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Trent Dilfer wants to be traded because he is unhappy with his situation with the Browns, according to a Channel 3 news report. The 49ers are said to be the team interested in Dilfer as a backup for Alex Smith, the first overall pick in the 2005 draft. Dilfer wants to play for the 49ers, according to a source in San Francisco, because they are the closest team to his hometown of Fresno, Calif.
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The Atlanta Falcons, after reportedly fielding several offers for T.J. Duckett, are holding on to the 6-foot, 254-pound battering ram of a running back known as "The Diesel." At least for the time being. The Falcons may be more willing to move Duckett, a first-round pick out of Michigan State in 2002, once they get a look at third-round pick Jerious Norwood, a running back from Mississippi State, in their mini-camp. Should Norwood give indications he can complement Warrick Dunn in 2006, Atlanta's asking price for Duckett could come down. The Steelers were one of the teams that made an offer for Duckett on Sunday.
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If the Titans do eventually jettison Steve McNair, there has been plenty of speculation surrounding the team bringing in another veteran quarterback to compete with Billy Volek, Matt Mauck and first-round pick Vince Young. Much of the talk has centered around Kerry Collins, who spent last season starting for Oakland. However, a representative from agent David Dunn’s office said there has been no dialogue between the Titans and Collins as of yet. However, the agent for veteran quarterback Tommy Maddox acknowledged Monday he has had conversations with Titans general manager Floyd Reese about his client, though nothing lately. “I talked to Floyd about Tommy a little bit, but not lately,” Vann McElroy said. “I’m sure if something happened with Steve that Tommy would be somebody on their list to talk to.”
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If the Broncos want to mend fences with wide receiver Ashley Lelie, he says no offense, but he's not interested. "Me coming back is definitely out of the question at this point with me being the No. 3 receiver," Lelie said Monday night from Arizona. "There's nothing to mend. There's no solution. ... Let me go somewhere where I can compete." At this point, Lelie - who has forgone Denver's entire offseason workout program - knows there are three possibilities for him: be traded, show up for training camp in late July or hold out for the entire season.
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When Texans owner Bob McNair returns from the Kentucky Derby next week, he will meet with Charley Casserly to see if the general manager wants to stay on the job in his seventh year with the franchise. Casserly has been a candidate for NFL vice president of operations and development, a position vacated when Art Shell returned to the Oakland Raiders as head coach.
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Cards RB Marcel Shipp has been the subject of recent trade rumors, a development he views philosophically. "Like I said, I'll take it as it's dealt to me," he said. "I try to make the best out of every situation that I'm in. That's what I've always done. Since I'm here, I have to make the best of this." If Shipp remains with the Cardinals, he'll compete with J.J. Arrington to back up Edgerrin James.
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The Toronto Argonauts are selling their coach's personality as part of the pitch to lure suspended Dolphins tailback Ricky Williams to the Canadian Football League. Agent Leigh Steinberg said Monday that he hasn't spoken to Williams about his football future since last week's NFL announcement of a yearlong suspension following a fourth failed drug test. Steinberg, though, said the Argonauts have expressed a "high degree of interest" in signing Williams to play under coach Michael "Pinball" Clemons, who gained a CFL-record 25,396 all-purpose yards as a wide receiver and returner for 12 seasons.
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The NFL said the Dolphins were within their rights to discuss contract terms with quarterback Joey Harrington once Detroit gave Harrington permission to seek a trade. That comes in response to complaints by Lions president Matt Millen that the Dolphins went outside the boundaries of the collective bargaining agreement in working out the parameters of a two-year deal. However, it appears Millen was mistaken. ''Yes, a player is allowed to talk about a contract with another team in that situation,'' league spokesman Greg Aiello said after asking the NFL Management Council for clarification.
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The Bucs are one of three teams who have talked with veteran free-agent left tackle Ross Verba, according to an Internet report. Verba sat out last season after he bought himself out of his contract with the Cleveland Browns but failed to land another job. The other teams reportedly expressing interest in possibly signing Verba are the Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers. Verba has nine years of NFL experience, including four at the start of his career with the Packers. He spent his last five seasons with the Browns.
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Patriots owner Robert Kraft is in Dallas today, meeting with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California and the mayors of Los Angeles and Anaheim, as part of a league committee charged with bringing an NFL franchise to Los Angeles. Kraft and the 10 other members of the committee will hear stadium proposals from two groups. The league hopes the committee can decide between the proposals at the NFL spring meetings, which begin May 21 .
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The Ravens have waited for Tennessee Titans quarterback Steve McNair to get released since free agency began two months ago. They might have to wait a little longer. According to a league source, the Titans are prepared to hold onto McNair until a week before training camp begins in late July if they don't receive a satisfactory trade offer from the Ravens. Ravens officials have acknowledged that a resolution could take weeks, but they privately don't expect Tennessee to keep McNair into July.
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Ohio State receiver Santonio Holmes made his first visit to Pittsburgh yesterday as a Steelers draft pick and will make only one more before training camp begins at the end of July. Holmes is not permitted to work out this spring with the Steelers except for three days, May 13-15, during their mandatory minicamp. He will be forced to miss the rest of their 14 voluntary coaching sessions because of an agreement between the NFL and NCAA that limits a rookie's participation in the spring until his college class graduates. Ohio State's graduation won't be until mid-June, a week after the Steelers' spring workouts end June 8. Holmes still attends school, but he won't graduate this year.
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While saying he still has the passion to play football, Doug Flutie remains torn between retirement and returning for another year in the NFL. Yesterday, Flutie said, “I’ve talked to six teams” recently, but he made it clear “I’m not going to leave (New England) to play. That’s not going to happen.” Flutie spoke to reporters at Catholic Memorial, where he was demonstrating the drop kick to students as part of his association with Eastern Bank. Flutie wanted to wait until the draft before a final decision was made. The Patriots didn’t draft a quarterback. Flutie was Tom Brady’s backup last season.
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Linebacker Robert Thomas, who started nine games for the Packers last season, was released. The 6-foot, 233-pound Thomas ranked 10th on the team with 51 tackles last year. He had one interception and no sacks. The Packers also cut ties with three other players. They released punter Ryan Flinn, kicker Rhys Lloyd and receiver Willie Quinnie.
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Cardinals cornerback Antrel Rolle's left knee, however, is still causing him difficulty. He did some drills on the side Monday, but appeared to be walking with a slight limp at times. There is some kind of irritation in the knee, Rolle said, and he is going to see whether it improves during the week. He could undergo arthroscopic surgery to discover what's causing the problem.
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With Steve McNair in limbo regarding his future with the franchise and the Titans on record as saying they will bring Vince Young along slowly, it is Volek who sits atop Tennessee’s depth chart as the Titans progress through their organized team activities. Volek, who turned 30 Friday, entered the NFL the hard way as an undrafted free agent in 2000. He knows this season might be the chance he has anticipated for so long. He sees a precedent and wants to make the best of it, if a starting role comes his way. “I look at Drew Brees, when the Chargers got Phillip Rivers,” Volek said. “Brees was able to keep the job, be productive and started for two years. Then he went and got a deal with New Orleans.” Volek knows that whoever starts for the Titans in 2006 needs to make the most of it, with Young lurking in the wings ready to take over at some point.
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The dissatisfaction expressed by receiver Ashley Lelie about probably being the No. 3 receiver with the Denver Broncos was met with some degree of empathy Monday from the team's general manager. But while Ted Sundquist said he "understood his concerns" about not having a legitimate shot at competing for a starting job, the expectation from the team is Lelie instead to do his talking on the field. "My reaction to Ashley right now is that he's under contract and we fully expect Ashley to be back," Sundquist said. Quarterback Jake Plummer weighed in on Lelie's situation by saying a holdout, which the receiver indicated was a distinct possibility, never results in anything positive. Plummer added if Lelie comes in and works out, "good things will work out for him."
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One possible reason the Ravens might increase their offer to a fourth-round pick for Steve McNair is because another one could be coming from the NFL. After losing nose tackle Maake Kemoeatu, running back Chester Taylor and defensive end Tony Weaver in free agency, the Ravens figure to be in good position to receive at least one compensatory pick in the fourth round of next year's draft.
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It seems the Titans have little hope of persuading Steve McNair to stay since they gave him permission to speak to the Ravens on Sunday. Initial negotiations between the Ravens and McNair's agent have been very productive, a source said.
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Agent Leigh Steinberg said he hadn't had any discussions with suspended running back Ricky Williams about possibly signing with Toronto of the CFL.
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Peter King, who'll be part of NBC's new Sunday Night Football broadcast crew this fall, gives the Atlanta Journal Constitution the five teams that made out the best in the NFL draft:
1. Packers. Took the 36th overall pick and a player who'd never take the field for them again, Javon Walker, and turned it into six picks to build roster depth.
2. Jets. Rebuilt their offensive line early, got a fast-rising QB (Kellen Clemens), and took this year's potential Antwaan Randle El (Brad Smith).
3. Broncos. Painlessly rose through the first round over the last couple of months and shocked the world by taking the best arm in the draft, Jay Cutler.
4. Cardinals. Matt Leinart at 10? Gabe Watson at 107? What is this? Intelligent life in Phoenix? Shocking.
5. Eagles. Three weeks ago, Andy Reid wanted Winston Justice in the middle of the first round. He got him in the middle of the second.
____________________________________________2. Jets. Rebuilt their offensive line early, got a fast-rising QB (Kellen Clemens), and took this year's potential Antwaan Randle El (Brad Smith).
3. Broncos. Painlessly rose through the first round over the last couple of months and shocked the world by taking the best arm in the draft, Jay Cutler.
4. Cardinals. Matt Leinart at 10? Gabe Watson at 107? What is this? Intelligent life in Phoenix? Shocking.
5. Eagles. Three weeks ago, Andy Reid wanted Winston Justice in the middle of the first round. He got him in the middle of the second.
The Jaguars appear to have a need at left guard, but they did not use any of their six picks on an offensive lineman. It marked the first time since 1997 that the Jaguars failed to draft an offensive lineman, but personnel chief James Harris said the team could afford to pass because it has plenty of veteran depth there.
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The Kraft family had a surprise gift for receiver Chad Jackson as he embarked on his career with the Patriots yesterday - a winter jacket. The Alabama native and Florida grad hasn’t played in the white stuff before or spent too much time in the cold, but he looks forward to making an impression with the Patriots. “It’d be a lot of fun,” he said yesterday at Gillette Stadium, “to go out there and score a couple of touchdowns and make some snow angels or something like that.”
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It is highly likely that Scott Studwell will remain in his current job as Vikings director of college scouting.
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The Vikings agreed to terms with one more college free agent, North Carolina State middle linebacker Oliver Hoyte.
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A hearing to determine new trial date for Commanders safety Sean Taylor is schedule for Monday, according to Richard Sharpstein, one of his attorneys. Taylor was arrested last year for felony assault and his trial was set to begin yesterday, but was delayed due to the addition of a new judge and prosecutor in the case.
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When the Commanders traded up to draft Rocky McIntosh on Saturday, Joe Gibbs said one of the reasons they were so impressed with him was his intellect. McIntosh had said he scored a 29 on the Wonderlic intelligence test, but a player agent with detailed player information from the February combine in Indianapolis said McIntosh actually scored a 31, which happened to be the highest score of any linebacker.
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The Steelers landed two players from Penn State and one from West Virginia among the dozen undrafted free-agent rookies who agreed to terms with them by yesterday. Defensive tackle Scott Paxson (6-4, 292) and tight end Isaac Smolko (6-5, 257) played for the Nittany Lions and safety Mike Lorello (6-1, 205) played for the Mountaineers. They also signed Ohio State defensive end Mike Kudla (6-3, 265), who tied the combine workout record, bench-pressing 225 pounds 45 times. The Steelers plan to convert Kudla to linebacker.
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Grambling State quarterback Bruce Eugene, LSU linebacker E.J. Kuale and Texas guard Will Allen, a third-team All-American, highlight a group of 13 undrafted free agents who have agreed to terms with the Saints.
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The Saints have not yet decided where to hold training camp this summer. After staying home in Metairie the past three seasons, the Saints are considering a return to the traditional format of moving the team to an out-of-town location. They likely would stay in the state or region, with Jackson, Miss., a possible consideration.
