Falcons' No. 1 pick unsigned
Steve Wyche - Staff
Monday, July 25, 2005
Flowery Branch --- Wide receiver Roddy White could be one of three Falcons' draft picks to miss today's season-opening practice after failing to reach contract terms as of late Sunday night.
Fourth-round selection Chauncey Davis, a defensive end from Florida State, and linebacker Michael Boley, an outside linebacker from Southern Mississippi selected in the fifth round, join White as unsigned picks.
The Falcons open training camp at 2:30 p.m.today.
"In this system, there's absolutely no reason for a holdout," president and general manager Rich McKay said. "But I sit here [Sunday] after discussions and can't say I'm overly optimistic that the No. 1 will be in [today\]. But that can change awfully quickly."
The Falcons reached terms Sunday with second-round pick Jonathan Babineaux, third-round selection Jordan Beck, fifth-round Frank Omiyale, sixth-round pick DeAndra Cobb and seventh-rounder Darrell Shropshire.
McKay was more optimistic that later-round selections would come to terms before White (27th overall), whose absence could slow the momentum he generated in offseason minicamp and team activities.
Neil Schwartz, who represents White, declined comment Sunday.
White, out of Alabama-Birmingham, is expected to challenge for one of the top four receiving spots after strong summer workouts altered plans to bring him along slowly.
Cornerback DeAngelo Hall, who missed six days of training camp last season because of a contract holdout, said, "It's hard at first because you want to be here and embrace the guys, but it's a business. They won't hesitate to let you go, so you've got to trust your agent to handle everything with the front office, and when it's time for you to get in here, come in with the right attitude."
Players under contract reported and moved into the 160-unit housing facility at team headquarters, where it will hold training camp for the first time.
Babineaux, a defensive tackle from Iowa, agreed to what is believed to be a four-year deal in the range of $2.4 million with a signing bonus of about $1 million. He is the third second-round pick in the NFL to come to terms.
No first-round picks have signed, a head-scratching phenomenon that McKay said has left no parameters in which to negotiate other than last season's deals. The trend hasn't been much of a factor in negotiations with White, McKay said.
"I'm happy to be the first domino," McKay said "I think teams are slow-playing the rest of their picks as they figure out how to get their first-round guys signed. It will happen fast, but this may be the longest time ever for getting a No. 1 signed."
Beck, a middle linebacker from Cal-Poly San Luis Obispo, is believed to have signed a four-year deal worth roughly $1.8 million, with a signing bonus in the range of $490,000 based on average increases from last season's 90th overall pick, Falcons quarterback Matt Schaub.
Omiyale, an offensive tackle from Tennessee Tech, Cobb, a running back from Michigan State, and Shropshire, a defensive tackle from South Carolina, also were signed to what are believed to be three-year contracts.
Atlanta also signed veteran defensive end Erik Flowers to a one-year deal to provide depth in the absence of Brady Smith, who will miss preseason because of neck surgery. Flowers, a former first-round pick of the Bills, spent the past two seasons with the St. Louis Rams.
Defensive end Otis Grigsby was waived to make room for Flowers.
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