Chiefs WR Dwayne Bowe was a no show at training camp. Now what?
Written by Adrian Gregory Glover // July 27, 2012 // NFL // 1 Comment
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – After indicating that he would indeed play nice under the franchise tag, Kansas City WR Dwayne Bowe did not report to training camp today.
As the Chiefs only unsigned player, Bowe will become the team’s major training camp storyline until he shows up and takes the $9.5 million dollars that team owes him for the year under the tag.
Of all the situations that resulted out of this year’s franchise tag by-products, the situation with Bowe was perhaps the most dignified.
Neither the team nor Bowe made a scene when they spoke publicly on the matter and it was widely known that a long-term really was not forthcoming.
Bowe seemed resolved to the situation when he spoke with Arrowhead Pride this spring.
AP: Is it all just a business thing? You going to stay away all summer and come to camp or how does this work?
Bowe: “I’ll be there. I’m staying in shape until its the time to sign on the dotted line. You got the draft, they got to move stuff around, fill all the other positions and make sure the team is solid before you do it and that’s OK with me.”
AP: Is your mentality long-term deal or bust, or you’ll sign the tender and play it out, or how does it work?
Bowe: The other guys [handle that]. My job is to play football. However the contract situation goes, when it’s time to get on the field my job is to make it happen. One year, five years…I did it for five years already so one year won’t hurt. Five won’t hurt either. I’m always going to be at the top of my game. It’s just a waiting game, it’s a business. Teams move around positions to see what they need. I know the business side of it so we’ll see.
To flip Bowe’s comment, the “time to sign on the dotted line” must have been another time because it was certainly not July 27, 2012.
Since he has yet to sign the tender he doesn’t have to be at camp.
This thing can go one of a few ways, but one thing is for certain and that is there is not a team in the league that will give up the two first round draft picks that it would take to reel him in.
In other words, it’s doubtful that he is negotiating with another team in lieu of signing the tag so this is more than likely about his desire for a long term deal.
This could easily backfire on Bowe. When players refuse to show up as deep into the off-season as training camp, they often regress during the season.
The Chiefs are more-than-happy with the progress of second-year man Jonathan Baldwin and the longer Bowe is away the better Baldwin starts to look as he tweaks his chemistry with QB Matt Cassel.
Bowe has been one of a few stable pieces that the Chiefs have had on their roster in recent memory. He has played his way into longer deal in theory.
The thing is that GM Scott Pioli comes from the New England school of hard-knocks management and he’s probably not going to budge.
And if he does, will it be so late into the proceedings that Bowe’s production quite simply falls off?
