Martin Mayhew Discusses Cliff Avril's Contract Situation

The only Detroit Lions player who hasn't reported to training camp yet is defensive end Cliff Avril. This is because he hasn't yet signed his franchise tender, meaning he is not currently under contract. The expectation is for him to show up at some point in the near future, but it's not clear what his exact plans are.

Lions general manager Martin Mayhew was asked about Avril today when he met with the media. He said that he knows Avril will be in camp "eventually," and he also addressed the contract situation and Avril's decision to pass on the offer the team presented to him.

"He has his reasons for not being here, but what I'm saying is we made a very solid offer to him that we felt was a very good offer," Mayhew said before practice. "He was willing to bet on himself, and bet he was going to outperform what was on the table, and I like that."

Mayhew said that the silver lining from this situation is that since Avril is willing to bet on himself, he must be "very optimistic about how he's going to perform this season." I suppose that is true. You don't turn down a reported $30 million over three years unless you're sure you will play well enough to get something better in the offseason.

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