The San Diego Chargers have traded cornerback Antonio Cromartie to the New York Jets for a third-round pick that could become a second-rounder. 2010 is the final year of Cromartie’s current contract, so he’ll join the Jets in a similar contractual situation to the one that wide receiver Braylon Edwards was in when the team traded for him last season. The Jets will pair Cromartie with All-Pro corner Darrell Revis to form one of the best, if not the best, cornerback duos in the league. San Diego also decided to give running back Darren Sproles a high tender, meaning any other team that would sign the diminutive runner would have to fork over a first and a third-round pick to do so.
The Panthers have cut quarterback Jake Delhomme, taking a $12.5 million hit in the process. Delhomme had a rough season in 2009 and this move was somewhat of an expected one. The team may look to Matt Moore, who played well toward the end of the season, or explore free agency and trade opportunities to address the position. The Colts have agreed to sign linebacker Gary Brackett to a five-year, $33 million contract. The Detroit Lions gave Calvin Johnson someone to play across from him by signing Nate Burleson to a five-year, $25 million deal.
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The Washington Redskins have placed the first-round tender on quarterback Jason Campbell. What that means is that Campbell will stick around in Washington for another season, at a rate of $3.1 million, unless a team is willing to pony up a first-round pick to the Skins in signing the signal caller. A lot of people are expecting the organization to select a quarterback somewhere in the upcoming NFL draft, perhaps with the fourth overall pick. New head coach Mike Shanahan is known for cultivating quarterbacks, such as John Elway and Jay Cutler, and it is widely assumed that he wants to get his franchise guy in place as soon as possible. Most people don’t think Campbell will be that guy.
Campbell played well last season despite the team’s overall offensive struggles, throwing for more than 3600 yards and tossing 20 touchdowns. The Auburn product could be used to bridge the gap to whomever the Skins select in the draft, whether it be Jimmy Clausen, Sam Bradford or a prospect outside of the first round. I have a feeling that both Shanahan and owner Daniel Snyder may become enamored with Clausen as the pre-draft process moves on, as his moxy could end up cementing his future as a Redskin.
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The storyline of the 2010 NFL Draft is sure to be where Florida quarterback Tim Tebow lands and in what round. There are so many questions surrounding the former Heisman Trophy winner that it’s hard to get a read on where he’ll go and how early. Depending on his pro day later this month, Tebow could go anywhere from the second round to the fifth. Should his new mechanics somehow look great in Gainesville on the 17th, a team might even take a chance on him in the latter part of the first round.
Whatever team drafts the two-time national champion will need to have patience and the luxury of developing a young quarterback. Two destinations that have been talked about as good fits are Jacksonville and New England. The Jaguars are struggling to fill the seats in Jacksonville, and Tebow would immediately boost ticket sales, as he’s a hero in the state of Florida. New England makes sense because Bill Belichick has a history of taking late-round signal callers and making something out of them, ala Tom Brady and Matt Cassel. I also think the Indianapolis Colts would be a great fit for Tebow. He’d get to learn from the best quarterback in the game, Peyton Manning, and would have plenty of time to develop as an NFL passer in that organization.
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The New York Jets are set to release running back Thomas Jones later this week. Jones would be due a $3 million roster bonus this offseason, and with the emergence of young runner Shonn Greene, keeping Jones would not have made much fiscal sense. “Thomas joined us three years ago and has been a productive, passionate leader both on and off the field who has served as a positive influence for our younger players,” Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum said in a statement. “We were fortunate to acquire Thomas and wish him the best.”
Jones was the starter in New York during his three seasons with the team, but saw his role reduced significantly in the playoffs last season. Rookie running back Shonn Greene took over the bulk of the carries toward the end of the season and in the postseason, signaling a changing of the guard in the backfield. Greene and Leon Washington will likely handle most of the backfield duties for the Jets in 2010. The Jets have a nice young core on offense with Greene and quarterback Mark Sanchez, and many draft pundits expect the organization to target a receiver early in April’s NFL draft.
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40 times were run, vertical jumps were measured and bench presses were worn out this weekend in Indianapolis as the top collegiate players in the nation took part in the NFL combine. The story of the weekend was the performance of the top-rated running backs. Cal’s Jahvid Best posted the best 40 time among the backs, running a 4.35. Best definitely helped his draft stock with the time, and he’s considered to be a borderline first-round pick. Clemson’s C.J. Spiller wasn’t far behind Best with a 4.37 40. He’s solidified himself as the top back in the class and might be the only first-round lock among running backs.
Quarterback Tim Tebow definitely helped his stock over the weekend, despite choosing not to throw. Tebow tested out very well athletically, running a 4.72 40 and tying the vertical jump record for quarterbacks at 38.5 inches. While Tebow is set at trying to make it as a signal caller in the NFL, his athleticism will probably help his stock, as teams will consider him a potential H-back conversion should he not develop as a passer. Tebow is waiting until his pro day later this month to throw for scouts, as he’s polishing his new passing mechanics.
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While it’s been widely assumed that the St. Louis Rams will select either Ndamukong Suh or Gerald McCoy with the top overall pick in April’s 2010 NFL Draft, rumblings that the organization is already beginning to lean toward selecting a quarterback are gaining steam. Both Adam Schefter and John Clayton of ESPN have suggested that they believe there is a good chance that by draft day St. Louis will be prepared to select Oklahoma signal caller Sam Bradford with the top pick. Clayton brings up a good point about the economics that go along with having the top pick in the draft. “At the top of every draft, teams don’t necessarily select the best athletes available,” he writes. ”Often, teams take the players who make economic sense based on the positions they play.”
We all know that the big money position in the NFL is quarterback. The Rams may be hesitant to pay either standout defensive tackle number one money, and could end up opting for a quarterback because it makes more sense from a financial perspective. The Rams don’t have a long-term answer at quarterback by any means; in fact, they don’t really have a short-term answer either. Selecting Bradford, or Jimmy Clausen, could be a bit of a reach from a talent standpoint, but it would make more financial sense to invest number one money in a premium position.
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ESPN’s Todd McShay gives a rundown of how he thinks the running back crop for the 2010 draft is shaping up. McShay notes that Clemson running back C.J. Spiller is the consensus best back in this draft, and things get a bit cloudy after that. “Clemson’s C.J. Spiller is the clear-cut No. 1 running back in this year’s class, and while he is not expected to take part in all drills at the combine, we are interested to see how his 40-yard dash times look.” McShay writes. ”Specifically, we’ll be looking at Spiller’s 10- and 20-yard splits to help confirm that he is the most explosive offensive skill player in this year’s draft.”
Spiller is the only running back that can be currently considered a first-round lock. The two other backs with the best chance of landing in the top 30 picks are probably Fresno State’s Ryan Matthews and Cal’s Jahvid Best. Matthews is a big back that can really move the pile, something that could attract a team like the San Diego Chargers late in the first round. Best might not be an every down back, and perhaps is better suited in a multifaceted role like Spiller. There are a lot of enticing backs to be had in later rounds, though, such as USC;s Joe McKnight and Stanford’s Toby Gerhart.
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ESPN’s Todd McShay has an interesting article on the quarterback storylines leading up to the 2010 NFL Draft up right now on ESPN.com. McShay notes that Tim Tebow and his progress are going to dominate headlines leading up to draft day, despite the fact that he’s got very little chance of being drafted in the first round. Tebow has become a polarizing figure in sports. While most people love him, the rest seem to detest him, which makes him a figure that the media is sure to cover with vigor. It will be very interesting to see where he ends up.
Another intriguing storyline is the battle for the top quarterback spot in the class. Sam Bradford seems to be the leader for that distinction right now, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see someone opt for Clausen early. I think Clausen fits the bill for a coach like Mike Shanahan more so than Bradford, which could lead to the Washington Redskins selecting him with the fourth overall pick. Bradford was barely touched in his Heisman-winning season, to the point where I don’t even think they had to wash his uniform between games. When he finally took a big hit last season, it caused him to miss nearly every down following that play. Teams could be worried about that.
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The LaDainian Tomlinson era has officially come to a close in San Diego. The running back was cut by the Chargers yesterday in what was an expected move, as the team would have owed Tomlinson a significant bonus had they retained him. “It was a long time coming, but I knew it was coming,” Tomlinson told SI.com. ”Now that it’s official I can kind of look to the next step in my career and playing football for someone else.” Tomlinson had some of the best years in the history of the position during his nine-season stint in Southern California, but had struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness over the last two seasons. The Chargers drafted him with the fifth overall pick in the 2001 draft.
Tomlinson’s career is likely not over, as he should get a shot with another team. Two teams that come to mind are the Indianapolis Colts and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Tomlinson could view Indianapolis as a desirable destination due to his yearning for a championship. Pittsburgh would be a great fit, as Tomlinson would be a nice complement to Rashard Mendenhall if Willie Parker were to leave town this offseason. The former MVP will catch on somewhere.
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Despite being one of the most accomplished collegiate football players in the history of the game, Tim Tebow’s projected success on the NFL level is anything but a sure thing. Scouts have consistently pointed to Tebow’s long throwing motion and his lack of experience playing under center as serious reasons to doubt that his success will transfer to the next level. A tireless worker, Tebow is responding to those criticisms by working on those two things in particular leading up to his pro day. ”In an effort to quiet his critics and refine his game, Tebow is changing the way he holds a football, shifting it from his waist to his shoulder,” writes ESPN’s Adam Schefter. “He is concentrating on taking three- and five-step drops instead of working out of the shotgun formation he did at Florida.”
There are a lot of mixed feelings about the former Heisman Trophy winner and two-time National Champion. A lot of people around NFL circles seriously question whether he can make it as a quarterback in the NFL. Others point to his character and intangibles as reasons that he will overcome his physical shortcomings and lead a successful NFL career. “I’m not changing who I am or how I approach football,” Tebow told Schefter over the weekend. ”But there are things that I can get a lot better at — my fundamentals. I’ve never been asked to shorten or quicken my release and not have a loop in it. The changes I’m making have gone very well and it’s becoming more and more natural to me.”
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