Pollack stubborn, just like Bengals

[bucket]

Pollack stubborn, just like Bengals

ROOKIE IS RIGHT TO WAIT FOR BEST DEAL

By John Clay

HERALD-LEADER SPORTS COLUMNIST

GEORGETOWN - What you see is not what they get.

In the NFL, numbers lie. Appearances deceive. The many millions a player is said to be contractually promised may not in fact be that many after all.

"It's like you're a builder," said Cincinnati running back Chris Perry yesterday. "And someone gives you a contract to build five houses, but only two of those houses are guaranteed. Then after two houses, they don't want you to build any anymore. It's all up to the team."

So before you blame first-round draft pick David Pollack in his now-13-day standoff with the Bengals, remember Stubborn Street runs both ways.

The 17th pick overall, Pollack is an Energizer Bunny of a defensive end out of Georgia whom the Bengals anointed as their starting outside linebacker. He began a Bengals/Bulldogs double, with Cincinnati taking Georgia linebacker Odell Thurman in the second round.

Thurman thwarted management five days before inking a five-year deal. Pollack was expected in Georgetown shortly thereafter. Rumors ran rampant at last Friday's scrimmage a deal was all but sealed. Friday night came and went. Then Saturday. Then Sunday.

By Tuesday, Pollack had passed Perry, last year's first pick, in the no-show department. Perry missed 11 days before committing to his first contract. His tardy start was followed by an injury bug. The combo limited his regular-season contribution to two carries in two games.

So this year the media is quick to quiz the former Michigan Wolverine on the differences of being in a camp from start to finish.

"I don't have a contract dispute this year," Perry said. "I had a contract dispute last year. That's the difference. This is a business as well as a sport."

It is a business the NFL does differently.

In baseball, if a player is reported to have signed a five-year contract for $10 million, he receives $10 million over five years. In the NFL, if a player is reported to sign a five-year contract for $10 million, he may only receive the first two years, with a club option on each of the next three.

"A lot of people don't understand," Perry said. "The money may be guaranteed for two years, then the team can do whatever it wants."

Consider Tim Couch. The former UK quarterback signed a seven-year, $48 million contract with the Cleveland Browns after being the first pick in the 1999 draft. Five years later, Couch was without a team, and a paycheck.

Just yesterday, when wide receiver Peter Warrick received medical clearance to return from a shin injury, the team told the receiver he must take a pay cut to remain a Bengal.

Thus the first contract a player signs becomes that much more important. Get what you can, while you can. The signing bonus is especially important. That money comes up front.

It is also reportedly Pollack's sticking point. The NFL salary cap basically dictates a first-round pick's salary. It's the length and the bonus that offer wiggle room. As of Tuesday, Pollack and the Bengals reportedly were $500,000 apart.

Not that we should be surprised. Cincinnati's thrift is long-standing. Akili Smith was a 27-day holdout in 1999. Justin Smith held out for 51 days in 2001. Even the Marvin Lewis makeover could not prevent Perry from holding out last year.

"Marvin may have changed the culture on the field," Pollack's agent, Tom Condon, told cincinnatibengals.com, "but it remains to be seen if the culture will be changed when it comes to money."

Meanwhile, Condon and partner Ken Kremer have their own track record. Sports Business Journal reports the two have had 13 holdouts since 1999. No other agents have had more.

What makes the Pollack holdout particularly annoying for Bengals fans is the belief the team is so close to making the playoffs.

"That's his own deal," said Justin Smith yesterday of Pollack. "I'm sure he's antsy and ready to go."

"I'm sure David is champing at the bit," said Lewis, who demoted the Bulldog to fourth string on the depth chart earlier in the week.

But, as in every negotiation, there are two sides. What you see is not always what they get.

Said Perry, "You can't go off what you see."

[Stripes]

Hey Bucket, nice bucket.

[joshh967]

It kind of puts a different perspective on the whole situation. Im still pissed that he isnt signed yet. But i sort of see where pollack is coming from. Why cant we all just get along?