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Bucs WR Bryant's Agent Not Happy With Franchise Tag

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By ANWAR RICHARDSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 19, 2009

TAMPA – The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have apparently given receiver Antonio Bryant an offer he might refuse, according to his agent.

Bryant sought a long-term deal with the Bucs, but Tampa Bay put a franchise tag on him Wednesday, guaranteeing him a salary of $9.88 million in 2009. Bryant's agent, Lamont Smith, said the receiver is unhappy about not having more security.

As a result, Smith said, they do not want to sign the offer. Instead, they are considering several options, which include testing the free-agent market or holding out.

"The other option is to play one year for the roughly $10 million and be in the same position next year," Smith said. "If that were to occur, that would not bode well long-term for the Bucs."

Tampa Bay has until July 15 to negotiate a long-term contract with Bryant, and considering how far apart both sides are, it might take that long.

Buccaneers general manager Mark Dominik and coach Raheem Morris were unavailable for comment.

Bryant's initial reaction to the franchise tag was not adverse. He told the Tampa Tribune and TBO.com on Wednesday night he was happy to be returning to the Bucs: "The plan was to be a Buccaneer anway." At that point, he had not spoken to his agent.

Bryant had 83 receptions for 1,248 yards and seven touchdowns last season, establishing himself as one of the NFL's premier receivers after sitting out one year because of a league suspension. Smith said Bryant earned $760,000 last season and is seeking a five- or six-year deal.

"He proved he deserves security," Smith said. "He puts his body on the line. He thinks he deserves the security and not to play year-to-year like he did last year. That is disappointing."

Smith would not say how much money Bryant was seeking, but compared his client's productivity to Minnesota's Bernard Berrian and Dallas' Roy Williams. Berrian signed a six-year, $42 million contract, including $16 million in guaranteed money, prior to last season, while Williams signed a five-year, $45 million extension last season.

Berrian had 48 receptions for 964 yards and seven touchdowns in 2008 and Williams had 19 receptions for 198 yards and one touchdown before sustaining a forearm injury and being placed on injured reserve.

Once a player is tagged by a team, he can continue negotiating a long-term contract or receive offers from other teams. The Bucs can match any offer or receive two first-round draft picks from the other team as compensation.

"From our perspective, it [franchise tag] confirms what his market value is on a per-year basis," Smith said. "We gave them [Tampa Bay] a proposal that would have signed him for multiple years at substantially less, on average, than they will pay for one year.

"Nothing has changed for us. They can put the franchise tag on him, but we don't have to sign it. They're the ones who have to get ready to play. We're still interested in a long-term deal. If that can be worked out, it's great, but if not, we're going to go into this market and see what happens."

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