Alex Smith Demands New Contract

SAN FRANCISCO--Just one day after signing a 6-year, $57 million contract with the San Francisco 49ers, rookie quarterback Alex Smith is demanding a new contract. He is reportedly dissatisfied with the original deal and is looking to renegotiate. His agent, Tom Condon, said he will sit out training camp until his demands are met.

“My client’s current contract is not paying him his fair market value,” Condon told ESPN’s Dan Patrick this morning. “I’m sure the 49ers would agree that Alex deserves more than what we signed for yesterday. He’s being criminally underpaid at this point and frankly, I don’t know how the team can live with itself. But hey, if they want to play hard ball, we can play hard ball, too. A lot has changed since yesterday and we’re not going to be bound by some outdated, antiquated deal.”

The request for a new contract shocked many in the 49ers organization, but Condon revealed that his client was unhappy with the deal from the beginning.

“From day one, Alex had a bad feeling about his current deal,” said Condon. “But you have to understand the pressure he was under to sign. He wanted to get a deal done and get to training camp so he could start learning the system. Now that we’ve had time to step back and look at the contract with fresh eyes, it’s obvious that it’s inadequate. Believe me, there are plenty of teams out there that would be more than interested in acquiring the weakest number one draft pick of the past twenty years.”

Smith’s options appear to be limited. If the team decides against reworking the deal, his only hope would be a trade. Sources in the 49ers organization, however, say there’s no way they’re going to trade Smith.

“If he thinks they’re going to trade him now, he’s crazy,” said one source. “They just signed him to a 6-year deal. They fully expect him to show up at camp and play football. If not, they will wait him out. They’re in the driver’s seat right now. Heck, they already have a professional NFL quarterback in Tim Rattay so it’s not like there’s some big emergency to get Smith in there. Tim’s the kind of guy that can step right in there and throw a bunch of interceptions and then get hurt. So it’s not like they lack depth.”

Smith was expected to compete with Tim Rattay for the starting quarterback job. Unfortunately there won't be much of a competition if Smith skips camp. For his part, Rattay says he’s prepared to lead the team for another year.

“Hey I’ve been the starter here for quite a while now and I’d be happy to keep working in that capacity,” said Rattay. “I certainly understand the position Alex is in. We all want to get the best deals we can. I remember my first year here when I tried to hold out. I called coach Mariucci and said ‘Hey, it’s Tim. I’m holding out.’ And he said. ‘Tim who?’ And I said. ‘Tim Rattay, you’re new quarterback.’ And he said ‘Look I can’t talk right now. I’m eating lunch.’ And that was pretty much the end of my hold out.”

Smith joins a long list of players holding out for new deals this summer. Players like Terrell Owens, Javon Walker, and Sean Taylor have all made headlines with their refusal to show up for offseason training programs. However, Smith’s situation is unique in that he just signed his new deal yesterday.

Paraag Marathe, director of football operations for the 49ers, issued a statement today explaining that the team would not give in to Smith’s demands.

“Alex Smith signed a contract with us yesterday and we expect him to fulfill his obligation and partake in training camp,” the statement said. “We are not in the business of renegotiating contracts that were signed only 24 hours ago. If Alex doesn't show up we will be forced to go on without him. It's not like we have anything to lose. We've been sucking for years now. ”

When reached for comment, Smith insisted that he wasn’t being greedy and that he just wanted the contract that he deserved.

“A lot of people have been saying that I’m greedy,” he said. “But nothing could be further from the truth. I just want what’s coming to me, that’s all. I really don’t appreciate the 49ers badmouthing me in the press and making it out like I’m the bad guy. Sure I signed the deal yesterday, but today is a new day. I have a right to change my mind at any moment. Speaking of which, I just changed my mind. I like my current deal. It seems pretty fair. See? I’m not greedy. I’m just fucking insane.”