The last 24 hours have been quite busy for the Oakland Raiders front office. First Taiwan Jones, and then Austin Howard was released, and now news is coming out that Donald Penn wants a new contract or he will not report to camp, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
Uh oh: #Raiders standout LT Donald Penn is not reporting for training camp, source said. He’s unhappy with his contract.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 28, 2017
Rapoport then went on to explain what the hold out was over.
#Raiders know of Donald Penn’s unhappiness. He makes $7M but has graded as a top 10 LT vs the top pass-rushers. Wants to be paid like one
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 28, 2017
Donald Penn To Hold Out of Oakland Raiders Training Camp
With this news, Twitter erupted with a lot of anger from the Raider Nation towards the aging but Pro Bowl caliber left tackle. To be fair, Penn is a top ten player at the position and is not being paid like one. Rapoport with Mike Silver then went on to explain more about the situation here
Uh oh: There are now two holdouts… #Rams DT Aaron Donald and #Raiders LT Donald Penn. Neither are happy. @MikeSilver & I discuss pic.twitter.com/L5k4piIbYm
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 28, 2017
Trust the Reggie Process
Some fans are not pleased with this, but this is what Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie gets paid millions for. This has the potential to play out in a scenario that both sides are happy with, not with some of the “Belichickian” ideas being bantered about on Twitter. Penn gave up just one sack last season. Yes, Derek Carr was injured on that play, but it still was an amazing season that saw Penn get named to the Pro Bowl.
This means it’s highly unlikely that the Raiders trade Penn to Cleveland, or release him altogether. Then again, it’s hard to foresee McKenzie caving much either. This is a negotiation, and part of the business side of the NFL. That process needs to play out before fans make any rash judgments about the player in question or the team’s handling of his holdout.
Asked about holdout, Rodney Hudson said he and Donald Penn “talked a lot during the offseason. Those things work themselves out” pic.twitter.com/eMdURGgec6
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) July 28, 2017
