Wallace expected to report soon, according to teammates

By Dave Bryan

Pittsburgh Steelers restricted free agent wide receiver Mike Wallace will not be reporting today to Latrobe for the start of training camp, but optimism is growing that he will be arriving in the next several days.

Both Emmanuel Sanders and Keenan Lewis told the media today in interviews upon their arrival that they expect Wallace to arrive over the course of the next week. Lewis, a long time friend of Wallace's, who has been working out with him every day this offseason, said that Wallace is in great shape and ready to get to work. Sanders told reporters that he is expecting him to show in "3 or 4" days.

Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported on Twitter earlier in the day that he is hearing rumblings that a new long-term deal could be close with Wallace.

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Hearing this from players close to Wallace definitely lends credibility to it ... especially coming from Lewis, who has known Wallace since they were kids.

I wonder if they are willing to violate their own policy about negotiating with holdouts, or perhaps they don't consider Wallace a holdout since he technically does not have a signed contract.

Dodens Grav wrote:

I wonder if they are willing to violate their own policy about negotiating with holdouts, or perhaps they don't consider Wallace a holdout since he technically does not have a signed contract.

Good point Dodens.

The other question comes, what is the meeting point and where is the snag in the deal?

Dodens Grav wrote:

I wonder if they are willing to violate their own policy about negotiating with holdouts, or perhaps they don't consider Wallace a holdout since he technically does not have a signed contract.

I know he can't be fined for not reporting since he's not under contract. So I guess, technically, it's not really a holdout.

Regardless, from everything I've been reading, it sounds like a deal is really close. Probably just need to cross the t's and dot the i's.

This makes sense:

Quote :

Steelers Depot ‏@Steelersdepot

likely signs tender first, then new deal announced. important semantics.

I hope he gets it done this week! Then we can put all the Wallace drama behind and get on with some football.

Ed Bouchette writes that a team source says negotiations are suspended until he reports, and he can't report until he signs a deal, and since negotiations are suspended, the only thing he CAN sign is the tender. So the route he must now take is:

1. Sign Tender
2. Report to Camp
3. ???
4. Profit

(That's a South Park reference, folks)

i guess his teammates were wrong