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556:. As the 20th overall pick of the Buffalo Bills in the 1986 NFL Draft, Cindrich negotiated a deal for Wolford that paid him a salary equal to several players drafted in the top 10. In 1993, Cindrich orchestrated Wolford's free-agent signing with Indianapolis, where his contract was worth $ 7.65 million over three years. Wolford was now the highest-paid offensive lineman in the NFL. In 1995, Wolford signed a four-year, $ 10 million with the Pittsburgh Steelers when that contract expired. Michael Lewis's book,
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292:, 29–25. Cindrich was named Lineman of the Week by the Associated Press for his eight tackles, four assists, and two fumble recoveries. Later that season, he helped secure a win over Syracuse with three of his game-high 16 tackles coming on a goal-line stand late in the Panther victory. Again Cindrich was named to the All-East Team, All-Conference Team, and Associated Press All-American team.
281:, he led the team with 21 tackles (10 solo tackles). Later that year, he was named to the All-East Team, All-Conference Team, and All-American team despite Pitt's sixth consecutive losing season. In 1970, Cindrich suffered a knee injury in the season's opener against UCLA. It kept him out of the lineup early in the season, but he returned to help lead the team to a 5–5 record in 1970.
438:" between the Dallas Cowboys and Minnesota Vikings. As part of his new contract with the Vikings, Walker received $ 1.25 million in cash and other considerations (including a Mercedes-Benz automobile) and doubled his previous salary. Cindrich had now negotiated the second and third most lucrative contracts in the NFL. He also achieved considerable salary raises for Pro Bowlers
343:, May signed with the team in late July, putting to rest rumors that he would bolt to the Canadian Football League. Cindrich would continue to represent May, negotiating every one of his NFL contracts and deals as an announcer with Turner, CBS, and later as an ESPN College football analyst. The two remain close friends.
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We'll see the impact Ralph
Cindrich has on this draft right away. I think Minnesota wanted (Bill) Fralic. I know you talk about Indianapolis, they would have taken Al Toon, but he (Cindrich) wrote a letter to Irsay stating that he didn't want Toon to play with the Colts. Same with Minnesota. So we'll
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Cindrich was just as good, if not better, as a linebacker and center for Avella High's varsity football team. He was named All-Western
Pennsylvania High School Football Selection in 1966 and 1967. In 1967, Cindrich was chosen as Pennsylvania All-State and Most Valuable Player of Western Pennsylvania
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Because of the team's negotiating history, Cindrich told the press that Fralic would not want to play for
Minnesota, who held the second overall pick. The Vikings traded their pick to the Atlanta Falcons for a 1st and 3rd round selection on Draft Day. The Falcons then selected Fralic, who signed the
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Fralic's contract is so lucrative that it has caused a slowdown in the next eleven picks below him in the first round of the draft. No other Number 1 has such an annuity package nor a present value this high. Defensive end Bruce Smith, the draft's No. 1 pick, signed a $ 2.8 million contract for the
308:. New England cut him before the 1973 season, but he was picked up by the Houston Oilers, whom he played for during the next two seasons. After being cut by the Denver Broncos during the 1975 preseason, the Oilers resigned from Cindrich for the remainder. He retired following the 1975 season.
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He has been inducted into the
Western Pennsylvania Hall of Fame, the Italian-American Sports Hall of Fame, the Washington County Hall of Fame and the Avella High School Hall of Fame. He was selected to the University of Pittsburgh All Time Football Team, Walk of Fame, and received Washington
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declared
Cindrich's negotiations "the most significant contract for any rookie this year" and "the best contract ever signed by an offensive lineman and likely will start a new salary spiral at the position." Cindrich was now widely recognized as the best agent for NFL offensive linemen.
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in overtime on a disputed grabbing the jersey calling. Cindrich wrestled two periods and overtime with two broken hand bones. In both his junior and senior seasons, Cindrich claimed the
Western Pennsylvania Heavyweight Championship and went undefeated and untied in dual meets.
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Buffalo Bills, worth $ 2.1 Million in present value. When Fralic signed Monday, and first reports of the numbers leaked out, agent Joe
Courrege immediately upped the demand for Texas A&M defensive end Ray Childriess, the draft's No. 3 selection.
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were just a few of
Cindrich's clients. He seemed to have the market cornered at one position in particular: during the late 1990s and early 2000s, he represented a handful of the NFL's top centers: Dawson, Stepnoski, Hull, the Miami Dolphins
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selected Toon with the 10th overall pick. He held out, and still without a contract by late August, Cindrich publicly suggested that the Jets trade Toon. But by Week 2 of the regular season (and after New York lost 31–0 to the
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Although he was recruited by several top college programs, Cindrich chose to stay close to his
Western Pennsylvania home, opting to play football for the University of Pittsburgh. He continued to wrestle for the
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takes readers behind the scenes of major NFL drafts, deals and trades providing a first hand account of his decades in the football business. He writes about NFL personnel like Jimmy
Johnson and
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At the end of 2005 Cindrich sold his sports agency to Debartolo Sports. He served as consultant to Debartolo and continued to negotiate contracts for such notable players as Eagles wide receiver
270:'s Head Coach, Jim Carlens, said of Cindrich, "If there's a better sophomore linebacker in America, I'd like to see him"—but a broken ankle in that game forced him to miss the rest of the season.
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among others. As an agent, Cindrich also negotiated one of the landmark contracts in sports history, one that forever altered the salary hierarchy in the NFL and would be prominently featured in
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selected Gruber with the 4th overall pick in the draft. Gruber missed four weeks of training camp but signed a five-year, $ 3.8 million deal with the team in early August. That month,
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The injury to his knee kept Cindrich from playing spring football as a senior in 1971, but he was ready to play once the season started. In the opener, the Panthers traveled to the
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teams. During his junior season in 1966, Cindrich was the Pennsylvania State runner-up in the unlimited weight class and again in 1967, losing in the finals to Dave Joyner of
591:(4x Emmy Award-Winning Television Producer and Host) lives in Los Angeles, California and his son Michael Cindrich (Criminal Defense Attorney) lives in La Jolla, California.
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but released him near the end of the preseason. A week later, New England claimed Cindrich off waivers, and he was named AP Player of the Week in a game against the
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selected May with their first-round pick (20th overall) in the 1981 NFL Draft. After arduous public negotiations that summer with the Redskins General Manager
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As a linebacker for the Panthers football team, Cindrich became a starter during his sophomore year. In the team's season opener on the road against the
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Class B Football. That year, he also served as Captain of the state's All-Star "Big 33" team that played against a Texas All-Star football team.
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Cindrich, Ralph. "NFL Brawler, A Player-Turned-Agent's Forty Years in the Bloody Trenches of the National Football League". Lyons Press, 2015.
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The next major contribution by Cindrich and Company came in 1988. In that year's draft, Cindrich represented Wisconsin Offensive Tackle
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during the rest of the 1968 season, Cindrich returned as a starter in 1969. In the Panthers' second game on the road against the
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see if those teams shy away from Fralic and Toon. We will see if Cindrich has a direct impact on the draft.
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NFL BRAWLER, A Player-Turned-Agent's Forty Years in the Bloody Trenches of the National Football League
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During his career with the Oilers, Cindrich began law school at nearby South Texas College of Law in
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March 13, 1967, Leader- Times, Kittanning, PA, "3 WPIAL Rulers Win State Mat Titles, Claypool Bows"
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Multimillion-dollar contracts continued throughout the decade. Steelers perennial pro bowl center
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In October 2024, he will be honored and inducted into the Croatian American Sports Hall of Fame.
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most lucrative contract for any lineman in the draft, including the top overall pick, Buffalo's
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In his career of more than three-plus decades as an NFL agent, he has represented stars such as
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for much of his post-NFL career, including from 1994 to 2007 in the former home of NHL legend
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July 25, 1985, Atlanta Journal, Atlanta Constitution, "Fralic's Deal Worth About $ 6 Million"
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July 23, 1981, Daily News-Record, Harrisonburg, VA, "May Gets Extra $ 100,000 From, Holdout"
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The Atlanta Falcons selected Cindrich with their fifth-round pick (119th overall) in the
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During the early 1990s, Cindrich's stable of all-star players would expand to include
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Toon also benefited from Cindrich's hard-edged negotiations in the 1985 Draft. The
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April 25, 1985, Indiana Gazette, "Pitt's Fralic upset over prospect of Minnesota"
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Cindrich has often been included in the upper echelon of NFL Agents according to
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from the University of Pittsburgh, were expected to be top draft picks. During
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August 28, 1985, New York Times, "Jets Not Counting on Toon for Opener"
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August 29, 1988, The Sporting News, "Linemen's Pact Sets New Standard"
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September 26, 1968, The Dominion-News, WV, "Mickey Furfari's Fan-Fare"
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Players of American football from Washington County, Pennsylvania
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March 14, 1966, Delaware County Times, "Paxon Is State Champion"
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132:(born October 29, 1949) was a sports agent and former
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In 1989, Cindrich helped facilitate the now-famous "
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65:August 2014
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648:References
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510:Jeff Blake
475:Gary Clark
471:Eric Green
457:(center).
404:Jerry Rice
177:Jeff Blake
138:linebacker
120:Occupation
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487:USA Today
455:Kent Hull
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