Patriots Insider Reveals Reason For Gabe Jacas Contract Holdout
· Yahoo Sports
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After recording just 35 sacks last season, the New England Patriots made some changes to their pass rush in the offseason.
The Patriots signed Dre-Mont Jones in free agency and drafted Gabe Jacas in the second round of the NFL Draft. Jacas is the only Patriots draft pick who remains unsigned and is the only second-round pick in the NFL yet to sign. Jacas attended rookie minicamp, but was absent from OTAs and mandatory minicamp.
H does not have a contract yet, and Mike Vrabel revealed that he had a "clean up" procedure in his knee after the draft. That procedure has something to do with the contract holdout, as the Patriots seek financial protection in his contract, according to ESPN's Mike Reiss.
"One high-ranking NFL executive hypothesized that the Patriots are likely seeking a level of financial protection in the contract based on the medical procedure, which would explain the holdup," wrote Reiss on Sunday.
Reiss noted that there is still hope that Jacas will be ready for training camp, but noted that the Patriots are trying to get him to sign a contract that protects them from paying him if he sustains an injury prior to signing his deal.
"Jacas hasn't been with the Patriots since May, according to a source," wrote Reiss. "His absence is tied, in part, to not being given a standard 'participation agreement' from the Patriots, according to a source. Most draft picks receive such an agreement, which states that if they were to sustain an injury prior to signing their first NFL contract, the team would still be obligated to sign him to a contract based on the slot he was drafted."
The details of his knee injury are unknown, but whatever happened happened before he was under contract with the Patriots. If the injury keeps him from playing, the Patriots do not want to be responsible for paying him. It would be different if he sustained an injury while under contract.
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