New Deion info from Felger (Merged: Branch and his agent plan to sue)

[lobster]

If Branch loses the arbitration it will have meant the Pat's were found to have acted in good faith and were not under any obligation to trade Branch. Therefore any threat to sue is pure desperation.

 

[SBPatsFan]

Too top it off, unless i am misreading these post which may very well be as they are not all in sequence, it is appears to be a CBA Union lawyer who is making this threat to sue.

I believe Kessler, and the firm he is a partner in, serve as outside council for the NFLPA. The NFLPA (union) also has its own legal team team but they bring in outside counsil for many cases. Kessler in past instances seems to frequenctly act as the face and voice to the media.

He was part of legal representation in the following CBA/NFL contract arbitration cases and made similar types of comments to the press.

Belichick v. NFL (lost)

Arbitration ruling that resulted in Ricky Williams having to repay the Miami Dolphins $8.6 million (lost)

Arrington vs. Redskins over his missing signing bonus (lost)

He has been involved in other arbitration cases on NFL matters as well over the past 6 or so years; several of which at least were settled before arbitration was completed. He has won pretty big cases in other areas as well. Based on the examples with cba/nfl contract cases going to arbitration, his record seems unspectacular.

 

[RAWKY]

I believe Kessler, and the firm he is a partner in, serve as outside council for the NFLPA. The NFLPA (union) also has its own legal team team but they bring in outside counsil for many cases. Kessler in past instances seems to frequenctly act as the face and voice to the media.

He was part of legal representation in the following CBA/NFL contract arbitration cases and made similar types of comments to the press.

Belichick v. NFL (lost)

Arbitration ruling that resulted in Ricky Williams having to repay the Miami Dolphins $8.6 million (lost)

Arrington vs. Redskins over his missing signing bonus (lost)

He has been involved in other arbitration cases on NFL matters as well over the past 6 or so years; several of which at least were settled before arbitration was completed. He has won pretty big cases in other areas as well. Based on the examples with cba/nfl contract cases going to arbitration, his record seems unspectacular.

TY for clarifing this for us .

 

[SteveKiner]

I think BMU has this nailed. Branch, through Chayut, is just going to keep doing things to be such a pain in the arse that he finally gets out of New England. Team Branch has their toadies in the media with their agendas, the NFLPA with their agenda, Chayut with his agenda all trying to get Branch out of town. I thought it was a great move when the Pats allowed Branch to try to work out a deal with other teams. In hindsight, it opened up a new avenue for team Branch to try to exploit. I think everyone (except toadies like RBorges) agrees that the Patriots have acted professionally and with class all the way through this ordeal, and actually bent over backwards to help facilitate a compromise. That bending over may come back to bite them. The Patriots have the law, the facts, and most public opinion on their side. Team Branch has the ability to whine, complain, irritate and be a distraction on their side. In the Pats favor, I don't see BB giving in. However, like BMU has stated, the league might jump in and coerce the Pats to bring this to a conclusion. The league wants to start off a brand new year without crap like this floating over their heads. If, for instance, the league stepped in and forced the Jets to pay what the Pats demand in compensation in return for being allowed to pay Branch his 39/6 contract, doesn't Team Branch still win? They don't care about the damage to the league. They don't care that the Pats got "fair" compensation. They don't care if it hurts the Jets. All they care is that they got out of the contract that was "forced" on them by the evil Patriots and they got lots of green. If the Patriots hadn't let Branch "shop around", Team Branch probably still would have pulled some crap. (you know they weren't just going to sit home quietly while the meter was running), but letting Branch "shop" might end up costing the Pats dearly. Whenever you let a judge, jury or arbiter, decide something, it is never a slam dunk. Remember OJ, McDonalds hot coffee, the Terry Glenn suspension, and TO was going to win his case before the 2 sides compromised. Hopefully, logic and common sense win out and Team Branch is laughed out of court, but I wouldn't count on it. The NFL might not either and might "nudge" the Pats toward some solution. If Branch gets out of town, or even if he stays in NE, and signs some contract for more than he had coming to him, Team Branch must consider it a victory. Time will tell if it was worth the cost.

 

[Patsfanin Philly]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

OK, I'm not a lawyer, but I understand that there's a Napoleonic Legal Code and an Anglo-American Legal Code. What is suggested above would be, to use the technical legal terminology, "Whacko," under either.

So, I can only conclude that Deion is breaking new legal ground here. What should we call it? The "Branch-Deionian Code?"

Though I think the outcome may be more like Branch-Davidian..
with his career going up in flames courtesy of an overly inflated view of self-importance fueled by a wannabe agent who has yet to learn that when dealing with the Pats ( and many others) it's best to keep a low profile (out of the media). As the adage goes, 'you catch more flies with honey than vinegar'.

From Felger's article..
" Kessler said he doesn’t know if the Pats have continued to negotiate on compensation with the Jets and Seahawks. He said Branch has no intention to return to the Pats until the dispute is settled."

Maybe I'm reading this wrong but under the CBA if he sits out this whole year ,he loses the year of service and STILL owes the Pats a fifth year.....

 

[DonBlackmon55]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

Though I think the outcome may be more like Branch-Davidian..
with his career going up in flames courtesy of an overly inflated view of self-importance fueled by a wannabe agent who has yet to learn that when dealing with the Pats ( and many others) it's best to keep a low profile (out of the media). As the adage goes, 'you catch more flies with honey than vinegar'.

From Felger's article..
" Kessler said he doesn’t know if the Pats have continued to negotiate on compensation with the Jets and Seahawks. He said Branch has no intention to return to the Pats until the dispute is settled."

Maybe I'm reading this wrong but under the CBA if he sits out this whole year ,he loses the year of service and STILL owes the Pats a fifth year.....

Yep on the last point. Although Camp Peeon may be too stupid to realize that.:bricks:

 

[Bobs My Uncle]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

You called what this guy is doing brilliant. Yet, in this post you are saying he is doing exactly what a baby does when they can't get what they want... cry and cry and cry until the parent gives in... brillliant!

Chayut goes from a brand new, nobody agent that has a funny name to a rebel agent who isn't afraid to fight the good fight against the biggest of establishments (the NFL) without fear. And he gets to do all this while repping a SB MVP client. Chayut's name is splattered in the media every day. People are starting to tune in to see what this guy's got next. This is publicity that costs mega dollars (if you can even get it) and this guy is getting it no problem just by doing agent business. The other agents are probably jealous of all the notoriety the new kid Chayut is getting. This is a brilliant way to kick start his career. With a bang!

 

[FilPats]

It so sad to see that DB is doing a TO and trying to make himself obnoxious so that the PATS will be forced to trade him

 

[Patsfanin Philly]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

Chayut goes from a brand new, nobody agent that has a funny name to a rebel agent who isn't afraid to fight the good fight against the biggest of establishments without fear. And he gets to do all this while repping a SB MVP client. Chayut's name is splattered in the media every day. People are starting to tune in to see what this guy's got next. This is publicity that costs mega dollars (if you can even get it) and this guy is getting it no problem just by doing agent business. The other agents are probably jealous of all the notoriety the new kid Chayut is getting. This is a brilliant way to kick start his career. With a bang!

People also slow down for a car wreck but it doesn't mean that they'd want to be in their shoes. Did he get publicity? Absolutely but then again so did John Mark Karr and not the kind you'd expect or want . If you get too close to the bang, it blows up in your face and I have a feeling that this may fall into the 'be careful what you wish for, Mr. Chayut ' category..
Just my $0.02,

 

[Bobs My Uncle]

I think BMU has this nailed. Branch, through Chayut, is just going to keep doing things to be such a pain in the arse that he finally gets out of New England. Team Branch has their toadies in the media with their agendas, the NFLPA with their agenda, Chayut with his agenda all trying to get Branch out of town. I thought it was a great move when the Pats allowed Branch to try to work out a deal with other teams. In hindsight, it opened up a new avenue for team Branch to try to exploit. I think everyone (except toadies like RBorges) agrees that the Patriots have acted professionally and with class all the way through this ordeal, and actually bent over backwards to help facilitate a compromise. That bending over may come back to bite them. The Patriots have the law, the facts, and most public opinion on their side. Team Branch has the ability to whine, complain, irritate and be a distraction on their side. In the Pats favor, I don't see BB giving in. However, like BMU has stated, the league might jump in and coerce the Pats to bring this to a conclusion. The league wants to start off a brand new year without crap like this floating over their heads. If, for instance, the league stepped in and forced the Jets to pay what the Pats demand in compensation in return for being allowed to pay Branch his 39/6 contract, doesn't Team Branch still win? They don't care about the damage to the league. They don't care that the Pats got "fair" compensation. They don't care if it hurts the Jets. All they care is that they got out of the contract that was "forced" on them by the evil Patriots and they got lots of green. If the Patriots hadn't let Branch "shop around", Team Branch probably still would have pulled some crap. (you know they weren't just going to sit home quietly while the meter was running), but letting Branch "shop" might end up costing the Pats dearly. Whenever you let a judge, jury or arbiter, decide something, it is never a slam dunk. Remember OJ, McDonalds hot coffee, the Terry Glenn suspension, and TO was going to win his case before the 2 sides compromised. Hopefully, logic and common sense win out and Team Branch is laughed out of court, but I wouldn't count on it. The NFL might not either and might "nudge" the Pats toward some solution. If Branch gets out of town, or even if he stays in NE, and signs some contract for more than he had coming to him, Team Branch must consider it a victory. Time will tell if it was worth the cost.

It does seem like those who whine most get what they want because most everyone wants to shut off (down) the whiners.

Team Branch does have something to lose. This years salaries and penalties that they accrue not to mention the bad pub. But they'll surely make up for this long term when they sign for (much) more $$$$ than what the Pats had offered in extension money. Classic business model of short term pain for long term gain.

BTW, welcome aboard.

 

[Bobs My Uncle]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

People also slow down for a car wreck but it doesn't mean that they'd want to be in their shoes. Did he get publicity? Absolutely but then again so did John Mark Karr and not the kind you'd expect or want . If you get too close to the bang, it blows up in your face and I have a feeling that this may fall into the 'be careful what you wish for, Mr. Chayut ' category..
Just my $0.02,

Perhaps but it's obvious the Chayut team is banking on the alternative this time around believing that bad PR can sometimes be very good PR.

 

[NE39]

The problem with Chayut's strategy is it only works if the Pats trade him. Otherwise, he sits out and loses $1M this year, and is right back in the same position next year if the Pats decide to franchise him.

He can make all the noise he wants, it only works if the Pats cave. Terry Glenn tried to shoot his way out of town before TO. He D-I-D try pretty hard, making a lot of noise. Belichick sat on him through the season, winning the Super Bowl despite the "distraction". The following offseason Glenn was dealt for picks, losing out on a healthy chunk of his pro-rated signing bonus.

Unless he wins his greivance, Branch has no leverage left. He can hold out all he wants, but he will lose all the money he was going to make this year and he will still be subject to the franchise tag after it. Belichick didn't give in to Glenn, and he will probably follow the same model with Branch. He'll sit on him until he comes back late in the season, franchise him in the offseason and then deal him for draft picks.

Doesn't sound "brilliant" to me.

 

[TheBostonStraggler]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

With this bit of info, if true, my stance has changed on Deion and his situation.

I've been pretty adamant that Deion is the one who is to be held responsible because his agent works for him. However, there seems to be something underhanded going on here. I recall some news getting out a couple of days ago where the Jets got in on the Branch talks as per Chayut's request, or as a favor to him. Now Chayut is advising that they sue the Patriots for the difference in Branch's current salary with the one the Jets supposedly offered?

I'm not one for conspiracies here, but something doesn't smell right. Either Deion is really a spiteful person or this agent is up to something ugly.

I agree on several fronts. First, I find it hard to believe, but not impossible, that DB is saying "Well if we don;t win let's sue them in court!". This is an agent or lawyer taking the representation of his client, in his quest to achieve what his client wants in dollars, on his shoulders. No way can Deion be this savy. Team Branch, I believe, is pulling the strings not DB himself. I wouldn't be surprised if DB is just tacitly approving what the TEAM Branch members are suggesting. Again, this seems way to far out for a kid who plays football to be the ring leader/puppet master. That said, he is still to blame.
Second, I think there is something going on here too. If Team Branch wins this thing, there has been a message sent to teams regarding players still under contract but who have outplayed that contract. That message is 'when a player out performs his contract, he is to be paid before that contract is up and at a rate that is what others would pay...or else!'. To me this smells of the NFLPA seeing a big opening to send that message (can't blame them actually. It is their job to get as much as possible for the players from the owners). If the owners even have even a whiff of belief on that, they better be prepared to dig in and fight on this one. Seriously, if Team Branch prevails, doesn't it set up the next guy who is DB's position to do the same thing??

 

[Bobs My Uncle]

The problem with Chayut's strategy is it only works if the Pats trade him. Otherwise, he sits out and loses $1M this year, and is right back in the same position next year if the Pats decide to franchise him.

Logic would dictate that Chayut would strongly believe that the Pats wouldn't want to pay a top 5 WR salary for a disgruntled player who'll more than likely be a cancer to the team if he's forced to stick around. Frankly, given BB's MO for playing the guys who only want to be there, I'm not so BB would want a disgruntled Deion around. Especially such an expensive Deion.

He can make all the noise he wants, it only works if the Pats cave. Terry Glenn tried to shoot his way out of town before TO. He D-I-D try pretty hard, making a lot of noise. Belichick sat on him through the season, winning the Super Bowl despite the "distraction". The following offseason Glenn was dealt for picks, losing out on a healthy chunk of his pro-rated signing bonus.

But Terry Glenn did get delt away. Getting Branch delt away is what Chayut wants to happen. And, apparently, he'll cause a ruckus until it happens.

Unless he wins his greivance, Branch has no leverage left. He can hold out all he wants, but he will lose all the money he was going to make this year and he will still be subject to the franchise tag after it. Belichick didn't give in to Glenn, and he will probably follow the same model with Branch. He'll sit on him until he comes back late in the season, franchise him in the offseason and then deal him for draft picks.

Again, a trade of Branch is what Chayut wants to happen. I'm sure he'd prefer for it to happen this year rather than next year but if it's next year it's no different than if Branch played out his contract in the first place.

Doesn't sound "brilliant" to me.

The new guy Chayut is now a household agent name as a result of his actions. You can't buy such publicity.

 

[Bobs My Uncle]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

Seriously, if Team Branch prevails, doesn't it set up the next guy who is DB's position to do the same thing??

I would assume that this would only be the case if the team in question gave the player permission to seek out a trading partner but then didn't act in good faith when that player returned a contract offer for their consideration.

I would think that the team could squash any potential liability simply by not agreeing to allow the player to source out a trading partner while under contract, or, if allowed, have written documentation which spells out specifically the exact terms of the compensation that the team is seeking.

 

[PonyExpress]

Branch's clusterfudge goes national: http://www.profootballtalk.com/rumormill.htm

 

[TheBostonStraggler]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

Chayut goes from a brand new, nobody agent that has a funny name to a rebel agent who isn't afraid to fight the good fight against the biggest of establishments (the NFL) without fear. And he gets to do all this while repping a SB MVP client. Chayut's name is splattered in the media every day. People are starting to tune in to see what this guy's got next. This is publicity that costs mega dollars (if you can even get it) and this guy is getting it no problem just by doing agent business. The other agents are probably jealous of all the notoriety the new kid Chayut is getting. This is a brilliant way to kick start his career. With a bang!

As someone who lives outside of New England, you overstate the case. Chayut isn't making much news outside of Boston. A snippet here and a snippet there mostly sums it up. I do agree, however, that if he pulls this off and Branch gets his cash this year, this will be quite the proverbial feather in his cap. Conversely, if Branch does not get more money than has already been offered by the Patriots, or elsehwere, that is a fact that will make the player talk circuit. He will have earned a reputation as a guy who did nothing for his client but cost him PR and cash. This is not the TO situation. TO was big news. Branch, outside of New England or an article here and there, is not making the back page snippet. Chayut does have his reputation on the line. Team Branch has DB now approx. 600k in the hole for this year. He'll add another 65K to that hole each week. Further, is DB paying for Team Branch's legal fees? Maybe the NFLPA or Chayut's ageny is to a greater extent. But I would bet TEAM Branch runs up multiple thousands of dollars in bills that comes out of DB's pocket (though maybe not). When it is all said and done, Deion will be in the hole for a cool million+. When you cost a player a million, you damn well better get him 4 times that much more extra in his new contract. "Brilliant" Chayut? That is so premature it's laughable. When it's all said and done, then we'll see where he is. If the ruling goes againt Team Branch and the Patriot's decide not to trade till the off season (both items are very, very possible), this guy will be representing second tier table tennis players next year (ok, maybe that's an exageration).

 

[TheBostonStraggler]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

I would assume that this would only be the case if the team in question gave the player permission to seek out a trading partner but then didn't act in good faith when that player returned a contract offer for their consideration.

I would think that the team could squash any potential liability simply by not agreeing to allow the player to source out a trading partner while under contract, or, if allowed, have written documentation which spells out specifically the exact terms of the compensation that the team is seeking.

Uncle Bob, you are fooling yourself if you think this is about a 'seek and negotiate' fax. Did you read the Guy from Duke, the Guy from here and the guy from there article (sorry, can't remember where the other 2 were from)? No leg to stand on from 3 experts was the determination. You think if there was an expert at Harvard, Yale, Stanford etc etc that was of the mind that Deion has a good legal leg to stand on, Team Branch wouldn't be letting that be known to the world?? He doesn't have a legal leg to stand on. This isn't about a 'seek and negotiate'. This is about tactics. They would proably have filed a '5th year coercion' suit. Or they would file a 'bad faith' in negotiations suit (whoops! They already did). Give it a rest with the fawning over Chayut as a great agent. He hasn't done 1 single thing yet that will get him recognized as a guy that players want to sign with. You hear that? Nothing. It may end up he does get the job done and his client list will swell. At least wait till that moment to start this inexplicable love fest.

 

[TheBostonStraggler]

Branch's clusterfudge goes national: http://www.profootballtalk.com/rumormill.htm

What a great point this article makes.

"As one league insider told us, Chayut's first question upon learning of the one-week window should have been, "What's it gonna take to get a trade done?"

If his intention was to get DB out of his contract and into a new, bigger contract, wouldn't it have been a competent thing to do to just approach the Patriots and say 'what type of compensation are you looking for'? Even if the Patriot's said '5 #1's and the brooklyn bridge' it still did not preclude him from seeing what would be offered for his client by another team. This way he was covered in both directions (find out what it will take to make the new deal happen or get a deal in place and start the process of griping). I guess a fax of 'seek and negotiate' is plenty of legal standing to determine compensation for the Patriots. Either the legal thing was in his/their mind from day one or he acted incompetently. If it was a legal thing from day one then they are a machine of legal hardball tactics beyond any other's comprehension.

 

[RAWKY]

Re: New Deion info from Felger

TO was big news. Branch, outside of New England or an article here and there, is not making the back page snippet.

This is excellent news and i appreciate you sharing it. The fact that this is not on the front burner on a national scale is really important on two levels.

First it proves once again that Branch is not at the TO level of accomplishments in the NFL.....TO for all the angnst he generates is a superior athlete who can make a difference all by himself in any given game....Note the SB we played against them i dare say if TO had not come to play they might not even have had a score.

Second because it is not nat'l in scope then the NFL is unlikely to try and broker a back room deal to make it go away.

Thus when these grivence hearings are over, assuming Team DB loses, this will all sink slowly out of sight in its own muck.

One could say Branch went out on a limb and now has cut it off.