Jones-Drew holdout expected to last into regular season

Posted by Mike Florio on August 21, 2012, 6:29 PM EDT
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Well, at least Maurice Jones-Drew won’t have to put up with replacement officials.

Earlier today, owner Shahid Khan chided the holdout tailback, saying that the “[t]rain is leaving the station” and that he should “[r]un, get on it.”  Though Jones-Drew still has had nothing to say about the situation, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the holdout is expected to last into the regular season.

So Khan apparently has his answer.

If Jones-Drew shows up before the Tuesday after Week 10, he can finish out the season and get credit for the year of service under his contract.  If he doesn’t report by the Tuesday after Week 10, he can’t play for the Jags or anyone in 2012, and his contract would kick over to 2013, keeping him signed for two more seasons.

The Jaguars are facing little pressure to cave, and Khan recently has said that, on a scale of one to 10, Jones-Drew’s absence doesn’t even move the needle.

With the parties dug in and no discernible middle ground, this one will continue until someone blinks.

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45 responses to “Jones-Drew holdout expected to last into regular season”

  2. 4 straight years of home games in London. Driving the fan favorite and pretty much the only reason people watched the team out of town. It must take greater minds than mine to run a football team because I have no idea what Khan is doing down there in Jacksonville.

  5. He’s a great RB but RB’s careers are short. MJD is 27 he probably has 2-3 good years left. Trade him and get what you can. MJD goes to a contender and Jags get good return. Win win.

  9. This prediction is a good sign. Rumor locally is that he will be back soon. Almost all of pfts and national media doom and gloom on the jags has been wrong (moving to LA, gabbert a bust, etc)

  11. What’s the going rate for a 29 year old running back? Because that is how old MJD will be when he hit’s free agency if he goes the “I’ll report in week 11 for the next 2 years” route. Subtract out 2 years worth of fines and I’m guessing things look pretty ugly.

  15. I love that a team struggling with attendance is feeling no pressure to get the face of their franchise to show up.

  16. Not sure what MJD stands to gain by holding out into the regular season. He would miss big game checks and even if he shows up at weeks 10 through 16 for the next two seasons, nobody will care about his fresher legs cause of his age. Unfortunately for him, he has probably already signed his biggest contract…but that doesnt mean he still cant make millions for the next two years after this contract ends. Sorry MJD, you can only get 5 houses now, not the 10 that you want.

  17. All I hear is Junior Mafia’s “get money”. He is that franchise, they need him more than he needs them. Fans are not going to pay to see anyone else on that team. Order more tarps.

  20. Adam Schefter is reporting this I wouldn’t exactly call him the most reliable reporter, I wouldn’t be surprised if Mojo shows up to camp this weekend. Schefter always does this throws out the obvious facts so he can take credit if the holdout does go into the season and if it doesn’t he makes up some excuse about how something changed. I don’t even believe he has any sources what happened to that Cedric Benson to the Raiders that he had nailed down

  22. I honestly can’t fault either party here. MJD has been whipped like a mule on a losing team over the past couple of years and in hindsight was underpaid. He deserves something.

    But at the same time, the Jags are no longer under the ownership that underpaid him. Khan can’t set the tone for his ownership by immediately caving to an aging running back. That would come back to haunt him early and often.

    Both men doing what they think they need to do.

  23. It’s tough to state your value when the team has been bad with you a part of it. They can loose just as easily without you MJD. Being on a bad team offers zero leverage.

  24. As a jaguar fan I could care less if he comes back. RBs are every where. I’ll take two backs I can beat the hell out of and get 700 yards a piece over a couple of years and then just swap them out for two more. RBs just don’t make the difference they used to. Elite qb,wr, and te please. Spend the money there not some aging rb that we’ve already gotten his best years.

  26. I think that I speak for most jags season ticket
    holders. I like MJD, but I was a jaguars fan before him, and I will be a jaguars fan AFTER him! We don’t have time for selfishness here…

  27. @djdvd

    Fight with your city, alienate your star, save the cash, extinguish any fan loyalty, put another season in the tank – sounds like a prime candidate for relocation.

  29. djdvd says:
    Aug 21, 2012 6:33 PM
    4 straight years of home games in London. Driving the fan favorite and pretty much the only reason people watched the team out of town. It must take greater minds than mine to run a football team because I have no idea what Khan is doing down there in Jacksonville.
    ============================

    People watch when the team wins. MJD was there last year and your team still sucked…no offense. No one expects much from them, so why cave to a guy who is well-paid and has two years left? I’m totally with Khan on this one.

  30. Well the Panthers signing Jonathan Stewart to a good contract sure will not push MJD to get into camp, especially since the Panthers have a 80 million dollar backfield.

  31. Isn’t there some sort of rule that the Jags can use by telling MoJo if he doesn’t report to work within 5 days he won’t get to play at all this season, or get a single dime this season either?

  33. People watch when the team wins. MJD was there last year and your team still sucked…no offense. No one expects much from them, so why cave to a guy who is well-paid and has two years left? I’m totally with Khan on this one.

    Exactly. We can’t do much worse without him

  36. Khan’s – a bad man selling lies.

    MJD WANTS OUT!!!

    MJD will show week 11 for the next 2 years and that’s all they’re getting out of him.

    Khan is egomaniacal enough to keep him and not trade him.

    And 29 year old MDJ on a 2 year sabbatical looks in good form to me.
    Just like a 27 yr old with some idling miles on the clock.

  37. I am not on MJD’s side but Khan really needs to keep quiet. The NFL players are a brotherhood, if he keeps taking swipes at his best player like that the Jags are going to have an even harder time attracting the best free agents. When your not know for drafting well, your team probably shouldn’t gain the reputation of not treating players well.

  38. I agree that Khan shouldn’t cave in to MJD’s demands.

    But what’s going to bite him in the butt eventually is how he handled this. He IS accountable for his inflammatory remarks. When you’ve got the leverage, as Khan does, it’s really OK to be firm but gracious.

    Khan comes off like a classless immigrant jerk-off. Who is going to want to play for him down the road if the Jags ever get good enough to warrant the need for a top free agent?

  40. Here’s where I lose all respect for MJD: in 2009 he signed a deal for nearly $31 million with $17+ million of it paid that year. Was he complaining about that deal when he signed it then? You knew it was front-loaded (as most big deal contracts are) and YOU ACCEPTED IT. Is your word worth nothing? You signed the contract. Live up to it.

  41. NFL contracts are worth less than the paper they are written on. Take for example Head coach has 2 yrs left on contract gets fired along with all his staff, He gets paid yet staff gets small severance pay! NFL is a cut throat Billion $ Co. So b very sure of what YOU R signing off on! And always remember You R very Lucky to get paid to play a GAME!!!

  42. This owner is gonna bury the franchise for yrs and sell it to the highest bidder in LA. Or perhaps move them as owner. But nonetheless this team is going to be BAD for yrs.

  44. @ florida727 – do you say the exact same things when the Team cuts a player mid contract as well? Players are smarter now and understand that they are the product! They have a ton of leverage as do the owners and it is all about who will “cave” first.

  45. The Jaguars are an embarassment. They have have to cover thousands of seats with tarps because no one wants to see the Jags go 0- 16 this season. Trade MJD to a better team.

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