Angel
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jan 22, 2006
- Messages
- 2,264
- Reaction score
- 1
Broncos ask about disgruntled Walker
By Pete Dougherty
PackersNews.com
The Denver Broncos apparently are looking seriously into trading for Javon Walker, though whether they will offer enough to pry the unhappy wide receiver from the Green Bay Packers is another matter.
Walker, 27, has vowed to never again play for the Packers because they twice refused to extend and improve his contract. Earlier this year, Walker went public with his wish for the Packers to trade or release him.
Denver coach Mike Shanahan has made informal inquiries about Walker, the Rocky Mountain News reported Tuesday, though there’s no indication he’s made an offer to the Packers.
The Broncos have extra picks in both the first and fourth rounds of next month’s NFL draft, but it’s difficult to think they’d part with a first-round pick for a player coming off surgery to repair a torn right knee ligament, as Walker is.
A Packers spokesman said neither General Manager Ted Thompson nor coach Mike McCarthy would comment about Walker. Both are attending the NFL’s annual meeting in Orlando, Fla.
Thompson appears averse to trading Walker mainly because he’s a quality player, but also because it could suggest to players they can be traded if they threaten to sit out.
Thompson likely would consider a good offer for any player, but Walker’s torn anterior cruciate ligament diminishes the Packers’ chances of getting anything close to the value they otherwise might receive for a player who was in the Pro Bowl barely more than a year ago.
Earlier this month, Thompson released a written statement about Walker that said, in part: “There have been several highly publicized cases of player discontent in the National Football League. I don’t anticipate us making any concessions in this matter.”
However, Walker’s public statements about never playing for the Packers — reiterated Tuesday by his stepfather — and his criticism of quarterback Brett Favre have been strong enough that it could be difficult, if not impossible, to repair his relationship with the team.
That might leave Thompson strongly tempted to trade Walker, unless the Packers are willing to have him sit out the season or are willing to wait for him to return to the team, possibly after a long holdout.
Walker could become a potentially disruptive influence in the Packers’ locker room, as cornerback Mike McKenzie was during his contract dispute in 2004.
“I wish this could have worked out better, but he's not coming back,” Charles Goldsmith, Walker’s stepfather, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Tuesday. “He has so much animosity regarding Green Bay, it's ridiculous.”
Walker’s agent, Kennard McGuire, could not be reached for comment.
Walker is scheduled to make $1.15 million this year, the final season of the five-year contract he signed as a rookie.
http://www.packersnews.com/archives/news/pack_25365965.shtml
By Pete Dougherty
PackersNews.com
The Denver Broncos apparently are looking seriously into trading for Javon Walker, though whether they will offer enough to pry the unhappy wide receiver from the Green Bay Packers is another matter.
Walker, 27, has vowed to never again play for the Packers because they twice refused to extend and improve his contract. Earlier this year, Walker went public with his wish for the Packers to trade or release him.
Denver coach Mike Shanahan has made informal inquiries about Walker, the Rocky Mountain News reported Tuesday, though there’s no indication he’s made an offer to the Packers.
The Broncos have extra picks in both the first and fourth rounds of next month’s NFL draft, but it’s difficult to think they’d part with a first-round pick for a player coming off surgery to repair a torn right knee ligament, as Walker is.
A Packers spokesman said neither General Manager Ted Thompson nor coach Mike McCarthy would comment about Walker. Both are attending the NFL’s annual meeting in Orlando, Fla.
Thompson appears averse to trading Walker mainly because he’s a quality player, but also because it could suggest to players they can be traded if they threaten to sit out.
Thompson likely would consider a good offer for any player, but Walker’s torn anterior cruciate ligament diminishes the Packers’ chances of getting anything close to the value they otherwise might receive for a player who was in the Pro Bowl barely more than a year ago.
Earlier this month, Thompson released a written statement about Walker that said, in part: “There have been several highly publicized cases of player discontent in the National Football League. I don’t anticipate us making any concessions in this matter.”
However, Walker’s public statements about never playing for the Packers — reiterated Tuesday by his stepfather — and his criticism of quarterback Brett Favre have been strong enough that it could be difficult, if not impossible, to repair his relationship with the team.
That might leave Thompson strongly tempted to trade Walker, unless the Packers are willing to have him sit out the season or are willing to wait for him to return to the team, possibly after a long holdout.
Walker could become a potentially disruptive influence in the Packers’ locker room, as cornerback Mike McKenzie was during his contract dispute in 2004.
“I wish this could have worked out better, but he's not coming back,” Charles Goldsmith, Walker’s stepfather, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Tuesday. “He has so much animosity regarding Green Bay, it's ridiculous.”
Walker’s agent, Kennard McGuire, could not be reached for comment.
Walker is scheduled to make $1.15 million this year, the final season of the five-year contract he signed as a rookie.
http://www.packersnews.com/archives/news/pack_25365965.shtml