Thursday, July 25, 2013

Report: Byrd won't show to camp this weekend

BY NICK ST. DENIS

In what has become a common theme among NFL teams over the past few years, the Buffalo Bills will begin training camp without arguably their best defensive player.

According to Tim Graham of The Buffalo News, Bills safety Jairus Byrd isn't any closer to signing a contract than he was the last time his name popped up in the news. With that, Byrd won't show up for the start of Bills training camp this weekend.

Buffalo had until July 15 to sign Byrd to a multi-year deal after franchise-tagging him early in the offseason. That deadline came and went.

“We worked very hard to come to a long-term agreement with Jairus, but unfortunately, were unable to reach one before today’s deadline,” Bills general manager Doug Whaley said that evening. “Our attention will now be focused on a one-year agreement with him and on Training Camp with our continued efforts to prepare our team for the upcoming season."

Byrd has yet to sign his $6.9 million tender, so he's not considered a holdout since he's not under contract. However, his salary will be cut into if he doesn't pen his signature by the season-opener.

The Bills, who are learning entirely new schemes on both sides of the ball, finish camp Aug. 21.

In four NFL seasons, Byrd has tallied 18 interceptions, 10 forced fumbles, 308 tackles, 27 passes defensed, two sacks and two defensive touchdowns.

Follow Nick @NickStDenis
Follow AFC East Daily @AFCEastDaily