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2009-02-19T20:30:00.001-05:00

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Ravens Tag Suggs

2009-02-18T18:01:00.002-05:00

As expected, the Ravens have tagged linebacker Terrell Suggs for the second straight year.

The one-year tender is worth $10.2MM.

Chargers Tag Sproles, Bucs Tag Bryant

2009-02-18T17:36:00.004-05:00

The Chargers have used their franchise tag on running back Darren Sproles, guaranteeing him a 2009 salary of $6.621MM.

Also, as expected, Tampa Bay has tagged Antonio Bryant, giving the wide receiver a $9.88MM salary for the '09 season.

Peppers Reiterates Trade Request

2009-02-18T15:23:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, 3:23pm: Darrin Gantt reports that one of Peppers' preferred teams is Dallas, who doesn't have a first round pick this year.

Wednesday, 2:15pm: Per Tom Sorensen, Peppers will agree to be traded to only four teams, three in the NFC, though he doesn't know which ones.

Saturday, 6:22pm: Julius Peppers on Saturday reiterated his request to be traded, should the Panthers slap their franchise tag on him.

"It’s a situation where I feel I’m at the point in my career where I want to do different things," Peppers said. "It has nothing to do with anything that happened with me and coaches or me and the owner. There’s nothing that happened. I just feel like personally, for me and my career, it’s time for a change."

Carolina has a big decision to make with its tag, as left tackle Jordan Gross is also a free agent, and he wants to stay with the team. Their best hope is to come to a long-term agreement with Gross, tag Peppers, and then trade Peppers for multiple draft picks.

Report: Raiders To Release Curry

2009-02-18T14:41:00.003-05:00

The Raiders are expected to release WR Ronald Curry, per Adam Schefter.

The move would save Oakland $2.3MM against the cap.

Schefter says that Kwame Harris could also be a cap casualty; releasing him would save the Raiders $7.2MM

Bengals' Free Agents Rundown

2009-02-18T14:32:00.000-05:00

With Shane Graham tagged and T.J. Houshmandzadeh likely walking, Joe Reedy takes a look at the rest of the Bengals' free agents and what to expect.

Reed pegs Cedric Benson, Chris Crocker, Rashad Jeanty, and Brandon Johnson as the team's top priorities.

Haynesworth To Hit Open Market

2009-02-18T14:06:00.002-05:00

If the Titans plan on having Albert Haynesworth around in 2009, they're most likely going to have to outbid other teams on the open market. Adam Schefter reports that Haynesworth has decided to become a free agent, and won't re-sign with Tennessee at least until he's had a chance to explore other options.

Schefter expects Haynesworth to command a contract that will include more than $30MM in guarantees.

Tampa Bay has been one of a handful of teams rumored as a possible destination for Haynesworth should he decide to leave Tennessee.

Brady Says He Expects To Be Ready For Week 1

2009-02-18T14:02:00.002-05:00

We don't post much injury news here, but when it concerns the best player in the league on one of the best teams, it gets our attention: Tom Brady says that he sees no reason why he won't be ready for the Patriots' Week 1 opener for the 2009 season, per the Boston Globe.

How this affects the team's handling of the Matt Cassel situation remains to be seen. If they're confident that Brady will be 100% healthy, they would obviously be more inclined to shop Cassel in exchange for draft picks.

Report: Eagles Shopping Justice

2009-02-18T13:47:00.002-05:00

Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Daily News reports that the Eagles are shopping offensive tackle Winston Justice.

With Jon Runyan and Tra Thomas both free agents, Philadelphia faces a lot of questions surrounding their offensive line.

Bowen figures the team will use one of their first round picks on an offensive lineman in April's draft.

For Seattle, Housh Or Crabtree?

2009-02-18T12:46:00.003-05:00

With T.J. Houshmandzadeh looking like he'll hit the open market, Clare Farnsworth wonders whether the Seahawks should make a run at him, or instead use their first round pick on WR Michael Crabtree out of Texas Tech.

Or there's the chance that the team won't pursue either player. Farnsworth reports that Seattle "won't break the bank" for Housh, and even if Crabtree is available with the No. 4 pick, they may lean in another direction.

The team seems satisfied with the trio of Deion Branch, Nate Burleson and Bobby Engram, per Farnsworth, and they haven't given up on Ben Obomanu and Courtney Taylor either.

Losman A Possibility For The Jets?

2009-02-18T12:21:00.002-05:00

When Brett Favre retired, we looked at a bunch of names that the Jets could sign/trade for to take his place: Jeff Garcia, Derek Anderson, Kyle Boller, Marc Bulger, Sage Rosenfels, Byron Leftwich, Rex Grossman, etc.

Well, Jeremy Green of ESPN adds another one to the list: J.P. Losman. (Seriously.)

"Buffalo wants Losman to dink and dunk and be the game manager and be a low-intensity guy," Joyner said. "That's just not who he is. He's in the wrong situation, but every time Buffalo puts him out there, the numbers show he does a superb job. I just don't see that out of Kellen Clemens."

In Losman's last full season (2006) as a starter, he threw for 62.5%/3051/7.1/19/14, which are actually pretty decent numbers.

Jets To Make A Run At Bart Scott?

2009-02-18T11:55:00.000-05:00

Depending on who you read, the Jets are either $15.5MM under next year's salary cap, or $34MM over it. Kind of a big difference. We won't pretend to be cap experts, so if you see any other numbers out there, feel free to pass them along.

Anyway, Dave Hutchinson has the Jets $15.5MM under, and he thinks that with that much money, the team "might make a serious run" at Ravens free agent linebacker Bart Scott.

Scott, of course, played for new head coach Rex Ryan when Ryan was defensive coordinator in Baltimore.

Johnson, Raiders Nearing Deal (Update: Deal Done)

2009-02-18T11:34:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, 11:34am: PFT has the terms: four years, $15.3MM with $4MM in guarantees.

Thursday, 3:43pm: The deal is done. Four years, salary not disclosed yet.

9:28am: Raiders cornerback Chris Johnson is close to signing a new deal with the team, per David White of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Johnson, drafted in the seventh round by the Packers in 2003, replaced DeAngelo Hall last season as the starting cornerback opposite Nnamdi Asomugha.

He is scheduled to become a free agent, but the Chronicle expects the Raiders to offer him a contract sufficiently large enough that will keep him away from hitting the open market.

Will Gailey Get Canned? (Update: No)

2009-02-18T11:27:00.001-05:00

Wednesday, 11:27am: Adam Schefter reports that the Chiefs are expected to switch to a 3-4 defense next year, which leaves Glenn Dorsey's role with the team up in the air.

Meanwhile, John Clayton writes that Romeo Crennel could in fact be named the defensive coordinator of the Chiefs.

Tuesday, 6:49pm: Gailey has been retained, while Muir has been hired as well. On the defensive side of the ball, the Chiefs have brought in coaches Gary Gibbs and Clancy Pendergast; Gibbs, presumably, to be the DC.

Monday, 12:13pm: After the Chiefs hired Todd Haley as their new head coach a couple weeks ago, it was widely assumed that offensive coordinator Chan Gailey would get his walking papers, as Haley is expected to call the team's plays, something that Gailey wouldn't be too thrilled about.

According to Adam Teicher of the Kansas City Star, however, there's still a slight chance that Gailey could remain on staff. He writes that the Chiefs may request that Gailey finishes the one year remaining on his contract, or that Haley may relent and allow Gailey to call the plays.

Former Bucs offensive coordinator Bill Muir has been rumored as a favorite to replace Gailey, should the Chiefs decide to let him go.

Would Pacman Be A Good Fit For The Patriots?

2009-02-18T11:17:00.000-05:00

There's little disputing that the Patriots are in need of some help in their secondary, after ranking 27th in pass defense efficiency last season. Brian Baldinger of Fox Sports thinks that Pacman Jones could provide that help, should the team be willing to take a chance on him.

"I think, first of all, when Bill Belichick turns on the game film from the second half of the 2006 season, he’ll see the best cornerback in football," Baldinger said of Jones. "There was not a better corner with better ball skills in 2006 than Pacman. He’s a knucklehead, there’s no doubt about it. He’s less mature than Corey Dillon or Randy Moss before they came to the Patriots. But I do think it could work."

The two problems with Jones, of course, are that 1) he's a troublemaker, and 2) it's not certain that he can even be an effective cornerback in this league anymore ("Pacman can’t play," says Mike Lombardi. "At all. He stinks.")

We find it highly unlikely that Belichick takes a chance on him, but if any team would be able to do it, it would be New England.

Miami Wants To Upgrade Offensive Line

2009-02-18T10:37:00.000-05:00

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald examines the Dolphins' offensive line situation, writing that the team wants to upgrade the center position, which could signal a change for incumbent starter Samson Satele, who could be moved to guard or possibly even traded.

The team wants to bring in a bigger center, per Jackson, and they are targeting Baltimore's Jason Brown, who is scheduled to become a free agent.

If they can't land Brown, look for the team to target certain players in the draft; Jackson names Alex Mack (Cal) and Max Unger (Oregon) as two possibilities.

Simms Interested In Bears

2009-02-18T10:15:00.003-05:00

Though he has already said that the Titans want him back for another year, Chris Simms is apparently keeping his options open, as he has expressed interest in playing for the Bears, too.

"Who wouldn't be interested or thinking about the Chicago Bears?" Simms said. "For a guy like myself who has been around football a long time and loves tradition and all the stuff that comes with a great NFL franchise, the Bears are at the top of the list with the Green Bay Packers, the New York Giants, the Dallas Cowboys. They are right in that storied-franchise mix."

With Kerry Collins apparently wanting Kurt Warner-type money in free agency, Tennessee's quarterback situation remains up in the air, though it seems likely they'll bring Collins back.

Kyle Orton is the presumed starter for the Bears, but it's possible they could bring in Simms to drive up the competition with Rex Grossman not expected to come back.

49ers Would Consider Adding Vick (Update: Change Of Heart)

2009-02-18T10:12:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, 10:12am: Well, that was short-lived; now the team says they have no interest.

Tuesday, 9:40am: The 49ers became the first team (we believe) to publicly state that they would consider adding Michael Vick to their team, once he is released from prison and from the Falcons, of course. Team president Jed York said the possibility was remote, however.

Atlanta on Friday announced their plans to seek a trade for Vick, though it's highly unlikely they will find any suitors.

Bucs Prepared To Tag Bryant

2009-02-18T10:10:00.000-05:00

If the Buccaneers cannot come to terms on a multi-year deal with wide receiver Antonio Bryant, the team is prepared to slap their franchise tag on him, according to Rick Stroud. The team has until Thursday to designate Bryant as its franchise player.

Bryant, 27, will receive a 2009 salary worth $9.884MM if he were to accept the tender.

Broncos Cut Bly

2009-02-18T09:47:00.003-05:00

The Broncos on Tuesday released cornerback Dre' Bly, who joins fellow defensive teammates Dewayne Robertson, John Engelberger, Jamie Winborn and Marquand Manuel, who were all released Monday.

Bly was scheduled to make a $3.25MM salary in 2009.

Cardinals Expected To Tag Dansby

2009-02-17T18:33:00.000-05:00

6:33pm: Dansby has been tagged.

9:57am: Karlos Dansby wants to be paid like one of the best defensive players in the league, but he's apparently going to have to settle for a one year deal worth $9.6MM, as the Cardinals are expected to franchise him by Wednesday, according to Adam Schefter.

Schefter speculates that Arizona must be feeling comfortable that Kurt Warner will re-sign with the team, since they opted to not use the tag on him.

Panthers To Cut Lucas?

2009-02-17T18:01:00.002-05:00

If the Panthers play things correctly, they will have signed Jordan Gross to a long-term deal and slapped their franchise tag on Julius Peppers by Thursday. If that happens, that will put the club about $20MM over the cap.

To save cap space, Pat Yasinskas thinks that the "most obvious target" for the Panthers to release is cornerback Ken Lucas, who recently turned 30.

Other candidates to be on the chopping block, per Yasinskas, are Jeremy Bridges, D.J. Hackett, Landon Johnson and Nick Goings.

Jerry Jones Suggests T.O. Will Be Back

2009-02-17T16:29:00.003-05:00

With rumors swirling that Terrell Owens won't be back in Dallas next season, owner Jerry Jones hinted that if the team was going to release the wide receiver, they would have done so already.

"You and I both know that the one you're asking about all the time, if I gave you the answer that you want to hear, then you would have already had it," Jones said. "So the fact you don't have it ought to tell you something."

Culpepper Re-Works Contract

2009-02-17T16:24:00.000-05:00

4:24pm: Tom Kowalski writes that Jon Kitna's time in Detroit may be soon coming to an end.

3:12pm: The Lions have restructured the contract of QB Daunte Culpepper, eliminating the roster bonus he was due at the end of the month; the new deal remains for one season.

The re-worked deal would seem to suggest that Culpepper will be given the opportunity to compete for the starting job next season.

The team also signed kicker Jason Hanson to a four-year deal.

Ravens Release McAlister

2009-02-17T14:44:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, 2:44pm: Dave Hutchinson also thinks the Jets will look into McAlister.

Tuesday, 1:09pm: Mike Preston thinks that Samari Rolle could be next.

Tuesday, 12:52pm: Erik Boland expects the Jets to "kick the tires" on McAlister, who is someone that could play opposite Darrelle Revis.

Monday, 5:02pm: Chris McAlister became a cap casualty on Monday, as the Ravens released the three time Pro Bowler, saving the team $8MM under the cap.

The money will be used to help sign free agents Ray Lewis, Bart Scott and Terrell Suggs.

McAlister, 32, figures to land with another team next year.