Logan Mankins is "fully prepared" to sit out the entire 2010 season, according to a report from Ian Rapoport in the Boston Herald, citing friends close to the two-time Pro Bowl guard, who add that they doubt he'll ever play for the Patriots again.
Mankins, a restricted free agent, did not report to the Patriots' June minicamp and has yet to show up at training camp.
According to Rapoport, the team's thinking was that eventually Mankins would give-in -- as it stands right now, he is scheduled to earn $0 in 2010. But his friends say that Mankins isn't a big spender, has saved most of his NFL salary and is prepared to simply wait it out and not play at in all 2010 (thus forfeiting any pay).
There are no flashy cars in his driveway, for instance, and Mankins has held onto most of the more than $7 million he has earned in his five years. Such a situation makes it easier for Mankins to decline to sign the $3.3 million restricted free agent tender and not show up for training camp.
His financial stability gives him the option of waiting. Mankins' hope is that with a new league collective bargaining agreement, he'll be a free agent.
According to Mankins' agent, they have not heard from New England since May 4, and any talks between his client and the team are "dead."
Mankins is apparently standing firm in his belief that the Patriots wronged him, a stance he first made public June 14 when he said, "Growing up, I was taught a man's word is his bond. Obviously this isn't the case with the Patriots."
He was tendered by the team at the highest possible level ($3.26 million), but when Mankins chose not to sign that tender on June 15, the Patriots were allowed to lower the value to 110 percent of his 2009 salary ($1.54 million), which they promptly did. Mankins responded by demanding a trade.
If Mankins does not report to the team by Week 10, then he will not be eligible to play the rest of the season, thus losing an accrued season toward free agency, and could find himself in this exact same situation next summer. Though, that will all depend on the new collective bargaining agreement.
For all things Patriots, visit Pats Pulpit.