Gators RB Jeff Demps expected to sign Thursday

Former Florida Gators running back Jeff Demps expects to sign with an NFL team on Thursday and join that team immediately, agent Daniel Rose of Gridiron Sports confirmed to OGGOA late Wednesday evening over the phone.

“Within the next 24 hours we’re going to wrap this up,” he said.

Demps, who decided on Jan. 12 to give up football in order to concentrate on his career as a sprinter, filed paperwork this week to become a NFL free agent. He is able to sign with any team he chooses after not being selected in the seven-round 2012 NFL Draft.

Rose, who spoke with all 32 teams about Demps, told OGGOA that a dozen teams are seriously interested in the player’s services though only a handful have made the final cut and will be involved in Thursday’s decision-making process.

Demps is technically considered an undrafted free agent under the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement so the parameters of his rookie contract will be somewhat limited. He can sign for up to three years though the monetary terms of his deal are not necessarily as important as the opportunity a specific team might provide him, Rose said.

“Every team has a different idea of how to use him and basically every team has given us an idea of what they want to do with him,” he explained. “We’re going to look at what teams have, what they want to do with him and take all of that into consideration. We’ve really done our homework.

“Just because a team offers him the most money does not mean they will be the team that gets him. Obviously money is great – and we’ll definitely get a nice deal – but it’s not like a team can come in, offer ‘X’ and all of a sudden they’re the right fit.”

Demps reportedly has been planning to make this move after failing to initially qualify for the 2012 London Olympics in July. Demps wound up being selected as an injury replacement and won a silver medal as part of the first round team for the United States in the Men’s 4×100 Meter Relay, delaying his football plans by a few weeks.

Now that he is eligible to sign with a team, it makes sense that he would do so as soon as possible. NFL training camp began two weeks ago (playbooks were handed out months ago) and Demps will be behind no matter which team picks him up.

Though a dozen organizations have expressed high levels of interest in Demps according to his agent, two that have been specifically named by other media outlets over the last two days are the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets.

Tampa is reportedly “seriously interested” in signing Demps and initially contacted him in July. New York, which is looking to add playmakers to its lacking roster, reached out to Demps and his agent more recently, according to the Newark Star-Ledger.

Demps will have a lot thrown at him quickly no matter where he signs.

He will not only be weeks behind in learning the team’s playbook and familiarizing himself with its procedures but will also have to change his body again, adding muscle mass that he lost over the last six months for the purpose of become a more proficient sprinter.

Photo Credit: John Raoux/Associated Press