ORCHARD PARK, N. Larry Johnson Jersey .Y. -- Bills general manager Doug Whaley is done playing franchise tag with safety Jairus Byrd. After spending much of the past year trying to negotiate a long-term contract, Whaley preferred risking the loss of Byrd in free agency rather than applying the one-year tag on the three-time Pro Bowler for a second consecutive season. "We didnt think it was the best option for the team, for us to get better," Whaley said shortly after the NFLs deadline for teams to designate franchise players passed Monday afternoon. "The best thing for the Buffalo Bills was to try to get him signed to a long-term deal." Whaley didnt rule out the possibility of the sides negotiating a deal before the start of the NFLs free-agency period on March 11. "As they say in the movies, theres always a chance," he said. Whaley, however, did call it a "fair assessment" that Byrd is more interested in testing the market to determine his worth after being prevented from doing so last year. Negotiations reached a standstill last weekend after the Bills made Byrd what they regarded as a lucrative multiyear offer. Without revealing the full value and length of the proposal, people familiar with the deal told The Associated Press that Byrd would have been paid about $30 million over the first three seasons of the contract. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because neither side is publicly discussing the negotiations. Byrd played under a $6.9 million franchise tag last year. The price for Buffalo to apply the designation again would be about $8.4 million this season. The one-year price tag might not have scared the Bills from using it one more time. A bigger deterrent was paying that much money for a disgruntled player who missed nearly the entire off-season last year before accepting his contract a day before the Bills broke training camp in late August. "I wouldnt say those words," Whaley said, when asked if he was frustrated by a failure to reach a deal. "I would say, Hey, we worked hard. Its still not over yet. Then, when its over, Ill let the feelings seep into the equation." Byrd, selected in the second round of the 2009 draft out of Oregon, will have an opportunity to be among the top defensive backs available in free agency. He enjoyed a breakout season as a rookie, when he tied for the NFL lead with nine interceptions -- a rookie franchise record. Last year, Byrd earned his third Pro Bowl selection. He finished tied for the team lead with four interceptions, and added a sack and a forced fumble despite missing the first five games of the season because of plantar fasciitis in both feet. Byrd has 22 interceptions and 11 forced fumbles in 73 career games. The Bills could lose their top defensive back on a unit that showed considerable improvement last season. Though Buffalo struggled against the run, the defence finished 10th in the NFL in yards allowed -- its best ranking since a second-place finish in 2004. The Bills also finished second in the league with a franchise-record 57 sacks. The defence is in transition this off-season with Jim Schwartz taking over as co-ordinator. He replaced Mike Pettine, who left the Bills after one year to become the head coach of the Cleveland Browns. The Browns could be a potential landing spot for Byrd. They have plenty of space under the salary cap, and Byrd enjoyed playing under Pettine. The Bills made a roster move Monday by releasing linebacker Willie Jefferson, who was signed to a reserve/future contract in January. Kansas City Chiefs Jerseys .J. -- Pitcher Carl Pavano is retiring after 14 major league seasons. Joe Montana Jersey . That Ginette Reno can sing. http://www.thechiefsshoponline.com/Youth-Mitchell-Schwartz-Chiefs-Jersey/ .C. -- Benn Ferrieros familiar with scoring important goals, just not in back-to-back games.PARIS -- Rafael Nadal is going for No. 9 at the French Open, and the only man that can stop him is Novak Djokovic. Nadal is already a record eight-time champion with a lifetime 65-1 record at Roland Garros. One more victory on the red clay will make him the first man to win five in a row and give him his 14th Grand Slam title -- tied in second place with Pete Sampras. The top-seeded Spaniard reached the final by beating Wimbledon champion Andy Murray 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 Friday on Court Philippe Chatrier, the stadium Nadal calls his favourite place to play. Djokovic defeated Ernests Gulbis 6-3, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in the first semifinal. Nadal has beaten Djokovic at the French Open in all five of their meetings, starting with a quarterfinal victory in 2006. They also met in the semifinals in 2007, 08 and 13, and in the final in 2012. The second-seeded Djokovic, however, has beaten Nadal the last four times they have played, including on clay in the final in Rome last month. "Im going to try to be aggressive, because that is the only way I can win against him," Djokovic said. Tony Gonzalez Jersey. "I know that, of course, this is the court hes most dominant on. He has only lost one time in his career. This is where he plays his best." The winner on Sunday will also be ranked No. 1 on Monday. Nadal is currently at the top, but needs to extend his French Open winning streak to 35 matches to stay there. He certainly played like the No. 1 on Friday. Nadal jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first set, then broke early again in the second and third sets. The Spaniard had six break points in the entire match, and converted each one. Murray, meanwhile, couldnt even manage to earn a single break point. Besides his eight titles at the French Open, Nadal has also won twice at Wimbledon, twice at the U.S. Open and once at the Australian Open. Sampras won 14 major titles in his career, but never the French Open. The record holder is Roger Federer with 17 Grand Slam titles. He won his 14th in Paris in 2009, the only French Open in which Nadal lost a match. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '