CINCINNATI – Storylines across the NFL this week typically revolve around players opting not to participate in the voluntary OTAs kicking off the next phase of the offseason.
Players seeking leverage or safety during contract extension talks would rather not take the risk of suffering an injury and jeopardizing millions of dollars. We saw Carlos Dunlap do just that here last season in passing on voluntary sessions.
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Yet, approaching the most impactful negotiation period of his life, there was Tyler Boyd on Monday darting across the practice field in the shadows of Paul Brown Stadium, leaving linebacker Preston Brown in his tracks during 7-on-7.
Some would tell Boyd he’s making a mistake. They have. They likely still will. After all, his camp hasn’t even received an expected extension offer from the Bengals yet.
Boyd spoke bluntly with The Athletic on Monday and left no doubts his approach to the extension process is carefully discussed.
“I’m just trying to do what’s right,” Boyd said. “I’m going to be a team player and go out there and work my tail off. I’m not going to try to skip out on reps or miss a day. That’s the best approach to it. Typically, a guy trying to come out to a season saying, ‘you have to pay me,’ it shows where the care is going. He is a ‘me’ guy. Or, you are still working and going to be a team guy. I am not trying to strategize and make it seem like I’m just trying to do what’s right (to get a deal done), that’s just the way I am.”
The Bengals want to sign Boyd for the long term. He and A.J. Green are the top priorities to get done before the season starts. Boyd’s only 24 and broke out last season, averaging 73.4 receiving yards per game, ranking 16th among all NFL wideouts. He racked up 1,072 yards in just 14 games, adding seven touchdowns.
Boyd tied Julio Jones – in two fewer games – for the NFL lead in receptions for a first-down conversion on either third or fourth down.
The list of leaders in these game-defining situations reads like a Pro Bowl roster.
- Tyler Boyd, Cincinnati: 25
- Julio Jones, Atlanta: 25
- Adam Thielen, Minnesota: 24
- DeAndre Hopkins, Houston: 23
- Michael Thomas, New Orleans: 23
- Davante Adams, Green Bay: 22
- Travis Kelce, Kansas City: 22
- T.Y. Hilton, Indianapolis: 21
The Bengals have traditionally agreed to these extensions every year during training camp and preseason with the regular-season opener as a deadline. Expectations are this should only be a matter of time considering it’s a no-brainer for the Bengals to get it done and Boyd’s willingness.
“That’s what I’m saying, bruh, I want to be here,” Boyd said. “I think they feel that and know that. In my feeling, I think it is going to be done before camp. But ain’t no telling. I’m just going to continue to keep being patient and trust the process.”
Tyler Boyd has made a habit of converting first downs when the Bengals need them the most. (Aaron Doster/USA TODAY Sports)
The Bengals’ process in these situations has been attempting to clear the biggest ticket item first before moving to the next. That means starting with Green, likely to end up beyond the area code of his last contract which set the NFL market at the time for receivers at $15 million per season. That deal currently ranks ninth.
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A negotiation like that one can preoccupy and come with challenges, as Green suggested on the Adam Schefter Podcast earlier this offseason.
“It’s hard for me to see myself somewhere else because I have a family and all that here, but you just never know,” Green said, “and like I said, I can’t control that. Something may get done, something may not get done.”
Green’s always played the human shrug emoji when asked about contracts. That’s his style. Publicly, he mostly stays out of that side.
That’s not Boyd. He enjoys the business side of the game and prior to last season switched over to Young Money APAA Sports. Boyd sees himself as a marketable player and wanted more return in that area despite playing in a small market.
“It’s tougher to get crazy deals here but I’ll take a little 5K deal, 3K deal,” Boyd said. “Just a little pocket money. Just showing me you are trying to get things for me. That’s better than what my first agent was doing.”
Point being, Boyd’s paying attention and closely follows along. Hence, his quick reference to a contract signed this offseason by the New York Giants that serves as a possible template for his future.
“I definitely look at the market and see where guys is at. A great example is Sterling Shepard. I feel like our game is kind of similar, kind of close,” Boyd said of the player picked 15 spots ahead of him in the 2016 draft. “He got four for $40 million (technically, $41M with $21.3M guaranteed). I kind of feel like I’m in that area. Hopefully, they come like that or a little bit more or around that way. I feel like my ability is worth that much. I feel like my value is that much. But I’m not going to go out there asking something crazy because I had one great year. I want to continue to show them that I can do that every single year, that I’m a 1,000-yard receiver every year.”
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Another important point of reference in the negotiation will be Tyrell Williams inking $11 million per season and $22 million guaranteed with Oakland as a free agent in March.
Comparing the best season had by each in their careers offers an interesting view: Boyd is selling himself short.
Player (season): Yards/game — TDs
Boyd (2018): 73.4 — 7
Shepard (2017): 66.5 — 2
Williams (2016): 66.2 — 7
THE @BENGALS!
TOUCHDOWNNNN!
WOW. #Bengals50 pic.twitter.com/NB78jk9U2a
— NFL (@NFL) January 1, 2018
Study as much as you want. Work the numbers all day. Inevitably, one frightening variable always lingers.
That’s what keeps the consistently relaxed Boyd slightly uneasy under his loose demeanor.
He pointed out before even bringing the topic up, he was hesitant to mention the possibility that wrecks his nerves.
“I don’t want to jinx myself and say this,” Boyd began, “I don’t want it to be late and start playing, the offer didn’t come and I get hurt. Then I’ll be undervalued in the market. At the same time, I still don’t feel that will happen for me because of the year that I just had. I just don’t want no setbacks because I feel like I’ve had a lot of those in my journey.”
A sophomore season filled with healthy scratches, internal struggles with coaches and a brush with the law all file under “setbacks.”
Avoiding one via injury involves crossing fingers. OTAs aren’t exactly replicas of the training camp battle royales. No pads, no press and plenty of caution once the ball reaches a receiver. Still, things happen. Reuben Foster went down with an ACL tear in Washington this week. Former Bengals tight end Tyler Kroft broke his foot in Buffalo.
Boyd says he’s trying to practice same as always, within reason.
“We ain’t doing nothing crazy,” he said. “I don’t have to go out there and show how good I am, even though I want to put it on tape that I’m a great player and put good things on film. At the same time, I know how to practice like a pro. I get out of breaks clean. You go out and play lazy, that’s when you get hurt. I just want to go out there and work.”
So, he does. Even if some would say he shouldn’t.
It’s all he knows.
Plus, as he points out, “I got nothing else to do.”
(Top image: David Kohl/USA TODAY Sports)
