As our Albert Breer reported, the Detroit Lions and franchise-tagged defensive end Cliff Avrilwere unable to reach agreement on a multiyear contract before Monday's 4 p.m. ET deadline.
Breer also reported that the Lions offered Avril $30 million over three years with $20 million guaranteed, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation.
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Avril is among three franchised players who have not signed a multiyear extension or their tender. Once Avril's tender is signed he will be guaranteed $10.605 million in base salary this season. That's considerably more than the $4.245 million Avril made over the first four seasons of his career. It might be some time, however, before he puts pen to paper.
Avril doesn't expect to be in Allen Park, Mich., when the Lions report to training camp July 26, according to Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com,
"I probably won't be there the first day," Avril said. "We'll just go from there. I just have to sit down and see what we think is right and we'll go from there."
Without a signed contract, Avril was smart to skip the Lions' offseason workout program, including OTAs and minicamps. Absence was his best leverage. Now that the deadline has come and gone, the earliest Avril can reach a new deal is December 31. Avril and his agent (Brian Mackler) must decide when is the right time for him to sign the tender and report to training camp.
Eventually, Avril will sign. He's not going to pass up weekly game checks worth $623,824, which is more than he made in any year in his rookie contract. However, that's a decision that only Avril and his camp can make, and there's little the Lions can do to coax him into the fold. Without a signed contract, he is not subject to the $30,000 in daily fines the collective bargaining agreement allows for signed players who don't report.
