HEAV
04-18-2005, 10:12 AM
WR Troy Brown, the future Patriot Hall of Famer, has dropped out of the public eye since the Pats declined to pick up his option in February, and there has been no known interest in his services on the open market. Brown is still available, and the way it looks right now, he would provide more ``value'' to the Patriots than any rookie on the board. Heav: He would be a nice Jun pick up. A selfless player that could return kicks and push young Ashley.
With cornerback Donnie Abraham contemplating retirement, the Jets apparently are poised to replace him with free agent Andre Dyson. A team official could not confirm reports over the weekend that Dyson, a productive if not elite cornerback, would visit the Jets' Hofstra facility today. Though Dyson lacks the size and strength to be a classic shutdown cornerback, he would be an upgrade over Abraham and would give the Jets flexibility in the draft.
This looks like a very good time to start restocking the Eagles cupboard. Free safety Brian Dawkins turns 32 in October, and has just 2 years left on his deal after reaching incentives that voided 3 years. Offensive tackle Jon Runyan hits that same age in November, in the final season of his contract. The other starting offensive tackle, Tra Thomas - one of those currently unhappy with his pay - turns 31 in November. Whether he plays here this coming season under the 1-year franchise tender or not, the Eagles seem to have no intention of signing a long-term deal with defensive tackle Corey Simon, so it's certainly time to think about his replacement. If running back Brian Westbrook ends up playing the season under a 1-year restricted free-agent tender, he could be gone in 2006 as well; certainly, with Dorsey Levens apparently headed back into retirement and Correll Buckhalter coming off knee surgery, the Eagles are looking at least for a complement to Westbrook, if not an eventual replacement. They've talked to Buffalo about Travis Henry. Nobody knows what's going to happen with wide receiver Terrell Owens' attempts to renegotiate but T.O. also turns 32, in December.
The Jaguars consider themselves set at safety this season with Donovin Darius on the strong side, Deon Grant at free safety and Deke Cooper as the top backup at both positions. But Darius, who remains upset at being designated the Jaguars' franchise player each of the past three years, is expected to depart eventually -- if not in a trade this offseason, then almost certainly as a free agent this winter.
Lawrence Taylor says the NFL has done a good job controlling steroid use, but he thinks Major League Baseball's policy — or lack thereof until this season — has been "a joke." "Football and baseball, man, we've been throwing people out of the league and suspending people for a lot of years," said Taylor yesterday at a gathering to commemorate the 1986 Super Bowl-champion Giants. "To get suspended from baseball it's gotta be an act of God." Taylor, now 46, was among 40 former Giants who attended the event held in a hotel just down the street from the stadium that bears the name of the team they collectively lofted to greatness almost 20 years ago.
Heav: This coming from a guy that played high on coke!
The Bucs aren't the only team impressed by kicker Mike Nugent. The Vikings, 49ers, Falcons and Jets have expressed strong interest as well, said Nugent, who believes one of those teams will take a chance on him before the fourth round. ``I'm thinking I'll go somewhere near the end of the second or early in the third round,'' Nugent said. The third round is where teams generally begin to take a chance on kickers. But the men running the Bucs draft have been known to gamble on them much sooner. Gruden and Bucs general manager Bruce Allen engineered the drafting of Janikowski in the first round, 17th overall, for the Raiders in 2000. Gruden and Allen aren't likely to use a first-round pick on Nugent. They probably won't use a second-round pick on him either - unless they make a trade that brings them an extra pick in that round.
The one significant addition the Bears didn't make was at quarterback, as they chose not to pursue a veteran backup who might have been looking over the shoulders of Rex Grossman and backup Chad Hutchinson. The Bears are likely to draft a quarterback this weekend, but not in the first round. "There's some risk given the fact he's gotten hurt," general manager Jerry Angelo said of Grossman. "We feel real good about where Rex is in terms of his rehab. "We've made an investment in Rex, and we have to make sure we do everything we can to make sure it comes to fruition. Would we like to get another quality quarterback in the draft? Certainly. You can't have enough quality players at that position." But you can only have one starter, and the Bears' is Rex Grossman. "There was a lot of heat from what happened last year to do something, and I feel like it's been a good vote of confidence that they stuck with me after my injury and they're allowing me to still be the guy," Grossman said. "That always gives you confidence as a player and it makes you want to work hard to prove them right."
The NFL treats 40-yard dash times as sacred. But if those numbers are true, many players are faster than Olympic gold medalists and their clockings should be eyed with a dash of doubt. Heav: Finger slipping is very common in the NFL.
Now a popular afternoon talk host on WNIR FM/100.1 in Akron, Bob Golic's new Browns gig is sweet redemption for him. In 1999, Golic was the analyst on Channel 3's Browns preseason telecasts. But he was dumped after one season - largely because he was commuting from the West Coast and wasn't around the team enough to suit Carmen Policy, the Browns former president.
The Eagles have traded up to the middle of the first round the past two seasons. There are rumors they are looking to trade up even higher than that this year, which might require burning a couple of those five picks in the first 94. But this is said to be a deep draft without a lot of superstars; the wiser course might be to keep all the picks.
With right tackle the only defensive position to be settled by a training camp battle, the Ravens will likely not find a rookie to add to the mix in the first round of Saturday's draft. By the time the Ravens pick at No. 22, barring any draft-day trades that would move them up into the teens, the only player worth getting, Florida State's Travis Johnson, figures to be off the board. The rest of the field is getting more suspect with every passing day. "I wouldn't say it is a great year for defensive tackle," Ravens director of college scouting Eric DeCosta said. "This year's draft, it's not a deep position." That is not the best news for the Ravens, who plan to switch to a 4-3 defense from the 3-4 the team has used the past three seasons. Kelly Gregg is assured one spot, but who will be at his side remains a question.
Tailbacks are poised to grab the spotlight Saturday, with Auburn teammates Ronnie Brown and Carnell "Cadillac" Williams and Texas's Cedric Benson likely to be selected early in the opening round. "All of them are talented players," Houston Texans General Manager Charley Casserly said last week. "They're all a little bit different. Cedric Benson is an inside-the-tackles runner who's going to give you great production. Cadillac Williams can give you big plays inside and outside. Ronnie Brown, if he was at another school, would have been a 1,000-yard rusher every year. I think he'll be a 1,000-yard rusher in our league. They all should be successful in the NFL."
New England Patriots QB Tom Brady's ``Saturday Night Live'' hosting gig was like manna from heaven for the wiseguys on the team's offensive line as No. 12 sang, rapped, danced (!) and strutted around in his tightie whities on national TV last weekend. We hear Brady's blast in the past with Silly String will be child's play after Dan Koppen, Matt Light and the rest of the Pats Punk'd posse roll out their arsenal of ``SNL'' insults and practical jokes! ``It really showed how good natured he is,'' said team PR guy Stacey James of Tom's turn as ``SNL'' host. ``But he knows he's going to get it but good from his teammates. He gave them a lot of material to work with.'' Yesterday, snapper stud Lonie Paxton told fans at Fenway that while he gave Tom the big thumb's-up on his live sketch comedy gig, he and his mates already have plans to rib him about his singing.
Arkansas quarterback Matt Jones (6-5, 239) will take that ``coaching up'' process to new levels in the NFL. He was the star of the combine, running the 40 in less than 4.4 seconds and jumping 39 inches in the vertical leap. He's not going to play quarterback, however, and he is being projected as either a wide receiver or a tight end. If Jones does go in the second round as expected, he'll be this decade's version of former Boston College star Mike Mamula, the poster player for turning combine excellence into NFL gold.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, David Terrell suffers from attention deficit disorder, and his refusal to take medication for it frustrated the Bears. Perhaps being surrounded by a championship locker room in New England and having former Michigan teammate Tom Brady delivering the ball will be all the medicine Terrell needs. If he produces, the Pats' need for size on the outside will have been addressed.
With cornerback Donnie Abraham contemplating retirement, the Jets apparently are poised to replace him with free agent Andre Dyson. A team official could not confirm reports over the weekend that Dyson, a productive if not elite cornerback, would visit the Jets' Hofstra facility today. Though Dyson lacks the size and strength to be a classic shutdown cornerback, he would be an upgrade over Abraham and would give the Jets flexibility in the draft.
This looks like a very good time to start restocking the Eagles cupboard. Free safety Brian Dawkins turns 32 in October, and has just 2 years left on his deal after reaching incentives that voided 3 years. Offensive tackle Jon Runyan hits that same age in November, in the final season of his contract. The other starting offensive tackle, Tra Thomas - one of those currently unhappy with his pay - turns 31 in November. Whether he plays here this coming season under the 1-year franchise tender or not, the Eagles seem to have no intention of signing a long-term deal with defensive tackle Corey Simon, so it's certainly time to think about his replacement. If running back Brian Westbrook ends up playing the season under a 1-year restricted free-agent tender, he could be gone in 2006 as well; certainly, with Dorsey Levens apparently headed back into retirement and Correll Buckhalter coming off knee surgery, the Eagles are looking at least for a complement to Westbrook, if not an eventual replacement. They've talked to Buffalo about Travis Henry. Nobody knows what's going to happen with wide receiver Terrell Owens' attempts to renegotiate but T.O. also turns 32, in December.
The Jaguars consider themselves set at safety this season with Donovin Darius on the strong side, Deon Grant at free safety and Deke Cooper as the top backup at both positions. But Darius, who remains upset at being designated the Jaguars' franchise player each of the past three years, is expected to depart eventually -- if not in a trade this offseason, then almost certainly as a free agent this winter.
Lawrence Taylor says the NFL has done a good job controlling steroid use, but he thinks Major League Baseball's policy — or lack thereof until this season — has been "a joke." "Football and baseball, man, we've been throwing people out of the league and suspending people for a lot of years," said Taylor yesterday at a gathering to commemorate the 1986 Super Bowl-champion Giants. "To get suspended from baseball it's gotta be an act of God." Taylor, now 46, was among 40 former Giants who attended the event held in a hotel just down the street from the stadium that bears the name of the team they collectively lofted to greatness almost 20 years ago.
Heav: This coming from a guy that played high on coke!
The Bucs aren't the only team impressed by kicker Mike Nugent. The Vikings, 49ers, Falcons and Jets have expressed strong interest as well, said Nugent, who believes one of those teams will take a chance on him before the fourth round. ``I'm thinking I'll go somewhere near the end of the second or early in the third round,'' Nugent said. The third round is where teams generally begin to take a chance on kickers. But the men running the Bucs draft have been known to gamble on them much sooner. Gruden and Bucs general manager Bruce Allen engineered the drafting of Janikowski in the first round, 17th overall, for the Raiders in 2000. Gruden and Allen aren't likely to use a first-round pick on Nugent. They probably won't use a second-round pick on him either - unless they make a trade that brings them an extra pick in that round.
The one significant addition the Bears didn't make was at quarterback, as they chose not to pursue a veteran backup who might have been looking over the shoulders of Rex Grossman and backup Chad Hutchinson. The Bears are likely to draft a quarterback this weekend, but not in the first round. "There's some risk given the fact he's gotten hurt," general manager Jerry Angelo said of Grossman. "We feel real good about where Rex is in terms of his rehab. "We've made an investment in Rex, and we have to make sure we do everything we can to make sure it comes to fruition. Would we like to get another quality quarterback in the draft? Certainly. You can't have enough quality players at that position." But you can only have one starter, and the Bears' is Rex Grossman. "There was a lot of heat from what happened last year to do something, and I feel like it's been a good vote of confidence that they stuck with me after my injury and they're allowing me to still be the guy," Grossman said. "That always gives you confidence as a player and it makes you want to work hard to prove them right."
The NFL treats 40-yard dash times as sacred. But if those numbers are true, many players are faster than Olympic gold medalists and their clockings should be eyed with a dash of doubt. Heav: Finger slipping is very common in the NFL.
Now a popular afternoon talk host on WNIR FM/100.1 in Akron, Bob Golic's new Browns gig is sweet redemption for him. In 1999, Golic was the analyst on Channel 3's Browns preseason telecasts. But he was dumped after one season - largely because he was commuting from the West Coast and wasn't around the team enough to suit Carmen Policy, the Browns former president.
The Eagles have traded up to the middle of the first round the past two seasons. There are rumors they are looking to trade up even higher than that this year, which might require burning a couple of those five picks in the first 94. But this is said to be a deep draft without a lot of superstars; the wiser course might be to keep all the picks.
With right tackle the only defensive position to be settled by a training camp battle, the Ravens will likely not find a rookie to add to the mix in the first round of Saturday's draft. By the time the Ravens pick at No. 22, barring any draft-day trades that would move them up into the teens, the only player worth getting, Florida State's Travis Johnson, figures to be off the board. The rest of the field is getting more suspect with every passing day. "I wouldn't say it is a great year for defensive tackle," Ravens director of college scouting Eric DeCosta said. "This year's draft, it's not a deep position." That is not the best news for the Ravens, who plan to switch to a 4-3 defense from the 3-4 the team has used the past three seasons. Kelly Gregg is assured one spot, but who will be at his side remains a question.
Tailbacks are poised to grab the spotlight Saturday, with Auburn teammates Ronnie Brown and Carnell "Cadillac" Williams and Texas's Cedric Benson likely to be selected early in the opening round. "All of them are talented players," Houston Texans General Manager Charley Casserly said last week. "They're all a little bit different. Cedric Benson is an inside-the-tackles runner who's going to give you great production. Cadillac Williams can give you big plays inside and outside. Ronnie Brown, if he was at another school, would have been a 1,000-yard rusher every year. I think he'll be a 1,000-yard rusher in our league. They all should be successful in the NFL."
New England Patriots QB Tom Brady's ``Saturday Night Live'' hosting gig was like manna from heaven for the wiseguys on the team's offensive line as No. 12 sang, rapped, danced (!) and strutted around in his tightie whities on national TV last weekend. We hear Brady's blast in the past with Silly String will be child's play after Dan Koppen, Matt Light and the rest of the Pats Punk'd posse roll out their arsenal of ``SNL'' insults and practical jokes! ``It really showed how good natured he is,'' said team PR guy Stacey James of Tom's turn as ``SNL'' host. ``But he knows he's going to get it but good from his teammates. He gave them a lot of material to work with.'' Yesterday, snapper stud Lonie Paxton told fans at Fenway that while he gave Tom the big thumb's-up on his live sketch comedy gig, he and his mates already have plans to rib him about his singing.
Arkansas quarterback Matt Jones (6-5, 239) will take that ``coaching up'' process to new levels in the NFL. He was the star of the combine, running the 40 in less than 4.4 seconds and jumping 39 inches in the vertical leap. He's not going to play quarterback, however, and he is being projected as either a wide receiver or a tight end. If Jones does go in the second round as expected, he'll be this decade's version of former Boston College star Mike Mamula, the poster player for turning combine excellence into NFL gold.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, David Terrell suffers from attention deficit disorder, and his refusal to take medication for it frustrated the Bears. Perhaps being surrounded by a championship locker room in New England and having former Michigan teammate Tom Brady delivering the ball will be all the medicine Terrell needs. If he produces, the Pats' need for size on the outside will have been addressed.