John Elway Discusses Thomas, Dez, Miller
It’s been a busy couple of days for John Elway and the Broncos. The team managed to ignore a number of collusion allegations, and they ultimately re-signed star wideout Demaryius Thomas to a five-year extension.
With the hectic negotiations behind them, Denver’s General Manager and Executive Vice President of Football Operations sat down with DenverBroncos.com to discuss the entire ordeal. We’ve compiled some of the more interesting quotes, which you can find below…
On the timing of negotiations:
“It really started this morning (July 15th). I think that we had met with [Thomas’ agent] Todd France back in end of May—first of June—and both got our offers on the table. At that point in time, there wasn’t any movement until this morning. Once again, things got going this morning. That’s really when we had get a deal done.”
On how the contract will effect the team’s future cap space:
“We prepare for all of those [scenarios]. We look at what the value is to the Broncos, what we can afford, how that fits into the structure and how that fits into our football team. All of those things are going into consideration when we determine what we’re going to pay somebody. We’re well aware of the people that we have coming up. We have a lot of good football players coming up. But with Demaryius—he’s obviously a big part of that and he’s the first part of trying to keep this football team together. I think it was a very fair deal for both sides.”
On whether they referred to the Dez Bryant extension during negotiations:
“We had our numbers set up and picked out. We tried to figure out what we believed was the correct value for us and for the Broncos as well as Demaryius. I think it just took a while to get to that point. Any time you have two special football players at the same position that are going into a franchise year, there is always caution that no one jumps the gun. I think it went as long as it went to be able to make sure that everybody—especially from the agent side—that they were where they needed to be.”
On how the Thomas extension will impact talks with Von Miller:
“We are always planning for the future. Everyone talks about us winning now, and my point is that we want to win from now on. When we go through our budget meetings year in and year out, that is what we look at. We have a three-year plan and a four-year plan, and we try to look into the future to see where we are in order to budget everybody to keep all of our great football players. That is what we want to do—draft well, keep our own and fill in with free agency where we can. D.T. was the first step. We will have a plan for Von next year as well as with other players. We have several other really good football players coming into their last year. We’ll monitor as many as we can. It’s impossible to hold on to everybody in the salary cap era, but we’re going to do the very best we can to keep them all.”
West Notes: Thomas, Green, Wilson
Although Demaryius Thomas was holding out for a contract that would exceed the value of Calvin Johnson‘s historic deal, the Broncos‘ newly extended wideout now acknowledges it was a negotiating tactic and that no receiver will hit that threshold. At least not for a while.
But the sixth-year target did want to make sure he inked a deal that assured him of greater financial earnings than contemporaries Mike Wallace and Percy Harvin, according to Mike Klis of 9News.
“It wasn’t about asking for more than Calvin because I knew I wasn’t going to get that,” Thomas told media Friday. “It was trying to make a new slot for guys because the second receiver was Mike Wallace and Percy Harvin. I think I’ve outplayed them, so I tried to set a new mark. But nobody is going to get Calvin money.”
The former first-round pick out of Georgia Tech also told Klis turning down the Broncos’ seven-year, $100MM offer was difficult, but with the uncertainty that could arise in the final two non-guaranteed years of that proposed deal, Thomas figured it was best to accept a five-year contract that could still enable him to sign a lucrative third accord by the time his second expires after his age-31 season.
Here is some more news from the Thomas fallout and from the Broncos’ Western brethren.
- Training in Atlanta while slapped with the franchise tag, Thomas intends to play this season with a slimmer frame, dropping down to 222 pounds from his usual 228, per Klis.
- Regardless of what weight Thomas plays at this season, A.J. Green was sure to thank his Pro Bowl wideout compatriot via text message shortly after word leaked of Thomas’ deal, according to Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com. The Bengals‘ contract-year receiver said he will play this season under his fifth-year option of $10.76MM and wait until the offseason for a potential new deal. But with two receivers on his tier attached to values, Green now has a benchmark at which to aim. Although the Bengals’ four-time Pro Bowler doesn’t quite have Thomas or Bryant’s stats, the soon-to-be 27-year-old is just as valuable to his team’s offense, and those numbers come with an inferior quarterback than the ones throwing to Thomas and Bryant.
- Mark Rodgers and top client Russell Wilson speak each day, with those conversations often including discussions about the fourth-year Seahawks quarterback’s contract negotiation, Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times reports. In a profile of the baseball-first agent’s relationship with Wilson, Condotta notes Wilson sought Rodgers due to his experience with two-sport athletes.
AFC West Notes: Thomas, Broncos, Houston
While the NFL Player’s Association appeared ready to drop its collusion investigation into the Cowboys and Broncos after Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas signed new contracts on Wednesday, the union is still considering filing a complaint, a source tells Lindsay H. Jones of USA Today Sports. Both the Cowboys and Broncos have been informed that the NFLPA has not yet lifted its request that front office officials preserve writen and digital correspondence that could be used as evidence of collusion, writes Jones.
Even if the Cowboys and Broncos did discuss Bryant’s and Thomas’ contract situations, it seems unlikely that there’s a smoking gun, and now that both wideouts have long-term deals – perhaps with the help of legal collusion by their agents – it seems unnecessary for the NFLPA to pursue another drawn-out legal battle with the league. As such, I’d guess that the union will eventually drop its investigation, but it sounds like we’ll have to wait until at least next week to know for sure.
As we await word from the NFLPA, let’s check out some more updates from out of the AFC West, with a focus on Thomas’ and Justin Houston‘s extensions….
- A report earlier this week suggested that Thomas was prepared to skip training camp and the preseason if he didn’t get a new contract this week, but earlier today the wideout admitted, “I wasn’t going to sit out games” (Twitter link via Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com). Thomas also suggested that he “kind of knew the whole morning” on Wednesday that he and the Broncos would get something done (Twitter link via Legwold).
- During the negotiations with Thomas, GM John Elway was mindful of how other extension-eligible players – particularly Von Miller – will fit into the team’s budget down the road, writes Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post.
- At OverTheCap.com, Zack Moore dives deep into Houston’s new six-year contract with the Chiefs to determine its value, while Jason Fitzgerald lays out the year-by-year figures for the deal in chart form.
- In explaining why he felt like it was “very important” to remain in Kansas City long-term, Houston credited Andy Reid, explaining that the Chiefs head coach pushed him to become a better player. Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star has the details and quotes from the star pass rusher.
Details, Reactions On Bryant/Thomas Deals
Reports earlier this week suggested neither Dez Bryant nor Demaryius Thomas had better than a 50/50 chance of signing an extension this week, so it came as a bit of a surprise yesterday when both players got deals done with their respective teams. We examined a few specific details of those contracts earlier today, and now we’ll round up a few more notes and reactions related to the pair of extensions. Let’s dive in….
Bryant negotiations:
- Although Bryant admitted that going through his contract situation this summer was “extremely hard,” he reiterated on Wednesday that he was willing to sit out regular season games if he didn’t get a new deal (link via Dallas Morning News). “I am that guy that, I have to stand by my word, because that’s how I want to raise my babies,” Bryant said. “It was all me. It was honest.”
- Appearing on 105.3 FM in Dallas, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones answered a few specific questions about the negotiations with Bryant, noting that the “false financial perspective” set by Calvin Johnson‘s and Larry Fitzgerald‘s contracts was problematic during contract discussions. The Dallas Morning News has that quote and several more from Jones.
- During his own radio appearance in Dallas, executive VP Stephen Jones also discussed the deal in some depth, admitting the Bryant negotiations were among the most difficult the Cowboys have ever had. Once again, the Dallas Morning News has the details.
Thomas negotiations:
- Broncos general manager John Elway told reporters, including Troy Renck of The Denver Post (Twitter link), that there wasn’t any movement from June 1st until Wednesday morning on Thomas’ deal. At that point, talks between the two sides reignited and led to a five-year, $70MM deal being reached.
- Elway also explained that keeping Thomas and locking him up long term was the first step in keeping this Broncos team together, tweets James Palmer of NFL Network.
- According to Mike Klis of 9News, the Broncos had a seven-year, $100MM offer on the table for Thomas, but the Pro Bowl wideout opted for the five-year, $70MM pact instead. While the seven-year deal looks more impressive on paper, and would’ve increased the average annual value of the extension, those final two years essentially would’ve been risk-free options for Denver, so it’s not a surprise that Thomas chose the shorter deal.
Potential impact of Thomas/Bryant deals on other players:
- Now that Thomas and Bryant have gotten something done, there’s a “general sense” around the Falcons that Atlanta could lock up Julio Jones by the start of training camp, despite a lack of progress so far, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. The Falcons’ camp is scheduled to get underway two weeks from Friday.
- After seeing the deals signed by Bryant and Thomas, Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton might be hearing cash registers in his head. The 25-year-old Hilton, who has back-to-back seasons of 80-plus catches and 1,000-plus yards, is entering the final year of his deal, and issued the following tweet on Wednesday: “All this BREAKING NEWS. Does this mean the bar is set?? #THEGHOST”
- Hilton will have a hard time demanding a contract in the same range as the five-year, $70MM extensions signed by Bryant and Thomas, but those deals help to reset the market for receivers, and should benefit the Colts wideout in other ways, writes Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star.
Other Thomas/Bryant leftovers:
- While collusion between teams during contract negotiations isn’t permitted, players and agents are allowed to talk, and it was legal collusion between agents Tom Condon and Todd France that helped both Bryant’s and Thomas’ extensions get done, says Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Condon’s agency, CAA, is on the verge of buying France’s agency, Five Star Athlete Management, and the two agents took advantage of their new relationship.
- Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap examines how the Bryant and Thomas contracts compare to one another, as well as how the deals match up to those signed by a few top players at other positions.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Contract Details: Bryant, Thomas, Houston
In the wake of the four contract extensions signed yesterday by players who received the franchise tag, year-to-year details on structure, salary, and bonuses has begun to surface on three of those deals. While we still don’t have a lot of specific info on Stephen Gostkowski‘s new four-year contract with the Patriots, there are plenty of updates out there on the three big agreements of the day. Let’s round up the latest:
Dez Bryant (WR), Cowboys:
- Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com and Gil Brandt of NFL.com (Twitter links) provide the yearly breakdown of Bryant’s base salaries and cap hits. Bryant’s modest $3MM base salary in 2015 will result in just a $7MM cap number. His cap charges increase to $13MM, $17MM, $16.5MM, and $16.5MM in the final four years of the pact.
- Bryant gets $32MM fully guaranteed at the time of his signing, and his contract doesn’t feature offsets, according to Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (Twitter links).
- Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap lays out what Bryant’s full extension looks like in chart form.
Demaryius Thomas (WR), Broncos:
- Thomas’ contract includes an $11MM signing bonus, a $6.5MM roster bonus, and a fully guaranteed $4.5MM base salary for 2015, per Mike Klis of 9News. Thomas’ 2016 salary of $13MM is also fully guaranteed, while his 2017 salary ($8.5MM) is guaranteed for injury only at the moment — it becomes fully guaranteed early in the 2017 league year. The 27-year-old has a $4MM option bonus in 2018.
- Thomas’ extension doesn’t feature offsets, tweets Corry.
- Here’s what Thomas’ deal looks like in chart form, via Over the Cap.
Justin Houston (OLB), Chiefs:
- Houston’s new contract counts for just $5.1MM against the Chiefs’ cap in 2015 before jumping to $19.1MM in 2016. In a tweet, Corry breaks down the cap charges for all six years.
- According to Corry (via Twitter), Houston gets $12MM of his $20.5MM signing bonus within 20 days of signing the contract. The remaining $8.5MM is deferred until April 1, 2016.
Extra Points: Bryant, Thomas, Mathis, Green
After signing wide receiver Demaryius Thomas to a five-year contract today, the Broncos issued a statement publicly denying that they colluded with the Cowboys to limit the earnings of Thomas and Dez Bryant, as the NFLPA has alleged. “The suggestion that our club may have colluded with another team about a negotiation is completely false and without any merit,” the Broncos said, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Earlier tonight it was reported that the union is now unlikely to pursue collusion charges against the two teams. Here’s more from around the NFL..
- In an appearance on CBS Sports Radio, free agent guard Evan Mathis said that he expects his options to be clearer in a week or two, as training camps around the NFL begin to get underway. “There’s no rush at all,” according to Mathis (Twitter links via Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald).
- Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer looked at how the deals for Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas might affect Bengals star A.J. Green. The $14MM/year precedent sound reasonable for Green, but the Bengals still shouldn’t expect agent Ben Dogra to accept a carbon copy of those deals. Green has said that he is willing to play out the 2015 season on his current deal and Dehner writes that his patience could pay off.
- Having recently announced his retirement from the NFL, former 49ers defensive end Justin Smith is considering heading back to the NCAA, according to Missouri head coach Gary Pinkel, who says Smith may join the Missouri coaching staff as an assistant. Chase Goodbread of NFL.com has the details.
- Thomas should send a thank you note to Bryant, Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post writes. Kiszla doesn’t believe that Broncos GM John Elway would have been willing to ink Thomas to a deal before seeing what Bryant got, because he wouldn’t want to pay a dollar more for DT than the Cowboys did for Dez.
- Some Ravens fans have slammed the team’s decision to give punter Sam Koch a multi-year commitment with $7MM in guaranteed money, but Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun believes that the deal makes sense for both sides. Koch doesn’t boom 60-yard punts down the middle of the field but he does nullify opposing return games and pin the opposition inside the 20-yard line with his directional punts. Koch is one of the most reliable and most respected players in the Ravens locker room and even with his new deal, he is not one of the league’s five-highest paid punters in terms of average salary per year.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
Reactions To Justin Houston’s Extension
Justin Houston is a case study in a player betting on himself, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Houston turned down a solid deal in October and went on to nearly set a new sack record. Now, he has himself a new six-year deal worth $101MM. Here’s a look at some of the reactions to Houston’s new deal..
- Unlike the other tagged players, Houston had leverage in his negotiation, Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap writes. The Chiefs had the most difficult cap situation remaining in the NFL with just slightly over $500K in cap room remaining, a figure that included Houston on a $13.2MM tender. They needed to bring his cap figure down by at least $4MM to function this year, which gave Houston some extra juice in the talks.
- When asked if he would have showed for camp if he didn’t get his long-term contract, Houston said “probably not,” according to Adam Teicher of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- The Chiefs were convinced that Houston was serious about his threats to miss games, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report hears (video link). They were comfortable giving him the deal because he erased many of their concerns in 2014.
- On a conference call, Chiefs GM John Dorsey said the team still has the flexibility to do other deals, Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk writes.
- The Houston deal provides a template for what it might take for the Broncos to secure Von Miller long term, Troy Renck of The Denver Post tweets. Miller will be eligible for the franchise tag after this year. Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (on Twitter) adds that the Houston deal should mark Miller’s salary floor.
NFLPA Likely To Drop Collusion Claims Against Cowboys, Broncos
The NFLPA is not expected to pursue collusion claims now that Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas got their deals done, a union source told Liz Mullen of SportsBusiness Journal (on Twitter). Both players agreed to lucrative deals earlier today that, interestingly, were roughly equal.
Evidence of possible collusion between the Cowboys and Broncos reportedly stemmed from a conversation that took place between Bryant and Cowboys COO Stephen Jones. Jones explained to Bryant that the Calvin Johnson contract, which is the most lucrative deal for a wide receiver in the NFL, had no relevance to other receivers because of the unique circumstances surrounding those negotiations. Then, according to Bryant’s account (per the source), Jones told the receiver that he talked to Broncos GM John Elway about the situation. Because the Broncos also had franchise-tagged receiver in Thomas, the admission that Jones and Elway communicated about the situation constitutes evidence of collusion.
The NFLPA letter containing the collusion claims against the Broncos and Cowboys went out to clubs on Tuesday, but it sounds like all is forgiven now that the two star receivers have gotten hefty paydays.
Broncos Extend Demaryius Thomas
3:01pm: With the deadline for franchised players to sign multiyear deals having passed, Albert Breer of the NFL Network confirms (via Twitter) that Thomas’ contract has been finalized and filed
2:51pm: According to Mike Klis of 9News (Twitter link), $35MM of Thomas’ $43.5MM overall guarantee is fully guaranteed at the time of signing.
2:38pm: Shortly after the Cowboys and Dez Bryant agreed to a five-year, $70MM contract, the Broncos and Demaryius Thomas have done the same, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Thomas’ five-year, $70MM pact will feature $43.5MM in guarantees, just slightly less than Bryant’s $45MM.
Heading into the day, a multiyear extension hadn’t been considered likely for Thomas, who was reportedly seeking a contract in the neighborhood of Calvin Johnson‘s mega-deal with the Lions — the Broncos appeared unwilling to budge from a figure much lower than that, in the ballpark of $13MM annually. However, this afternoon’s deadline – along with Bryant’s deal – got the two sides back to the negotiating table, and they got something done with less than a half-hour to go.
This morning, we learned that Thomas was planning to skip the Broncos’ training camp and preseason if he didn’t get a long-term extension today, and it’s possible that threat helped move the team to action. After all, with a new head coach and offensive coordinator in place, it would have set the Broncos back somewhat to be without their No. 1 wideout until September. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link), the club upped its offer today.
It’s also possible that the threat of a collusion complaint from the NFL Player’s Association played a part, though neither the Broncos nor the Cowboys appeared to take that investigation too seriously. Now that Bryant and Thomas have been locked up, the NFLPA will likely stand down, but amidst the union’s claims of collusion, it’s interesting to note that the two wideouts appear to have landed virtually identical contracts.
Like Bryant, Thomas has been one of the league’s top receivers over the last several seasons, piling up 297 receptions and three consecutive Pro Bowl nods since becoming a full-time starter for the Broncos in 2012. During that stretch, Thomas averaged 99 catches, 1,494 yards, and 12 touchdowns per season, establishing new career highs with 111 receptions and 1619 yards in 2014. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) has ranked the 27-year-old as a top-five wideout in each of the last three seasons.
Despite his gaudy numbers, Thomas wasn’t a lock to be extended by the Broncos, given the team’s uncertain quarterback situation beyond this season. Although Thomas’ success can’t be attributed entirely to Peyton Manning, there’s a chance his production will eventually drop off without the future Hall-of-Famer, who may not extend his career beyond 2015.
Still, having let standout pass-catchers like Eric Decker and Julius Thomas walk in free agency over the last two years, the Broncos appeared to be prioritizing Demaryius Thomas. By locking him up now, the team avoids having to make a tough decision next year, when both Thomas and Von Miller would be eligible for potential unrestricted free agency. With Thomas under contract, Denver now has the 2016 franchise tag available to use on Miller.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Demaryius Thomas Updates: Wednesday
With less than five hours for Demaryius Thomas and the Broncos to finalize a long-term extension, the odds of the two sides reaching an agreement don’t look great. We’ll round up Wednesday’s updates on Thomas in this space, with any additional news and rumors added to the top of the page throughout the day. Here’s the latest:
- If the Broncos and Thomas are able to make a last-minute deal, expect it to be bigger than the five-year, $70MM deal Dez Bryant got from the Cowboys, tweets Mike Klis of 9News. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that Thomas and the Broncos are talking, though they don’t have much time left.
Earlier updates:
- According to Albert Breer of the NFL Network (Twitter links), the Broncos have adjusted their offer to Thomas four times, but the last adjustment came over a month ago. That proposal, which is still on the table, was strong on guarantees but fell short of the per-year salary Thomas is seeking.
- A source tells Pro Football Talk (Twitter link) that the Broncos had been under the impression that Thomas would take the best deal on the table today. Now, the team isn’t so sure about that.
- As of 9:00am MDT, there had been no communication today between the Broncos and Thomas’ agent, Todd France, tweets Mike Klis of 9News. As Klis adds in a second tweet, if the two sides were intent on making a deal, they’d probably have to start hammering out specific details and language by now.
- Earlier today, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report indicated that the Broncos are unlikely to budge from their current offer, which is in the neighborhood of $13MM per year.
- We also heard that the standout receiver is expected to skip training camp and the preseason if he doesn’t land a new deal today. Because he has yet to sign his franchise tender, Thomas wouldn’t be subject to fines for his absence. Within that same story, we passed along word from Troy Renck of the Denver Post that multiple agents believe Denver has offered Thomas more than $40MM guaranteed, though it’s not clear if that amount is fully guaranteed.