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Inside the NFL
Posted: Tuesday June 06, 2000 12:48 PM The Coles Contract | Dispatches The Rams and Cinderella star Kurt Warner are miles apart on a new deal By Peter King
Suddenly, the Kurt Warner story is not so warm, not so fuzzy. Warner, the Cinderella quarterback who went on to become the league and Super Bowl MVP last season, could be a holdout when the Rams report to training camp next month.
Fact is, St. Louis doesn't have to shell out that much. While Warner, who played in the Arena League before catching on with the Rams, is not under contract, he has no free-agent rights because he's only a two-year veteran. According to the league's collective bargaining agreement, a player is eligible for restricted free agency after three seasons, giving him the opportunity to solicit offers from other teams, and can become an unrestricted free agent after his fourth year. Though obligated to pay Warner only the very mortal sum of $358,000 this season, St. Louis would like to hammer out a long-term deal. At week's end the Rams were $1.57 million under the salary cap, but they hadn't signed any of their seven draft picks. And like any Super Bowl champ, they have contractual clouds hanging over their roster. Pro Bowl cornerback Todd Lyght is unsigned. Two of St. Louis's five best players -- wideout Isaac Bruce and 1999 NFL sack champion Kevin Carter -- are eligible for unrestricted free agency after the 2000 season, as is starting corner Dexter McCleon. Two other young stars, middle linebacker London Fletcher and wideout Az Hakim, can become restricted free agents next winter. Other factors may have an impact on Warner's next contract. Late last season, when he was playing for the second-year minimum of $254,000, the Rams paid Warner a $500,000 bonus. Also, St. Louis has already doled out starter's money to quarterback Trent Green, who is entering the second year of a four-year, $16.5 million contract; Green was spectacular during the '99 preseason before tearing ligaments in his left knee. That opened the door for Warner, who, after attempting only 11 passes during his first season in St. Louis, threw for 41 touchdowns and 4,353 yards while leading the Rams to their first Super Bowl title. Now Warner wants to be paid like a top-notch quarterback. "We're in a quandary," says Rams general manager Jay Zygmunt. "You have to have some respect for the system, and the system says Kurt owes us two years. If Kurt is as good as they think he is, as he thinks he is, he's going to get his money. The question is when." Counters Bartelstein, "The system never contemplated what Kurt Warner did. If you are not going to take care of Kurt, who are you going to take care of? And when?" On the prospect of holding out of camp, Warner says, "I haven't even thought about that yet. I'm confident something will get done before it gets to that point." In all likelihood he will be in uniform when the Rams open against the Broncos on Monday night, Sept. 4. But the fairy tale of the grocery stocker turned Super Bowl hero is about to get a dose of hard reality.
Strahan's Lost Season When Giants veterans gathered for a minicamp last week, left defensive end Michael Strahan faced his nightmare of a 1999 season for the first time in 2000: He watched film of the debacle. "I've been wondering how in the world I could have gone from being a good player to stinking," Strahan said last Friday. "Then I watched the film. I remembered how teams played me -- two blockers, sometimes three, a guard always looking over to see if I was free. Plus, I just never felt right." Also, Strahan's new four-year, $32 million contract had made him a marked man; he went from 14 sacks in '97 and 15 in '98 to 5 1/2 in '99. His litany of injuries reads like an E.R. report: hyperextended left elbow, burst bursa sac in right elbow, torn ligaments in left thumb, torn ligaments in right wrist, sprained right shoulder, cyst behind left knee. "I hyperextended my elbow in the first game," Strahan says, "and from that point on, I never did a bench press. You can't play this position without strength. I didn't bench-press a pound until a month ago." To spring the 28-year-old Strahan, the Giants plan to switch him with right end Cedric Jones at times and run more stunts with left tackle Christian Peter. "I want to prove this season I'm the best and most complete defensive end in football," says Strahan, who two years ago was just that. If he can't, the Giants, 7-9 last year, may be headed for a second straight losing season.
The Coles Contract Now we know why the Jets overpaid in signing troubled wide receiver Laveranues Coles, their third-round draft choice who was kicked off Florida State's team last October for defrauding a department store. The 78th pick in the draft, Coles received a $450,000 signing bonus; last year's 78th pick, wideout Marty Booker, got $406,000 from the Bears. It turns out the Jets bought some insurance. According to language in the contract, Coles must return $100,000 each time he's found guilty of a crime -- or pleads no contest, or is suspended by the league -- during the three-year life of the deal. "For example," the contract says, "if player is arrested [and is found guilty] once and suspended by the league once, then player must immediately repay $200,000 to the club." Bottom line? By about $25,000, the Jets overpaid for a receiver with blazing speed whose stock dropped because of his off-field history. If Coles produces on the field and remains a good citizen, the Jets will get a nice return on their investment. But if he runs afoul of the law, the club can cash in its insurance policy. Make no mistake about it: Redskins starting quarterback Brad Johnson feels the hot breath of pricey free-agent backup Jeff George on his neck. George was imported by Washington owner Daniel Snyder because of concerns about Johnson's durability: Though he didn't miss a start last season, he missed 15 games total in 1997 and '98 because of injuries. "Brad went through a period recently that was really hard on him," Washington coach Norv Turner says of Johnson's reaction to the George signing. "But I told him, 'You do your job, and he'll never get on the field.'" ... Of the Redskins' signing thirtysomething veterans Bruce Smith ($25 million over five years) and Deion Sanders (a reported $55 million over seven years), who joined the club on Monday, one AFC coach says, "There's a reason why the Redskins didn't have much competition to sign Bruce and Deion. Those guys don't have much left in their tanks. Daniel Snyder's going to look at his cap in two or three years and say, 'What have I done?'" ... The Eagles, league leaders in available cap money ($7.59 million) on June 1, want to add an offensive and a defensive lineman. Look for disappointing 49ers defensive end Gabe Wilkins to land in Philadelphia. ... The buzz from Dick Vermeil 's friends in St. Louis is that he may try to get back into coaching in 2001. ... Buccaneers rookie Chris Daniel smacked into fellow wideout Keyshawn Johnson while the two were running a route during a minicamp last week; Johnson was forced to the sideline with back spasms. Asked what it felt like to level Johnson, Daniel said, "It felt like hitting a lot of money."
Issue date: June 12, 2000
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