As of right now, it doesn’t appear that LT Trent Williams has any intention of returning to the Redskins, though Washington still wants its seven-time Pro Bowler back. Per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (citing Les Carpenter of the Washington Post), the Redskins hope that the $40K of daily fines that Williams is accumulating by staying away from the team will convince the 31-year-old to change his mind and end his holdout.
But a source tells Florio that “Williams doesn’t care” about being fined. Williams believes that the Redskins will never be able to collect the fines if he never plays for them again, as there will be no game checks from which the fines could be deducted. Plus, while Washington could also go after Williams for the $1.62MM of unearned signing bonus that has yet to be paid out, the team would lose that right if it trades Williams.
Williams still wants a trade, and he is apparently going to continue forcing the issue until he gets it. Head coach Jay Gruden said he seriously doubts that the Redskins are currently looking to deal Williams, though he concedes that he doesn’t know how to convince Williams to come back (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). Gruden said, “I do not have an understanding of what it would take to get [him] back. If I did, he’d be back here.”
We heard at the end of last month that if the Redskins were to trade Williams, it would not happen until closer to the start of the regular season. The team could also cut him, but at the moment, it looks like Washington will continue to let Williams sit without taking any action, including opening talks about a new contract.
We recently looked at four potential partners for the Redskins if they do ultimately choose to trade their former first-round pick.
“But a source tells Florio that “Williams doesn’t care” about being fined. Williams believes that the Redskins will never be able to collect the fines if he never plays for them again, as there will be no game checks from which the fines could be deducted….”
That doesn’t make sense. He has collected plenty of game checks from this contract.
It’s saying that they won’t be able to take it off of future game checks. He’s already been paid for previous games
They can fine him as long as he misses camp. Now, if they keep him and he holds out in the season, then they simply don’t pay the weekly game checks.
If there’s no threat of being fined for holding out, then everyone would hold out. The Chargers RB is being fined; so was the Jags DE until he showed up yesterday. EE is getting fined for missing camp this season too.
“I do not have an understanding of what it would take to get [him] back. If I did, he’d be back here.”
You would never hear a statement like that coming from George Allen or other great coaches. They make it a point of knowing the mind of each of their players. How else can you hope to motivate someone if you don’t understand what makes them tick?