Source: Alex Smith considering changing agents

[ChrisPozz]

San Francisco 49ers – Niner Insider Blog – SFGate.com Source: Alex Smith considering changing agents

Also, according to a league source, the 49ers have offered Smith a three-year, $24 million deal that Smith is currently weighing. A call to Smith was not immediately returned.

 

[Jikkle]

Well things are getting interesting.

Looks like Smith felt betrayed by Condon over this whole Peyton Manning drama.

If I had to take a stab at it Smith was probably advised to not take the 49ers offer and negotiate for more by Condon.

Due to him not taking the offer that freed up the 9ers and Manning to touch base which leaves us to where we stand today.

Not to mention Condon probably didn't bother to tell Smith about Manning or advise him to possibly talk to other teams if Manning chooses the 9ers.

 

[clyde_carbon]

I don't think it has to do with feeling betrayed. I'm not gonna pretend like I know the sports agent world but I assumed when this whole Manning saga started that Condon would be too busy trying to find Peyton a new team that it really wouldn't be fair to some of his other clients.

 

[MHSL82]

Well things are getting interesting.

Looks like Smith felt betrayed by Condon over this whole Peyton Manning drama.

If I had to take a stab at it Smith was probably advised to not take the 49ers offer and negotiate for more by Condon.

Due to him not taking the offer that freed up the 9ers and Manning to touch base which leaves us to where we stand today.

Not to mention Condon probably didn't bother to tell Smith about Manning or advise him to possibly talk to other teams if Manning chooses the 9ers.

Maybe betrayed is the wrong word, but this is the key for me. I think Alex is a big grown man enough that he doesn't feel betrayed by the Niners for pursuing Manning (though I don't think he's happy with the reality or wants to back him up). He's competitive, hard worker, mentally tough to critics, and he'd understand the legacy of Manning. The Niners owe nothing to him. But Condon does. It seems everyone here perceives Alex's options as limited both in number of teams, playing opportunity (starter v. bench), and money/length. I wouldn't expect Alex to have an objective belief/understanding of his options/abilities, Condon is closer to being able to do so.

Unless everyone else is wrong about his worth, I could see Alex being upset that Condon insisted on asking for more. I don't see it as being Alex's style to ask for more. In reality, I think he went along with it because he wanted some assurance over Kaep, but I don't think he would have let it drag on this long without Condon. In the end, it's Alex's choice, but I don't blame him for trusting his agent.

Plus, if Manning really did contact the Niners, then Condon had a reasonable belief that the Niners were out. But agents are experienced, who's to say the Niners did not talk secretly before or give that vibe. The more experienced you are, the less ability you have to claim surprise or naivete.

However, my bet is that he's been too busy with Manning and now the interests are conflicted. I actually think he should keep Condon but put pressure on him. I think this should benefit Smith if Condon just wants money because Manning will get his, Alex would get the most from the Niners v. anyone else. If money is a factor, the agent should get Manning to Denver or Tennessee and Alex a good deal here. Plus, Alex can get a better vibe from his agent than from someone else, even if Condon doesn't directly talk about it to him. It also throws a wrench in SF's ability to haggle if it came to that, but the Niners seem pretty set.

 

[threelittleturds]

I don't believe Condon betrayed Smith by focusing on a client that will get him more money. First and foremost, the 49ers have reportedly offered Smith 3 years 24 million... of which Smith stated to some paper, sorry I forgot which, that he was happy with the offer and it would get done.

Then, HE chose not to sign it... he made that choice. I mean, that part there gets weird. If you want to work for a company and they offer you a job at the wages you want from them, if you don't agree then its your fault if they move on and hire someone else. I mean, correct me if I'm wrong, but the 49ers made that offer before Manning was ever available.

Condon works for Smith, not the other way around. So bottom line, Smith chose to not sign a contract that he stated he was happy with the terms.

 

[MHSL82]

I don't believe Condon betrayed Smith by focusing on a client that will get him more money. First and foremost, the 49ers have reportedly offered Smith 3 years 24 million... of which Smith stated to some paper, sorry I forgot which, that he was happy with the offer and it would get done.

Then, HE chose not to sign it... he made that choice. I mean, that part there gets weird. If you want to work for a company and they offer you a job at the wages you want from them, if you don't agree then its your fault if they move on and hire someone else. I mean, correct me if I'm wrong, but the 49ers made that offer before Manning was ever available.

Condon works for Smith, not the other way around. So bottom line, Smith chose to not sign a contract that he stated he was happy with the terms.

I still think that it's about guaranteed money, not the three years 24 million - he has no reason to tell the media that the breakdown is an issue. It doesn't benefit him to say anything. And if the deal is so low to what the circumstances represented to him by his agent and the interest in Manning so low, I don't 100% blame him for listening to his agent. "Details" could mean anything. I mean, do you really think the hangup would be over where he parks his car or flying coach with Harbs (exaggeration obviously)? Most liability provisions, disclosures, etc. are likely standard.

If it isn't about the guaranteed money, the hangup is also consistent with the theory that Condon was too busy to really look over the contract (the details) and he assured Alex that his chances were good (no one assures 100%). In other words, I don't think he chose not to sign it based upon understanding everything per se. He's not an agent or lawyer. He may have had a lesser binding agreement he could have made, but since the offer is still on the table, it wouldn't have changed much.

I can see the agent thinking there could be some compromise on the quaranteed amount but not the 24. Plus, if Condon and Alex really didn't see Manning coming to the Niners, (though Condon probably knew from conversations with his client), why rush? They can't practice until April 16th anyway, Alex already has the playbook.

I think Manning wanted the Niners to initiate contact for leverage, but since they didn't, he did - if the reports are true. But if the reports are true, why postpone the decision unless there's something we don't know about the Niners demands (loosely speaking). Maybe it's just due diligence, keeping his word to workout for the others.

Alex may be trying to get a new agent so he can sign now because Condon won't have a clear conflicts of interest to do so? I can't imagine Condon being able to block it or refuse to work out the details just because of a conflict of interest without withdrawing from the relationship, which if it's done, Alex wants to be the one to do that. But Condon could give some legitimate reasons to hold off, but if you are Alex, do you listen now? Before, yes, now? And this is not all Condon's fault, but the reality is, what is best now? You made a comment about Condon spending time to get the most money for Manning - he'd get more to sign Manning elsewhere and Alex here, unless his commission is tied to SB incentives.

 

[Ltrain]

I haven't been this intrigued in an offseason - there is so much going on! The next week will be very interesting to see Manning's decision and how Smith proceeds. Now that we have Manningham, whoever we have at QB will have multiple options down the field.

Manning could go either way but if he comes here we are "the team to beat" in the NFC and I hope we bring our A game to back it up...starting with a Guard in the draft. Go 9ers and Happy St. Patrick's Day!

 

[Flyingiguana]

at the end of the day the agent works for smith. there's a tweet saying manning looks niner bound, if so smith is an idiot for not signing.

qb's usually play better when they learn a system. smith coulda taken a 1 year deal then went for a long-term deal. maybe he was reading too many of clyde's posts and thought he better cash in now.

 

[imac_21]

I think he's been reading your posts and has decided that

a) 24M over 3 years is an insult; and
b) The 49ers aren't good enough for him.

 

[Flyingiguana]

well there's always the toronto argonauts

 

[MHSL82]

I haven't been this intrigued in an offseason - there is so much going on! The next week will be very interesting to see Manning's decision and how Smith proceeds. Now that we have Manningham, whoever we have at QB will have multiple options down the field.

Manning could go either way but if he comes here we are "the team to beat" in the NFC and I hope we bring our A game to back it up...starting with a Guard in the draft. Go 9ers and Happy St. Patrick's Day!

If we get Manning, it will be a huge upgrade, but I'll still feel bad (relatively) that Alex never had that. Manning makes receivers better, but if we had better receivers like we have now, Smith wouldn't look as bad as some say he is. Again, Manning > Smith but the gap of Alex 2012 and Manning 2012 would be smaller than Alex 2011 and Manning 2012 but people will still cite Alex 2011 to make it look that big. I think an objective observation is Manning > Smith, don't know some people need to exaggerate it more.

 

[Kinzu]

I'm not entirely excited over getting Manning. I'd rather win 1 Super Bowl with Alex than 3 with Manning, but I know having a chance to win 3 Super Bowls is to good to pass up. If Manning wants to play for us it makes no sense not to let him.

I do feel bad for Alex though because he played great for us last year, and this year looked to have all the cards in place for him to have an even better year.

I agree MHSL82 that Manning > Smith, but it might not be by a huge margin. Also as great as Manning is this may end up being a bad move. There is no guarantee we are getting the Colts Peyton Manning. We're getting a guy a year removed from playing football coming off of surgery. He could end up taking several games to get back his old form. He is also going to be changing systems for the first time in his pro career which could also take some time. Peyton is a Hall of Fame QB and one of the greatest of all time, but that does not just instantly mean he will be that guy in a 49ers uniform.

Also getting Peyton kinda takes away some of the excitement of winning a Super Bowl if we do. It suddenly becomes expected and in a way like we are trying to buy one. That's not all bad because I'll take winning 2 or 3 Super Bowls these next few years and re-claiming our title as the greatest team in the NFL any way we can get it, but it just would have meant more if Alex Smith or Colin Kaepernick was the guy leading us to it because I view them as our guys. Peyton Manning is not a 49er to me, and he never will be.

 

[MHSL82]

My theory on the Alex Smith/Peyton Manning issue:

1. Agent wanted to maximize his profits. Manning will get his money regardless of where he goes, Alex will get the most in San Francisco.
2. Agent asked for more from the Niners for Alex and the Niners expressed interest in Manning, partly to shoot down Alex's demands and partly because he's Peyton Manning.
3. Alex (agent) knew that a low guaranteed amount would be too easy to cut Alex for Kaep, thought Niners interest in Manning was faux interest, would eventually give in, etc.
4. Niners did not want this to drag on long, was ok with Smith, but considered Manning. Would not get involved unless needed or could get secret/quick resolution.
5. Manning (agent) knew of this interest, was waiting for the Niners to ask, so he could have the leverage.
6. Niners didn't ask in time, Manning pursued.
7. Niners agreed because they'd either get Manning or Smith would sign for offered deal, no more. They knew Alex is tough enough to take it but also Manning is good enough to justify the interest.
8. Whatever leaked was a mistake, but two days into the coup.
9. Alex changes agents four days too late (pending, possibly not done)

Alex is ultimately in charge because he's not his agent's agent. But I can see that he could believe his agent in that there was no Manning interest, that after years of negotiating he knew the ropes, and understood the offer meant too easy to cut for Kaep. Alex with any other agent (or at least one without Manning) would have signed the deal on Monday or earlier, before free agency.

Other agents weren't in the position to know anything and the agent had no obligation to tell Alex everything, but rather to act in Alex's best interests and appraise him of relavant facts regarding his options. Any knowledge of interest in other QBs I think is relevant obviously and Condon was in position to know but to say Alex would need to know something he wouldn't have known if someone else was Manning's agent, is questionnable. While there's a possibility that waiting could have tipped SF's hand, I doubt it, and here is where I think the agent put Manning's deal ahead of Alex's, thus the obvious conflict of interest.

Manning will get more play than Smith, but if you are not going to pursue the best for both, you should drop one, Smith. I don't think an outside shot of upping the offer was the best for Alex if it meant risking the deal - by the time Condon knew of the strength of Manning's interest, to hurry up and sign Smith would have been a problem with conflicts of interest, too.

 

[iHATEdodgers]

I'm not entirely excited over getting Manning. I'd rather win 1 Super Bowl with Alex than 3 with Manning, but I know having a chance to win 3 Super Bowls is to good to pass up. If Manning wants to play for us it makes no sense not to let him.

I do feel bad for Alex though because he played great for us last year, and this year looked to have all the cards in place for him to have an even better year.

I agree MHSL82 that Manning > Smith, but it might not be by a huge margin. Also as great as Manning is this may end up being a bad move. There is no guarantee we are getting the Colts Peyton Manning. We're getting a guy a year removed from playing football coming off of surgery. He could end up taking several games to get back his old form. He is also going to be changing systems for the first time in his pro career which could also take some time. Peyton is a Hall of Fame QB and one of the greatest of all time, but that does not just instantly mean he will be that guy in a 49ers uniform.

Also getting Peyton kinda takes away some of the excitement of winning a Super Bowl if we do. It suddenly becomes expected and in a way like we are trying to buy one. That's not all bad because I'll take winning 2 or 3 Super Bowls these next few years and re-claiming our title as the greatest team in the NFL any way we can get it, but it just would have meant more if Alex Smith or Colin Kaepernick was the guy leading us to it because I view them as our guys. Peyton Manning is not a 49er to me, and he never will be.

I hear what you're saying and I prefer winning with the guys who have been here rather than going full mercenary... But if the two options were win 1 with Smith and 3 with Manning, you gotta go with Manning dude!

 

[Kinzu]

I still think the agent is just playing the 49ers, and if Manning does not sign with us then that is exactly what happened. He is using Manning as a marker to figure out what we are willing to pay for the position. Manning will either sign with Denver or Tennessee come Monday or Tuesday. That suddenly leaves Alex as our only option with an agent that now knows what we were willing to give for Peyton. An agent that knows there are now no better options on the market for us. Alex suddenly gets a better deal than 3 years 24 million. I'd say he gets more around 10 million per year with close to half guaranteed. I'd say 4 years 40 maybe 45 million with 20 million guaranteed, but the contract is done in a way where Alex is paid the majority of that guaranteed money in the first 2 years. This means we are really only committing to him for those 2 years and even if they let Kaepernick replace him after one it will not kill the franchsie.

Then again maybe Peyton really does want to play for us. These last few days have just been to crazy, but I think the agent is playing us to drive up the offers for both his clients.

 

[bvanthielriceyoung]

Also getting Peyton kinda takes away some of the excitement of winning a Super Bowl if we do. It suddenly becomes expected and in a way like we are trying to buy one. That's not all bad because I'll take winning 2 or 3 Super Bowls these next few years and re-claiming our title as the greatest team in the NFL any way we can get it, but it just would have meant more if Alex Smith or Colin Kaepernick was the guy leading us to it because I view them as our guys. Peyton Manning is not a 49er to me, and he never will be. [/

Yeah kinda weird but the same thoughts have been going through my head as well.

 

[clyde_carbon]

at the end of the day the agent works for smith. there's a tweet saying manning looks niner bound, if so smith is an idiot for not signing.

qb's usually play better when they learn a system. smith coulda taken a 1 year deal then went for a long-term deal. maybe he was reading too many of clyde's posts and thought he better cash in now.

Ha. If he's been reading my posts he would've signed on this deal on day one. He's not gonna find better.

 

[maniax]

Also getting Peyton kinda takes away some of the excitement of winning a Super Bowl if we do. It suddenly becomes expected and in a way like we are trying to buy one. That's not all bad because I'll take winning 2 or 3 Super Bowls these next few years and re-claiming our title as the greatest team in the NFL any way we can get it, but it just would have meant more if Alex Smith or Colin Kaepernick was the guy leading us to it because I view them as our guys. Peyton Manning is not a 49er to me, and he never will be. [/

Yeah kinda weird but the same thoughts have been going through my head as well.

If Peyton ends up being a 49er, then I'll accept him as the QB.

There's no such thing as "buying a championship", this isn't the NFL of the 80's every team has a hard salary cap. If you have a chance to get a HOF/Superbowl winning QB you go for it.

 

[Yadahell]

Its such a slippery slope for an agent with 2 polarizing FA QB clients. Condon strikes me as kind of a douchebag, so nothing he says or does surprises me.

Bottom line for me is:

1) The 49ers land Manning and are expected to win the SB. It will be a fun and exciting season (not like last year which was a great surprise). It would be amazing to see Manning in a 49er uniform tossing darts to VD and co.

2) Manning chooses an AFC team. The 49ers resign Smith. The 49ers could potentially face Manning's team in the SB. I don't think Manning would be too stoked on facing our defense.

Either scenario is exciting for me. I would obviously rather have the Hall of Famer Manning as that gives us the best chance at winning the SB.

I don't want to see Manning go to an AFC team and Smith go to the Dolphins. I just don't think Kaep is quite ready to be reliable enough to get us anywhere in the playoffs (or possibly even to the playoffs).

 

[threelittleturds]

Condon is still Smith's agent right? I guess Smith was just feeling a little neglected because Condon was so busy with Manning that he wasn't setting up stuff like this trip to Miami today and a trip to Seattle (if it is true that they have heavy interest).

Smith cried a little bit and got the ball rolling for him