Zac Boyer will be entering his third season covering the Washington Redskins for The Free Lance-Star this fall. Make sure to follow Zac on Twitter (@ZacBoyer) for the latest updates or e-mail him with any questions at zboyer@freelancestar.com.
Redskins’ Rookies Report Minus Robert Griffin III, Josh LeRibeus
By ZAC BOYER | zboyer@freelancestar.com | @ZacBoyer
The terms of the NFL’s new collective bargaining agreement allow rookies to report for their team’s training camp before veterans, but neither quarterback Robert Griffin III nor offensive lineman Josh LeRibeus joined their classmates with the Washington Redskins on Monday.
Two sources familiar with the situation said Griffin and LeRibeus, who have not yet signed contracts with the team, were not at Redskins Park in Ashburn for the first day of voluntary workouts. Griffin, according to a team source, worked out with a select group of players at a nearby health club; the remainder of the Redskins’ draft choices, all of whom have signed contracts, were in attendance, another source said.
Nine of the first 11 players selected in the NFL Draft in April have yet to sign a contract with their teams; Griffin was the second player taken. All players will sign four-year contracts with a team option for a fifth year, and those contracts will be structured according to a pay scale recommended by the CBA.
The holdup, though, reportedly originates in language regarding who pays a player if he is released during his fourth season – the team releasing the player, any team that would claim him after he is released, or both teams.
Several players taken early in the third round, like LeRibeus, are also in the midst of a contract dispute. Players selected in that portion of the draft a year ago signed contracts that were for less money than players taken later in that round received, and those below-market deals are reportedly creating a difficult standard of compensation for their counterparts taken in April.
The Redskins had asked all rookies to report to Redskins Park on Monday to begin individual work, which includes conditioning, weightlifting and film review. All others must report on July 25 for physicals and orientation before the first practice, which will be held the next morning. Washington’s first preseason game is at Buffalo on Aug. 9, one month before the season opener in New Orleans.
