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Rice's sticking point Receiver seeks two years, while 49ers offer one
Posted: Sunday May 07, 2000 01:54 PM
Jerry Rice finally got a renegotiated contract proposal from the 49ers this week. But even if he agrees to slash his 2000 salary, there will be one huge sticking point: Rice wants to play two more years; the 49ers want him for just one. The leading receiver of all time is due to earn $3.95 million this year, but the club wants to slash that number at least in half, while adding many incentives. But as Rice's agent, Jim Steiner, told me, a one-year deal is too short. The 49ers and Rice are clearly at odds here, which could lead to a divorce. The team thinks Rice can't separate from corners he used to blow past; his yards-per-catch in 1999 was a full three yards below his career average. Now would Rice go elsewhere if he can't find financial happiness with the 49ers? Definitely. He'd look for a playoff contender playing on grass -- the Jets, Redskins or Broncos could contend for his services as a possession receiver. And now for Rice's partner, quarterback Steve Young. Let's dispel a few myths making the media rounds.
Agent Leigh Steinberg tells me Young has seen a Salt Lake City neurologist who told him he's no more in danger of getting a concussion than the average player. The 49ers are still insisting that two neurologists approve Young's return to the field. But one rumor that is reliable is this one: If the 49ers dump Young, the Denver Broncos are definitely interested in him. Cowboys lasso a winner in linebacker BowdenThe Dallas Cowboys quietly made one of the best free-agent signings of the season this week: Tennessee linebacker Joe Bowden. And they got him cheap, too -- at a cap number under $700,000. They also landed another Titans defector, linebacker Barron Wortham. Conduct committee much ado about nothingAnd finally, remember all the fuss about players' off-the-field conduct? It's dissolved into a big nothing. The league's working committee appointed to address the issue hasn't met since March and isn't scheduled to meet. As Ravens coach Brian Billick told me: "We can increase attention to this subject tenfold and players would still fall through the cracks. Quite frankly, I don't know what else we can do. Our team has had 12 different mandatory seminars for our players in the last year. At some point, they have to be out in the world and make the right decisions.'' Sports Illustrated senior writer Peter King covers the NFL for the magazine and appears regularly on CNN/Sports Illustrated and CNN's NFL Preview.
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