Tag: Michael Crabtree (Page 6 of 11)

Training Camp Notes: Burgess, Marshall, Crabtree

Denver Broncos
Brandon Marshall will miss the Broncos’ first preseason game August 14 against San Francisco. Marshall is still dealing with an undisclosed injury, which some believe has to do with either his hip or hamstring. (Denver Post)

New England Patriots
The Pats acquired defensive end Derrick Burgess from the Raiders in exchange for undisclosed draft picks. Burgess will presumably play outside linebacker for New England and gives the Pats a pass rushing threat if he can stay healthy. (Patriots.com)

Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs have agreed to terms with No. 3 overall pick Tyson Jackson on a five-year contract. The details haven’t been released, but it stands to reason that Jackson will receive roughly $30 million in guarantees based on his draft position. He’ll play defensive end in Kansas City’s new 3-4 defense. (National Football Post)

San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers and the player rep for Michael Crabtree insisted that the wide receiver did not make threats to skip all of the 2009 season and re-enter the draft in 2010. Apparently Crabtree’s cousin and adviser, David Wells, got some bad information. (NFL Fanhouse)

Atlanta Falcons
It’s been confirmed that receiver Harry Douglas tore his ACL and will miss all of the 2009 season. Douglas was subbing for Roddy White, who is in the midst of a contract holdout that could go deep into training camp. Atlanta signed veteran Robert Ferguson, although he’s hardly the answer for the Falcons’ receiving woes. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

The Falcons also got word that rookie safety William Moore will miss up to four weeks after undergoing a procedure on his left knee. Moore was battling 2008 third round pick Thomas DeCoud for the starting strong safety position. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Baltimore Ravens
Receiver Mark Clayton is only expected to miss 2-3 preseason games with a hamstring injury. Head coach John Harbaugh expects Clayton to be completely healthy and available for Week 1 of the regular season. (Baltimore Sun)

Michael Crabtree to re-enter draft?

According to a report by ESPN.com, the cousin and adviser (whatever that entails) of Michael Crabtree states that the rookie wideout is prepared to sit out the entire 2009 season and re-enter the NFL draft in 2010 if he doesn’t get fair market value in terms of his contract.

“We are prepared to do it,” Wells said. “Michael just wants fair-market value. They took him with the 10th pick and you have Darrius Heyward-Bey [the seventh overall pick by the Oakland Raiders] getting $38 million? This week is crucial. Michael was one of the best players in the draft and he just wants to be paid like one of the best players. This week is very crucial.”

Crabtree’s agent, Eugene Parker, says that no such threat has been made, although he also says that the 49ers’ initial contract offer is not acceptable. Profootballtalk.com suggests that Parker had promised Crabtree that he would be drafted in the top three and now is trying to get the rookie top three money, although that hasn’t been proven.

I highly doubt that Crabtree will sit the entire 2009 season if he doesn’t receive the contract that he and his agent wants. Besides, it wouldn’t be in his best interest to do that, seeing as how teams picking at the top of the draft next year would likely stay away from him knowing that he was out of football for a year and would be a hassle to sign.

I’m assuming that San Fran will have to get close to the number that the Raiders gave Heyward-Bey, although I don’t blame the Niners if they feel that they don’t have to match that number considering Heyward-Bey was taken three spots ahead of Crabtree in the draft. Considering the rookie salary structure is already screwed up, teams shouldn’t have to pay players for the draft slot that their agents felt they should have been taken in.

Should 49ers be worried about Crabtree holding out?

According to 49ers beat writer Matt Maiocco, the 49ers could have trouble signing first round pick Michael Crabtree in time for the start of training camp.

If history tells us anything it’s that Crabtree’s agent, Eugene Parker, does not mind engaging in holdout tactics. (Technically, an unsigned rookie is not a “holdout” because no contract has been agreed upon. I’ll try my best to refrain from calling it a holdout. Rather, it’s a contract stalemate.)

At least four of Parker’s clients had contract issues last season. Bills tackle Jason Peters skipped 43 days and missed the season opener. Rams running back Steven Jackson held out for 27 days before signing a new contract. Bears return man Devin Hester did not report for the first two days of camp before signing a new deal. And Cardinals rookie cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie missed two practices before signing his contract.

Yes, the 49ers have been successful in getting their draft picks signed on time in recent years. But the agents deserve some credit, too.

The 49ers – and every team in the NFL – believe that a player’s rookie contract is essentially predetermined by where he was selected in the draft. As the No. 10 overall pick, Crabtree should receive less than the No. 9 pick and a little more than No. 11.

I don’t believe the 49ers would buy the suggestion that Crabtree deserves more money because a lot of outsiders thought he should have been selected sooner in the draft and he was generally regarded as a better prospect than receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, whom the Raiders selected with the seventh pick.

As Maiocco indicates in the article, there’s still a ton of time and more importantly, only four first round picks have signed (Matthew Stafford, Mark Sanchez, Alex Mack and “Ziggy” Hood) up to this point, which indicates that it isn’t out of the norm that the Niners haven’t signed Crabtree yet. It might take the Packers signing B.J. Raji (who was selected a pick ahead of Crabtree) or the Bills signing Aaron Maybin (who was selected a pick behind Crabtree) before the 49ers are able to work out a deal with Crabtree.

Either way, panic shouldn’t be setting in San Fran just yet.

Singletary: ‘I almost made Michael Crabtree cry.’

49ers’ head coach Mike Singletary is an intimidating man – just ask No. 10 overall pick Michael Crabtree.

Singletary also said he almost made first-round draft pick Michael Crabtree cry. Singletary found him running routes during the first minicamp and admonished him for running before he was cleared by the medical staff. Crabtree is recovering from off-season foot surgery.
Singletary recounted the conversation he had with his prized rookie.

“‘I’ve got nothing against you. I’m not angry or anything. I just want you to know, you have to do everything the doctors want you to do so that you can get better.’ I said, ‘I’m not worried about what you can do.’ I said, ‘I know. We drafted you at No. 10. We know what you can do. We just want to make sure that when you come out here, you’re ready to go.’ So, he’s done the things that he needs to do, spending a lot of time with (receivers coach Jerry] Sullivan. I know Jerry is excited about what he’s seeing as well.”

Crabtree has started sprinting and should be ready for the start of training camp.

Hell, I’d cry if Singletary were yelling at me, too. I’d need a new pair of underwear to boot.

This doesn’t seem like a big deal, nor should it be made into one. I think the fact that Crabtree is so anxious to get back onto the field is a great sign, especially considering how many prima donnas there are at receiver in the NFL. I just hope this isn’t an indication of Crabtree’s toughness (or lack thereof).

Crabtree not a lock to start Week 1?

A lot of pundits believe that 49ers’ first round pick Michael Crabtree will make the biggest impact this season among offensive rookies. But as Sacramento Bee beat writer Matt Barrows points out in a recent Q&A, Crabtree might not be a lock to start Week 1 as he continues to rehab a foot injury he suffered the week of the NFL scouting combine.

…Just a few years ago, the team’s top three wide receivers were Cedrick Wilson, Brandon Lloyd and Curtis Conway. As for the current situation … while Morgan and Crabtree currently are slated to play the “X” position this season, all the 49ers receivers are taught to play multiple positions. For example, Morgan lined up and both “X” and “Z” during the recent OTAs. Which is to say, if those two end up being the team’s top two receivers, the 49ers will find a way to get them on the field at the same time.
Having said that … Keep in mind that Crabtree (foot) won’t be able to practice with the team until training camp. So he’s not only a rookie learning how to play against big, physical cornerbacks, he’s also getting a late start on the learning process. In other words, there’s no guarantee he’ll be a starter in Week One.

This isn’t earth-shattering news to hear that a rookie has a long way to go before he’s considered a starter. But it’s a reminder that even though Crabtree has a ton of expectations being thrust upon him already, he still has to put in the work this summer in order to climb the depth chart and become a full-time starter. It’ll be interesting to watch his development throughout mini and training camps over the next couple months.

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