"we keep our own"

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(02-15-2017, 11:11 AM)Sled21 Wrote: And they still have lot's of time to get one done. I'm quite sure Zeitler wants to see what he will bring in FA, who wouldn't. And when he does, then the Bengals know what it is going to take to keep him, and then they decide if they want to cough that up, rather than overpaying him now. I'm sure they have a top number in mind. Just like with Andre Smith, he jumped into FA and found out he's not worth as much as he thinks he is, not because he is not good, but that some teams won't pay that because they don't need a guard. If he gets an astronomical offer, then he's gone. That's not the Bengals fault, nor Zeitler's fault.... that is the NFL...

I think there's a difference between not wanting to overpay, and being aggressive. If the front office is continuously reaching out to Zeitler to negotiate that sends a signal that they are will to pay him a fair deal to keep him. Zeitler and his agent aren't dumb, they know what Kevin is worth just as much as the Bengals know what he's worth. If he wants to test the market and try to land more money, then fine that's nothing we can control, and that's his right to do so. There'll be a team out there that will be open to paying him a lot more then he's worth. Although I think there's something to be said if the Bengals are serious and aggressive in trying to keep him, but not giving him a ridiculous deal. Its nice to feel wanted, and if our front office sends Kevin the signal that he's wanted here, but were not willing to blow our cap wad on keeping him he may be more inclined to resign. Unless he's convinced himself that he needs a change.

I suspect we have a dollar amount in mind that we are willing to go to keep him, but we probably sent an offer much lower than that as a starting point. He of course rebuffed, and we left it at that. Now were waiting to see how the market plays out before we up our offer, willing to let him test it out and risk not retaining him.