LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Upset and frustrated that running back
Cedric Benson is still a holdout and the only first-round draft
pick without a contract agreement, the Chicago Bears have made
their final offer to the No. 4 pick.
"After missing all of training camp, we want to make it
abundantly clear that the Chicago Bears have made their best and
final offer to Cedric Benson," Bears general manager Jerry Angelo
said in a statement released by the team.
"No dollars are left on the bargaining table and at this point
the only contract discussions that will be entertained will be
reflective of the considerable loss of value to the club created by
the players' extended absence," the statement said.
Benson's holdout reached its 26th day Thursday and the former
Texas star has already missed two preseason games. The Bears'
training camp at Bourbonnais, Ill., ended Wednesday.
The Bears are back at their Halas Hall training facility and
play again Saturday at Indianapolis. They have two exhibitions
remaining after that before opening the regular season Sept. 11 at
Washington.
The Bears have been burned by holdouts from first-round running
backs in the past, most notably Curtis Enis, who was drafted in
1998 and is who is no longer in the NFL after a disappointing
injury-plagued career.
"The Chicago Bears have always placed a premium on having our
players in camp on time," Angelo said noting that two other
first-rounders represented by Benson's agent, Eugene Parker, were
in on time -- quarterback Rex Grossman and defensive tackle Tommie
Harris.
"The failure to reach an agreement on a fair and reasonable
contract has been a huge disappointment," Angelo said, encouraging
Benson to end his holdout and report to camp.
The Bears expected Benson, the fourth overall pick in the draft,
to challenge incumbent Thomas Jones for playing time.
"There is nothing new," Parker said Thursday evening, adding
that he did not have a reaction to the Bears' statement.