Despite urgency to strike out new deal, parties cannot lay foundations for new contract.
With Matt Ryan entering the final year of his rookie deal, in which he will earn $12m for the 2013, the Atlanta Falcons are looking to extend his contract now, in order to give them security at the position, as well as making space in their salary cap budget for the next three years.
Source: NFL.com
The Falcons have re-shifted their attention back to the NFL draft this week as they believe they are in a comfortable position right now with the contract proceedings with Quarterback Matt Ryan.
However they need to start making significant headway if they want to finalise a new deal by the start of the 2013 season.
The team have already said they do not want to be in the same position the Baltimore Ravens found themselves in with Quarterback Joe Flacco, who did not have a contract in place with a year left on his rookie contract.
Once the draft has been completed, it will be likely that general manager Thomas Dimitroff will look to meet with Ryan to start serious talks about extending the franchise Quarterback’s contract, which is expected to be near or above the contract Flacco received in March.
The main reason to strike the deal out now is to reduce the hit the new contract will have on the team’s salary cap. The money can be spread more evenly out when it is part of an extension, which means it will be easier to manage the cap early on after the contract is signed
Despite the lack of momentum in discussions right now, it is fully expected that a deal will be reached before opening kickoff, and maybe even before training camp begins in August.
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