A lot of people seem to feel Darrelle Revis' representation should disregard the crazy contract the Raiders gave Nnamdi Asomugha in determining market value for a top flight corner. Asomugha got $45.3 million over 3 years. It blew up the market for corners. It might even go higher if his base salary is less than the franchise tag number for quarterbacks. In that case he will get the tag number (the average of the top five salaries at the position).
Was it an unreasonable deal? Yes, but I understand why Revis would consider it. Think about your job. You might be happy with your salary. Imagine if somebody whose work was inferior to yours got a raise and made more money than you. Imagine you understood that person was getting way more than anybody at your job should get. Would that make a difference? Your employer showed that other person respect by giving them that crazy raise. You would probably wonder where your raise is and feel like your employer doesn't value you as much as that inferior worker. That would upset you. It would upset me. Respect is noted by money in the business world. Football is a business. Football is a business, and Darrelle Revis is better than Nnamdi Asomugha.
You might argue the crazy Asomugha contract ties the Raiders down and will prevent them from having a good team. It is too much for a nonquarterback. You might argue Revis should take less so the Jets can build a winning team around him. I would be inclined to agree to a certain extent, but it's natural for Revis to compare his salary to Asomugha's. It's human nature, not totally unreasonable.
Mike Tannenbaum is a creative guy. We should all hope he can figure out a way to satisfy all sides.