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Matt Forte, Ray Rice taking negotiations down to the wire

July 16th, 2012 11:44 AM
  • Matt-Forte-Ray-Rice-taking-negotiations-down-to-the-wire
  • Chicago-Bears-running-back-Matt-Forte-breaks-a-run-for-40-yards-against-the-Detroit-Lions.-Mandatory-Credit-Dennis-Wierzbicki-US-PRESSWIRE
  • Baltimore-Ravens-running-back-Ray-Rice-runs-for-a-12-yard-gain-against-the-San-Diego-Chargers.-Mandatory-Credit-Christopher-Hanewinckel-US-PRESSWIRE
  • Credit: US-PRESSWIRE
  • Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte breaks a run for 40 yards against the Detroit Lions. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-US PRESSWIRE
  • Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice runs for a 12-yard gain against the San Diego Chargers. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-US PRESSWIRE

    • Drew Brees and the Saints got their 5-year contract agreed upon well before Monday’s 4 p.m. deadline for franchised players to sign long-term deals. But two franchise running backs are going to be negotiating down to the wire: Matt Forte and Ray Rice.

    Both players are the focal points of their teams’ offenses; each is arguably the most important player on either side of the ball. And both are looking at a one-year, $7.7 million tender if they can’t reach a long-term agreement before 4 o’clock, or else risk sitting out all of next season.

    Forte has been very publicly looking for a multi-year deal from the Bears dating back to last offseason, and agreed to play out the final year of his rookie contract in 2011 on the good faith that the team would take care of him when the time came. But after seeing players like Arian Foster and LeSean McCoy get huge contracts from their respective teams this past year, Forte was none too pleased when the Bears decided to essentially tell him “prove it again” before they locked him up for the foreseeable future.

    However, there are a couple of things working against Forte. For one, he has yet to match the production of his rookie season in Chicago back in 2008. He was well on his way to a career bests across the board last year with 985 rushing yards and 490 receiving yards through 11 games, but a sprained MCL in Week 13 ended his campaign prematurely and put a serious crimp in his hopes for a big contract. Then after refusing to sign the franchise tender when it was originally placed on him and skipping the team’s OTAs, the Bears called his bluff by signing free agent Michael Bush as a fallback option should Forte decide to hold out into training camp.

    Rice, on the other hand, has a much stronger case against his employer. Unlike Forte, the 25-year-old star was surprised when he was hit with the tag a few months ago, and few people expected the negotiations between the two sides to drag out this long. Rice was the NFL leader in yards from scrimmage last season with 2,068 and 15 touchdowns, and unlike his fellow 2008 second round draft classmate, he has been a model of consistency ever since taking over the number one job in Baltimore.

    Rice also has a lot more leverage over the Ravens than Forte would seem to have over the Bears. Baltimore has already had to deal with the ACL injury to All-Pro linebacker Terrell Suggs this offseason, so retaining their most potent offensive weapon becomes that much more important if the team is now poised to give up more points than it had hoped. In addition to that, there is no one on the Ravens’ depth chart behind Rice who could even come close to his level of production, so their hands are pretty much tied. If the team wants to play hard ball in the negotiations, their best hope is that Rice will balk at sitting out the entire year, allowing them to get him on a discount this season and then try again for a long-term deal prior to 2013.

    UPDATE

    • Forte and the Bears agreed on a four-year deal for ~$32 million, as first reported by Sun-Times columnist Sean Jensen.

    • Rice and the Ravens came to terms on a five-year, $40 million deal just minutes before the 4 p.m. deadline.

    — Craig Lowell

    Drew Brees got his. So the line gets shorter for Matt Forte and Ray Rice. But does the money get longer?

    Read the original post from usatoday.com

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