Terrell Owens/Drew Rosenhaus/Eagles - Who wins?

[Dutch]

The suspension will be served, then the rest of the season on the bench for TO. But then what? Who will win next year in the secondary battle here? The battle of how TO get's paid.

The Eagles win, sort of, because they get to free up a bit of space, but they won't replace a guy like TO. So at best, the Eagles can call it a draw.

I have never been a big fan of Drew Rosenhaus, but I see what he's doing here by telling TO his contract is crap. I haven't really liked Rosenhaus since he convinced Errict Rhett to hold out and suggested that the running back pecking order in 1996 was Emmitt Smith/Barry Sanders, then Errict Rhett, then everybody else. But I understood what he was doing then. He was trying to get paid.

It cost Errict Rhett his career in the end. Obviously, that's a different story, as Errict Rhett was in the beginning of his career, while Terrell Owens in in the 'last throes' of his.

Owens fired his agent and hired Drew "Show Me The Money" Rosenhaus. Almost immediately, Rosenhaus convinced Owens that his contract was no good.

"Rip it up. You deserve better. You deserve more."

No doubt those were Drew's words to Owens, who's in his 10th year.

A quick peak at Terrell Owens Philly Contract.

7-years/49 million dollars.

2004 - $9,000,000 (Including partial signing bonus)
2005 - $3,250,000 (minus about $800,000 due to this suspension)
2006 - $5,770,000 (Including partial signing bonus)
2007 - $5,500,000
2008 - $6,500,000
2009 - $7,500,000
2010 - $8,500,000

At some point, probably around 2008, the Eagles would come knocking for a salary renegotiation...or outright cut Owens. But that's still a lot of money to be made by Owens that he's could be missing out on. What's so bad about that contract???

And while it's true that Owens is probably underpaid in 2005, the yearly average (2004 and 2005) would put him on par with $6 million dollars a season because he was overpaid in 2004.

READ: That's still a pretty great deal, all things considered.

But why is Rosenhaus saying that's no good?

It's all in the signing bonus. The old agent (Davis Joseph) got the lion's share of agent money in 2004. And *maybe* even is scheduled a payment in March of 2006 for the remainder. (I'm not real sure how agents get paid.)

Where's Drew Rosenhaus' cut? It looks like for his trouble of being Owens agent, he's due 5% (or whatever the going rate for big name agents is) of Owens 2006 contract ($770,000 base salary only).

So, by looking at the numbers, it doesn't look like Owens is getting robbed, it looks like Rosenhaus is getting "robbed" and that's why Rosenhaus is so insistant to Owens that TO needs to renegotiate.

That's pretty slimy, but it happens all the time.

The only good news for the Eagles, is they have effectively freed up their cap with the loss of a big money player that was an embarrassment to the organization. Instead of having to pay this malcontent $6 million dollars a year to make 10 TD's and call everybody in the organization classless, they get to keep the money in their cap, spend it on some other players, and be rid of TO's mouth.

The good news for Owens is that it's his 10th year, even if he never plays football again, he's already "got his". Other players, like Errict Rhett in his 3rd year, got screwed by Rosenhaus and all his promises of fat long-term contracts. Rhett ended up firing Rosenhaus and chugged along at minimum wage for a couple more seasons until finally bailing out of the league in his 8th year.

Owens will get paid, but it will be interesting to see how much more he will get vs what he was scheduled to get anyway.

And then it will be interesting to see how much more Drew Rosenhaus gets compared to what he's currently scheduled to get.

If Owens gets that "fat" deal in 2006, I'll bet he's lucky if he comes out even, while Rosenhaus salary will probably skyrocket in the deal.

In the end, Drew Rosenhaus gambles very little in hopes of the big payoff. While Owens is risking everything in hopes of getting back to where is already is.

Owens is getting pwned by Rosenhaus. Plain and simple.

[Schmidty]

Good post.

[RendeR]

Actually, unless Rosenhaus brokers a NEW deal for Owens with SOME team, Drew gets NOTHING. The agent did nothing on this contract other than destroy any chance he had of getting a big money deal. The Agent TO had before got his money already. Drew fucked himself royally here.

And who wins?

The Eagles

The Fans

The League

Pretty much anyone who has had to listen/talk about/deal with Owens ignorant ass for the last 9 months.

Good Riddance to bad rubbish. I hope his career is over. Perhaps it will serve some good by teaching the youth of the world the worst possible way to act as a professional athlete.

[TroyF]

Actually, unless Rosenhaus brokers a NEW deal for Owens with SOME team, Drew gets NOTHING. The agent did nothing on this contract other than destroy any chance he had of getting a big money deal. The Agent TO had before got his money already. Drew fucked himself royally here.

And who wins?

The Eagles

The Fans

The League

Pretty much anyone who has had to listen/talk about/deal with Owens ignorant ass for the last 9 months.

Good Riddance to bad rubbish. I hope his career is over. Perhaps it will serve some good by teaching the youth of the world the worst possible way to act as a professional athlete.


How did Drew screw himself over? No matter what, TO is getting a new contract. He would have made zilch had the Eagles picked up that option.

Now he gets a percentage of whatever contract TO signs. Even if we assume TO is going to get lowballed, he's till gonna get a few million with a decent signing bonus. Even if TO were to sign for the league minimum, Drew gets paid something.

[cthomer5000]

Rosenhaus wins, Eagles and Ownens lose.

[RendeR]

How did Drew screw himself over? No matter what, TO is getting a new contract. He would have made zilch had the Eagles picked up that option.

Now he gets a percentage of whatever contract TO signs. Even if we assume TO is going to get lowballed, he's till gonna get a few million with a decent signing bonus. Even if TO were to sign for the league minimum, Drew gets paid something. Honestly, look at the interest level in TO, he's pretty much guarenteed himself a league min contract for 1 single year next season in an effort to prove himself worthy of a longer one. Drew signed on with TO because he thought he had the perfect pidgeon in the Eagles front office.

The eagles couldn't live without TO at wideout, Drew gets TO talking holdout and starts the entire insane mess.

Drew fucked himself royally because unfortunately for him, the Eagles have a spine and the balls to step on TO and his assinine antics.

TO and Drew deserve each other, they're both diseases festering on the underside of the NFL now. Hopefully this whole suspension bit will immunize young people from the problem.

[RendeR]

And yes, I see your point that Drew is the only one truly gaining anything here, but he's not getting what he actually wanted, he's getting handed a bologna sandwich and shown the door by the eagles. He wanted Millions, he'll end up with Dimes on the dollar.

[Swaggs]

Eagles are definitely the losers here.

T.O. won't get a huge, multi-year deal next season, but I think some desperate GM/Head Coach will bring him in for a pretty good single-year deal. There is no shortage of coaches with big egos in the NFL and some of them will look at T.O., weigh his talent vs his problems, and roll the dice.

[Schmidty]

......but I think Matt Millen will bring him in for a huge multi-year deal.

Me too.

[Surtt]

I don't see the Eagle as the losers.
They got TO to be a good boy for a year and a trip to the supper bowl.
They aren't any worse off then if they had never signed him.

[GrantDawg]

Mark my words...TO is going to get a multi-year deal before he plays another down. He's not going to play for league minimium or a one year contract.

[Eaglesfan27]

The suspension will be served, then the rest of the season on the bench for TO. But then what? Who will win next year in the secondary battle here? The battle of how TO get's paid.

The Eagles win, sort of, because they get to free up a bit of space, but they won't replace a guy like TO. So at best, the Eagles can call it a draw.

I have never been a big fan of Drew Rosenhaus, but I see what he's doing here by telling TO his contract is crap. I haven't really liked Rosenhaus since he convinced Errict Rhett to hold out and suggested that the running back pecking order in 1996 was Emmitt Smith/Barry Sanders, then Errict Rhett, then everybody else. But I understood what he was doing then. He was trying to get paid.

It cost Errict Rhett his career in the end. Obviously, that's a different story, as Errict Rhett was in the beginning of his career, while Terrell Owens in in the 'last throes' of his.

Owens fired his agent and hired Drew "Show Me The Money" Rosenhaus. Almost immediately, Rosenhaus convinced Owens that his contract was no good.

"Rip it up. You deserve better. You deserve more."

No doubt those were Drew's words to Owens, who's in his 10th year.

A quick peak at Terrell Owens Philly Contract.

7-years/49 million dollars.

2004 - $9,000,000 (Including partial signing bonus)
2005 - $3,250,000 (minus about $800,000 due to this suspension)
2006 - $5,770,000 (Including partial signing bonus)
2007 - $5,500,000
2008 - $6,500,000
2009 - $7,500,000
2010 - $8,500,000

At some point, probably around 2008, the Eagles would come knocking for a salary renegotiation...or outright cut Owens. But that's still a lot of money to be made by Owens that he's could be missing out on. What's so bad about that contract???

And while it's true that Owens is probably underpaid in 2005, the yearly average (2004 and 2005) would put him on par with $6 million dollars a season because he was overpaid in 2004.

READ: That's still a pretty great deal, all things considered.

But why is Rosenhaus saying that's no good?

It's all in the signing bonus. The old agent (Davis Joseph) got the lion's share of agent money in 2004. And *maybe* even is scheduled a payment in March of 2006 for the remainder. (I'm not real sure how agents get paid.)

Where's Drew Rosenhaus' cut? It looks like for his trouble of being Owens agent, he's due 5% (or whatever the going rate for big name agents is) of Owens 2006 contract ($770,000 base salary only).

So, by looking at the numbers, it doesn't look like Owens is getting robbed, it looks like Rosenhaus is getting "robbed" and that's why Rosenhaus is so insistant to Owens that TO needs to renegotiate.

That's pretty slimy, but it happens all the time.

The only good news for the Eagles, is they have effectively freed up their cap with the loss of a big money player that was an embarrassment to the organization. Instead of having to pay this malcontent $6 million dollars a year to make 10 TD's and call everybody in the organization classless, they get to keep the money in their cap, spend it on some other players, and be rid of TO's mouth.

The good news for Owens is that it's his 10th year, even if he never plays football again, he's already "got his". Other players, like Errict Rhett in his 3rd year, got screwed by Rosenhaus and all his promises of fat long-term contracts. Rhett ended up firing Rosenhaus and chugged along at minimum wage for a couple more seasons until finally bailing out of the league in his 8th year.

Owens will get paid, but it will be interesting to see how much more he will get vs what he was scheduled to get anyway.

And then it will be interesting to see how much more Drew Rosenhaus gets compared to what he's currently scheduled to get.

If Owens gets that "fat" deal in 2006, I'll bet he's lucky if he comes out even, while Rosenhaus salary will probably skyrocket in the deal.

In the end, Drew Rosenhaus gambles very little in hopes of the big payoff. While Owens is risking everything in hopes of getting back to where is already is.

Owens is getting pwned by Rosenhaus. Plain and simple.
Great post. I completely agree with your analysis.

[yabanci]

The Eagles lose. Owens might win or he might lose.

[sterlingice]

Great post, Dutch

SI

[miami_fan]

Rosenhaus

BTW where did you get the breakdown of the contract?

[cthomer5000]

Rosenhaus

BTW where did you get the breakdown of the contract?
you can always get the salary info at nflpa.org

The bonus information is usually much harder to find.

[Raiders Army]

But why is Rosenhaus saying that's no good?

It's all in the signing bonus. The old agent (Davis Joseph) got the lion's share of agent money in 2004. And *maybe* even is scheduled a payment in March of 2006 for the remainder. (I'm not real sure how agents get paid.)

Where's Drew Rosenhaus' cut? It looks like for his trouble of being Owens agent, he's due 5% (or whatever the going rate for big name agents is) of Owens 2006 contract ($770,000 base salary only).

So, by looking at the numbers, it doesn't look like Owens is getting robbed, it looks like Rosenhaus is getting "robbed" and that's why Rosenhaus is so insistant to Owens that TO needs to renegotiate.

I agree this is a great post and a great analysis, but there is another point to this. It's not just because Rosenhaus wants the money. Remember, TO fired Joseph and hired Rosenhaus. TO wants the money as well. Could his old agent get him the money he wanted? I don't think TO thought he could. That's why he hired Rosenhaus. So, this isn't just a Rosenhaus "taking advantage of TO"; this is also TO wanting the money as well.

[Rockstar]

Do you think maybe, just maybe he will listen to the Players Union a little more this time?

[Northwood_DK]

Do you think maybe, just maybe he will listen to the Players Union a little more this time?

No.

I have a feeling TO have a huge problem listening to anyone but himself.

[Samdari]

No.

I have a feeling TO have a huge problem listening to anyone but himself.

Not exactly, he listens to people who tell him he's the best, most irreplacable player ever, and that whatever he does is right.

I a think TO signing a contract without a huge amount of guaranteed money is a huge loss for Rosenhaus. Sure, he would get part of a small contract, but the hit to his reputation for giving a player advice that loses that player money, will be a bigger impact. Drew is famous for getting his players huge deals, and attracts huge clients that way. This might make players think twice.

[TroyF]

Not exactly, he listens to people who tell him he's the best, most irreplacable player ever, and that whatever he does is right.

I a think TO signing a contract without a huge amount of guaranteed money is a huge loss for Rosenhaus. Sure, he would get part of a small contract, but the hit to his reputation for giving a player advice that loses that player money, will be a bigger impact. Drew is famous for getting his players huge deals, and attracts huge clients that way. This might make players think twice.


It all depends. I'm still not convinced his deal is going to be as low as some people think. He's a jerk, but his talent level is going to force some teams to think. And if they put a clause in his contract, the signing bonus can be recouped for specific violations, which lessens the risk for any team taking him on.

All TO has to do is get two teams who want him to start bidding. I don't think he's going to get what he wants or wanted, but I don't think he's going to get as little as people think either. If he gets the right two teams, he may end up getting what he wants anyway.

[Samdari]

if they put a clause in his contract, the signing bonus can be recouped for specific violations, which lessens the risk for any team taking him on.

They just had John Clayton on ESPN radio. He says such a clause was in his Eagles contract. If TO got suspended for conduct detrimental for more than one game, he has to give an additional 1.75 million back - he would now lose 800k for the 4 games, plus the 1.75 - that's 2.55 of his 3.2 million salary for this year.

[QuikSand]

A quick peak at Terrell Owens Philly Contract.

7-years/49 million dollars.

2004 - $9,000,000 (Including partial signing bonus)
2005 - $3,250,000 (minus about $800,000 due to this suspension)
2006 - $5,770,000 (Including partial signing bonus)
2007 - $5,500,000
2008 - $6,500,000
2009 - $7,500,000
2010 - $8,500,000

I thought the extra signing bonus due in 2006 was $7 million, which I can't reconcile here... but that's a secondary point to what I wanted to make here.


It seems fairly clear to me that this was basically a two year deal, with an extended team option beyond that. Deferring a lot of guaranteed money until after the first two seasons basically says so in black and white to me. Assuming Owens gets released after this season - I don't think this ends up being anything different than what Philadelphis had on their minds to begin with -- they pay Owens something like $12 million over two years, and then take a cap hit in 2006 as they swallow the original signing bonus effects that year and he walks (or renegotiates substantially).

As for who wins and who loses... I think the Freakonomics illustration about real estate about how your agent doesn't really have your interests at heart, despite what you think you know (which as been raised here a few times, so I won't go through the argument) basically applies here awfuly well. Rosenhaus has a very strong interest in Owens receiving a new contract - any new contract. At the end of the day, if Owens gets dumped by the Eagles, and signs for less than his market value would have been had he played two successful years with them, then it's pretty easy to tally the score with the dollars: Rosenhaus wins, Owens loses. Rosenhaus doesn't make quite as much as he woudl have had they hit the jackpot with a gigantic new deal... but any new deal gets him paid, and that's obviously better than watching "your client" get wealthy off a deal set up by your predecessor who got paid for it.

[QuikSand]

Honestly, look at the interest level in TO, he's pretty much guarenteed himself a league min contract for 1 single year next season in an effort to prove himself worthy of a longer one.

Like most of the responses, I completely disagree with this. I suspect he will have to choose among a vaiety of second-best options (rich contract with strong "untoward actions" clauses, under-market long term deal, or wealthy short-term deal) but there's zero chance he accepts (or has to settle for) a simple 1yr, $1m deal or anything of the sort at all.

[Samdari]

there's zero chance he accepts (or has to settle for) a simple 1yr, $1m deal or anything of the sort at all.

I think he will get an incentive laden deal.

What is certain, is that he will get less than if he had just shut up and played for the Eagles - he was due a 7 million bonus, and 5 million salary to play there next near. Even if they cut him to avoid that bonus, he cost himself at least 5 million in guaranteed money by pulling this.

[QuikSand]

What is certain, is that he will get less than if he had just shut up and played for the Eagles - he was due a 7 million bonus, and 5 million salary to play there next near. Even if they cut him to avoid that bonus, he cost himself at least 5 million in guaranteed money by pulling this.

My point is that the future years of the Eagls contract were never certain. Even if he had played at a top level with his mouth shut for two years, I think it's fairly clear that they left themselves an out to release him anyway. The upcoming bonus and salary were not a given at all -- the Eagles are a notoriously tight-fisted organization with salaries, and they put those delay clauses in there for a reason -- to give themselves flexibility, not only in circumstances like these, but also if things had worked out well with him. I am quite certain that Owens sought to get his bonus all up front (making the out years far more likely to bear fruit) and the Eagles resisted... for exactly this reason.

There is no certainty in NFL contracts, other than the money you have already been paid (and, if you are an asshat and suffer a "conduct detrimental to the team" clause, apparently not even that).

[Samdari]

My point is that the future years of the Eagls contract were never certain. Even if he had played at a top level with his mouth shut for two years, I think it's fairly clear that they left themselves an out to release him anyway. The upcoming bonus and salary were not a given at all -- the Eagles are a notoriously tight-fisted organization with salaries, and they put those delay clauses in there for a reason -- to give themselves flexibility, not only in circumstances like these, but also if things had worked out well with him. I am quite certain that Owens sought to get his bonus all up front (making the out years far more likely to bear fruit) and the Eagles resisted... for exactly this reason.

There is no certainty in NFL contracts, other than the money you have already been paid (and, if you are an asshat and suffer a "conduct detrimental to the team" clause, apparently not even that).

Well, as I said, even if he would have been cut by the Eagles, he cost himself a lot of money.

If he keeps his mouth shut, plays hard, and then hits the FA market as the best WR in the game, and in top physical condition despite his age, I would not be surprised to have seen him get a 15 million dollar bonus (announced for a 7 year deal, but really for 3). Now, I see 5 million as being the absolute cap.

[Dutch]

I thought the extra signing bonus due in 2006 was $7 million, which I can't reconcile here... but that's a secondary point to what I wanted to make here.
I got my numbers from an article at NFL.Com but now I can't find it. (it included a year by year breakdown and the mention of $5 mil in March).

In another article, it references $7.5 million in roster bonuses due to him, but it doesn't mention all of it due in March. So perhaps it's seperated. I'm not entirely sure.

[Dutch]

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=At4rsCJJwUorQvZ40fcNZqdDubYF?slug=ap-owenshearing&prov=ap&type=lgns

Here's another reference to the $5 million bonus in March. For reference.

Philadelphia most likely would make a decision on Owens -- either releasing or trading him -- by next March, when he's due to receive a $5 million roster bonus.

Owens was set to earn base salaries of $770,000 in 2006, $5.5 million in 2007, $6.5 million in 2008, $7.5 million in 2009, and $8.5 million in 2010.