Agent: Everett Should Find a New Team in ’94

Marvin Demoff, agent for Ram quarterback Jim Everett, compared Everett’s situation to that of former Raider quarterback Jay Schroeder on Wednesday, saying Everett should play elsewhere next season.

“Yes (he should leave),” Demoff said. “There are times when something like this happens. Al Davis knew it was impossible for Jay Schroeder to play in Los Angeles irrespective of how he performed.

“Jim is in a situation where people almost don’t want him to succeed. They take sort of a delight in bad things happening to him.”

There had been reports Monday that the Rams were considering the immediate release of Everett. The team declined to squelch the speculation, and apparently for good reason.

Demoff said that John Shaw, Ram executive vice president, called him Monday, asking if Everett wished to remain with the Rams.

“He said they were going to talk about a bunch of things and he wanted to know if Jim preferred to stay with the Rams for the rest of the season,” Demoff said. “I said Jim preferred to finish with the Rams and had no desire to walk out on the team.

“They could have put him through waivers and maybe he could have caught on with another team, but the Rams would have gotten nothing for him. I respect the Rams and (Shaw) and whomever made the decision to (keep Everett on the roster). I think part of the decision was the fact he has been here since ‘86, and I respect the Rams for the loyalty they have shown.”

Shaw met with Coach Chuck Knox on Tuesday and the team decided to release Mike Pagel and have Everett back up T.J. Rubley.

Was Everett concerned at the prospect of being released?

“Everything crossed my mind,” he said. “I would say I’m happy to be a Ram. What the future holds, who knows?”

As for Demoff’s suggestion that Everett play elsewhere next season, Shaw said, “What’s best for Jim would be a consideration for the Rams, and it will be taken up at the end of the year.

“He’s been here for eight years and has contributed a lot to the organization, and what he’s thinking would be a factor in what we do.”

Knox declined comment.

Demoff said he has made no formal request for Everett’s release at season’s end or for the Rams to trade him, but he said, “There’s sort of an understanding with the Rams that everybody’s options are open.”

Everett said he was disappointed by the team’s decision to bench him, but when asked if he thought he had the ability to still start for a team in the NFL, he said, “At this point in time that’s irrelevant. At some point in time we’ll see what happens.

“I came here wanting to do the best I could for the Rams. That’s the job I took on when I came here eight years ago, it’s the job I signed on this year to do and I’m here to finish it. It hasn’t turned out exactly like I wanted it to. I’m sure our fans feel the same way.”

Everett, 30, has a 17-40 record as starting quarterback since the beginning of the 1990 season, after having led the Rams to the NFC championship game a year earlier.

“I don’t have a problem with what the Rams have done,” Demoff said. “Is T.J. Rubley the Rams’ quarterback in ‘94? Do they want to go after Bernie Kosar or Scott Mitchell? They don’t know what they have in Rubley, and they won’t know unless they play him.

“It’s somewhat similar to Boomer Esiason and David Klingler in Cincinnati. When Klingler first came, the idea was Boomer would play one to three years and by that time David would be ready. When it became evident that Boomer wasn’t getting it done, they went with David and although he was not quite ready, it was time for Esiason to move on.”

The New York Jets dealt a conditional third-round pick to the Bengals to acquire Esiason, who has rebounded as the second-leading quarterback in the AFC.

Everett’s $2.5-million salary for the 1994 season, however, might turn off teams interested in trading for him.

“For salary-cap purposes it might not make any sense, but New England received a seventh-round pick for Hugh Millen,” Demoff said. “There might be another team out there that feels good about Jim. Rubley may sprain his ankle, Jim may come on and play five great games and everybody’s opinion changes.”