With Raiders first-round cornerback Gareon Conley unsigned and still under investigation for rape, the team and the player have a problem. How do they work out a deal with a cloud still lingering that could result in Conley being prosecuted and possibly convicted?
The answer is simple. As one league source with extensive experience negotiating contracts explained it recently, teams drafting players who present unusual circumstances often will communicate with the player’s agent before the pick is made, making a verbal request for eventual contractual protections. Although any such terms would be both unenforceable and a violation of the labor deal, it happens — and both teams and agents respect these wink-nod arrangements.
If the Raiders asked Conley while on the clock (or, quite possibly, before being on the clock) whether Conley would agree to certain terms if the charges remain unresolved when camp opens and if Conley agreed, Conley’s camp should honor the commitment. If the Raiders made no such requests, then the team made Conley the 24th pick in the draft with no strings attached; he should get every penny and every term that he would have gotten regardless of the unresolved criminal case.
To date, we’ve been unable to determine whether the Raiders made any special requests, or whether Conley’s agents agreed. Side deal or not, both sides now know what the posture will be entering camp. The only thing left is to work something out in accordance with what was, or wasn’t, promised on the first night of the draft.