TruBlueCowboy
05-31-2004, 01:34 PM
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/writers/peter_king/05/31/king.mmqb/index.html
June swoon
New cap strategies mean fewer quality free agents on summer market
Posted: Monday May 31, 2004 9:35AM; Updated: Monday May 31, 2004 9:47AM
Expect to see some big names on the NFL free-agent market. A good pass rusher, Pittsburgh's Jason Gildon, who has had 60 sacks the last six years, will be available to the highest bidder. A plugging middle linebacker, Jeremiah Trotter, who probably has a solid year left in him, will also be up for grabs. But quarterback Rich Gannon, who most of us thought we'd see on the street this week, won't be.
June 1 used to mean so much more in the NFL world. Now it's just a semi-interesting line of demarcation in the league's offseason. Since the new collective bargaining agreement between players and owners was forged in 1993, June 1 has been the date teams can cut players with more than a year left on their contracts, and spread the pro-rated portion of their signing bonus over the current year and the next one. It's how teams delay the impact of "dead money'' -- the dollars assigned to a player's value for cap purposes.
During the last couple of years, the impact of June 1 has been lessened by smart teams not willing to throw away the future for some cap relief this year; fewer franchises are playing dumb with their caps and buying time from tomorrow. There was an added bonus this year: Back in February teams thought the cap would be in the $78 million range. In stead it's just above $80 million, which means clubs had $2 million more to play with this offseason than they originally anticipated.
This year's group of free agents would have been very interesting had it included Gannon and Brad Johnson. That could have happened if the Raiders had decided to release Gannon next week instead of choosing to take him to training camp to compete with Kerry Collins for the starting job
One more asterisk here. You will probably see the troubled former Pro Bowl center, Oakland's Barret Robbins, on the market sometime in June. It won't be just a cap move. The Raiders simply don't think the guy can play anymore. He's too beat up. So though he may end up in someone's camp this summer, he won't be an impact player for any team for very long.
So although it's not a rich crop, there are some top-value players who should be available this week, or sometime in June:
1. Jason Gildon, OLB, Pittsburgh. Easily the top guy out there, though he'll be 32 on July 31. But is he the big, strong outside rusher who had 13.5 sacks in 2000 -- or the one who slipped to six in 2003? I know this: He's a great leader who will play hard until he keels over.
2. Zack Bronson, FS, San Francisco. A sign of the weakness of the crop is that Bronson, who's been hurt too much for my liking and who is 30, would be someone's answer in center field. But he's had some great days for the Niners -- like the last month of 2001, when he had five interceptions and made up for some green cornerback play.
3. Kurt Warner, QB, St. Louis. Risky as heck, because he's done absolutely nothing in the last two seasons to make you think he can be an above-average NFL starter anymore, never mind the second coming of John Unitas, which he looked like at the turn of the century. But I put him here for one reason. When the Giants gave him a thorough physical three weeks ago, they found nothing wrong with his right hand. Either that was a pie-in-the-sky exam or the guy really is OK physically. Though I'm skeptical he'll ever be very good again, he'll have a chance to prove it with the Giants.
4. Tim Couch, QB, Cleveland. He's looking for a magic carpet ride to a starting job, but he won't find it. If I were him, I'd walk to Green Bay, but I've been singing that tune for weeks.
5. Eddie George, RB, Tennessee. I suppose logic tells you to stay 500 miles away from George. He has 3.3-yards-a-carry written all over him, and that's not a winning per-rush average in the NFL. Since 2000, he has rushed for exactly 3.3 a carry. In 2003, he rushed for exactly 3.3 a carry. In the postseason last winter, he rushed for 3.3 a carry. So why should a team -- pick one: Dallas, Arizona, Houston (now there's a fascinating thought), Baltimore or the Giants -- take a million-dollar flyer on George? Because he's as proud a man as any in the NFL, and he'll be supremely motivated to give his all for one final season to show Titans owner Bud Adams he still has lots left in the tank.
6. Daryl Gardener, DT, Denver. Good luck, Leslie Frazier. It looks like Gardener, the supremely talented guy who it seems can never be happy in one place for too long, will end up with Cincinnati under Frazier, the young defensive coordinator. Well, Marvin Lewis must know something, because he had Gardener in Washington two years ago. For a guy who's supposed to be such a great interior pass rusher, 10.5 sacks in the last four years doesn't show me much.
7. Jeremiah Trotter, MLB, Washington. He probably has one more season left before chronic knee troubles kick him out of the game. I keep hearing Mike Holmgren and Totter's former coach in Philly, Seahawks defensive coordinator Ray Rhodes, want him for a year.
8. Vinny Testaverde, QB, New York Jets. Smart money says he'll land in Dallas, to back up whoever wins that job for one year. Watch out for a late challenge from the Patriots.
If the Bucs release tackle Kenyatta Walker, which they may do, he would be a good No. 3 tackle for someone, but he's too hit-and-miss to pay starter's money to. You might see Joe Horn on the list at some point this summer, because he's been such a pain in Jim Haslett's hiney. You may see Gannon, too, but I don't think that'll happen anytime soon. The Panthers keep saying they'll keep Muhsin Muhammad, and I believe them. He's still a good player.
The pickings are slim, but if I had a pass-rush need at outside linebacker, I'd find some money to pay Gildon.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
"Everyone has been working at this. At some point decisions need to be made." -- NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, talking about the league's efforts to put a franchise back in Los Angeles.
Here's the correct decision: Forget L.A., unless there's a some golden solution there that no one's come up with yet. I don't mean that as a slight to Los Angeles. I mean it as a real-world statement that the city is getting along just fine without the NFL, and vice versa. Why push it?
FROM THE EMAILBAG:
Hey, just because I didn't like Deion Sanders on TV doesn't mean I'm going to slight him when he comes up for a vote before the Hall of Fame committee. Come on, people.
DEION WILL WALTZ TO CANTON. From O'Dell of the Bronx: "What do you think of Sanders' chances for the Hall of Fame? Did he hurt himself any with the ignominious way he ended his career, or by overestimating his worth as a broadcaster?''
Neither. Deion could parade around in a G-string on your local access channel for all I care. He is as much of a first-ballot lock -- in my opinion -- as Barry Sanders and John Elway were this year. Now, as I've said, I don't speak for the other voters. But Sanders will get a vociferous assist from me when his candidacy comes up in the meeting room.
THIS IS HOW ARGUMENTS GET STARTED. From Tom Spencer of Clearwater, Fla.: "In regard to your comments about Brad Johnson being a 'schmoe quarterback,' perhaps Jon Gruden (much like many Bucs fans) was not pleased with Johnson's performance down the stretch. In his last 11 games he had a rating of approximately 71, possessed zero mobility and threw 18 interceptions. I appreciate what Johnson has done for the Bucs, but do you believe age is catching up with him? And when do you think Chris Simms will assume the starting position?''
Tom, I never called Johnson a schmoe quarterback. What I wrote was, "I think Brad Johnson woke up this morning and thought: What did I ever do to Jon Gruden to make him think I'm just some schmoe quarterback?'' I agree that Gruden was unhappy with how Johnson played at many times down the stretch last year. If he plays in September the way he did, say, against Atlanta at home last December, then Simms will be off the bench and in the lineup by October. Simms is that team's quarterback of the future.
A VOTE FOR JOEY HARRINGTON. From Chris Shunk of East Pointe, Mich.: "Lately I've heard a lot of talk about Joey Harrington not being the answer at quarterback for the Lions. I know he was absolutely horrible last season with all those three-yard passes and how he threw the ball away every time a defender was within six yards of him. In his defense, he did have Reggie Swinton and David Kircus as his starting receivers for about a third of the season. What's the national opinion of him? Are we too quick to judge a quarterback who only has two years of experience? Steve McNair didn't even play until his third year, and he just started to dominate the last couple of years."
Chris, this is a terrific e-mail and smart sentiment. How can anyone make a value judgment on Harrington after two middling seasons? If he has a healthy Charles Rogers and Roy Williams as receiving targets, and a good running game, then we'll be able to judge the kid. People are always too quick to draw conclusions about the people playing the most difficult position in sports. I will say this, as a sobering end note: Harrington hasn't done anything to give Joe Lions Fan hope that he'll be a great QB. But having said that, it's too early, as you say, to bury the kid.
REALITY BITES. From Brian Wheelin of Monroe, Conn.: "Can you explain to me why one should not care about reality TV stars as you expressed in last week's column but also care about 'real' celebrities by subscribing to People and Entertainment Weekly magazines?''
I get them free. SI's parent company publishes them, so they come like clockwork every week.
THE SOPRANOS CAN'T GET MUCH BETTER THAN LAST WEEK. From Craig McNaughton of Pontiac, Mich. : "Told you: Carmela is a big-time user. Who do you think will get whacked considering that the show will end next season -- Tony or Johnny Sack?''
Neither. There's no way the next season doesn't open with both men vying for control of the New York mob. I hear, much to my chagrin, that the next season will have only 10 episodes and will begin in the spring of 2006. All that hype -- and I think it will be the biggest buildup in television history, throughout 2005 and early 2006 -- for 10 hours or programming. Amazing.
THE 10 THINGS I THINK I THINK:
1. I think Thomas Jones is going to rush for 1,100 yards with Chicago this year, and he'll catch 65 passes from Rex Grossman. Jones is mature enough now to know this is his last chance to be an impact player in the NFL.
2. I think I'm not sure where Mike McKenzie will end up, but I think the best fit for him is in Cleveland, where Butch Davis wants his corners to be physical cover guys. Green Bay will miss McKenzie.
3. I think the one factor in Terrell Owens' arrival in Philadelphia that I haven't heard discussed much is the impact it will have on tight end L.J. Smith. Last year, as the season progressed, teams began paying more coverage attention to Smith. Now, with the big-bodied Owens in the lineup, Smith should see single-coverage pretty exclusively, and fewer strong safeties playing over the top of him. They'll have to be more concerned with Owens.
4. I think someone ought to step up and pay Chad Bratzke what he's worth. He's the best defensive end out there right now.
5. I think I still can't believe the Jets are entertaining the idea of going with Brooks Bollinger and Ricky Ray as their backup quarterbacks. Chad Pennington's not exactly Brett Favre when it comes to consecutive-games streaks.
6. I think these are my non-football thoughts of the week:
a. Major League Baseball has to do something about its schedule. Toronto played Boston 13 times in the season's first 44 games. Four series in seven weeks. It happens every year to almost every team under this weird scheduling configuration. Why can't baseball spread things out more?
b. Coffeenerdness: Is it just me or is Starbucks branching out into a hundred new beverages that have no coffee in them? I had a sip of some vanilla frappy thing last week that tasted like a Dairy Queen drink.
c. David Ortiz is the most underrated player in baseball.
d. I am setting an NBA record this month: most days with no pro basketball playoff games watched.
e. The third-best show on TV is The West Wing. I wish Martin Sheen were president.
7. I think it's been interesting to watch how well Jerry Jones and Bill Parcells are getting along. Really. If Bob Kraft had told Parcells he wanted him to keep Larry Allen, Parcells would have told the owner to go shopping for the groceries with someone else. Parcells digests Jones' input and might not like it, but he respects him enough to say: We'll make it work, big fella.
8. I think Kerry Collins will start the opener for the Raiders, but I can guarantee you that Norv Turner will look hard at Rich Gannon in July.
9. I think the last thing the Ravens want to do right now is sign Kordell Stewart before the quarterback market fleshes out a bit.
10. I think I hope we all pause, even it's only for 10 seconds, today and find a veteran to thank
June swoon
New cap strategies mean fewer quality free agents on summer market
Posted: Monday May 31, 2004 9:35AM; Updated: Monday May 31, 2004 9:47AM
Expect to see some big names on the NFL free-agent market. A good pass rusher, Pittsburgh's Jason Gildon, who has had 60 sacks the last six years, will be available to the highest bidder. A plugging middle linebacker, Jeremiah Trotter, who probably has a solid year left in him, will also be up for grabs. But quarterback Rich Gannon, who most of us thought we'd see on the street this week, won't be.
June 1 used to mean so much more in the NFL world. Now it's just a semi-interesting line of demarcation in the league's offseason. Since the new collective bargaining agreement between players and owners was forged in 1993, June 1 has been the date teams can cut players with more than a year left on their contracts, and spread the pro-rated portion of their signing bonus over the current year and the next one. It's how teams delay the impact of "dead money'' -- the dollars assigned to a player's value for cap purposes.
During the last couple of years, the impact of June 1 has been lessened by smart teams not willing to throw away the future for some cap relief this year; fewer franchises are playing dumb with their caps and buying time from tomorrow. There was an added bonus this year: Back in February teams thought the cap would be in the $78 million range. In stead it's just above $80 million, which means clubs had $2 million more to play with this offseason than they originally anticipated.
This year's group of free agents would have been very interesting had it included Gannon and Brad Johnson. That could have happened if the Raiders had decided to release Gannon next week instead of choosing to take him to training camp to compete with Kerry Collins for the starting job
One more asterisk here. You will probably see the troubled former Pro Bowl center, Oakland's Barret Robbins, on the market sometime in June. It won't be just a cap move. The Raiders simply don't think the guy can play anymore. He's too beat up. So though he may end up in someone's camp this summer, he won't be an impact player for any team for very long.
So although it's not a rich crop, there are some top-value players who should be available this week, or sometime in June:
1. Jason Gildon, OLB, Pittsburgh. Easily the top guy out there, though he'll be 32 on July 31. But is he the big, strong outside rusher who had 13.5 sacks in 2000 -- or the one who slipped to six in 2003? I know this: He's a great leader who will play hard until he keels over.
2. Zack Bronson, FS, San Francisco. A sign of the weakness of the crop is that Bronson, who's been hurt too much for my liking and who is 30, would be someone's answer in center field. But he's had some great days for the Niners -- like the last month of 2001, when he had five interceptions and made up for some green cornerback play.
3. Kurt Warner, QB, St. Louis. Risky as heck, because he's done absolutely nothing in the last two seasons to make you think he can be an above-average NFL starter anymore, never mind the second coming of John Unitas, which he looked like at the turn of the century. But I put him here for one reason. When the Giants gave him a thorough physical three weeks ago, they found nothing wrong with his right hand. Either that was a pie-in-the-sky exam or the guy really is OK physically. Though I'm skeptical he'll ever be very good again, he'll have a chance to prove it with the Giants.
4. Tim Couch, QB, Cleveland. He's looking for a magic carpet ride to a starting job, but he won't find it. If I were him, I'd walk to Green Bay, but I've been singing that tune for weeks.
5. Eddie George, RB, Tennessee. I suppose logic tells you to stay 500 miles away from George. He has 3.3-yards-a-carry written all over him, and that's not a winning per-rush average in the NFL. Since 2000, he has rushed for exactly 3.3 a carry. In 2003, he rushed for exactly 3.3 a carry. In the postseason last winter, he rushed for 3.3 a carry. So why should a team -- pick one: Dallas, Arizona, Houston (now there's a fascinating thought), Baltimore or the Giants -- take a million-dollar flyer on George? Because he's as proud a man as any in the NFL, and he'll be supremely motivated to give his all for one final season to show Titans owner Bud Adams he still has lots left in the tank.
6. Daryl Gardener, DT, Denver. Good luck, Leslie Frazier. It looks like Gardener, the supremely talented guy who it seems can never be happy in one place for too long, will end up with Cincinnati under Frazier, the young defensive coordinator. Well, Marvin Lewis must know something, because he had Gardener in Washington two years ago. For a guy who's supposed to be such a great interior pass rusher, 10.5 sacks in the last four years doesn't show me much.
7. Jeremiah Trotter, MLB, Washington. He probably has one more season left before chronic knee troubles kick him out of the game. I keep hearing Mike Holmgren and Totter's former coach in Philly, Seahawks defensive coordinator Ray Rhodes, want him for a year.
8. Vinny Testaverde, QB, New York Jets. Smart money says he'll land in Dallas, to back up whoever wins that job for one year. Watch out for a late challenge from the Patriots.
If the Bucs release tackle Kenyatta Walker, which they may do, he would be a good No. 3 tackle for someone, but he's too hit-and-miss to pay starter's money to. You might see Joe Horn on the list at some point this summer, because he's been such a pain in Jim Haslett's hiney. You may see Gannon, too, but I don't think that'll happen anytime soon. The Panthers keep saying they'll keep Muhsin Muhammad, and I believe them. He's still a good player.
The pickings are slim, but if I had a pass-rush need at outside linebacker, I'd find some money to pay Gildon.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
"Everyone has been working at this. At some point decisions need to be made." -- NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, talking about the league's efforts to put a franchise back in Los Angeles.
Here's the correct decision: Forget L.A., unless there's a some golden solution there that no one's come up with yet. I don't mean that as a slight to Los Angeles. I mean it as a real-world statement that the city is getting along just fine without the NFL, and vice versa. Why push it?
FROM THE EMAILBAG:
Hey, just because I didn't like Deion Sanders on TV doesn't mean I'm going to slight him when he comes up for a vote before the Hall of Fame committee. Come on, people.
DEION WILL WALTZ TO CANTON. From O'Dell of the Bronx: "What do you think of Sanders' chances for the Hall of Fame? Did he hurt himself any with the ignominious way he ended his career, or by overestimating his worth as a broadcaster?''
Neither. Deion could parade around in a G-string on your local access channel for all I care. He is as much of a first-ballot lock -- in my opinion -- as Barry Sanders and John Elway were this year. Now, as I've said, I don't speak for the other voters. But Sanders will get a vociferous assist from me when his candidacy comes up in the meeting room.
THIS IS HOW ARGUMENTS GET STARTED. From Tom Spencer of Clearwater, Fla.: "In regard to your comments about Brad Johnson being a 'schmoe quarterback,' perhaps Jon Gruden (much like many Bucs fans) was not pleased with Johnson's performance down the stretch. In his last 11 games he had a rating of approximately 71, possessed zero mobility and threw 18 interceptions. I appreciate what Johnson has done for the Bucs, but do you believe age is catching up with him? And when do you think Chris Simms will assume the starting position?''
Tom, I never called Johnson a schmoe quarterback. What I wrote was, "I think Brad Johnson woke up this morning and thought: What did I ever do to Jon Gruden to make him think I'm just some schmoe quarterback?'' I agree that Gruden was unhappy with how Johnson played at many times down the stretch last year. If he plays in September the way he did, say, against Atlanta at home last December, then Simms will be off the bench and in the lineup by October. Simms is that team's quarterback of the future.
A VOTE FOR JOEY HARRINGTON. From Chris Shunk of East Pointe, Mich.: "Lately I've heard a lot of talk about Joey Harrington not being the answer at quarterback for the Lions. I know he was absolutely horrible last season with all those three-yard passes and how he threw the ball away every time a defender was within six yards of him. In his defense, he did have Reggie Swinton and David Kircus as his starting receivers for about a third of the season. What's the national opinion of him? Are we too quick to judge a quarterback who only has two years of experience? Steve McNair didn't even play until his third year, and he just started to dominate the last couple of years."
Chris, this is a terrific e-mail and smart sentiment. How can anyone make a value judgment on Harrington after two middling seasons? If he has a healthy Charles Rogers and Roy Williams as receiving targets, and a good running game, then we'll be able to judge the kid. People are always too quick to draw conclusions about the people playing the most difficult position in sports. I will say this, as a sobering end note: Harrington hasn't done anything to give Joe Lions Fan hope that he'll be a great QB. But having said that, it's too early, as you say, to bury the kid.
REALITY BITES. From Brian Wheelin of Monroe, Conn.: "Can you explain to me why one should not care about reality TV stars as you expressed in last week's column but also care about 'real' celebrities by subscribing to People and Entertainment Weekly magazines?''
I get them free. SI's parent company publishes them, so they come like clockwork every week.
THE SOPRANOS CAN'T GET MUCH BETTER THAN LAST WEEK. From Craig McNaughton of Pontiac, Mich. : "Told you: Carmela is a big-time user. Who do you think will get whacked considering that the show will end next season -- Tony or Johnny Sack?''
Neither. There's no way the next season doesn't open with both men vying for control of the New York mob. I hear, much to my chagrin, that the next season will have only 10 episodes and will begin in the spring of 2006. All that hype -- and I think it will be the biggest buildup in television history, throughout 2005 and early 2006 -- for 10 hours or programming. Amazing.
THE 10 THINGS I THINK I THINK:
1. I think Thomas Jones is going to rush for 1,100 yards with Chicago this year, and he'll catch 65 passes from Rex Grossman. Jones is mature enough now to know this is his last chance to be an impact player in the NFL.
2. I think I'm not sure where Mike McKenzie will end up, but I think the best fit for him is in Cleveland, where Butch Davis wants his corners to be physical cover guys. Green Bay will miss McKenzie.
3. I think the one factor in Terrell Owens' arrival in Philadelphia that I haven't heard discussed much is the impact it will have on tight end L.J. Smith. Last year, as the season progressed, teams began paying more coverage attention to Smith. Now, with the big-bodied Owens in the lineup, Smith should see single-coverage pretty exclusively, and fewer strong safeties playing over the top of him. They'll have to be more concerned with Owens.
4. I think someone ought to step up and pay Chad Bratzke what he's worth. He's the best defensive end out there right now.
5. I think I still can't believe the Jets are entertaining the idea of going with Brooks Bollinger and Ricky Ray as their backup quarterbacks. Chad Pennington's not exactly Brett Favre when it comes to consecutive-games streaks.
6. I think these are my non-football thoughts of the week:
a. Major League Baseball has to do something about its schedule. Toronto played Boston 13 times in the season's first 44 games. Four series in seven weeks. It happens every year to almost every team under this weird scheduling configuration. Why can't baseball spread things out more?
b. Coffeenerdness: Is it just me or is Starbucks branching out into a hundred new beverages that have no coffee in them? I had a sip of some vanilla frappy thing last week that tasted like a Dairy Queen drink.
c. David Ortiz is the most underrated player in baseball.
d. I am setting an NBA record this month: most days with no pro basketball playoff games watched.
e. The third-best show on TV is The West Wing. I wish Martin Sheen were president.
7. I think it's been interesting to watch how well Jerry Jones and Bill Parcells are getting along. Really. If Bob Kraft had told Parcells he wanted him to keep Larry Allen, Parcells would have told the owner to go shopping for the groceries with someone else. Parcells digests Jones' input and might not like it, but he respects him enough to say: We'll make it work, big fella.
8. I think Kerry Collins will start the opener for the Raiders, but I can guarantee you that Norv Turner will look hard at Rich Gannon in July.
9. I think the last thing the Ravens want to do right now is sign Kordell Stewart before the quarterback market fleshes out a bit.
10. I think I hope we all pause, even it's only for 10 seconds, today and find a veteran to thank