The Batavia Colliders waited until the 11th hour, but they did finally agree to terms with holdouts Antonio Brown and Ben Roethlisberger.
Brown was the Offensive Player of the Year last year, and demanded $39.00 in compensation. The Colliders agreed to extend him by two years, thus saving 10% on the initial holdout price.
“Signing Brown to a deal was a no-brainer,” GM Josh Hammond quipped. “He’s proven over and over that he’s a gamer.”
The Colliders were expected to sign Roethlisberger to a deal as well, as they traded for him after losing last year’s starter, Russell Wilson, via Restricted Free Agency. Roethlisberger’s performance was similar to Wilson’s, so Hammond doesn’t see much of a drop-off.
“We’re saving money at the position,” Hammond said. “I didn’t necessarily want to give such an old player a 2-year extension, but we were really up against it cap-wise this year. Our receiving corps is pretty expensive.”
The signings take place mere hours before the kickoff of the NFL
season in general, and the first game for Brown and Roethlisberger in particular.
Hammond is banking on the QB-WR combo to be productive this year. Otherwise, he’ll look like a giant idiot.
© 2015, Josh Hammond. All rights reserved.
I still rue the day I didnt bid one more dollar on Brown!
Glad you didn’t! Although I think I still had a few more dollars to go on him. I believe I had him maxed out at $15 or $16. What a bargain.
Even with the pay raise, still seems like a pretty good deal.