Pro Football Weekly hearing that Asante will sign tender

[Pat_Nasty]

From their "Whispers from around the NFL" column posted today on ESPN.com:

• There are whispers that when all is said and done, Patriots CB Asante Samuel will show up in training camp and sign his franchise tender.

 

[Pat_Nasty]

Of course, reports like this raise more questions than they answer, specifically, who is it saying this, how are they in a position to know, and what are there motives to share the information?

 

[Oswlek]

This is garbage. "Whispers"? "When all is said and done"?

This is nothing more than speculation that Asante won't be able to resist the call of $7.8mm. Not even a time frame, which would indicate some inside information. Even if it is from a legitimate NFL source, there is nothing in here that sounds any different than your typical message board post.

 

[fgssand]

This is garbage. "Whispers"? "When all is said and done"?

This is nothing more than speculation that Asante won't be able to resist the call of $7.8mm. Not even a time frame, which would indicate some inside information. Even if it is from a legitimate NFL source, there is nothing in here that sounds any different than your typical message board post.

Unless, of course, they are right, in which case they will take credit for breaking the story.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

Maybe they heard that a couple of months ago. I don't bother reading them any more because they seem to have lost touch with us quite a while ago and most of their NFL info in general seems like dated rehashes of what others have said days and weeks before. Hope they are right, but if they are it will be in that blind squirrel kind of way.

 

[Pat_Nasty]

This is garbage. "Whispers"? "When all is said and done"?

This is nothing more than speculation that Asante won't be able to resist the call of $7.8mm. Not even a time frame, which would indicate some inside information. Even if it is from a legitimate NFL source, there is nothing in here that sounds any different than your typical message board post.

Wow, man... who put the sand in your vag today?

Anyway, let me explain to you the concept behind a "rumors" column, something that has existed for centuries in journalism. While covering their beat, reporters often hear a lot of off-the-record inside chatter. If you can't get a source to go on record, or the source himself is just relating hearsay, you can't actually "break" it as news, and most often, the tidbits aren't really worth putting time and effort into pursuing.

Thus, you have the occasional "rumors" column, in which the paper's reporters dump a bunch of the random stuff they've heard during the course of reporting on other stories, stuff that either doesn't bare further investigation, or which they don't believe will be verifiable. So in a way, you're dead on when you call it "garbage"... it's basically the writers' dumping ground for unused or dead stories.

On the other hand, you're wrong to call it "speculation," at least on PFW's part. If they put it in a "whispers" column, it's because they've heard something from someone. How reliable that source is and the extent to which that source knows what he/she is talking about, though, is indeterminate, so no, this isn't hard news, and doesn't really tell us much, but it's not pure speculation like it would be when a columnist simply shares a hunch.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

Unless of course the source or sources they heard it from were really just speculating... There are tons of league sources who don't work here yet think they know as master football tea leaf readers what we are, should or might be up to.

Could also be that one or more teams have inquired as to his availability in trade and been rebuffed. There were whispers and rumors that AV would be resigned here in 2006. No point in even talking to him. Turns out most of them were the result of the erroneous impression that somehow permeated the league that the Pat's were playin' a little hardball but had every intention of resigning him - ergo there was no point in even talking to him. Turns out that was a huge misconception, and one I bet the Cowboys were kicking themselves over Parcell's buying hook, line and sinker.

 

[Oswlek]

Wow, man... who put the sand in your vag today?

Anyway, let me explain to you the concept behind a "rumors" column, something that has existed for centuries in journalism. While covering their beat, reporters often hear a lot of off-the-record inside chatter. If you can't get a source to go on record, or the source himself is just relating hearsay, you can't actually "break" it as news, and most often, the tidbits aren't really worth putting time and effort into pursuing.

Thus, you have the occasional "rumors" column, in which the paper's reporters dump a bunch of the random stuff they've heard during the course of reporting on other stories, stuff that either doesn't bare further investigation, or which they don't believe will be verifiable. So in a way, you're dead on when you call it "garbage"... it's basically the writers' dumping ground for unused or dead stories.

On the other hand, you're wrong to call it "speculation," at least on PFW's part. If they put it in a "whispers" column, it's because they've heard something from someone. How reliable that source is and the extent to which that source knows what he/she is talking about, though, is indeterminate, so no, this isn't hard news, and doesn't really tell us much, but it's not pure speculation like it would be when a columnist simply shares a hunch.

I understand everything you said, but that doesn't change anything in any way. Even if it comes straight from a GM who had discussions with NE about Samuel, it is still just speculation.... or an "educated guess" if you so prefer.

I just don't see the point in even printing something which is essentially what most seem to believe. The add absolutely nothing, but can still come across as having "inside information" if it works out in their favor.

It is similar to saying, "We have been hearing whispers that many league insiders don't feel that the Indianapolis Colts are well positioned for a repeat."

Well, duh. Like the Samuel situation, it is the most likely scenerio and needed no such qualifying.

 

[JR4]

I could understand he would sign to get the bucks.
But why sign by Training camp?
If no long term contract then why not wait until September to sign?

 

[Pat_Nasty]

Unless of course the source or sources they heard it from were really just speculating... There are tons of league sources who don't work here yet think they know as master football tea leaf readers what we are, should or might be up to.

Could also be that one or more teams have inquired as to his availability in trade and been rebuffed. There were whispers and rumors that AV would be resigned here in 2006. No point in even talking to him. Turns out most of them were the result of the erroneous impression that somehow permeated the league that the Pat's were playin' a little hardball but had every intention of resigning him - ergo there was no point in even talking to him. Turns out that was a huge misconception, and one I bet the Cowboys were kicking themselves over Parcell's buying hook, line and sinker.

Agreed, entirely -- which is why I made the point of saying that if it is speculation, it's not on PFW's part.

The thing about rumors is that you never know if they'll turn out to be true. Like in the example you mentioned, everybody league-wide seemed convinced that AV would be resigned -- it became a rumor that reached the point of "conventional wisdom," before turning out to be completely unfounded. But then there were those persistent rumors of the Patriots' interest in Moss, most of which was decried as ridiculous for a long time. I'll confess, I didn't really buy any of it until I read that the deal was almost done.

 

[Pat_Nasty]

I understand everything you said, but that doesn't change anything in any way. Even if it comes straight from a GM who had discussions with NE about Samuel, it is still just speculation.... or an "educated guess" if you so prefer.

I just don't see the point in even printing something which is essentially what most seem to believe. The add absolutely nothing, but can still come across as having "inside information" if it works out in their favor.

It is similar to saying, "We have been hearing whispers that many league insiders don't feel that the Indianapolis Colts are well positioned for a repeat."

Well, duh. Like the Samuel situation, it is the most likely scenerio and needed no such qualifying.

I don't know much about Pro Football Weekly, so maybe you're right, and they'd consider the guesswork of a couple of GMs to be enough of an impetus to put something like that in a rumors column. That's not how it reads to me, though. I've been the Assistant Editor (read: magazine b**ch) in charge of doing the write-up for one of these columns before, and if reporter was simply reporting "expert's" speculation, I'd know it had to be phrased differently.

For example, where PFW wrote "There are whispers that when all is said and done, Patriots CB Asante Samuel will show up in training camp and sign his franchise tender," if we were simply reporting speculation, I'd have written "We hear that few believe Asante Samuel's threat of a hold-out, and that he'll likely show up in training camp and sign his tender."

Again, I don't know if PFW is as scrupulous about this sort of thing as they should be, but from their phrasing, I'd have to assume that someone at least claimed to have heard some sort of information about Asante's plan.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

I could understand he would sign to get the bucks.
But why sign by Training camp?
If no long term contract then why not wait until September to sign?

Why sign by Jul 16 and attend Training Camp?
- It may be that teams interested in him aren't offering him an $80 mil deal and have let it be known he hasn't been as consistent as Clements or Bailey, so take the tender and use camp to springboard into another top season with a third ring.
- The Pats may be offering some small concession, such as no Franchise Tag in 2008 to get him into camp or, sign now and start the season where you left off and we'll match Clements' deal if your play through the bye meets X.
- He could also be thinking coming back week ten gets him stuck at RCB where he won't get as many INT chances...
- Maybe Rodney's restructure deal dangled an extra half mil roster bonus to sign his tender by Jul 16 and come to camp.
- Maybe he has a new tattoo...

 

[TheSeymonsta]

If he refuses to sign the tender he is a complete moron....That means he is giving up 7.9 million....

Of course he signs it.

 

[DarrylS]

If he refuses to sign the tender he is a complete moron....That means he is giving up 7.9 million....

Of course he signs it.

Have felt this all along, had one very good year, come back and show if this is the exception or the rule... we will see.

 

[Holy Diver]

7.8 million is about 6.5 million more than they were offering Deion Branch...a superbowl MVP.


Dear Assante,

Take the frickin MONEY!....win a frickin SUPERBOWL!....the team is stacked, they are built to win right now. Man...I WISH I could suck up 7.8 million dollars and work in a job I love alonside the best in the biz.

you are a lucky man,

don't slow your roll.

 

[Pat_Nasty]

7.8 million is about 6.5 million more than they were offering Deion Branch...a superbowl MVP.


Dear Assante,

Take the frickin MONEY!....win a frickin SUPERBOWL!....the team is stacked, they are built to win right now. Man...I WISH I could suck up 7.8 million dollars and work in a job I love alonside the best in the biz.

Maybe you could. What's your 40 time? How good are you in man coverage?

 

[patchick]

I could understand he would sign to get the bucks.
But why sign by Training camp?
If no long term contract then why not wait until September to sign?

Yeah, the "show up in training camp" line is clearly the most interesting part of the rumor. I'd be surprised if he showed up day 1, but not a bit surprised if he made it to enough of camp to be in good form for the start of the season. You don't want to be out of shape and set yourself up for injury or, as Box mentioned, getting flat-out outplayed and starting the season in a diminished role.

 

[Pats726]

Why sign by Jul 16 and attend Training Camp?
- It may be that teams interested in him aren't offering him an $80 mil deal and have let it be known he hasn't been as consistent as Clements or Bailey, so take the tender and use camp to springboard into another top season with a third ring.
- The Pats may be offering some small concession, such as no Franchise Tag in 2008 to get him into camp or, sign now and start the season where you left off and we'll match Clements' deal if your play through the bye meets X.
- He could also be thinking coming back week ten gets him stuck at RCB where he won't get as many INT chances...
- Maybe Rodney's restructure deal dangled an extra half mil roster bonus to sign his tender by Jul 16 and come to camp.
- Maybe he has a new tattoo...

I am glad to hear this..good rumors are always better than bad ones..and I have to wonder if this was WAT off course that other rumors would be sprouting...Box has given some good reasons as to the possibilities..ALL are interesting..and bottom line is that
As may not be a problem this year...all the better...

 

[jimmyjames]

I found this "whisper" particularly entertaining:

• With the Colts still expected to part ways with DT Corey Simon, our sources tell us the team is hoping to get a lot more help on the D-line this season from versatile fifth-year pro Dan Klecko.

 

[fgssand]

If he signs his tender, does he add to the tatoo?

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