Rex, Woody visit helped seal Revis deal for Jets

Football Betting Lines

09/07/2010 -

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) - Darrelle Revis and Rex Ryan looked at each other, huddled in a conference room in Florida, and immediately knew they had the same game plan.

The New York Jets' star cornerback wanted to get back on the football field.

The brash and boisterous coach badly wanted him there.

``He was smiling like he took a trip to Disney World,'' Revis recalled Monday. ``I was smiling back because this is like a home to me, the New York Jets. It was just good to see him and work something out when we were down there to try to get me back up here.''

Revis signed a four-year deal Monday, ending a 36-day holdout that included some acrimonious moments between his agents and general manager Mike Tannenbaum. There were also plenty of doubts that the All-Pro cornerback would play this season.

Perhaps the most crucial moment of the negotiations came Saturday, when both Ryan and owner Woody Johnson flew to Revis' home in South Florida to meet with him, his mother Diana Gilbert and uncle and former NFL player Sean Gilbert to try to solve the contract impasse.

``I think that was a breakthrough, them coming down because I haven't seen them,'' Revis said. ``It was talks with my agents and Tannenbaum most of the time. I just thought when they both came down, it was a big step in this whole situation.''

Both Ryan and Johnson said the decision to visit Revis was a group idea, although agent Neil Schwartz said the coach reached out to them Friday night about setting it up.

``First off, I like to travel,'' a smiling Ryan said of how the trip came about. ``That was probably what one of the reasons was. We don't do things exactly by the books of other teams, but we do it our way. It's the New York Jet way.''

Both the Jets and Revis' agents spoke all weekend until they reached an agreement around 11 p.m. Sunday.

That was after Ryan lost his cool, a moment that's sure to be featured on the next episode of ``Hard Knocks'' on HBO. During a conference call between the Jets and Revis' agents, Ryan got frustrated at the sides not being able to seal the deal.

``I stormed out of there and was ripping everybody on both sides,'' he said. ``After I threw my little tantrum and the deal was getting done, they brought me back up.''

Added agent Jonathan Feinsod: ``He told us that he was going to go coach his football team and he was sick and tired of us.''

When cooler heads prevailed a few hours later, Revis had finally agreed to a deal.

``It was a long process,'' he said. ``It was rough on me. You know I'm a football player and I love to play the game and I'm happy it's over with. I can go play football now.''

Revis is expected to practice Tuesday and be ready to play in the season opener next Monday night at home against Baltimore.

``I do think we may play Revis, I'm not sure,'' Ryan quipped. ``I think he might need to practice for several weeks before we play him, but don't be shocked if he's out there.

``In other words, he's definitely playing.''

The Jets and Revis' agents declined to announce financial terms of the deal, but it is reportedly worth at least $46 million, including $32 million guaranteed. Revis said all along he wanted to be the highest-paid player at his position, something Feinsod said the Jets cornerback would be - without releasing terms.

``The numbers would reflect in our minds that he's being paid as the highest-paid cornerback,'' Feinsod said.

After months of waiting and wondering about his future, Revis was happy to be back on the field after flying up from Florida in the morning.

``This experience humbled me so much just because I love to play football,'' Revis said. ``At one point, it was something that was taken away, that I love to do. I've never had anything taken away from me that I love to do. So this was a point in my life where it was serious.''

As he walked toward his teammates on the practice field, a strange feeling came over him.

``I had butterflies,'' Revis said. ``I didn't know how my teammates were going to accept me because I haven't been here for a month.''

For a guy who routinely shuts down opponents' best wide receivers, the acknowledgment of insecurity was stunning. After some loud, welcoming cheers - including a ``Rudy'' clap - and good-natured ribbing, Revis knew he was finally back home.

``This process, I don't wish it on anybody,'' Revis said. ``I never thought it was going to turn out to be like this, to get a little bit crazy. But it's something I had to go through.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

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