ward63
09-14-2006, 04:54 PM
Adam Schefter's "Around the League" reports and commentaries can be seen regularly on NFL Total Access.
(Sept. 12, 2006) -- Oakland's Randy Moss was supposed to be the Raiders' headache, but instead, wide receiver Jerry Porter has turned into the migraine.
The Raiders deactivated Porter before the Monday night game against San Diego, but the wide receiver would have preferred to have been a no show.
Around the League
Adam Schefter brings us the latest news from "Around the League."
Click here to watch
League sources said Porter actually called Buffalo safety Troy Vincent, the president of the NFL Players Association, and asked if he were required to show up for the game.
Vincent informed Porter, yes, he had to be there. To his dismay, Porter was.
How much longer Porter remains in Oakland is another story. The Raiders would like to deal Porter, but the problem is teams are not interested in him.
Even the receiver-needy Patriots were not interested in dealing for Porter earlier this summer; they made that clear from the outset.
Instead, they wanted wide receiver Doug Gabriel, and landed him for a fifth-round pick.
Jerry Porter might not be seen in an NFL uniform for several weeks.
During the offseason, the Denver Broncos made an inquiry about Porter, but quickly shied away when they learned the price for Porter would be two first-round picks.
Now the Raiders will be lucky to get much of anything in return for Porter, who led the Raiders last season with 76 receptions. Teams know that Raiders coach Art Shell kicked Porter out of his office during an offseason meeting between the two. They know that Porter has been openly insubordinate to the Raiders. And as long as the Raiders continue deactivating him -- and indications are they will -- Porter's behavior is not going to improve.
Asked about Porter's deactivation, Shell told reporters: "We had five receivers, and I decided we would go with the other four. That's it."
Only that's not it. Shell has hammered home the point that no player will defy his orders. But Porter is acting as if he is going to continue testing them.
FOR KICKS
Tuesday typically is the NFL's busy day, with teams conducting tryouts for free agents. And many teams were at it again today, most notably the Jets, who went in search of a kicker to replace Mike Nugent.
The Jets worked out three kickers -- former Minnesota Vikings veteran Paul Edinger, former San Francisco 49er Owen Pochman, and former Boise State standout Tyler Jones.
But the Jets didn't look only at kickers. They also worked out former Cleveland wide receiver Frisman Jackson, former Cardinals running back James Hodgins and former Packers guard William Whitticker.
There were other notable tryouts around the league:
Buffalo worked out former Texans running back Tony Hollings.
Carolina worked out former Cowboys quarterback Drew Henson.
Cleveland worked out former Buccaneers quarterback Shaun King.
Detroit worked out former Broncos offensive lineman Dwayne Carswell and former Titans quarterback Matt Mauck.
Miami worked out former Lions wide receiver Charles Rogers.
And Tampa Bay worked out former Saints quarterback Todd Bouman and former Panthers quarterback Stefan LeFors.
MOTOWN REUNION
For four years, wide receiver Az-Zahir Hakim and Mike Martz helped to make the St. Louis Rams the Greatest Show on Turf. Now the two are hoping to reignite their magic in Detroit.
Az-Zahir Hakim will don the Honolulu Blue for one more season, and under a trusted mentor.
The Lions signed Hakim to a one-year, $710,000 contract.
By waiting until after their opening game, the Lions are not obligated to guarantee Hakim's salary. But they have guaranteed him a chance to win playing time.
Hakim could challenge for the slot receiver position in Martz's offense, as well as back up Eddie Drummond in the return game. Last season, Hakim caught 34 passes for 489 yards and two touchdowns. He had planned to retire this offseason, but found he missed the game too much.
So when the Lions brought him in for a workout, and offered him a contract, Hakim grabbed it.
THE RISK OF ROBINSON
Should Green Bay wide receiver Koren Robinson get suspended, so will his contract. This means the Packers have Robinson under contract for the next two years he will be eligible to play football -- at a minimum wage.
Plus, the Packers did not give Robinson any signing bonus. Thus, should Robinson find more trouble, as he repeatedly has done in Seattle and Minnesota, the Packers would not be on the hook for any additional money.
So the Packers would appear to be taking a big gamble with Robinson.
But the truth is they're not risking much of anything -- other than some bad P.R.
FAMILIAR FACES
Sundays are hard enough on coaches. But this Sunday promises to be especially difficult for Bears coach Lovie Smith and Lions coach Rod Marinelli. When the two coaches were on Tampa Bay's staff in 1996, they shared a hotel room together. Since then, Smith and Marinelli have remained best friends. But for three hours Sept. 17, they will be forced to be competitors. It will not be easy. But then, Sundays never are.
STAT OF THE DAY
The Jets and the Patriots have the same number of wide receivers this season that were on New England's roster last season.
Last season, Jets wide receiver Tim Dwight played for the Patriots.
This season, Troy Brown is the only New England wide receiver who is a holdover from last season. The Patriots' other wide receivers this season are Gabriel, Reche Caldwell, second-round pick Chad Jackson and Jonathan Smith, none of whom was with New England last season.
(Sept. 12, 2006) -- Oakland's Randy Moss was supposed to be the Raiders' headache, but instead, wide receiver Jerry Porter has turned into the migraine.
The Raiders deactivated Porter before the Monday night game against San Diego, but the wide receiver would have preferred to have been a no show.
Around the League
Adam Schefter brings us the latest news from "Around the League."
Click here to watch
League sources said Porter actually called Buffalo safety Troy Vincent, the president of the NFL Players Association, and asked if he were required to show up for the game.
Vincent informed Porter, yes, he had to be there. To his dismay, Porter was.
How much longer Porter remains in Oakland is another story. The Raiders would like to deal Porter, but the problem is teams are not interested in him.
Even the receiver-needy Patriots were not interested in dealing for Porter earlier this summer; they made that clear from the outset.
Instead, they wanted wide receiver Doug Gabriel, and landed him for a fifth-round pick.
Jerry Porter might not be seen in an NFL uniform for several weeks.
During the offseason, the Denver Broncos made an inquiry about Porter, but quickly shied away when they learned the price for Porter would be two first-round picks.
Now the Raiders will be lucky to get much of anything in return for Porter, who led the Raiders last season with 76 receptions. Teams know that Raiders coach Art Shell kicked Porter out of his office during an offseason meeting between the two. They know that Porter has been openly insubordinate to the Raiders. And as long as the Raiders continue deactivating him -- and indications are they will -- Porter's behavior is not going to improve.
Asked about Porter's deactivation, Shell told reporters: "We had five receivers, and I decided we would go with the other four. That's it."
Only that's not it. Shell has hammered home the point that no player will defy his orders. But Porter is acting as if he is going to continue testing them.
FOR KICKS
Tuesday typically is the NFL's busy day, with teams conducting tryouts for free agents. And many teams were at it again today, most notably the Jets, who went in search of a kicker to replace Mike Nugent.
The Jets worked out three kickers -- former Minnesota Vikings veteran Paul Edinger, former San Francisco 49er Owen Pochman, and former Boise State standout Tyler Jones.
But the Jets didn't look only at kickers. They also worked out former Cleveland wide receiver Frisman Jackson, former Cardinals running back James Hodgins and former Packers guard William Whitticker.
There were other notable tryouts around the league:
Buffalo worked out former Texans running back Tony Hollings.
Carolina worked out former Cowboys quarterback Drew Henson.
Cleveland worked out former Buccaneers quarterback Shaun King.
Detroit worked out former Broncos offensive lineman Dwayne Carswell and former Titans quarterback Matt Mauck.
Miami worked out former Lions wide receiver Charles Rogers.
And Tampa Bay worked out former Saints quarterback Todd Bouman and former Panthers quarterback Stefan LeFors.
MOTOWN REUNION
For four years, wide receiver Az-Zahir Hakim and Mike Martz helped to make the St. Louis Rams the Greatest Show on Turf. Now the two are hoping to reignite their magic in Detroit.
Az-Zahir Hakim will don the Honolulu Blue for one more season, and under a trusted mentor.
The Lions signed Hakim to a one-year, $710,000 contract.
By waiting until after their opening game, the Lions are not obligated to guarantee Hakim's salary. But they have guaranteed him a chance to win playing time.
Hakim could challenge for the slot receiver position in Martz's offense, as well as back up Eddie Drummond in the return game. Last season, Hakim caught 34 passes for 489 yards and two touchdowns. He had planned to retire this offseason, but found he missed the game too much.
So when the Lions brought him in for a workout, and offered him a contract, Hakim grabbed it.
THE RISK OF ROBINSON
Should Green Bay wide receiver Koren Robinson get suspended, so will his contract. This means the Packers have Robinson under contract for the next two years he will be eligible to play football -- at a minimum wage.
Plus, the Packers did not give Robinson any signing bonus. Thus, should Robinson find more trouble, as he repeatedly has done in Seattle and Minnesota, the Packers would not be on the hook for any additional money.
So the Packers would appear to be taking a big gamble with Robinson.
But the truth is they're not risking much of anything -- other than some bad P.R.
FAMILIAR FACES
Sundays are hard enough on coaches. But this Sunday promises to be especially difficult for Bears coach Lovie Smith and Lions coach Rod Marinelli. When the two coaches were on Tampa Bay's staff in 1996, they shared a hotel room together. Since then, Smith and Marinelli have remained best friends. But for three hours Sept. 17, they will be forced to be competitors. It will not be easy. But then, Sundays never are.
STAT OF THE DAY
The Jets and the Patriots have the same number of wide receivers this season that were on New England's roster last season.
Last season, Jets wide receiver Tim Dwight played for the Patriots.
This season, Troy Brown is the only New England wide receiver who is a holdover from last season. The Patriots' other wide receivers this season are Gabriel, Reche Caldwell, second-round pick Chad Jackson and Jonathan Smith, none of whom was with New England last season.