The common assumption has been that Welker will eventually ink a long-term deal with the Patriots, but the Pro Bowl wide receiver revealed that contract talks have actually gone south.
"There have been talks, but nothing that's brightened anything at all," Welker said, according to the Boston Herald. "It's actually gotten worse."
Welker reportedly went on to say that the offer on the table from New England is less than the two-year, $16 million fully-guaranteed contract that was offered to him last season.
Welker, who racked up an NFL-best 122 receptions last year, opted to sign his $9.5 million franchise tender, but the hope has been that the two sides can agree on a deal that will keep him in New England for the foreseeable future.
The Boston Globe reports that a team source has indicated that Welker's decision to go public about the negotiations in recent weeks hasn't gone over well with the organization.
Still, the wide receiver is itching to get back to work — long-term deal or not.
"[Organized team activities] are about to start. The team's all getting together. You get all these months off and everything else. I don't know, you're just kind of bored," Welker told the Boston Herald. "You want to be up on the field. You want to be up there competing and trying to get better. You kind of miss it. You want to be out there. It's kind of hard. You're getting told to do this, this, or that. You're getting all this information. You don't really know who to believe or what to go with. I think at the end of the day for me, if I go out there and keep playing great football like I have been for the past five years, eventually, it'll pay off."
Welker has led the NFL in catches three of the past five seasons, and has eclipsed the 100-reception mark four times in that span. He's also been voted to four Pro Bowls since arriving in New England prior to the 2007 season.
