When the Broncos held their mandatory June minicamp last week, franchised wide receiver Demaryius Thomas wasn’t in attendance. Thomas is one of four players who received the franchise tag but have yet to sign their tenders, and the other three appears set to follow his lead this week. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), Dez Bryant, Justin Houston, and Jason Pierre-Paul won’t report to their respective clubs’ minicamp on Tuesday.
Houston’s anticipated absence from the Chiefs’ minicamp is perhaps the least surprising of the three. Head coach Andy Reid indicated last week that the NFL’s reigning sack leader “probably” wouldn’t be in attendance this week. After Ndamukong Suh signed a record-setting deal with the Dolphins in March, Houston’s asking price likely increased, and there’s no indication yet that he and the Chiefs are anywhere close to an agreement.
Bryant, meanwhile, made a brief cameo at the Cowboys’ OTAs, a hint that perhaps he’d report sooner rather than later. However, a Friday report suggested that he was shifting to a more hard-line negotiating stance, threatening to sit out Dallas’ regular season opener if he and the club haven’t agreed to a multiyear extension by that point.
As for Pierre-Paul, Giants head coach Tom Coughlin had stressed in recent weeks that he expected the veteran pass rusher to attend the team’s June minicamp, but it looks like Coughlin’s prediction won’t come to fruition. The fact that JPP – like Thomas, Houston, and Bryant – has yet to sign his franchise tender means he isn’t subject to fines for missing this week’s supposedly “mandatory” minicamp, since he isn’t technically under contract.
All four franchise-tag players have a month to work out long-term extensions with their respective teams. If a franchised player doesn’t have a multiyear deal in place by July 15, he’ll have to play the 2015 season on a one-year contract, if he plays at all.