Steelers reportedly interested in free agent TE Jermichael Finley

[hawaiiansteel]

Missing some games for $10 mil v playing for a fraction of that isn't an easy call.

that would be a very easy call for me, no way do I play those first 4 games...

[hawaiiansteel]

Jermichael Finley to undergo more tests Wednesday

Tom Pelissero, USA TODAY Sports
July 14, 2014

MAPLE GROVE, Minn. – Free agent tight end Jermichael Finley says he will undergo another round of medical tests Wednesday and send the results to all 32 teams in hopes of landing on a roster before training camp.

But after a workout Monday afternoon, Finley told USA TODAY Sports he intends to keep being patient and wait for an offer that can compel him to return from spinal surgery, rather than walking away and moving to collect a $10 million insurance policy.

"As long as I wait, you know and I know, guys are going to go down and the money's going to shoot up," Finley said, sitting in the weight room at WelleFast Elite Sports Training. "It's all a waiting game right now."

Finley, 27, had his C-3 and C-4 vertebrae fused a month after suffering a spinal contusion Oct. 20 on a hit by Cleveland Browns safety Tashaun Gipson. He can file a claim to collect the insurance policy one year to the day after the injury if he hasn't played in four games.

The Green Bay Packers remain the most likely destination if Finley comes back, given that he knows the system and coaching staff after playing his first six NFL seasons there. He owns an expensive home in the area and his family continues to live there.

But Finley also has visited the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks and said he has received interest from other teams, including the Pittsburgh Steelers, whose team neurosurgeon, Dr. Joseph Maroon, performed Finley's surgery in November and cleared him in May.

"Pittsburgh have showed me a couple deals, but we all know the money ain't what it's supposed to be," said Finley, who has 223 career catches for 2,785 yards and 20 touchdowns. "If I quit the game right now, I can take tax-free money, and that's a difficult thing that I'm going through with myself …"

Finley said Wednesday's tests will include an MRI and CAT scan – the latest in a series he has undergone through the offseason to gauge how the spine is healing. He said Maroon assured him the chances are "99.9 percent that if I get back on the field, I'll be more protected and in better shape than I was before my injury."

Bill Welle, who has trained Finley the past five years, said his client has appeared game-ready from a physical standpoint the past six weeks. And Finley looked like himself catching passes from Welle during Monday's workout.

"You saw him catching stuff that most people can't catch. He's freaky good," Welle said. "The good thing is because his body was already there at one point, those neuropathways were established, so it's just a matter of retraining it and it happens a lot quicker.

"The key is going to be putting on a helmet and stepping on the field and saying, 'OK, where are we at now?'"

Finley said he believes he'll get to find that out sooner than later and have a job when camps begin. He said he has no limitations in his training and has cut weight to around 245 or 250 pounds in hopes of quickly returning to top form in the receiving game.

Now he just has to hope the latest round of tests backs him up.

"This is a huge week for me," Finley said, "and I'm a competitor, so I'm looking forward to it."

[URL]http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2014/07/14/jermichael-finley-free-agent-nfl-test-spinal-surgery/12657737/[/URL]

[RuthlessBurgher]

Why not sign him so he can start learning the offense now, but put him on PUP to give his neck a little bit more time to heal. He'd have to sit out the first 6 games, meaning he should be able to collect on his insurance policy as well, and be good to go in mid-October.

[sick beats]

Source: USA TODAY Sports - Tom Pelissero

Free-agent TE Jermichael Finley (Packers) is receiving interest from the Pittsburgh Steelers. It should be noted that the Steelers' neurosurgeon, Dr. Joseph Maroon, performed Finley's surgery in November and cleared him in May. 'Pittsburgh have showed me a couple deals, but we all know the money ain't what it's supposed to be,' said Finley, who has 223 career catches for 2,785 yards and 20 touchdowns. 'If I quit the game right now, I can take tax-free money, and that's a difficult thing that I'm going through with myself …'

So, Pgh is trying to low ball him, and unless he decides to play for super cheap, he won't be in Pgh. But what is he talking about with tax free money? I don't get the reference. I know you can have state-tax free money, but not in PA (which is another reason why I am thrilled to not live there).

[K Train]

So, Pgh is trying to low ball him, and unless he decides to play for super cheap, he won't be in Pgh. But what is he talking about with tax free money? I don't get the reference. I know you can have state-tax free money, but not in PA (which is another reason why I am thrilled to not live there).

$10 million insurance money would be tax free if he doesnt play.

My problem with that is its worded that if he misses the first 4 games, can he miss 4 games collect the money then sign a deal?

Id only want him if he was able to go thoough traning camp but his decision seems pretty simple

[sick beats]

$10 million insurance money would be tax free if he doesnt play.

My problem with that is its worded that if he misses the first 4 games, can he miss 4 games collect the money then sign a deal?

Id only want him if he was able to go thoough traning camp but his decision seems pretty simple

I see. If he isn't in camp, he won't do jack squat for the season, not knowing the team, the offense, etc. - not being in football shape. I see this as another Steeler smoke screen, where they don't actually want to sign the guy unless it's a steal. I think this is mostly a waste of time.

[ROLROC]

I'm pretty sure he can't play football again if he collects the 10mil.

[K Train]

So i looked it up. He can claim the insurance one year after an injury, but he would likely have to retire to claim it and not have a battle to collect on it. Playing in x # of games would be a huge detriment to his case.

If he collects it after the 4 games and then signs a contract he will be sued by the insurance company...he wont be allowed to double dip. It is one or the other, if its me the choice is clear....he had his spine crushed into liquid and was able to walk again. Hes 27 years old with a family....uhhhhh, $10 million cash please

[sick beats]

So i looked it up. He can claim the insurance one year after an injury, but he would likely have to retire to claim it and not have a battle to collect on it. Playing in x # of games would be a huge detriment to his case.

If he collects it after the 4 games and then signs a contract he will be sued by the insurance company...he wont be allowed to double dip. It is one or the other, if its me the choice is clear....he had his spine crushed into liquid and was able to walk again. Hes 27 years old with a family....uhhhhh, $10 million cash please

He must only be shopping because he thought maybe some team would give him near top $ with a big signing bonus that would far exceed 10 mill. I don't see that scenario playing out. And if he tries to play, thinking he could create a bigger market for himself, that 10 mill is gone forever. No way a team will step up and offer him Jimmy Graham $, which is what it would take. He is done with football as I see it.

[hawaiiansteel]

Hes 27 years old with a family....uhhhhh, $10 million cash please

and $10 million cash tax-free is like getting about $14-15 million taxable so yes, it's a no-brainer for me...

[hawaiiansteel]

Finley’s tax-free $10 million may not be so easy for him to get

Posted by Mike Florio on July 16, 2014



From the moment agent Blake Baratz characterized tight end Jermichael Finley as facing what amounts to a choice between taking Door No. 1 and a $10 million no-tax disability policy or Door No. 2 and returning to football for whatever pre-tax salaries and bonuses he can muster, it all seemed to be a little too clean and tidy and simple.

Insurance companies love to take money in; they hate to pay money out. Especially in $10 million increments. Unless Finley forked over a lot more as the premium in order to secure for himself the ability in the insurance policy to choose to retire from football even if he’s able to still play and collect the money, the insurance company won’t be zealously bagging up the cash if Finley decides to not play.

Ultimately, the language of the insurance policy controls what Finley can and can’t get. But the idea that he’s carrying around a $10 million golden ticket and the dilemma of cashing it in and retiring or giving it back and and continuing to play probably oversimplifies the situation.

One league source with direct experience pursuing disability benefits for NFL players explained that another player with a neck injury and a disability policy who received clearance from his doctor to play had to fight for two years to get the money. Ultimately, the insurance company paid up because the player had never received any other offers from NFL team after the injury. As a result, the source thinks Finley could end up trying to get the money — and eventually not getting it or at a minimum having to file a lawsuit.

In this case, Finley apparently has received multiple offers from the Steelers, whose team doctor performed the spinal fusion surgery on Finley and cleared him to play earlier this year.

“Pittsburgh have showed me a couple deals, but we all know the money ain’t what it’s supposed to be,” Finley recently told USA Today.

It’s entirely possible that Finley bought the Cadillac of disability policies, with language that lets him make the final decision between playing and not playing, even if he has been cleared to play and if he is receiving offers from teams that want him to play for them. It’s also possible that Finley bought a far more standard policy containing language that allows the company to keep the premium and the benefits.

Whatever the specific language of Finley’s policy, here’s hoping that he knows what it is and that he understands the real decision he’s facing. There’s a chance that, with clearance from Dr. Joseph Maroon and offers from the team the neurosurgeon works for, the decision already has been made.

[URL]http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/07/16/finleys-tax-free-10-million-may-not-be-so-easy-for-him-to-get/[/URL]

[sick beats]

Well, that makes sense. Why would the insurance company pay when docs are saying he is clear to play football? Shhhheeeeeeeet, Jethro, you should see the thousands of people who were screwed by insurance companies when hurricanes came through. It was criminal. Now I hear the same thing is happening in NJ from Sandy. If Finley's policy was to cover "career ending" injuries, and the docs are saying he is clear to play, then he won't be able to collect. No way. It's not like he can just say he doesn't want to play anymore and collect on it. Didn't the surgeon - from Pgh - who operated on him say he is clear to play? I mean, if that doc clears him, he will have a tough time finding enough other docs to say his career is over. It's all moot. Pgh will keep low balling and some other team will make him a more legit offer.

[NorthCoast]

Not sure i would pony up big cash for a guy whose heart might not be totally all-in..... sounds like he is making this a financial decision, not a football choice...

[sick beats]

I say pass - they are just wasting time again.

[hawaiiansteel]

I say pass - they are just wasting time again.

the Steelers were seeing if they could sign Finley at a bargain basement price and they couldn't.

my guess is he will end up re-signing with the Packers, time to move on...