WizardOfAz

Friday, March 7

Giants part ways with veteran cornerback Sehorn

By Len Pasquarelli
ESPN.com

Unable to reach a workable arrangement on a salary reduction, the New York Giants on Friday released cornerback Jason Sehorn, ending the tenure of one of the city's highest-profile players in the past 10 years.

The move was not only an emotional one for the Giants organization, but is expensive as well, since New York must now assume an $8 million salary cap hit in 2003 for a player no longer with the team. That is an enormous amount of so-called "dead money" for one player.

In fact, the NFL average for "dead money," that amount charged to a club for players no longer on the roster, is about $7 million-$8 million.

Sehorn, 31, was due a $1 million bonus if he was on the roster Monday and, since there are no official weekend waivers in the NFL, the Giants had until Friday at 4 p.m., the close of the league business day, to make a move.

The team had offered Sehorn a $1 million base salary, with the likelihood he would have again filled a No. 3 cornerback role behind young and talented starters Will Allen and William Peterson. But Sehorn sought to have at least a part of the $1 million guaranteed and the team would not make assurances sufficient to meet his demands.

A source close to Sehorn said he wanted to continue his NFL career.

"There's still a passion to play the game and, while he might no longer have the speed or all the physical tools he once did, the instincts are still there," said the source. "He's looking forward to playing."

It is possible that Sehorn would sign elsewhere as a safety. He offered to make the switch to free safety a few weeks ago but Giants coach Jim Fassel said that, if Sehorn returned in 2003, it would be at cornerback.

The nine-year veteran was scheduled to earn a base salary of $4.3 million in 2003 under his existing contract. That contract, a six-year, $36 million deal signed in 2001, proved a salary cap albatross for Giants officials. The team was criticized at the time for awarding such a lucrative contract to a player who many in the league felt was a veteran of declining skill level.

Because of the timing of the move, all the prorated signing bonuses shares in Sehorn's contract "accelerate" into the club's 2003 cap. Had the Giants delayed until after June 1 in releasing Sehorn, they could have counted just $2 million against the '03 spending limit, with $6 million then applied to next year's salary cap.

But to have waited beyond Friday afternoon to release Sehorn would have required the Giants to pay him the $1 million roster bonus on Monday.

The former Southern California star was one of the NFL's most talented and fluid athletes early in his career, but he hasn't been the same since suffering a catastrophic knee injury in the 1998 preseason, while returning a kickoff. After the injury, Sehorn never again started all 16 games in a season, and appeared in 16 games just one time.

In all, he played in 107 games for the Giants, and started 73 of them. He had 418 tackles, 19 interceptions, 82 passes defensed and 5½ sacks.

Sehorn was chosen in the second round of the '94 draft as a safety but, very early in his career, it became obvious he was capable of playing cornerback. His rare mix of size, speed and occasionally spectacular playmaking ability made him one of the league's premier players at his position.

But the torn anterior cruciate ligament suffered in 1998 began a string of injuries that clearly affected his productivity. In the four seasons following the injury, Sehorn started just 42 games and had only eight interceptions.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.

pinnacle

this sucks because the giants now have more cap space to go after colvin (if they truly want him..pretty quite on their front regarding colvin).

AZCB34

Sehorn...Sehorn...hmmm, that name just doesn't ring a bell. I thought this guys last name was Harmon

__________________
Dream like you'll live forever, live like you will die today. -James Dean

WizardOfAz

I don't know - the story says he will still count $8.0 million against next year's cap.

RLakin

Sehorn is Atlanta bound.

General Chaos

hey maybe he can come in for a tour, we wouldn't sign him but he could still come.

WizardOfAz

To keep Mrs. Sehorn happy or to be reunited with Coach Reeves?!?

ColorWerx

Don't be surprised if he ends up in Dallas...Angie's home town.

__________________

FrontRow

Good idea..that would give us cause for another useless press release.

RLakin

The latter. Reeves tried to trade for him during his 1st year as Atlanta GM. He no longer holds that title, but the Falcons are looking to move Ray Buchanon to FS and Ashley Ambrose was released.

Russ Smith

I think he could end up like Rod Woodson where a move to Safety prolongs his career several years.

All that because some doofus decided it made sense to have him return kickoffs, first one in the preseason he tears his ACL, never the same player.

__________________
“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo

AZCB34

Which is why I am sooooooo against having a starting WR or DB returning punts and kickoffs. I just believe too many things can happen and if they are going to get hurt, it should be playing their real position.

Russ, didn't Sehorn push for return duties?

__________________
Dream like you'll live forever, live like you will die today. -James Dean

Russ Smith

So what he's not the coach (-:

He probably did, I just remember them saying he was so dangerous they wanted to get the ball in his hands. To be fair that's hindsight on my part I had no problem with Terry Metcalf returning kicks, I just largely agree with you that starters at key skill positions shouldn't return kicks.

As I recall he had a great return on the one he got hurt on. Frankly I never thought he was a great CB to begin with more of a safety.

__________________
“Your expectations always exceed outside expectations. I feel like you just can’t stop working, can’t stop getting better, because I’ll be a failure in my eyes before I’m a failure in someone else’s eyes.” -- Arron Afflalo

Tangodnzr

I can answer that one....yes he did, and to my memory quite hard.

WizardOfAz

Sunday, March 9

Sehorn says he was willing to take pay cut

Associated Press


EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Jason Sehorn says he was more than willing to take a pay cut to play again for the New York Giants.

The veteran cornerback was released Friday after nine seasons with the team. He was due to make $4.3 million next season and receive a $1 million roster bonus this month.

Sehorn and the Giants had talks about reducing his salary this season to $1 million, but the team refused to guarantee that he wouldn't be cut before training camp.

He also had offered to move to safety, with Will Peterson and Will Allen entrenched as the Giants' cornerbacks. Sehorn lost his starting job to Peterson last season.

"My opinion is that I must have worn out my welcome with some in the organization, as not everyone was as excited about the prospect of me playing safety as others were,'' Sehorn said in a letter to the "Giants family and fans'' posted on his Web site, www.sehornscorner.org.

"And quite frankly, some may not have appreciated my voice and opinion, or I'd still be wearing Giant Blue,'' he added. "Or perhaps it was strictly about money for them, as I was more than willing to take a significant pay cut. If that's the case, then I'm simply another cap casualty because I would have been cheaper to keep than let go.''

Releasing Sehorn will cost the Giants $8 million against the salary cap this season, but he will be off the cap next year.

A former second-round draft pick out of Southern California in 1994, Sehorn transformed from an average safety into one of the league's top cover cornerbacks.

He had a combined 11 interceptions in 1996 and 1997, but his career took a downward turn when he seriously injured his right knee and missed the 1998 season.