Testaverde Signs Rich Contract With Tampa Bay : Former Miami Quarterback Will Reportedly Earn $8.2 Million Over Six Years

Vinny Testaverde, the Heisman Trophy winner some scouts rate as the best quarterback to come out of college since Joe Namath, signed a six-year contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the team said Friday.

The signing that will make Testaverde the richest rookie in National Football League history came more than three weeks before the Buccaneers will pick him No. 1 in the draft.

Terms of the agreement reached Thursday were not disclosed, but the former University of Miami star reportedly will be paid $8.2 million.

The signing comes a year after Tampa Bay owner Hugh Culverhouse vowed to make Bo Jackson, the 1985 Heisman winner from Auburn, the highest-paid rookie. However, Jackson spurned the Buccaneers and signed a baseball contract with the Kansas City Royals organization.

While the Buccaneers’ losing tradition was believed to be one of the factors that swayed Jackson’s decision, Testaverde had no reservations about joining a team that has had only three winning seasons in the franchise’s 11-year history.

“There was never a question in my mind that the (Buccaneers) wanted Vinny Testaverde and there was no question Vinny Testaverde wanted Tampa,” Bob Woolf, the player’s attorney, said at a news conference.

“It’s easy to take the easy road, but you feel a lot better when you have to work for it,” Testaverde said in response to the question of why it wasn’t important to him to start his career with a playoff contender.

The Buccaneers have compiled 2-14 records three of the past four years and have not made the NFL playoffs since the strike-shortened 1982 season.

One reason was instability at quarterback, where the club lost Doug Williams to a contract dispute in 1983 and has tried four different starters since. Steve Young, who has four years left on a $5-million contract he signed in 1985, and Steve DeBerg shared the job last season.

“I know it’s going to take a lot of hard work to take a giant step forward and win. We’re all going to put our heads together and try our best,” said Testaverde, who led Miami to an 11-1 record in 1986 and a 21-3 mark in two seasons as a starter.

“Everybody’s been talking about one player changing it around. It’s not going to happen that way. It has to be a team effort, and that’s what we’re going to try for.”

First-year Coach Ray Perkins said no timetable has been set for Testaverde to move into the lineup. While Young said two months ago that he expects to be traded if the Buccaneers sign Testaverde, the coach said it’s possible he will keep Young, DeBerg and Testaverde on the roster.

“That’s something I do not know at this time,” Perkins said. “Time changes everything and everybody.”

Testaverde’s deal reportedly is close to those of quarterbacks Jim Kelly and Dan Marino in total value and includes a $2-million signing bonus. The Buffalo Bills are believed to be paying Kelly $8 million over five years, and Marino’s contract with the Miami Dolphins reportedly is worth $9 million over six years.

Culverhouse presented Testaverde with a jersey bearing No. 14, his college number. The owner refused to confirm that the 23-year-old player’s contract is the most lucrative ever for a first-year player.

“I haven’t seen the other contracts,” he said. “That wasn’t important to me.”

Testaverde did not become Miami’s No. 1 quarterback until his junior season. He made the most of his opportunity, though, and finished with 6,058 yards passing, 48 touchdowns and 25 interceptions. He threw for 2,557 yards and 26 touchdowns as a senior.

The Hurricanes challenged for the national championship both years he was a starter. A loss in the 1986 Sugar Bowl crushed Miami’s hopes two seasons ago, and Testaverde threw five interceptions as the Hurricanes were beaten by Penn State in the 1987 Fiesta Bowl.

Tampa Bay ranked 27th in the NFL in passing and total offense in 1986, when Young threw for 2,382 yards, 8 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. DeBerg passed for 610 yards, 5 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

Culverhouse said he still thinks that Young, the former BYU and United States Football League star, has the potential to be a “franchise quarterback.” Meanwhile, Perkins indicated he will not rush Testaverde’s development.

“I said to him that he would come in and work, that he would earn everything he gets and play when we feel like he’s ready to play,” the coach said.