There doesn’t appear to be a quick resolution to the Chris Johnson holdout situation in Tennessee. He doesn’t want to play this season for the $550,000 he’s scheduled to make and recent reports indicate that he wants $30 to 40 million guaranteed.
The Titans’ stance is simple: They don’t want to negotiate a player’s contract after only two seasons. That includes any player, even one has valuable as Johnson.
According to ESPN.com, the Titans have a good reason not to cave into Johnson’s demands:
There’s an interesting angle to Johnson’s case, and it applies to any of the potential training camp holdouts this summer; namely, the 30 day rule. [Ed. note: Someone in the league office must love the number 30, given the 30 percent rule in effect this offseason as well]. The 30 day rule essentially forces holdouts back into camp 30 days before the first game of the regular season (Sept. 9 when the New Orleans Saints host the Minnesota Vikings), which this year works out to Aug. 10. If the player is not back with their team by that date, they lose a year of service, which may affect their free agency status depending on what happens with the new collective bargaining agreement.
Given how productive he’s been in his first two seasons, I don’t blame Johnson for demanding more money. That said, I think I side with the Titans at this juncture.
Let’s say they give into Johnson’s demands and re-work his contract. Let’s even say that they give him $40 million guaranteed; will he eventually ask for more money in a couple of years if he continues to play well?
In the current landscape of the NFL, free agents make the most money and that’s often regardless of whether or not they’re the best at their position. Johnson wants to be the highest paid running back in the league, but even if the Titans honor his wishes, he likely won’t be the highest paid within two years. Then what happens? He asks for another raise? I know this is a hypothetical, but it’s something that the Titans have to think about.
I think Johnson deserves a raise, but if you step into the Titans’ shoes, it’s hard to fault them for bulking on the idea of paying him now. Generally speaking, teams don’t even consider re-working a player’s contract until after they’ve been in the league for three years. Johnson is one year early on his contract demands.
Of course, no player did what Johnson did in his second year either, making this situation incredibly tricky for both parties.
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