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I've always thought that it was very strange for Tampa Bay to have traded for Jake Plummer, who made it very clear he was not going to play for the Bucs. Now I can begin to see why the trade was made; the Bucs stand a very good vhance of collecting $7 million from Plummer, which is the amoint of pro-rated signing bonus Plummer had remaining on his contract at the time Denver traded him to Tampa. $7 million for a 4th round pick, which they ended up getting back, sounds like a good deal to me for Tampa Bay.
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Jake Plummer finally will emerge from the Idaho mountains this week, but it won't be because he is suddenly eager to wait in line behind the other five Bucs quarterbacks.
Instead, Plummer on Wednesday morning will sit at a conference table at NFL headquarters in New York flanked by attorneys trying to stave off the team's efforts to collect more than $7-million from a player who never donned a Tampa Bay uniform.
Across the table will be general manager Bruce Allen and league attorneys, each convinced Plummer should pay up. An arbitrator will hear arguments and decide the outcome.
An unexpected series of events led to the 33-year-old landing on the roster via a trade with the Broncos in March 2007. But that's when things got really weird as Plummer opted to retire. He hasn't budged despite a face-to-face plea from coach Jon Gruden to come south.
Now the Bucs are seeking to recover the prorated portion of a signing bonus paid to Plummer when he renegotiated his contract in 2005. The up-front money was paid, of course, with the understanding Plummer would fulfill a contract that binds him through 2009.
Plummer appears to have an uphill climb, but he won't go down without a fight. His representatives and union attorneys are likely to argue the Bucs aren't entitled to the money because, well, they didn't pay it. The Broncos did.
But the Bucs will argue that by having the Broncos join them in the grievance — at least on paper, because they are not seeking any money — they have adequate legal standing.
And there is precedent, a case involving the Dolphins' Ricky Williams. He was ordered to repay the team $8.6-million after his initial decision to retire following his trade from the Saints. More than $3-million of that sum was paid by New Orleans.
You might think none of this really matters that much. Oh, but it does. The Bucs would receive a salary cap windfall if they are successful. A decision probably won't be reached for several months, but any money recouped would be applied to the following season's cap. And $7-million in cap space is nothing to sneeze at.
So a signing bonus once paid by the Broncos might one day go toward paying a future Buccaneer.
Instead, Plummer on Wednesday morning will sit at a conference table at NFL headquarters in New York flanked by attorneys trying to stave off the team's efforts to collect more than $7-million from a player who never donned a Tampa Bay uniform.
Across the table will be general manager Bruce Allen and league attorneys, each convinced Plummer should pay up. An arbitrator will hear arguments and decide the outcome.
An unexpected series of events led to the 33-year-old landing on the roster via a trade with the Broncos in March 2007. But that's when things got really weird as Plummer opted to retire. He hasn't budged despite a face-to-face plea from coach Jon Gruden to come south.
Now the Bucs are seeking to recover the prorated portion of a signing bonus paid to Plummer when he renegotiated his contract in 2005. The up-front money was paid, of course, with the understanding Plummer would fulfill a contract that binds him through 2009.
Plummer appears to have an uphill climb, but he won't go down without a fight. His representatives and union attorneys are likely to argue the Bucs aren't entitled to the money because, well, they didn't pay it. The Broncos did.
But the Bucs will argue that by having the Broncos join them in the grievance — at least on paper, because they are not seeking any money — they have adequate legal standing.
And there is precedent, a case involving the Dolphins' Ricky Williams. He was ordered to repay the team $8.6-million after his initial decision to retire following his trade from the Saints. More than $3-million of that sum was paid by New Orleans.
You might think none of this really matters that much. Oh, but it does. The Bucs would receive a salary cap windfall if they are successful. A decision probably won't be reached for several months, but any money recouped would be applied to the following season's cap. And $7-million in cap space is nothing to sneeze at.
So a signing bonus once paid by the Broncos might one day go toward paying a future Buccaneer.
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