...Sorry, you'll have excuse me for a moment there. I was kneeling at my desk in my cube worshipping the keyboard before I typed in the word "Urlacher" into blogger, standard operating procedure for Chicagoans like me in this great (kneels) Urlacher era.
Look, I've always liked the guy for his performance on the field, and I could really give shit less what he does off of it.
With that said, I'm glad that he decided not to pull a Lance Briggs and be a bitch about the situation. In case you're wondering what the contract is at currently and what's being talked about, I give you my favorite Bears scribe, the Chicago Tribune's David Haugh:
The crux of (Urlacher's) argument always has attacked the NFL's system of non-guaranteed contracts as much as the Bears. His main contention revolves around the idea that long-term NFL contracts aren't worth the paper they're faxed on. the Bears' extension offer, ironically, in essence confirms his point.
On the surface, the $18 million extension sounds robust until you factor in the reported $9 million base salary for the extra season in 2012 written into the deal. Urlacher would be 34.
If he's even still playing for the Bears at that point, you can bet a case of Vitamin Water the team will rework his deal before paying him $9 million for a 13th season.
So in reality, the offer isn't really worth $18 million just as the deal Urlacher signed in 2003 wasn't really ever expected to hold up nine years.
Like it or not, long-term NFL contracts are written to be rewritten.
Reluctantly, the Bears have fairly done so with Urlacher's contract after initially being cool to the idea. It now awaits his signature.
At this point, Urlacher should view the $5 million signing bonus as part of the Bears' $18 million extension a reasonable meeting point. The money up front matches the bonuses given Alex Brown and Desmond Clark and represents the respect Urlacher craved
While I think it's important to pay him what he has earned, you have to wonder how this all figures in with Tommie Harris and his contract demands. Harris is the future of this team, not Urlacher. How do you go about paying Harris when dipshit organizations like the Raiders are giving out 7 year, 50.5 million dollar contracts to no names like Tommy Kelly? Seriously, who the fuck is this guy?
My solution: pay Urlacher before you pay Harris. The reason: if you pay Tommie Harris a good chunk of change before Urlacher, #54 will get pissed and want more then the Bears are willing to pay him. And if Urlacher did accept in his eyes what he saw to be a lower then he wanted amount, he'd be a fucking malcontent in the locker room. By giving him what he wants now, you can focus squarely on Harris.
Then maybe Jerry Angelo can get to work on this whole QB situation, which should be just as big of a pain in the ass.
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