Baker Fuming About His Status
The NY Post is reporting that Chris Baker might be less than enthused with how the Draft played out over last weekend, but that it’s more about how the team is treating him. He’s stated that he wants to stay a Jet for his career, but he’s not sure now with how the team has treated him.
What galls Baker most is the fact that, dating back two years, promises have been made to him by the Jets about reworking his contract. According to Baker’s agent, Jonathan Feinsod, “Jets management has acknowledged that Chris has outperformed his contract.”
“I’m angry about the fact that they said, ‘We’re going to do something for you,’ and nothing’s being done,” Baker told The Post. “It doesn’t make any sense. I’ve been here six years and I’ve always done what they’ve asked me to do.”
Baker said he never wanted to leave the offseason conditioning program, but felt he had no choice.
“What else can I do?” he said. “I don’t think I’m being unreasonable. I needed to let it be known that I’m not happy and nothing is being addressed with my contract.”
I am the first one to acknowledge that there are three sides to every story and that we can’t know every little thing that’s happening here. If the Jets are the ones coming to him making promises and then not delivering, then that’s a petty and unethical way for Tannenbaum to do business. What’s not mentioned is when the Jets promised to re-do these deals. It seems to me that the expectation should be set well in advance with players that they’ll be done when the team can afford to, but to not expect anything before the last year of the deal. If not mistaken, Baker has two years left on his deal.
I understand Baker’s frustration, but he needs to cool down for the next few days. The Jets were in lockdown over the draft, and have just finished that, but they are still looking to sign plenty of undrafted free agents. Up until last Thursday, D-Rob was still a part of the team, so now the team has money that it didn’t previously have to re-do Baker’s deal.
35 Responses to Baker Fuming About His Status
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swizzle says:
I agree the Jets didnt have the time to take Bakers demands and have them happen instantaneously, they did have to prepare for a draft. Hopefully the Jets and Baker agree to something, as he is a decent player and another weapon the Jets could use on Offense.
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Ilan says:
My one concern is that the Jets have had three prominent players complain about their contracts in the past two years. Are promises being made or do the agents feel that the Jets can be manipulated after what happened with Kendall and Coles?
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Skip says:
He singned a 3 year 6.6 million contract and got most of the money up front (for salary cap savings the last two years). He now says he is only making less than 700K and should get more. My math says he is making 2.2 mil per year. The bottom line is you sign a contract which means you give your word. Live up to the contract, play better than the contract calls for and get a bigger contract in two years. Can you imagine if the teams wanted money back from every player that didn’t perform up to their contract??? Over the years the Jets would be owed a LOT of money.
Shut up and PLAY BALL! -
Addage says:
Amen Skip
If he doesn’t want to play, let him sit out.
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mbi says:
I like Baker but he is starting to get on my nerves. They re-did his deal a few years ago and now he has two years on that contract – he signed the thing he needs to live up to it. These contract fiasco’s are getting out of hand, players need to start fulfilling their contractual obligations. Soon guys are going to want new deals one year into a five year deal just because they player better than expected. Right now I would be happy with forcing baker to play out his remaining contract and then letting him sign as a FA somewhere else, because he isnt as good as he thinks he is.
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Baker changed agents obviously because his last agent negotiated a bad deal for him…not the Jets fault.
I feel for him, but at the same time, Tangini can’t cave to pressure. If they redo a contract with two years remaining on it, especially after the player walked out of the off-season program AND his agents and he are making noise in the press, it will set a very bad precedent.
I hope they can work it out so everyone saves face, but my gut tells me, this is going to end badly.
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SackDance99 says:
We all like Chris Baker, but this kind of grousing from a guy who isn’t close to being a pro bowl talent is galling. As Basset and dsmizzle have noted, Baker still has an important role on the Jets, but with real talents like Shockey and Gonzalez being shopped around, Baker should do a gut check and realize that average players don’t have much leverage, unless they play at a position of need (like Moore’s tantrum last year). Baker is not needed and can be replaced.
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steve says:
screw you baker you signed a contract deal with it. If you signed a big contract and then sucked we dont get say we dont want to pay you this much so now we want to pay you less money. honor your contract and be a man your not even a top 20 TE in this league take your 6 mill and shut up and play football you big baby.
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david says:
Didn’t our old center complain about this exact thing. He claimed that the Jets made promises and were not keeping them
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redd5 says:
I don’t understand the logic here. If the jets really promised to redo his deal, why not get them to put it into the contract? It makes no sense at all. Baker should have fought to have incentives in the contract, or get an out after two years if he meets some milestones.
I do think they should throw him a new deal, tho. I mean, he’s a good player in the prime of his career..
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The Ed(itor) says:
Baker wants to be paid for being an elite TE when he is far from being one. He only hurts himself, big and fat as he is, by not being in a conditioning program. Dump him for a draft pick.
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Badmoon says:
Lets see in 6 years time he has 12 touchdowns at $500,000 a touchdown I think the Jets have paid him enough. Go look at his stats he has a total of 1300 yds. and he is underpaid give me a break.
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Mike G says:
Ed(itor) – who said Baker wants to be paid like a top TE?
First of all, Baker is clearly underpaid. He doesnt deserve to be a top payed payer at his position, but he certainly deserves to make more money than his backup, Franks, and a rookie, Keller. Keller is clearly more of a WR, and Franks is a blocker. Baker is the perfect combination of the 2 to really make this offense work. The jets need Baker.
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Johnny Styne says:
Great. So we give guaranteed money to a player who can’t play anymore because of a concussion given to him by a career-killing quarterback named Chad and now we can’t pay one of our good players.
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The Jets should decide quickly what they want to do with Baker and do it. If that means trading him, do it now.
What stands out to me is that his agent said that “they’ve acknowledge that he’s outperformed his contract”. Ok, but that’s not making a specific promise. They can’t cave in to every player who wants more money. Throw him a small bone to save face or trade him.
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dakar says:
i do think baker deserves more money…i also think its the scumb@b agents who are advising baker to leave camp and bash the FO…i never saw baker as a pouter or 1 to go up against the FO……also think he had bad timing…he should have waited until after the draft and FA pick ups…im sure once the FO is done with everything they were gonna takecare of him…now i think he’s making himself look more like a selfish person then a team player…but in the end he deserves a better contract…just my thoughts…
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Baker has said it otherwise why wouldn’t he be practicing? Besides he is already making $2.2 million this year. I consider that being well paid for an average at best TE.
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Baker is in the 3rd year of a 4-year $6.6 million contract. Like most NFL contracts, he likely got a fat signing bonus that was spread over the 4 years for cap purposes, but his real salary is “only” $683,000 this year. I have lots of problems with Baker’s analysis. First, he’s been complaining since last season. So, after his signing bonus and first year salary, he wanted to renegotiate. Second, what are the Jets supposed to do? When the Jets say “we’ll take care of you, ” to Baker that means “now.” Third, he’s no Pete Kendall. The Jets have 4 TEs on the roster, including Franks, a former Pro Bowler, and Keller, a 1st round pick. The Jets have adequate replacements. Fourth, 1st round picks and free agents often make more than existing starters. VG will be close to or will be the highest paid defensive player on the Jets and Faneca is the highest paid OL, my guess is that Woody is the 2nd highest paid. The NFL is a business, if he has a problem with what draft picks or free agents make, take it up with the NFLPA. Lastly, he’s an average player, nothing more. Last season, he had 3 TDs and only 1 play over 20 yards. I know, the OL was terrible, yadda, yadda, yadda. But, look at this list and I really don’t think Baker is a top-20 TE:
Baker has major cojones for complaining that he’s “underpaid.”
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ed…i really dont know what he’s making…but from what i’ve read in here…he’s making a million less than franks …whose making i think 1.65 million for 08…but if your right…than yeah…i agree with you…
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HOZ THE JET says:
if he dosent want to play for us we will put him on the trading block a then he will see how much hes worth and if nobody call that will tell him he is not as good as he think he is!
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Nikolas says:
The FO learned its lesson last year with Pete Kendall, but the very same Jets fans who were demanding Kendall’s head on a platter are the same ones doing the same thing with Baker. It is time for all of you to learn too!!!! Use your noodle..and do not put more oil in the fire of an already heated situation. Enough.
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Doug says:
Anyone think that Baker was the unnamed source complaining about the FO “not taking care of the guys who’ve got your back” during the free agent shopping spree? Everyone thought it was Coles or Pennington, but I always felt it was probably Baker. Horrible attitude. I could be wrong but wasn’t he actually released and resigned to his current deal after no other teams showed interest?
Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always liked Baker and thought he was under-utilized in the passing game, but isn’t he a member of that “terrible O-line” from last year?
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baker isnt even that good i dont even think anyone will know when hes gone anyway franks is a good enoug bloker and is also a good red zone threat and this kid we just drafted is going to be are playmaking TE so i think for being a # 3 TE baker should be happy he has made 6 mill so i dont know how anyone can say that this guy isnt selfish he signed a contract and he should honor it. as far as the jets saying they would take care of him i dont care cause he said hed play for the amount of money that was in his contract when he signed it so he nothing but a hypocrit in my eyes. this guy needs to man up and realize 6 million is more then most people see in a lifetime and for playing football its even better
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Harlan Lachman says:
Way you go SackDance and Steve. Others of you need to be better informed or you will go thru life looking and being real stupid.
Is anyone besides me not surprised that Baker has the same agent as Kendall and is running the same game?
Folks forget that Baker not only signed a deal, he was a FA and there were reasons his then agent could not get him a better deal. No other team wanted him.
And, like the media, folks have forgotten that after Kendall got traded and got his money, Kendall admitted the Jets did not lie but there could have been a misunderstanding about what was said.
Baker’s agent is one of the worst slime. A liar whose sense of looking out for his client gives him permission to forgo integrity and to hurt his other clients (he is also the agent for Revis whose chance to be on a winner is hurt by Baker’s sniping).
We need to start making it uncomfortable to agents to lie, to give them any credence or to allow our so called sports media to report this as any thing other than sleeze balls trying to stiff the Jets out of more money because inept reporters will give their side of the story as though there is a smidgen of truth to it.
harlan
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DSmizzle says:
You guys (Steven and Harlan) are undervaluing Baker in my book.
Yeah, this spat regarding his contract doesn’t endear him to hard-working JETS fans who don’t make a fraction of his current salary, let alone after a raise… however, the guy is a pretty damned good player. As I’ve said in another thread, you’d have a good shot at maklng a playoff run if you took the best JETS’ players at their respective positions (e.g., Kerry Rhodes, David Harris, Darrelle Revis, Nick Mangold, Coles & Cotch, TJ, etc.), and combined them with a set of players playing NT, MLB next to Harris, LG, and RT, etc., with the equivalent of Bakers’ TE sklls at their respective positions.
He’s a solid guy making a very small amount of money (look at what Damian F-ing Woody is making as a BAD O-Lineman, having been benched on the LIONS of all teams!), and you can satisfy him by throwing him a small bone, but we want to act all principled. Make no mistake, we’d miss this guy once he’s gone. He is no “locker room lawyer” like Pete Kendall, either.
He’s old reliable in my book. Come on Tangina, keep this fella!
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Harvlis says:
How come Kendall, Coles, and now Baker have all said that they were promised something by the FO. Who is responsible for making these promises?
If Tannenbaum is making these promises, as a delaying tactic, instead of sitting down and working things out — he is making some very big mistakes. If upper management made you a promise to increase your salary — wouldn’t you make them pay up? I don’t think that Kendall, Coles, or Baker has been lying, as management has not disputed their claims. Someone is a very bad businessman. -
Agreed Harvlis… if the JETS don’t put up when make these promises, no one is going to want to enter into contracts with their organization.
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Joe F says:
There is a *huge* difference between the FO acknowledging Baker was outperforming his contract and making a promise to upgrade his deal.
It is my thought that Baker is taking advantage of previous situations, like Kendall’s, to strongarm a better deal. Sorry mate, you’re forgetting that you are nowhere near as vital a component as Kendall was.
When you get cut, go cry to Jerry Jones. I hear he loves to take in headcases like you….
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agents seem to have a new angle…just say the team made a promise…and so when it comes to millions of $’s you can expect agents and players to say anything to put a team on the hot seat with the help of the media to blow it way out of proportion…and you can expect the GM and coach to denie everything…every1 is a bunch of BS and liars…its big business… maxumize profit with little cost…some1′s got to get the short end of the stick…its business…
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Boosta says:
I read a recent online post that baker renegotiated his contract just December of 2007 and that his base salary of $830,000.00 was adjusted to $2.37 million. Now if he has a problem with this, it is on him and his agent. They should not have agreed to and signed the contract. The Jets should not renegotiate his contract after barely four months. he needs to honor his contract.
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Pingback: thejetsblog.com » Are Player Contract Issues Are Becoming Larger Issues of Trust?
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dsmizzle,
im sorry but your wrong i hear what your saying but you cant give in to every players demands. if we pay baker this money your going to see awhole lot more players bitching about money because if all baker had to do to get more money was talk why shouldnt i do it. Tanny has to stand his ground and make a example out of him. if you sign a contract your expected to honor it. If baker had a Antonio Gates type year last year i would have no prob paying him more money but he wasnt that great he was ok and i dont know about you but i dont want to reward avg. Let me ask everyone this if baker had 3 catches last year and we went 2 him and said your didnt do that good we want to pay you less money he would of laughed in our gm’s face. so tell me why a player thats prob #3 on our depth chart right now deserves more money? If baker wanted more money he should of signed a 3 year contract but he didnt so tuff . take your 6 million for playing 16 football games a year and cry me a river. if he wants to blame anyone he should blame his agent for letting him sign this deal.
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Brian says:
Wow
Baker is a solid contributor… so long as re-working a deal won’t break the bank (which it won’t), it’d be nice to just throw him a bone.
He isn’t Antonio Gates, but the guy has made some nice, important catches (including a game-winner vs. Cleveland that was ruled out of bounds), and I like the way he has always embraced his role and been a team player.
Keller doesn’t make Baker redundant, either. Baker is an actual TE, whereas Keller is a potentially great H-Back in Dallas Clark’s mold.