http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=Ash8...p&type=lgns

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP)—Michael Crabtree(notes) is a no-show at San Francisco 49ers training camp.

The Niners kicked off their first camp under coach Mike Singletary on Saturday without their top draft pick, the star receiver from Texas Tech. The team said Crabtree had yet to sign before players took the field for their opening workout.

Singletary said earlier in the week he wouldn’t be surprised if Crabtree hadn’t agreed to a contract by the first day. The rest of the rookies reported to the training complex Tuesday.

The record-setting receiver was the 10th overall pick in the NFL draft after he unexpectedly slipped several spots on draft day. He’s listed and wearing No. 15 on the roster being handed out on a day when practice was open to the public.

Crabtree also missed the 49ers’ offseason minicamps while recovering from a foot injury.




Not really a surprise here. Still glad that the Packers passed on him.

One has to wonder how much these kind of things have to do with the agent these kids hire. If it was me I'd say I'll hire you, but no hold out my rookie season. It never pays off not to report early the first year, imo
.

If it was me I would take more business and econ classes in college and represent myself.

He isn't the only no-show- Last time I looked Raji was not in camp. For all those Moreno lovers out ther...

http://www.prosportsdaily.com/comments/bro...off-259684.html

Raji is in GB waiting for the contract to be resolved.

Lets not compare Raji to Crabtree...not the same situation.

No, but they do have an effect on each other. At least Crabtree does on Raji.

Why not? All the players want their contract resolved, resolved according to what they want. If that was not the case they would all be in camp and not concerned with what anyone else received.

I am not sure why you find the situations so different? They both are holding out.

Just tell Raji that the local BK will bring back the Gilbert burger and rename it the Raji burger and that he can have all he wants free of charge.

Because its Crabtree and his agent that are holding up the signing of picks 8-12. Crabtree's agent wants Top 5 money for his client due to the fact that he was slated to be a an early pick but dropped because of the injury. That has a domino effect on other signings. The two picks below and after Crabtree haven't signed yet. Its because the agents of these clients aren't going to go through with a contract until they have an understanding of how much Crabtree's contract will be. It would certainly be sour grapes if you rushed to a contract then a week later a player who was drafted after you ends up getting a significantly better contract. Crabtree and his agent are the guilty party here. This really shouldn't be that difficult. There is a slotting process but Crabtree's agent is challenging that process. He is on record saying his client deserves better than #10 money. That is the hangup. Let's not forget that the NFL is a business. Right or wrong Raji and his agent are simply doing their due diligence.

Exactly, same as Crabtree's. They obviously think they can get more money for their client.

I do like the idea of a slotted pay scale for rookies. I suppose the player's union wouldn't go for it however.

Hmmm, I wonder. If I were a veteran player and some runny-nosed kid who hasn't played a down makes more money than anybody else on the roster it wouldn't sit too well with me.

A local newspaper reporter in SF is speculating that the two sides are likely 8-10 million apart on the gauranteed money for Crabtree.

I like it too.

He's already threatening to re-enter the draft next year. Wow.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2009/...re-enter-draft/


You've got to wonder why not -- you'd think there'd be far more pressure on the union to help proven players get good money over helping a few top picks (and therefore new members) get huge dollars. I mean, there are a lot more NFLPA members who are midrange solid guys than topflight hotshots draft picks.

Seriously, I knew early on this kid was plum dumb. His actions are now just confirming that. What an idiot. Typical WR, prima dona. Thank God we have guys like Jennings, Driver, Jones, Nelson, etc...

I wonder if this might get some things moving. He's not going to sit out the season, but it doesn't sounds like this is going to happen anytime soon either. I'm hoping the rest of the guys drafted in that area come to the realization that this guy's a loon, and they don't want to do this little sit down protest with him any longer.

Thank you for saying what I was thinking. How pathetic! How insecure can you possibly be to hold out an entire year because you think you "deserve" top receiver money. He doesn't deserve it, he wasn't the top receiver drafted.

I realize it's a business. He wants to be stable. But if you think you're so great then get on the damn field and show someone. Javon Walker 2.0. He doesn't want to win, that's my problem with guys like this. They don't care about winning football games.

All I know is this kid better be the second coming of Jerry Rice once he straps em' up -- otherwise the crowd is definitely going to let him know.

Other problem is that (if I remember correctly) he shares Raji's agent. I doubt the guy is in a hurry to sign Raji and weaken his position with Crabtree.

Link to Pearlman

Raji's negotiations are held up waiting to see how Crabtree does. Pearlman's article suggests Crabtree might never recover from a season-long holdout.

Sounds like Moreno (#12) is about to sign. I don't know if that'll know down any dominos or not.

http://www.sports-agent-directory.com/spor...s/daviddunn.asp

That is not good news for th Packers. I hate these types of holdouts. Stupid, stupid players that are not happy to be multi-millionaires because they want to be bigger millionaires without ever playing a down in the NFL.

Just my opinion. *sigh*

I hear ya, makes me appreciate amateur athletics more so these days, but next Sat. I'll be cheering The Pack as always. The fans care more than the players for the most part, maybe it's always been that way, I don't know.

I wonder now with Raji contract in place if the Niners will say here is what the 9th pick got here is what we offer so take it or go F yourself.

You would think so. There's no excuse for him (and Eugene Monroe) not to get it done pretty quickly now. If they can't reach agreement at this point, one side or the other is being unreasonable.

Thank God we didn't sign Crabtree.

I remember when the Raiders took DHB and Jags Eugene Monroe thinking, "Please Ted, don't do this. We don't need another WR -- this kid is going to be nothing but trouble and isn't that talented anyway."

I'm sure I'm not the only one who thought that, either.

Not surprisingly Monroe signed today. That leaves Andre Smith, Maybin and Crabtree as the only ones left.

Now we'll get to see just how far Crabtree is willing to go with this.

I agree with GBP4EVER. At this point, the 49ers have an idea of what he should be paid. They should just draw a line in the sand with this guy and say #9 got this, #11 got this. You're getting this, take it or leave it. They're probably already wondering if this guy's worth the trouble.

For that matter Andre Smith has no reason not to get his butt in camp, too. 5 and 7 are already done. What's holding that one up?

Thats for sure. Some other good advice would be to remember who and what Mike Singletary is, and if he ever does sign, he'd better be the hardest worker on the team. I can see the steam coming out of Mike's ears from Wis.

Agree. As much a I hate the Bears, I find it curiously hard to hate Singletary. I find a way of course, but I must say I admire his fire. Perhaps we have something in the same with Kevin Greene.

All I know is that if/when Crabtree signs he better eat two helpings of Wheaties that first morning.

Singletary talks and acts like a great football coach out of some movie. He's got passion, he's tough, he's uncompromising. It's the sort of thing a lot of people feel is missing from the modern game.

Of course, this year we'll see if that translates into football wins. After all, there's a reason that Al Pacino isn't actually out coaching a team someplace despite being good at delivering his lines.

Just as a Crabtree update: Locals here are starting to talk seriously about him sitting out the year. Niner fans are concerned that even if he signs now it'll be too late for him to be a worthwhile contributor during the critical first half of the season.

Thanks for the update. Crabtree is an idiot. I hope he goes back into the draft and a rookie cap is put into place that limits the big money that top 10 players are getting. That way he'll be stuck with an even lower contract that can't be negotiated. The Niners won't let anyone work him out, so nobody will know if he can really do all the things that he says he can with their own eyes. He'll end up with even less money than this year as there are easily 10 guys coming out next year that will be better than Michael Crabtree and No One will risk spending a high pick on such a prima dona who screwed up his opportunity in San Francisco. He either signs with them on their terms or he's super screwed. Even if he does sign, he's done his career irreparable harm by ruining his rookie year and the impact that he could have had. Both he and his agent are jokes. It's hard to believe that Eugene Parker is the same guy that represents Greg Jennings and Larry Fitzgerald. While both players had contract issues they managed to get the issues resolved without it resulting in holdouts for either guy. Overall, his clients hold out way too often for me to be comfortable with drafting any player he represents early in the draft (until they fix the system and force-feed these greedy agents realistic contracts).

If Crabtree holds out for an entire year he will have two options. The CFL or Burger King.

I don't think it's hard to believe. The player controls the agent, not the other way around. The player can get bad advice, but it's ultimately a sign of the player's poor character or immaturity to heed such advice.

Players want and have every right to want an agent who is going to get them paid and taken care of by a team, and that's why a lot of players go with Parker. The agent should be willing to fight tooth and nail for his guys. But at the end of the day the player says, "Hey, get this deal done, I want to play" or "I want every last dime and I won't sign for a penny less!"

And that's the difference between Jennings and Crabtree.

The thing that make Crabtree a legitimate idiot in this scenario is that should he decide to holdout, he'll be costing himself millions of dollars in the end. Not only will he be losing an entire year's salary, but any contract he gets next year will be millions lower than whatever the 49'ers are offering him now. He'd be lucky to go in the second round.

Kind of an odd strategy for a guy that's holding out because, you know, he supposedly wants more money?

I would have said "CFL or CPK" -- funnier that way, although you are relying on people knowing about California Pizza Kitchen.

Honestly Sinatra, I wonder about that.

Myself, I wouldn't touch Crabtree this year, and certainly not next year if he decides to hold out. But, a team like say, the Lions, if they have a top 10 pick (which they will), I could see them giving Crabtree another chance.

Just the nature of the NFL. Unfortunately, potential, fast 40 times and hype trump character 9 times out of 10. Someday, teams like the Bengals (Andre Smith) 9'ers (Crabtree) and Raiders (Bey) will learn.....I think.

If I was the 49ers I try to start talking with Denver. One headcase for another sends Brandon Marshall to San Fran. What else do you think it would take besides Crabtree to make it happen?

Keep in mind, the Lions fired the retards and brought in a HC with an degree in Economics. The only other team that comes to mind is the Raiders, and Crabtree isn't fast enough for their tastes.

I don't see a team taking a swing at him in the top-20 if he's really stupid enough to sit out a season. The fact that he doesn't seem to know this shows that he's not just stupid; he's also extremely delusional.

X2

How is holding out an entire season going to raise his value in any way, shape, or form. WAKE UP JEREMY.

Just a little stream of consciousness food for thought....

It occurs to me that when a person behaves so self-destructively in a situation regarding sums of money (regardless of what they are) that are beyond the person's ability to even imagine realistically, something else may be going on.

I don't know what the team is offering him, but if it's, say, 10 million and he's dreaming of, say, 20 million, these are really abstract concepts - I'd wager that he has no idea in real terms of what those sums of money would mean to his life. Both numbers are sufficient for retirement. Their meaning must be a pure abstraction to him, a kind of pinball score and he's fixated on the higher score. That's a trick of the mind, really. A deception.

In such cases, I can't help but think that something else might be going on in that psyche. It could be any number of things and I wouldn't even venture a guess. Chances are that he doesn't even know himself. In a way, it's beyond his control possibly and that's just sad for him. This could impact his entire life adversely - something I'm sure he doesn't recognize. The head trip here is pure fantasy, but something more hidden could be behind it all. I sure wouldn't hope for bad things to come of it all for him (as some have expressed) - God knows we all have enough in our own lives to hope for or against without expending mental energy in hopes for bad things to happen to other people who are strangers to us.

You could be right Terry. I would hope someone (a family member, mentor, close friend, ex coach) would try to explain that to him. It is indeed very sad when someone works most of their life to play in the NFL, and then walk away at the door.

Next game is for real and there isn't any more about the situation. I really beleive this guy is going to sit out the whole season. Could mean the destruction of his career, but somehow (considering the business side of things) this guy just may step into a pile of it.

This is another side note to what I beleive is going to be a extraordinary NFL season.

Terry, respectful explanation of what may going on in this kids mind.

I have seen on a couple SF boards that the team has offered to match the Raji contract, and Crabtree's side turned the offer down flat. Apparently Crabtree's side feels that both Raji and Monroe signed bad deals, and they are looking to top the deal Monroe signed at #8.

I'm sure that is going on in his mind. But considering what he stands to lose (a whole career) against what he stands to gain, something is not quite right with the picture, imo.

Crabtree is a dumb diva that is listening to his agent tell him that they will get the niners to pay or will get more money in the next draft and neither will happen IMO.

I think it's probably more his posse than his agent. By every account I've read, his agent Eugene Parker is highly respected by both owners and players as a tough but fair negotiator.

I wonder if this shows that Crabtree fell in the draft for more than just an unknown 40 time...

part was his attitude. He has a I am great and know it attitude. In college if he did not like the team meal he demanded someone go get him something else.