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Let’s Make a Deal: Eric Berry

Welcome to the third installment of Let’s Make a Deal. It seems as though the general consensus is positive towards this column, and I would really like to thank you all for the support and contributions.

Eric Berry is a very unique player. I feel as though his agent will strike gold for him when negotiating a contract. I had the opportunity this past week to catch up with Shawn Zobel of DraftHeadquarters.com. Shawn has had a higher percentage of predicted first round draft picks than Mel Kiper and Todd McShay for the past few years. Here is what Shawn had to say about Eric Berry:

These days, teams are looking for players with elite athleticism and players with tremendous instincts and intelligence. When you find a player who has both of them, you find an elite prospect, which is exactly what Eric Berry is. A tremendously talented player, Berry has the potential and upside to develop into the next star safety in the NFL. With the hitting ability of Troy Polamalu as well as the range and ballhawking ability of Ed Reed and Sean Taylor, Berry has all of the tools and skills needed to become an All-Pro at the next level.

Eric Berry, S, Tennessee

5’11”, 205 pounds

1st round, 3rd overall to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Requested Contract:

  • 5 years/$35 million guaranteed ($7 million/year)
  • Total contract amount = 5 years/$62 million (+8.06%)

Here are the contracts of players taken 3rd overall in the years 2007, 2008, and 2009. The percentage increase/decrease from the previous year is shown and reflects the per year amounts.

  • 2007 – Joe Thomas, OT, Wisconsin – 5 years/$42.5 million – $23 million guaranteed ($12.8 million signing bonus + $3 million 2nd year roster bonus)
  • 2008 – Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College – 6 years/$66 million (+29.41%) – $34.75 million guaranteed ($7.45 “log” bonus, $2.505 1st year roster bonus)
  • 2009 – Tyson Jackson, DE, LSU – 5 years/$57 million (+3.64%) – $31 million guaranteed

There were no safeties chosen in the 1st round in 2009.

Listed are the safeties chosen in the 1st round of the 2008 NFL Draft:

  • Kenny Phillips, New York Giants (31st) – 5 year/$11.15 million – $1.039 million guaranteed ($2.53 million signing bonus)

Listed are the safeties chosen in the 1st round of the 2007 NFL Draft:

  • LaRon Landry, Washington Redskins (6th) – 5 years/$41.5 million – $17.5 million guaranteed
  • Michael Griffin, Tennessee Titans (19th) – 5 years/$11.5 million – $7.5 million guaranteed
  • Reggie Nelson, Jacksonville Jaguars (21st) – 5 years/$9.55 million – $7.1 million guaranteed
  • Brandon Meriweather, New England Patriots (24th) – 5 years/$8.75 million – $6 million guaranteed ($500,000 signing bonus, $3.72 million option bonus in 2nd year)
Player Games UT AT TT TFL Sacks FF INT
Berry 26 101 57 158 8.5 3 2 12
Phillips 22 53 18 71 6 0 3 4
Landry 52 195 120 315 16 8 1 12
Griffin 37 144 89 233 11 3 4 7
Nelson 25 66 31 97 6 4 1 7
Meriweather 40 123 79 202 15 1.5 4 6

Obviously, LaRon Landry is able to hold the top spot in almost all categories, because he played nearly double the games of the other safeties. Here is what my client’s statistics would look like if he and the other safeties played 52 games:

Player Games UT AT TT TFL SACKS FF INT
Berry 52* 202 114 316 17 6 4 24
Phillips 52* 125 43 168 14 0 7 9
Landry 52 195 120 315 16 8 1 12
Griffin 52* 202 125 327 16 4 6 10
Nelson 52* 137 64 201 12 8 2 15
Meriweather 52* 160 103 263 20 2 5 8

In order to get my requested contract amount, I found the sum of the average of the guaranteed contract amounts for the 3rd overall slot selections and the safeties drafted in the first round.

As you can see above, my client’s statistics changed a bit in comparison to the others. However, the fact that Eric Berry has the most unassisted tackles and interceptions tells you something; it tells you that he is an individual playmaker. Although he does not have as many total tackles as the others, Eric has the most unassisted tackles, which really points out his clutch ability. My client has almost double the interceptions when compared to the other safeties; this is also a tribute to his big play ability. This kid is a superstar and needs to get on the field as quickly as possible!

11 replies on “Let’s Make a Deal: Eric Berry”

Just for the record, Berry has signed with Chad Speck at A3 Athletics. He also represents Albert Haynesworth, Malcolm Kelly, and Leonard Little.

This is good for me to know that the nerdish things I do daily like make comparison charts, such as the ones in the post, are very useful in the agent business. Great post!

Berry is a very good player with high expectations. 5yr/62 mil the right amount of years ,but the money is too high The safety position is not held as highly as the quarterback. You are asking for 1,4mil more a year then Matt Ryan and more guaranteed. I am looking to get Berry a contract tat will closely represent Tyson Jackson’s(last years 3rd overall pick).
Thought he is the number 3 pick he is a safety and your price is a little to high.
Im willing to give you…
-5yrs/$28 million guaranteed($5.6mil a year)
-Total contract- 5yrs/$56mil

Hey dominic where do you go to find all the player contract informations from? I have been trying to find NFL player contract breakdowns but havent had any luck, could you please help me out?Thanks!

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