Champ Bailey Will Return to Broncos With History-Making Contract
Filed under: Broncos, AFC West
Champ Bailey has re-signed with the Denver Broncos and the 10-time Pro Bowl cornerback wasn’t thinking twice about passing up the chance for more money by forgoing his pending free agency.
“One thing I’ve learned is that the grass is not always greener,” Bailey told reporters in a conference call Tuesday.
Bailey, 32, agreed to a four-year contract worth about $43 million that is the richest deal ever for a cornerback above 30 years old, according to the Denver Post. It includes $11 million guaranteed in 2011.
Still, that’s $2 million less than he made last season and well off the premium paid to other elite players at the position, including Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis‘ league-leading annual salary of $15 million.
Bailey said the NFL’s labor uncertainty had an impact on his decision. If the sides fail to reach a new collective bargaining agreement by March 3, there is a strong likelihood the players could be locked out by owners who are seeking a more favorable split of the league revenues with the players. There are concerns the dispute could put the 2011 season in the jeopardy.
“A lot of players really don’t get a chance to test the market when you know that people are going to want you somewhere,” Bailey said. “But, there is no certainty once March 4 rolls around. That played a role in my decision — to make sure something got done.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen after March 3 of the CBA and all of that stuff. You don’t know how teams are going to react to free agents and what’s going to be out there. I just figured if I can, get it done. But it’s really what I wanted all along anyways.”
The desire by both Bailey and the Broncos to patch up their differences figured prominently in their ability to strike a deal. Bailey had to look past the organization’s decision back in October to pull off the table a four-year, $40 million contract extension offer, while the organization had to overcome any trepidations it had about extending a significant deal to Bailey, who turns 33 next season.
“Champ is truly one of the NFL’s elite players, a 10-time Pro Bowler who is playing at the absolute highest level,” Broncos vice president of football operations John Elway wrote on Twitter. “We’re fortunate to have Champ with the Broncos for a long time.”
For the past few months, it didn’t look like Bailey, who would have been eligible for free agency next month, would be part of the team. There had been little contact between Bailey and the team since the organization’s initial offer was pulled back in October, when fired coach Josh McDaniels was still calling the shots on personnel for the Broncos.
McDaniels wound up being fired the first week of December. John Elway was brought back in January as the Broncos’ top football operations executive and he led the search resulting in the hiring of John Fox as the team’s new coach. Last week, the team re-opened negotiations with Bailey and made it clear they hoped to have him back and would do what they could to make that happen.
The signing of Bailey is the first major personnel move by the new management team. The club reopened negotiations with Bailey last week and wrapped up talks on the new deal Tuesday.
“Signing Champ was a top priority this offseason,” general manager Brian Xanders said in a statement. “He has shown incredible loyalty to the Broncos organization and this community in his seven seasons with the club. His value on and off the field is immeasurable, and we couldn’t be happier that he is positioned to finish his Hall of Fame career as a Bronco.”
For his part, Bailey said he welcomed the commitment that the Broncos and their new management team showed his after the contract snub by the previous regime.
“It means a lot, because you don’t see it happen very often,” Bailey said. “But I’ve got to be honest — not to sound arrogant or anything — but I don’t come along very often, either. Things have got to be different from what everybody else is getting. It’s just the way it is. It’s the way this business is, and I appreciate the fact that they realize that and they realize how important it was for me to stay here. They realized the importance for them to keep me here.
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Source: http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2011/02/23/champ-bailey-will-return-to-broncos-with-history-making-contract/