We've now entered the third calendar day in which the Buffalo Bills have tried to get free agent defensive end Mario Williams to sign on the dotted line. If he does, Mark Gaughan of The Buffalo News reports, citing a source, that Williams will be inking a contract more lucrative than the record-setting deal Julius Peppers got two years ago.
On March 5, 2010, Peppers signed a six-year deal worth $91.5 million that guaranteed Peppers $42 million. It is believed that Williams' deal exceeds the $15 million figure in annual compensation, and it's long been speculated that his guarantees could approach $50 million.
Meanwhile, there was growing sentiment on Wednesday evening that the Bills were making a strong final push to close the deal. We'll use Mike Florio at Pro Football Talk to capture the sentiment: at 5:39PM, he reported that Williams was scheduled to leave Buffalo; at 7:23, he acknowledged that the Bills had reported he'd stay in Western New York, but insisted that that would only happen if negotiations went well; then at 8:55, he ended his run with this line: "Don’t be surprised if the team ultimately makes Williams an offer that he can’t refuse."
Let this serve as your open thread for the third day of our Super Mario Watch.