Mailbag

From David,

"John can you blog about what some of the emotions and the thought process a player goes through. Especially if they are attached to a city and there team isn't showing them the respect the deserve. Also when you make a decision to go a team is it just about the money or are you thinking about your kids and there schools, your wife friends, etc. . . We as fans forget that you are people just like us. And that you have a very limited amount of time to make a great deal of money, that in my job if I make a mistake maybe 3 people know it not 30 million. I really enjoy your blog because you make football players humans instead of just machines."

David,

Free agency is different for each player.  I can only speak for myself but I know what usually happens.  When a player is coming off of his rookie contract, money is the most important thing.  Even though rookie deals are good money, they are not enough to live the rest of your life off of, unless you are a top ten pick or something.  I was a second round pick so I wanted my next contract be the one that determined my financial future.  I didn't know what my value would be on the open market so i had no idea what to expect.  The Titans had players behind me that were pretty good(Robaire Smith and 

Albert Haynesworth) so I knew they weren't going to match any offer that I got from another team.  So I went into free agency feeling like I was blind folded. 

For the most part, every player wants to stay with the team that they are with.  It was much easier that way.  Easier on your family, and easier on the player as well.  Feeling like the new kid at school isn't cool, no matter how much money you are making.  Going to a new team is very awkward.  You have to find a place to live, learn new highways, where to shop, where to eat, the danger spots, things like that.  And as silly as it sounds, you have to learn where to sit in team meetings, on team planes,etc.  I remember my first team meeting in Cincy and I sat in a seat in the back of the room.  Jeff Burris came up to me and said, "Hey big fella, that's my seat.  I know you can kick my ass, but that's really my seat."  He said this with a smile on his face but I knew what he meant.  So I scooted over.  

When players get the feeling that their current team doesn't want them, bad feelings start to occur.  That's when guys want to leave.  And they want to leave in a hurry.  Family didn't play a big part in making my decision the first time I went to free agency.  I knew my family would adjust where ever I went.  I remember thinking I wanted to go to the Arizona Cardinals.  And it just so happened that they wanted me to play there.  My wife was excited to go there as well.  But I chose Cincinnati because of the coaches and the contract was comparable to what the other guys in my class was getting.  Arizona at the time was moving really slow and didn't make a serious off until I said I was going to Cincy.

After a player has money and his family is set up, then other things become important when making a decision on which team to play for.  First of all, you need the team to be interested in you!  That's the first thing.  But secondly, players want to win when they get later in their careers.  They want to be treated with respect.  They want to be in a place that makes playing football easy.  And they want to be somewhere that there family enjoys being, because by this time players usually have a wife and kids that are in school.

But I would be lying if I said that money wasn't a big factor though.  The only players who say they would play this game for free are Elite QB's.  It cracks me up when I hear people say Brett Favre would play for free, but keeps coming back for that 10 million dollar salary each year.  Players see what other guys are making and they want it too.  So if a guy is in position to get it, they will try.

So to finish this up, every player is different.  A player is only worth what the teams are willing to pay him.  And players will play anywhere if they are looking for money, but if the decision is based on family and how the organization treats them, and winning, then you will see players going to consistent winners like the Patriots.  They get guys who can still play, but they are at the point of their career where all they want to do is win.  Guys like Rodney Harrison and Junior Seau.