Due to the nature of my current situation I have been instructed by my agent, Jay Z of Roc Nation Sports, to refrain from speaking on certain aspects of my hold out in too much detail until I receive information regarding the rules from the NSFL commissioner. I will be frank and say myself nor my agent are familiar with simulation leagues.
I will say I did not begin the post draft process with the intent to holding out. I will admit there were teams I did not want to play for. The Outlaws and Liberty topped that list. I told that Outlaws I did not want to play for them and they did not draft me. I was contacted by several other teams, including the Liberty. Those that I was interested in I replied to and those that asked me to answer some questions if I was interested I declined to reply. The Liberty were in the second category.
I saw where I was drafted and was not pleased but I was willing to try to make the situation work for me and my family. I had my agent contact a GM of the Liberty that I will not name and proposed a contract that we felt was a starting point for negotiations. I immediately was mocked by the GM for having the nerve to ask for money. At this point in negotiations, I further explained my reasoning behind the contract and offered a compromise to address some of the concerns of the the Liberty GM about my agent's initial contract proposal.
I did not receive a counter offer from the GM my agent spoke to. We were told that other people took less, that the team was trying to win, and that there would be a bonus for me based on positional performance which based on my agent's interpretation of the rules is not permitted. While I was not present for these negotiations my agent assures me all conversations from his side were respectful and professional, which at times was not true of the other involved party.
I was invited to visit the team's facility (discord) and I received the invite while at work. I thanked the inviting member for said invite and planned to see the facilities following my shift. I also received another message from Silver Fox, the other GM of the Liberty. Silver Fox has been nothing but respectful in negotiations though he does not seem to have been provided all of the information from the other GM of the franchise. Despite Silver Fox not being completely informed I had my agent reach out to him and give him a brief explanation of my current situation. I believed at this time I may be able to reconcile with Silver Fox. I had returned from my shift and decided to take my tour of the facilities (joined discord).
I do not understand the logic of offering me an invitation to view the facilities based upon what I saw. To my surprise I walked in on a conversation where the questionable GM was trash talking me to potential future teammates. I found this to be his most unprofessional transgression yet. The remainder of the conversation I do not want to cover in too much detail simply because Jay Z warned it may violate some of the league's conduct policies. But I did save a recording of said conversation, which includes preparing an article prior to a possible trade to immediately make me "the bad guy" and making it "seem like [I] was trying to take Bercs throne of highest paid player." Personally, I don't find that to be professional management.
I will admit I may have violated a rule by completing training camp and rookie camp prior to being on a team. I "forgotten" what I learned until I am signed to a team. If I am not signed to a team, I will forgo those trainings. I will now accept questions from the media.
Mr. Wright,
What do you think your odds of being traded are if you are now publicly coming out against the Liberty?
It is my belief that they are quite high. My agent has informed me that there are rumblings of a trade happening to somewhere with a a lot of sin. Clearly, I am not involved in these talks but there are at least some discussions being had.
Any chance you work out a deal in Philadelphia and if so what future do you see for yourself there?
I am not going to completely rule out a deal with Philadelphia. I do believe that after my current situation in the locker room where I have been villainized and my relationship with some of the front office, it will be difficult.
Have any teams reached out to you personally to show interest in taking you out of Philly?
I have been contacted by one team that has stated directly that they are interested in my abilities. I have no knowledge of any official trade talks taking place with that team.
What are your goals for your career and can you see yourself accomplishing them if you miss out on your rookie season?
My goals are to play football and take care of my family for the long haul. I believe if I miss my rookie season, I will be able to continue to focus on the game and prove my value in next years draft. I am young enough in my career that I don't worry about the length of time I miss.
Thank you Mr. Wright.
Mr. Harris,
I just want to add some background as a third party who has only been partially involved in this whole scenario and cover my involvement in this because I was the person who sent the invite for discord, something I was doing for every player drafted by the Liberty, and started the whole conversation about this in there by asking "which one of you mocked Matt James?" just trying to find out what had happened.
I will also put my hands up and admit I was a bit of an arsehole in this whole scenario as well when responding to a post about how much you had been asking for, which I will not post here as it is not my place to do so, by calling you a diva and making a joke about you holding out that I wouldn't vote for you for captain. For that I apologise.
I then stated later on that you wanted to be traded for next to nothing, which to the best of my knowledge is true and confirmed to one of the GMs who had invited you to the discord a couple of times and hadn't got a response that you had gave one to me and were not ignoring the team.
Also fair play to you for stating that you hold no ill to the players when you quite easily could have and burned bridges with every single member of the team if you wished.
I do not see a question here but I appreciate your candor and apology. I understand the locker room talk and the aspect that you have been not been privy to my side of the story. I understand that players are in this league for different reasons, some are wiling to take little to no money to win, whereas others feel they should be appropriately compensated. I congratulate you on being in a place where you find yourself in the former camp, while I am in the latter. In my conversations with both GMs, visiting the facility came up, had preexisting workout engagements at the time, but I got my self to Philadelphia as soon as I was available. I was drafted in the 6th round and asked to be traded for a 7th rounder. I do not feel that is being traded for next to nothing. I do not believe the Philadelphia front office should be rewarded for their poor treatment and managing skills of players. I have no intention to burn bridges with players in this league. I understand some feathers may be ruffled, but first and foremost this is my job. I am approaching this like business.
Thank you for your time during these negotiations Mr. Harris.
Mr. Cushing,
If your signing rights were traded to a team you felt more comfortable with, what range of deal would you be looking for in yearly salary and duration?
Thank you for your question. I have been instructed by my agent not to discuss salary values in an open setting. I would take different amounts to go to different teams. I am fine with a three year deal, but as I told the Liberty management team I am not interested in taking a three year deal with future team only options that offer me nothing. I cannot benefit from such a deal. I have no future security. Each deal my agent has discussed with Philadelphia have been three year deals.
I will say, I told one team prior to the draft that my contract would be something in the range and structure of that which my agent proposed to Philadelphia, because I also did not want to play there.
Mr. Oles,
I'm going to make note of this right now. When you joined the discord, the recent discussion was about your situation and possible solutions to the problem. We were also talking about me getting traded, holding out, going into the draft, not getting drafted back to philly, holding out and then me ending up a rookie in season 7. Obviously this is a scenario that is never going to happen, and was just friendly banter. Most of what has gone on in the discord has been friendly, and we have all been joking about everything from the draft, to trades, to position changes, anything you can imagine so far. I've reached out to you about the situation, as well as other teammates, about your side of the story. I want this situation to be resolved, it hurts all parties if you keep holding out. It is frustrating to see articles about you holding out, I don't want to see you hurt yourself doing that, I don't want to see you hurt the team doing that. I want Philly to field the best team they can, and you are a part of that. I didn't want to start commenting on this in public but I want everyone to see the 3rd side of what has been a majority 2 sided story.
I do not believe the long-term negatives of not being a part of a team outweight the long term negatives of receiving an anti-player contract. My goal is not to hurt a team, simply to help myself. I had to do what was best for my family. My press conference today was help to follow-up on my agent's announcement yesterday and to provide league members with some insights. As a fellow player it is in your best interest to also be fairly compensated and respectfully treated by management.
Thank you Mr. Oles.
I want to say again that my agent has still yet to receive a single counter offer contract. I have changed structure, language, and adjusted values that my agent has proposed to Philadelphia multiple times. I am willing to compromise on a deal, but I am not going to continue to whittle away my salary or protections as a player through bullying and a refusal to have good faith negotiations by the Liberty front office. I will also say that during this conference my agent has begun another round of negotiations with the team.
I am still open for questions. Thank you
GRADED 1967 words
I will say I did not begin the post draft process with the intent to holding out. I will admit there were teams I did not want to play for. The Outlaws and Liberty topped that list. I told that Outlaws I did not want to play for them and they did not draft me. I was contacted by several other teams, including the Liberty. Those that I was interested in I replied to and those that asked me to answer some questions if I was interested I declined to reply. The Liberty were in the second category.
I saw where I was drafted and was not pleased but I was willing to try to make the situation work for me and my family. I had my agent contact a GM of the Liberty that I will not name and proposed a contract that we felt was a starting point for negotiations. I immediately was mocked by the GM for having the nerve to ask for money. At this point in negotiations, I further explained my reasoning behind the contract and offered a compromise to address some of the concerns of the the Liberty GM about my agent's initial contract proposal.
I did not receive a counter offer from the GM my agent spoke to. We were told that other people took less, that the team was trying to win, and that there would be a bonus for me based on positional performance which based on my agent's interpretation of the rules is not permitted. While I was not present for these negotiations my agent assures me all conversations from his side were respectful and professional, which at times was not true of the other involved party.
I was invited to visit the team's facility (discord) and I received the invite while at work. I thanked the inviting member for said invite and planned to see the facilities following my shift. I also received another message from Silver Fox, the other GM of the Liberty. Silver Fox has been nothing but respectful in negotiations though he does not seem to have been provided all of the information from the other GM of the franchise. Despite Silver Fox not being completely informed I had my agent reach out to him and give him a brief explanation of my current situation. I believed at this time I may be able to reconcile with Silver Fox. I had returned from my shift and decided to take my tour of the facilities (joined discord).
I do not understand the logic of offering me an invitation to view the facilities based upon what I saw. To my surprise I walked in on a conversation where the questionable GM was trash talking me to potential future teammates. I found this to be his most unprofessional transgression yet. The remainder of the conversation I do not want to cover in too much detail simply because Jay Z warned it may violate some of the league's conduct policies. But I did save a recording of said conversation, which includes preparing an article prior to a possible trade to immediately make me "the bad guy" and making it "seem like [I] was trying to take Bercs throne of highest paid player." Personally, I don't find that to be professional management.
I will admit I may have violated a rule by completing training camp and rookie camp prior to being on a team. I "forgotten" what I learned until I am signed to a team. If I am not signed to a team, I will forgo those trainings. I will now accept questions from the media.
Mr. Wright,
What do you think your odds of being traded are if you are now publicly coming out against the Liberty?
It is my belief that they are quite high. My agent has informed me that there are rumblings of a trade happening to somewhere with a a lot of sin. Clearly, I am not involved in these talks but there are at least some discussions being had.
Any chance you work out a deal in Philadelphia and if so what future do you see for yourself there?
I am not going to completely rule out a deal with Philadelphia. I do believe that after my current situation in the locker room where I have been villainized and my relationship with some of the front office, it will be difficult.
Have any teams reached out to you personally to show interest in taking you out of Philly?
I have been contacted by one team that has stated directly that they are interested in my abilities. I have no knowledge of any official trade talks taking place with that team.
What are your goals for your career and can you see yourself accomplishing them if you miss out on your rookie season?
My goals are to play football and take care of my family for the long haul. I believe if I miss my rookie season, I will be able to continue to focus on the game and prove my value in next years draft. I am young enough in my career that I don't worry about the length of time I miss.
Thank you Mr. Wright.
Mr. Harris,
I just want to add some background as a third party who has only been partially involved in this whole scenario and cover my involvement in this because I was the person who sent the invite for discord, something I was doing for every player drafted by the Liberty, and started the whole conversation about this in there by asking "which one of you mocked Matt James?" just trying to find out what had happened.
I will also put my hands up and admit I was a bit of an arsehole in this whole scenario as well when responding to a post about how much you had been asking for, which I will not post here as it is not my place to do so, by calling you a diva and making a joke about you holding out that I wouldn't vote for you for captain. For that I apologise.
I then stated later on that you wanted to be traded for next to nothing, which to the best of my knowledge is true and confirmed to one of the GMs who had invited you to the discord a couple of times and hadn't got a response that you had gave one to me and were not ignoring the team.
Also fair play to you for stating that you hold no ill to the players when you quite easily could have and burned bridges with every single member of the team if you wished.
I do not see a question here but I appreciate your candor and apology. I understand the locker room talk and the aspect that you have been not been privy to my side of the story. I understand that players are in this league for different reasons, some are wiling to take little to no money to win, whereas others feel they should be appropriately compensated. I congratulate you on being in a place where you find yourself in the former camp, while I am in the latter. In my conversations with both GMs, visiting the facility came up, had preexisting workout engagements at the time, but I got my self to Philadelphia as soon as I was available. I was drafted in the 6th round and asked to be traded for a 7th rounder. I do not feel that is being traded for next to nothing. I do not believe the Philadelphia front office should be rewarded for their poor treatment and managing skills of players. I have no intention to burn bridges with players in this league. I understand some feathers may be ruffled, but first and foremost this is my job. I am approaching this like business.
Thank you for your time during these negotiations Mr. Harris.
Mr. Cushing,
If your signing rights were traded to a team you felt more comfortable with, what range of deal would you be looking for in yearly salary and duration?
Thank you for your question. I have been instructed by my agent not to discuss salary values in an open setting. I would take different amounts to go to different teams. I am fine with a three year deal, but as I told the Liberty management team I am not interested in taking a three year deal with future team only options that offer me nothing. I cannot benefit from such a deal. I have no future security. Each deal my agent has discussed with Philadelphia have been three year deals.
I will say, I told one team prior to the draft that my contract would be something in the range and structure of that which my agent proposed to Philadelphia, because I also did not want to play there.
Mr. Oles,
I'm going to make note of this right now. When you joined the discord, the recent discussion was about your situation and possible solutions to the problem. We were also talking about me getting traded, holding out, going into the draft, not getting drafted back to philly, holding out and then me ending up a rookie in season 7. Obviously this is a scenario that is never going to happen, and was just friendly banter. Most of what has gone on in the discord has been friendly, and we have all been joking about everything from the draft, to trades, to position changes, anything you can imagine so far. I've reached out to you about the situation, as well as other teammates, about your side of the story. I want this situation to be resolved, it hurts all parties if you keep holding out. It is frustrating to see articles about you holding out, I don't want to see you hurt yourself doing that, I don't want to see you hurt the team doing that. I want Philly to field the best team they can, and you are a part of that. I didn't want to start commenting on this in public but I want everyone to see the 3rd side of what has been a majority 2 sided story.
I do not believe the long-term negatives of not being a part of a team outweight the long term negatives of receiving an anti-player contract. My goal is not to hurt a team, simply to help myself. I had to do what was best for my family. My press conference today was help to follow-up on my agent's announcement yesterday and to provide league members with some insights. As a fellow player it is in your best interest to also be fairly compensated and respectfully treated by management.
Thank you Mr. Oles.
I want to say again that my agent has still yet to receive a single counter offer contract. I have changed structure, language, and adjusted values that my agent has proposed to Philadelphia multiple times. I am willing to compromise on a deal, but I am not going to continue to whittle away my salary or protections as a player through bullying and a refusal to have good faith negotiations by the Liberty front office. I will also say that during this conference my agent has begun another round of negotiations with the team.
I am still open for questions. Thank you
GRADED 1967 words
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