Is Branch in a 'go' pattern?

Others went this route with Patriots

By Jerome Solomon  |  June 25, 2006

If Patriots fans could do an Adam Sandler -- click a remote control and fast-forward past the next few months -- Deion Branch would be running routes at Gillette Stadium and catching touchdown passes from Tom Brady.

Push the button again, however, jumping to 2007, and it is quite possible that Branch would be catching touchdown passes from somebody else.

In this space a few weeks back, we speculated that a long-term solution between Branch and the Patriots would be reached before the season begins, and both sides would be happy. Oops.

Having promised Sir Belichick that we would never combine the words ``low" and ``ball" in a Patriots story, we're happy to report that the team has yet to offer Branch a contract with numbers high enough for him to play ball.

The Patriots have not insulted Branch with their offer. (If they had, his agent, Jason Chayut, probably would have shared that information with the media.) But the sides simply have opposing views of Branch's worth.

For fans, at least, it seems the debate over what (or whether) the Patriots should pay Branch has turned into whether he is a legitimate No. 1 receiver.

That is not the point. Branch is the Patriots' No. 1 receiver and, maybe more importantly, he is Brady's No. 1 receiver.

``He's probably our best player on offense," Brady said.

No. 1 or not, only an idiot would expect Branch to be paid in the Randy Moss-Terrell Owens-Marvin Harrison neighborhood, and we assume Chayut is no idiot.

But only an idiot would expect Branch to happily accept a contract offer from the Patriots in the David Givens neighborhood. That would be the same David Givens who, had he returned to New England, would have been the Patriots' No. 2 wideout behind Branch.

Givens got market value (definition: what someone is willing to pay you) for his services from Tennessee. While a five-year, $24 million deal (with an $8 million signing bonus) is a nice take for Givens, Branch has a right to scoff at that.

New England was careful in dealing with Givens, knowing full well that whatever it paid him would be the starting point for the Branch negotiations.

Branch has another starting point in mind. Indianapolis No. 2 wideout Reggie Wayne recently put ink to a six-year deal worth about $40 million, with up to $13.5 million in bonuses.

Branch's argument is that he should make more than a top No. 2. In five seasons, Wayne has 304 catches for 4,164 yards and 28 TDs. Should Branch put together another year similar to last (78 receptions for 998 yards), his five-year totals would not be far from those numbers.

But Branch will almost always trail Wayne in dollars. As a first-round pick in 2001, Wayne's $2.4 million signing bonus alone is more than what Branch, a second-round pick in 2002, has made in his four years in the league.

The Patriots' argument? We don't care what Reggie Wayne makes.

There are 43 receivers slated to make more than Branch this season. Because he earned the league minimum, a lot more than that topped him in pay last year, including four teammates.

Only one Patriots receiver made less than Branch last season, and that was Bethel Johnson, whose $100,000-per-catch paychecks trailed Branch's by only 10 percent.

But getting Branch on the cheap the past few seasons has little to do with how much the Patriots are willing to pay him going forward. As the Patriots like to say, ``Last year was last year." (That Super Bowl Most Valuable Player trophy Branch won in 2005 got him no meaningful conversation about a raise for last season.)

The team won't break its budget to make Branch happy. Branch, a model teammate, won't be happy unless the Patriots redo their budget.

Branch will make a statement by not coming to training camp on time. If nothing is worked out, he will report in time to receive that automatic deposit of the first game check. (If he doesn't, he has until Week 10 to join the team and still be a free agent after the season.)

With such a wide gulf in value perspective, the Patriots could again be stuck hoping one of their top players doesn't get an offer he can't refuse as an unrestricted free agent.

By then, the Patriots' offer will go up. Unfortunately for them, it might be too late.

Will Bears raise his stake?

The Bears' Nathan Vasher is in a situation similar to Deion Branch's, but he has two years remaining on a deal that will pay him only $425,000 this season. ``Only" is relative, for certain, but consider that 130 players at his position will make more than the Pro Bowl cornerback this season.

Vasher, who had eight interceptions last season (the same number the Patriots' defensive backs had combined), was just a fourth-round pick in 2004.

Vasher's agent, Mike Sullivan, says he has proposed a one-year raise that would move Vasher to $900,000, putting him 44th among corners. Sounds reasonable, but the Bears have a longstanding policy about redoing contracts.

``As long as players are under contract, we determine which players and when we move forward on creating an extension," Chicago general manager Jerry Angelo said. ``We have a process in which we operate from. To have as many players under contract and to keep the continuity of the team intact, you have to operate with a solid plan and stay within those parameters."

Tice entices Del Rio

Jacksonville coach Jack Del Rio likes the addition of former Minnesota head coach Mike Tice to his staff as assistant head coach/offense.

``Mike has been around a lot of really terrific offensive play in Minnesota," Del Rio said. ``He's brought something in here that we've taken a look at as a staff that we've looked at in the offseason and they look pretty good. We've tweaked our system a little bit to tailor it to the people we have here."

The Jaguars finished in the middle of the pack (15th) in offense last season, and managed just 3 points against the Patriots in a wild-card playoff loss.

As for that loss, Del Rio says his ``don't ask, don't tell" injury policy may have hidden the fact that tackle Mo Williams was not himself against the Patriots. A stinger from a neck injury left Williams with one useful arm, which he should have used to hold Willie McGinest instead of waving as McGinest flew past him to a playoff-record 4 1/2 sacks.

``I've mentioned Mo's stinger injury, all the battles he went through last year, which was probably underdone on my part," said Del Rio.

``Mo was battling through that, he battled through it all year. He didn't say much and we didn't talk about it much."

Etc.

With such an apparent lean toward calling it quits, seems the only thing left for Marshall Faulk is to make an official announcement. The Rams' elusive running back, fourth on the all-time list with 136 touchdowns, is recovering slowly from offseason surgery to both knees. Faulk says he has his straight-ahead speed but has found side-to-side movement to be a problem in his rehab. ``I'm kind of a foreigner to my own body," said the 33-year-old veteran. ``I thought I knew this piece of work here. As you get a little older, you kind of become a little distant with your body. You wake up, and things don't feel the way they used to."

Kellen Winslow Jr. didn't need to hear that Ben Roethlisberger head-butted a Chrysler to make a decision about motorcycle riding. The Browns' tight end missed all of last season after tearing an anterior cruciate ligament in a motorcycle accident. While Roethlisberger says he will never ride a bike again without a helmet, Winslow doesn't use a qualifier. ``Me, I wouldn't [ride again]. But I'm not him," Winslow said. ``I won't." Wise move. Particularly considering his contract with the Browns has language in it that could mean a loss of millions should he be so foolish again. The Browns could have recouped or withheld $10.4 million in bonuses from Winslow after the accident because his original contract contained a clause prohibiting motorcycle riding. The team chose not to go after the $5.05 million it already shelled out, but rolled the remaining bonus into a new contract. If Winslow lives up to his billing -- he looked good at minicamp and all indications are he will be completely healthy by the start of training camp -- the accident will have cost him just $1 million. Another Evel Knievel moment, and the team can reclaim all of the bonus money.

The Patriots were not among the teams that attended last week's pro day workout of former Virginia linebacker Ahmad Brooks, the top player available in the July 13 supplemental draft. But don't take that as a sign they aren't interested in the 260-pounder, who is a perfect fit for New England's 3-4 defense. Bill Belichick has a close relationship with Virginia coach Al Groh, who attended the Patriots' minicamp last week. One of the top linebackers in the country, Brooks was kicked off the team last season after failing multiple drug tests, according to one NFL executive. Despite those concerns, Brooks will be picked in the draft. The tricky question is how high? The Patriots aren't likely to spend a first- or second-round pick on Brooks, but they are in a long line of teams that would part with a third- or fourth-rounder for him.

Obviously, new grandfather Phil Simms isn't too old to deliver a nice jab. His son Chris, the Buccaneers' starting quarterback, became a father last week when his wife, Danielle, gave birth to a daughter, Siena Rose. ``Danielle delivered all natural, with no epidural, and my dad said, `At least there's one tough person in the family,' " the younger Simms said. Simms shined at Bucs minicamp last week, though Tampa is looking for a backup since Luke McCown went down with a knee injury. The Bucs have Tim Rattay and rookie Bruce Gradkowski on the roster. Jay Fiedler, who played just two games last year with the Jets because of a shoulder injury, visited the Bucs' camp to ``get acquainted." ``He's a smart, quick study and he's a good guy and right now he's looking for a team to help out," Tampa coach Jon Gruden said. ``We're looking into his situation and everything else is just speculation at this time."

Material from personal interviews, wire services, other beat writers, and league and team sources was used in this report.