Around the Horn: NFL news this week
By Staff
You can already feel the tempo picking up around the league as teams are coming together, deals are being made and rookies are about to get their first taste of contact drills in the NFL. And as the tempo increases, there are alot of stories out there to cover, so I’ll just highlight what I think are the most significant and worth your time.
1. Brown and Cards still talking…….they’re just not writing anything down
Levi Brown, the number 5 overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, remains a holdout with the Arizona Cardinals as both sides continue to work towards resolution. Sources have already said that both Brown’s agent, Joel Segal, and the Cards front office have agreed to the structure of the contract but are trying to come to a specific dollar amount including guaranteed money.
Honestly, I didn’t expect anything different, this is pretty standard. The Cards have worked with Segal before and have also had many high draft picks in the past, and what Segal is doing (along with every other agent who manages a player drafted in the top 15) is waiting to see which team will make the first deal with their top ten player. That will provide a basis for every other top pick to go off of when requesting top dollar. It’s just the nature of the business, but the sooner we can get Brown into camp and working with the O-Line the better it will be.
2. In need of a Priest??? Holmes informs KC Chiefs that he will report to camp
What did the five fingers say to Larry Johnson’s face?….SLAP!!!!!
I don’t really know what my take is on this one. If Priest Holmes is healthy, then the Chiefs might be ok leaving Larry Johnson to twist in the wind, I don’t know. If they could sign Johnson and have Holmes on the roster, well….that backfield would just be filthy sick!! To be honest, I’m pretty stunned that the Chiefs didn’t move to lock L.J. into a long term deal at the end of the 06-07 season. For a better perspective and understanding of this situation, visit our fellow network site: arrowheadaddict.com
3. Briggs ends his standoff with Da Bears and decides to play football
After threatening to sit out the 2007-08 season without receiving a long term deal, Chicago Bears Linebacker Lance Briggs signed his franchise-player contract worth $7.2 million for 1 year. When all was said and done, this was really the only thing that Briggs could have done. After all, if he had sat out the season, that would have made him that much less attractive to other teams to go for him next year. Briggs needs to go out there, play great football like he did last season, and then that will give him more clout to test the open market if Chicago won’t give him the long term security he wants.
Hey Lance, you went to school at the University of Arizona, right? You like it out here, right? Why don’t you come on back next year……….
4. Curtis Martin Retires: A moment of silence please (pause)
After 11 active seasons in the NFL while becoming the 4th leading rusher of all time, Curtis Martin has decided to hang ’em up for good. Originally drafted by the New England Patriots in 1995, Martin was instrumental in leading the Pats to a SuperBowl birth in the 1996-1997 season. He then found a home with the New York Jets in 1998, bringing the playoffs and respectability back to the Jets organization. A workhorse on the field and a class act at all times, players of his character will be sorely missed by the NFL. To read more on this story, click here.
I think that’s all the ones you should actually care about, but there were a few honorable mentions out there:
– The always ubiquitous Michael Vick updates every time you turn on your TV, radio or pick up a news paper. The latest: he’s in court today, will enter his plea, we will hear all about it, I don’t need to write about it here.
– Falcons RB Warrick Dunn will undergo back surgery and is expected to miss 3-4 weeks of the regular season. The hits just keep on coming for new coach Bobby Petrino and owner Arthur Blank, don’t they….
– Jacksonville head coach Jack Del Rio made it very clear that they are not interested in free agent QB Daunte Culpepper. Next stop, who knows?
Mike Duggan
AZCardsfan4life