He was the 96th overall selection in the 2010 NFL Draft.
The 6-0, 192-pound Ghee made 56 tackles, including 2 1/2 for loss, as a senior
last season at Wake Forest. He finished his career with the Demon Deacons with
154 stops and one interception.
<< Cubs activate P Schlitter; option P Stevens
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs have activated right-handed
pitcher Brian Schlitter from the 15-day disabled list.
He was placed on the DL on July 7, retroactive to July 3, with a right
shoulder impingement.
Sch
<< Canadian MLB Report: Axford making most of chance
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Multiple Canadian-born hurlers were
supposed to be impact pitchers for their respective teams in 2010, but the
first half of the year didn't exactly reflect those predictions. On the other
hand, some have ste
<< Wigan inks midfielder McArthur
Wigan, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Promising Hamilton midfielder James McArthur
has joined Wigan for an undisclosed transfer fee.
The 22-year-old has penned a four-year contract at the DW Stadium, where he
will team up with former Accies c
<< Gaming: Can the WAC maintain its ATS Superiority?
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Last season was quite a turnaround for
the Western Athletic Conference, as the league's nine teams covered 21 of their
36 non-conference games (with two pushes) for an impressive 61% winning
percentage.
<< AL Central: White Sox GM Williams exploring limited trade options
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - While the Chicago White Sox continue to try and fend off
Detroit and Minnesota in the American League Central standings, all eyes are
on general manager Kenny Williams to make something happen before next
Saturda
Wanted: A must-see player for Clippers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rapper Young Jeezy once boasted that mentioning his name
would bring an entire city out.
That same drawing power can be heralded by LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwight
Howard and a just handful of other players in the NBA.
Sunderland completes Bramble capture >>
Sunderland, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sunderland manager Steve Bruce is
adamant that the capture of Titus Bramble is a great deal for the club after
completing the signing of the Wigan defender on a three-year deal.
Bramble played
Tennessee Titans 2010 Training Camp Preview >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
REPORT DATE: July 31st
SITE: Baptist Sports Park, Nashville, TN
CAMP OBJECTIVES: With the Chris Johnson drama having been extinguished by the
extra money the Titans put in his pocket earlier this week, Jeff Fisher can
Houston Texans 2010 Training Camp Preview >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
REPORT DATES: July 30th
SITE: Methodist Training Center, Houston, TX
CAMP OBJECTIVES: If the Texans wish to build off last year's 9-7 finish and
make the playoffs for the first time in team history, they will need to
Pittsburgh Steelers 2010 Training Camp Preview >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
REPORT DATE: July 30th
SITE: Saint Vincent College, Latrobe, PA
CAMP OBJECTIVES: The Steelers' season could hinge on how they play in the four
(or six) games that Ben Roethlisberger is serving his suspension, and inas
FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million
Football Betting
In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.
And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.
Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.
So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.
Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)
The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.
As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.
The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.
In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.
Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.
And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.
So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.
There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.
So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.
And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.
There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)
Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.
Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.
Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.
So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.
NFL Betting Lines
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