Ryan Fitzpatrick is about to get PAID

[Tailback U]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d82351d62/article/bills-close-in-on-new-multiyear-contract-with-qb-fitzpatrick?module=HP11_headline_stack

Bills close in on new multiyear contract with QB Fitzpatrick By Jason La Canfora NFL Network
NFL Network Insider
Published: Oct. 20, 2011 at 10:23 p.m. Updated: Oct. 20, 2011 at 10:36 p.m. The Buffalo Bills and quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick have made significant progress toward a multiyear contract in the past two weeks, league sources said Thursday, and hope to have it resolved shortly.

Talks resumed in earnest following the Bills' Sept. 25 victory over the New England Patriots, and the sides have been exchanging proposals since.


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The goal was to strike a deal during the bye week, but the Bills have closed their building through the weekend, essentially closing for business until next week, league sources said. So, talks will resume as soon as Monday, with a resolution possible soon thereafter.

Fitzpatrick's deal is expected to average about $10 million per season, but the sides still were trying to resolve issues such as guaranteed money (the Bills traditionally keep those figures relatively low). As long ago reported, Fitzpatrick has been Buffalo's priority, and the team has tabled contract talks with wide receiver Stevie Johnson and running back Fred Jackson until a deal is struck with the quarterback, who has flourished in second-year Bills coach Chan Gailey's offensive system.

Fitzpatrick, who has led the suddenly-explosive Bills to a surprising 4-2 start this season, is earning a base salary of $3.1 million in the final season of a three-year, $6.9 million contract. He has completed 134 of 202 passes for 1,477 yards and 12 touchdowns with six interceptions this year, his third in Buffalo after two with the Cincinnati Bengals (2007-08) and two with the St. Louis Rams (2005-06).

Thoughts? Are you guys sold on Fitz or do you think he's a flash in the pan or a "product of the system"?

I personally love the guy. I have a buddy who played at Harvard with him (same buddy played with Trent Edwards in HS) and he's told me Fitzpatrick is one of the nicest and funniest guys he's ever known and he appears to be that way when you see him mic'd up.

I'm definitely rooting for him.

[Cornelius]

He doesn't get laid, ever, he's married and wears his wedding ring on game days.

[Tailback U]

Mods. Please change thread title to "Ryan Fitzpatrick is about to FAP."

Thanks.

[Macken]

[Saluki]

Question is how much is he worth? Prob get like a Matt Cassel deal.....which fits him way better than it fits bum ass Matt Cassel

[nflman2033]

At this point I think he is about on par with Romo, at least at the same point in their careers.

[Blade]

Good for him.

[Houston]

Pop Trunk Wave.

[dave]

I don't know why teams feel such a need to lock up guys so quickly. It's only six games into the season and Fitzpatrick is worth $10M a season?
Really?
Don't get me wrong, he's playing great ... but what's the rush?
Same deal with Kevin Kolb. Arizona rushed out and gave him $63M over five years ... Kolb was hardly in a position with leverage. They could have just told him to earn that contract. Now, it looks like a bad contract.
For that matter, throw in Michael Vick.

Again, I don't get the rush.

[steeljake]

At this point I think he is about on par with Romo, at least at the same point in their careers.

well, except for the part about being a loser, which fitz is not and tony is.

[dave]

well, except for the part about being a loser, which fitz is not and tony is.

How is Fitz a winner? Four wins in six games and he's suddenly a winner? No one was calling Fitz a winner last year.
I want a greater body of work before I give Fitz Romo's money. I'd have to Google Romo's career W-L, but my guess is it's greater than Fitzpatrick's.

I just want a decent body of work from a player before I go crazy contractually.

[GoChargers]

fitzpatrick's career record is 18-27-1.

With that being said he appears to be playing much better this year than he ever has, I would still wait at least another few weeks before re-signing.

[Prodigal Son]

Fuck it, I hope they give him a giant contract, and he turns to shit. Making Buffalo feel stupid for hitching their wagon to a guy who's had a career 4 games.

[nflman2033]

How is Fitz a winner? Four wins in six games and he's suddenly a winner? No one was calling Fitz a winner last year.
I want a greater body of work before I give Fitz Romo's money. I'd have to Google Romo's career W-L, but my guess is it's greater than Fitzpatrick's.

I just want a decent body of work from a player before I go crazy contractually.

Exactly, You want to talk winners, How many Playoff Wins does Fitz have. So that was a very nice try Steeljake, but the fact is they are pretty much on the same level, both put up big numbers, but haven't really proven anything yet.

[killgod]

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Ryan Fitzpatrick doesn't intend to shed his scraggly beard or lose his large collection of T-shirts after signing a six-year, US$59 million contract on Friday that secures him as the Buffalo Bills franchise quarterback.

Given how much he'll be making and his new high-profile status, Fitzpatrick might have a hard time sticking with the "No-Name" label though.

The one-time journeyman, 2005 seventh-round draft pick and Harvard graduate has formally arrived as a bona fide NFL starter after being rewarded with what could potentially become the most lucrative contract in team history. It's a bold move by a team that's spent much of the past 15 years searching for someone to fill the quarterback role, and a reward for a player who as a first-time starter this season has led a revived offence that has Buffalo off to a surprising 4-2 start.

"It's been a long road. There's been a lot of hurdles and obstacles that I've had to overcome," Fitzpatrick said. "I think we've got this thing headed in the right direction. So to be a part of that, and to be able to continue to be a part of that for years to come, I'm really excited about it."

Fitzpatrick becomes the first starting quarterback since Doug Flutie in 1999 to earn a contract extension with Buffalo. And Fitzpatrick's deal includes $24 million in guaranteed money, according to a person familiar with negotiations, who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the team does not release contract terms.

That's a significant raise over the $3.22 million base salary he was making this season. Fitzpatrick was in the final year of the three-year contract -- worth $7.405 million in base salary -- he signed upon joining the Bills as a free agent in 2009.

"I'm excited about Ryan getting this done. He'll be our quarterback for a long time," general manager Buddy Nix said, who said the key to any team's success depends on having a quarterback in place. "It really makes everything easier for us. It's easy to put good players around him if you've got that position that you feel good about. And we do."

Nix had initially hoped to conduct contract talks with Fitzpatrick this off-season, but was delayed as a result of the lockout.

The deal was reached shortly after practice ended on Friday, as the Bills come out of their bye week to "host" Washington (3-3) in Buffalo's annual game at Toronto.

Until Fitzpatrick's emergence, the quarterback position has been unsettled in Buffalo since Hall of Famer Jim Kelly retired following the 1996 season. The Bills, over that stretch, have gone through the likes of Rob Johnson, Drew Bledsoe, J.P. Losman, Kelly Holcomb and, most recently, Trent Edwards.

Of all those players, Fitzpatrick has the unlikeliest pedigree.

The Bills are his third team since Fitzpatrick was selected 250th overall in the 2005 draft by St. Louis. He later spent two seasons with Cincinnati, including 2008, when he finished the season going 4-6-1 in taking over for injured starter Carson Palmer.

Last season, Fitzpatrick provided the offence some semblance of spark despite the team's 4-12 finish. Going 4-9 as a starter, he finished with 3,000 yards passing -- the first Bill with that many since Losman in 2006. And he threw 23 touchdowns, the most since Bledsoe had 24 in 2002.

With a 13-15 record in Buffalo, Fitzpatrick has been the quarterback for all but one victory over the past two-plus seasons.

With 1,477 yards passing and 12 touchdowns to go with just six interceptions this season, Fitzpatrick ranks in the top 10 in four statistical categories, including being tied for fifth in TDs. More important, he has a fuller command of coach Chan Gailey's offensive approach after replacing Trent Edwards as the starter in Week 3 of last season. Edwards was then cut a week later.

Numbers aside, Fitzpatrick has established himself as a team leader. During the lockout, he helped organize several player workouts, including one at his native Arizona, where he had his teammates stay at his house.

The work has paid off given how the passing attack has remained productive despite a group of no-name receivers after Buffalo lost two regulars to season-ending injuries and traded its most proven threat, Lee Evans, to Baltimore in August. The Bills currently rank 10th in the NFL in yards gained, and third with 188 points scored.

Word of Fitzpatrick's contract drew praise from his teammates, who posted notes on their respective Twitter accounts.

"Congrats to my Dawg FitzMagic on his deal. Good to have him locked back in Buff!!" wrote running back Fred Jackson.

Linebacker Danny Batten called the deal "well deserved," while receiver Stevie Johnson tweeted that Fitzpatrick -- whose last name has been butchered in being referred to as "Fitzgerald" and even "Kilpatrick" on numerous occasions -- might well be "finally famous."

The Bills had such confidence in Fitzpatrick's potential that he essentially awarded him the starting job at the end of last year. The Bills backed up that trust by not selecting a quarterback in the draft, while adding journeyman Tyler Thigpen in free agency in July with the sole intention of using him as a backup.

Don't expect him to change his easygoing demeanour, or suddenly start placing any additional pressure on himself.

"I've been a quarterback my whole life, and that's what it's been for me my whole life," Fitzpatrick said. "I welcome the challenge. It's something that I feel like, throughout my career, I've excelled when the odds were stacked against me, and I've excelled when the pressure has been on me. And I'm looking forward to doing it some more."