......might be time to draft a LT next year!

[Rastak]

Looks like Raji just got harder to sign, since Eugene Monroe's agent is apparently trying to pull the insanity of the top 7 wages all the way down to the #8 spot, and the Jags have no interest in budging.

From PFT.

So apparently neither the guy before us nor the guy after us is anywhere close to signing.... great.

Raji should just fire his agent and negotiate his own contract.

Patler's probably right, if the agent quits there isn't a waiting period so he could tell his agent to get it done at 12% over last year....if he won't and he (the agent) quits, then hire someone willing to do that deal.

[Merlin]

It isn't surprising he hasn't signed and I wholeheartedly agree in not over paying any first round pick. The odds are they won't be worth what you paid for them and you will be stuck with them for 3 years to see if the pick pays off, so overpaying is no guarantee of performance. We have people here throwing Hawk under the bus and he was what a #5? Imagine of BJ negotiates a larger contract than Hawk got, but turns into a Justin Harrell? Everything says he shouldn't but once that fat contract is signed, all bets are off. And the way Thompson does things, you have to know it will be a 5-6 year deal, of which we will be stuck with him for at least 4 if he doesn't work out.

I like the idea of working something into the CBO for a pay scale for draft order. Make them prove it before you pay them.

[hoosier]

Meanwhile the Minneapolis Star Tribune tries to have a little fun at the Packers expense. Due to cuts in the copyediting budget, however, the joke is really on them.

http://www.startribune.com/sports/vikings/?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O%3ADW3ckUiD3aPc%3A_Yyc%3AaUQ7c4E7ME5U

Blog: Around the NFL

Rahi's Green Bay holdout good news for Vikings
Defensive tackle B.J. Rahi's holdout is apparently in reaction to the fact that the guy picked behind him -- 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree -- hasn't yet agreed to a contract.

Photo right: B.J. Rahi