Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff has been optimistic about working out a contract extension for Pro Bowl running back Devonta Freeman, but didn't have an update on Wednesday.
“No update,” Dimitroff said. “No update.”
Freeman’s agent, Kristen Campbell, reportedly left Atlanta without a deal being completed, according to NFL Network. The move may signal that negotiations are not going as smoothly as Dimitroff had anticipated.
The Falcons negotiations will be complicated by Pittsburgh's Le'veon Bell's decision to reject a five-year, $60 million contact offer. He'll play this season for the franchise tag of $12.12 million. Currently, Buffalo's LeSean McCoy has the highest running back contract, a five-year $40 million deal signed on March 8, 2015.
Other comparables: Tampa Bay’s Doug Martin (five-year, $35.75 million, $15 million guaranteed), Houston’s Lamar Miller (four years, $26 million, $14 million guaranteed) and Jacksonville’s Chris Ivory (five years, $32 million, $10 million guaranteed) are comparable deals the Falcons will research.
The offseason signings don’t help Freeman’s case much: New Orleans’ Adrian Peterson (two years, $7 million), Denver’s Jamaal Charles (one-year, $1 million), Oakland’s Marshawn Lynch (two-year, $16.5 million) and Seattle’s Eddie Lacy (one-year, $5.5 million).
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