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• There are whispers that when all is said and done, Patriots CB Asante Samuel will show up in training camp and sign his franchise tender.
• With WR Brandon Stokley ahead of schedule in the rehab process following Achilles surgery and the coaching staff excited about second-year WR Domenik Hixon, word out of Denver is that the declining 37-year-old Rod Smith could have a difficult time making it out of camp.
• Observers say QB Brodie Croyle's passes came out of his hand quickly during Kansas City's summer sessions and that there was a real difference in how crisp his throws were, compared to those of Damon Huard.
• With the Colts still expected to part ways with DT Corey Simon, our sources tell us the team is hoping to get a lot more help on the D-line this season from versatile fifth-year pro Dan Klecko.
• We hear that Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga's leap of faith in deciding to extend GM Randy Mueller's deal to 2010 came about because he desperately wants stability on the football side of his organization. Though it's too early to evaluate the moves Mueller has made since taking charge in late January, word is Huizenga likes the way Mueller carries himself. Huizenga has noticed how much happier the front office is, compared to the way it was during Nick Saban's reign, and he is pleased that Mueller and head coach Cam Cameron get along so well and are on the same page.
• We hear that the Patriots discouraged their players from granting interviews from the end of minicamp to the start of training camp because, during an important team-building time, the Patriots' coaching staff didn't want the players to believe their overwhelmingly positive press clippings.
• Word is the Bills jumped at the chance to extend Pro Bowl P Brian Moorman's contract three more years through 2012 after he approached the team with the idea. Moorman is due to make $10 million over the next six years, making him the highest-paid punter in the NFL.
• Despite the stricter personal-conduct policy under commissioner Roger Goodell, we're told it would be a surprise to see Packers MLB Nick Barnett receive a league suspension. His arrest in June for allegedly pushing a female bar patron was the first incident of its kind in his five-year career.
• We hear DT Tommie Harris should be 100 percent healthy from Day One of training camp. The two-time Pro Bowler sustained a severe hamstring injury in Week 13, and the Bears' defense wasn't the same without him.
• Bears WR Mark Bradley handed in an impressive offseason and was a frequent target in the team's workouts this summer. We hear he may be just as fast as burner Bernard Berrian, with more size and strength over the middle. Still, he has to avoid his proclivity for injuries.
• With Thomas Jones no longer in the picture, Bears RB Cedric Benson is thrilled to be carrying the load and eager to do so. We're told the team earnestly believes he's the better player between the two backs.
• Despite Tommie Harris' comments to the contrary, we hear the Bears' locker room remains steadfast in its support of beleaguered QB Rex Grossman.
• Although CB Antoine Winfield has made amends with the Vikings, don't be surprised if this isn't the last you hear of a divide, especially if the offense struggles out of the gate.
• Both QB Jon Kitna and WR Mike Furrey predicted double-digit wins for the cellar-dwelling Lions, but don't mistake their bold proclamations for braggadocio. We're told it was far more about optimism and changing the losing culture than it was trash talk.
• While it must be considered a long shot at this stage in the offseason, we hear a trade by the Rams for disgruntled Panthers DT Kris Jenkins is not dead in the water yet, by any means.
• Word is the Rams have been more than a little impressed with the size and range of long-armed veteran free agent Lenny Walls at the CB position. In the team's mid-June minicamp, Walls performed admirably on the first team as a replacement for 2006 No. 1 pick Tye Hill, who was held out with a staph infection.
• Niners insiders believe the season-ending losses of DE Melvin Oliver (torn ACL in right knee) and CB B.J. Tucker (torn pectoral muscle) will have a minimal effect on the team. In the best-case scenario, the undersized Oliver, who started 14 games in 2006, figured to be the last defensive lineman off the bench, while Tucker was considered a real long shot to make the final roster cut.
• We hear Niners head coach Mike Nolan likes what he has seen in the secondary so far from a pair of second-day draft picks, Dashon Goldson (fourth round) and Tarell Brown (fifth round). Nolan has made a point of complimenting Goldson's physical nature and tackling ability. Although he has to defer to Seahawks defensive coordinator John Marshall, new assistant head coach/secondary coach Jim Mora appears to have taken on a major role implementing the team's defensive scheme. It's worth noting that Mora had great success as the Niners' defensive coordinator working with multifaceted OLB Julian Peterson, who is now the Seattle defense's top playmaker.
• There have been a host of good-looking young newcomers in the Seahawks' receiver corps this offseason (sixth-round pick Jordan Kent and undrafted rookies Joe Fernandez and Logan Payne), but the way we hear it, if there's a sleeper in the unit, it would have to be graceful Ben Obomanu, a seventh-round pick last season who has looked a lot like D.J. Hackett did last offseason before emerging as a key under-the-radar receiving weapon.
• Don't be shocked if Cardinals second-year TE Leonard Pope, who has yet to show he can consistently block on the pro level among other things, receives a major challenge for the starting role from first-year pro Troy Bienemann, a much smoother-looking player who has shown surprisingly good hands so far this offseason.
• We hear the Cardinals are weighing the possibility of moving fourth-year CB Matt Ware to safety.
• While second-year pro T.J. Rushing is considered the front-runner to replace the departed Terrence Wilkins as the Colts' kick-return specialist, we hear he will get plenty of competition from rookies Roy Hall, Daymeion Hughes and Michael Coe, and second-year RB DeDe Dorsey, who remains the front-runner to fill the role of departed RB Dominic Rhodes.
• Raiders WR Ronald Curry told PFW recently that volatile teammate Jerry Porter is doing "just fine" a year after a much-publicized blow-up with former head coach Art Shell led to a tumultuous season in which he rarely saw the field. "He's taken more of a leadership role this year, and Coach [Lane] Kiffin's going to allow him to lead," Curry said. "… The biggest thing about coaching is you can't handle everybody the same. He's one of those guys that you've got to handle like he wants to be handled because he's going to go out there and play for you on Sunday. That's something you can't take away from him -- he's going to go out there and compete in games and practice. He brings a lot to the table, and we definitely need him."
• Don't be surprised to see the Broncos make a deal for a veteran safety in the days leading up to training camp or in the early stages of the preseason. Denver was close to a deal with the Chiefs for Greg Wesley in late June, and talks could heat up again soon. The emergence of second-year safeties Jarrad Page and Bernard Pollard in Kansas City has made Wesley and his $2.7 million base salary expendable.
• Sources in Kansas City suggest the addition of veteran LB Donnie Edwards will have a profound impact on budding star LB Derrick Johnson, who figures to learn plenty from Edwards' experience and leadership.
• Don't be surprised if Chiefs OLB Kendrell Bell, who has been replaced in the lineup by Donnie Edwards, takes on more of a third-down pass-rushing role in '07, especially in the first month of the season when DE Jared Allen is serving his four-game suspension.
• Clinton Hart has had an impressive summer of work and is the clear favorite over Bhawoh Jue and rookie Eric Weddle to handle the starting SS duties in San Diego following Terrence Kiel's release.
• After locking up franchised DE Charles Grant with a seven-year, $63 million contract (with $20 million in guaranteed money), the Saints now will turn their attention to DE Will Smith, our sources tell us. While the Saints normally would not consider negotiating a new deal with a player who has two years remaining on his contract as Smith does, we're told the fourth-year pro, who played in his first Pro Bowl in February, is considered a cornerstone of the franchise, trailing only QB Drew Brees and RB Reggie Bush in importance.
• We hear Buccaneers head coach Jon Gruden has dispatched RB Cadillac Williams to return kicks in practice in an effort to improve his starting running back's hand-eye coordination and make him a better pass-catcher. We're told Gruden wants to get Williams, who has 50 receptions in two seasons, more involved in the passing game, but he doesn't plan on using Williams as a returner in games.
• Word out of Jacksonville is that DT Marcus Stroud (ankle) and DE Reggie Hayward (ruptured Achilles tendon) did not participate in the Jaguars' offseason program while they recovered from surgery. We hear Hayward's injury is the more serious of the two and there is some concern that the 28-year-old pass-rusher may not regain his pre-injury explosiveness.
• Sources tell us Buccaneers RS/CB Torrie Cox's four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy could be the least of his worries if Chad Owens or Mark Jones steps forward to seize the return-specialist job. We hear head coach Jon Gruden would like to designate only one return specialist this season to free up a roster spot to carry another receiver on game days.
• Word out of Charlotte is QBs Jake Delhomme and David Carr are getting along well because they are both very family-oriented off the field. We hear that Delhomme doesn't view Carr as any more of a threat to his starting job than his previous backup, Chris Weinke.
• All indications are that the Commanders will get back to playing assistant head coach/defense Gregg Williams' patented man defense more often. They played far too much Cover 2 last season, but the additions of CBs Fred Smoot and David Macklin, plus FS LaRon Landry, will allow the team to cover more in man and blitz.
• A possible minor deal that has been discussed: sending Eagles QB Kelly Holcomb to Minnesota for a 2008 late-round pick, likely a sixth- or seventh-rounder. A source confirmed that Vikings head coach Brad Childress, still friendly with his former Eagles co-workers, is keeping one eye open for veteran quarterbacks and possibly would be interested in Holcomb's services.
• Cowboys first-round LB Anthony Spencer has worked with the first team this offseason, but that likely will change when, or if, Greg Ellis is cleared medically from his rehab of a torn Achilles tendon. It might also be a ploy to quiet the financial demands of Ellis, who is clamoring for a new deal, because the early reports on Spencer's work have been mixed.
• Enter a new face in the Giants' revolving OT mix: second-year pro Jonathan Dunn. Though he faces an uphill battle to even make the roster, Dunn appeared nimble in minicamps despite his massive size at 6-7 and 324 pounds.
• The plan is to keep Titans first-round pick Michael Griffin at cornerback -- for now. He looked out of place, especially in man defense (Pacman Jones' calling card), in the OTAs, but the coaches feel Griffin is a good enough athlete to make the switch from college safety. Still, given the team's good cornerback depth and seeming dearth at safety, don't rule out a switch back to safety in training camp.
• Word from Cleveland is that no Browns receiver, Braylon Edwards included, impressed in offseason workouts. Joe Jurevicius looked the best of the lackluster bunch, but his lack of speed was noticeable, and the Browns will enter training camp with questions about their group of pass-catchers. And don't forget that TE Kellen Winslow's availability for the start of training camp is up in the air as he recovers from knee microfracture surgery.
• We're hearing Browns NT Shaun Smith will have every chance to push Ted Washington out of a starting job. Smith was signed from Cincinnati in the offseason.
• Texans observers were impressed with DE Mario Williams' attitude in the offseason. Williams acted hungry, and he took rookie DT Amobi Okoye under his wing.
• The Bengals were said to be pleased with what they saw from rookie safeties Marvin White and Nedu Ndukwe in offseason workouts.
• We're told Steelers rookie TE Matt Spaeth, a third-round pick, was not especially impressive in workouts. Spaeth is likely to see playing time in two-TE sets this season.
• With WR Brandon Stokley ahead of schedule in the rehab process following Achilles surgery and the coaching staff excited about second-year WR Domenik Hixon, word out of Denver is that the declining 37-year-old Rod Smith could have a difficult time making it out of camp.
• Observers say QB Brodie Croyle's passes came out of his hand quickly during Kansas City's summer sessions and that there was a real difference in how crisp his throws were, compared to those of Damon Huard.
• With the Colts still expected to part ways with DT Corey Simon, our sources tell us the team is hoping to get a lot more help on the D-line this season from versatile fifth-year pro Dan Klecko.
• We hear that Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga's leap of faith in deciding to extend GM Randy Mueller's deal to 2010 came about because he desperately wants stability on the football side of his organization. Though it's too early to evaluate the moves Mueller has made since taking charge in late January, word is Huizenga likes the way Mueller carries himself. Huizenga has noticed how much happier the front office is, compared to the way it was during Nick Saban's reign, and he is pleased that Mueller and head coach Cam Cameron get along so well and are on the same page.
• We hear that the Patriots discouraged their players from granting interviews from the end of minicamp to the start of training camp because, during an important team-building time, the Patriots' coaching staff didn't want the players to believe their overwhelmingly positive press clippings.
• Word is the Bills jumped at the chance to extend Pro Bowl P Brian Moorman's contract three more years through 2012 after he approached the team with the idea. Moorman is due to make $10 million over the next six years, making him the highest-paid punter in the NFL.
• Despite the stricter personal-conduct policy under commissioner Roger Goodell, we're told it would be a surprise to see Packers MLB Nick Barnett receive a league suspension. His arrest in June for allegedly pushing a female bar patron was the first incident of its kind in his five-year career.
• We hear DT Tommie Harris should be 100 percent healthy from Day One of training camp. The two-time Pro Bowler sustained a severe hamstring injury in Week 13, and the Bears' defense wasn't the same without him.
• Bears WR Mark Bradley handed in an impressive offseason and was a frequent target in the team's workouts this summer. We hear he may be just as fast as burner Bernard Berrian, with more size and strength over the middle. Still, he has to avoid his proclivity for injuries.
• With Thomas Jones no longer in the picture, Bears RB Cedric Benson is thrilled to be carrying the load and eager to do so. We're told the team earnestly believes he's the better player between the two backs.
• Despite Tommie Harris' comments to the contrary, we hear the Bears' locker room remains steadfast in its support of beleaguered QB Rex Grossman.
• Although CB Antoine Winfield has made amends with the Vikings, don't be surprised if this isn't the last you hear of a divide, especially if the offense struggles out of the gate.
• Both QB Jon Kitna and WR Mike Furrey predicted double-digit wins for the cellar-dwelling Lions, but don't mistake their bold proclamations for braggadocio. We're told it was far more about optimism and changing the losing culture than it was trash talk.
• While it must be considered a long shot at this stage in the offseason, we hear a trade by the Rams for disgruntled Panthers DT Kris Jenkins is not dead in the water yet, by any means.
• Word is the Rams have been more than a little impressed with the size and range of long-armed veteran free agent Lenny Walls at the CB position. In the team's mid-June minicamp, Walls performed admirably on the first team as a replacement for 2006 No. 1 pick Tye Hill, who was held out with a staph infection.
• Niners insiders believe the season-ending losses of DE Melvin Oliver (torn ACL in right knee) and CB B.J. Tucker (torn pectoral muscle) will have a minimal effect on the team. In the best-case scenario, the undersized Oliver, who started 14 games in 2006, figured to be the last defensive lineman off the bench, while Tucker was considered a real long shot to make the final roster cut.
• We hear Niners head coach Mike Nolan likes what he has seen in the secondary so far from a pair of second-day draft picks, Dashon Goldson (fourth round) and Tarell Brown (fifth round). Nolan has made a point of complimenting Goldson's physical nature and tackling ability. Although he has to defer to Seahawks defensive coordinator John Marshall, new assistant head coach/secondary coach Jim Mora appears to have taken on a major role implementing the team's defensive scheme. It's worth noting that Mora had great success as the Niners' defensive coordinator working with multifaceted OLB Julian Peterson, who is now the Seattle defense's top playmaker.
• There have been a host of good-looking young newcomers in the Seahawks' receiver corps this offseason (sixth-round pick Jordan Kent and undrafted rookies Joe Fernandez and Logan Payne), but the way we hear it, if there's a sleeper in the unit, it would have to be graceful Ben Obomanu, a seventh-round pick last season who has looked a lot like D.J. Hackett did last offseason before emerging as a key under-the-radar receiving weapon.
• Don't be shocked if Cardinals second-year TE Leonard Pope, who has yet to show he can consistently block on the pro level among other things, receives a major challenge for the starting role from first-year pro Troy Bienemann, a much smoother-looking player who has shown surprisingly good hands so far this offseason.
• We hear the Cardinals are weighing the possibility of moving fourth-year CB Matt Ware to safety.
• While second-year pro T.J. Rushing is considered the front-runner to replace the departed Terrence Wilkins as the Colts' kick-return specialist, we hear he will get plenty of competition from rookies Roy Hall, Daymeion Hughes and Michael Coe, and second-year RB DeDe Dorsey, who remains the front-runner to fill the role of departed RB Dominic Rhodes.
• Raiders WR Ronald Curry told PFW recently that volatile teammate Jerry Porter is doing "just fine" a year after a much-publicized blow-up with former head coach Art Shell led to a tumultuous season in which he rarely saw the field. "He's taken more of a leadership role this year, and Coach [Lane] Kiffin's going to allow him to lead," Curry said. "… The biggest thing about coaching is you can't handle everybody the same. He's one of those guys that you've got to handle like he wants to be handled because he's going to go out there and play for you on Sunday. That's something you can't take away from him -- he's going to go out there and compete in games and practice. He brings a lot to the table, and we definitely need him."
• Don't be surprised to see the Broncos make a deal for a veteran safety in the days leading up to training camp or in the early stages of the preseason. Denver was close to a deal with the Chiefs for Greg Wesley in late June, and talks could heat up again soon. The emergence of second-year safeties Jarrad Page and Bernard Pollard in Kansas City has made Wesley and his $2.7 million base salary expendable.
• Sources in Kansas City suggest the addition of veteran LB Donnie Edwards will have a profound impact on budding star LB Derrick Johnson, who figures to learn plenty from Edwards' experience and leadership.
• Don't be surprised if Chiefs OLB Kendrell Bell, who has been replaced in the lineup by Donnie Edwards, takes on more of a third-down pass-rushing role in '07, especially in the first month of the season when DE Jared Allen is serving his four-game suspension.
• Clinton Hart has had an impressive summer of work and is the clear favorite over Bhawoh Jue and rookie Eric Weddle to handle the starting SS duties in San Diego following Terrence Kiel's release.
• After locking up franchised DE Charles Grant with a seven-year, $63 million contract (with $20 million in guaranteed money), the Saints now will turn their attention to DE Will Smith, our sources tell us. While the Saints normally would not consider negotiating a new deal with a player who has two years remaining on his contract as Smith does, we're told the fourth-year pro, who played in his first Pro Bowl in February, is considered a cornerstone of the franchise, trailing only QB Drew Brees and RB Reggie Bush in importance.
• We hear Buccaneers head coach Jon Gruden has dispatched RB Cadillac Williams to return kicks in practice in an effort to improve his starting running back's hand-eye coordination and make him a better pass-catcher. We're told Gruden wants to get Williams, who has 50 receptions in two seasons, more involved in the passing game, but he doesn't plan on using Williams as a returner in games.
• Word out of Jacksonville is that DT Marcus Stroud (ankle) and DE Reggie Hayward (ruptured Achilles tendon) did not participate in the Jaguars' offseason program while they recovered from surgery. We hear Hayward's injury is the more serious of the two and there is some concern that the 28-year-old pass-rusher may not regain his pre-injury explosiveness.
• Sources tell us Buccaneers RS/CB Torrie Cox's four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy could be the least of his worries if Chad Owens or Mark Jones steps forward to seize the return-specialist job. We hear head coach Jon Gruden would like to designate only one return specialist this season to free up a roster spot to carry another receiver on game days.
• Word out of Charlotte is QBs Jake Delhomme and David Carr are getting along well because they are both very family-oriented off the field. We hear that Delhomme doesn't view Carr as any more of a threat to his starting job than his previous backup, Chris Weinke.
• All indications are that the Commanders will get back to playing assistant head coach/defense Gregg Williams' patented man defense more often. They played far too much Cover 2 last season, but the additions of CBs Fred Smoot and David Macklin, plus FS LaRon Landry, will allow the team to cover more in man and blitz.
• A possible minor deal that has been discussed: sending Eagles QB Kelly Holcomb to Minnesota for a 2008 late-round pick, likely a sixth- or seventh-rounder. A source confirmed that Vikings head coach Brad Childress, still friendly with his former Eagles co-workers, is keeping one eye open for veteran quarterbacks and possibly would be interested in Holcomb's services.
• Cowboys first-round LB Anthony Spencer has worked with the first team this offseason, but that likely will change when, or if, Greg Ellis is cleared medically from his rehab of a torn Achilles tendon. It might also be a ploy to quiet the financial demands of Ellis, who is clamoring for a new deal, because the early reports on Spencer's work have been mixed.
• Enter a new face in the Giants' revolving OT mix: second-year pro Jonathan Dunn. Though he faces an uphill battle to even make the roster, Dunn appeared nimble in minicamps despite his massive size at 6-7 and 324 pounds.
• The plan is to keep Titans first-round pick Michael Griffin at cornerback -- for now. He looked out of place, especially in man defense (Pacman Jones' calling card), in the OTAs, but the coaches feel Griffin is a good enough athlete to make the switch from college safety. Still, given the team's good cornerback depth and seeming dearth at safety, don't rule out a switch back to safety in training camp.
• Word from Cleveland is that no Browns receiver, Braylon Edwards included, impressed in offseason workouts. Joe Jurevicius looked the best of the lackluster bunch, but his lack of speed was noticeable, and the Browns will enter training camp with questions about their group of pass-catchers. And don't forget that TE Kellen Winslow's availability for the start of training camp is up in the air as he recovers from knee microfracture surgery.
• We're hearing Browns NT Shaun Smith will have every chance to push Ted Washington out of a starting job. Smith was signed from Cincinnati in the offseason.
• Texans observers were impressed with DE Mario Williams' attitude in the offseason. Williams acted hungry, and he took rookie DT Amobi Okoye under his wing.
• The Bengals were said to be pleased with what they saw from rookie safeties Marvin White and Nedu Ndukwe in offseason workouts.
• We're told Steelers rookie TE Matt Spaeth, a third-round pick, was not especially impressive in workouts. Spaeth is likely to see playing time in two-TE sets this season.
