Maybin, Bills reportedly agree to deal
NEWS STAFF REPORTS
The Buffalo Bills and first-round pick Aaron Maybin have reached agreeement on a five-year deal, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
The Associated Press is reporting that talks have improved and a deal could be reached soon.
A person familiar with negotiations told the Associated Press, "They're working on a deal and they're getting pretty close."
Rumors of the signing started late Thursday night when Bills wide receiver Terrell Owens wrote on his Twitter page: "Congrats 2 our #1 draft pick Aaron Maybin!! He will b officially joining the Buffalo Bills 2morr!!"
Schefter said Maybin is expected to arrive in Orchard Park today to sign the deal. He will not travel with the team to this weekend's preseason game in Green Bay.
The agreement would leave two unsigned first-round picks: offensive tackle Andre Smith, who was taken at No. 6 by the Cincinnati Bengals, and wide receiver Michael Crabtree, the No. 10 pick ofthe San Francisco 49ers.
Maybin, a defensive end from Penn State and the No. 11 pick overall in this year's draft, missed all of training camp. The Bills are counting on him to shore up a defense that tied for the fifth-fewest sacks in the NFL last season, with 24.
The team probably will ask him early in the season simply to pin his ears back and go after the quarterback in passing situations.
However, the Bills were hoping to use him on occasion as a rush linebacker, like Baltimore uses Terrell Suggs. That may be more difficult now.
Maybin became the first Bills draft pick of the salary cap era — since 1993 — to miss the entire camp due to a contract stalemate. Maybin, in fact, staged the longest holdout for the Bills in 18 years, since Henry Jones held out until Aug. 28 in 1991.
The final pick to sign last summer was Jacksonville defensive end Derrick Harvey, who held out for 33 days, until Aug. 27. He had decent production for a rookie despite his holdout. He started nine games with Jacksonville and had 3½ sacks.
Negotiations between Maybin's agent, Joel Segal, and the Bills appeared to be bogged down over the gap in the contract numbers for the players signed just before and after Maybin.
No. 12 overall pick Knowshon Moreno of Denver signed for $23 million over five years and $13 million guaranteed. The ninth pick, Green Bay's B.J. Raji, signed for $28.5 million over five years and $18 million guaranteed.
Most of the Bills players were respectful of Maybin's need to get the best deal he could negotiate.
"We texted each other after this past game," linebacker Paul Posluszny said, referring to the Bills-Bears preseason contest. "When he sees us playing, he's dying because he wants to be out there with us and he wants to be competing. But he obviously has to handle the whole contract situation first.
"I definitely feel for him because of the type of kid he is, the competitor he is. He wants to be here in camp. He wants to be out here with his teammates. Obviously the situation is going to take a little more time than he would like. That's part of the deal."
