While both sides still remain on amicable terms and have not gone to the media with any grievances, it could be a while before White is signed to a long term deal, if it happens at all. You see, the Patriot Way has been ruthless in these types of situations before. Ex-Falcon Lawyer Milloy can vouch to that.
Milloy was a key leader on a team that unexpectedly won a Super Bowl after the 2001 season. So integral was he to that teams success that he was one of 3 Patriots to help narrate NFL Films Award Winning Super Bowl Series; America’s Game for that 2001 team. On the eve of the 2003 season, he was unceremoniously released. Just like that. Oh sure, the primary hang-up was money, but this was Lawyer Milloy we were talking about. Heart & soul of the Patriots defense and team leader. Indispensable, right?
What did Bill Belichick have to say about it? “This is a player and person I have immense respect for, and he meant a lot to this team and organization. Unfortunately he’s a casualty of the system. The timing is not good. We tried to find a way to make it work. In the end, we weren’t able to get to that point.” Just like that. This isn’t to say the Falcons and White are anywhere close to this conclusion. It’s just that this conclusion can and has occurred.
So, 6 years later, a protégé of the Patriot Way now lords over the Falcons operation. And this is what he sees in Roddy White.
• Emerging all around threat.
• Developing chemistry with franchise QB, Matt Ryan
• Will be 28 in November
• A player who has only produced at this level for 2 seasons.
This is what he sees as far as the surrounding situation.
• Looming labor trouble could delay White’s foray into free agency one more season. Even if labor trouble is avoided, the Falcons have the franchise tag
• What this means is that when White makes it to FA, he’ll be doing so around 30.
• Michael Jenkins a nice #2 WR is locked up long term and a very enticing Harry Douglas also in the mix. Throw Tony Gonzalez into the mix for say the next 3 years, and the Falcons have a surplus of pass catching talent.
• With Matt Ryan, he sees a QB capable of taking advantage of a diverse set of weapons versus overly relying on one.
Listen…the Falcons don’t want to lose Roddy White. But at this point, why make a deal with White unless it’s advantageous to the Falcons. White’s leverage would be to hold out. Whether that would force the Falcons had? Well, Dimitroff comes from an organization that released a Super Bowl winning team and defensive leader days before the start of the season. In an environment like that, you learn not to blink. Plus, how many times do you hear about contract squabbles or trouble coming out of New England? Not many.
So if Dimitroff and White are headed for a stand-off, and let’s also state, we’re not sure if they would be…this would be its first real test. Sure, the team first attitude and building through the draft philosophies are hallmarks of the Patriot Way. But if you look back, it’s how the Patriots deal with adversity in the face of success that really defines why they’ve become the model franchise in the NFL. Staying true to ones core principles can be difficult, especially in the face of harsh criticism.
It was all Belichick could do to walk through his own locker room in the days after Milloy’s release. They were spanked 31-0 in their first game against Milloy’s new team, the Buffalo Bills. 5 months later, they were hoisting another Lombardi trophy, the second of three.
Last season, they lost Tom Brady, the foundational building block of the franchise and perhaps the NFL minutes into the season. Plugging in a QB who hadn’t started since high school, they narrowly missed the playoffs, but still compiling a gaudy 11-5 record.
Allowing White to flap in the wind might not be a move perceived well publicly, especially if White were to hold out. But if the Patriot Way is truly being implemented in Flowery Branch, it shouldn’t alter ‘the course of action’ at all. That could produce tension between the Falcons star WR and the Falcons wunderkind GM and the Falcons Way first real test.
Source >> Atlanta Falcons Blogs
[Update July 30, 2009]: Peria Jerry has signed with the Falcons. The financial terms were not disclosed, but the contract was reported as being a five-year deal.