For years now, the New England Patriots organization has pretty much had their way with players in contract negotiations and held all of the cards while doing so. The tables have turned this offseason as their Pro Bowl guard Logan Mankins now refuses to sign his tender while requesting a trade from the team. Much like the case with the San Diego Chargers where two of their stars are refusing to put their names on the dotted line of the tender offers, the Patriots have given Mankins notice that they hold the right to cut his salary for the year now substantially from the $3.26 million on the tender to a mere $1.54 million. In a similar fashion to both Vincent Jackson and Marcus McNeill in San Diego however, Mankins too will not budge from his stance.

Despite the perceived ill-will between the two parties, negotiations have been ongoing for some time now in regards to an extension for Mankins. Those talks have reportedly stalled due to the Pats unwillingness to go anywhere near the amount of money given by the New Orleans Saints to their Pro Bowl guard Jahri Evans this offseason. Evans inked a seven-year, $56.7 million deal that averages just over $8 million per season. The final offer from New England to Mankins is according to his agent ‘20 percent less’ than the contract that Evans signed at around $7 million per year.

The main sticking point for Mankins remains the fact that he played out the entirety of an undervalued deal with the team from his rookie season until this uncapped year. As a late first round pick of the 2005 NFL Draft, Mankins certainly received a contract on par with any late first round selection, but he played out that entire deal despite making the Pro Bowl in both 2007 and this past season in 2009. He has started all 80 games from rookie year on and has arguably been the steadiest player on the Patriots offensive line. According to Mankins, the Patriots gave him their word that this offseason would be the year for him to receive a new lucrative extension with the team.

This hardball stance from some organizations this offseason certainly has something to do with the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) being in limbo. Teams are hesitant to commit long-term to players when they are unsure whether their product will actually be out on the field beyond this season. That doesn’t change the fact that many of these guys have put themselves on the line game after game for these teams only to be turned away when the time comes to pony up for their services. It doesn’t look good with Mankins right now and their may be a team or two with some substantial cap room willing to make a deal to acquire his rights.

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