Following an exciting first round, we break down the favorite picks, most pleasant and biggest surprises, most under-appreciated pick, worst move and more.
Peyton Manning, Mario Williams, Mike Wallace and Carl Nicks headline an intriguing free agent class that can shift the balance of power this offseason.
The Eagles seemingly came out of nowhere to sign Nnamdi Asomugha as they eye a trip to the Super Bowl.
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The first three days following the end of the lockout have brought a flurry of activity.
Several teams have new quarterbacks, some prominent names have changed uniforms and others have new deals to stay in place.
Here are some first-glance reactions to some of those moves. But first, the Houston story on Nnamdi Asomugha, as I first posted Thursday evening on the NFL Discussion board here at RealGM.
The story of the Texans and Asomugha, as relayed to me Thursday night by someone who would know...
Houston was the first place people close to Asomugha contacted. The Texans laid out a handful of parameters (years/money) and how they expected to use him on defense. His agent told them he was going to use those as a basis to shop for offers with other teams that had already expressed interest and would get back to them.
The Jets and 49ers both went above the initial offer. Houston gave another couple of higher offers, mainly in late-contract guaranteed money, that put them back atop the mythical leader board.
This is the time where Michael Lombardi and Adam Schefter both ran with the "Texans are the front-runners" stuff. That Lombardi was the first guy to report this is not accidental.
Within 15 minutes of that conversation, the agent for Johnathan Joseph called and said he had an offer from Detroit and needed to know ASAP if the Texans were still interested.
They had already talked to the former Bengals people as well to discuss basic parameters, but had told them they wanted to see what happened with Asomugha first.
The Texans said they were still in, but needed to find out the timetable on Asomugha. So they called the former Raiders people back and said, "We need a decision."
The Asomugha camp would not commit or say when they were going to decide, so the Texans called the Joseph camp back and made a counter that was higher in guaranteed money than the Detroit offer with the condition that he had to take it or leave it right away.
Joseph took the five-years, $48.75 million with $23 million guaranteed. That is more years, significantly less cash, and less guaranteed money than they would have spent on Asomugha and they got a younger player with arguably better ball skills. I am not saying Johnathan Joseph is as good as Asomugha, but he is more aggressive with the ball in the air and is no slouch in coverage.
This person told me he thinks Asomugha was playing the Texans all along to get more money out of the Jets, the team he wanted to sign with the entire time. He said the Texans had maximum offers of four years/$75 million or five years/$84.5 million with about $27-30 million guaranteed based on some fine print (bonuses and incentives) and he does not think the Jets can, or are willing, to go that high.
We will see...
Now for some reaction to other moves...
-- Eagles trade quarterback Kevin Kolb to Arizona for cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and a second round pick.
Philadelphia is taking a huge risk in dealing Kolb, a relatively proven commodity as a backup familiar with their offensive system. No, he is not better than Michael Vick, but Vick has a long and alarming history of getting hurt and plays with a style that does not offer any hope for change.
Now unproven Mike Kafka (or a more expensive veteran outsider -- Vince Young) is one awkward scramble away from running the Eagles offensive machine. I like Kafka and I know they do as well, but they are not winning a playoff game with Kafka unless the metamorphism goes freakishly quick. With Kolb, they had the insurance I liked. They did get demonstrably better at corner with DRC, a legit #1 corner in many places that now gets to play #2 across from Asante Samuel. That is not insignificant and the trade-off will be awesome if Vick stays healthy. Plus, that second round pick will certainly come in handy next April.
For Arizona, they land a new starting quarterback that they desperately needed. Kolb has flashed brilliance, but has also struggled during his limited appearances. The way I see it, the Cardinals gave up a pretty good starting corner and a second round pick to get quarterback that is 1-2 years more advanced than any rookie they could have taken this year or next. That is certainly a plus, but Kolb is under pressure to perform at a consistently higher level than anyone who fits that category as well, and it is not a given he can do that. Still, I respect them making the leap of faith that Houston did with Matt Schaub in similar circumstances, and I think it will work out about the same. Having said that, I would have gone after Kyle Orton or waited for Miami to make a move with Chad Henne instead.
-- Seattle added a new starting quarterback in Tarvaris Jackson and a new #1 wide receiver in Sidney Rice, both formerly of Minnesota.
Jackson will have to beat out Charlie Whitehurst for the job in what has to be the most underwhelming quarterback duel since, well, Jackson battled Gus Frerotte for the Minnesota gig in the pre-Favre year.
That year is important to look at when evaluating what Seattle has done. Jackson could not hold onto the job with some very shaky performances. Rice, who was entering his second season, was trumpeted as a potential breakout player and the Vikings were heavily relying him on taking over the #1 role from Bernard Berrian.
Instead, he battled injuries and the dropsies and caught just 15 passes at less than 10 yards per reception. The utter incompetence of those two together led to Minnesota importing Favre and drafting Percy Harvin.
For anyone to think anything different will happen in Seattle is foolhardy. Rice has had exactly one good season in his first four, a direct consequence of playing with a Hall of Famer having a late-career resurgence and aided by the best running back in the league keeping safeties and linebackers occupied.
Seattle has arguably the worst quarterback situation in the NFL and ranks in the bottom tier of running threats as well. I do like the Robert Gallery signing to help complete the much-needed offensive line overhaul -- they are going to start two rookies as well -- but the Seahawks skill position players are Tarvaris Jackson, Marshawn Lynch, Sidney Rice and Mike Williams. Consider the Seahawks on the short list of clubhouse leaders in the Andrew Luck derby.
-- For all the talk about the Jets chasing Nnamdi Asomugha, I would like to focus for a minute on the man he would be deposing.
That is Antonio Cromartie, also a fairly-coveted free agent that is going to land a sizeable deal with one of the teams that loses out on the Asomugha derby. Here is a reality check for those of you who want to land Cromartie: the Jets rely on strong cornerback play more than any other defense. Cromartie knows the complex system and the division opponents very well. Yet the Jets essentially shooed him away like some pesky housefly hovering over the corn on the cob.
There is a reason for that. Several, actually.
Cromartie is almost comically inconsistent and has been his entire career. He likes to freelance and gamble on jumping routes more than any corner this side of Cortland Finnegan (notice how awful he was last year?). His enthusiasm for tackling ebbs and wanes with the tides. He is not particularly well-liked or respected in the locker room; it is better than it was in San Diego, but let us just say he will not be elected team captain anywhere, ever. Cromartie screams "caveat emptor" and carries the price tag of emerald despite often playing at a peridot level.
--Do not look now, but the Carolina Panthers have had a phenomenal week.
Their two most coveted free agents, Charles Johnson and DeAngelo Williams, both re-signed, albeit for contracts that seem almost absurdly high out of the new context of the fresh collective bargaining agreement.
They also brought back incredibly underrated linebacker James Anderson and their other starting linebackers in Thomas Davis and Jon Beason.
They added a veteran starter on the defensive line in Ron Edwards, who is a better schematic fit here in the new 4-3 scheme than he was as a nose tackle in the 3-4 of the Chiefs.
Late Thursday they traded a third round pick to get Greg Olsen, a legit #1 tight end (just do not ask him to block), who pairs with Jeremy Shockey to form a major upgrade at what has been a barren position since Wesley Walls left town all those years ago.
If Cam Newton can even vaguely resemble the dynamic presence he was in his one year at Auburn, Carolina could be a very good team next year. Assuming everyone is back from injury, the Panthers already have one of the best offensive-lines in the league.
They are deep and talented at running back. They have some promising young wide outs and kept the explosive Steve Smith, who appears to be buying into a quick rebuild. Tight end is now a strength in the receiving department.
The defensive back seven is speedy, aggressive, and pretty talented. Remember, nobody expected much from Newton a year ago and all he did was win the Heisman Trophy and lead the Tigers to the national title. That is not going to happen in Carolina, but this team is markedly better than you probably think it is.
Quickies:
-- I love Reggie Bush to the Dolphins, but I still do not get their revulsion with Chad Henne.
-- New England continues to be the Warehouse of Discarded Vets. Ochocinco and Haynesworth cost next to nothing ... which is good, because that is what they are worth on the field to this team in terms of winning a playoff game.
-- There is a reason why two teams headed by noted quarterback gurus have given up on Donovan McNabb in the last 12 months. Vikings fans will learn that the hard way.
-- Washington is quietly helping itself quite a bit. Barry Cofield and Stephen Bowen are upgrades on the defensive line, Josh Wilson replaces Carlos Rogers for a lot less money and headaches, and they did not overpay to get onto the quarterback carousel.
-- I love Paul Posluszny to Jacksonville, provided he can stay healthy.
