Tarell Brown left $2 million on the table this offseason. This hardly was part of the plan.
The San Francisco 49ers cornerback was due to earn $2.925 million in 2013, the final year of his contract. To collect $2 million of that salary, he was obligated to attend offseason workouts with the team. Unaware that his attendance was contractually mandatory, Brown worked out on his own in Texas.
He didn't realize he had cost himself dearly until Thursday, when he saw reports on Twitter. He immediately fired his agent, Brian Overstreet.
"No one wants to leave money on the table," Brown said Thursday, via The Associated Press. "If I would have known the clauses in my contract -- that's what agents get paid to do, to orchestrate the contract and to let you know what you can and can't do as far as workouts and OTAs and things of that sort. That's what he got paid to do. He didn't do that, so in my opinion, you have to be let go. We all are held accountable for our actions. This is part of the business."
After finishing what we imagine was a tremendously pleasant conversation with Mr. Overstreet, Brown reached out to the 49ers. Unfortunately for the 28-year-old, "there wasn't too much I really could say."
"It had nothing to do with not being in shape, not wanting to work out, no contract problems, it just had to do with me wanting to go back home and train," Brown said. "It's something I've been doing for the past few years."
Brown said he plans to sit down with 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh in an effort to work out a compromise of some kind.
"Hope for the best," Brown said. "Pray for me."
Let's throw in a prayer for the agent, too. What a mess.
Follow Dan Hanzus on Twitter @DanHanzus.
