Feb

28

Is Buffalo Serious About Moving McGahee?

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It may be motivation, or it may be time to rebuild for the Buffalo Bills. Those are the only two reasons I can think of as to why head coach Dick Jauron would come out and say that no player is “untouchable” when it comes to trading them – including running back Willis McGahee. The team is coming off a season where a late surge put them in the playoff picture for a few weeks, which makes the comments of shopping McGahee even more interesting. Last season, playing hurt for part of the season, the back ran for 990 yards and six touchdowns. His average per carry sat at 3.8, the same as in 2005, and he averaged 70.7 yards per game.

Despite that, McGahee is the one true playmaker that Buffalo has, and but trading him for likely draft picks, the team would really have to consider how the fans would react as well as to what chance they have of actually competing in 2007. One team that would 100 percent be interested in McGahee would be the New York Giants, who lost their Pro Bowl back, Tiki Barber to retirement, and now will have to rely on untested Brandon Jacobs if they don’t go out and score a back in free agency or the draft.

When pressed about the issue, Jauron did not deny that McGhaee, along with the rest of the players on his team, are available for the right price. “It’s in our best interest to listen to everybody, and no people are untouchable,” Jauron said at the NFL’s annual scouting combine at Indianapolis on Monday. “He’s a good back. He’s our starting running back right now. It’s no surprise to me at all that people are interested.” Could that type of statement be true? Or is it Jauron’s way of saying to Willis – “get your act together and become the back we need you to be.”

One reason for the talk may be the rumors that the Bills are upset about the fact that he has been doing most of his offseason workouts in Miami, and not in Orchard Park. McGahee also got the franchise upset last month when he spoke that the team should consider moving out of Buffalo and to Toronto. For now, McGahee and the Bills should settle any differences that they may have and he should continue to be their star back. If they do actually want to move him, there will be plenty of suitors out there, starting with the Giants.

 

Feb

28

Chiefs Make Wise Move In Signing Huard

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The KC Chiefs made the first big deal in free agency on Tuesday, and that’s three days before the actual free agency period begins. They did a deal with one of their own, signing quarterback Damon Huard to a three-year deal that will keep him a Chief and avoid becoming an unrestricted free agent. The signing of Huard could spell the beginning of the end to the tenure of Trent Green as Chiefs starting quarterback. Green missed a good portion of last season after getting slammed on opening day vs the Bengals and not returning till November.

Huard showed he was more than capable last season in leading Kansas City. He started eight games, and threw 11 touchdowns with just one interception. He threw for 1,878 yards and his 98 QB rating with second to Peyton Manning. Once Green came back in the lineup, the Chiefs, who were in prime position with Huard to make the playoffs, limped down the stretch, and got lucky on the last day of the season to slip into the playoffs as the number six seed. They lost to the Colts with Green as the QB 23-8 in the first round, with Green looking awful most of the day, throwing for just 107 yards and two INT’s.

Green could be in a position to start the season, then sit if the Chiefs get off to a bad start, or he can’t do enough to get the offense going. Next season Green is set to make $7.2 mil, and though he is signed through 2009, many don’t think that he will be in KC with his big contract if his string of poor play continues. Plus at 37 years old at the start of training camp, there is no doubt that bringing back Huard means that they look at him as the QB of the future.

Huard was 5-3 as the Chiefs starter last year, with Green going 4-4. If the Chiefs are smart, and with this signing they are showing that, they will give Huard every shot to win the starting job outright in training camp this year, starting a new era at QB for Kansas City.

Feb

26

Could Carr’s Days in Houston Be Numbered?

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While the Houston Texans are keeping a close eye on the situation with Broncos backup QB Jake Plummer, the future for current Houston QB David Carr is not very clear. Carr has two years left on his deal that is set to pay him $5.5 mil this year and $6 mil next year. At 28 years old, he clearly has not been the QB that the Texans thought they were getting with their very first pick, despite the fact many think he would thrive in a system that would allow him some time to throw the football.

In five seasons as the Texans starter, Carr has been sacked a whopping 249 times, or an average of 49.8 times per season. He has completed 60 percent of his passes in those five seasons, and thrown 59 touchdowns and 65 interceptions. His best season may have been his last, as he got off to a hot start, but defenses adjusted and by the end of the year there were many question marks about Carr’s future with the team.

Reports say that while the Texans and former Broncos offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak, now the Houston coach, really want to take a look at Plummer, Carr has been inquired about by a few teams. Houston is looking to snatch a third-round pick for Carr that could turn into a second-round pick if he does well with his new team. This could come down to being a draft day deal, as there is plenty of time for teams to look at free agents before anyone makes a deal for the former number one pick.

Feb

25

Barber Still Yappin; Coughlin Fires Back

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Even in retirement, former Giants RB Tiki Barber can’t keep his mouth shut about his former team.  This time though, Barber’s former coach, Tom Coughlin, has fired back, telling media reporters at the NFL Combine that he’s tired of the locker room squabbles that exsisted between the Giants last season, and now with Barber out the door, he hopes that things will go a lot smoother in 2007.  The latest between Barber and his former coach took place this past week as the former back had a presser to announce that he will now be working for NBC on the “Today” show as well on on the Sunday Night Football telecasts.

Barber criticized Coughlin for not giving him enough rest during the practice week of the season.  He said that there were days he was in so much pain he couldn’t move, and that it a big part of the reason why he walked away from the game.  Barber staed that he could only go half-speed.  Coach Tom fired back this time at his former back, bewilderd about all the comments already that Barber has come out with.  “I do not know what this is all about,” Coughlin said. “I was under the impression he was having a press conference to announce his new role with NBC, and then to find out that he turned around and talked about something like this … I think to give the illusion that I had something to do with his retirement, I don’t quite follow that.”

Of course this is not the first time that Barber has opened his mouth about his former coach or about the Giants in general.  After a shutout playoff loss last season to the Panthers, Barber was all over Coughlin.  It happend again this year after the Giants went in their mid-season slump and lost a bad Monday night game at Jacksonville.  Now that Barber is gone from the game, at least on the field, you would think he would give it a rest.

For Coughlin his goal for the 2007 Giants really should get them back to the form of 2005, a playoff team with a legit shot at going the distance.  It also should be his goal to create a better harmoney in the locker room, and now that Barber is gone, the only real loud mouths left to get under control are TE Jeremy Shockey and WR Plaxico Burress.  “Something that I’ve tried to do in our locker room is convince people that these types of matters don’t have to go outside of the team,” Coughlin said. “They stay within, they can be handled within. They don’t have to be addressed through the media.”

Easy for coach Tom to say, now we’ll see if the Giants players will follow form with it.

Feb

24

Dillon and the Pats Set to Part Ways

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In an effort to have a bigger role, Pats RB Corey Dillon says he wants out of New England, and according to sources will get his wish come March 2nd. Dillon knows that the writing for an even smaller role in the offense is on the wall after the tremendous rookie season Laurence Maroney had in the Pats offense. Dillon had stated that he was thinking about walking away and not playing at all this season, but his agent, Steve Feldman, says that he will play somewhere in 2007, but it won’t be for New England. “Corey does not have to play, but he still figures he’s got a couple of years left as a premier performer and the Patriots have been kind enough to understand that,” the agent said. Dillon, at 32 years old, can play a role somewhere. Of course he is going to want a boatload of cash, as well as want to play for a team that is in need for a running back that is not more than a few years away from making a Super Bowl run. One team right off the bat that is Denver. The Broncos are talking about adding a bruiser to the running game, and one player they would love to have is Adrain Peterson, but the thoughts of Denver moving up high enough in the draft to take him is unlikely. With that, Denver could easily be in the loop to snag Dillon, who is the top active runner in the NFL with 11,421 career yards with the Bengals and Pats.

Dillon still has three years remaining on his current contract and was scheduled to count $4.4 million against the salary cap in 2007. Last year he had 812 yards on 199 carries. In three years with the team, he ran for 3,180 yards and scored 39 touchdowns in 43 games. He told the Boston Globe earlier this week that “I gave them what they wanted, I didn’t come in and steal money.” Now he wants a chance to do the same elsewhere, and the Pats look happy to give him his wish come Friday.

Feb

23

Adalius Thomas to be the Apple of the 49′ers Eye

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A key player in the Baltimore Ravens race to the number two seed in the AFC last season and the AFC North title looks like he will not be back in 2007. Linebacker Adalius Thomas has played his last game for the birds, as Thursday the team decided not to franchise Thomas, therefore he will go on the open market when free agency starts. Thomas will be a hot player on the open market and there will be plenty of teams, with the Saints and 49′ers rumored to be the top ones, going after his services.

The Ravens were in a tough spot with Thomas, as not only is he going to demand a five or six-year deal, but he also is going to garner a huge signing bonus. The 29-year old has his best season in 2006, making the Pro Bowl after registering 11 sacks, a fumble recovery, and one interception. Overall, Thomas has been a key for the Ravens since becoming a starter back in the 2001 season, starting 16 games in five of the six years as a starter. He has 28 sacks over the last three seasons.

The Monterey Herald in California stated in today’s edition that Thomas is going to be the big-ticket item that the 49′ers are going to eye in free agency. San Fran has the most money to spend on free agency, as they are $37.5 mil under the cap, and a solid portion of that could go right to Thomas. Once the free agents can start signing next Friday, you can bet that Thomas’ first trip will be to San Fran. The Ravens cap situation is tight, as they are just $3 mil under, making keeping Thomas without giving him the franchise tag impossible.

Feb

22

Shocker as Pacman Causes Trouble in Strip Club

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Note to Adam “Pacman” Jones: stay out of strip clubs.  Better yet – “Pacman,” stay out of strip clubs with $81,000 in your pocket as you shower 40 skanks on stage.  Yep, that’s the latest in the saga of Jones, who is now awaiting word on what may come next after a melee that he was involved in at a strip club in Las Vegas over the weekend.

The story goes that Jones and a few boys were hangin at the Minxx Gentlemen’s Club, and that Jones was “showering” more than 40 strippers onstage with over $81,000 in cash.  The police have seized $81,020 in cash of Jones, and state that the money was “intended as as visual effect,” according to a search warrant.  From there at the club a fight broke out when a Houston promoter that hired the women told them to pick the money up.

The promoter and an assoicate took the money in a few plastic bags, and once it was siezed at a local hotel told police he thought it belonged to the dancers, and well, since he hired them, then why wouldn’t it be his at that point?  The warrant states that evidently Jones did not feel the same way – “Jones became irate about the loss of his money, and the fact that girls were in a frenzy, picking up the money at their feet.”

A woman that supposedly was with Jones also started a fight with one of the strippers.  A class act to say the least.  The woman hit a guard in the head with a champagne bottle and “began biting and screaming” when other guards tried to restrain her, the warrant says.

Ah yes, just another day for Jones, who has faced criminal charges no less than three times since the Titans made the former WV player the 6th pick in the 05 Draft.  All the incidents with Jones have taken place at nightclubs – meaning that it is evident that Jones should do one thing – STAY AWAY!

Will Jones get in trouble for this latest incident? He was ordered to stay out of trouble until July 5 if he wants his criminal record cleared of public intoxication and disorderly conduct charges for an August arrest in Murfreesboro.  Maybe instead of running around like some playa, he should mind his P’s and Q’s and start acting more like a professional.  Of course don’t tell him that, he’d just have one of his women start a fight with you.

Feb

22

Another Top Wide Out to Miss Combine?

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Reports Thursday on Yahoo! have yet another high impact player possibly not doing much at the upcoming NFL combine.  That player is possible #1 overall pick in April’s Draft – wide out Calvin Johnson.  The 2006 Biletnikoff Award winner and 2006 Unanimout first team All-American may decide to wait until March 15th to perform a full workout for scouts.

The Yahoo! report goes on to state that the Junior has been working out in Orlando, but is still not sure about how much he wants to show the Pro scouts.  In 38 games in college, Johnson set school records with 2,927 yards receiving and 28 TD catches, including 15 this past season.  At 6-foo-5 and 235 pounds, he has a great combo of size and speed that has put him right up at the top of the list for wide outs.

Earlier this week it was reported that another top wide out – Ohio State’s Ted Ginn Jr., also may miss the combines as he recovers from an injury that he suffered in the National Championship loss to the Florida Gators after he was celebrating taking back the opening kickoff for a touchdown.

The final part of the report on Johnson says that he may pass on running the 40-yard dash, but would likely still perform such drills as the vertical, broad jump, short shuttle and three-cone drill.

Feb

21

Does Denver Have a Big Enough Deal to Grab Peterson?

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After missing the playoffs by an overtime field goal, the Denver Broncos are apparently looking to make some big changes this offseason, and two key players from the 2006 season may be on their way out to make room for one player that could be on the verge of being a huge superstar in the NFL.

The rumor stems from the Rocky Mountain News, which states that the Broncos might be willing to move Quarterback Jake Plummer, who was benched mid-season for Jay Cutler, and Running Back Tatum Bell in some sort of mega-deal that would get them up high enough in the draft to pick RB Adrian Peterson.

Plummer being moved seems very possible, as there are quite a few teams that would not mind having the services of Jake.  Those teams include the Houston Texans, Tampa Bay Bucs, the Cleveland Browns, the Oakland Raiders, and the Detroit Lions.

As for Bell, last season he averaged 4.4 yards per carry, and ran for 1,025 yards.  The negatives are he only crossed the goal line twice, and at 213 pounds, there is concern that as the season goes on he tends to wear down.  The Broncos seem to have that knack for getting RB’s by the bunches, and would still have the services of Mike Bell if they could find a taker for Tatum at the right price.

Plummer, entering his 11th pro year, had a very up and down season that eventually cost him his job after 11 starts.  He threw for close to 2,000 yards, but had more picks – 13, than TD’s – 11.  There is still gas in the tank for Plummer, but there is no doubt where the Broncos stand right now that Cutler is the quarterback of the future, and he will be the starter when 2007 begins.

At 9-7, Denver is slated to pick 21st in the April 2007 Draft, and a lot of things would have to happen for them to be able to move up high enough to take Peterson, who will be the number one running back taken in the draft.  Peterson could be one of the more bigger impact players to enter the draft in quite awhile. Taking nothing away from Vince Young or Reggie Bush, who had great rookie years, Peterson has a great belnd of size, speed and power that can change a game.

Plus add to the fact he is a bruiser, and you have a back that can be a big impact player in his first year in the NFL.  As many as eight teams are looking to take a running back in the first or second round, but unless the Broncos make a splash to move up, there is for sure no chance he will hang around long enough to be taken at 21.     

Feb

20

Turner’s Hiring Draws Many Views

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Seems like most of the writers in San Diego today are not big fans of the hire of new Chargers coach Norv Turner.  Turner was hired Monday despite going 58-82-1 in nine years as a head coach in the NFL.  One number that popped out in a column by T.J. Simers in the LA Times today was that Turner was 1-11 vs AFC West teams as coach of the Raiders.  Simers column, entitled “Chargers Martyball is Replaced by Goofball” can be found at this address:

http://www.latimes.com/sports/football/nfl/la-sp-simers20feb20,1,4570555.column?coll=la-headlines-sports-nfl&ctrack=1&cset=true

The column rips apart the Spanos family, or the Spanos “Goofs” as Simers refers to them as.  He states that the team is now firmly in the grasp of GM A.J. Smith, and that the Chargers are headed for a downfall with this new direction of getting Turner, along with new defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell.

The San Diego Union-Tribune article on the coaching hire today by Jim Trotter states that Smith was the “primary culprit” in why Marty Schottenheimer was fired after going 35-13 over his last three years as Chargers coach, including 14-2 this past season.  The article says that Smith would be considered “petty” for fighting with Schottenheimer over the past few seasons if the current coaching staff does not take the Chargers to the next level.  The remainder of the article can be found here:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20070220/news_1s20ajnorv.html

Then of course there is the fan base in San Diego, who for some are defending the moves:

“I don’t get it a lot of journalists, sportswriters and columnists are very negative on hiring these coaches. I just don’t see why these moves made by Spanos and AJ are bad . They chose to hire coaches whom are familiair with the playbook on both sides off the ball, hell Turner invented the offence we run right now and cottrell has a history with Wade, so I honestly think these guys fit in perfectly. And add Rivera as LB coach you are loaded with experience and talent on the coaching staff. So I’m suspecting that a few of these socalled journalists and columnists are doing the bash San Diego thing again. The good thing is that we can prove’em wrong again next year.”

….And some that are not liking the move….

“REASONS TO LIKE NORV
 
1) I won’t get high blood pressure anticipating the playoffs.
2) I won’t have to pay for playoff tickets.
3) Desert season will start sooner.
4) After all the band wagoneers get off there will be shorter lines in the bathrooms during home games.
5) More chance at the first pick in the draft.
6) No more pain form losing in the playoffs.
7) Chargers gear will be in less demand and cheaper to buy.

Thats all the positives I can think of.”

Through it all, it appears that Smith’s head is on the line with the hiring of Turner and the remaning staff.  The writers hate it, the fans are mixed, and the results are going to come fast once the 2007 season gets underway.  

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