The Denver Broncos and wide receiver Demaryius Thomas have not discussed his contract status for at least a month. This is not a good sign for the wide receiver who has until Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. EST to sign a long-term deal with his team.
NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport had this to report regarding Thomas’ situation (via NFL.com):
“Do not rule out the possibility that Demaryius Thomas misses games. This is very much in the realm of possibility.”
Rapoport reported that it is clear that Thomas will miss the beginning of training camp if he remains unsigned and indicated there is a “very good chance” Thomas would miss all of training camp.
Missing training camp is one thing. However, skipping a weekly $750,000 check is a whole separate animal. Rapoport notes that no franchise-tagged player other than Walter Jones has ever missed a game. He sat out for two weeks in 2002.
The Broncos and Thomas are are reportedly millions of dollars apart. Thomas apparently wants pay in the neighborhood of over $16 million per year while the Broncos have reportedly offered “well over” $12 million per year. Rapoport also reports that a Broncos’ source indicated that the team has done everything it can do can in terms of settling a deal.
Wednesday will likely come and go with no deal in sight for Thomas. It’s looking like quarterback Peyton Manning will be without his star receiver when training camp gets underway at the end of the month.
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