Why Atogwe hasn't signed Rams' franchise offer ..

[HUbison]

I think we may be confusing a couple of things here. Now I could be wrong, but I think.....

1) signing the franchise tender DOES NOT preclude him from working out a long-term deal as well. In fact, if I'm not mistaken.....

2) he CAN'T sign a long term deal UNTIL he signs his tender.

I'm no expert on the rules, but I'm pretty certain this is not an "either or" situation.

[WhinerFan]

I think we may be confusing a couple of things here. Now I could be wrong, but I think.....

1) signing the franchise tender DOES NOT preclude him from working out a long-term deal as well. In fact, if I'm not mistaken.....

2) he CAN'T sign a long term deal UNTIL he signs his tender.

I'm no expert on the rules, but I'm pretty certain this is not an "either or" situation.

He does not have to sign the tender in order to sign a long-term deal. The franchise tender is rescinded and new deal signed at the same time, typically. While it does not preclude him from working out a long-term deal, it does act as a disincentive for the team's signing him to a long-term deal soon, as opposed to waiting until the season has started. From the team's perspective, the only reasons to work something out long-term are:

1)To make sure he does not leave through free agency. This can be delayed all the way until March of 2010, and if he does not perform well or is injured, they have avoided paying too much guaranteed money, unless . . .

2)The team wants to keep him happy, and show the other players on the team that they will be taken care of if they play well. Does this really sound like the Rams organization?

So from the player's perspective, signing the franchise tender is only worthwhile if he believes:
a)That the offer will be rescinded,
or b)That a long-term deal will be worked out quickly,
or c)He really wants to be with his current team for the forseeable future, and does not want to upset ownership.

[HUbison]

The franchise tender is rescinded and new deal signed at the same time,

The Rams better be dang sure he's ready to sign at that point, because the second they pull the franchise tag he is a Unrestricted Free Agent.

[WhinerFan]

The Rams better be dang sure he's ready to sign at that point, because the second they pull the franchise tag he is a Unrestricted Free Agent.

Though I am not a lawyer, I believe it is a part of the same process. Signing a deal for the long-term, with language including the franchise year, voids the franchise tender, or something like that. A number of different deals can be made similar to this (eg. when a player signs a "franchise deal" with the stipulation that he will not be franchised the next year, it is simply a new, one-year deal, and that voids the franchise tender).

[laram0]

Sheeeeesh! What happened to good old fashioned football?