Draft's mindset on paycut request: 'Why me?'
September, 10, 2009
Sep 10
3:07
PM ET
Posted by ESPN.com's Mike Sando
Former Rams linebacker Chris Draft, speaking during an interview with 101ESPN St. Louis, cast himself as a principled fighter and defender of justice in his decision to refuse a paycut at the expense of his job.
I think Draft put it best when he said, "The unfortunate thing is when it's business for them, it is all too personal to me."
Draft repeatedly wondered why the Rams would ask him to accept a paycut without asking others to take one. That is not the type of question I would expect from a 10-year NFL veteran out of Stanford. The answer should be self-evident. The cold reality is that the Rams valued $300,000 in salary-cap savings more than they valued Draft at this stage of his career, and they were willing to release him if he disagreed. That value judgment existed independent of the other players on the team.
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ABOUT THIS BLOG
Mike Sando
Sando joined ESPN.com in 2007 after nine seasons covering the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma (Wash.) News Tribune. He lives in the Seattle-Tacoma area with his wife and two sons.
