HEAV
04-15-2006, 11:38 AM
The agent for veteran cornerback Ty Law said this week he still hopes his client will get a visit to Nashville to meet with the Titans. Law met with the Seahawks this week. The Chiefs, Patriots and Browns also remain in the picture. Law's price tag is probably scaring the Titans off. He's believed to be looking for $10 million in up-front money, along with salaries in the range of $5 million per year.
Contract talks on a long-term extension for Lance Briggs broke down Friday with the Pro Bowl linebacker still seeking more money than reigning defensive player of the year Brian Urlacher. The Bears were optimistic following a round of negotiations with agent Drew Rosenhaus on Thursday at Halas Hall that a deal was coming soon, but the tone was decidedly different Friday afternoon as Rosenhaus returned to Miami. The sides met earlier in the day, but Briggs' high salary demands brought the meeting to a halt and increased the possibility the club will select his replacement in the first round of the April 29 draft.
Depending on how the Vikings feel about their draft prospects, they could get into the bidding for San Diego Chargers linebacker Donnie Edwards, who reportedly could be had for a second-round draft choice. Edwards, 33, has led the Chargers in tackles each of his four seasons in San Diego and has experience as an inside and outside linebacker. He also has a connection to Foley, who came to the Vikings after three years as the Chargers' director of pro scouting and added former San Diego linebacker Ben Leber as an unrestricted free agent.
Rams RB Marshall Faulk has not been cleared to participate in next weekend's minicamp after having arthroscopic surgery on both knees. It has become almost an offseason ritual for Faulk to have cleanup work done on one or both knees. "I think he had some loose bodies that needed to be cleaned out," Linehan said. "Nothing serious. The older you get, the more time it takes just to kind of get them back to 100 percent. You've got to manage them. You can't take every (practice) snap like you used to. And the offseason's different. It's like you've got to heal up first." Linehan said he hasn't talked to Faulk recently, but he still expects him to return for his 13th NFL season.
The Packers continue to move the roster bonus only as a safeguard against the unlikely scenario that Brett Favre would play somewhere else. If the bonus date passes and Favre winds up playing for another team, then the Packers would be liable to pay him $3 million on Dec. 1. If the bonus date passes and Favre retires before the season starts, he does not receive the money at all.
Halfback LenDale White and safety Darnell Bing, two components of Southern California's national champions two of the past three years, will visit the Steelers Monday and Tuesday as the team winds down its interviews on the South Side with draft prospects next week. Both will be considered as possible first-round draft picks by the Steelers, who will have interviewed as many as 30 players over the past several weeks at their headquarters.
The Packers are still in the running for cornerback Charles Woodson and linebacker LaVar Arrington but it doesn't appear they are close to signing either one. Woodson, according to published reports, has received a contract offer from the Packers but it did not satisfy his financial demands.
NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol reportedly is lobbying hard for a team in Los Angeles. Teams being mentioned in the media as candidates to make the move are Buffalo, Jacksonville, Minnesota, New Orleans and San Diego. Western New York fans have supported the Bills more faithfully than fans of the other four teams on the list, and Buffalo owner Ralph Wilson has established staying power, but being fair isn't always what drives the NFL. Money does.
Charles Rogers expressed surprise this week he's still a member of the Lions, considering the team still wants a refund of more than $10 million of his $14.4-million signing bonus as restitution for failing three drug tests, violating the terms of his contract. "But I'm here," he told me Thursday. "And that's all that what counts now. Whether or not I believe it or not, I'm here and we'll see how it plays out. Will I still be here by the end of summer? I don't know, man. We'll see. All I can do about it is keep working because I'm here."
Early next week, the Cowboys will host 30 draft prospects. Among the players expected to attend are: Southern Cal offensive tackle Winston Justice, UTEP linebacker Thomas Howard, Northwestern defensive tackle Barry Cofield, Ohio State linebacker Bobby Carpenter, Boise State offensive tackle Daryn Colledge, Miami fullback Quadtrine Hill and Illinois State defensive end Brent Hawkins.
At his team's voluntary minicamp that wrapped up this week, Lions coach Rod Marinelli made it clear that, at this time, Detroit did not have a No. 1 quarterback. But do not be surprised when the season starts if Jon Kitna is No. 1 and Josh McCown is No. 2. McCown still needs more time to be groomed, while Kitna is ready.
In other years, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has welcomed in the offseason with some type of elaborate trip, usually somewhere in Europe, always somewhere exotic. But this offseason, Brady skipped any lengthy, overseas trips. He skipped it because he was so steamed about the way New England's season ended that he was determined to get back into the weight room and redeem himself and the organization for its postseason loss in January to Denver.
Texas safety Michael Huff, the first player in school history to win the prestigious Jim Thorpe Award, will visit the Cowboys, the team he followed while growing up in Dallas.
The Giants have rescinded their tender to restricted free-agent defensive tackle Kenderick Allen, the team confirmed yesterday. The three-year veteran, who signed with the Giants in 2004 after one season with the Saints, had played sparingly on defense and special teams.
Cardinals vice president of football operations Rod Graves said Friday that while the team does have interest in free agent receiver and return man Az-Zahir Hakim, “nothing is imminent.” “Discussions are ongoing,” Graves said. Graves and the rest of the Cardinals’ brain trust have been heavily involved in draft preparation. With the draft just two weeks away, the team may choose to see what rookies it gets before committing too much to a veteran like Hakim. Hakim’s agent, Chuck Price, said due to the holiday weekend and the draft, negotiations have thus far produced little. Price said he hoped to restart talks with the Cardinals early next week.
It wasn't long after Aaron Brooks was signed that the Raiders, according to media reports in Detroit, were among teams asking permission to speak to Joey Harrington, the ousted Lions starter who was given the green light to arrange his exit from the organization. The Raiders, to no one's surprise, didn't comment on whether they've had any contact with Harrington, who has drawn trade interest from Miami and Cincinnati.
Lions coach Rod Marinelli has already singled out receiver Mike Williams for coming into camp last year grossly overweight. He has already told those who might have reservations about potentially enduring another rebuilding process to look for work elsewhere.
The Vikings wrapped up their first week of pre-draft visits Friday as Alabama linebacker DeMeco Ryans and another small group of prospects toured Winter Park. Joining Ryans, a possible first-round selection in the April 29-30 NFL draft, were Southern California tight end Dominique Byrd and Northwestern defensive lineman Barry Cofield.
Bobby Carpenter now becomes the third guy who seems to be an ideal fit for the linebacker-hungry Patriots (following Kamerion Wimbley and DeMeco Ryans). Carpenter may be the best physical specimen of the three in terms of size. The fact that Mike Vrabel went from a position similar to the one Carpenter performed in at Ohio State shows precedent for a player succeeding in the Pats' scheme.
Attendance has been excellent for the Rams' offseason conditioning program, which just concluded its fourth week. But one notable exception has been tight end Brandon Manumaleuna, who as usual, is spending most of his offseason on the West Coast. Linehan said Manumaleuna is expected to participate in next weekend's minicamp.
Bengals president Mike Brown defended Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson, who contends — along with Brown — that the NFL's new Collective Bargaining Agreement hurts small-market teams. Brown summoned Bengals beat writers into a meeting at Paul Brown Stadium and said he was upset with the personal attacks being volleyed at Wilson. The two are close friends. They were the only dissenters when league owners passed the CBA in a 30-2 vote in Dallas on March 8. Critics have belittled Wilson for voting against the agreement, saying he didn't fully understand it. "If they want to debate him on the issue, fine," Brown said. "But I don't buy into this stuff where they want to undercut his opinion with fallacious, ad hominem attacks. "Ralph Wilson is 87 years old. He is probably close to the same age as Justice (John Paul) Stevens on the Supreme Court. [Stevens turns 86 Thursday.] You can be 87 years old and very strong mentally, and he is. And to say these things that have been bubbling up about him bothers me."
The Packers have signed former Kansas receiver and track and field sprinter Leo Bookman to a free-agent contract. Bookman hasn't played football since the 2002 season, when he quit the Jayhawks team to focus on track. He won three NCAA titles in the 200 meters and clocked one of the fastest 200 times in the world.
Ronnie Lott is the new chairman of the advisory board for the ''Play It Smart'' fundraising committee. The program trains academic coaches to work with high school football teams, applying skills used on the field to the classroom. ''Football changed my life,'' said Lott, a Hall of Fame defensive back who played with the San Francisco 49ers, New York Jets and Oakland Raiders. 'It taught me discipline, teamwork, tenacity, and other valuable life skills that I use every day as a businessman. By providing `Play It Smart' academic coaches to schools in underserved areas, we can have a dramatic impact on the lives of thousands of at-risk kids.''
Chargers linebacker Donnie Edwards, a Chula Vista native, will be moving on – if not real soon then at least sooner than he would like. GM A.J. Smith verified when asked yesterday that he has notified the rest of the NFL (except AFC West foes) that Edwards is available for trade. Edwards, the Chargers' leading tackler each of his four seasons here, has angled for a raise each of the past three years. He and Smith have disagreed as to his worthiness for a lucrative extension. Only Miami's Zach Thomas has more tackles than Edwards over the past seven seasons, but it is debatable what Edwards would bring in trade in that the cap hit to a team that signed him would be $3.55 million.
It's to the point where the rest of the league looks at the Ravens and knows that it's Steve McNair or nothing. If McNair falls through, the Ravens' Plan B likely includes a backup quarterback or a borderline starter like Kerry Collins, who is hardly an obvious upgrade over Kyle Boller. The team's starting quarterback for next season will almost certainly be either McNair or Boller. Boller could beat out the Plan Bs, but would not start ahead of McNair.
In addition to trying to start up contract talks with USC running back Reggie Bush, the Houston Texans continue reaching out to North Carolina State defensive end Mario Williams to get him to try to negotiate on a contract. Williams is leery about being used as leverage, but the Texans insist it is not about that.
Is controversial receiver Terrell Owens getting off on the right foot in Dallas? Several sources have noted that Owens has not been a regular participant in Cowboys coach Bill Parcells' off-season program. His initial absences were understood because of a prior commitment, but Owens in the past has preferred to work with his own trainer. Owens, who signed a three-year, $25 million contract with the Cowboys in March, was present at a Thursday workout. His publicist, Kim Etheredge, said, "He is here when he is required to be here just like every other player on the team" and added that Parcells has expressed no concern about Owens' regimen.
Contract talks on a long-term extension for Lance Briggs broke down Friday with the Pro Bowl linebacker still seeking more money than reigning defensive player of the year Brian Urlacher. The Bears were optimistic following a round of negotiations with agent Drew Rosenhaus on Thursday at Halas Hall that a deal was coming soon, but the tone was decidedly different Friday afternoon as Rosenhaus returned to Miami. The sides met earlier in the day, but Briggs' high salary demands brought the meeting to a halt and increased the possibility the club will select his replacement in the first round of the April 29 draft.
Depending on how the Vikings feel about their draft prospects, they could get into the bidding for San Diego Chargers linebacker Donnie Edwards, who reportedly could be had for a second-round draft choice. Edwards, 33, has led the Chargers in tackles each of his four seasons in San Diego and has experience as an inside and outside linebacker. He also has a connection to Foley, who came to the Vikings after three years as the Chargers' director of pro scouting and added former San Diego linebacker Ben Leber as an unrestricted free agent.
Rams RB Marshall Faulk has not been cleared to participate in next weekend's minicamp after having arthroscopic surgery on both knees. It has become almost an offseason ritual for Faulk to have cleanup work done on one or both knees. "I think he had some loose bodies that needed to be cleaned out," Linehan said. "Nothing serious. The older you get, the more time it takes just to kind of get them back to 100 percent. You've got to manage them. You can't take every (practice) snap like you used to. And the offseason's different. It's like you've got to heal up first." Linehan said he hasn't talked to Faulk recently, but he still expects him to return for his 13th NFL season.
The Packers continue to move the roster bonus only as a safeguard against the unlikely scenario that Brett Favre would play somewhere else. If the bonus date passes and Favre winds up playing for another team, then the Packers would be liable to pay him $3 million on Dec. 1. If the bonus date passes and Favre retires before the season starts, he does not receive the money at all.
Halfback LenDale White and safety Darnell Bing, two components of Southern California's national champions two of the past three years, will visit the Steelers Monday and Tuesday as the team winds down its interviews on the South Side with draft prospects next week. Both will be considered as possible first-round draft picks by the Steelers, who will have interviewed as many as 30 players over the past several weeks at their headquarters.
The Packers are still in the running for cornerback Charles Woodson and linebacker LaVar Arrington but it doesn't appear they are close to signing either one. Woodson, according to published reports, has received a contract offer from the Packers but it did not satisfy his financial demands.
NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol reportedly is lobbying hard for a team in Los Angeles. Teams being mentioned in the media as candidates to make the move are Buffalo, Jacksonville, Minnesota, New Orleans and San Diego. Western New York fans have supported the Bills more faithfully than fans of the other four teams on the list, and Buffalo owner Ralph Wilson has established staying power, but being fair isn't always what drives the NFL. Money does.
Charles Rogers expressed surprise this week he's still a member of the Lions, considering the team still wants a refund of more than $10 million of his $14.4-million signing bonus as restitution for failing three drug tests, violating the terms of his contract. "But I'm here," he told me Thursday. "And that's all that what counts now. Whether or not I believe it or not, I'm here and we'll see how it plays out. Will I still be here by the end of summer? I don't know, man. We'll see. All I can do about it is keep working because I'm here."
Early next week, the Cowboys will host 30 draft prospects. Among the players expected to attend are: Southern Cal offensive tackle Winston Justice, UTEP linebacker Thomas Howard, Northwestern defensive tackle Barry Cofield, Ohio State linebacker Bobby Carpenter, Boise State offensive tackle Daryn Colledge, Miami fullback Quadtrine Hill and Illinois State defensive end Brent Hawkins.
At his team's voluntary minicamp that wrapped up this week, Lions coach Rod Marinelli made it clear that, at this time, Detroit did not have a No. 1 quarterback. But do not be surprised when the season starts if Jon Kitna is No. 1 and Josh McCown is No. 2. McCown still needs more time to be groomed, while Kitna is ready.
In other years, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has welcomed in the offseason with some type of elaborate trip, usually somewhere in Europe, always somewhere exotic. But this offseason, Brady skipped any lengthy, overseas trips. He skipped it because he was so steamed about the way New England's season ended that he was determined to get back into the weight room and redeem himself and the organization for its postseason loss in January to Denver.
Texas safety Michael Huff, the first player in school history to win the prestigious Jim Thorpe Award, will visit the Cowboys, the team he followed while growing up in Dallas.
The Giants have rescinded their tender to restricted free-agent defensive tackle Kenderick Allen, the team confirmed yesterday. The three-year veteran, who signed with the Giants in 2004 after one season with the Saints, had played sparingly on defense and special teams.
Cardinals vice president of football operations Rod Graves said Friday that while the team does have interest in free agent receiver and return man Az-Zahir Hakim, “nothing is imminent.” “Discussions are ongoing,” Graves said. Graves and the rest of the Cardinals’ brain trust have been heavily involved in draft preparation. With the draft just two weeks away, the team may choose to see what rookies it gets before committing too much to a veteran like Hakim. Hakim’s agent, Chuck Price, said due to the holiday weekend and the draft, negotiations have thus far produced little. Price said he hoped to restart talks with the Cardinals early next week.
It wasn't long after Aaron Brooks was signed that the Raiders, according to media reports in Detroit, were among teams asking permission to speak to Joey Harrington, the ousted Lions starter who was given the green light to arrange his exit from the organization. The Raiders, to no one's surprise, didn't comment on whether they've had any contact with Harrington, who has drawn trade interest from Miami and Cincinnati.
Lions coach Rod Marinelli has already singled out receiver Mike Williams for coming into camp last year grossly overweight. He has already told those who might have reservations about potentially enduring another rebuilding process to look for work elsewhere.
The Vikings wrapped up their first week of pre-draft visits Friday as Alabama linebacker DeMeco Ryans and another small group of prospects toured Winter Park. Joining Ryans, a possible first-round selection in the April 29-30 NFL draft, were Southern California tight end Dominique Byrd and Northwestern defensive lineman Barry Cofield.
Bobby Carpenter now becomes the third guy who seems to be an ideal fit for the linebacker-hungry Patriots (following Kamerion Wimbley and DeMeco Ryans). Carpenter may be the best physical specimen of the three in terms of size. The fact that Mike Vrabel went from a position similar to the one Carpenter performed in at Ohio State shows precedent for a player succeeding in the Pats' scheme.
Attendance has been excellent for the Rams' offseason conditioning program, which just concluded its fourth week. But one notable exception has been tight end Brandon Manumaleuna, who as usual, is spending most of his offseason on the West Coast. Linehan said Manumaleuna is expected to participate in next weekend's minicamp.
Bengals president Mike Brown defended Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson, who contends — along with Brown — that the NFL's new Collective Bargaining Agreement hurts small-market teams. Brown summoned Bengals beat writers into a meeting at Paul Brown Stadium and said he was upset with the personal attacks being volleyed at Wilson. The two are close friends. They were the only dissenters when league owners passed the CBA in a 30-2 vote in Dallas on March 8. Critics have belittled Wilson for voting against the agreement, saying he didn't fully understand it. "If they want to debate him on the issue, fine," Brown said. "But I don't buy into this stuff where they want to undercut his opinion with fallacious, ad hominem attacks. "Ralph Wilson is 87 years old. He is probably close to the same age as Justice (John Paul) Stevens on the Supreme Court. [Stevens turns 86 Thursday.] You can be 87 years old and very strong mentally, and he is. And to say these things that have been bubbling up about him bothers me."
The Packers have signed former Kansas receiver and track and field sprinter Leo Bookman to a free-agent contract. Bookman hasn't played football since the 2002 season, when he quit the Jayhawks team to focus on track. He won three NCAA titles in the 200 meters and clocked one of the fastest 200 times in the world.
Ronnie Lott is the new chairman of the advisory board for the ''Play It Smart'' fundraising committee. The program trains academic coaches to work with high school football teams, applying skills used on the field to the classroom. ''Football changed my life,'' said Lott, a Hall of Fame defensive back who played with the San Francisco 49ers, New York Jets and Oakland Raiders. 'It taught me discipline, teamwork, tenacity, and other valuable life skills that I use every day as a businessman. By providing `Play It Smart' academic coaches to schools in underserved areas, we can have a dramatic impact on the lives of thousands of at-risk kids.''
Chargers linebacker Donnie Edwards, a Chula Vista native, will be moving on – if not real soon then at least sooner than he would like. GM A.J. Smith verified when asked yesterday that he has notified the rest of the NFL (except AFC West foes) that Edwards is available for trade. Edwards, the Chargers' leading tackler each of his four seasons here, has angled for a raise each of the past three years. He and Smith have disagreed as to his worthiness for a lucrative extension. Only Miami's Zach Thomas has more tackles than Edwards over the past seven seasons, but it is debatable what Edwards would bring in trade in that the cap hit to a team that signed him would be $3.55 million.
It's to the point where the rest of the league looks at the Ravens and knows that it's Steve McNair or nothing. If McNair falls through, the Ravens' Plan B likely includes a backup quarterback or a borderline starter like Kerry Collins, who is hardly an obvious upgrade over Kyle Boller. The team's starting quarterback for next season will almost certainly be either McNair or Boller. Boller could beat out the Plan Bs, but would not start ahead of McNair.
In addition to trying to start up contract talks with USC running back Reggie Bush, the Houston Texans continue reaching out to North Carolina State defensive end Mario Williams to get him to try to negotiate on a contract. Williams is leery about being used as leverage, but the Texans insist it is not about that.
Is controversial receiver Terrell Owens getting off on the right foot in Dallas? Several sources have noted that Owens has not been a regular participant in Cowboys coach Bill Parcells' off-season program. His initial absences were understood because of a prior commitment, but Owens in the past has preferred to work with his own trainer. Owens, who signed a three-year, $25 million contract with the Cowboys in March, was present at a Thursday workout. His publicist, Kim Etheredge, said, "He is here when he is required to be here just like every other player on the team" and added that Parcells has expressed no concern about Owens' regimen.