In the offseason, there was speculation that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were not entirely convinced that Chris Simms was their quarterback of the future and therefore only signed the athlete to a one year contract.
Apparently, the Bucs were set on Simms after all – but the young quarterback felt he could make more money after the 2006 season if he could build on the success he had last year in going 6-2 as a starter. The St. Petersburg Times is reporting that Simms turned down a long-term contract from Tampa that would have given the 26-year old a five year deal as well as a $10 million signing bonus.
“It was good money, definitely. But I was rolling the dice,’’ said Simms, who has since had a splenectomy and is sidelined for the foreseeable future. “I have no regrets.”
Whoops.
Simms suffered a ruptured spleen in a game against Carolina three weeks ago and is likely shelved for the season. Making matters worse for Simms is that rookie Bruce Gradkowski played well enough against the Saints last week to merit a consistent starting role for head coach Jon Gruden. It also has been rumored that Gruden loves the potential Gradkowski has shown and it was no secret that Gruden was not happy with Simms’ production before his injury.
With Simms on the mend and likely to miss the rest of the season, he stands to lose a ton of money this offseason.
That probably wasn’t a good move by your son, Phil.
