Pro Bowl stars might miss out on chance to cash in

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- With good NFL pass rushers worth their weight in gold, even at the outrageous prices gold is going for these days, Denver Broncos outside linebacker Elvis Dumervil should be waiting on a potentially enormous contract this spring.

Dumervil, the sack leader in 2009 with 17, would be an unrestricted free agent in any other year because he just finished his fourth season and his contract expired. But like 200 or so other players, Dumervil won't get to that yet because of the pending uncapped year in free agency. Players now must have six years of service instead of four to be unrestricted free agents when their contracts are up.

Vincent Jackson would be in line for a $15M-plus bonus after his second consecutive 1,000-yard season. (US Presswire)

That means it will be a lot tougher for Dumervil to move -- if at all.

"I really don't think about that," Dumervil said after Pro Bowl practice Friday. "I do my part and see what happens. Everything happens for a reason. All you can do is handle the things you can control."

He's a lot calmer than I would be. Is that pro-union talk or is Dumervil for real?

This should be his moment, his time to cash in big. Instead he's part of a group that I've labeled the NFL's "Drafted in the Wrong Year Gang." They are the biggest victims of the current NFL labor dispute.

Those players drafted in 2004 with five-year deals expiring and those taken in 2005 with four-year deals expiring should all be unrestricted free agents. Instead they will be restricted free agents, which means their teams can match any offers they receive or give them tenders that could prevent poaching by outsiders.

That lock-up-the-family-for-life deal will have to wait.

We now know the big losers so far in the labor dispute.

"It will eventually come," Dumervil said. "We'll see what happens. What can I do?"

Nothing, but wouldn't you expect him to be more upset about it? Let's be real. The players play for money, not for Super Bowl rings, contrary to what fans want to hear or what some might say.

Dumervil not only led the NFL in sacks, but he just turned 26, the prime age for free agents. The list of teams lining up to sign him would have been extensive. Now all he can do is hope the Broncos sign him to a long-term deal, but there really is no incentive for them to do so. In all likelihood, he'll be playing on a one-year tender next season.

That brings risk into play. What happens if he plays on the tender and gets hurt? The big deal might not ever come.

And he's calm about it? One has to wonder if the union has told the rank-and-file to keep their mouths shut because any discontent could be seen as a break in their solidarity.

There are other players here at the Pro Bowl who are in the same situation as Dumervil. San Diego Chargers receiver Vincent Jackson is one of them. He just finished the last year of a five-year contract. But like Dumervil, Jackson said the current situation is not something he concerns himself too much about.

"I just go out and do what I can to the best of my ability," Jackson said. "You play hard and those things will take care of themselves. We have all the faith in the NFLPA. They are working hard with the owners. Hopefully we find a happy medium. We're just hoping for the best."

Jackson just turned 27 and he's coming off a second consecutive 1,000-yard season. You don't think there would be a big market for a receiver who has averaged over 17 yards per catch the past two seasons?

"It's timing," Jackson said. "I see the light at the end of the tunnel and I think it will work out and all of the guys in limbo will come out fine."

A year ago, Dumervil and Jackson would be raking in huge signing bonuses, probably in the $15 million range. Now they can only dream about it, unless their teams decide to give them long-term deals.

Or maybe they'll get lucky and some team will sign them to an offer sheet that is so outrageous their own teams won't match. That's unlikely, especially for Dumervil, the key to Denver's defense.

They'll just have to live with the fact they came into the NFL in the wrong year and that they are victims of the current situation.

"It's tough, man," Jackson said. "You put in the work and you expect to get that next contract and now you have to wait. It's tough."