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The Rams, who have been back and forth in stalled negotiations with punter Matt Turk, signed restricted free agent punter Donnie Jones of the Dolphins to an offer sheet Thursday. | |
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height=90 align=right alt="Donnie Jones"> | Jones |
The offer sheet is for five years and totals $5.59 million. It includes a singing bonus of $1.175 million and base salaries of $510,000 (for 2007), $700,000 (2008), $1 million (2009), $1.1 million (2010) and $1.1 million (2011). If the Dolphins don't match the offer on Jones, they would get 10 years younger at the position. Jones, 26, averaged 42.8 yards a punt for the Dolphins last year. His net punting average was 36.2. The Dolphins have seven days to match the offer. If they don't, the Rams would have to give the Dolphins a seventh-round pick. That would give the Dolphins 10 draft choices in the 2007 draft, a net gain of four from the end of the season. They went into the offseason with only six draft choices. They picked up a second- and a seventh-round choice for wide receiver Wes Welker. They got a sixth-round choice last week in a trade with the Saints for kicker Olinda Mare. They had a trade for a sixth-round choice with the Broncos for defensive tackle Dan Wilkinson voided when he failed to report in time for a physical. Turk, 36, is an unrestricted free agent. He had been discussing a contract with the team but talks were going nowhere. John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com. Information from ESPN.com's Len Pasquarelli was used in this report.
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