Per Reich, no decision from Anthony Castonzo yet

[EastStreet]

12 hours ago, GoColts8818 said:

He’s also said over and over again that bills come due.  He’s made it clear he’s saving his money to sign his own.  I also don’t AC is looking to get paid like the best left tackle in football either.  I am sure he wants what’s fair but I also think the Colts are prepared to do that with him.  I don’t think money is the major issue here.

I don't think AC is looking to be the highest paid guy either, but I do think he wants to be paid top 5 at position.

[EastStreet]

4 hours ago, Chloe6124 said:

Ballard isn’t the type to lowball. Was paying Kenny Moore after one great season being frugal and cheap.  Money is not the motivator hear. Ballard knows the importance of AC and was going to do the right thing. This negative crap always wanting to see the bad side of everything is ridiculous.

It's Ballard's fiduciary responsibility to Irsay and the organization to represent them, and get the best "deal" possible. It's also AC's agent's fiduciary responsibility to AC to do the same. Pointing those things out is not negative. It's simply reality. It's a business, not a non-profit. 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

30 minutes ago, EastStreet said:

It's Ballard's fiduciary responsibility to Irsay and the organization to represent them, and get the best "deal" possible. It's also AC's agent's fiduciary responsibility to AC to do the same. Pointing those things out is not negative. It's simply reality. It's a business, not a non-profit. 

The point is ballard knows AC worth. He isn’t going to insult him and offer him a below market deal.

[EastStreet]

10 minutes ago, Chloe6124 said:

The point is ballard knows AC worth. He isn’t going to insult him and offer him a below market deal.

There is a big difference between insulting and negotiation.

[GoColts8818]

2 hours ago, EastStreet said:

I don't think AC is looking to be the highest paid guy either, but I do think he wants to be paid top 5 at position.

And I also think the Colts are prepared to do that.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

14 minutes ago, GoColts8818 said:

And I also think the Colts are prepared to do that.

This. If he comes back I suspect it’s going to be a very easy negotiation. Ballard knows what he is worth and AC isn’t looking to be the highest paid. But it won’t shock me if he does end up the highest paid LT.

[EastStreet]

23 minutes ago, GoColts8818 said:

And I also think the Colts are prepared to do that.

Agreed to an extent. Right now he's like 15 or 16. I could see them negotiating a 3 or 4 year deal 13 or 14Mish. I'd bet though they floated a deal earlier for an extension in 12s.

[NewColtsFan]

I think Ballard and Irsay’s financial team would like to make the AC signing as easy as possible.   I don’t think either side wants to haggle.   It shouldn’t be hard to come to terms that both sides can be happy with. 
 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

This would be strange if he waited this long. Unless he is giving ballard a chance to see if he can find a replacement in FA.

 

 

[stitches]

24 minutes ago, Chloe6124 said:

This would be strange if he waited this long. Unless he is giving ballard a chance to see if he can find a replacement in FA.

 

 

Teams can franchise tag players starting Feb 25th and the deadline for putting franchise or transition tag to a player is March 10th. 

 

I'm not sure this one makes much sense and I don't know how reliable this guy is. It's hard to summon a reason why he would wait until March honestly... doesn't make much sense. 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

15 minutes ago, stitches said:

Teams can franchise tag players starting Feb 25th and the deadline for putting franchise or transition tag to a player is March 10th. 

 

I'm not sure this one makes much sense and I don't know how reliable this guy is. It's hard to summon a reason why he would wait until March honestly... doesn't make much sense. 

I agree it makes no sense.  I am not sure I believe it.

[DougDew]

I assume they can use the franchise tag to secure him for next year and then unfranchise him if he retires.

[EastStreet]

39 minutes ago, Chloe6124 said:

This would be strange if he waited this long. Unless he is giving ballard a chance to see if he can find a replacement in FA.

 

 

Is this guy (Mark Walker) even legit? By his twitter feed looks pretty much like a fan trying to make a twitter career. Not sure I buy "source close to the team", unless he's basically regurgitating someone else breaking news.

 

As far as the timing, I expected late Feb to early March anyway, so not exactly shocked. Everyone takes time off and the season isn't even really over yet given guys from non-playoff teams were still running around last week with PB stuff. 

[richard pallo]

16 minutes ago, stitches said:

Teams can franchise tag players starting Feb 25th and the deadline for putting franchise or transition tag to a player is March 10th. 

 

I'm not sure this one makes much sense and I don't know how reliable this guy is. It's hard to summon a reason why he would wait until March honestly... doesn't make much sense. 

Maybe he is giving Ballard a chance to find a replacement.  Ballard could franchise him as well.  If Ballard finds a QB he is happy with he resigns.  If not they remove the tag and he retires.  

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

2 minutes ago, richard pallo said:

Maybe he is giving Ballard a chance to find a replacement.  Ballard could franchise him as well.  If Ballard finds a QB he is happy with he resigns.  If not they remove the tag and he retires.  

This sounds very plausible.

 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

3 minutes ago, EastStreet said:

Is this guy (Mark Walker) even legit? By his twitter feed looks pretty much like a fan trying to make a twitter career. Not sure I buy "source close to the team", unless he's basically regurgitating someone else breaking news.

 

As far as the timing, I expected late Feb to early March anyway, so not exactly shocked. Everyone takes time off and the season isn't even really over yet given guys from non-playoff teams were still running around last week with PB stuff. 

Yeah I am not sure he has actual inside info. I put AC in the search on twitter and don’t see anything.

 

[aaron11]

24 minutes ago, stitches said:

It's hard to summon a reason why he would wait until March honestly... doesn't make much sense. 

 

it fits what ive been saying in this thread.  he may want to see what kind of free agents we bring in , and what the plan is for the QB situation 

 

not sure why people though that was a crazy notion last week 

[EastStreet]

Need to remember not a lot of big contract stuff happens before the season is over (SB over). What is happening now is more coaching/FO type hires, and reserves/futures type stuff. 

 

As far as AC is concerned,,,,,, AC knows Indy wants him back. There is no rush for him. The longer it goes, the more leverage AC has. Even if he's not playing a game of negotiation, there simply is no rush for him.

 

I get it, folks want quick resolution, but have you seen a lot of other teams lock up their important FAs over the last couple weeks? Take a look at the recent transactions, and you'll see what I'm talking about.

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/transactions

 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

Yeah Drew Brees even said he wasn’t making a decision until March.

[EastStreet]

A decent article today from ESPN below on Prescott's contract situation. While he and AC's situations are a bit different, they are the same in several ways too.

 

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/28599101/dak-prescott-says-confident-deal-coming-cowboys

Quote

 

Quarterback Dak Prescott said in an interview with ESPN that he's confident he and the Dallas Cowboys will be able to agree to a contract this offseason.

 

The Cowboys and Prescott have discussed a new contract since the end of the 2018 season, but so far the sides have not been able to agree to a deal. He is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent when the new league year begins on March 18.

 

"I'm confident a new contract is coming. I'm confident in my agent and my team and I'm confident in the Cowboys that something will get done," he said in the interview with ESPN's Sage Steele, when asked how close he was to agreeing to a new contract.

 

Asked why he and the Cowboys couldn't agree to a new contract before the start of last season, Prescott said, "There's a lot of variables that go into it."

 

"There's a lot of things that have to come into play when you're talking about a contract. Never just look at the money, never just look at what people see or the attention-grabber. There's a lot of details to it," he said. "There's people that know that handle that, so I'm leaving that up to my agent and I have all the confidence in both sides."

 

Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones said last week at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, that signing Prescott to a new deal was the franchise's No. 1 priority this offseason. If Prescott and the Cowboys can't agree to a contract, Dallas has the option to use its franchise tag on the quarterback.

 

"It's been urgent for us," Jones said, according to USA Today Sports. "We want to certainly get that done. Get his contract, find some resolution to it and get it done."

Prescott told ESPN that the fact that he was unable to get a deal before last season didn't affect his focus.

 

"I don't play the game for money. Never once in my life have I touched a football and thought about money," he said. "I play the game because of my love and my passion, so once the season began, that's all my focus was on, was my love of the game and my commitment to my teammates to go get something done, to get the job done. We all had a shared responsibility and a promise to go after something and it had nothing to do about individual bank accounts or what was to come, so it never crossed my mind."

 

Although the Cowboys finished 8-8 last season, missing the playoffs and ultimately costing coach Jason Garrett his job, Prescott had a career year, posting career highs in passing yards (4,902) and touchdowns passes (30).

 

Prescott said he is grateful for everything Garrett did for his career and that he has exchanged text messages with his former coach. Garrett will remain coaching in the NFC East next season after joining the New York Giants as their offensive coordinator.

 

"I'm happy that he's still coaching; the league needs him, but [I'm] not happy where he is," Prescott said.

 

 

[IinD]

I think looked others have said it's par for the course this time of year.

 

Sean Payton was on the radio this morning and they asked him what's up with Brees and he said they'll get together in a month and he'll let them know his plans. So essentially the same thing.

 

Looks like it's the only time of year where players get to stay away and not be bugged by their teams.

[a06cc]

I’m not afraid of losing him. We’ll have to grab his replacement eventually. This would be the year to do it. This year is deep in Offensive linemen as well. We have 3 top 50 picks to grab premium players. I think we’ll be fine to regards of anything happening. 

[Creekside]

7 hours ago, Chloe6124 said:

This would be strange if he waited this long. Unless he is giving ballard a chance to see if he can find a replacement in FA.

 

 

 

At least that's better than 10 days before the season opener.

[EastStreet]

2 hours ago, a06cc said:

I’m not afraid of losing him. We’ll have to grab his replacement eventually. This would be the year to do it. This year is deep in Offensive linemen as well. We have 3 top 50 picks to grab premium players. I think we’ll be fine to regards of anything happening. 

Agreed that it's a good year (deep), still don't want to lose him. I think several OTs in this year's draft would step in nicely next to Q. Having Q on your right can make your job a bit easier. And frankly that's why I think AC would be making a mistake leaving 50M on the table. He's in a fantastic position to spend a few more years on a very good line, and double his net worth.

[EastStreet]

22 minutes ago, egg said:

 

At least that's better than 10 days before the season opener.

[Jackie Daytona]

3 hours ago, EastStreet said:

He's in a fantastic position to spend a few more years on a very good line, and double his net worth.

Yeah, but maybe AC just figured, what's the difference in ten tons and 100 tons landing on your head?   The guys smart, generations of his family could be set on what he's made if it's managed well....

[EastStreet]

34 minutes ago, Shafty138 said:

Yeah, but maybe AC just figured, what's the difference in ten tons and 100 tons landing on your head?   The guys smart, generations of his family could be set on what he's made if it's managed well....

Could be. Could also be 3-4 years and doubling his net worth is attractive too. That's grand kid security type stuff.

[LockeDown]

4 hours ago, Shafty138 said:

Yeah, but maybe AC just figured, what's the difference in ten tons and 100 tons landing on your head?   The guys smart, generations of his family could be set on what he's made if it's managed well....

...and it’s pushed  off a cliff falling on his head and all he has is a tiny umbrella.

[AwesomeAustin]

Of course AC is waiting until March.  He will see what the Colts do in FA, what they offer him and what other teams offer.  If a contending team comes in and offers him 3yrs 51m with 40m guaranteed It will play a big part in his “decision”. 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

29 minutes ago, AwesomeAustin said:

Of course AC is waiting until March.  He will see what the Colts do in FA, what they offer him and what other teams offer.  If a contending team comes in and offers him 3yrs 51m with 40m guaranteed It will play a big part in his “decision”. 

He said it’s the colts or retire. He isn’t going to another team. Ballard knows how important he is to this team and will pay him correctly.

[AwesomeAustin]

5 hours ago, Chloe6124 said:

He said it’s the colts or retire. He isn’t going to another team. Ballard knows how important he is to this team and will pay him correctly.

Of course he is going to say that.  He is an outstanding professional and wont come out publicly with I’m going to hear other teams offers and the colts need to be competitive with theirs.  No way he will lose the leverage for a new contract if that is on the table. 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

29 minutes ago, AwesomeAustin said:

Of course he is going to say that.  He is an outstanding professional and wont come out publicly with I’m going to hear other teams offers and the colts need to be competitive with theirs.  No way he will lose the leverage for a new contract if that is on the table. 

Why would he leave with the oline he has around him. He has the best left guard beside him. Don’t give me he wants a contender. There is no guarantee ever when you think that way.  I take him at his word that it’s the colts or retire.

[EastStreet]

10 minutes ago, Chloe6124 said:

Why would he leave with the oline he has around him. He has the best left guard beside him. Don’t give me he wants a contender. There is no guarantee ever when you think that way.  I take him at his word that it’s the colts or retire.

While he may absolutely want to stay with the Colts, offers from others serve as leverage. I've had a ton of employees over the years come in with competing offer, with the "I really want to stay here, but I have this from XXX"... I gave plenty of raises over the years in those situations, and I also told several I couldn't match.... 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

18 minutes ago, EastStreet said:

While he may absolutely want to stay with the Colts, offers from others serve as leverage. I've had a ton of employees over the years come in with competing offer, with the "I really want to stay here, but I have this from XXX"... I gave plenty of raises over the years in those situations, and I also told several I couldn't match.... 

Possibly but Ballard will not let him walk for a few million more. I doubt this last until the free agency period anyway. I still doubt AC is going to do that anyway. He isn’t that kind of player. Some players are just different. AC probably already has the offer. Now he just has to decide whether he wants to play.

[EastStreet]

5 minutes ago, Chloe6124 said:

Possibly but Ballard will not let him walk for a few million more. I doubt this last until the free agency period anyway. I still doubt AC is going to do that anyway. He isn’t that kind of player. Some players are just different. AC probably already has the offer. Now he just has to decide whether he wants to play.

Like I've said before, nobody knows "what kind of guy" he is when it comes to contracts/negotiation.... all this stuff "he isn't that kind of player" is just silly.

 

Also, if memory serves, his agent is Tom Condon... one of the shrewdest guy out there, who is coaching AC every step of the way and handling most of the conversation anyway.. 

[richard pallo]

31 minutes ago, EastStreet said:

While he may absolutely want to stay with the Colts, offers from others serve as leverage. I've had a ton of employees over the years come in with competing offer, with the "I really want to stay here, but I have this from XXX"... I gave plenty of raises over the years in those situations, and I also told several I couldn't match.... 

If he wants to play I think it's with us.  If they can't come to a contract agreement they just franchise him.  Then it's us or nobody next year. 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

9 minutes ago, EastStreet said:

Like I've said before, nobody knows "what kind of guy" he is when it comes to contracts/negotiation.... all this stuff "he isn't that kind of player" is just silly.

 

Also, if memory serves, his agent is Tom Condon... one of the shrewdest guy out there, who is coaching AC every step of the way and handling most of the conversation anyway.. 

No but we can take him at his word when he has talked about resigning. He clearly said he wasn’t young trying to get this big second contract. Everything in his own words leads me to believe this has nothing to do with money. He is the type of guy that is committed to training as soon as the season ends. He isn’t going to go sign a big contract if he isn’t fully committed. You can choose to believe him or not. I believe him.

[EastStreet]

20 minutes ago, richard pallo said:

If he wants to play I think it's with us.  If they can't come to a contract agreement they just franchise him.  Then it's us or nobody next year. 

I have zero doubt that he wants to stay with the Colts. I just don't buy that it's not impacted by $$. 

12 minutes ago, Chloe6124 said:

No but we can take him at his word when he has talked about resigning. He clearly said he wasn’t young trying to get this big second contract. Everything in his own words leads me to believe this has nothing to do with money. He is the type of guy that is committed to training as soon as the season ends. He isn’t going to go sign a big contract if he isn’t fully committed. You can choose to believe him or not. I believe him.

He's going to say all the right things. He's a smart guy and will say all the right things. He's got one of the best agents coaching him on the right things to say. I'm not saying he doesn't want to sincerely play for the Colts if he plays anywhere, but to say money is not an important factor is just plain naive. He can be sincere about wanting to play for the Colts AND maximize his worth, which in no means makes him selfish. It's simply looking out for his interest like every player should.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

1 minute ago, EastStreet said:

I have zero doubt that he wants to stay with the Colts. I just don't buy that it's not impacted by $$. 

He's going to say all the right things. He's a smart guy and will say all the right things. He's got one of the best agents coaching him on the right things to say. I'm not saying he doesn't want to sincerely play for the Colts if he plays anywhere, but to say money is not an important factor is just plain naive. He can be sincere about wanting to play for the Colts AND maximize his worth, which in no means makes him selfish. It's simply looking out for his interest like every player should.

You seem to think every player cares about money. He is healthy and maybe it’s about going out healthy so he can enjoy the rest of his life. Yes money drives some players. Others it doesn’t.  You seem to not want to even think that a player isn’t always motivated by money. You seem to be the naive one.

[EastStreet]

24 minutes ago, Chloe6124 said:

You seem to think every player cares about money. He is healthy and maybe it’s about going out healthy so he can enjoy the rest of his life. Yes money drives some players. Others it doesn’t.  You seem to not want to even think that a player isn’t always motivated by money. You seem to be the naive one.

It's a business. And you don't pay an agent like Tom Condon if money is not important. 

Not all people are motivated by money, I've employed many that it's not a primary driver... but when it's time for a raise, promotion, or counter, they don't simply roll over and take anything.