Antonio Bryant signs franchise tender

WR Antonio Bryant won't be going anywhere.

Though it was unlikely, the team's top offensive contributor will be locked into playing for the Bucs this fall as he will be signing his franchise-player tender today. As a result, Bryant won't be permitted to shop his services on the open market. There was a remote chance that a team could have agreed to yield two first-round picks to the Bucs to land him as a free agent.

But Bryant didn't give up his rights for nothing. He'll be paid $9.884-million for 2009, a sum that becomes fully guaranteed as soon as he signs. Bryant will be required to attend all mandatory offseason activities as a result of his contract becoming official.

There's a chance the sides could re-start their contract talks at some point, though those negotiations will certainly take a back seat for a while.

Comments

[Robert]

I'm glad this is done and we can focus on other issues now. I think Bryant will have another great year as long as we have the right guy throwing the ball!! FA is less than 6 hours away!! Glazers get the check book ready and lets make some noise!!! GO BUCS!!

[RaysforaBuc]

Mr. Holder help me out here... Football like most pro sports is all about the fans even though it is big business.

The Glazers have gotten rid of the super bowl winning coach, a first ballot hall of famer, a man who is considered by most to be the most selfless person in pro sports (Dunn), they pretty much got rid of the two most likeable players on our team and they've officially made us the worst team in the division (thank the lord the Lion's are so pathetic or else I would have to say worst in NFC).

How long will they be able to keep this team in Tampa when the fans finally turn their backs? And would anyone really blame the fans if they did turn their backs?

To me it doesn't seem like rebuilding or restructuring it seems more like filing chapter 11...

[Cinemike]

Next up: Haynesworth

[D Block]

Bryant can now do what Jacobs did negotiate his long term deal.

[Yoshi]

The bucs arent going to any other city. They are staying right there in tampa. PERIOD.

[HayesNC]

Are the Free Agency signings going to be posted as they come in all night?

[Valrico Rick]

They just approved a brand new stadium in LA so all you "Glazer Haters", go right ahead and keep pushing! You are going to run the Bucs out of town before the new staff even holds a practice. Moron comes to mind! Man your act is really getting old. If you want run a football team, rayforabuc, why don't you buy one?

[Erick]

Hey Ray, Shouldnt your name be something like "HatefortheBucs" instead? All I've heard lately from you is full on negative. Are you actually upset the the .500 Gruden is gone? Give me a break. And can you really make a case that this team is in dire straits now with the depth or RB's in the draft and Brooks being 36(?)? Chill the hell out and save the criticism 'til we see what they have planned.

If anything, the Glazers showed that they care about this team, and the fans, by canning those used-car salesman of a coach and GM.

[RaysforaBuc]

I don't want to run a team. I like being a keyboard quarterback.

I use a little something we humans like to call LOGIC!

So follow my train of thought (if you can take a break from from your adult a.d.d. and pay attn valrico rick).

1). raise ticket prices in the middle of a recession beyond them means of the avg Buc season ticket holder.

result: lower attendance and less revenue

2). Fire a high profile superbowl winning coach (only one in franchise history no less) who had his own mascot that fans would bring to the games as merit badges of their fandom. Then hire a rookie who couldn't even get good production out of the DB's he was responsible for.

Result: Poorer product = less attendance and lower revenue

3). Cut the two most popular players in franchise history. One of which, is a sure fire hall of famer who made the pro bowl this effing season! It's like the Yankees cutting Jeter. How many tickets do you think Brooks sold?

Result: Poorer product, less attd. & less revenue

What I am trying to get at is the Glazers appear to be sabotaging the team... If they are able to lower the attendance to a point where they can claim that the bay area is not a viable place to run a successful NFL franchise, what is to keep them from moving to the second largest TV market in the US? Think about it... Is it really that far fetched?

[RaysforaBuc]

Erick. You may think I'm negative but I'm just a realist.

You're right in the fact that I haven't seen the draft or FAgency play out yet but the moves leading up to all that have made NO SENSE! Why should I believe that we'll be able to pull off an overhauling miracle?!
The team next year will have little to no identity what with all the new players, coaches and schemes. We'll be lucky to get 6 wins next year but I fear much worse.

[Jasonhouse]

Make the Bay Area look like it's not a viable place to locate a pro football team???

lol... Yes, that conspiracy theory really is that far fetched... Ticket sales are a small part of their budget. It's all about TV and corporate sponsorships, which are typically a multi-year thing. One disastrously bad 'rebuilding' season doesn't really matter.

I have a different hypothesis... We all know that the Glazers need to pay down ManU debt before they drown in it. By cheaping out on the Bucs, they get to save a truckload of money this year to bolster their corporate balance sheet. However, if they happen to make the Bucs suck bad enough, they also get the top pick in 2010 and 'ta-da'... get to draft Tebow. Frankly, that's probably the 2nd best thing they could hope for at the end of the season, short of making it to the Superbowl, and we all know that wasn't going to happen.

If I'm right, expect ManU to maintain it stratospheric payroll, while the Bucs really stink it up this year and vie for the top pick in the draft.

[RaysforaBuc]

That at least is a logical explination.

But the Glazers borrowed about $425,000,000 to buy ManU. Saving roughly $50,000,000 in cap and personnel costs doesn't put much of a dent in $425million. By your math we're looking at 6-8 yrs of misery. Just enough time for TV contracts to run out or LA to finally build a new stadium. I get your argument Jason and a "conspiracy" like yours is just as far fetched.

[conradbuff]

no matter what he bucs or glaziers do this year they are going to make a profit if they use all the available money in free agency (which they wont just enuff to make fans belive in someone most likely haynsworth) they are still going to make a profit from this team the nfl is the biggest money maker in the wolrd today no nfl team will take losses this year or any of the upcoming years (unless somehow a new CBA is not agreed upon which i also dobubt) so ivesting in a profit is in no way efecting another profit even if they havent finished the payments

[conradbuff]

i can see how shaving money on the cap room would ease the burden of that MU eal but if the bucs pay 17mil to haynesworth they will see 45 mil in ticket sale increases so dont blame the owners they know the costs of having a team in the nfl and the consequences of what a ofseason may bring

[Jasonhouse]

Raysforabuc... Squeezing $50m (as you estimated) in profits out of the Bucs makes a big dent in ManU debt payments (especially with the Pound declining precipitously against the Dollar). The ManU deal was structured in such a way which eases the transfer of profits from the Bucs, into debt payments for ManU. I don't know what the Glazer's financed precisely, but I do know that they have to come up with what is reported to be about $145 million per year in payments on their ManU debt. They are reported to have been trying to refi that debt and reduce payments in the past year, but the credit crunch has put the screws to that plan, big time.

Remember, Bucs ticket prices didn't start going through the roof until after the Glazers bought ManU. The Bucs didn't start making damn sure to stay WAY under the cap until after they bought ManU. The Glazers only have one asset they can leverage to extract tens of millions of dollars from in times of need, and that's the Bucs.

If you don't believe me, check out this breakdown by a ManU fan... www.joinmust.org/forum/showthread.php?t=46612