Wes Welker says contract talks have gotten worse
“There have been talks, but nothing that’s brightened anything at all,” Welker said. “It’s actually gotten worse.”
When asked to define “worse,” Welker said the offer on the table is less than the two-year, $16 million fully guaranteed contract that was offered to him during the 2011 regular season.
So why would he agree to the tender now?
Welker said he opted to sign the one-year tag because in the end, even though he may have been advised to stay away from camp, that’s who he is and how he goes about his business....
Welker acknowledged attempting a harder-line stance last month, openly threatening the possibility of a holdout at mandatory camps, but ultimately decided that wasn’t the right way to go.
“I think those techniques work better with other teams. I think the best thing you can do, as far as the Patriots, is be there and let them make the decision if they want to do something longterm or not,” said Welker, who indicated he planned on being at OTAs late next week. “Obviously, I want to be there. I want to help the team win. I want a championship and all those things. I’m trying to do everything to make that happen, and I’ll let everything else take care of itself.”
One the one hand, you have to respect and admire Welker for choosing to just sign the tender and be with his team because he felt it was the right thing to do. On the other, he's making $9.5 million so you can't really say he's sacrificing that much.
Still, Welker has given up his leverage in contract negotiations and indicated that things have not been going well in negotiations. Instead of holding out, Wes chose to show the team that he deserves the contract and has put the ball in their court.
