Post by GeorgiaEagle on Apr 12, 2005 2:35:21 GMT -5
This article sheds some light on T.O.'s new agent - "like Sherman through Atlanta" - LOL!
Also it hints at some trouble within the ranks...
Grate offseason
Owens joins growing Eagles' lineup that is unhappy with contracts
By LES BOWEN
bowenl@phillynews.com
Drew Rosenhaus left the NovaCare Complex yesterday after what a source close to the situation called the briefest and blandest of meetings with Eagles president Joe Banner and his assistant, Howie Roseman.
The Eagles definitely are expecting another Nike-swooshed cleat to drop, though, in an offseason that seems to be growing infinitely more complex and perplexing.
The source said no holdout threats or salary demands were issued in the 5-minute meeting, in which Rosenhaus told the Eagles he likes to sit down with team officials when he signs new clients, and said he felt new client Terrell Owens "has outperformed his contract." That would be the 7-year deal, worth up to $49 million, with $21 million owed in the first 3 years, that Owens signed less than 13 months ago, on March 16, 2004.
The source said Rosenhaus was told the Eagles think the contract is fair and they aren't interested in revisiting it. After that, Rosenhaus mentioned that he also now represents Eagles offensive tackle Tra Thomas, who is signed through 2008, a few pleasantries were exchanged, and Rosenhaus was off to greet the cameras waiting at the NovaCare entrance.
But the Eagles know Owens wouldn't have fired his agent of 9 years, David Joseph, whom Owens described as "family" last year in his autobiography, and hired Rosenhaus, just to hear after a 5-minute meeting that the Birds weren't going to show him more money.
"I had a brief meeting this afternoon with Drew Rosenhaus, who now represents Terrell Owens. We discussed his new representation of Terrell, as he does often with teams of new clients. We are not prepared, at this time, to discuss any other details of the conversation," Banner said in a statement released by the team.
"All I can say is, stay tuned," Rosenhaus told the Daily News, after categorizing the discussion with Banner and Roseman as "not really something I can talk about." Asked if he would be returning, Rosenhaus said, "I have a feeling I will be."
To reporters outside the NovaCare gates, Rosenhaus said, "I've got some work to do with the team and I'm planning on getting it done."
In a chat on his Web site, Owens was asked about the agent switch and wrote: "ALL BUSINESS!!! I LUV PHILLY!!!" followed by a smiley-face giving a thumbs-up.
This is just the latest offseason twist for the Eagles, who could be experiencing some of the fallout that in the past has kept teams from repeating Super Bowl runs. The St. Louis Rams, after their second Super Bowl, in 2002, and the Tampa Bay Bucs the next year, are teams that saw salary demands escalate and top talent scatter to the winds in the wake of success. One obvious difference is that those teams actually won the Super Bowl before money and egos escalated out of control. The Eagles came up three points short in February, but took solace in having contractual control of all their key components as they looked forward to the upcoming season.
Now Owens wants a new deal, and apparently, Thomas does too, though Rosenhaus said yesterday only that he "brought up" Thomas with the Eagles. Earlier this week, unhappy franchised defensive tackle Corey Simon vetoed a proposed trade with the Baltimore Ravens because he couldn't agree with the Ravens on a long-term contract. Simon left little doubt that he does not like the 1-year, $5.13 million franchise tender, which he has not signed.
Running back Brian Westbrook, who also wants a long-term deal with the Eagles, hasn't signed his 1-year restricted free agent tender. Defensive tackle Hollis Thomas is unhappy that the Birds won't revisit his contract, and has asked to be traded. The Eagles are expected to trade or release wide receiver Freddie Mitchell, who was unhappy with his role last season.
Again, the Eagles nominally control all these situations. But players can hold out, and pout, and cause distractions, even when they're under contract. Though no one from the front office will speak publicly, the Eagles think they can weather these storms by being resolute. The real trouble starts, they feel, when teams abandon their charted course under pressure from players and agents.
Other agents who deal regularly with the Eagles scoffed yesterday at the idea that Rosenhaus, despite a string of flashy, high-profile deals over the past year or so, will be able to get the Birds to significantly adjust T.O.'s deal, which remains among the top handful of wide-receiver contracts in the league.
"I've known Joe Banner for 15 years. There's not a chance," one agent said.
An agent said Rosenhaus is good at creating controversy and pressure that make some teams buckle, just so they can end the crisis.
"He creates an enormous stink, and sometimes something happens," the agent said.
Most Eagles fans probably only care to the extent it affects the situation with their team's players, but Rosenhaus' rampage through the league, nearly doubling his client base to about 90 in a little over a year, has alarmed and angered fellow agents - who, of course, are hardly unbiased observers.
"Like Sherman through Atlanta," one prominent agent said yesterday. The agent, who had just finished cautioning a reporter that "there's so much jealousy that goes on between agents, and very little collegiality," nonetheless accused Rosenhaus of "ruining real relationships for his own greed."
That agent also praised Rosenhaus for being "relentless."
"He's got too many clients. It's impossible to attend to that many. But you have to hand it to him," the agent said. "He's on the phone all day and all night. He'll stand out in the parking lot at the Miami Dolphins' practice facility and talk to everybody that comes out. That's good agentry."
The NFLPA has rules against tampering with another agent's clients, and competing agents have often accused Rosenhaus of flouting them. Agent Kenneth Sarnoff recently filed a complaint with the NFLPA after losing Arizona wideout Anquan Boldin to Rosenhaus. Rosenhaus has denied any wrongdoing in that matter.
Other agents said yesterday that the league and the players association only seem to care about whether agents mishandle players' money, and generally stay out of the hiring and firing hurly-burly. Attempts to contact NFLPA spokesman Carl Francis were unsuccessful.
"We're doing a job. We do it well," Rosenhaus said last night. He works with his brother, Jason, out of Miami Beach, Fla. "Players come to us. I'm not in the business of turning down opportunity. It's a free country. We follow the rules. We pay close attention to the rules.
"All the criticism is just sour grapes from competitors."
www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/sports/football/nfl/philadelphia_eagles/11331309.htm
Also it hints at some trouble within the ranks...
Grate offseason
Owens joins growing Eagles' lineup that is unhappy with contracts
By LES BOWEN
bowenl@phillynews.com
Drew Rosenhaus left the NovaCare Complex yesterday after what a source close to the situation called the briefest and blandest of meetings with Eagles president Joe Banner and his assistant, Howie Roseman.
The Eagles definitely are expecting another Nike-swooshed cleat to drop, though, in an offseason that seems to be growing infinitely more complex and perplexing.
The source said no holdout threats or salary demands were issued in the 5-minute meeting, in which Rosenhaus told the Eagles he likes to sit down with team officials when he signs new clients, and said he felt new client Terrell Owens "has outperformed his contract." That would be the 7-year deal, worth up to $49 million, with $21 million owed in the first 3 years, that Owens signed less than 13 months ago, on March 16, 2004.
The source said Rosenhaus was told the Eagles think the contract is fair and they aren't interested in revisiting it. After that, Rosenhaus mentioned that he also now represents Eagles offensive tackle Tra Thomas, who is signed through 2008, a few pleasantries were exchanged, and Rosenhaus was off to greet the cameras waiting at the NovaCare entrance.
But the Eagles know Owens wouldn't have fired his agent of 9 years, David Joseph, whom Owens described as "family" last year in his autobiography, and hired Rosenhaus, just to hear after a 5-minute meeting that the Birds weren't going to show him more money.
"I had a brief meeting this afternoon with Drew Rosenhaus, who now represents Terrell Owens. We discussed his new representation of Terrell, as he does often with teams of new clients. We are not prepared, at this time, to discuss any other details of the conversation," Banner said in a statement released by the team.
"All I can say is, stay tuned," Rosenhaus told the Daily News, after categorizing the discussion with Banner and Roseman as "not really something I can talk about." Asked if he would be returning, Rosenhaus said, "I have a feeling I will be."
To reporters outside the NovaCare gates, Rosenhaus said, "I've got some work to do with the team and I'm planning on getting it done."
In a chat on his Web site, Owens was asked about the agent switch and wrote: "ALL BUSINESS!!! I LUV PHILLY!!!" followed by a smiley-face giving a thumbs-up.
This is just the latest offseason twist for the Eagles, who could be experiencing some of the fallout that in the past has kept teams from repeating Super Bowl runs. The St. Louis Rams, after their second Super Bowl, in 2002, and the Tampa Bay Bucs the next year, are teams that saw salary demands escalate and top talent scatter to the winds in the wake of success. One obvious difference is that those teams actually won the Super Bowl before money and egos escalated out of control. The Eagles came up three points short in February, but took solace in having contractual control of all their key components as they looked forward to the upcoming season.
Now Owens wants a new deal, and apparently, Thomas does too, though Rosenhaus said yesterday only that he "brought up" Thomas with the Eagles. Earlier this week, unhappy franchised defensive tackle Corey Simon vetoed a proposed trade with the Baltimore Ravens because he couldn't agree with the Ravens on a long-term contract. Simon left little doubt that he does not like the 1-year, $5.13 million franchise tender, which he has not signed.
Running back Brian Westbrook, who also wants a long-term deal with the Eagles, hasn't signed his 1-year restricted free agent tender. Defensive tackle Hollis Thomas is unhappy that the Birds won't revisit his contract, and has asked to be traded. The Eagles are expected to trade or release wide receiver Freddie Mitchell, who was unhappy with his role last season.
Again, the Eagles nominally control all these situations. But players can hold out, and pout, and cause distractions, even when they're under contract. Though no one from the front office will speak publicly, the Eagles think they can weather these storms by being resolute. The real trouble starts, they feel, when teams abandon their charted course under pressure from players and agents.
Other agents who deal regularly with the Eagles scoffed yesterday at the idea that Rosenhaus, despite a string of flashy, high-profile deals over the past year or so, will be able to get the Birds to significantly adjust T.O.'s deal, which remains among the top handful of wide-receiver contracts in the league.
"I've known Joe Banner for 15 years. There's not a chance," one agent said.
An agent said Rosenhaus is good at creating controversy and pressure that make some teams buckle, just so they can end the crisis.
"He creates an enormous stink, and sometimes something happens," the agent said.
Most Eagles fans probably only care to the extent it affects the situation with their team's players, but Rosenhaus' rampage through the league, nearly doubling his client base to about 90 in a little over a year, has alarmed and angered fellow agents - who, of course, are hardly unbiased observers.
"Like Sherman through Atlanta," one prominent agent said yesterday. The agent, who had just finished cautioning a reporter that "there's so much jealousy that goes on between agents, and very little collegiality," nonetheless accused Rosenhaus of "ruining real relationships for his own greed."
That agent also praised Rosenhaus for being "relentless."
"He's got too many clients. It's impossible to attend to that many. But you have to hand it to him," the agent said. "He's on the phone all day and all night. He'll stand out in the parking lot at the Miami Dolphins' practice facility and talk to everybody that comes out. That's good agentry."
The NFLPA has rules against tampering with another agent's clients, and competing agents have often accused Rosenhaus of flouting them. Agent Kenneth Sarnoff recently filed a complaint with the NFLPA after losing Arizona wideout Anquan Boldin to Rosenhaus. Rosenhaus has denied any wrongdoing in that matter.
Other agents said yesterday that the league and the players association only seem to care about whether agents mishandle players' money, and generally stay out of the hiring and firing hurly-burly. Attempts to contact NFLPA spokesman Carl Francis were unsuccessful.
"We're doing a job. We do it well," Rosenhaus said last night. He works with his brother, Jason, out of Miami Beach, Fla. "Players come to us. I'm not in the business of turning down opportunity. It's a free country. We follow the rules. We pay close attention to the rules.
"All the criticism is just sour grapes from competitors."
www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/sports/football/nfl/philadelphia_eagles/11331309.htm
