Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Derrick Mason has one year left on his contract and the Ravens are refusing to renegotiate a longer term deal. Playing with one year left on a contract is known in most NFL circles as the ‘contract year’. When a player is entering that year, typically there is a higher focus in off-season conditioning, film study and overall play on field. All of this in hopes of landing a lucrative contract upon becoming a free agent.

For Derrick Mason, who is entering his 13th season in the NFL, his whole career has been played as if he was in a ‘contract year’. “Over the last 12 years of my career, particularly the last four, I have been one of, if not the, most consistent wide receivers in the NFL,” elucidated Mason in an exclusive phone interview Tuesday night with www.JOCKlife.com.

Mason has approached every season of his NFL career with the utmost respect and professionalism and now he is just looking for some reciprocation from his current employer. “Right now, I have no guarantees if I were to get hurt in the off-season. I would be left scrambling to compensate for my own rehab while searching for another team seeking my services,” explained Mason. “I just want the security and I would look to discuss other options and would be very aggressive in doing so if Baltimore is not willing to meet me on this. I believe I earned the right for a three year deal and right now that is not working out but I will continue to do my job and possibly begin exploring other options.”

Mason eclipsed the 10,000 yard career mark this past season joining an elite group of pass catchers that have shown the ability to maintain a high level of productive consistency in addition to longevity and health. “I want to play three more years and I have been blessed as my body has held up and I have never suffered a major injury,” described Mason. “I’m playing on such a high level right now that if you were to watch me on film, there is no way anyone would be able to guess my age correctly.”

The 35-year-old Mason is coming off back-to-back thousand yard seasons in which he combined for 183 receptions and 10 touchdowns. During that time, Mason has been Troy Smith’s, Kyle Boller’s and Joe Flacco’s main security blanket as they all have endured a learning curve for understanding the nuisances of the pro game. “If I lose interest in the game, then it is time to hang it up, but I am not even close to that and I just want to have a fair contract with a bit of security,” concluded Mason. Loyalty may be a lost art form of many NFL clubs, but this is not about being loyal but about being fair to a player that has given and will continue to give so much to the Ravens organization.

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