Cindrich & Company

In 1981 Cindrich returned to his native Western Pennsylvania and brought his management firm (now renamed Cindrich & Company) with him. That same year, Cindrich landed his first big-name client, Mark May, the offensive tackle from, the University of Pittsburgh who the Washington Redskins selected May with their first round pick (20th overall) in the 1981 NFL draft. After tough negotiations that summer with the Redskins General Manager Bobby Beathard, May signed with the team in late July putting to rest rumors that he would bolt to the Canadian Football League. Cindrich continues to represent May in all his television contracts.

By the 1985 NFL draft, Cindrich & Company would represent two top prospects: Al Toon from the University of Wisconsin and Bill Fralic from the University of Pittsburgh. During ESPN’s televised coverage of the draft, Mel Kiper Jr. stated:

“We’ll see what an impact Ralph Cindrich has on this draft right away. I think Minnesota wanted (Bill) Fralic. I know, you talk about Indianapolis, they would have taken Al Toon but he (Cindrich) wrote a letter to Irsay stating that he didn’t want Toon to play with the Colts. Same with Minnesota. So we’ll see if those teams shy away from Fralic and Toon. We will see if Cindrich has a direct impact on the draft.”

Cindrich told the press that Fralic would not want to play for the Minnesota Vikings, who held the second overall pick, because of the team’s negotiating history. On Draft Day, the Vikings traded their pick to the Atlanta Falcons for a 1st and 3rd round selection. The Atlanta Falcons then selected Fralic, who signed the most lucrative contract for any lineman in the draft, including the top overall pick, Buffalo’s Bruce Smith. The Atlanta Journal & Atlanta Constitution reported that:

“Fralic’s contract is so lucrative that it has caused slowdown in the next eleven picks below him in the first round of the draft. No other Number 1 has such an annuity package nor a present value this high. Defensive end Bruce Smith, the draft’s No. 1 pick, signed a $2.8 Million contract for the Buffalo Bills, which is worth $2.1 million in present value. When Fralic signed Monday and first reports of the numbers leaked out, agent Joe Courrege immediately upped the demand for Texas A&M defensive end Ray Childress, the draft’s No. 3 selection.”

The New York Jets selected Toon with the 10th overall pick. He held out, and still without a contract by late August, Cindrich publicly suggested that the Jets trade Toon. But by Week 2 of the regular season (after New York lost 31-0 to the Los Angeles Raiders), Toon signed a deal reportedly worth $1.6 million over five years, including a signing bonus worth $475,000. The deal paid him more money than any other receiver drafted in 1985, including the San Francisco 49ers first round selection, Jerry Rice.

In the 1988 NFL draft, Cindrich represented University of Wisconsin Offensive Tackle Paul Gruber, who the Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Gruber with the 4th overall pick in the draft. Gruber missed four weeks of training camp but signed a five year, $3.8 million deal with the team in early August. That month, The Sporting News declared Cindrich’s negotiations “the most significant contract for any rookie this year” and “the best contract ever signed by an offensive lineman and likely will start a new salary spiral at the position.”

The next year, Cindrich & Company helped facilitate the now famous "Herschel Walker trade" between the Dallas Cowboys and Minnesota Vikings. As part of his new contract with the Vikings, Walker received $1.25 million in cash and other considerations (including a Mercedes-Benz) and more than doubled his previous salary. Cindrich had now negotiated the second and third most lucrative contracts in the NFL. He also achieved considerable salary raises for Pro Bowlers John Offerdahl, linebacker for the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills Shane Conlan (linebacker), Will Wolford (offensive tackle), and Kent Hull (center).