[CBFF] Comedian Harris wants no drama :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Bears - Sent Using Google Toolbar

[Steve Behrens]

I like Harris' attitude (so far) with this.... get 'er done.

-Behr

On Wed, Apr 9, 2008 at 8:26 AM, Tom Shannon <tshanno at gmail.com> wrote:

> Comedian Harris wants no drama :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Bears
>
> Comedian Harris wants no drama
>  A deal could take place quickly if DT likes Bears' extension offer
>
>
>
> April 9, 2008
>
>  Recommend (2)
>
> BY BRAD BIGGS bbiggs at suntimes.com
>
> The jokester in Tommie Harris walked into the gym at Maryville Academy
> on Tuesday and proclaimed relief that a long contract negotiation was
> complete.
>
> After receiving the Ed Block Courage Award at a luncheon benefitting
> the Ed McCaskey Scholarship Fund, the frequent comedian put all
> kidding aside. Harris doesn't want any drama in his bid to receive an
> extension from the Bears as he enters the final year of his contract.
>
> » Click to enlarge image
> Tommie Harris
> (AP)
>
>
> RELATED STORIES Inside the Bears: Updates from our blog
>
>
> Harris was to dine with agents Drew and Jason Rosenhaus on Tuesday
> evening, and if the group determines the Bears' offer is close, a deal
> might materialize quickly.
>
> Otherwise, negotiations could go the way they did for linebacker Lance
> Briggs two years ago. Rosenhaus arrived to close a deal, and the sides
> got close before negotiations broke off. Briggs wound up skipping the
> voluntary offseason program in 2006 and begrudgingly played with the
> franchise tag last year.
>
> ''I want a fair deal,'' said Harris, a three-time Pro Bowl defensive
> tackle. ''I'm not asking for anything ridiculous. [The franchise tag]
> is not even a figment of my imagination. We're in 2008, and I really
> don't go that far. I'm optimistic.''
>
> It's certain, though, that his party has weighed the franchise tag. If
> the Bears head down that path with Harris, the earliest he could enter
> free agency would be 2010. Harris, who turns 25 this month, would like
> to reach an accord now so he can return to the bargaining table before
> he's 30.
>
> There are issues for the Bears to be concerned with as they consider
> how long Harris can remain an elite performer. He played on a bad left
> knee last season but didn't miss a game and had a career-high eight
> sacks. Dr. James Andrews certified to the team after arthroscopic
> surgery in January that Harris doesn't have a degenerative condition
> in the knee. He had major surgery to repair his left hamstring in
> 2006.
>
> But Oakland's Tommy Kelly received the biggest deal ever for a
> defensive tackle in February despite being limited to seven games in
> 2007 by a torn ACL. Kelly got $50.5 million over seven seasons, with
> the more salient figures of $18.125 million in guarantees and $25.125
> million payable in the first three years. The more decorated Harris
> certainly will command more.
>
> ''Not only Tommy, but when you look at guys like Shaun Rogers for his
> third contract and Kris Jenkins,'' Harris said, ''it just shows you
> how important [defensive tackle] is.''
>
> With $16 million in salary-cap room, the Bears have set aside money
> for extensions such as this one. They've also been in talks with
> returner Devin Hester, kicker Robbie Gould and middle linebacker Brian
> Urlacher, even though he's signed through 2011.
>
> ''Tommie, Brian, they're important to us,'' president Ted Phillips
> said. ''That's why we're engaged in discussions with them. We believe
> in rewarding our own, and that's what we intend to do.''
>
> Urlacher missed the first two days of the offseason program,
> consistent with his skipping the first week last year and in 2006. He
> was making money elsewhere Monday, attending a commercial shoot in New
> York for Vitaminwater. His absence this early doesn't mean much.
> Briggs hasn't been around, either, but should show to collect his
> $250,000 workout bonus. Gould has been absent, too, and might be
> staying away as he angles for more money entering the final year of
> his contract.
>
> Coach Lovie Smith said he wasn't concerned by Urlacher's absence,
> saying the offseason is the time to take care of business. Phillips
> said the Bears are trying to ''educate'' Urlacher's camp on the value
> of the nine-year, $56 million extension he signed in 2003.
>
> ''I never said we were talking about an extension,'' Phillips said.
> ''It was [good money then]. It still is.''
>
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