May 2012 4for4 Player News Articles

When asked by 93.7 The Fan if the Steelers will be running a lot in 2012, QB Ben Roethlisberger said, "I think so. … That’s the way it seems. We’ve got some good ball carriers. I know [Isaac Redman] is excited for the opportunity and I know the fans want it, so it looks like they’ll be getting their wish.”

Roethlisberger said a few weeks ago that he thought the Steelers would pass as much as (or more than) usual, but these latest comments make it sound like the team is headed for a more run-oriented attack. That's good news for Redman.

WR Jerome Simpson was a real steal for the Vikings, and he may be even more than that. The super athletic receiver is making eyes pop in Minnesota. GM Rick Spielman said, “Jerome Simpson (has) been outstanding since he’s been here, and you can see that he’s at a different speed.“

“Jerome was running a dig, which is 20-yard in-route and the cushion was unbelievable because everyone’s afraid he’s going to run right by them he’s so fast,” QB Christian Ponder said. “That just adds a whole other dimension to our offense.“

RB Ryan Mathews is your clubhouse leader to be Chargers' third-down back, per Norv Turner. He added Curtis Brinkley or Le'Ron McClain can also fill role.

For those who think the Cardinals will give an edge to QB Kevin Kolb because of what the team gave up to get him and invested in him, HC Ken Whisenhunt has a message.

"I don't look at a player and think what he's making or what you did to get him here and I don't think that's the way you do it," he said. "I look at them based on the kind of plays they're making."

"I'll be honest with you and say I obviously know how much we invested in Kevin," Whisenhunt said. "I want Kevin to be successful, I want him to be our quarterback, but I'm not going to ignore the fact that John Skelton worked pretty hard and did a good job when he was in there playing, too.

Giants WR Hakeem Nicks on whether he'll play on Sept 5: "I don't have any doubt." Nicks keeps stressing he'll aim to avoid any setbacks.

Patriots WR Jabar Gaffney continues to work in the slot but behind Wes Welker. Donte' Stallworth is an outside threat but he hasn’t stood out. Deion Branch continues to be unimpressive. The guy catches everything but his burst is diminishing.

While Ravens rookie kicker Justin Tucker is now officially on the roster after being signed Tuesday following his rookie minicamp tryout, former Pro Bowl kicker Billy Cundiff is the clear favorite to retain his job.

Panthers HC Ron Rivera on WR David Gettis: "Once we establish who that other guy is it’s going to help our offense. I think David is well on his way right now as long as he continues to work on it and regain that confidence” in his knee.

Rivera believes Gettis can stretch the field and take pressure off Steve L Smith, who enjoyed a renaissance of sorts last season reaching his fifth Pro Bowl while playing alongside Newton and under innovative offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski. Brandon LaFell is expected to be the Panthers WR2.

Brandon Lloyd is continuing to stick out at practice, as the Patriots’ new wideout displayed a nice ability to extend to make the catch and reel in passes that don’t hit him right in the chest.

Redskins WR Josh Morgan (ankle) hasn't practiced fully yet, but has shown big play flashes, HC Mike Shanahan said.

Redskins‬ HC Shanahan expects RB Tim Hightower to be ready for training camp, WR Leonard Hankerson ready for the season.

Eric Decker, Demaryius Thomas, Brandon Stokley and Andre Caldwell figure to open training camp later this summer in the top four spots on the Broncos depth chart at wide receiver. Stokley has had the benefit of working with Manning the most, having spent four seasons with the Colts (2003-06), including his career-best 1,077 yards in 2004.

Steelers HC Tomlin: "[OC] Haley is excited about what Heath Miller is capable of," Tomlin said. "He's been very clear about that, his excitement to work with Miller. I would imagine that the tight end is going to be a part of our plan."

Texans HC Gary Kubiak on rookie WR Keshawn Martin: "I think he’s doing well. He’s got a lot of explosion. He needs to learn some things about the pro athlete that he’s going against because sometimes when he separates, he thinks it’s over. You’ve got to keep playing, so that’s just something to get used to but I like his work habits. He’s kept up in the book. He has an excellent chance."

The biggest thing that happened in Vikings OTAs was that rehabbing RB Adrian Peterson and WR Percy Harvin ran up a hill. And I’m not lying, it was one of the coolest things I’ve seen. Two electric athletes, both fighting their way back to health, just absolutely going after it. They were racing. Harvin won almost all of them, but Peterson did get him twice — ACL tear and all.

Bills DE Shawne Merriman was back on the practice field Thursday for the first time since his offseason Achilles surgery. Merriman participated fully in practice including team drills.

Browns WR Greg Little lost 11 pounds through working out and good nutrition. Running crisper routes too.

TE Chris Cooley’s speed warrants close monitoring during the Redskins' training camp this summer. His admission last week that he is slower than he was during his best years gives us a measure for gauging his chances of making the team and contributing at the level at which he’s determined to contribute. Speed and job security generally are positively correlated in the NFL, of course, and Cooley’s value diminishes if he can’t run. He believes he can get faster, though, by continuing to strengthen and rehabilitate his surgically-repaired left knee.

New offensive coordinator Mike Tice insisted WR Devin Hester would have an integral role in the scheme he and quarterbacks coach Jeremy Bates are implementing.

"With the way the offense is designed, I only need about 40, 50 catches and can easily be close to 800, 900 yards receiving,'' Hester said. "With this offense, you might not have a lot of balls, but you're going to have a lot of big plays.''

Although Hester is accustomed to utilizing his speed on the outside, his work in the slot Wednesday might have offered a glimpse of his future role — depending on how rookie Alshon Jeffery develops.

"It's fun,'' Hester said of working inside. "It's easier to read coverages in the slot.''

Minnesota Vikings cornerback Asher Allen has retired from football.

Coach Leslie Frazier announced on Wednesday that the fourth-year cornerback came into his office last week and told Frazier of his decision. Frazier says he was surprised, but did not get into the specifics of their discussion.

Allen started nine games and appeared in 12 last year, but missed some time due to a concussion and a shoulder injury. Frazier says the decision was not related to injuries.

Seahawks WR Golden Tate has a broken hand and is not practicing. The team expects Tate to return for training camp. Seattle has high expectations for Tate this season, so the missed time is costly in the short term, especially since the lockout prevented him from practicing last offseason as well.

RB Adrian Peterson is ahead of schedule in his rehab, and he's already been racing some of his teammates at the Vikings' practice facility.

"I got to run against Adrian and he's looking good," said WR Jerome Simpson, who beat Peterson in the race. "It was neck-and-neck there. We're always talking a little trash back and forth to each other, but it was a great competition."

Peterson beat a few of his other teammates, an impressive feat given that he is only about six months removed from major knee surgery. He beat Harvin in their runs up a steep hill twice on Wednesday, as well.

"He's amazing. I told him the other day I don't think he's human," WR Percy Harvin said. "Two weeks ago he beat a couple guys in a race. When I got here yesterday, I told them guys they should be embarrassed."

Peterson is going to have to be super human to pull off a full recovery in time for Week 1, but it sure sounds like he's well ahead of schedule with his rehab.

The Lions had a very high grade on WR Ryan Broyles, who some believe would have been a first round pick had it not been for the torn ACL that ended his record-breaking career with the Sooners early. Also, under offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, the Lions featured three-, four- or even five-receiver sets on nearly 75% of their offensive snaps a season ago so receivers are always needed. Finally, Broyles is a completely different style of wideout than Johnson, Burleson and Young and therefore should be in a position to succeed once he proves himself fully recovered from the injury.

The 5-10, 192 pound Broyles left Oklahoma having caught an NCAA-record 349 passes over his career. He's not as big or fast (even when healthy) as Johnson, Burleson or Young. Broyles, however, is further along as a route-runner than any of these three at similar points in their career. His game is built around his flexibility and burst out of his breaks as a short to intermediate route-runner. He also has terrific hands. Simply put, Broyles gains separation and catches the football, which is why some clubs graded him as the top slot receiver prospect in the 2012 draft.

And the injury? Broyles (and more importantly team sources) indicate that the rehabilitation is coming along well. Only five months after tearing the ligaments against Texas A&M, Broyles completed a full Pro Day workout that included running the 40-yard dash in a respectable 4.57 seconds. He participated in the team's recent OTA's and the Lions believe he has a shot at being back on the field full time for training camp.

Broyles is worth watching as he presses Nate Burleson and Titus Young for snaps. Broyles is a more natural slot receiver than either of those players, so he could work his way into a WR3 role rather quickly.

Texans WR Lestar Jean, 24, was one of the training camp stars last summer before a shoulder injury put him on injured reserve for the season. But when given the opportunity, he lived up to his nickname “Big Play,” making impressive catches his norm. He had a couple of long catches in limited preseason action and made more in practice.

He has turned heads again this offseason making big play after big play.

Knowing all three positions should get Jean on the field sooner.

Jean has good size (6-3, 205 pounds), but he isn’t a classic stretch-the-field wideout with blazing speed (a 4.52-second 40-yard dash). Still, he gets open and makes plays on the ball, two aspects of the position with which the speedier Jacoby Jones struggled.

Jean could press Kevin Walter for snaps if he continues to impress.

Packers WR Donald Driver has agreed to terms with the team. His agent Jordan Woy said in an email: "We have agreed to terms with the Packers but need to review it tomorrow to finalize."

The New England Patriots have released receiver Anthony Gonzalez less than three months after signing him.

Packers HC Mike McCarthy on WR Jordy Nelson: “Jordy is a perfect example of a guy who was given more opportunities last year and performed outstanding. We’ll keep moving him around, probably play him in the slot a little more than he’s played in the past. Those are the kind of things we continue to look at, give him more matchups, expand his route tree where he’s maybe more of the focus. Not that he can’t run those routes, it’s more about having the opportunity because statistics speak for themselves."

Lions WR Titus Young is back participating in OTAs.

Dolphins RB Reggie Bush on the changes in the offense from last year: “No huddle. Very up-tempo and fast-paced offense. That’s the biggest thing right off the bat. That means our conditioning is going to have to be high, and we’re going to run a lot of plays in real games. So that’s something we have got to be prepared for. We’ve got to play fast and know the system; we can’t have split-second indecision because it could mess up a play or a whole drive.”

He went on to talk about the pace (perhaps 90 plays a game): "That’s a lot of plays. I was just asking our running back coach (Jeff Nixon), ‘Is this going to be the temp in the game?’ We’re pretty fast right now, but usually we practice faster than we should play. I don’t know, we’ll see. Hopefully the tempo will go down a little bit and save some guys because that’s a lot of plays in one game.”

For a team to play an up tempo offense effectively, everyone has to be on the same page. The Dolphins offense could really struggle this year with lack of talent at QB and WR, and a lack of commitment to the running game would certainly hurt Bush.

With 2011 starting QB Tarvaris Jackson, free-agent addition Matt Flynn and third-round rookie Russell Wilson getting an equal number of reps in early Seahawks offseason workouts, team sources tell us it’s way too early to know if anybody might have a leg up in the team’s QB competition. In the first OTA open to the media, though, Flynn did the best job, by far, of the three in terms of withstanding pressure and avoiding turnovers.

We expect Flynn to win the job. Stay tuned.

It is no surprise that the production of Seahawks receiver Mike X Williams took a dip in 2011 after he had a career year in 2010. Williams’ breakout season was the result of dedicating himself to conditioning and preparation for the first time in his career. Last year, sources say he reverted back to some of his old lazy habits. His weight has been an issue, both during the season and in the offseason. And not being in shape contributed to him not staying healthy last year.

Chargers RB Ryan Mathews is primed for a big season.

“I personally think he’s ready to take that next step,” said HC Norv Turner, who added he thinks Mathews has what it takes to someday lead the league in rushing. “That means, to me, the production goes way up, and he’s more of the guy that is on the field most of the time. I think he’s grown a lot in terms of understanding his responsibility when the ball is in his hand.”

Mathews split time with Mike Tolbert last season, and now that Tolbert is in Carolina, there is very little standing between Mathews and a big season. His main issue has been staying healthy -- missing six games in the last two seasons -- but he has reportedly packed on the muscle this offseason and may be better prepared to handle a big workload.

Patriots beat writer Jeff Howe notes that RB Shane Vereen was the top back during the team's practice: "The big thing that jumped out was Vereen served as the top back during practice. The unknown is whether or not it means anything, particularly since I have no idea who took on that role during their first two sessions. It’s just like preseason carries in that regard, as Bill Belichick will designate certain times for certain players to have their time with the first-team offense. But again, Vereen is high on my list of players to watch during the offseason, since it was difficult to make any lasting impressions last year."

We're currently expecting Stevan Ridley to be the lead back in the Patriots RBBC, but Vereen could easily carve out a big role. Don't forget that he was drafted ahead of Ridley just last year, so the team obviously had him rated higher a short while ago.

Throughout the league, people have wondered why the Bears can't agree on a multiyear contract extension for RB Matt Forte. A major sticking point could stem from the Bears' worry over how long Forte's knees will hold up, a source suggested to the Tribune. The wear and tear on Forte's knees drew the attention of several teams, including the Bears, before the 2008 NFL draft when he came out of Tulane.

According to the source, given Forte's past the Bears cannot rule out arthritis setting in and becoming a chronic problem for the fifth-year running back with 1,237 career NFL touches who turns 27 in December. In the NFL, data show running backs start declining after age 28.

Those realities are one of several issues making the Bears reluctant to meet Forte's demands for the contract he seeks believed to be worth more in overall value and guarantees than LeSean McCoy's.

Lions DT Nick Fairley was arrested early Sunday morning for driving under the influence and attempting to elude police.

Alabama State Troopers say Fairley was arrested shortly after 1:00 a.m. Sunday on I-10 near the intersection of Highway 90 in Tillman’s Corner.

He was charged with DUI and attempting to elude police, but troopers also said Fairley was ticketed for reckless driving, no proof of insurance and having an open container.

He posted $1750 bond and was released shortly after 9:00 Sunday morning. This is Fairley's second arrest in Mobile in less than two months. He was arrested on April 3 for marijuana possession.

When asked how the Patriots intend to divvy up touches among RBs Stevan Ridley, Shane Vereen, Danny Woodhead and Joseph Addai, ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss said this: "If everyone's healthy, I think we'll see Ridley and Shane Vereen get the bulk of the work. I see Addai as a nice 'insurance' type of addition if Ridley and Vereen don't emerge, as well as a backup option for Danny Woodhead in the 'passing back' type of role. While I'd lean toward Ridley/Vereen getting more work, it's also safe to say we can expect the Patriots to mix it up from week to week, depending on the game-plan."

Reiss mentions Woodhead as the 'passing' back, so what we're looking at is a three-headed monster of Ridley and Vereen as rushers and Woodhead as the third-down back. That's still a RBBC, and it won't be pretty. Ridley figures to have the most value of the three (assuming he can hold onto the ball) due to his probable role as the team's goal-line back. BenJarvus Green-Ellis was fantasy relevant for the same reason. At this point, Reiss believes that Addai will only see the field for any significant time if one of the aforementioned RBs goes down.

Dolphins beat writer Omar Kelly on WR Brian Hartline: "I’ve watched Hartline closely, and critically for three seasons. During that time I’ve been won over by his intelligence, and solid route running. I’ve also concluded he’s a solid starter. One that has some upside to do more. I’ve pointed out Hartline’s numbers in his first three seasons are superior to those of Jordy Nelson, hinting that Hartline could have a similar breakout season to the one Nelson produced in Green Bay’s offense."

Hartline has a tremendous opportunity this season with the lack of experienced receiving talent in Miami and the installation of a new pass-friendly offense. There are a few warning signs, however. His Fantasy Points / Target (0.94) has been lackluster the last two seasons, though it was impressive (1.22, #22 among qualified WRs) in his rookie year when he caught three TD passes. He should see more redzone targets this season given his size (6'2"), the departure of Brandon Marshall and his penchant for making the sideline grab. (Also, Nelson's jump from 1.10 FP/T in 2010 to a league-leading 2.28 in 2011 shows that a big jump is not unprecedented.) Hartline's Catch % (i.e. receptions/targets) was a below-average 53.0% in 2011 -- however, he was much better (61.4%) in 2010. He's not quite as big as Nelson, or as fast, but opportunity is a big part of fantasy success, and Hartline has that in spades. (Hit the Full Article link to see Hartline's highlight reel.)

49ers WR Randy Moss arrived in Santa Clara on April 30 for the start of HC Jim Harbaugh’s so-called “Football School,” a precursor to the OTA sessions and minicamps currently taking place.

Harbaugh does not take a leisurely, dip-a-toe-in-the-pool approach to spring practices. His “Football School” sessions were fast-paced, intense and eye-opening for newcomers not used to his hyperactive style.

Moss didn’t complain and more than kept up. In fact, Harbaugh said the 35-year-old has been like another coach on the field.

“He’s not a B.S.-er,” Harbaugh said. “He’s rock-solid. We just couldn’t be happier with him.”

It's a big "if," but if Moss can continue to be a professional, he can certainly help the 49ers' pass offense, which has also added Mario Manningham and A.J. Jenkins this offseason. This is good news for QB Alex Smith, who looks like he'll have a longer leash in the passing game in 2012.

Bears LB Brian Urlacher believes RB Matt Forte deserves a long-term pact, but nobody's holding their breath.

"Everyone wants Matt to get his deal and get what he wants," Urlacher told WMVP-AM on Thursday. "Is it realistic? Probably not, because nobody gets what they want these days. Or what we think we're worth. We want him to get a deal. I think either way he'll be here when he needs to be here, for training camp and the games that really count. As long as we can get him back and get him healthy, that's all that really matters."

Members of the media were allowed to watch one of the Bengals three practices this week, and I came away very impressed by rookie wide receiver Mohamed Sanu.

“Man, that guy is smooth,” said A.J. Green. “He works the middle really well. A lot of people have questioned his speed, but the guy has ‘football speed.’ It’s just like myself. A lot of people say that he didn’t run the fastest, but you see him on the field and he’s fluid in-and-out of his breaks, he catches everything with his hands, and he attacks the ball. He’s going to be a special one.”

The WR2 job in Cincy is wide open and whoever emerges opposite of Green will be fantasy relevant in 2012.

Rams QB Sam Bradford has been impressed with the skill of both WRs Chris Givens and Brian Quick. Bradford said Wednesday, “Givens first of all is extremely fast. I think he’s a guy that defenses are going to have to be extremely aware of. If they fall asleep on him for a half second at all, he’s going to be by them. I think that’s nice to have, just that added speed. Then Quick, I was working with him a little bit after practice today and it’s just extremely impressive watching him move. As big as he is, as tall as he is, he gets in and out of breaks really well. He’s fast as well. It’s exciting to have those two guys here. We’ve just got to keep pushing them, try to get them ready to go.”

The Broncos used a second-day draft pick on RB Ronnie Hillman, and the expectation inside the team's Dove Valley complex is that Hillman will play in the offense right from the start.

He's an explosive runner with back-to-back, 1,500-yard seasons at San Diego State. Hillman has also looked smooth catching the ball in his workouts as well.

Lindsay Jones of The Denver Post said that RB Knowshon Moreno is "fighting for a roster spot" as he tries to return from a torn ACL.

Adam Schefter appeared on NFL Live to discuss the recovery window of WR Hakeem Nicks: "Giants are holding to 12 week timetable, and I think that's fairly accurate, but there's one person familiar with the injury who said he believes it's more of a 4- to 6-week injury."

Stephania Bell said that "12 weeks should not be an issue for him." But she also said recovery can last from four to 14 weeks; it depends on the case.

Twelve weeks of recovery would put Nicks back the week of Aug. 20, which would leave him a couple of weeks to prepare for Week 1 against the Cowboys (Sep. 5).

Cowboys WR Dez Bryant suffered a thigh bruise in 2011 that caused him to miss one game and landed him on the injury report four times. But Bryant surprised reporters Wednesday by saying he never felt 100 percent healthy in 2011. Not one time.

"I don't think I was ever where I wanted to be," Bryant said in a moment of self reflection. "It was just the injuries, my performance. I didn't feel like they healed quick enough."

RB Shonn Greene is listed at 226 pounds, but it looks like he dropped a few. He ran with a little extra giddy-up.

Greene finished the 2011 season RB18 in standard scoring formats, but he's the #25 RB off the board despite the fact that he's still young (27 to start the season) and that the Jets let LaDainian Tomlinson (117 touches) go. Sure, Tim Tebow may very well eat into his rushing TDs, but he only had six scores in 2011 so he can only drop so far in that area. He has improved as a pass-catcher as well. He should make a solid (if unexciting) RB2 or a very good RB3.

Steelerss RB Rashard Mendenhall said he will play this season, and he didn’t rule out doing so in the
Sept. 9 season opener in Denver.

Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert has said it usually takes a year to fully recover from that injury. And the Steelers have braced for the possibility that Mendenhall will spend the first six weeks of the season on the physically unable to perform list.

Mendenhall is in the final year of his contract, but the Steelers’ 2008 first-round pick plans on playing through whatever risk comes with returning this season. When asked if there is any chance he won’t play in 2012, Mendenhall said, “I don’t see that happening at all.”

Mendenhall tore his ACL extremely late in the season, so we're not expecting him to return to form in 2012. He's a strong candidate to start the season on the PUP list, which means he'd be out for the first six weeks of the season. Even if he is available early in the season, the Steelers will probably ease him back into action and lean on the very capable Isaac Redman, who has a better career YPC (4.5 to Mendenhall's 4.1). Due to the overwhelming positivity that prevails at this point in the offseason, this situation is a little murky right now, but most of the signs point to Redman having the better year.

QB Alex Smith noted that WR Michael Crabtree might be the star of the 49ers' spring.

"He's healthy, and I think he's excited about that," Smith said. "I think he's feeling really good. You come out and watch and he's running better than he ever has since I've seen him. Running really well out here, making plays. It's exciting to see."

In the final 11 games of the regular season, Crabtree had 61 catches for 742 yards and four touchdowns, which would translate to 89 catches, 1,079 yards and six touchdowns over a 16-game season.

Crabtree may be emerging, but the 49ers are a run-first team (or at least they were in 2011) and they added Mario Manningham, Randy Moss and A.J. Jenkins this offseason. RB LaMichael James will also play a role in the passing game. Barring a big shift in offensive philosophy, which is not out of the realm of possibility given the team's additions, Crabtree's targets could actually decrease in 2012.

Titans RB Chris Johnson has been a regular during the team’s off-season program, and offensive coordinator Chris Palmer has liked what he’s seen so far.

In previous years, Johnson worked out on his own with a personal trainer in Florida. Coming off the least productive season of his four-year career – and after a clause was added to his contract extension last summer that requires him to be in town for the majority of the workouts – Johnson’s opted to work with his teammates in town.

“C.J. has worked very hard,’’ Palmer said. “He is here, running hard and working hard. I’m very optimistic about how he’s going to perform this (fall).”

While some may wonder if Chargers 2011 kicker Nick Novak ---- who performed admirably and converted 79 percent of his attempts, but missed a few important shots ---- will challenge for Nate Kaeding's starting spot, team insiders have said for months that the old pecking order will return.

Ravens WR Jacoby Jones fielded punts, immediately stepped into a prominent position outside and inside with the first team at wideout during 11-on-11 drills at OTAs this week, and quickly seemed to pick up the offense.

“He’s done really well,” Head Coach John Harbaugh said. “Great attitude. Really hard worker, really, really hard worker. Very fast, big, physical guy. He’s done a really good job.”

Jones had plenty of opportunity to emerge as an impact fantasy WR with Andre Johnson hobbled over the last two seasons but failed to do much of anything. We're not expecting a whole lot from Jones in Baltimore, but it does appear that he's in line to be the WR3.

Buccaneers beat writer Roy Cummings on the team's RB situation: "Doug Martin is more versatile than LeGarrette Blount and doesn't have the problems holding on to the ball that Blount does. Martin can break tackles, too, and he has the speed to break free for a home run. He'll likely get the chance to be the starter out of the chute but it's nice to have a starting-caliber player like Blount in reserve, who can finish games and punish tired defenses."

One person familiar with the fractured foot of Giants WR Hakeem Nicks said it was more like a "4- to 6-week" injury.

Hopefully we'll get a clarification on Nicks's timetable shortly.

Wide receiver Hakeem Nicks fractured the fifth metatarsal in his right foot while running a route and is expected to miss about 12 weeks, the team announced. Nicks will undergo surgery on Friday to have a screw inserted in the bone. Noted foot and ankle specialist Robert Anderson will perform the procedure in Charlotte, N.C.

The anticipated time frame for Nicks' recovery means he'll be out of action until mid-August, or about half of the preseason.

Rookie WR Rueben Randle will benefit from extra reps in OTAs and training camp, but barring a setback, expect Nicks and Victor Cruz to be the Giants top two WRs come Week 1.

RBs Trent Richardson and Montario Hardesty rotated with the first team at the Browns' OTAs.

We're still expecting a huge workload for Richardson, but perhaps the Browns aren't ready to give up on Hardesty just yet. He appears to have a chance to become Richardson's backup.

Bears WR Johnny Knox was in good spirits Wednesday at practice at Halas Hall but still a long way from participating in practice and an even longer way from playing in a game.

Still rehabilitating from surgery to stabilize a vertebra in his back after suffering a horrific injury Dec. 18 against the Seattle Seahawks, a clearly underweight Knox acknowledged the possibility that he might miss part or all of the 2012 season.

‘‘It could happen, but I’m staying optimistic,’’ said Knox. ‘‘My main focus is in the weight room. I’m not in a rush. This is my spine, the core of my body I’m dealing with. It’s not my knee, ankle or shoulder. I’m taking my time.’’

Cowboys RB Felix Jones still is rehabbing his shoulder so he isn't doing much in OTAs. HC Jason Garrett said he anticipates Jones being cleared by camp.

Panthers RB Mike Tolbert said he knows what his job will entail but would only said it would include "a lot of fullback stuff" and "a lot of different stuff."

Tolbert is behind both DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart in the pecking order, so barring injury, he's not going to see the kind of touches he saw in San Diego.

Rams QB Sam Bradford is still recovering from a badly sprained ankle, originally suffered Oct. 16 against Green Bay. He missed six games and finished rehab in March, but soreness lingers.

"It's getting there," he said. "It seems to feel better every week. There's less soreness, more things I can do. I think it's definitely on the right track."

Yikes. We assumed that the ankle would be 100% by now, so this puts a damper on whatever upside Bradford has this season.

We’ve heard several times this offseason that Ravens running back Ray Rice wants to be paid like one of the NFL’s elite running backs, and that the player and the team are far apart in contract talks.

But Sal Paolantonio of ESPN might have had the report that put the distance between the Ravens and Rice into the starkest terms yet: Paolantonio said that when talking to a senior Ravens official about reports that Rice wants Adrian Peterson money or at least Chris Johnson money, that senior team official said, “That is simply not going to happen.”

Peterson signed a seven-year, $100 million deal with $36 million guaranteed, while Johnson signed a six-year, $56 million contract with $30 million guaranteed. Rice can’t expect to get that.

This sounds bad -- and it may very well be bad -- but Rice has to recognize that the Adrian Peterson and Chris Johnson contracts have not worked out for the Vikings and Titans, respectively. Hopefully he will lower his asking price to a point that's palatable to the Ravens, and soon. A protracted, CJ1K-style hold out would make him a riskier pick on draft day. Johnson never looked like himself in 2011 and Rice would be running the same risk.

Dolphins coach Joe Philbin thinks he has about three months to pick a quarterback, and he plans to get a close look at all of the quarterbacks on his roster before he does.

“We’re really pleased with the room that we have,” Philbin said on ESPN’s NFL 32. “David Garrard is a proven player. Matt Moore did an exceptional job last year in Miami. We think Ryan Tannehill has a lot of promise for the future. And we’ve got a young man named Pat Devlin who’s worked extremely hard as well.”

Philbin said Week 3 of the preseason is the point at which he thinks he’ll know who his starter is.

Week 3 of the preseason is Aug. 23-26, so it may be a while before we know who the starter is in Miami.

The best thing about the Dolphins' brewing battle at WR is these coaches have no ties to anyone on the roster, and that includes incumbent starters Brian Hartline and Davone Bess, who will be forced to earn their starting spots.

The Miami WR competition is wide open. Bess and Hartline are the incumbents, but that doesn't matter much to the new coaching staff. The team signed Legedu Naanee, who was productive in 2011 for the Panthers, and he could surprise. Curiously, the team waited until the 6th round to draft a WR (B.J. Cunningham).

New Buccaneers TE Dallas Clark said that his litany of recent injuries — "the wrist, the pinched nerve, the broken leg" — is behind him. He doesn't think he's that far removed from the kind of success he had in 2009, when he had a career year with 100 receptions.

"Injuries are part of the game and I've had a couple down years with injury, but it is what it is," Clark said. "I'm not hampered by it. It's not slowing me down. I still feel I can come out and perform every day."

Clark's positivity is great, but 2009 was three seasons ago and he'll have Josh Freeman -- not Peyton Manning -- throwing him the ball in 2012.

QB Ryan Tannehill was third in line for snaps at Dolphins OTAs. Matt Moore and David Garrard are mostly taking snaps with the starters.

ESPN's Adam Schefter compared the Dolphins' QB situation to the 2011 Titans, where Matt Hasselbeck remained the starter as long as he was productive. The Dolphins figure to struggle in 2012, so we may be seeing Tannehill sooner rather than later. That said, Moore was not bad in 2011, so he could stick as the starter if Miami can remain competitive.

Detroit Lions second-year wide receiver Titus Young's absence from OTAs due to a reported altercation with safety Louis Delmas that occurred last week has plenty of folks talking about a potential bad attitude. However, fellow wide receiver Nate Burleson has come to the former Boise State standout's defense.

Burleson addressed the issue on Tuesday with reporters. He was working out next to Young and Delmas when the incident took place.

"I don't know if it was a punch, a push, a shove," Burleson told the Associated Press. "It's one of those things that happens all the time. To be honest, when I played in Minnesota we fought like every other day. It wasn't that serious."

The ‪Packers‬ have given RB Ryan Grant's locker to WR Diondre Borel. It still had Grant's name on it at rookie camp.

It's just a sign that the Packers are ready to move on from Grant. It appears that James Starks will be the RB1 in Green Bay in 2012.

49ers RB Frank Gore's health was in question at the end of last season as his workload seemed to decrease. Gore carried just 29 times in the playoffs against New Orleans and the New York Giants.

Gore, who turned 29 last month, said there was no physical reason he saw a reduction in his rushing attempts late in the season.

With added depth in the 49ers' backfield, Gore might share carries more than ever this season. After all, the 49ers added veteran Brandon Jacobs and rookie LaMichael James to go along with reserve Kendall Hunter. But Gore said he is working this spring as if his role will not change.

"I feel I still can do everything pretty good: catch, run and block. I'm going to do what I've always been doing," Gore said. "As long as I'm healthy and in great shape and ready to play, I'm going to be the Frank Gore I've always been."

Gore can say what he wants, but actions speak louder than words and the 49ers made a concerted effort to upgrade the running game behind Gore. Jacobs could take over goal line duties and James is likely to cut into Gore's workload in the passing game. We currently have Gore ranked #20 among RBs in standard scoring formats.

The Packers' running backs group was slim without Ryan Grant and Alex Green participating. Grant remains a free agent and Green is still aiming to return for training camp. It all means that James Starks will have an opportunity to be the top back. An ankle injury suffered against Tampa Bay Nov. 20 derailed him last year. He never quite got back to full strength. As expected, he was the starter Tuesday.

"Starks has played a lot and he's lining up there right now," offensive coordinator Tom Clements said. "We have some new additions. Brandon Saine is back. He did well in spot duty last year. So he should be better, James should be better."

We currently have Starks ranked as the #26 RB in standard formats, but that would change if the Packers re-sign Grant or bring in another veteran player.

Browns WR Greg Little looks like he dedicated the offseason to reshaping his body in an effort to add quickness.

“He looks much leaner, and he was running around well,” Shurmur said after Tuesday’s first OTA practice. “I think it’s his first true offseason as a pro and I think what he has done is he has taken good care of his body. I think he has worked on his diet and nutrition and has gotten himself in shape to come out here and run a lot.”

Browns WRs Greg Little and Mohamed Massaquoi are the early starters, HC Pat Shurmur said.

Cardinals RB Beanie Wells has been working out on the side with an athletic trainer and does his regular rehabilitation. When asked if his knee surgery included the meniscus he replied, "Naw, not really meniscus. It was a little more complicated."

Asked later if he had microfracture surgery, Wells smiled as he walked into the locker room.

His agent, Sean Howard, told ESPN that the surgery was "a clean-out procedure" and said Wells did not undergo microfracture surgery or any other procedure requiring an extended recovery period.

We're not very high on Wells at the moment -- we have him ranked #30 in standard scoring formats. Not only is the knee a concern, but he's also feeling pressure from second-year man Ryan Williams, who is working his way back from his own knee injury.

Cowboys WR Danny Coale will need surgery to repair a broken left foot suffered in Tuesday’s organized team activity at Valley Ranch, according to a source.

The surgery means Coale could miss the early part of training camp, which will begin in the final week of July.

Bengals WR Brandon Tate lined up opposite A.J. Green with the first team. Let us also note that it is May 22 and a long way to go until the Sept. 10 opener at Baltimore.

Head coach Marvin Lewis did say last week that if the season started tomorrow either Brandon Tate or Armon Binns would be the starter because they have experience in the offense. Mohamed Sanu and Marvin Jones are just learning it.

Whoever wins the WR2 job in Cincy will be fantasy relevant, so this is something to monitor as the summer progresses.

With the Redskins going through the paces of the first full-squad workout in their spacious new practice bubble, QB Robert Griffin III sailed a few throws, double-clutched a time or two before pulling the ball down and running and occasionally looked a bit off-balance when throwing from the pocket.

But there were plenty of positives, too, with Griffin flashing his strong and accurate right arm on numerous occasions in the 1:45 workout, showing a good command of Washington's offense and generally looking comfortable in the spotlight. If anything he might have been a bit too amped early on in the practice, eager to show the entire Redskins roster what all the fuss is about.

Watching Griffin in this baby-steps part of his indoctrination to NFL, I couldn't help but be struck by how many times the Redskins' play calls had him rolling out of the pocket to throw on the run. Or occasionally boot-leg it around one end. Griffin rolled right and he rolled left. I'll bet he even rolled out of bed Monday morning. If it was a preview of what was to come this season, Washington fans can expect him to throw from the pocket a clear-cut minority of the time in 2012.

And I can see why Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan and offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan would make that call. When Griffin throws on the run, he's deadly accurate, even when he's rolling left and throwing against his body. From the pocket, he looks a little less certain of himself, and at times didn't get comfortable or fully mechanically set before releasing the ball. The footwork just isn't as smooth in that part of his game.

Browns GM Tom Heckert is expecting Brandon Weeden to be the team's starting QB.

“The best guy’s gonna play, but we fully expect Brandon to be that guy,” Heckert told reporters Monday night before he spoke to a crowd of more than 450 people at the 33rd annual Akron Browns Backers banquet at Tangier restaurant. “Now if he’s not, and Colt plays better or Seneca, whoever — but right now that’s our goal is to have [Weeden] be the guy.”

Heckert said his thoughts about Weeden were confirmed two weeks ago during rookie minicamp.

“I don’t think anything stood out any different than what we thought,” Heckert said. “He’s got a strong arm. He’s accurate. He’s a very good leader and he’s smart. Picking up the offense was nothing for him.”

Lions RB Mikel Leshoure will most likely be suspended for his two offseason marijuana arrests. According to the league's collective bargaining agreement, Goodell could suspend him for as many as four games. Past precedent, though, indicates Leshoure will likely get two games.

Leshoure's pending suspension is a dark cloud over an already muddled RB situation in Detroit.

Washington Redskins tight end Fred Davis said Monday that he has learned from the four-game suspension he served at the end of last season for failing multiple drug tests, and that his priorities are now in order.

“It already happened now, and you can’t cry over spilled milk. The worst part of my day was losing those four games, and having to sit and not help my teammates,” Davis said. “So, the worst is over, something I can learn from, and something that’s not going to come up again.”

Davis was on pace for 79-1061-4 before serving a four-game suspension for a failed drug test. With those numbers, he would have finished as the TE4 in 2011. He looks like a nice value in the middle rounds.

Twentyman: "The reports from yesterday that Titus Young is on suspension from the Lions is inaccurate, according to multiple league sources."

Meanwhile, NFL.com reported that Calvin Johnson threw out the first pitch at the Detroit Tigers game on Friday. He had invited all the receivers to watch the game in a suite with him. That invitation to Young was rescinded, although it's unclear if Johnson or the Lions made that decision.

"We can't talk about that," Johnson said.

Keep in mind Twentyman works for DetroitLions.com, so his tweet sounds more like a denial from the team than objective reporting.

Texans star receiver Andre Johnson said Monday that he will be out for three to four weeks after arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.

The 30-year-old Johnson sat out Houston's first organized team practice, two weeks after the procedure.
"Right now, everything is just focusing on making sure everything is right before I get back out here," Johnson said. "Nothing to panic about."

Johnson said fluid continued to develop around the knee, and he and the team decided to treat it with surgery.

"We thought it had kind of calmed down," Johnson said. "I was back out doing offseason workouts, just running around and stuff, and it just kind of swelled back up. We felt like that was the best thing to do, get the knee scoped, get it fixed."

Johnson said the knee injury won't delay his preparations for training camp later this summer.

First Kenny Britt gets his knee scoped and now Johnson. Arthroscopic surgery on the knee is usually done to clean up excess cartilage, which can cause both pain and swelling. Provided Johnson can get back on the field in a month or so, this shouldn't be any great concern.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers traded tight end Kellen Winslow to the Seattle Seahawks for a draft pick on Monday night and signed former Colts star Dallas Clark to replace him.

Earlier in the day, Winslow told SiriusXM radio that first-year coach Greg Schiano was "kind of upset" that Winslow has not been working out with the team during the offseason.

"That's kind of shocking, but that's what it is," Winslow said, adding that Schiano told him the coach "would help me out with a trade."

Tampa Bay received a conditional 2013 draft pick in the deal, which a source told ESPN.com's Mike Sando is a seventh-rounder that can elevate to sixth-round choice.

Winslow will join a tight end unit that already includes Zach Miller, who Seattle gave a big contract last offseason, and promising young prospect Cameron Morrah, who has struggled with injuries early in his career. The Seahawks lost tight end John Carlson in the offseason after he signed with Minnesota.

Tampa Bay gets a player who was one of Peyton Manning's favorite targets.

Clark, who turns 33 next month, spent nine seasons with Indianapolis and had 427 career receptions for 4,887 yards and 46 touchdowns. Last season, without Manning and limited by injuries to 11 games, Clark had 34 catches for 352 yards and two touchdowns. He worked out for the Bucs last week.

"Dallas Clark is a consummate pro and proven playmaker," Tampa Bay general manager Mark Dominik said. "He will be another asset, on and off the field, for our team. In addition to Luke Stocker's continued improvement in his ability as an every-down tight end, we feel we have both talent and depth at the tight end position."

Interestingly, the Bucs GM referred to Stocker as an "every-down tight end," so perhaps the team is planning to play him ahead of Clark, who can't have much left in the tank. Winslow's value in Seattle takes a nosedive as he will likely serve as Zach Miller's backup.

Lions WR Titus Young missed OTAs today due to a fight with Louis Delmas last week.

Lions beat writer Tim Twentyman on Twitter: "WR Ryan Broyles has his helmet on. We'll see how much he does but he's a participant early on."

There was some concern that Broyles wouldn't be ready for the start of the season, but his participation in OTAs indicates that he may be ready to go for training camp and/or Week 1. If so, he may push Nate Burleson for work in the slot.

Buccaneers TE Kellen Winslow appeared on SiriusXM and said that he was told he was not wanted in Tampa, and that the team would help engineer a trade.

In related news, Adam Schefter reported that the "Bucs worked out former Colts TE Dallas Clark last week, are expected to try to make a move on him this week."

It appears that Clark will replace Winslow as the Buccaneers primary receiving TE. Stay tuned.

Titans WR Nate Washington said last month he would be healthy enough — following surgery for a chipped bone in his knee — to participate in the first organized team activities. Sure enough, Washington was on the field last week.

“I've been practicing every day this week,” Washington said Thursday. “… It was a minor surgery, but it was kind of new for me because I've never had a surgery before. It was a process but the training staff has done a good job of getting me ready to get back out on the field. We'll see if when (more intense practices) start they'll let me go full-tilt with that.”

Those owners that roll the dice on Kenny Britt in the early rounds should target Washington later on. Not only is he a solid WR3/WR4 in his own right, he becomes a WR2/WR3 if Britt were to miss time. With Britt sidelined for most of 2011, Washington finished the season with 74 catches for 1,023 yards and seven TDs.

Panthers HC Ron Rivera was asked about WR Brandon LaFell: "I feel very confident about Brandon. The one thing I didn’t want to do last year, I wanted to keep the carrot in front of Brandon. I didn’t want him to feel like he’s arrived. I think the thing that Brandon has to always keep in front of him is the big picture, and that is his continual growth. I hope he never, ever feels like he’s arrived. If he keeps that approach and works hard like that. And truthfully, looks at the way Steve Smith does things, I think that’s going to help him. I really do. Because when Legedu (Naanee) did get hurt, and (LaFell) did step up and become the starter, I was very pleased with what happened. I thought it kind of signified that, hey, you know what, I think the young man’s arriving. But he hasn’t gotten there. That’s the one thing, I don’t want him to ever feel like he’s gotten there."

During the first eight games of 2011, LaFell saw 3.0 targets per game and produced an average of 2.1 receptions for 35 yards and 0.25 TDs. Over the final eight games, he averaged 4.0 targets for 2.4-42-0.13, so there wasn't a big jump in production despite a 33% increase in targets. However his Fantasy Points / Target was 1.42, which ranked #16 out of 119 WRs with at least 30 targets in 2012. He is definitely a candidate for a breakout season if he gets true WR2 targets.

When asked about the health of Lions RBs Mikel Leshoure and Jahvid Best, beat writer Tim Twentyman said this: "I talked to Mikel about a month or so ago and he said he’s right on schedule with his recovery and expects to be 100 percent for Week 1. Don’t read too much into it if he’s not a full participant in OTAs or the mini-camp. Leshoure told me that he’s going to try and do as much as he can in OTAs, but the real goal is to be ready for training camp and the beginning of the regular season and he won’t push it. Best has been working out since December and has been a full participant in the Lions’ offseason training program. Lions general manager Martin Mayhew said Best will be cleared for physical contact in June and should be ready to go for camp. The Lions are banking that Leshoure and Best are a terrific combo this year that helps spark their run game. I tend to think the pair will make a great duo. I think Leshoure is a special player."

Interestingly, there was no mention of Kevin Smith, who is the third head of the Lions' projected RBBC. The Lions RB situation is very dicey this year. They'd like to use a duo of Best and LeShoure, but neither player has shown much durability thus far.

After losing Darren Sproles and Mike Tolbert in free agency the past two years, many were surprised the Chargers waited until the seventh round of last month’s NFL draft to select a running back. The team needs depth behind starter Ryan Mathews, and though rookie Edwin ‘Rock’ Baker is expected to contribute as a third-down back, the team still has a glaring need to fill on the depth chart.

According to a team insider, a veteran running back will be signed to fill that need at some point this offseason. There are still several quality backs on the market, and the team is waiting until players are willing to accept the veteran minimum contract before offering a deal. Players such as Jackie Battle and Cadillac Williams have been mentioned as possibilities, though the insider believes the team has other backs on the radar, too.

Ryan Mathews is going to be the workhorse back this season, but he has had trouble staying healthy, so whichever veteran the Chargers eventually sign could press Curtis Brinkley for touches if Mathews goes down.

Jaguars OC Bob Bratkowski and HC Mike Mularkey don't think RB Maurice Jones-Drew absence from OTAs will set him back too much once training camp arrives.

"It’s not helping him by not being here, he’ll have a lot of learning to catch up on," Bratkowski said. "But yet, he’s a gifted and talented player and I’m sure he can get caught up. It’s certainly not helping him. Whether it’s hurting him or not, that remains to be seen."

Before I asked about Jones-Drew specifically, Bratkowski noted that the lockout showed coaches some players could be fine without OTAs. While it hurt the rookies, veterans were able to adjust.

Jones-Drew wasn't learning a new offense last season, but he did come into training camp after the lockout in the best shape he's been in as a Jaguar. Then he followed an offseason without offseason programs with an NFL rushing title.

Mularkey said Jones-Drew does have a limited playbook, which the rest of his teammates have, too. At this point, nobody has a full playbook as the coaches are still working on that. Players will get it before training camp.

"Since I haven’t been around him to see how he responds to the terminology and the coaching I don’t know," Mularkey said, when asked if Jones-Drew will be behind. "I’m assuming he’ll be alright. If he knows the basics he’ll at least not come in here stone cold."

Adding veteran depth at safety, the New York Jets agreed to terms Friday with former longtime Miami Dolphins starter Yeremiah Bell, according to a league source.

Bell, 34, signed a one-year, $1.4 million deal, according to a source. It includes a $1.1 million base salary, which is guaranteed, plus a $200,000 signing bonus and a $100,000 workout bonus.

Cardinals RB Beanie Wells has never been big on talking much about his dings and dents, but he said he is “coming along” after his offseason knee surgery.

“I’m rehabbing, just trying to get back,” Wells said.

He said he doesn’t know his timetable for his return to the field. Wells has been at the facility, and on days where the veterans have gone out as an offense to work on passing routes, Wells has joined them outside even though he can’t take part. His ability to take part in organized team activities and/or minicamp is to be announced.
“I am hopeful, but it’s offseason stuff,” Wells said. “Being ready for training camp is the most important thing.”

RB Ryan Williams, who is anxious to get back on the field right now, admits the team will likely not push him now, instead wanting to preserve him for camp.

Eagles beat writer Jeff McLane on WR Jeremy Maclin: "Fantasy-league owners, take note: Jeremy Maclin could be poised for a breakout season. I recently asked one Eagles coach to give me the name of a player that will make his first Pro Bowl this season and he said Maclin’s name without hesitation. It’s going to be difficult for the Eagles wide receiver to rack up Megatron-like numbers. For one, he isn’t as good as Calvin Johnson, and, two, the Eagles have more offensive weapons than the Lions. But Maclin has had the look this offseason of a player that is ready to take that next step. (He also has a little extra motivation in that he’s entering the fourth year of a five year contract.) Last season would have been the “next step” year if he hadn’t had the cancer scare that wiped out most of his offseason. He still put up respectable numbers – 63 catches for 859 yards and 5 TDs – but he missed almost four games because of injury – wear-and-tear injuries that might have been reduced had he had a regular camp and preseason. I saw Maclin last week and he said he was a solid 205 pounds, seven more than his listed 198."

Hamstring and shoulder injuries cost Maclin nearly four games, but he still was on pace for 78-1057-6 (WR22 numbers) despite uncharacteristic games in Week 1 (1-20), Week 10 (2-6) and Week 14 (1-13). Week 1 can be explained by his tumultuous offseason while the other two games bookended a three-game stint on the bench due to the hamstring and shoulder injuries. Throwing those three games out, Maclin was on pace for 94-1312-8, which are WR7 numbers. While his upside is not quite that high, he should be a very good fantasy WR2 that can be had at a WR3 price.

Eagles TE Brent Celek, 27, said he feels "better than I have probably in the last three of four years."

"I'm super-excited -- I'm excited to show what I can do," said Celek, who came on strong in the second half of the 2011 season to finish with 62 catches for 811 yards and five touchdowns. Forty-nine of those catches and three of the touchdowns happened in the last 10 games, after the offensive line got straightened out well enough not to need Celek's constant help.

After a very slow start to the season (9-73-0 on an average of 4.2 targets in the first five games), Celek came on strong, posting 53-738-5 in the next 11 games on a healthy 7.0 targets per game. That projects to 77-1073-7 over the course of a full season. Those are TE3 numbers. With an ADP in the 13th round, Celek can be had as a fantasy TE2 on the cheap.

Titans WR Nate Washington sounded excited about an air attack that will feature Kenny Britt, Kendall Wright, Damian Williams, Jared Cook and Washington.

“When I first got here, the fullback was on the field all day, every day. It was a power offense. We were going to run the ball down your throat,” Washington said.

“This year you have so many different types of weapons. With C.J.’s speed in the backfield, I think we are going to open this thing up a little bit for him to show his versatility more, catching the ball and doing some other things and going to some four- and even five-(receiver sets).”

“Coach Palmer has been in the lab all offseason,” Washington said. “He’s been licking his chops to get back to us so you can tell on his face that he has some different things up his sleeve. …

I think this is going to be a pretty explosive offense. Not that we weren’t in the past, but Kendall and a couple of guys here will definitely give us some different things that we can do, some versatility to the things that we had.”

New Jets WR coach Sanjay Lal spoke with Santonio Holmes a few times after taking the job, but they could not discuss football until the offseason program began in April. For the past five weeks, Lal has gotten to watch Holmes work up close. Lal said Holmes has been, “very eager, very football-hungry, very competitive.”

“He’s been great,” said tackle Wayne Hunter, who was one of the players who fought with Holmes in Miami. “Santonio has been great. He’s been doing extra stuff that people wouldn’t believe. He’s been doing extra with Mark. He’s been doing stuff that he hasn’t done in the past. He’s been a team player, and it’s been a good change.”

If Holmes is turning things around, then he'll be a nice value in the middle (8th-9th) rounds. The main concern is that Tim Tebow's shadow looms large behind Mark Sanchez, and if/when Tebow Time happens in 2012, it's going to put a big dent in Holmes's value.

Seahawks WR Sidney Rice was active and running routes at Seattle’s offseason conditioning workout on Thursday but wore a red jersey to signal no contact.

Rice had two shoulder surgeries and three concussions in a year's time, so he's definitely an injury risk, but the Seahawks are expecting him to be healthy to start the season.

Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt says that he’ll pick either Kevin Kolb or John Skelton as his starting quarterback based entirely on who looks better between now and September, and that he’s heading into the competition with no favorite in place.

Whisenhunt told Jim Rome on Rome that he doesn’t know who his starting quarterback will be, and he’s as eager as anyone to see one of his quarterbacks establish himself as the starter.

“That’s the question that’s going to be answered through the workouts this spring and in training camp this summer,” Whisenhunt said. “They’ve both been working hard at it. It’s been good to get out on the field and actually work on techniques and fundamentals with these guys. At times last year they both showed they can do good things. But consistency at that position is something we’ve got to improve on. So hopefully the competition between both of them will sharpen up one of them enough that he’ll be a good starter for us.”

“I think the knee-jerk reaction would be to say that it is Kevin’s job to lose,” Whisenhunt said. “But then you have to look at what John Skelton did last year in winning those games when he was in there. So I think you have to give John a lot of credit for winning those games. I certainly have a lot of respect for Kevin and what he’s done in this league and we made the commitment to bring him in to our football team. So it’s going to start out as even as it possibly can, and we’re going to let the best player take it from there."

In seven starts and one near-start, Skelton averaged 239 yards, 1.8 TDs and 1.4 INTs, which translates to QB16 numbers. More importantly (for the Cardinals), he went 6-2 in those eight games. Meanwhile, in eight full games (going 2-6) Kolb averaged 244 yards, 1.0 TDs and 1.1 INTs, which equate to QB18 numbers. Fantasy-wise, the starting QB for the Cardinals will likely put up solid QB2 numbers, but whoever wins the job will be on a short leash, and that makes it a situation to avoid.

WR Wes Welker may have done himself a big disservice in contract negotiations with the Patriots Thursday when he spoke publicly about the progress - or lack thereof - in recent talks.

“There have been talks, but nothing that’s brightened anything at all,’’ Welker told the Boston Herald. “It’s actually gotten worse.’’

Welker explained that “worse’’ means the Patriots’ offer is now less than the two-year, fully guaranteed $16 million the team proposed during the 2011 regular season.

According to a team source, Welker’s decision to go public in recent weeks about negotiations has not gone over well with the Patriots; two weeks ago, when he made appearances on various ESPN programs, he made reference to holding out at least through full-team minicamp next month. His words have only increased the chances that 2012 will be his final season with the team.

Welker did sign his tender, so he will play this year. But if a long-term deal isn't done prior to the start of the season, there will be a dark cloud hanging over Welker, and it may affect his play. He's always been the consummate professional, so this isn't a big risk, but it is something to consider on draft day.

A full offseason seems to be doing wonders for TE Antonio Gates.

Last month, the Chargers tight end said he was "excited" to prove he's still an elite player at his position after being slowed the past two seasons to a foot injury.

On Thursday, coach Norv Turner affirmed the All-Pro's progress.

"Gates looks great — he's back," Turner said. "Physically, he's back to where we want him to be. I think, like anybody, going through this offseason program helps you get better. (It's) the combination of conditioning, the combination of getting better in the areas you can improve, and being out there with your teammates."

'Tis the season for positivity, but nonetheless it's good to hear only positive news about Gates at this point in the offseason. His stock is slipping into the middle (5th/6th) rounds, and he'll be a great value there provided he can stay healthy.

The Philadelphia Eagles have signed running back LeSean McCoy to a five-year contract extension on Thursday, according to the team's website.

McCoy's deal is worth $45 million with $20.765 million in guarantees, a club source told NFL Network's Albert Breer.

This is obviously great news for McCoy and his owners. Draft him with confidence in the early first round.

When asked about new WR Robert Meachem, Chargers HC Norv Turner said, “He adds a real speed dimension to our offense. He’s got a different type of speed because there’s some quickness involved. Vincent Jackson, as much as I love him and had a great time with him, is a build-up speed guy. I think Robert gives us a bit of a different dimension."

For more on Meachem's upside, check out How good can Robert Meachem be?

When asked about the possibility of WR Alshon Jeffery starting opposite Brandon Marshall, Bears beat writer Dan Pompei responded, "I would be stunned if Jeffrey were a day-one starter. Most rookie wide receivers take a little time. Don't forget he came out of school early. He is not a finished product and my suspicion is it will take him a while to get up to snuff. There were 28 wide receivers drafted last year. Only two of them were listed as opening-day starters, and those players were taken with the fourth overall selection (A.J. Green by the Bengals) and sixth overall selection (Julio Jones by the Falcons). Only five rookies made more than four starts: first-rounders Green (15 starts) and Jones (15), second-rounders Titus Young (nine) and Greg Little (12), and fifth-rounder Denarius Moore (10). As of now, Devin Hester is the starting flanker on the Bears."

After the 16-game pounding and the 24-hour flu bug before the playoff game shriveled Bengals QB Andy Dalton to 208 pounds, he felt like he needed to get stronger in the weight room.

But while Dalton lived with the weights he also watched tape of his rookie struggles with the long ball and he knew he needed to make putting more meat on his deep passes one of his offseason priorities.

Under the watchful eye of quarterbacks coach Ken Zampese, Cincinnati's maven of mechanics, Dalton is reportedly going long better and easier than he did last year. No one, not Zampese, not offensive coordinator Jay Gruden, questions Dalton's arm strength. For Dalton, the long ball starts with the legs, not the arm.

In the games that have already begun, which are merely pitch-and-catch with his receivers, Dalton has reportedly looked sharp. His fastball seems to have more zip to some. Gruden isn't sure about all that but says Dalton looks stronger and in one throwing session this week word was he hit all but one deep "Go" route, with the only incompletion a drop.

Dalton's first year in the league was overshadowed by Cam Newton's historic rookie season. Dalton finished as fantasy's QB15 with 3,398 yards, 20 TDs versus 13 INTs, and also had the 11th-most rushing yards (152) by a QB. He is one of four rookie QBs (Newton, Peyton Manning and Jim Kelly) to throw for at least 3,000 yards and 20 TDs. He's currently the #18 QB off the board in the 11th round, and represents good value at that point in the draft. He doesn't have a ton of upside, but he'd be a good QBBC contributor or fantasy backup.

QB Drew Brees says his contract negotiations with the New Orleans Saints have become "extremely frustrating."

The Saints placed the exclusive rights franchise tag on Brees in March and the sides have until July 16 to hammer out a long-term extension.

Brees said Wednesday in an interview with WWL radio in New Orleans that he doesn't know why the sides haven't been able to work out a deal yet.

"It's been extremely frustrating for me," Brees said. "I don't think the negotiations should have been this difficult."

Brees, who has not attended the team's offseason program, says he's committed to getting a deal done, but is frustrated by what he perceives to be a lack of communication from the team.

"What's been a little frustrating on my end, or disappointing, is the lack of communication," the reigning AP Offensive Player of the Year said. "We've reached out on quite a few occasions and at times I know I've been frustrated with the lack of response."

While Brees said he wants to return to the team as soon as possible, he raised the possibility of missing minicamp and even training camp if he does not reach a long-term extension that he believes is appropriate.

This situation is already ugly and has the potential to get even uglier if Brees decides to hold out instead of playing on the one-year tender. While he's still likely to have a great fantasy season, it's not unreasonable to move Brees down the draft board due to his increased risk.

GM Ruston Webster says the team is targeting Week 1 for Kenny Britt's return, after the wide receiver underwent arthroscopic surgery on his knee.

“I don’t know if he’s going to be ready the first day of training camp or not,” Webster said. “We’ll just have to wait and see. I do think he’ll be ready for the season, and if you remember, we went through this last year where he didn’t play preseason games or played the last preseason game and was ready to go. We know when we’re really going to need him — that’s when we line up against New England.”

Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt had minor arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on Wednesday, a procedure General Manager Ruston Webster said should accelerate the fourth-year pro’s rehabilitation process.

Britt, who suffered ACL and MCL tears last September, had been experiencing swelling in his knee in recent weeks, so doctors decided to go ahead and “clean it up,” according to Webster.

Webster said the procedure would likely set Britt back a week or two.

“It almost becomes commonplace,” Webster said of the procedure. “It is not one of those things, ‘Wow, oh no, he is having surgery.’ It is very common and if it helps his rehab process and all that, it is well worth doing. And our goal is to have him play this year. It will be helpful to him, I think, and probably accelerate his rehab.”

This sounds like a simple scope meant to smooth out (or remove) excess cartilage, which usually requires 3-4 weeks of recovery. If Britt is able to practice in a month with no problems, then this shouldn't be anything to worry about. Until then, place another asterisk next to his name. Other than Adrian Peterson, Britt is possibly the biggest risk/reward pick at this point in the offseason.

Jaguars WR Justin Blackmon moved around the field today. He played a little Z receiver and even a little slot, which it's expected will be Mike Thomas's position.

Patriots WR Wes Welker has signed his franchise tender, according to a league source.

Welker is still looking for a long-term deal, but it will be good for everyone involved to have him in camp.

Bears WR coach Darryl Drake might have best explained the plan for Devin Hester last weekend by suggesting the "Hester Package" will limit snaps but elevate targets to make more efficient use of Hester's time on offense.

"The talent has always been there," Drake told reporters. "It's just a matter of not having him play 70 plays and throw to him twice. Play him 15 [plays], let him touch it 13 [times.] In order for him to be effective, we don't need to have him out there playing that many plays. If he's out there, put the ball in his hands. We need to have that package, and Mike Tice -- I promise you -- he's going to do it."

Just last week, the report was that the Bears intended to start Hester. It appears that they have backed off that stance, but are insistent on having him (heavily?) involved in the offense. We'd be very surprised if he gets 13 touches per game.

Remember when the Jaguars were trying to decide how much they wanted to go after Tim Tebow in trade earlier this offseason, a competition they ultimately lost to the New York Jets? There were those inside the Jacksonville organization who were ambivalent about the move, believing that even with Tebow on board, Chad Henne, the ex-Dolphins starter, would beat out both players by late August. Let's just say that sentiment hasn't changed with Henne now competing only against Gabbert, the team's first-round pick in 2011.

New head coach Mike Mularkey says there's no quarterback competition between Gabbert and Henne, but that's what he has to say right now. Gabbert is in fragile condition after a brutal rookie season, and there's no reason to further shake his confidence. But all you really need to know is that Jaguars coaches have been working with Gabbert to re-teach him some fundamentals and hone his drops and balance in the pocket. That's not really what you want to hear about your starting quarterback as he enters year two of his career, after going 10th overall in the draft.

It may be Gabbert's team and Gabbert's job in mid-May. But by the time summer is drawing to a close, it'll be clear that Henne is the best man to run Mularkey's offense.

Barring a sea change in his play, Gabbert's presence under center is bad for WRs Justin Blackmon and Laurent Robinson, who would probably be better off if Henne were the starter. Keep this in mind as the summer wears on.

49ers OLB Darius Fleming tore his ACL, tried to go back into drills, then realized something was wrong.

Vikings WR Jerome Simpson pled guilty to a charge of prohibited acts involving controlled substances in March after police found several pounds of marijuana in his Kentucky home. He was sentenced to 15 days in jail and suspended by the league for the first three games of the season.

He spoke with the St. Paul Pioneer Press about a variety of topics, including his trouble with the law: "I made a poor decision. I got caught in something that wasn't really my personality or me. Everybody makes mistakes. I just want people to kind of forgive me. I know it's in the back of your mind. Once a person really meets me and talks with me, they will know this doesn't describe this guy. I'm not a drug dealer or anything. I'm not out there like that. I just made a poor decision. I paid my debt to society. I want to help people not make the same decision I made. One of my goals is to help people not go down that path like I did."

As he gushed over the possibility of a dynamic offense, Bears quarterback Jay Cutler tempered his enthusiasm slightly when it came to the offensive line.

"The offensive line is definitely going to be a concern,'' Cutler said Monday, "and seeing where those guys fit in and seeing what five we go with. You know, if Gabe (Carimi) comes back, if J'Marcus (Webb) pans out (and) Chris Williams, where we're going to put him … there are some question marks there. Until we really get that resolved, get our front five settled, we've got some work to do on the offense.''

Cutler is a sleeper heading into 2012 fantasy drafts after the Bears traded for WR Brandon Marshall and hired his old coach (Jeremy Bates) from his glory days in Denver. But if the team has to get the offensive line in order so that Cutler can feel comfortable in the pocket.

The arraignment for Lions DT Nick Fairley on a misdemeanor marijuana-possession charge has been adjourned to give Fairley's attorney more time to review the case.

Nick Fairley's attorney, Sidney Harrell Jr., told the judge today that Fairley is in a first-step substance-abuse program with the NFL and that he has passed a drug test since his arrest, according to the Mobile Press-Register.

Bears beat writer Brad Biggs on Twitter: "There is no indication Matt Forte will show up soon & he could miss miss minicamp. Could he miss reg season games? I’m saying there is no chance that happens. For starters, negotiations on a deal cease in mid-July when without a long-term contract he will have to play under $7.7 million franchise tag."

Translation: If a long-term deal can't be reached, Forte will start to lose the $7.7 million if he doesn't report before the regular season.

Titans QB Jake Locker didn't get the benefit of playing much last year, but two things are important to note. First, the Titans are thrilled with how Matt Hasselbeck has mentored the young quarterback. And second, Locker will have every opportunity to be the starter this year. Mike Munchak told me a couple days ago it's wide open, and it's "much easier to name a quarterback" based on the relationship the two have, but the sense I get is a tie would go to Locker.

"These two guys are competitive and they understand no one's going to be given the job," Munchak said. "We're gonna let it play out, that's what you do in these situations. As a staff, you hope it becomes obvious fairly early on, and hope it doesn't take until the last week of camp, because someone has to play. The negative is the longer it goes, the harder it is to build. But I think these guys can handle it."

Saints HC Joe Vitt said team will probably have to back off RB Mark Ingram at start of training camp, but he should have green light for regular season.

Before rookie minicamp this past weekend, Browns HC Pat Shurmur said rookie Brandon Weeden must earn the starting quarterback job. But as Shurmur reflected on the recent minicamp while speaking to reporters following his speaking engagement, he said Weeden is making a strong case for himself in his pursuit of the starting job.

“There’s no question I think he’s headed in the right direction,” Shurmur said. “He showed us in the first minicamp that he can throw the ball in this league, and now we’ll get a chance to see him interact with the team, the full squad, and see how he does.”

When Panthers beat writer Darin Gantt was asked who had the inside track for the team's WR2 job, he responded, "LaFell. I didn't realize it was that much of a question."

During the first eight games of 2011, Brandon LaFell saw 3.0 targets per game and produced an average of 2.1 receptions for 35 yards and 0.25 TDs. Over the final eight games, he averaged 4.0 targets for 2.4-42-0.13, so there wasn't a big jump in production despite a 33% increase in targets. However his Fantasy Points / Target was 1.42, which ranked #16 out of 119 WRs with at least 30 targets in 2012. He is definitely a candidate for a breakout season if he gets true WR2 targets. David Gettis is a threat, but LaFell has more experience in the offense and the confidence of the coaching staff.

Seattle rookie Russell Wilson will be part of the competition to become Seattle's starting quarterback this fall, coach Pete Carroll said Sunday as the team concluded a three-day minicamp for rookies.
"He showed us enough," Carroll said. "He's in the competition."

Wilson was the team's third-round pick, and he will join a competition that already included free-agent addition Matt Flynn and incumbent starter Tarvaris Jackson.

Wilson was very impressive on Friday when the Seahawks began the minicamp, taking every repetition during the 11-on-11 drills. He was intercepted on several deep passes during Saturday's practice, but after concluding the workouts on Sunday, Carroll raved about his readiness.

"He did an excellent job of demonstrating that he prepared for this," Carroll said.

The coach estimated Wilson was on the field for 500 snaps all told and threw close to 400 passes. Carroll estimated there was only one time he stumbled on the verbiage of calling a play, demonstrating Wilson's familiarity with a West Coast offense. Wilson ran that system first at North Carolina State and later at Wisconsin.

QB Jay Cutler and QB coach Jeremy Bates were together for Cutler's three seasons in Denver, but Cutler's best year in 2008 was Bates' only season calling plays for him.

So this makes Bates the world's foremost authority on Cutler the quarterback, and arguably the most capable being on the planet to cull the best from No. 6.

Bates has been studying tape of that 2008 season in an attempt to take Cutler's game back to the future.

"We ran that system in 2008 and now we can grow from it and see what we can take advantage of," said Bates, who met the media for the first time as Bears quarterbacks coach Sunday at rookie camp in Lake Forest.

Bates' idea of a quarterback drop is different form Mike Martz's idea. Whereas Martz would have Cutler backpedal, Bates is more likely to have Cutler roll.

"In my opinion, Jay is very athletic," Bates said. "He was a great shortstop in high school. If you go back and watch the Vanderbilt tape, he was running all around the field making plays. We're going to use his feet. He's athletic, he can throw on the run, he can see down the field on the run. We're going to try to find everybody's strengths and use them to our advantage."

In the 2008 season -- with Brandon Marshall as his main target and Bates calling the plays in Denver -- Cutler finished with 4,526 yards and 26 TDs. He also rushed for 200 yards and two scores, finishing the season as the #5 fantasy QB. The Bears are hoping this trio -- Cutler, Marshall and Bates -- can work their magic again. Bates isn't the offensive coordinator -- that title belongs to Mike Tice -- but he's going to have a heavy hand in the passing game. Cutler is currently the #15 QB coming off the board in the 9th round.

New York police are likely to wrap up their investigation this week into a March nightclub incident in which Chicago Bears receiver Brandon Marshall is alleged to have punched a woman in the face, NFL sources told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.

Police have struggled to find evidence against Marshall, according to sources, and it's likely there will be no charges filed and the case will be closed.

The Dolphins traded Marshall just before this story broke and may have jumped the gun. If no charges are filed, Marshall should avoid suspension.

Browns HC Pat Shurmur said he expects fourth-round receiver Travis Benjamin to challenge for significant playing time, possibly even a starting role, right away.

"I would say so," Shurmur said. "I saw a lot of good stuff from Travis this weekend, and I feel like he'll only continue to get better."

The possibility still exists that Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt could need a second, but comparatively minor, knee procedure before he is fully ready to return to playing football this season.

If Britt has to have the second operation, however, it should not be a major setback to his timetable to return from ACL and MCL surgery. Any sort of further work to the knee would likely be similar to the arthroscopic clean-up defensive end Derrick Morgan had last year in training camp.

Titans coach Mike Munchak confirmed that while no second procedure for Britt is scheduled at this time, the possibility still is there for additional work simply due to the type of injury Britt suffered in his right knee, which underwent reconstructive surgery last October. Munchak said second procedures with that type of injury are fairly commonplace.

“I think it always is (possible),” Munchak said. “I don't know if he will at some point, but I think that's something that's common with that injury. Derrick went through it last year. The good thing is that even if you do have it, it's not a huge setback. It's not something that sets you way back. But that is obviously part of the process, or could be, if that arises down the road.”

What the article describes sounds like a scope to smooth out excess cartilage, which usually requires 3-4 weeks of recovery time. It wouldn't be a huge setback, but it makes Britt an extremely risky pick on draft day. It also might explain why the Titans drafted Kendall Wright in the first round when there were positions of greater need. Owners willing to draft Britt may want to target Nate Washington and/or Wright as the draft wears on to cover all the bases.

Running back Darren McFadden is on track to make a successful return to the field after missing the final nine games last season with a severely sprained foot.

That’s according to running backs coach Kelly Skipper, who offered the most in depth report on McFadden’s health since the injury occurred.

“The thing about Darren is, he didn’t have any major surgeries, so he’s able to come back her healthy and he’s playing at a high level right now and it’s offseason,” Skipper said. “So, that’s a good thing. He didn’t have surgery so he’s going to be off the whole spring. Nah, that’s not the case. He’s out here. You would never know he got hurt. He’s making cuts at full speed, everything.”

Not counting the game in which he was injured, McFadden averaged 17.7 fantasy points (standard format) in six games in 2012, which ranked 4th among RBs behind Arian Foster, LeSean McCoy and Ray Rice. The big question mark with McFadden is durability. He has missed 12 games over the last two seasons as the Raiders' feature back, and with Michael Bush in Chicago, there isn't a clear handcuff for owners to draft as insurance.

Free-agent running back Tim Hightower has agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Washington Redskins, a source with knowledge of the situation said Sunday.

This hurts Roy Helu a bit, though he's still in line to start the Mike Shanahan running back carousel in the #1 position.

Bears WR Alshon Jeffery will play the “Z” receiver spot in the slot. New acquisition Brandon Marshall and veteran Devin Hester will play on the outside, with the latter playing a much more significant role in 2012 than in years past on offense because of the club’s plans to creatively deploy him in a variety of places.

We're skeptical that this is going to work given Hester's history as a starting WR.

Browns QB Brandon Weeden threw the ball well during both practices today, but working under center is clearly a work in progress for him. Weeden fumbled two snaps during the afternoon practice.

Weeden spent the majority of the past two seasons playing out of the shotgun at Oklahoma State. Still, he said he’s comfortable with the change.

“I feel really comfortable under center,” Weeden said. “Every center is different. We’ve got [Garth] Gerhart -- he is a lefty. And we’ve got [Jarrod] Shaw -- he is a righty. That is a little bit different, but it’s just a feel thing, a comfort thing. When [starting center Alex] Mack gets here, and I start to take snaps from him, it’s going to be different. It’s getting comfortable. But I’ll be honest, I like being under center more because you can see what’s going on and you get the ball immediately. If I had to pick one of the two, not that I don’t like being in the shotgun, but I like being under center.”

HC Andy Reid gave an optimistic, though lightly detailed on his starting tight end after Brent Celek had January surgeries to repair a sports hernia and torn labrum in his hip:

“He’s actually doing very well,” Reid said. Celek has been on the field for some drills, and will participate in at least some of the OTAs that begin May 22, Reid said. “We’ll take it easy with him and see how he does.

Asked if Celek could participate in full, Reid said, “we’ll just see how he does,” but said he wasn’t worried about the tight being ready for the start of the season.

After a very slow start to the season (9-73-0 on an average of 4.2 targets in the first five games), Celek came on strong, posting 53-738-5 in the next 11 games on a healthy 7.0 targets per game. That projects to 77-1073-7 over the course of a full season. Those are TE3 numbers.

Broncos OC Mike McCoy says TEs will be first and second reads in progression at times this year.

That's good news for TEs Jacob Tamme and Joel Dreessen, and perhaps Julius Thomas. Tamme figures to catch a lot of passes from QB Peyton Manning and has a built-in rapport due to their days together in Indianapolis. In the last 11 games they played together, Tamme posted 72-677-4, which projects to 104-738-6 over a full season. He looks like a great mid-round pick, especially in PPR formats.

It sounds like Rams WR Brian Quick is expected to contribute right away.

"Brian improved from yesterday to today," HC Jeff Fisher said. "He settled down a little bit."

The specifics of the depth chart have yet to be determined. Fisher made it sound like Quick will be sitting near the top when training camp finally rolls around in August.

"We expect him to play and be a big part of our offense," Fisher said. "We don't think about it any other way than that. That's why we drafted him, and we expect him to do it."

Since the draft, Fisher and GM Les Snead's high opinion of Quick has been no secret. He's been on their radar for a long time, and was even said to be something of a "1b" option when ranked next to the 1st-round receivers.

"It's a long time between now and the opener, so we feel like he's got a chance to continue to develop and become more comfortable with what we're doing," Fisher said. "We wouldn't have taken him at the spot where we took him were we not convinced that he was one of those guys that could learn fast and help us very early in the season."

There is plenty of opportunity for Quick to earn snaps and targets given the current state of the Rams WR corps.

When asked about his WRs, Bengals HC Marvin Lewis said: "I thought Mohamed Sanu was everything we expected him to be. He’s going to come in here and play as a rookie and push to start and play time. Marvin Jones to me really had a great five practices. His ability to be a returner will stand out. He really tracks the ball well. You see the speed compared to the size."

It looks like Lewis is expecting Sanu to push for the starting job opposite of A.J. Green.

Matt Williamson of ESPN (and Scouts, Inc.) on Buccaneers rookie RB Doug Martin: "I fully expect Martin to take over the lead back spot in Tampa Bay before very long. Martin is exactly what Greg Schiano is looking for at the position. The Buccaneers will be a run-first team and have invested quite a bit in their offensive line to pave the way. A great interior runner who also is very effective outside the tackles and as a receiver, Martin is in line for a lot of touches. The Buccaneers did not trade back into the first round to select a running back to not use him. And because LeGarrette Blount is a liability in the passing game, the door is wide open for Martin to thrive."

The Buccaneers didn't draft Martin in the first round to back up Blount, so all signs point to Martin getting every opportunity to take over RB1 duties. But his college production (namely his 4.9 YPC against inferior competition in the Mountain West Conference) doesn't jibe with all the love he has been getting from scouts.

Giants HC Tom Coughlin was reluctant to answer a question about which players impressed on the first day, but he did mention one by name: WR Rueben Randle.

“I was very impressed by Randle out on the field this morning,” the Giants coach said.

“What you see on film, it looks like we have a receiver that is capable of making some deep catches, running by some people,” OC Kevin Gilbride said. “As you guys have seen us unfold with those other two guys (Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz), they’re intermediate (threats) and certainly Hakeem can go deep.

“But you need that third component so that when people start skewing over and clamping down on Cruz and Nicks, you’ve got a guy who, if he gets 1-on-1, has the ability to get over the top and hurt people like Mario Manningham did.”

It appears that Randle is on track to become the team's WR3 behind Nicks and Cruz.

Ravens WR Torrey Smith said he 100 percent recovered from sports hernia surgery and has no restrictions at practice.

NFL.com writer Ian Rapoport spent the day in St. Louis said the Rams are "insanely excited" about WR Brian Quick. Here's more: "Quick is tall. Not breaking news. But it’s true. The Appalachian State product is listed at 6-foot-3, but he looks bigger. And at 220, he’s quite the beast. I knew the Rams loved him, even though most of us were shocked by the pick. I just wasn’t sure why. That’s becoming clearer. First of all, QB Sam Bradford is tall, and Quick is tall. That is a high-wire connection in the making. Anyway, Quick moves like a small guy, and he really can catch it. I didn’t see him drop one all day. He gets in an out of his breaks well, he’s nimble and he looks like a good athlete. Very solid."

Positive reports about rookies at this time of year are a dime a dozen, but this isn't coming from a beat writer -- Rapoport is a national writer so perhaps his opinion is a bit more objective. One thing's for sure -- Quick has a tremendous opportunity for targets in the Rams' weak WR corps and will surprise if he can pick up the NFL game quickly. Having played at Appalachian St., he'll have to make a big adjustment to the speed of the NFL.

49ers HC Jim Harbaugh definitely wasn't impressed by the stamina of his rookies. Many, including first-round WR A.J. Jenkins, were flagging by mid session.

News like this is never good, but Jenkins has plenty of time to get into shape before the season begins.

The Bills have signed QB Vince Young to a one-year contract.

GM Buddy Nix reiterated that Young will compete with Tyler Thigpen for the backup job, not to be the starter. Ryan Fitzpatrick's job appears to be safe.

The new Colts offense under QB Andrew Luck will feature tight ends Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen, the next two players the Colts drafted after Luck. Minus Peyton Manning, the Colts, according to ESPN Stats & Information, ran two-tight end sets for only 242 plays last season, fourth-fewest in the league.

"It is a matchup nightmare,'' Colts coach Chuck Pagano told reporters over the weekend. "Coming off of the AFC Championship Game, nobody knew better than the Ravens going into that game with the two guys [Gronkowski and Hernandez] that [the Patriots] have. It is across the league. You can see it more and more every year.

"You can choose to put a defensive back on them, and they will be undersized, they will get outmuscled and they will get 'big-boyed' for the ball. Then you can put a safety or a linebacker on them and they can't run with them. So we feel like the two guys [Allen and Fleener] that we added, and Dominique [Jones] is a physical presence, that guy is 260 pounds and moving around really well. It is a matchup nightmare for any defense."

This is clearly good news for both Fleener and Allen, who project to see the field quite a bit this season if they can pick up the offense quickly. If he can get stornger, Fleener has the potential to become the next Rob Gronkowski. Fleener is 6'6", 260 lbs and ran a 4.51 40-yard dash at his pro day. He averaged 19.6 YPC in college. All of those numbers meet or exceed Gronkowski's measurables/stats at the same time in his career. Plus, he has a built-in rapport with Luck, who also went to Stanford.

More than six months after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament, Green Bay Packers running back Alex Green is running four days a week. He recently met with the team's physician, Dr. Pat McKenzie, who is hopeful Green will be ready for training camp. Green has stayed ahead of schedule all off-season.

With Ryan Grant’s future still in limbo, that's key. Late July remains Green's target.

“My speed is picking up daily,” Green said Thursday. “Every day, I’m running at a faster pace. It’s going pretty good right now. I’m definitely excited with where I’m at.”

Green was just starting to find his place within the Packers’ offense when he tore the ACL in his left knee Oct. 23 at Minnesota while blocking on a kick return. Two weeks prior, he caught a third-down pass at Atlanta. And, most importantly, his comfort level in the scheme was high. Coaches like his vision and ability to maneuver in space.

The Packers haven't shown much interest in signing a veteran RB to join James Starks, Green, Brandon Saine and John Kuhn in the backfield, so they must feel pretty good about Green's prospects for 2012. If the team doesn't sign another RB, Starks would project to be the starter, but his upside is limited due to the pass-heavy nature of the offense and Kuhn's presence as the team's goal line back. Aaron Rodgers is also a threat to steal a few TD runs.

WR Randy Moss, 35, ran smooth patterns with ease and snatched passes out of the air, as the 49ers ran plays uncovered. During this phase of the NFL offseason program, teams are prohibited from practicing offense vs. defense. Moss reported to the 49ers' offseason program on April 30.

Safety Donte Whitner said he has been working out in the mornings with Moss, Frank Gore and Michael Crabtree. Whitner said he believes Moss has not lost any speed.

"A lot of times we're running with chains on our backs, we're running 60-yard sprints," Whitner said. "So you can see that he can really run. A lot of times he's leading in the sprints. So if I had to say anything, I don't think he lost a step at all."

Moss is one of the most talented WRs in the history of the NFL, but let's not forget that he had a dreadful 2010 season (two years ago) where he caught just 28 passes for 393 yards as he bounced from the Patriots to the Vikings to the Titans. He joins a 49ers offense that doesn't throw the ball much and already has two established receivers in Michael Crabtree and Vernon Davis. There's simply not a lot of upside here.

San Francisco’s district attorney has charged Oakland Raiders wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey with drunken driving following his early morning arrest on the Bay Bridge last month by the California Highway Patrol.

Heyward-Bey signed a contract worth $39 million in 2009, so it's puzzling that he doesn't have a driver or hire a car service when he goes out drinking. This is a situation to monitor, but DHB doesn't have a history of problems with the law, so he probably won't serve any time.

Buccaneers DE Da'Quan Bowers, the team's second-round selection in the 2011 draft, tore his right Achilles tendon while working out on the field at One Buc Place on Thursday.

Bowers is scheduled to have surgery to repair the tear today, the team announced.

Despite the possibility he could be lost for the season, Bowers expressed confidence he'll return to play in 2012.

CB Drayton Florence agreed to terms with the Broncos, expected to finalize it today.

As promised, Cardinals DE Calais Campbell has a new long-term contract.

The news just came down that the franchise tagged defensive end and the Cardinals have agreed on a new five-year contract, locking up Campbell through 2016 and making sure one of the anchors of the defense stayed put.

Browns DT Phil Taylor tore his left pectoral muscle, and will undergo surgery next week, HC Pat Shurmur announced.

Titans WR Kenny Britt insists that he has matured.

“I’ll be the first to admit I got caught in some difficult circumstances, and made some bad decisions in my past,” Britt said. “But all that changed me as a person, and I learned from it and got stronger from it. “I knew I had to change some things in my life. I think I’ve matured. I hope I have matured. But the smile is still there and it’s not going away.”

Britt, headed into his fourth NFL season, is still on the mend after having surgery to repair the torn ACL and MCL he suffered in his right knee last September.

He’s still optimistic about where he is in rehab, and if all goes well he’ll be ready for Week One of the regular season. In recent weeks, he’s dealt with swelling in the knee as his work has intensified, but that was expected, doctors told him.

From ESPN:

“I’m out there running, mostly at full speed, cutting, running around,” Britt said. “The knee’s still swollen, but that comes with the territory and we’ve got three months before I get back on the field.”

Britt is a top 10 fantasy WR if healthy. But not only is he dealing with swelling in his knee, he's also proven to be a knucklehead. There's a lot of risk/reward with Britt, but in the 4th or 5th round, he'll be tough to pass up, if healthy.

Dan Pompei on undrafted WR Jeff Fuller: "He was one of the higher ranked players coming into the 2011 season. Two front office men told me last fall Fuller was a first round talent. He didn’t play as well as a senior as he did as a junior. He had a poor senior Bowl. Everybody got down on him. But it’s still crazy that he was undrafted. It will be a surprise if he does not stick with the receiver-poor Dolphins."

Fuller had 72 catches for 1,066 yards and 12 TDs in his junior year, but only posted 70-828-6 in his senior season. He played for current Dolphins OC Mike Sherman (and with QB Ryan Tannehill) while at Texas A&M so obviously Sherman liked him enough to recommend that the team sign him after the draft was over. He's a player to watch this summer.

Bears WR coach Darryl Drake felt that WR Alshon Jeffery had the best hands of any wide receiver in the NFL Draft.

“I thought he did from things I saw,” said Drake. “He has a great ability to attack the ball and big hands. He really caught the ball well on the film I saw. I felt good about his hands.”

As is the case with all NFL rookies, the veteran coach knows that a learning curve will be involved.

“People think that you can come in and understand and learn systems in a short period of time,” Drake said. “But it takes years to understand exactly what to do in any given situation.

“It takes years to understand and learn coverages. In college you have so many spread offenses and things like that, and even defenses are a little different. They’re so non-traditional guys don’t get a chance to really learn. It’s going to take time. We’re going to take it one step at a time.

“Guys just have to grow into it. That’s the way it’s always been in the NFL. Some guys grow faster than others. It just depends on that particular person. Our job is to get them to grow. As time goes on, they get better and better.”

Jeffery did play in a version of the spread offense at South Carolina, so Drake's comments about the learning curve should not go unnoticed. Jeffery is going to have to get up to speed quickly if he's going to start Week 1, as many are predicting.

Colts rookie WR T.Y. Hilton was a wildly successful four-year performer at Florida International University.

Hilton set numerous school and Sun Belt Conference records with his all-purpose exploits that saw him snare 229 passes for 3,531 yards and 24 touchdowns, return four kickoffs for scores and hold a 27.2 average on 105 efforts, return two punts for touchdowns and hold a 12.5-yard average, rush for seven scores and even pass for one.

“When you get a great player like that, that is electric like that, it is fun,” said GM Ryan Grigson. “Sometimes you’ve got to go up and grab those guys. He is a little bit undersized and the history is that those types of guys with his size, they may be there in (round) four, but it’s not a certainty. … He really can fit us in the slot with a lot of things Bruce (Arians) does. We’ve had this guy targeted for a long time.”

Texans agree to deal with QB John Beck.

Browns GM Tom Heckert told PFT Live on Wednesday that, indeed, the Browns plan to make RB Trent Richardson the workhorse.

“I think it’s pretty safe to say we draft a guy third overall, he’s going to be the guy,” Heckert said. “But we do think we’re going to need extra backs. You know, last year going into the season we thought we’re in really good shape at running back with Peyton Hillis, Brandon Jackson, and Montario Hardesty and it turns out all three of them got nicked up. So, you know, we do think it’s a position where you better have a couple guys and, you know, we have obviously Brandon Jackson and Hardesty coming back both, so we think it’s going to be, from last year where it was probably a weak spot for us, we think it’s going to be a very, very big positive for us this year.”

Still, Heckert realizes that Richardson could be the next running back to get “nicked up.”

“I do think that’s probably one of the reason they don’t go up that high, but we thought he was such a special player, we thought it outweighed any, you know, hesitations about whether the running backs, how long they last, and all that stuff,” Heckert said. “You know, he scores a lot of touchdowns, we think he’s going to score a lot of touchdowns for us.”

Richardson is in line for a ton of touches, and his ADP has crept into the early 2nd round as a result. The Browns don't have a great offense, but Hillis finished with top 5 numbers in 2010 with similar talent around him, and Richardson is the better all around RB.

When 49ers beat writer Matt Maiocco was asked if WR Kyle Williams and RB Anthony Dixon are in danger of being cut, he replied, "No question they both face stiff competition for roster spots."

Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles will share the featured back role with not Thomas Jones, but Peyton Hillis, a 250-pound free-agent acquisition.

“He’s the same as Thomas Jones,” Charles said. “He’ll come in and get all the tough yards and all the pounding. That’s the same thing that Thomas did. I’m not a selfish player. I just want to win. If he can contribute to the team and put points on the board, why not? I don’t care about yards. I feel like if every week we can win a game, I’ve got no complaints.

“I like his game. He’s athletic and big and strong. Nothing against Thomas Jones but (Hillis) brings something to the team like (Le’Ron) McClain, but he’s playing tailback instead. He’s bringing power and explosiveness, and he’s strong. He’s going to catch the ball and he’s got great hands, and I feel he’s an all-around player like me.”

In 2010, with Jones siphoning off carries, Charles still managed 1,935 total yards and eight TDs, so he has proven he can be productive while sharing the workload.

Reigning NFL defensive player of the year Terrell Suggs has taken the first step on a road to recovery he's hoping ends with him running out of the Baltimore Ravens' tunnel at some point in the 2012 season.

Suggs had surgery Tuesday on the Achilles' tendon he injured last week while training in Arizona.

"There is only a small incision, and (the doctor) said it was not as bad as some thought it was, which I had already been told," Suggs told The Baltimore Sun.

"As far as my return, it's still the same as the original prognosis of four to six months. ... I'm 29 years old. I don't miss games. I'll be returning soon."

Four months would put Suggs back at the start of September, so if all goes well he could be available early in the season. This is great news for the Baltimore defense.

A year ago, Eagles WR Jeremy Maclin was battling a mystery illness, feared at times to be Lymphoma, that sapped him of his energy, his weight and his ability to hold down food. Maclin was in such rough condition that, combined with the odd uncertainty of what ailed him, his career, and life, was at stake.

Fast forward 12 months and Maclin is rid of the (still undiagnosed) mystery disease completely, with another productive season in the rearview mirror.

Maclin has high expectations of himself and his teammates in 2012. Unburdened by everything that befell him last year, Maclin has been able to spend his entire offseason in Philadelphia, working diligently on improving his body and doing his part to improve the Eagles offense with his teammates.

When Maclin arrived at Lehigh for training camp last summer, he was noticeably skinny, his weight as low as 180 pounds at times, he said. Now, he's up to a strong 205, seven pounds more than his playing weight last season. In reality, that Maclin was able to have such a productive season without having much of an offseason at all, let alone preseason action, was startling.

Maclin ranked #28 in fantasy points per game (standard) and is currently the #28 WR off the board in fantasy drafts, going in the 6th round. Considering he's far more healthy at this point than he was last year, he looks like a great value pick in the 5th or 6th round. He's a better all around WR than DeSean Jackson, who is going almost a round earlier.

Veteran cornerback Charles Woodson says he would be willing to move to safety for the Green Bay Packers if the team needed him there.

“I think that it comes down to what the other guys are going to be able to do as far as the cornerback position is concerned,” Woodson said. “If one of those guys can take over that role and make the plays that need to be made at corner ... with Nick Collins leaving, [and if] they need me to play safety, I’m not opposed to that. But I think that we have to make sure that cornerback position is going to be solidified and we’re comfortable with who is going to be out there at the corner.”

The Packers selected Vanderbilt cornerback Casey Hayward in the second round of this year's draft, but it is unclear if he is ready to start.

The Baltimore Ravens have reached a two-year deal with Jacoby Jones.

Jones, was released on May 1 by the Houston Texans after failing to live up to expectations. He managed 31 catches for 512 yards last season in a season when star receiver Andre Johnson was sidelined nine games with injuries.

The 6-foot-2, 212-pound Jones becomes the Ravens' No. 3 wide receiver and could take over punt return duties from cornerback Lardarius Webb. He visited the Ravens on Monday after meeting with the Carolina Panthers last week.

"Adding Jacoby gives us another proven downfield weapon in our passing game and production with our returns," general manager Ozzie Newsome said in a statement. "His experience makes the offense better, and the competition he brings can help raise our levels at receiver and with punt and kickoff returns."

Jones could slide into a WR3 role behind Torrey Smith and Anquan Boldin while handling some (or all) of the return duties. He never lived up to expectations in Houston, so maybe a change of scenery will do him some good.

RB DeMarco Murray says his ankle is fully healed.

“I'm back 100 percent,” the running back said Sunday at Cowboys Fan Fest, an event the club's marketing department organized to help make up for the team moving its training camp from San Antonio to Oxnard, Calif.
Murray's record-setting rookie season was cut short last year when he fractured his right ankle in the first quarter of a 37-34 loss to the New York Giants on Dec. 11. He had surgery the next day and missed the final three games.

Baltimore's defense wants physical players, and SS Bernard Pollard thrives on physical play. That's why no one was surprised when the Ravens announced a three-year extension with the 27-year-old Pollard, who was entering the final year of his contract. His new deal goes through the 2015 season.

The Pittsburgh Steelers said they wanted to run the ball more often when they parted with offensive coordinator Bruce Arians this offseason, but QB Ben Roethlisberger hasn't noticed too much of a change under Todd Haley, the Pro Bowl quarterback told NFL Network's Rich Eisen.

"I get a little confused at times because so much has been made about us, quote-unquote, throwing the ball too much, or going back to Steeler football and running the ball more," Roethlisberger said on Rich Eisen's podcast, which will air Thursday on NFL Network at 1:30 p.m. ET.

"In these meetings I've had with Coach Haley, he's all about the no-huddle and using our wide-receiver weapons and throwing the ball and stuff like that," Roethlisberger said.

When there's a change at offensive coordinator, there's typically a change of offensive philosophy. But if Roethlisberger senses that the offense will continue to be pass-first, then that's probably the case. He's currently going in the 9th round and appears to be a nice value for those owners who decide to load up on other positions for the first half of the draft.

Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles says he’s “80 percent” healthy after tearing his left ACL nearly eight months ago.

“I feel like I can do the same things my teammates do,” Charles said. “I do it without the coaches around. I catch balls, I cut, I do ladder drills and I’ve been doing this for like two months. So coaches weren’t there when I was back home working out, so whatever time that I need for my body to rest, I think it’s even better to wait it out for awhile.”

Charles reported to Kansas City lighter than anticipated, but is working to build back his weight with the team’s strength and conditioning staff.

Though he’s labeled his recovery at 80% complete, doctors have noted that Charles’ progress is moving ahead of schedule.

Charles has the advantage over Adrian Peterson because he got injured early in the season, so he has an extra four months to recover. He seems to be the safer pick at this point, especially since he's currently going in the late second round of fantasy drafts.

RB Adrian Peterson wants to be back in action by Sept. 9, the day the Vikings open the 2012 season against Jacksonville.

Eric Sugarman has the same goal for the star running back. Only Sugarman, the Vikings' head athletic trainer, wants to attach an asterisk to all the talk of a triumphant opening day return.

"I love Adrian," Sugarman said Tuesday. "But let's make this clear: I'm still not going to be quoted as saying he's going to play in the first game. That's not fair. I don't know that."

So what about Peterson's eagerness to vocalize Sept. 9 as a potential milestone date?

"He'll keep throwing that out there. And good for him," Sugarman said. "That's great. That's obviously our goal, to get him playing the first game. But only if he's functionally safe to do it. This is our franchise. We can't be foolish about this."

On Wednesday, Peterson and Sugarman will hold a news conference to update the progress of the eager running back's rehabilitation. To save you the suspense, Sugarman's message will be straightforward: There's plenty to be encouraged by in Peterson's rehab. But there's still a long way to go before the Vikings' medical team will be ready to activate the green light.

To this point, now nearly 19 weeks removed from surgery, Peterson has attacked his recuperation without setback. He began running on land again in late March and has progressed to where he is trying to cut.

On Wednesday, he may even give the local media a glimpse into his progress by performing several rehab drills in the Winter Park field house.

Sugarman said Peterson's left quadriceps is back to about 80 percent strength. Peterson also has no swelling in his left leg and has regained normal motion.

"Right now, when he tries to stop on a dime, he looks like he's on ice," Sugarman said. "That's normal. Deceleration is the hardest thing for those guys. Now we're starting to pound all that over the next couple months -- function and deceleration. That should just take us right to where hopefully he needs to be."

Peterson is currently going at the first turn (Round 1/Round 2) which is a steep price to play for a guy who is not a lock to be ready to go in Week 1. He is the quintessential risk/reward candidate in 2012.

Dolphins TE Michael Egnew needs to learn how to be a complete tight end – he’s working feverishly on his blocking ability and playing with his hand in the dirt. He might not put up Jimmy Graham stats right away – Charles Clay, for all the talent he showed last year, still only had 16 catches – but Egnew is a dynamic talent who can be an immediate threat in the middle of the field and in the Red Zone. If the Dolphins didn’t have a bit of a logjam at tight end with Egnew, Clay and Anthony Fasano, Egnew might have been classified as an immediate starter.

According to ESPN's Cris Carter, WR Michael Floyd plans to attend Larry Fitzgerald's receivers camp up in Minnesota this summer to help him hone his skills.

We all know that Floyd has a tremendous amount of talent, but by attending Fitz's camp, Floyd will get a chance to test his skills against NFL caliber opponents. Gaining an idea for the pace of the NFL game is very important and although this camp will not feature heavy contact, he will get a good idea of what it is like to face off against an NFL cornerback.

Also, working alongside Fitzgerald will be a huge bonus. Receivers need to have chemistry and this is a great opportunity for them to gain a sense of familiarity with one another. There is no better way for Floyd to enhance his skills than to learn from the absolute best in the business.

In studying both WRs Brian Quick and Justin Blackmon extensively on film, you can make the argument that Quick, who’s significantly bigger than Blackmon, is more naturally athletic. Quick is a very fluid and smooth athlete with excellent lateral quickness and deceptive vertical speed due to stride length. It’s not a stretch at all, when you analyze Quick’s physical and athletic attributes, to understand why the Rams selected him early. With his size and overall skill set, he has a chance to be the best wide receiver in this draft class.

Quick has plenty of opportunity to succeed in his rookie season given the lack of receiving options in St. Louis and a relatively good QB (Sam Bradford) throwing the ball.

Cardinals RB Ryan Williams is ahead of schedule as he returns from a ruptured patella tendon.

“I still have time,” Williams said. “I am running and cutting and doing things I didn’t think I’d be doing this early. I’m not worried about it.”

The Cardinals must have confidence. Even though Williams went through what he went through — and starter Beanie Wells is still rehabbing from his own knee surgery — the Cards didn’t draft a running back nor sign an undrafted rookie. There’s always a chance that could come (it seems likely the Cards will at least get another body for OTAs and maybe minicamp) but there has to be a belief Williams will be there by camp and ready to go.

RB Fred Jackson signed a two-year deal to remain with the Bills.

Jackson had one year left on a deal he signed in 2009. It averaged $1.87 million a year. His extension, through 2014, includes $8.7 million in new money, and that could rise to $11 million if he hits all incentives, a source with access to the contract told The News. The deal includes a $3 million signing bonus.

Jackson turned 31 in February. He will get paid for two years an average salary about equal to that of the Giants' Ahmad Bradshaw, who is the 15th highest-paid back in the league. Bradshaw got a four-year deal worth $4.5 million a year.

Jackson was second in the NFL in yards from scrimmage when he went down after 10 games with a broken fibula.

Through 10 games, Jackson was on fire, averaging 138 total yards and 0.6 TDs per game. His injury opened the door for C.J. Spiller to get starter's touches, and he didn't disappoint, racking up an average of 106 total yards and 0.8 TDs per game over the final six weeks. The Bills have one of the better rushing games in the league, but Jackson's value is depressed by the presence of Spiller, and vice versa.

Coming off a torn ACL, WR Jordan Shipley announced on Twitter that he's clear for "full activity without restriction."

The Minnesota Vikings have released 16-year veteran kicker Ryan Longwell, the latest and perhaps most dangerous turnover to date in their rebuilding project.

The surprising move was made Monday, a little more than a week after the team drafted Georgia kicker Blair Walsh in the sixth round.

Longwell had three seasons and $7 million left on a four-year contract he signed last summer that included a $3.5 million signing bonus.

Redskins coach Mike Shanahan hinted that Pierre Garcon, Josh Morgan and Leonard Hankerson could get the nod as the team’s trio of starters.

“We’ll let that play out,” Shanahan said, “but when you go after a guy like [Garçon] and you go after a guy like [Morgan], you’ve got a guy like Leonard Hankerson, you know there are three guys right at the top of the list that are playmakers, and that’s what we’re looking for.”

Shanahan said that the soon-to-be 34-year-old Moss shouldn’t be overlooked. Last season, Moss had one of the worst years of his career, when he was limited by a broken hand to 12 games and recorded just 46 catches for 584 yards and four touchdowns. After a strong start to the season, Moss suffered his injury and missed four games, but he never managed to regain his effectiveness when he returned. Now, Shanahan sees renewed commitment from him.

“Santana is coming in in excellent shape,” Shanahan said. “He’s 15 pounds lighter than at the end of the season. After the first four games, after he got hurt, I think that set him back and it took him a while to get back in playing shape. So he’s come in probably in as good a shape as he’s come in the last three years, at least according to him.”

Cleveland's ground game was ranked 28th in rushing yards in 2011 and by adding RB Trent Richardson and RT Mitchell Schwartz you have the makings of a ground attack that should flourish. This should be especially true under new OC Brad Childress, who adapted his version of the West Coast offense in Minnesota, only five seasons ago, to be more run-heavy. This was similar to what GM Mike Holmgren did with Shaun Alexander, who made it to a Super Bowl having a run-heavy version of the West Coast offense in Seattle.

The Jets' special teams coach says he plans to use Tim Tebow.

The Daily News of New York reported Monday that Mike Westhoff said he had discussed the plan with Tebow and the backup quarterback was amenable to it.

Without revealing specifics, Westhoff calls Tebow a “more potent Brad Smith,” referring to the versatile former Jets receiver who was a college QB.

On offence, Tebow is expected to play some quarterback in wildcat packages and could see time at running back and fullback. The Jets acquired him from the Broncos this off-season to back up starter Mark Sanchez.

Redskins HC Mike Shanahan says there have been no setbacks with TE Chris Cooley's knee.

WR Justin Blackmon, the Jaguars’ first round draft pick, was the only player who was held out of the final day of practice Sunday of the team’s weekend minicamp.

Coach Mike Mularkey said he has a sore right foot.

“General soreness in the foot, being precautionary with this camp. We saw what we had to see (the first two days) and got a good chance to install and be around him and him be around us and we thought this just felt it would smart on his part and our part if we just held him out of the drills and have him ready to go with OTAs start here in about eight days (a week from Tuesday). ‘’

He added, “Was it worth the risk. Why push it anymore?’’

Robert Griffin III already is the team’s first-string quarterback — Shanahan said so Sunday. Now Shanahan has embarked on the process of tailoring the offense to Griffin’s scintillating skill set.

“One thing that the NFL is not used to is a quarterback with his type of speed and his type of throwing ability,” Shanahan said, twinkle in his eye. “I think we can do some things that people haven’t done.”

Shanahan gushed about Griffin’s combination of elite speed and arm strength. Griffin already is ahead of the schedule at which he should learn the playbook, Shanahan said. He envisions a game-changing player who will challenge defenses in unprecedented ways.

“I really believe he can make any throw on the field,” Shanahan said. “He does a great job in the pocket looking downfield, not looking at the rush. No. 2, he fits into our system perfectly because we like to run play-action, quarterback keeps, bootlegs. With his speed, he can get on the edge and do things most quarterbacks can’t do.”

Griffin's rushing yards make him an interesting fantasy prospect in his rookie season. Keep in mind that he's not nearly as big as Cam Newton, so he won't be used in the same way around the goal line (which is what made Newton such a fantasy force in 2011).

On Friday afternoon, following the one rookie workout that reporters were allowed to watch, HC Joe Philbin said something that makes you believe the Dolphins have all kinds of evolutionary plans for RB Lamar Miller.

"There's a couple pictures of him being spread out," said Philbin, who devoured every frame of Miller's UM career along with Dolphins General Manager Jeff Ireland.

"There's a chance down the road, as Lamar gets acclimated, that he might be able to spread himself a ways as a receiver to a certain degree. I'm not saying make a full position change, but I think there's some flexibility with what you can do with the guy."

Philbin and Dolphins offensive coordinator Mike Sherman plan to use Miller's 4.4 speed in every way imaginable, beginning with kick returns and moving on to aggressive third-down sets in which the kid might not line up in the backfield at all.

WR Titus Young was forced to play catchup due to last year's lockout. He struggled early last season while learning on the job, but Young showed his potential after learning Detroit's playbook. Young had four touchdown receptions in Detroit's final four regular season games. He finished the regular season with 48 receptions for 607 yards and six touchdowns. With a full offseason under Young's belt, he could become a reliable No.2 receiver for the Lions.

Young had a better Fantasy Points / Target (1.12) than did Nate Burleson (0.84), but Burleson saw 25 more targets (111 vs. 86). For Young to break out, he'll need to see legitimate WR2-type targets. A good indicator for Young was that he was better over the second half of the season than the first, catching more passes (29 vs. 19) for more yards (332 vs. 275) for more TDs (5 vs. 1) at a better catch rate (60.4 vs. 50.0).

Wide receiver Jarrett Dillard was cut by the Jaguars today, according to a league source.

The Giants may not be banking on having TE Travis Beckum at the start of the 2012 season. But there's a pretty good chance that it might happen.

Beckum was at Sunday's Knicks-Heat game, and he told the Daily News that he's still hoping to return by the start of the season.

"If everything works out, yeah," he said. "I'm just working hard and getting it healthy."

Just two months after surgery, Beckum, who tore his ACL and meniscus in Super Bowl XLVI, is already moving around without a brace and feeling next to no pain. He had surgery on Feb. 28, then spent three weeks using a passive machine to regain his range of motion. He's already progressed to strength exercises, and there was no sign of crutches when he showed up at the Garden.

He said he hasn't run yet, mostly because there's no need to push it this early in the offseason.

There's also no need to rush back to health, and Beckum said that he understands that. The Giants acquired veteran tight end Martellus Bennett in free agency, and they picked up super-athlete Adrien Robinson in the draft, so Beckum knows he doesn't need to rush back.

Jake Ballard will probably be out a while, so the Giants will lean on Bennett and Robinson until Beckum gets back into the mix.

The Jaguars have signed quarterback Jordan Palmer to a contract.

The Ravens announced they signed former Broncos DT Ryan McBean.

Raiders S Tyvon Branch will sign his franchise tender today and report to team.

Wide receiver Jarrett Dillard was cut by the Jaguars today, according to a league source.

WR Eric Decker can return punts but Broncos want him running 35-40 pass routes a game.

According to Pro Football Focus, Decker ran 505 pass routes in 15 games last season, which works out to 33.7 per game. With Kyle Orton under center for the first four games of the season, Decker racked up 20 catches for 270 yards and four TDs. Demaryius Thomas wasn't playing, but Brandon Lloyd was still on the team, so Decker's production with decent QB play (i.e. Orton) is reasonable proof that he has considerable upside now that Peyton Manning is in town. He looks like a good value in the 5th and a great value in the 6th.

Contract talks between the Jaguars and franchise-tagged kicker Josh Scobee are stalled right now.

The Jaguars placed a non-exclusive franchise tag on Scobee in March, but he hasn’t signed it. The team has said it would like to sign Scobee to a long-term deal and was disappointed it didn’t before the franchising deadline.

According to a league source familiar with the negotiations, Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski’s contract is part of the reason Scobee’s contract talks have stalled. Janikowski is the highest-paid kicker in the NFL, having signed a four-year deal worth $4 million per year two years ago.

Browns beat writer Nate Ulrich on RB Trent Richardson: "He should provide immediate relief from the inconsistent, dysfunctional situation the team had at the position last season, and I expect him to eventually become a top-five running back."

WR Travis Benjamin does not resemble a legitimate No. 1 receiver despite his elite speed. With the current roster, Greg Little and Mohamed Massaquoi would be the projected starting receivers, though Benjamin should play right away in the slot. He also could be used to handle the return responsibilities along with Josh Cribbs.

Per Redskins beat writers John Keim and John Campbell, HC Mike Shanahan said that WR Santana Moss is in "excellent" shape and is 15 lbs. lighter, and that it's highly unlikely Pierre Garcon will play in the slot. Josh Morgan and Leonard Hankerson are stronger candidates to play there.

Moss can also play in the slot, but it's not clear what his role will be with the emphasis that the Redskins placed on the receiver position this offseason. Garcon appears to be the only sure bet for playing time at this point.

The Patriots have agreed to a contract with former Colts running back Joseph Addai, according to a league source.

Terms were not disclosed.

Addai joins Stevan Ridley, Shane Vereen and Danny Woodhead in an already muddled New England backfield. Ridley perhaps has the most upside as the favorite for early-down and goal line work.

DE Cameron Wake and the Miami Dolphins have agreed to a four-year contract extension worth $49 million, which includes $20 million guaranteed, according to a league source.

The extension of his existing deal locks up Wake through the 2016 season.

Wake and his agent, Paul Sheehy, have been working on an extension with the Dolphins for two years. His new contract puts him in the company of the league's top pass rushers.

After flying back to Palo Alto, Calif., on Sunday, QB Andrew Luck won't return to the Colts complex until June 8, the day after he finishes classes. League rules prohibit rookies from working out with their new teams until classes end, with the exception of one three-day mini-camp.

That doesn't mean Luck won't be working on something.

He's hoping to work out with receiver Austin Collie in California between now and June and has offered to travel to Miami so he can work with perennial Pro Bowler Reggie Wayne and rookie receiver T.Y. Hilton, a third-round pick. If Luck can make all those plans work, he thinks he'll be a lot more comfortable when he returns to Indy next month.

Jets second-round WR Stephen Hill shined in his first day of rookie camp. He demonstrated explosiveness off the line of scrimmage and didn't drop any passes. He made a circus catch in 7-on-7s. There was one borderline drop on a deep route down the left sideline, on a nice throw from QB G.J. Kinne, but Hill later said it was out of his reach. New O.C. Tony Sparano chided him once for "choppy" steps in a particular route, but the overall first impression of Hill was positive.

The Dolphins had an extra coach on the field Friday for the start of their three-day rookie mini-camp.

That extra coach also happens to be the club's first-round draft pick and quarterback of the future. But Ryan Tannehill, who learned offensive coordinator Mike Sherman's playbook during their time together at Texas A&M, spent just as much time helping his new teammates Friday as he did working on his own game.

"Being in the offense for four years back at A&M, it's not my first go-around," Tannehill said. "So I'm trying to help these guys learn as much as I can. Just help speed their learning curve up."

Tannehill, the Aggies' starting quarterback the previous 1 ½ seasons, has a lot more than a rookie knowledge of the offense. He estimated that he already knows "80 to 85 percent" of the new playbook.

"I would probably say 65 to 70 is the exact same, pretty much, and the other 15 that I'm familiar with is pretty much just changing of a few words," he said. "But it's basically the exact same thing.

Coach Joe Philbin said Tannehill will be given the same opportunity to win the starting job as veterans Matt Moore and David Garrard, but shot down the notion that Tannehill knows more about the offense than the other two quarterbacks.

"Those guys have been working hard since April 10," Philbin said of Moore and Garrard. "At some point that knowledge is going to even itself out, and the difference is going to be the decision-making, the accuracy, the playmaking ability."

Typically, the main thing that holds back a rookie QB is his knowledge of his new team's offense. In this case, Tannehill is already as comfortable with the offense as his competition, so it's reasonable to believe that the team could hand over the reins if he proves he can make the proper reads and hit the open man as well as Matt Moore and David Garrard. Given the sad state of the WR corps, Tannehill will probably only be fantasy-relevant this season in two-QB leagues, but it's still a situation to monitor.

Saints RB Mark Ingram underwent arthroscopic knee surgery Thursday that is expected to sideline him six weeks.

This isn't a huge deal, but it is a setback for Ingram, who never quite got on track during his rookie season. It's a small boost for Darren Sproles and Pierre Thomas as Ingram won't be able to work out much during his recovery.

HC Pete Carroll was asked if the Seahawks QB competition between Matt Flynn and Tarvaris Jackson had an expiration date.

"There's no timeline," Carroll said. "The format is really just to do everything I can to organize it and orchestrate so that they get a legit shot at showing what they can do."

The scrutiny for 2012 has already begun. Who had better velocity Friday? Looked like Jackson, but it was closer than you might expect. Flynn had the edge in accuracy.

We believe Flynn will win the job unless he falls flat on his face, which is unlikely given his performance in game situations during his time with the Packers.

So, could QB Tim Tebow actually play as many as 20 snaps in a game as Rex Ryan suggested earlier this offseason?

“I won’t give you the vision on what I think his role will be in the offense,” OC Tony Sparano said. “I would just say that… I believe what Coach says. He can play anywhere from one to 20 snaps… somewhere like that. What coach said is 100 percent correct. As far as how we’ll use Tim or what we’ll do with Tim in that way, we’re going to keep that to us right now.”

Tim Tebow’s enormous following coupled with Mark Sanchez’s penchant for inconsistency could mushroom into a controversy at some point, but the Jet’s new play-caller believes there’s room for both players in his offense.

“We’re just excited to be able to add another good football player to our team,” Sparano said Thursday about the Tebow trade. “It’s about trying to find good football players. Mark Sanchez is one hell of a player. I am so excited to coach him. Tim Tebow is a good football player too. When you put both of these guys in a room and they’re playing checkers, they’re going to compete at it. They’re going to go like heck to win. The more of those people you can get around your football team and in this environment, the better off your football team is going to be. I think we helped our football team tremendously. I don’t think it’s a problem managing it.”

It's clear that new OC Tony Sparano is high on WR Santonio Holmes.

“I think that Santonio has special ability,” Sparano said on Thursday. “When you’ve been on the other sideline and in the other (locker) room preparing for players like the Jets have… having to figure out how you’re going to handle Dustin Keller, having to figure out how you’re going to handle Santonio Holmes or the running game…. This guy has really special ability. He can catch it and run with it He makes the hard catches. I’ve seen him make some really acrobatic catches. He works very hard at it. The guy wants the football…. The thing that I’ve noticed about Tone right now in my time being around him is that this guy is a competitive guy. He loves to compete. I like that with skill players. I just love the fact that those guys love to compete.”

Holmes, who had 51 receptions for a career-low 654 yards last season, expressed no regrets for how he handled matters down the stretch when he skipped a meeting organized by Mark Sanchez during the final week and got into multiple shouting matches in the huddle with teammates before getting benched by then-offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer.

Holmes had a very disappointing 2011 due to lack of targets and poor behavior in the locker room. His 100 targets ranked 26th amongst WR1s around the league and he actually trailed Dustin Keller (115) for the most on the team. His Catch % (51.0%) was only better than Greg Little, Brandon Lloyd, Eric Decker and Mike Thomas amongst WR1s, which is surprising given his talent and the somewhat decent QB play of Mark Sanchez (at least when compared to Blaine Gabbert, Tim Tebow and Colt McCoy). He posted a Catch % of 54.7% in 2010 in his first season with the Jets and 57.2% in 2009 with the Steelers. He's going in the 8th or 9th round in early fantasy drafts and -- assuming an increase in targets (with Plaxico Burress gone) and a return to his usual Catch % -- looks to be a good value pick at that point in the draft. Of course, his value would take a nosedive if Tim Tebow takes over at QB.

The New England Patriots announced the signing of defensive lineman Gerard Warren and the release of wide receiver Tiquan Underwood.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed defensive tackle Gary Gibson to a two-year contract on Friday.

Gibson played in all 16 games -- starting one -- for the St. Louis Rams last season.

Vikings QB Christian Ponder struggles as a rookie were magnified by an increasing tendency to stare down the rush, rather than keeping his eyes downfield. That's why the team's first round pick, LT Matt Kahil, is important for Ponder's development.

"It is huge," Ponder said. "A lot of time last year, it didn't necessarily have to do with the protection. A lot of times I wasn't comfortable getting to my third, fourth reads, checking the ball down. Instead of just checking it down when a guy is wide open, I'd just run.

"That's something I have to get away from. It's easy to break the habit. It's just going to make it so much better having full confidence in the protection. Offensive line is looking good. They got stacked up pretty quickly and they've got a lot of depth now. I'm excited about that as a quarterback."

When Raiders HC Dennis Allen was asked if RB Darren McFadden can handle 25 to 30 carries a game, this is how he replied:

"Here’s what I would say–can he run the ball 25, 30 times? Absolutely. But I also think the running back position in this league, I think you have the ability to use different people. Because those runners take such a pounding on a play-in and play-out basis. Does he have the ability to be the lead back? Absolutely and he will be. But we’re going to have to find ways to spell him some, too."

With McFadden it's all about risk tolerance. If he plays 15+ games, he's likely going to finish as a top 5 RB. But he has a long history of injury and with Michael Bush gone, there's no clear handcuff insurance that fantasy owners can purchase on draft day. McFadden will be a make or break fantasy pick in 2012.

Browns beat writer Tony Grossi on QB Colt McCoy: "I’ve been told that McCoy’s fate as a former starter was sealed when his father sounded off about the club’s handling of his concussion in the Pittsburgh game on Dec. 8. I was told at the time that Brad McCoy’s comments meant the end of McCoy in Cleveland, but I didn’t believe it then. The comments did not drive the pursuit of a new quarterback, but I believe they contributed to McCoy’s demise."

ESPN writer James Walker speculates about how the Patriots' WR corps will shake out:

Wes Welker, Brandon Lloyd and Jabar Gaffney are locks. That leaves four roster spots, at most, for receivers. Deion Branch is in because he's a solid veteran who knows the offense well. I think you also keep Matthew Slater as the No. 7 receiver, mostly due to the fact he's a Pro Bowler on special teams and a team captain. The final two spots are really up in the air. I think Chad Ochocinco, Anthony Gonzalez and Donte Stallworth all have a realistic chance. Julian Edelman looks like the definite odd man out following the Gaffney signing.

Edelman is a versatile player who can return kicks and even play some defensive back if necessary. It's going to be interesting to see how the Patriots WR corps shakes out, but versatility is key for those players on the roster bubble.

Rams inform wide receiver/special teamer Dominique Curry he is being released.

Cowboys RB DeMarco Murray (ankle) on Twitter: "Everyone keeps asking me how I'm feeling.. Let's just say if there was a game this Sunday,29 would be in the backfield!"

The Seattle Seahawks have claimed wide receiver Raymond Webber off waivers from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a league source confirmed on Thursday.

With Antonio Gates slowed by injuries the past two seasons, consider it wise for San Diego to look for another pass-receiving option at tight end -- with LaDarius Green that option. He's big (6-foot-6), fast (he runs a 4.45 40) and has a 35-inch vertical leap. He's also productive, producing five catches for 121 yards in his final performance against San Diego State.

GM A.J. Smith had this to say about Green: "I wanted to have a balanced draft with a heavy emphasis on defense in the first three rounds. So now we're going to flip to balance it. Green is a rare receiving threat who fits the model of our offense -- like an Antonio Gates. He's not a blocker, and he isn't going to be a blocker. But he has rare skills with speed, and we like his height, his hands, catch radius and burst. We think he's a smart kid, but we'll see how quickly he picks it up. If he comes up really, really quickly we'll have a lot of additional weapons there. We're thinking: Could it be Gates and LaDarius Green? Not at the beginning of the year, but [we'll tell him to] take a half a year to feel your way along."

It doesn't sound like the Chargers are going to press Green early in the year, but he could emerge in the second half of the season if he can catch on quickly. Gates is reportedly feeling great, but Green could be pressed into action if Gates were to get injured again.

The Lions drafted receiver Ryan Broyles with a very specific idea of the role he’d play in their offense next season.
“(He) will be a great fit for us and really helps our offensive skill,” Lions general manager Martin Mayhew told the media after the pick. “(He’s) another receiving weapon for our quarterback and we feel great about the pick.”

The Lions see Broyles as a perfect fit in the slot, and wide receivers coach Shawn Jefferson thinks Broyles can excel there.

It appears that the Lions plan to use Nate Burleson in the slot this season with Calvin Johnson and Titus Young on the outside. Broyles would eventually take over for Burleson in the slot, but probably not in 2012.

Eagles beat writer Ray Didinger was asked about WR Marvin McNutt: "McNutt has size (6-2, 215) and pretty good speed (he ran 4.54 in the 40 at the combine), although I don’t know if he has the quickness to get separation at the NFL level. He does have a big body, though, and he is tough enough to play in the slot so he could help in the red zone. He will push Riley Cooper for a roster spot."

The Jacksonville Jaguars have released cornerback Drew Coleman after one season, parting ways with a player they believed was one-dimensional.

He played sparingly on special teams, and the Jaguars didn't believe he could line up anywhere except the slot.

The Bills have released CB Drayton Florence, per league source.

Ravens LB Terrell Suggs is expected to undergo surgery on his torn Achilles next week. He is likely out for the 2012 season.

The Ravens are reportedly hoping that Suggs's tendon is not fully torn which might allow his return in October.

Rumor has it that Suggs suffered the injury while playing basketball. Regardless, it's a huge blow to the Ravens defense and will definitely knock the unit down several spots in our forthcoming defensive team rankings.

WR Jabar Gaffney told Josina Anderson of ESPN that he will be signing a deal with the Patriots soon. Gaffney played for the Pats from 2006-2008, catching 85 passes for 1,059 yards and eight touchdowns. His production spiked after leaving New England, he has 187 catches over the last three years, but he was a reliable target for Tom Brady when he was in New England.

The Patriots have added Brandon Lloyd, Donte’ Stallworth and Anthony Gonzalez to a receiving group that already included Deion Branch, Chad Ochocinco and Julian Edelman. Wes Welker will also be back, whether he signs his franchise tender or a long-term deal, and that makes for a crowded depth chart.

The NFL Network's Jason La Canfora reports that the deal is for two years.

Third-round Rutgers wide receiver Mohamed Sanu is durable, reliable, versatile, good hands, smart, crafty, and no diva traits. His M.O. fits the classic NFL No. 2 receiver job description.

The Bengals think he's a slightly bigger and a little faster than T.J. Houshmandzadeh. If Sanu can do for A.J. Green what Houshmandzadeh did for Chad Johnson, the Bengals have a Pro Bowl-type guy that catches 80 to 90 balls a year in and out of the slot.

But don't underestimate the one speed receiver the Bengals did draft in the fifth round in Cal's Marvin Jones. How he slipped there with his size (6-1) and speed (4.46) is a mystery, but the word is there wasn't much tape to go on because the quarterbacking wasn't great out there.

Draft guru Rob Rang of CBSSports.com was on this guy early and often. A few days before the draft he picked out Jones as a guy for the Bengals if they went running back early and chose to get the receiver later.

Rang compared Jones's Senior Bowl to the one Chad Johnson had in 2001. A West Coast guy that came out of nowhere to fly up the draft board. Rang said no receiver since Johnson in '01 had such a coming-out party as Jones in Mobile and that's where Bengals receivers coach James Urban first saw the scouting reports come to life and was immediately impressed.

For what it's worth, beat writer Joe Reedy predicted that Jones would win the WR2 to start the season.

49ers WR Michael Crabtree has been a consistent attendee of the team’s offseason strength program, but with the program now in the midst of its “Football School” phase, the 6-foot-1, 214-pound wideout’s biggest talents are starting to shine brightest.

Left foot issues which have hampered the young receiver’s early career seem to be a thing of the past. Crabtree said he’s feeling the best he ever has during the offseason of his NFL career.

“I’m taking care of my body and that’s from growing up,” Crabtree told 49ers.com on Tuesday. “You learn how to take care of your body better.”

Crabtree’s strong offseason work doesn’t surprise general manager Trent Baalke, who told Sirius XM radio this week that Crabtree’s skill sets are “going to shine even brighter this year because he’s going to have a full offseason.”

Jim Harbaugh spoke in a similar vein when addressing Crabtree’s offseason outlook back in February at the 2012 Scouting Combine.

“You get better at football by practicing football, much like you don't get to Carnegie Hall without a lot of practice,” Harbaugh said from the halls of Lucas Oil Stadium. “For him to have a benefit of an offseason and OTAs and training camp like he's never had, he's got an opportunity to have that offseason this year which he has not had – and not of his own doing. Looking forward to making the most of that this year.”

“He’s been working tirelessly,” Baalke also told Sirius XM. “He’s been involved with the entire process this offseason up to this point and plans on being here throughout. We’re excited about that group.”

The New Orleans Saints and quarterback Drew Brees are not any closer to a contract extension and have made little progress on a long-term deal, a person familiar with the negotiations told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.

Brees, who was tagged by the Saints as their franchise player, has not signed his one-year tender and has skipped the team's voluntary workouts to date.

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Joe Webb is embracing his role as a full-time quarterback after serving as a hybrid quarterback/receiver/wildcat option for two seasons.

Coach Leslie Frazier said in February he wanted Webb to concentrate on one position. The team wants to maximize his value at quarterback and lessen his responsibilities. He'll enter camp as Christian Ponder's backup.

"It's a great role to have," said Webb on Wednesday, May 2, in between sets during an offseason conditioning workout. "Any time you can concentrate on one position, that's always a positive."

49ers RB Frank Gore last season rushed for 1,211 yards -- the second-highest output of his career.

There's the perception that the 49ers did not use him as much in the second half of the season, which really wasn't the case. Gore carried more than 20 times in five games last season. Three of those games came within the final seven weeks of the season. Only once in those seven games, however, did he average more than 3.7 yards an attempt.

Yet, in the playoffs, Gore rushed for 163 yards on 29 attempts for a 5.6-yard average.

As Gore begins his eighth NFL season and has 1,653 regular-season rush attempts, the 49ers finally have some quality depth behind him. It seems likely that Gore's play time will decrease this season with more players capable of filling in.

This speculation is reasonable considering the team added Brandon Jacobs in free agency and LaMichael James in the draft. Gore still figures to be the team's RB1, but a reduction in workload would make him a fantasy RB2.

The Jets agreed to terms with free agent kicker Josh Brown, according to a source. Brown was cut by the Rams last week.

The NFL continued doling out punishment for the New Orleans Saints bounty program on Wednesday, suspending linebacker Jonathan Vilma for the entire 2012 season for his role in the team's pay-for-hits system.
Defensive end Will Smith will sit out four games.

Anthony Hargrove, a former Saints defensive end who signed with the Green Bay Packers in March, was given an eight-game suspension. Cleveland Browns linebacker Scott Fujita was suspended for three games.

The NFL found that Vilma offered $10,000 of his own money to any team member who knocked Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner and Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre out of 2009 playoff games.

This is obviously a blow to the Saints defense and with all the changes amongst the coaching staff, they look like a unit to target in 2012.

Too many analysts and experts have already labeled Browns WR Greg Little as only a No. 2 receiver, but this judgement has come after only his rookie season, where he played football for the first time in approximately 12 months due to his season-long suspension at UNC.

Ridiculous? You betcha.

Little is the forgotten piece in the Browns' offense this offseason with nearly every person seeking out the Browns to select a receiver high in the draft. Especially now that Cleveland has drafted both running back Trent Richardson and quarterback Brandon Weeden in the first round.

With the spotlight focusing in on Richardson and Weeden, this gives Little the opportunity to quietly go about his business of developing and growing into a better WR in his second year—which can also be one of the more difficult years to progress through for a young wideout.

Lions running back Jahvid Best will be cleared for football contact in June, according to Lions general manager Martin Mayhew.

“He’s been doing everything in the offseason program and we expect he’ll be cleared sometime probably in June,” Mayhew told Mike O’Hara and Ken Brown on WJR Monday night. “We look forward to having him on the field.”

Giants GM Jerry Reese was asked about the team's first round pick in an interview with WFAN.

Were you looking for a running back or was David Wilson just the best player available there when it got to you in the first round?:

“First of all, he was the highest player on our board at the time that we picked. That was an easy pick for us. It was a value and a need pick for us, we thought. We lost Brandon Jacobs who did a terrific job for us while he was here. We’ve got Ahmad Bradshaw and he’s going to be the lead dog for us, but we wanted to get another running back at some point. We didn’t want to sacrifice value, but he was the top player on our board.”

Chargers WR Robert Meachem confirmed Tuesday he underwent arthroscopic knee surgery after last season.

But it won't slow him down for the next one, he says.

In late January, Meachem had a minor procedure performed on his right knee, the same that was surgically repaired before his 2007 rookie season.

“I'm still young, so it doesn't concern me,” Meachem said. “I'm 27. I feel great. Just taking it day by day.”

Meachem, who signed a four-year deal with the Chargers in March, said he "banged" the knee Jan. 1 during the Saints' regular-season finale against the Panthers.

He didn't miss any action, catching four passes for 111 yards and a touchdown the next week versus the Lions. He had the knee scoped in the weeks following the Saints' Jan. 14 playoff elimination.

Knee scopes typically require 3-4 weeks of recovery and involve smoothing out the edges of rough cartilage to allow the joint to move more smoothly and become pain-free. We like Meachem's upside as the WR1 or WR1a in the San Diego offense, so this news is a great thing for fantasy owners to mention to their leaguemates on draft day to try to drive down his stock.

WR Steve Breaston may have to take the lead this year for the Chiefs. WR Dwayne Bowe, as the franchise player, is unsigned and not with the Chiefs as they go through their offseason conditioning program.

Bowe has plenty of time to sign a contract and rejoin the Chiefs, but until he does, there’s a chance he won’t play next season. If he doesn’t, Breaston becomes the No. 1 wide receiver.

The Chiefs hope Jonathan Baldwin can eventually become a go-to receiver, but his development was slowed last year when he missed the entire preseason and the first five games because of a broken thumb.

Quarterback Matt Leinart will sign with the Oakland Raiders Tuesday, according to the team. There were reports over the weekend that Leinart would end up in Oakland and now he'll be the second Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback from USC on the roster, along with Carson Palmer.

According to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle, the Texans have released WR Jacoby Jones after drafting two receivers: Ohio State’s DeVier Posey in the third round (68th overall) and Michigan State’s Keshawn Martin in the fourth round (121st overall).

When RB Ahmad Bradshaw was a rookie with the Giants in 2007, RB Brandon Jacobs welcomed him and took him under his wing.

Now it’s Bradshaw’s turn to do the same for David Wilson, the Virginia Tech running back the Giants took in the first round of the NFL draft.

“I plan on using him as my project,” Bradshaw said Monday. “He’s a very talented running back and he’s from Virginia. Two Virginia guys in this running back corps is going to be dangerous. I expect to use him as my project to get him better, to get him smarter and just to mature him a little bit, just to help him understand the NFL.”

The Redskins have released Jabar Gaffney.

With Pierre Garcon and Josh Morgan added to the mix, there was little need to retain Gaffney.

The Titans made a defensive end-turned-tight end their fifth-round pick, selecting SMU’s Taylor Thompson with the 145th overall selection on Saturday.

It was only prior to SMU’s bowl game last season that Thompson began dabbling at tight end — the position he played in high school. He continued working there during the all-star game in Arkansas.

“He was practicing full time at tight end — routes, catching the ball, blocking, the whole deal,” Titans scout John Salge said. “That’s when we said, ‘Wow, this guy has some ability.’ And obviously, during his pro day, he worked out as a tight end as well. We’re just excited to have him. He’s a good athlete.”

“I’d say his growth will have to come in the technique of blocking, but as far as being a receiving tight end, I think he’s uncanny,” offensive coordinator Chris Palmer said. “He’s got outstanding speed. He’s got outstanding size and hands.”

TE is a position where stars can come from strange places. Antonio Gates and Jimmy Graham were basketball players before turning to football relatively late in their respective careers. Jared Cook should be the TE1 in Tennessee this season, but Thompson is someone to watch.

The Indianapolis Colts claimed running back Deji Karim (Jacksonville Jaguars) off waivers Monday.

The Buffalo Bills traded up in the third round to the 69th overall pick to grab wide receiver T.J. Graham from North Carolina State. They moved up two spots with the Washington Redskins and gave up one of their two seventh round picks (217th overall) to get their speed receiver. The Bills had three glaring needs heading into the draft and they have now addressed all three with their first three picks.

Graham may not have the ideal size to play opposite of Stevie Johnson, but he has outstanding speed and head Coach Chan Gailey stated unequivocally that he will line up outside.

“He’s 5’11” and something and he can run by most everybody, I mean the guy can fly,” said Gailey.

“We like his speed and he can catch the football and return. They’ll have to cover deep,” said Bills GM Buddy Nix.

Graham was a successful punt and kick returner in college. He took back two kicks and two punts for scores in his four-year collegiate career. He has a track background, but never let it get in the way of football. Gailey indicated that they’re inclined to let him focus on receiver first.

“I don’t know that we’ll (have him return) off the bat,” said Gailey. “We’ll let him work at receiver and let him be proficient there.”

Graham will compete with Donald Jones for the WR2 spot opposite Steve Johnson. This is a camp battle to monitor.

Saints OC Pete Carmichael was asked if WR Nick Toon compares to any other receiver he’s ever worked with.

“His range and his hands remind me more of [Marques] Colston,’’ Carmichael said. “He runs better than I think people give him credit for. He was timed real well at the combine. I think that speed shows up on film.”

There is some opportunity in New Orleans with Robert Meachem gone, but this is still a crowded receiving corps.

The Jets have re-signed WR DaMarcus Ganaway.

The Chiefs don’t have much speed at WR, and Dwayne Bowe’s situation is tenuous. Fresno State’s Devin Wylie, their fourth-round pick, figures as a slot receiver and a returner, which gives the Chiefs quickness and depth.

Asked if his foot is feeling 100 percent, Chargers TE Antonio Gates smiled and said “we're getting there.”

Asked if he expected the old Gates to return, the one who's dazzled year after year and routinely made men miss in the open field, he took it a step further.

“It's definitely going to get back to that,” Gates said. “I think that's what makes me excited, coming to prove I'm still one of the elite guys at this position. That's the challenge for myself …

“As you understand this league and you have experience, you understand how important the offseason is, and it definitely pays off dividends throughout the year. The fact that I am participating in the offseason program, coming here and working my tail off with the rest of the guys, that'll pay off throughout the season.”

Gates has been going in the middle rounds (5th-6th) in early fantasy drafts and could be a very good value there if he can stay healthy. He finished TE7 last year in both standard and PPR formats but was never really himself due to his foot injury.

Browns QB Brandon Weeden believes that his age (28) is an advantage.

“My baseball background, what I’ve been through, the adversity I’ve been through, it really prepares me for what I am about to go through,” Weeden said. “I think being 28 years old is an advantage for me. I use it as an advantage because my body is still fresh. I still have a lot of football left in my tank. I never really saw any negatives because I have to answer the question [about my age] all the time. I really see it as a positive, and I think it’s really going to help in the locker room. I think it’s going to help me prepare on a daily basis to become the best player I can become.”

QB Andrew Luck product is putting the final touches on his academic work and will attend this weekend’s camp, but nothing on site again until after June 7 when his studies end. Though May 14 is the date rookies can come in to start a seven-week program, Luck is not eligible because of Stanford being on the quarter system.

He will get on-site work for three days this weekend, then other efforts will have to take place at different locations.

“They (players) can get together anywhere but here,” said Head Coach Chuck Pagano. “If they want to go out (to California) and orchestrate something or if Andrew (Luck) wants to, on the weekend, go meet them somewhere else, then that is all within the framework of the rules.

“We can talk to him and we’ve got ways of getting information in his hands. We’ve given him enough stuff to where he can take back and start to dive into the playbook and start to learn the terminology, scheme and things like that. I think we are ahead that way.”