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Northcutt files grievence against Browns
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=1779049
Quote:
ESPN.com news services
CLEVELAND -- Wide receiver Dennis Northcutt has filed a grievance against the Cleveland Browns, the team he has been trying to leave since his agent failed to meet a deadline to make him a free agent.
Browns spokesman Todd Stewart confirmed Friday that Northcutt's agent, Jerome Stanley, filed the grievance.
Stanley claims the Browns did not bargain with Northcutt in good faith. The agent also claims the team breached Northcutt's contract.
The Browns deny the claims.
"There's absolutely no justification whatsoever for a grievance," Browns president Carmen Policy told The Plain Dealer of Cleveland. "Where's the breach of a contract? We didn't have a contract [after Feb. 19]. It expired. And we bargained right up until that deadline, so I don't see how that's bargaining in bad faith."
Northcutt's right to free agency was nullified when Stanley missed a Feb. 19 deadline to void the last three years of his contract. The Browns gave Stanley permission to seek a trade, but he has been frustrated by their reluctance to trade with division rival Baltimore Ravens.
The same thing occurred with another wide receiver, Terrell Owens, whose agent failed to nullify the final years of his contract with San Francisco on time.
The 49ers then traded him to Baltimore and Owens filed a grievance.
The case was finally settled with Owens being declared a free agent and signing with Philadelphia. The Eagles sent defensive end Brandon Whiting to San Francisco and compensated the Ravens with a fifth-round draft choice.
Owens' situation -- similar to Northcutt's but with a slightly different deadline -- was supported by the players union. Stanley said he has appealed to Gene Upshaw, executive director of the union, for help.
"He's talked to the Browns and tried to reach out," Stanley told The Plain Dealer.
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Basically, Northcutt had an out clause in his contract if he met certain goals. His agent claims that an "administrative error" occured and they didn't meet the February 19 deadline. They have been trying to negotiate with the Browns, but the talks are collapsing.
I post this because, in the wake of the Terrell Owens fiasco, it's nice to see a receiver actually want to come to Baltimore so bad he claims he won't report anywhere else.
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--Peter Schmuck, The (Baltimore) Sun
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