Ed Reed’s been sending out hints all offseason, and said Monday his mind was far away from football.
Maybe so, but one of his relatives said that wasn’t the case, and that the Ravens safety had no intention of holding out.
The unnamed relative told Jason LaCanfora of CBSSports.com they were confident Reed would play this year.
“Everyone is talking about a holdout,” the relative said. “Ed isn’t going to hold out. He told me he isn’t going to hold out. He speaks his mind about some things, gets some things off his chest, but he’s never said he is going to hold out. He’ll show up when he has to be there and he’ll play out his contract.”
Reed’s scheduled to make $7.2 million this year, and while he stopped short of declarations, he said from his football camp that he’s happy.
“I love this game, and I put my heart and soul into it,” Reed told LaCanfora. “You could see it out here today. I’m sure the Ravens are confident I’ll be there for camp, because they know how much I love the game, too. But I’ll say this, they’re not going to get me for cheap, not a chance.
“People don’t know everything that has gone on behind closed doors, and what’s been said. A lot of people out there want to judge you, but they don’t know what goes into this, and they don’t see both sides when it comes to contracts and this business.
“They want to say it’s about money, but it’s about more than that. I speak up, because there are a lot of guys in this league who can’t. I fight for the little guy. This isn’t just about me. The things I talk about don’t just apply to me.”
Reed has talked and tweeted in circles this offseason, but these statements, even if not from him, are the clearest to date.
