Gary Is Hoping to Leave, but Rams Won’t Oblige : NFL: Running back is unhappy that the team will not give him a contract extension.

The NFL trading deadline is less than three weeks away, and although running back Cleveland Gary said Thursday he does not intend to play for the Rams next year, he isn’t going anywhere this season.

John Shaw, the Ram executive vice president, said this week the team will not deal Gary before the Oct. 19 trading deadline.

However, the Rams have refused to extend Gary’s contract beyond this season, and as a result, Gary remains unhappy.

“I can’t tell you I feel appreciated here because I’d be lying to you,” Gary said. “I would think they would have come to me and signed me to an extension. That would show me a lot.

“If they don’t, and it doesn’t appear they will . . . if another team shows they appreciate me next year, I won’t even think about coming back here next year. Why should I? Why should I come back here?”

Gary becomes a free agent at the end of the season, although the Rams have a first right of refusal to match all offers for Gary. If Gary meets certain statistical conditions, however, the first right of refusal will be voided and Gary will be free to go elsewhere without restrictions.

“I don’t think we’ve considered (an extension) yet,” said Jay Zygmunt, Ram senior vice president. “We have a first right of refusal, and he has to perform at a certain level to void it. That would be something we would pay attention to as time goes on.”

Gary signed for $700,000 after missing training camp in a salary dispute with the Rams. He has pointed to the contracts given to Pittsburgh’s Barry Foster ($2.1-million signing bonus this year) and Cincinnati’s Harold Green ($2.5 million this year) and he said he cannot understand the Rams’ reluctance to pay him accordingly.

“I think he’s obviously frustrated,” said Jordan Woy, Gary’s agent. “Personally, I don’t see the Rams doing anything (contract talk) until the season is over, and then I don’t think Cleveland will be interested in coming back.”

The Rams really are in no position to deal Gary by the Oct. 19 deadline because of injuries suffered by other running backs.

David Lang, who has been recovering from a knee injury, suffered a minor setback recently and is not expected to rejoin the team for at least a month. Anthony Thompson was placed on injured reserve for the year with a broken hand.

Lang’s unavailability, nagging injuries to Jerome Bettis and the team’s apparent reluctance to let Russell White carry the ball leave the team with no choice but to hang on to Gary.

Gary suffered a thigh bruise during the regular-season opener against the Packers, missed the second game, against the Steelers, and has struggled the last two weeks while trying to regain his health.

Gary, the team’s leading rusher and receiver last season, has run 42 times for 86 yards and caught 13 passes for 75 yards. Although criticized in the past for fumbling, he has not done so this season.

“I know for a fact during this trading ordeal (in August) what other teams would have paid me if the trades had gone through,” said Gary, who was the subject of trade talks with Dallas. “I know my salary would almost be doubled in a one-year deal. I’ve heard it from the source himself, so I know it.

“I was one of the very last players in the league to come in and sign. It was just like: ‘Take this, a one-year deal, that’s it, take it.’ Then I was supposed to come in and light the world on fire. Think about the situation you are put in. You got guys in camp working and you need to be here to play football, but I’m the last guy coming in, the guy who rushed for 1,100 yards and caught 52 passes.

“I would have liked to have come in early and cuddled my playbook at night rather than worrying about my contract. If they don’t appreciate me, then work out a deal and let me go elsewhere. I’ve done all I can do. I got a slow start with my thigh injury this year, but I’m going to be productive.”

While Gary answered questions about his future, he said he does not spend time worrying about it.

“My thigh--getting that to be 100% is my main focus right now,” Gary said. “I’m so tired of the contract stuff. I’m playing football and I’m not going to let the other things affect me. I haven’t even thought about the trading deadline.

“I know this: I would describe this year as unbelievable. I’ll always be a football player, but getting the chance to experience the business side of the game has been something. They aren’t going to trade me, huh? Well, there’s nothing more I can do, I guess, than keep producing the numbers.”