Footballguys Daily Email - Volume 9, Issue 39 (Sunday, June 1st)
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Hi Folks,
Good Monday to you. There may not be a ton of NFL news flowing out but we're getting ready to release a slew of features to the website by Monday night. We are putting the final touches on our VBD App, Draft Dominator, Projections Dominator and Consolidated ADP lists. We are also very close to releasing 600 Player profiles to the website. Let's get to the news. JINSIDE THIS ISSUE
1. TB - Bucs QB Simms Wants Out Of Tampa2. SF - 49ers Have 3-Way Race At Quarterback
3. NO - QB Brunell Fitting In Well With Saints
4. JAC - Jaguars Sign WR Thorpe To One-Year Deal
5. DEN - Broncos HC Shanahan: 'No More Chances For Travis'
6. BUF - Buffalo Police Investigate Accident Involving RB Lynch's Car
7. NO - Saints Wrap Up MiniCamp
8. DEF - MIA - Excerpts From Dolphins DE Taylor's News Conference
9. DEF - BUF - Bills LB Posluszny Back In Action
10. DEF - CHI - Bears DT Harris Wants Four Year Deal
TB - Bucs QB Simms Wants Out Of Tampa
Source: Roy Cummings, Tampa Tribune
Disgruntled over the way he has been treated since suffering a spleen injury that ruined his 2006 and 2007 seasons, quarterback Chris Simms recently told the Tampa Bay Buccaneers he no longer feels he is part of their future and asked to be released or traded. The Bucs have been slow to accommodate Simms, in part because they aren't sure after months of inactivity what his trade value is or whether he still has value to them.
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First Bruce Gradkowski is gone. Is Chris Simms next? They'd still have plenty of QBs even without Simms on the roster. And he seems like a guy that might be better somewhere else as it doesn't look like he'll get too much of a shot in Tampa right now.
SF - 49ers Have 3-Way Race At Quarterback
Source: Matthew Barrows, Sacramento Bee
The San Francisco 49ers will assemble Monday for the first of 12 June practices that coach Mike Nolan hopes will give him at least a rough outline of his depth chart at quarterback. For now, there's a three-way race among Shaun Hill, J.T. O'Sullivan and Alex Smith to start. "Whatever happens at the end of OTAs," Nolan said, "it's not the end of the race for anyone." He said he nonetheless hopes to establish a quarterback pecking order for training camp, which begins July 24. By then, coaches want one player receiving most of the practice repetitions.
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It seems pretty clear that Nolan is putting a pretty high importance on these June practices to help "set the field" for how these QBs will enter real training camp in July. It doesn't sound like anything will be set in stone before camp, but things will hopefully be shaped up quite a bit by then. One note is that I wouldn't rule out O'Sullivan. Hill and Smith seem to get more talk but O'Sullivan is a player too. We'll see.
NO - QB Brunell Fitting In Well With Saints
Source: Billy Turner, The Times-Picayune
Veteran quarterback Mark Brunell, well-rested after not playing in an NFL game during the 2007 season, is fitting in well, New Orleans Saints Coach Sean Payton said after the second day of minicamp at the Saints' training facility. "He's a quick study," Payton said of the 16-year veteran signed by the Saints in the offseason. "He's very experienced, and there is a level of confidence when a guy like him has played so long and at such a high level. He still has the arm strength, still moves around well."
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16 years of NFL experience has to be worth something. Brunell is almost like another coach on the sidelines and he's a nice guy to have there even with a guy like Drew Brees as a starter.
JAC - Jaguars Sign WR Thorpe To One-Year Deal
Source: John Clayton, ESPN
The Jacksonville Jaguars added depth to their already abundant receiving corps by reaching a one-year deal with former Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Craphonso Thorpe. The 6-foot, 187-pound receiver was a fourth-round choice of the Kansas City Chiefs in 2005. His one-year deal is worth $370,000.
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With as many WRs as the Jaguars already have, Thorpe will have his work cut out for him to make an impact here. But Thorpe is an all time BlackEyedJoe.com All Name team guy so we always keep up with him.
DEN - Broncos HC Shanahan: 'No More Chances For Travis'
Source: Jim Armstrong, Denver Post
Denver Broncos running back Travis Henry will have to prove he can stay healthy and productive this year, and he'll have to walk a straight line off the field, according to head coach Mike Shanahan. "There are no more chances for Travis, and he understands that," Shanahan said. "As time goes on, we'll see how he handles that situation. The key is he has to stay healthy and keep his nose out of trouble. If he doesn't, somebody else will come in and do the job. It's not like we don't have the ability to go in different directions."
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With Selvin Young and Michael Pittman in Denver, the Broncos absolutely have "the ability to go in different directions". This is what I was talking about last week. Shanahan has shown over the years that he can take a capable back and make him excel in their system. If Henry can't stay straight, it sounds like they won't hesitate to move on. If Henry is your guy, understand the risk there.
BUF - Buffalo Police Investigate Accident Involving RB Lynch's Car
Source: Addie Bradshaw, News Reporter
Multiple sources tell the local Buffalo news that the Buffalo Police Department is investigating a hit and run accident involving a car registered to Buffalo Bills RB Marshawn Lynch. Sources close to the situation say it's still unclear if Lynch was driving the car or whether he was even in the vehicle at the time of Saturday's 3:30 a.m. accident.
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More offseason police stuff. Let's see how the details on this play out before anyone gets excited right now.
Source: Jimmy Smith, The Times-Picayune
Saints coach Sean Payton said he was happy with the way things went through five workouts Friday through Sunday, with the emphasis on Sunday morning on third-down situations.
"I thought we got a lot done," Payton said. "For the most part we stayed healthy and that was encouraging. We got a lot in in a short period of time and had good energy. That was pleasing." Payton said he was seeing the benefits of the Saints' offseason conditioning program through the five minicamp practices. "We do a lot of not only (weight) lifting, but a lot of running," Payton said. "So you get to see the benefits of that when you go through two practices a day and you see these guys holding up and not getting fatigued."[ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ]
So far so good. The best thing we saw was RB Deuce McAllister seeing steady progress as he returns from injury. Let's hope he can continue to build on that.
DEF - MIA - Excerpts From Dolphins DE Taylor's News Conference
Source: Palm Beach Post
Excerpts from Jason Taylor's press conference:
On the subject of a trade: "Do I want to be traded? I want to win in '08, and that's what I want to do. I told the Dolphins from Day One that was my intentions. My intentions right now are to play one more year. I tried to give the Dolphins an opportunity that if they wanted to do something and move me that I was OK with that. If they could get value for me, then do that. That was a conversation we had behind closed doors a long time ago." More on what he told the Dolphins: "I told the Dolphins from Day One that if it was in the best interests of the organization that I would be fine with a trade. They shopped the trade and did all that and did get the value, and I'm fine with that. I wanted to be up front with the Dolphins and say 'Look, I plan on playing one more year and let it go' and give them an opportunity to do what they could with it." He will not retire: "I'm playing ball in '08. If (a trade) doesn't work out then I'm a Miami Dolphin. I love this place." "This is not about Jason Taylor. I'm just a guy. This is about the Miami Dolphins, which are so much bigger than me." Taylor reiterated he has not demanded a trade or has told the team he will boycott training camp. "I never said 'Trade me or I'm going to boycott.' No," Taylor said. "I've seen all these things. Trust me. All the boycotts .. Wow, there's a lot of stuff out there. But there's no demand to be traded."[ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ]
Interesting words from Taylor. We've heard for a while that he's been demanding a trade. Evidently, that's not the story at least according to Taylor. Interesting too that retirement isn't something he's looking at for this year. This puts the ball squarely back in the Dolphins corner. They can trade him or keep him. But he made it pretty clear he's set to be a Dolphin if they don't make a trade.
DEF - BUF - Bills LB Posluszny Back In Action
Source: USA Today
Eight months ago, Buffalo Bills linebacker Paul Posluszny's rookie season ended prematurely after he broke two bones in his forearm while attempting to make a tackle in Week 3. Fully healed and cleared for contact, and after having spent the past few months bulking up his already muscular 6-foot-1, 240-pound frame, Posluszny is eager for a fresh start. "I just can't wait," he said. "It's good to be back, competing with the guys and getting ready for a new year." He's made a good impression two weeks into the team's spring sessions.
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Posluszny is basically redoing his rookie year here. Except he knows what to expect now. He'll be a good example of the short memories many Fantasy owners have. While the true rookie LBs are getting the hype in your IDP league, don't forget about Posluszny who'll have the advantage of having a year under his belt. Let the other owners chase the new guys and grab Posluszny at a value.
DEF - CHI - Bears DT Harris Wants Four Year Deal
Source: ESPN
Chicago Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris is adamant that contract talks will conclude only when the three-time Pro Bowler is offered what he wants -- a four-year deal. "I know they're going to [franchise] tag me [after this season]," Harris said of the Bears, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. "I'll just play that out. I can live with $7 million." Harris reported Friday to a mandatory minicamp at Bears headquarters in Chicago but sat out of team drills, which coach Lovie Smith attributed to a "plan in place."
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What Harris wants and what he gets may very well be two different things. With Brian Urlacher, the Bears already have one contract they need to work out.
That'll do it for today, Folks. Have a great Monday and we'll see you tomorrow with the update.
J