| | KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- All-Pro linebacker Derrick Thomas, left
partially paralyzed but now out of intensive care after a traffic
accident that killed another man, is not under contract to the
Kansas City Chiefs.
The Kansas City Star reported Thursday that according to
information it obtained from the NFL Players Association, Thomas
voided the remaining two seasons on his contract by reaching
certain playing incentives in 1999.
| |  | | | Thomas |
A Chiefs spokesman declined to comment on the status of the
contract. Chiefs president Carl Peterson and assistant general
manager Denny Thum, who handles contracts, were in Atlanta for the
Super Bowl and could not be reached.
Leigh Steinberg, Thomas' agent, could not be reached at his
office in California.
Thomas, 33, was released from intensive care and upgraded to good
condition Thursday in Miami. He remained at
Jackson Memorial Hospital, recovering from surgery to rebuild part
of his spine.
He is paralyzed from the chest down but could eventually walk
again, doctors say.
"His spine is now well-aligned and stable in a collar," Dr.
Frank Eismont said. "His lungs and heart are fine. He is kept
sedated and in a rotary bed to keep him from contracting pneumonia
or having other complications."
Thomas would have been eligible to become a free agent on Feb.
11, when his contract expires, had the sides not come to a new
agreement before then, the newspaper said. The expiring contract
gave the Chiefs an option to add years onto Thomas' contract by
giving him a $3 million signing bonus.
It was not clear how Thomas' injuries affect the Chiefs'
salary-cap situation. The Chiefs still had to account against
future salary caps for at least $2.5 million of his original
signing bonus.
If Thomas' contract were still valid, he would have counted
about $4.175 million against the Chiefs' salary cap in 2000.
In the spring of 1997, Thomas signed a seven-year contract worth about $26.9 million, including a $7.5 million signing bonus.
Last January, the sides renegotiated a deal that dropped the
final two years of that contract and included some playing
incentives for 1999 that could void the 2000 and 2001 seasons.
Bob Moore, the Chiefs' director of public relations, told the
newspaper that owner Lamar Hunt, president and general manager Carl Peterson and the Chiefs "would do the right thing by Derrick
Thomas."
"It's an inappropriate time to be talking about the salary cap
and such matters," Moore said.
He said Peterson and Steinberg, have had conversations about the matter.
Thomas was injured Sunday when his car left an icy road in
Kansas City as he and two companions were on their way to the
airport. One of his companions was killed.
Thomas could be transferred to a rehabilitation facility in
about two weeks. He already has begun working with therapists.
| |
ALSO SEE
Prosecutor not investigating Derrick Thomas accident
Smith: Derrick Thomas' next struggle
Chiefs' Thomas moved out of intensive care
Chiefs' Thomas paralyzed in car accident
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Dr. Barth Green talks about the surgery.
wav: 224 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Derrick Thomas' mother, Edith Morgan, knows that the family will remain strong.
wav: 121 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
 |
