EARTH CITY, Mo. -- The Los Angeles Rams' efforts to keep cornerback Janoris Jenkins from hitting the free-agent market have repeatedly come up short.
On Sunday evening, Jenkins took to Twitter to let the world know of his frustration with the team's inability to meet his asking price.
Jenkins went so far as to term the Rams' overtures as "disrespectful."
Total disrespect when u held down one side all 4 years and force the ball the other way.. #ThanksButNoThanks
— Mr.Pix6Sh*t/Clamps (@JjenkzLockdown) February 29, 2016
I B real with myself at all times..
— Mr.Pix6Sh*t/Clamps (@JjenkzLockdown) February 29, 2016
Jenkins and the Rams have been talking about a new contract for more than a year, but he now looks poised to at least test the market unless the Rams decide to use the franchise or transition tag on him rather than fellow cornerback Trumaine Johnson. The Rams were believed to be offering around $7-8 million annually to Jenkins before he broke off contract negotiations after the team's Week 6 bye last year.
"I gave them up until the bye week," Jenkins said then. "They knew what was going on. I told them anything after the bye week, I ain't listening, I don't want to hear it. I want to focus on football. The bye week is gone, so I just want to play football."
The Rams and Jenkins' representatives restarted talks near the end of the season, and although the Rams upped their offer a little bit, it still hasn't been enough to get Jenkins to sign a new long-term deal. Jenkins is believed to be looking for contract that starts in the vicinity of the $10.5 million per year that Byron Maxwell got from the Philadelphia Eagles in free agency last year.
Contract talks with Jenkins have stalled for now, though, after Jenkins recently parted ways with agent Malik Shareef. NFLPA rules stipulate that a player cannot hire a new agent until a five-day window has passed. CBSSports.com reported that Jenkins' new agents will be Neil Schwartz and Jonathan Feinsod, who also represent Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis.
That means Jenkins should have new agents in place before the start of the two-day "legal tampering" period which begins next Monday but not before Tuesday's deadline to use the franchise or transition tag. ESPN's Adam Caplan reported that the new agents could be in place on Thursday.