Michael Crabtree Makes Demands

This past draft, Michael Crabtree of Texas Tech dropped to tenth, and the San Francisco 49ers thought they were getting the deal of a lifetime. Many speculated that he should have gone much higher, at least at number seven. Instead, the Oakland Raiders choose wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey with their seventh pick, surprising everyone. Al Davis is known for his random, weird decisions, though, so I guess none of us were too surprised.

Now, the 49ers kind of wish they would have passed on Crabtree as well. The rookie, who hasn’t even played in an NFL game yet, is demanding a larger contract since he should have went higher in the draft. In fact, the Crabtree camp says that this college star is prepared to sit out 2009 and enter the 2010 draft, rather than sign the current offered contract.

The Raiders have offered Heyward-Bey a $23.5 million contract. Crabtree wants more. This is an innovative idea – to challenge the rookie salary tradition based on what he deems as a mistake another team made by picking another draftee.

Whether or not Crabtree is better than Heyward-Bey, or at least, was better in college, is a moot point. The fact of the matter is that the Raiders thought he was better for their team. And the 49ers shouldn’t be forced to pay for that decision. Crabtree is already getting tens of millions of dollars, and there’s no guarantee that he’ll succeed in the professional world. Many college players go bust in the NFL.

In my opinion, rookies shouldn’t get the salaries they do. The entire salary system benefits rookies, leaving less money to reward the players who have put in years of hard work and have proven their talent and skill. I guess this is an argument for another day.

You know what, though? I hope they let Crabtree sit out. If he’s really worth more money, they’ll give him more money after they see him play. He’s being a whiny jerk right now, and he needs to be knocked down a few notches. So yeah, I hope they deny him the extra money, that he enters the 2010 draft, and that he doesn’t go until much later than the top ten.

Image via WikiCommons.