Editing Champ Bailey (section)

===Washington Redskins===
Bailey was selected with the seventh overall pick in the first round of the [[1999 NFL draft]] by the Redskins.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1999 NFL Draft Listing |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1999/draft.htm |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nfl.com/draft/history/fulldraft?season=1999 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080419222959/http://www.nfl.com/draft/history/fulldraft?season=1999 |archive-date=April 19, 2008 |title=NFL Draft History: Full Draft|website=[[NFL.com]] }}</ref> He was the first ever drafted player to come from his hometown of Folkston, Georgia.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Champ Bailey "Something To Prove"|url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/216688-champ-bailey-something-to-prove|last=T|first=David|website=Bleacher Report|language=en|access-date=2020-05-19}}</ref>

On July 24, 1999, Bailey signed a 5-year, $12 million contract including a $2 million signing bonus.<ref>"REDSKINS, LIONS SIGN NO 1 DRAFT PICKS", [[Chicago Tribune]], July 25, 1999.</ref> Bailey quickly established a reputation as one of the league's best defensive backs.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1208/is_50_228/ai_n8576576/ | work=The Sporting News | title=Shutdown corner: the term starts and ends with Deion | first=Troy | last=Aikman | year=2004}}</ref> He was a large presence on the Redskins defense and benefited from time spent with eventual [[Hall of Fame]] cornerback teammates [[Deion Sanders]] and [[Darrell Green]]. After the 2003 season, Bailey's contract with the Redskins expired and he threatened to boycott training camp if the club exercised the [[franchise tag]].<ref>[https://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/broncos-swap-portis-for-bailey-1.473673 Broncos swap Portis for Bailey], CBC Sports, March 5, 2004.</ref> In a surprising move, the Redskins gave Bailey permission to seek a trade.<ref>Len Pasquarelli, [https://www.espn.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=pasquarelli_len&id=1734533 'Skins could use 'franchise' tag on CB; Champ Bailey, one of the league's top cornerbacks, was surprisingly given permission by the Redskins to seek a trade], ESPN, February 16, 2004.</ref>