Straight Outta The Box: Chief Rum Takes Over The FOF 2004 Cards

[Chief Rum]

Defensive Line

Defensive End

Name             Old TM  Exp  Cur  Fut  Key Stats

Jevon Kearse        TEN    6   71   72  64 tkl, 16 sk, 25 hurr
Greg Ellis          DAL    7   63   63  46 tkl, 11.5 sk, 21 hurr
Anthony Pleasant    NED   15   62   62  42 tkl, 7.5 sk, 19 hurr
Bobby Hamilton      NED    9   58   59  38 tkl, 11.5 sk, 22 hurr
Aaron Amith         PIT    6   54   54  39 tkl, 10.5 sk, 11 hurr
Lamar King          SEA    6   52   59  31 tkl, 11 sk, 10 hurr
Ray Lee Johnson     SDO   11   51   52  40 tkl, 9 sk, 21 hurr
Jay Williams        MIA    9   46   48  8 tkl, 0.5 sk, 2 hurr
Duane Clemons       CIN    9   45   47  41 tkl, 10 sk, 29 hurr
Brady Smith         ATL    9   44   44  32 tkl, 8 sk, 15 hurr
Lance Johnstone     MIN    9   42   43  30 tkl, 7.5 sk, 9 hurr

Comments: This position isn't as deep as guard or tackle, but there is help to be found here for teams loking for it. It starts, of course, with The Freak, who is easily the star of this bunch. He will be a high profile free agent in this class. Ellis, Pleasant and Hamilton make for a tio of good consolation prizes for those teams that either miss out or are simply too poor to take a shot at Kearse. The talent level declines steadily after that, allowing for a solid group of ends, if not spectacular or very deep.

Defensive Tackle

Name             Old TM  Exp  Cur  Fut  Key Stats

Warren Sapp         TBY   10   78   79  52 tkl, 7.5 sk, 9 hurr
Dana Stubblefield   OAK   12   70   70  39 tkl, 11 sk, 12 hurr
Ted Washington      NED   14   58   58  43 tkl, 4.5 sk, 11 hurr
Steve Martin        HOU    9   56   56  34 tkl, 2.5 sk, 7 hurr
Chester McGlockton  NYJ   13   55   55  44 tkl, 4.5 sk, 11 hurr
Cornelius Griffin   NYG    5   53   58  46 tkl, 2.5 sk, 10 hurr
John Parrella       OAK   12   52   52  64 tkl, 8 sk, 9 hurr
Dan WIlkinson       DET   11   51   51  75 tkl, 14 sk, 14 hurr
Brentson Buckner    CAR   11   49   49  5 tkl, 1 hurr
Chad Eaton          SEA    9   49   49  9 tkl, 1 sk, 7 hurr

Comments: Defensive tackle has a little more depth at the top and is also just about deeper in sheer numbers than at the end position. Here, there is not one but two top tackles. Sapp is the high profile guy, like Kearse at end. But if his tastes (or his attitude) is a little too much for teams, Stubblefield is a guy who does nearly as good a job withhalf the fuss. There's a small drop after those two, but the next tier is a large group of very solid tackles. After this group peters out, it drops sharply to backup status, though.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Linebacker

Inside Linebacker

Name             Old TM  Exp  Cur  Fut  Key Stats

Randall Godfrey     SEA    9   78   78  113 tkl, 5.5 sk, 3 hurr, 1 int, 6 defn
Al Wilson           DEN    6   74   74  118 tkl, 2 sk, 3 int, 8 defn
Bernardo Harris     BAL   10   48   48  42 tkl, 1.5 sk, 5 hurr
Ted Johnson         NED   10   46   46  23 tkl
Wali Rainer         DET    6   46   46  9 tkl
Don Davis           NED    9   41   46  DNP
Orlando Ruff        NOS    6   41   45  17 tkl, 1 int
Mike Maslowski      KCY    6   40   46  90 tkl, 2 sk, 3 int, 6 defn
T.J. Slaughter      JAX    5   40   50  8 tkl

Comments: This is kind of like a poor man's tackle position, without the quality depth. Like tackle, there are two standout players here. Godfrey is actually the top-ranked inside linebacker in football, which I am certain is a surprise to some of you (it was to me). Wilson is more well-known for his skills in real life. Either way, the two will be high-priced commodities on the market, just like Pace and Jones at tackle. The bad news is that if you miss out on those two, the pickings become very slim at one of the weaker all around positions in this class. There are warm bodies to be had, maybe even passable #2 starters for 3-4 defenses, but if you need a star at inside linebacker and you miss out on Godfrey or Wilson, you're pretty much S.O.L.

Outside Linebacker

Name             Old TM  Exp  Cur  Fut  Key Stats

Ian Gold            DEN    5   67   74  70 tkl, 2 sk
Carlos Emmons       PHI    9   61   61  112 tkl, 3.5 sk, 8 hurr, 1 int, 13 defn
Marcus Washington   IND    5   55   60  74 tkl, 1 sk, 4 hurr, 2 int, 6 defn
Mo Lewis            NYJ   14   48   48  85 tkl, 2 sk, 4 hurr, 1 int, 7 defn
Cornell Brown       BAL    9   45   49  38 tkl
Steve Foley         HOU    7   45   46  7 tkl, 1 sk, 1 defn
Na'il Diggs         GBY    5   45   49  67 tkl, 1 sk, 2 hurr, 4 defn
Eric Barton         OAK    6   42   52  44 tkl, 1 sk, 2 hurr, 1 int
Barrett Green       DET    5   42   56  60 tkl, 4.5 sk, 1 int, 3 defn
Brandon Short       NYG    5   42   47  99 tkl, 1.5 sk, 1 int, 4 defn
Keith Mitchell      JAX    8   40   40  64 tkl, 1.5 sk, 3 hurr, 6 int, 4 defn

Comments: Outside linebacker is about as shallow as inside, with the difference that the decline in available linebackers is much more gradual. There is a clear separation between each of the top four linebackers before you get to a glut of decent outside backers that round out the starter-quality players in this unit. Gold is not only the top backer, he is also the one with the best ability to progress further into superstar status. Emmons is a tier below him, but still a far above average linebacker. Washington has the potential to be as good as Emmons some day, and Lewis, on a tier below Washington, is the cagey veteran of the group. Lewis heads the last, large group of decent outside linebackers. Probably the most interesting of them is Mitchell, who has the potential to end up the second best linebacker in this group.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Secondary

Cornerback

Name             Old TM  Exp  Cur  Fut  Key Stats

Troy Vincent        PHI   13   80   80  35 tkl, 1.5 sk, 2 int, 4 defn
Champ Bailey        WAS    6   78   80  66 tkl, 3 int, 16 defn
Chris McAllister    BAL    6   78   78  80 tkl, 9 int, 11 defn
Charles Woodson     OAK    7   74   76  77 tkl, 2 int, 14 defn
Bobby Taylor        PHI   10   60   60  68 tkl, 3 int, 10 defn
Fernando Bryant     JAX    6   59   59  50 tkl, 1 int, 11 defn
Dexter McCleon      KCY    8   56   56  54 tkl, 3 int, 7 defn
Willie Williams     SEA   12   51   51  45 tkl, 1 int, 12 defn
Artrell Hawkins     CIN    7   51   51  50 tkl, 1 int, 12 defn
Jason Webster       SFO    5   48   49  52 tkl, 4 int, 14 defn
Ray Buchanan        ATL   12   47   47  49 tkl, 6 int, 9 defn

Comments: All teams looking for corners, rejoice! This is the deepest position in this free agent class. It also has the most star power, and does not feature any significant talent drops, meaning if you miss out on one, you can aim a little lower and end up with a guy nearly as good. The top of this class is frightening, with no less than six top-twenty corners, including four top-ten guys of the pure shut down variety. The group is also noted for its overall youth. Outside of top corner Vincent, the top group are all relatively young and in their prime. With a position group this deep, it's possible a team could pick up even a decent quality third corner out of this unit.

Safety

Name             Old TM  Exp  Cur  Fut  Key Stats

David Terrell       WAS    5   71   71  92 tkl, 3 sk, 2 int, 5 defn
Anthony Dorsett     OAK    9   65   65  72 tkl, 2 int, 14 defn
Donovan Darius      JAX    7   64   64  62 tkl, 4 int, 11 defn
Corey Harris        DET   13   54   54  86 tkl, 7 int, 6 defn
Rogers Beckett      CIN    5   54   57  67 tkl, 7 int, 3 defn
Jerome Woods        KCY    9   51   52  95 tkl, 3 int, 9 defn
Victor Green        NOS   12   49   49  39 tkl, 2 defn
Bracy Walker        DET   11   49   49  25 tkl, 1 defn
Izell Reese         BUF    7   49   49  72 tkl, 3 int, 5 defn
Mark Roman          CIN    5   49   58  63 tkl, 5 int, 6 defn

Comments: Safety doesn't have the sheer star power or the depth of its partner corner position, but what does? The fact is, without the corner position, the safety position might have been a candidate for the strongest part of this class. Terrell, Darius and Dorsett are all top notch saefties who would start for any team in the league. What gives this position its strength, though, is that the next tier of players simply exist at a higher level than most of the other positions. Above average safeties can be found ten deep in this class, and the quality doesn't die away quickly, even after that.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Free agency will begin shortly, but I thought I would first go through what I wanted to do with the Cardinals prior to free agency.

I will do this position by position.

QB: Quarterback is obviously a huge need area. Blake is no long term answer and none of the low end backups I had or broguht in are the answer either. The problem is that this QB class is very thin, and I am not interested in blowing my wad on Peyton Manning. I may look to pick someone up to compete with Blake and serve as a better #2, but I am not expecting to spend much time thinking about this position in free agency.

RB: This might be my number one need position, although my needs on this team are many. That said, I have been eyeballing a nice looking running back in the draft that looks like he would be just about appropriate for when my pick comes up. And if for some reason he doesn't fall to me, the RB class is deep enough for me to pick up a solid back in the second round of free agency anyway. So I don't think I will be making any offers to backs here.

FB: Hodgins remains as one of the better fullbacks in the league, so this isn't a priority position. I could use a solid backup, in case Hodgins gets hurt again, but that's something that can wait or maybe picked up in the draft.

WR: I have three young receivers with growing talents in place. Well, okay McAddley will always be mediocre, but still, this is just not a need area, not with all the other places I need to address. At this position, I mostly just need to maybe pick up a fourth receiver, and like the backup fullback spot, it's just not necessary to worry about that stuff until the draft or the second phase of free agency.

C: Starting center is not an issue. Kendall is one of the best in the league. I need a backup, though. I don't know if I would get this backup from free agency or the draft. I will keep my eyes open, but this is, again, not an area I am concentrating my attention.

G: I am fine at one spot with Davis. And Dishman did much better than expected at the other spot. But it is obvious this position is in need of talent and depth. So this is going to get immediate attention from me. My first offer at this position was to Matt Stinchcomb, who seemed to be about the level I was willing to pay without going overboard.

T: This was the biggest need position in the offense, or at least tied with running back. I felt I had serious issues at both tackle spots, although I have some possibilities there. Since I let L.J. Shelton go to free agency, the only tackle who had done anything resembling strong play for me was already gone. So this was a spot for one and maybe even two tackles. I made my first offer here to John Tait, who was at a similar spot at his position as Stinchcomb. I looked at pace and Jones for fun, saw what they were seeking and laughed loudly before closing the contract page.

K: Boivin did well to start but really cooled off after that. I wanted to get more of a lock for this spot, so I tossed out an offer to David Akers, the youngest of the top four kickers available.

P: I let Player walk, and I was as surprised as any9one else when I saw he actually made the list of top punters available in free agency. I want to get a good guy here, but I am willing to wait and see how my other offers look before making an offer to someone here. I know that in the end, I can get a punter fairly easily who will perform at least near as well as most punters in the league.

DE: The game has this as a need area because of the youth of players here, but there's no doubt King and Pace are the future here. And I already have veteran help in place in Vanden Bosch and Wakefield. I didn't see the need to add any big ticket free agents at this spot.

DT: Like Pace and King with DE, I am waiting on Bryant to develop here at one DT spot. I am plenty satisified with Davis at the other tackle spot, as he is porbably my best overall lineman right now (although I think King could pass him up after training vamp). I do need backup help here, sicne I let Ransom go to free agency. But that's not an opening week of free agency need.

ILB: No problems here, of course, with an All-League First Team performer here in McKinnon. That's good because I can't afford the two big names and the smaller guys don't really interest me. When I look at backup Darling's talent, I cringe, and that may be enough for me to seek a better backup. But since Darling performed pretty well in limited time and it's a backup spot, it's not a priority for me.

OLB: Thompson is one of my best defenders and I just signed him to a nice extension. Hayes is one of my up and coming youngsters on the other side. I am pretty happy at these spots, although I am waiting on further development, just like other areas of the defense. Technically, Hayes isn't a natrural weak side linebacker and I might try and get a guy who is better in pass defense there, to at least backup. But as with many other backup positions, this isn't a priority.

CB: This is hands down the top need for me on defense. The hole across from Sarks is a black hole that was further weakened when Barrett and Anderson, both of whom split time at the spot, left via free agency (or so I thought--Anderson was still a restricted free agent at the time). As with Jones and Pace at tackle, the top guys (Vincent, Bailey, Woodson, etc.) are way too much for me. So I aimed for solid guys below them, making initial offers to Dexter McCleon and Ray Buchanan. My intent with Buchana was to eithe rmake hima third corner or my consolation proze if I didn't get the better corner I was looking for.

S: I am perfectly satisfied with my starting safeties, as anyone following along knows. I knew I needed backups, thouygh (not knowing Anderson's situation also impacted here, of course). Since Anderson as the third safety was so ciritical last year, I viewed this backup position as more important thna a lot fo the others, so I actually made an offer to a player here from the beginning. I made an offer to Anthony Dorsett.

CR

Edited to add note: Little did I know as I was writing this very early this morning that it was my 4000th post at FOFC. I just thought I would note it for posterity.

[SnDvls]

CR- Frequent lurker, but I rarely post, however I do like yours keep up the good work. Mabey you'll turn the Cruds errr Cards around lord knows everyone else has tried. I'd root for them, but they have this think called a lawsuit against my Alma Matter ASU who also happens to be getting the raw end of the deal being their "host" at Sun Devil Stadium, but I digress.

Great read CR thanks again.

Travis

[sachmo71]

Sign Bulger!

[Blade6119]

Originally posted by SnDvls
CR- Frequent lurker, but I rarely post, however I do like yours keep up the good work. Mabey you'll turn the Cruds errr Cards around lord knows everyone else has tried. I'd root for them, but they have this think called a lawsuit against my Alma Matter ASU who also happens to be getting the raw end of the deal being their "host" at Sun Devil Stadium, but I digress.

Great read CR thanks again.

Travis

What year are you...my sis is a soph. there and direct admit to the business school...im over in scottsdale

[Chief Rum]

SnDvls: I know I'm doing my job when I lure lurkers out into the open. Glad you're enjoying the dynasty. And it's always good to have another Pac-10 fan on this board. I'll take as many as we can get here, since usually we have to balance out the evil east coast bias on this board.

BTW, what do you have against vowels?

sachmo: Bulger who? heh heh...

CR

[Chief Rum]

Since I did this entire offseason not long after I started this dynasty (what's it been three weeks now?), I don't have an exact listing of when players signed during free agency. I have a bunch of saves at critical points, so, I know who signed in the first free agency and who the second. But I just couldn't make any sense out of the order the transaction logic is in. I know that it is chronological on the whole (before sorting that is), but I couldn't find any underlying trends (alphebetical listings for things that happen ont he same day, and so forth), so I don't know where, say Day Four of FA ends, and Day 5 begins.

As it turns out, there are about 19 pages of transactions (i.e. I have to click down 18 or so times to get through the first free agency period transactions). So I am pretty much going to do a page per "day". Since it is chronological, I know that the transactions will sometimes (and maybe even often) match up with the days they end up under in this system, so while it may be entirely accurate with how it really happened, the general order of the signing of free agents will remain intact.

Anyway, here goes the 2004 free agency.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day One

Big Signings

It figures. The very first day of free agency was simply huge. A ton of stars signed contracts, and much of the initial juice of this free agency was zapped before it even got started. Here are the biggest names that signed.

DT Ted Washington signs with the Ravens The #3 free agent DT became the first signing of the 2004 free agency by agreeing to a 3-year, $4.08 M contract with the Ravens. Washington played with New England last year. He turned down an offer from Jacksonville for less years, and the Patriots did not make an offer.

CB Troy Vincent signs with the Skins The top corner was quick to sign his name, and he did it after receiving several offers for his services. He agreed to a $21.12 M contract over 3 years, just edging out a $20.98 M deal for the same from his former team, the Eagles. The Colts, Chiefs and Jets also all made offers, but for less money and years.

CB Willie Williams signs with the Colts Indianapolis was the only team to give him an initial offer, a $6.32 M/ 2 year contract. No surprise Seattle didn't go for him, since they have a top young ciorner in Marcus Trufant and franchised Shawn Springs. Williams was the #8 CB in FA, and is Indy's consolation prize for missing out on Vincent.

ILB Ted Johnson signs with the Vikings Former top notch middle linebacker Ted Johnson didn't get much playing time as an injury-riddled backup for the Patriots last year, but his agent (Henry Wayne) was gold for him. Johnson signed a $2.25 M/ 2-year contract with the Vikings, turning down the exact same offer from the Niners. The Pats did not pursue Johnson, so they have now lost two defensive players from their team (Washington). Wayne is the NFL's top agent.

OLB Carlos Emmons signs with the Chiefs A year ago, Emmons' teammate and partner at outside linebacker Shawn Barber went to the Chiefs. He ended up with a Defensive POY award as a result. That was good enough for Emmons, the #2 OLB in free agency, who followed in Barber's footsteps by signing a $9.70 M/3 year contract with Kansas City. Emmons actually turned down a slightly more lucrative deal from the Saints to go to KC. Philly, which has now lost two big ticket defenders in Vicnent and Emmons, did not make an offer.

DE Bobby Hamilton signs with the Vikings Minnesota continues to raid New England. The Vikings signed the #4 DE in FA in Hamilton to a $4.52 M/3-year contract. The Pats lose their third defender and this is just the first day. As with Johnson and Washington, the Pats made no effort to keep Hamilton around. The Vikings were Hamilton's only initial offer.

WR Keyshawn Johnson signs with Green Bay Me-Shawn took his flapping gums to Green Bay and Favre's cannon arm, where he figures to be the top receiver for the Packers. Johnson signed a nice $8.69 M/3-year deal to make the switch. Neither the Buccs, and nor anyone else, made an offer for him.

DT Steve Martin signs with the Giants Who? The comedian? Yeah, I'm not too familiar with Martin in real life either, but he is the #4 DT in this free agent class. The former Texan signed a $1.92 M/2-year deal, which seems kinda small for a 50+ rated DT to me. Still, it was his nest offer, with only Cincy also making an offer for even less money. Houston didn't pursue him.

DE Greg Ellis signs with the Raiders Oakland lost a lot to free agency and retirement, so this is a huge step in the right direction for them. Ellis was the #2 DE in free agency, and one of the few real difference makers available at the position. He signed a rich $25.42 M/5-year deal, which was another year and another million per richer than the only other initial offer he got, from the Skins.In fact, the deal he signed is so much better, I think his agent (Thomas Matthews) took the Raiders for a ride. The Cowboys didn't offer him.

QB Peyton Manning re-signs with the Colts What is more amazing? That Manning signed so quickly back with his old team, or that he didn't receive a single initial offer from any other team? I guess agent Lance Burns' demands were too high for most. Manning, the #1 QB and probably highest-profile FA, is rich, of course--he signed a $101.04 M/ 6-year deal (almost $17 M per).

K David Akers signs with the Cards We get our first big signing of this dynasty! Well, okay, it's just a kicker, but I am happy to land a good, young kicker like Akers. He signed a $7.93/5 year deal (yeah, I know that's rich for a kicker) to leave the Eagles, which didn't offer him. No one else offered him either.

CB Champ Bailey signs with the Falcons The Falcons tooka big step in rebuilding their free-agent-fled secondary by signing one of the biggest and best corners in the biz. Bailey was the #2 corner available, after Vincent, and he signed quickly, to a $50.45 M/6-year deal. Surprisingly, the best young corner available got no other initial offers, even from the Skins, his old team.

DE Jevon Kearse signs with the Cowboys Now you know why the Cowboys don't care about letting Ellis go. They got the one guy in this class that is better instead. The Freak is the real difference maker at this position in this class. He signed a $33.56 M/5-year deal, which doesn't seem like enough for a high-profile DE, but maybe I am just reading too much into it. Kearse, again surprisingly, didn't get a single offer from any other team, including his old squad, the Titans.

NOTES AFTER DAY ONE

Well, the first day is in the books, and we already have the top two corners and defensive ends off the market, as well as two of the top four defensive tackles, the #2 OLB and premier free agent Manning. There are a lot of pl;ayers still to go, but that is rather stuinning.

Especially since Vincent was the only player to get more than one other offer, and several star players (Bailey, Kearse, Manning) didn't even get one other offer.

I don't remember all the little decisions I made for the Cards at this point, but I believe I was lerading on everyone I went after except for T John Tait. The offer on Tait was big enough for me to toss on an offer at developing tackle Matt Hill (the unknown, but decent talented guy on the other side of Seattle's line from mammoth tackle Walter Jones), just in case.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Two

Big Signings

DE Lamar King signs with the Niners Ouch, big get for one of my division opponents (won't say rival, since historically, the Cards are an NFC East team, and let's face it, we ain't rivallin' no one in this division...). The Niners let John Engelberger go to free agency and got much better in return in King, the #6 DE and the fourth of the top six to sign in the first two days. King signed pretty cheap, too ($2.34/2-years), and didn't get any other offer, including from his old team, another NFC West squad, the Hawks. I gues that actually is a break-even thing from the Cards' viewpoint.

OLB Ian Gold signs with Carolina The Panthers were surprisingly bad on defense this year, so signing the #1 OLB is a step in the right direction. Gold signed a $10.54/3-year deal with Carolina, and actually turned down a richer contract ($15.39 M/4 years) from the Chargers. The San Diego contract was also richer in per annum, so he must really like Carolina. The Broncos didn't make an offer, and the Chargers were the only other team interested in Gold.

S Mark Roman signs with the Skins Washington is quickly rebuilding their secondary, despite the loss of Bailey. With Vincent in the fold, they signed Roman, the #10 S to a $1.74 M/2-year deal. Roman turned down a smaller contract from the Vikings to take this job. He did not receive an offer from his old team, the Bengals.

OLB Marcus Washington re-signs with the Colts The Colts are getting pretty good at this re-signing thing. With Gold and Emmons signed up, Washington was the best OLB left (#3). Henry Wayne, who also got Ted Johnson a nice deal with the Vikings, got Washington a sweet deal as well ($17.4 M/5 years). Washington was only being pursured at this point by his old team.

T Matt Hill signs with the Cards Technically, this isn't a big signing, since Hill isn't even on the top ten free agent tackles' list, but I am happy with it. The developing tackle signed a $460 K/1-year deal to leave the Hawks. Good, hurt a division opponent and gain myself. No one else bid on Hill.

DE Anthony Pleasant signs with the Steelers The Patriots' defense is getting picked apart. An amazing fourth high-profile free agent has left the team now. This time it is Pleasant, who signed a $7.33 M/2-year deal with the world champs. Pleasant, the #3 DE and highest profile DE left on the market, turned down a richer contract ($11.84/3-years) from the Boys and another, lesser offer from the poor Seahawks (who are off to a bad start in this free agency), to replace Aaron Smith as Kimo Von Oelhoffen's shade on the other side of Pittsburgh's defensive front. Pleasant's departure alo means the entire starting defensive line for the Pats is now in differemt uniforms. Pleasant was the first free agent to receive more than one other offer since Vincent signed on Day One.

OLB Mo Lewis signs with the Bills Lewis was the top OLB left (#4) when he inked a $1.95 M/2-year deal with the Bills, a division rival of his former Jets squad. That's sure to cause a ruckus in NYC/Jersey. He also signed for a pretty small amount, I think. The Falcons were the only other team to make an offer.

DT Dana Stubblefield re-signs with the Raiders The Raiders are doing a good job of keeping the defensive line strong, at least. They bring back the #2 DT and one of the top defenders available in this free agency. He joins new DE Greg Ellis in a fearsome beginning of a defensive line. Stubblefield returned to the Raiders for $7.19 M/2-years, which is actually a pretty cheap contract, I think. He turned down longer and richer contracts from the Packers ($12.27/3-years) and the Steelers ($11.92 M/3-years), on top of offers from the Giants and Texans that were similar to the Raiders' offer.

G Adam Timmerman signs with the Bengals The top guard and the first of the big time offensive linemen signed his deal after two days and the biggest negotiations yet in this free agency. No less than ten teams had offers in on Timmerman when he signed, and an 11th, the Colts, had to withdraw their offer when the re-signings of Manning and OLB Washington,a nd the signing of CB Williams, pushed them over the cap with their Timmerman offer. Timmerman signed a $21.87 M/4-year deal, which was actually the cheapest of the four four-year offers he received (he got slightly richer deals from the Colts, Texans and Panthers--the highest being the last). The other seven teams all offered 3-year deals.

NOTES FROM DAY TWO

There weren't any changes for the Cards and our offers, or if there were I know I topped them again, with the exception of Tait, whom I remained in on, but didn't top the best offer.

The free agent class took another big hit. Now, 5 of the top 6 DEs are gone, and the top 3 OLB. The #2 DT in Stubblefield being gone now means that Warren Sapp is the only DT of the top four that remains unsigned. Timmerman, of course, was the first major offensive lineman to sign.

My tackles are weak enough that Hill might end up starting for me, so in that respect that was a good signing. Still, even at his highest rating, he will just be an average tackle. I still plan to make additions at this position.

CR

[sachmo71]

Don't forget Bulger...

[Chief Rum]

Originally posted by sachmo71
Don't forget Bulger...

I have my offensive line on a big weight gainer even as we speak. They will be bulgering out all over the place.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Three

Big Signings

DT Chad Eaton signs with the Chiefs The Seahawks take another blow on the line, and the Chiefs' defense adds another piece. Eaton, the #10 DT, moves from Seattle to Kansas City for a $2.77 M/3-year deal. The Seahawks have now lost three players on defense altogether (DE King and CB Williams are the others), while the Chiefs have now added Emmons and Eaton to a defense that already has last year's DPOY. The Chiefs were the only team with an offer for Eaton.

ILB Randall Godfrey signs with the Browns Well, now we have a true shocker. And the Seahawks horrible free agent offseason continues, as they now have as many top defensive players lost from their defense as the Pats do. Godfrey was the top inside linebacker available, and if the rankings are to be believed, the most skilled inside linebacker in the game. And he signs with...Cleveland? Wow! It looks like one of the worst teams in the league is ponying up. Good for them. Godfrey signed a $32.42 M/4-year deal to leave Seattle. In another one of the mystifying things about this free agency, Godfrey was not receiving attention from any other teams (not that he did badly, thank you, Agent Herb Mayes).

S Jerome Woods signs with the Buccs The Chiefs have been winners so far in this free agency, but not this time. They get tagged with their first loss of the offseason, when #6 S Woods hightails it for Florida and a $3.41 M/3-year deal from Tampa Bay. Of course, the Chiefs didn't even fight it. They didn't have an offer in on Woods. Cincy and Oakland both had offeres in on Woods, but the Buccs offered the most money by a decent bit.

TE Jason Dunn signs with the Bills The Chiefs get tagged again, but considering Dunn was just a backup to the top tight end int he game in Tony Gonzalez, it seems unlikely they will really miss him. Like Woods, they didn't even maike an offer for Dunn, the #1 TE available in free agency. For Dunn, of courwse, it's a great move, as he finally gets to be an unquestioned #1 TE for the Bills. He signed a $7.11/4-year deal with Buffalo, turning down a $5.39/3-year offer from the Skins that was technically richer per annum.

T Walter Jones signs with the Cowboys It's official now. Seattle is heads and tails above everyone else for worst free agency so far. For all their defensive losses, Jones was probably the biggest free agent they had. In landing Jones, the Cowboys make a very significant addition, and their offseason, with Jones and Kearse is shaping up very well. Jones got quite a deal ($39.26/4 years), considering once again he had no offers on the table from any other team, including the Seahawks. That is afeather in the cap of Ian Gowins, his agent.

CB Dexter McCleon signs with the Cards Here we make our first big signing, although I suppose it is relative, as it pails in comparison to some of the other signings already in the bag. The Chiefs lose another one here from their secondary, and we get a guy we can feel confident in handing our open corner spot to. McCleon, the #7 free agent CB, actually even outperforms Starks, so he becomes our top corner. He signed a nice cheap deal, too, at just a $2 M/2-year deal. No one else made an offer to McCleon.

G Marco Rivera signs with the Lions The Lions lost a lot of players to free agency, but not a single one of those players has yet signed with anyone. So they are ahead of the game in landing #6 G Rivera from the Packers. Rivera signed for a pretty hefty $8.36/3-year package. As often seems to happen when a player gets more than you expect him to, there was no competition for Rivera's services, even from Green Bay.

WR James Thrash signs with the Jags As if the Jaguars needed more offense, they became the second team to sign a wide receiver in this class. Thrash, who played for the Eagles last year, is the #4 WR, making him the highest-ranking receiver yet signed (above Keyshawn Johnson with Green Bay). Thrash signed for $4.51 M/4 years, taking the Jags' offer over a lesser contract offer from the Lions. As with the defenders they have lost, the Eagles made no effort to retain Thrash.

CB Chris McAllister signs with the Rams For the most part, the singings involving the NFC West have been for players going out of the division. This is a key signing of the opposite sort, and with the same kind of impact as King signing witht he Niners had. The Rams had one of the worst pass defenses in the league, and that fact probably had a lot to do with their Super Bowl loss to the Steelers. McAllister, the #3 CB and the best left on the market, si exactly what the Rams need. He is young and top notch and coming off of a great season with Baltimore. He signed a $35.69 M/6-year deal, which probably won out over offers from Denver and Philly because it had the sixth year tacked on. Poor Philadelphia continues to have a horrible free agency.

G Jamar Nesbit signs with the Chiefs The Jags' offense isn't going to improve by signing excess wide receivers over starting guards. They lost a key lineman today when the Chiefs signed Nesbit, the #8 free agent G. The Chiefs signed Nesbit to a nice, long contract for $14.50 M/5 years. It's a bit rich, but he's solid. The Jags will miss him, even if they (nor anyone else) bothered to offer him.

NOTES FROM DAY THREE

I have said it enough in the capsules, but this has been a bad offseason so far for the Hawks, Pats and Eagles. At least the Pats didn't lose anyone today.

For the Cards, we're still looking pretty good. With top offers on most of our targets. With John Tait still liking another offer better and with Hill as much a project as a starter for 2004, we decided to go after another tackle. We decided to put in an offer on Damion McIntosh, another developing tackle who has the skills to start immediately and has much higher upside than Hill.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Four

Big Signings

ILB Al Wilson signs with the Chargers The Chargers failed to land former Denver OLB Ian Gold, so they just threw money at Wilson instead. Wilson, the #2 LB, is the premier LB remaining in this free agent class, and his departure to the Bolts officially makes this a really bad offseason for the Broncos. They probably went from one of the best to one of the worst linebacker crews in just a few days. Wilson got a very nice deal, signing for $37.88/5 years. As no one but San Diego made an offer to him, it appears that Lance Burns, who got Manning his top deal with no competitors, struck again.

G Cosey Coleman signs with the Texans Houston lands their first big free agent this year when they outbid several teams for the rights to the #2 free agent G Coleman. Coleman, a former Bucc, got some very nice offers, none better than Houston's ($42.88 M/6 years). Tampa Bay made no effort to retain Coleman, who chose the Texans' offer over offers from the Falcons, Lions, Panthers and Jets.

WR Tai Streets signs with the Ravens With pretty much the entire receiving unit hitting the road for free agency in Baltimore, wide receiver was a big need for the Ravens. They are definitely moving in the right direction with the #2 available WR in Tai Streets. Streets will get the opportunity to be the number one receiver in Baltimore, outside of the shadow of Terrell Owens in his old home of San Francisco. Streets signed for a cheap $1.70 M/2 years, but it seems that receivers are signing for low deals this free agency. No one else made an offer to Streets.

S David Terrell re-signs with the Skins After the signing of Roman, it is somewhat of a surprise that the Skins still soguht to rbing back #1 S Terrell, and over the offers of other teams as well. By bringing back Terrell, the Skins are doubtlessly even better off in the secondary now than they were last year, despite the loss of Champ Bailey. Terrell signed a $19.90 M/6-year deal to return to Washington, and he actually turned down an offer from Jacksonville that was significantly better per year than what he agreed to. The Vikings and Saints also missed out.

K Matt Stover signs with the Bills Stover is the second of the top four kickers that were available in this class to sign, and also the second to leave his old team. Stover, who also happens to be the #2 K, joins the already departed Akers for another team, leaving behind the Ravens. Stover signed a $3.763 M/3-year deal, and the Bills were the only team that offered him.

K John Kasay signs with the Cowboys Kasay is the top kicker in this free agent class, so the combination of his and Stover's signings makes this position quite a bit less top-heavy. Unlike Stover and Akers, Kasay had some competition for his services, though. He accepted the Boys' offer over lesser offers from the Lions and Texans. He signed for $6.32 M/4 years. Last year, Kasay kicked for the Panthers.

DT Chester McGlockton signs with the Falcons First the Falcons got a big time corner in Champ Bailey. Now they add some size up front. McGlockton, the #5 DT and the highest rated free agent DT left remaining not named Sapp, could be a key addition for Atlanta, which was really bad on defense last year. McGlockton, who played with the lowly Jets last year, signed for $4.94 M/2 years, and had no offers outside of Atlanta's.

TE Fred Baxter signs with the Skins The Skins failed to land Dunn before he went to the Bills, so they reset their sights for #2 TE Baxter. This time, they made it work. And the Pats lose yet another key free agent, this time on offense. Baxcter signed a lucrative $8.13 M/3 year deal, despite having no other offers when he signed with Washington. Jimmy Conway was the agent on this one. Conway is the second highest ranked agent in the game, bvehind only Wayne. The top two TE are now off the market.

T Vaughn Parker signs with the Steelers The world champs added a solid lineman to an already powerful offense. After the top super-duo of Pace and Jones, Parker was rated as the best of the rest, although he didn't have a great year witht he Chargers last year. That didn't stop the Steelers from offering him a $9.21 M/3-year deal. Pittsburgh was the only team that had an offer on Parker.

DT Warren Sapp signs with the Jets WTF? Okay, so the top inside linebacker goes to the Browns, and now the Jets get Sapp? Sapp was clearly the top DT available in free agency, and one of the very few remaining real difference makers in this class. I don't think the Jets will be missing the departed McGlockton too much. This is a definite upgrade. Of course, does Sapps' arrival make up for the loss of both McGlockton and Mo Lewis at LB? That might be another story altogether. In any case, the Jets signed Sapp to a $19.26 M/4-year contract, and did it over the offers of several other teams. The Ravens were the only team to make a similar offer, as the only team with four years on the table. The Bengals, Broncos, Steelers and Texans all had variations of three-year contracts on the table for the locquacious Sapp. The Buccs didn't make a single effort to keep a guy whom had been practically the team identity for a decade and a Super Bowl champ.

NOTES FROM DAY FOUR

This was the first day I didn't sign anyone, although I still have plenty of offers out there, mostly with leads.

The pickings are getting slim at many positions, especially for the elite players. There are still a lot of players in the middle ground, though, where they are solid, above-average players. There's still a long way to go here.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Five

Big Signings

P Brad Maynard signs with the Bills One day after signing the #2 kicker, the Bills took care of the other half of their kicking team by signing the #2 punter. Maynard punted for the Bears last year. He signed a $3.61 M/4-year deasl to leave Chicago. The Bilsl were alone in their pursuit of him.

S Izell Reese signs with the Packers While the Bills were signing their punter, they were losing a safety. Reese, the #9 free agent S, agreed to terms with the Packers, where he should team in the defensive backfield with Darren Sharper for a solid safety tandem. Reese signed for $1.47 M/2 years. The Packers were the only team with an offer to him.

CB Charles Woodson signs with the Saints Vincent, Bailey and McAllister have been wrapped up for a couple days. There was only one legit shut down corner left, so you knew it was only a matter of time before someone picked him up. Today, the Saints did that, taking away Woodson from Oakland. Woodson signed a huge contract at $56.45 M/7 years, which was bigger than any other CB has received yet this offseason. The Saints had something the Panthers apparently didn't, as Woodson turned down a significantly stronger offer ($63.72 M/7 years) from Carolina to sign with New Orleans. The Raiders didn't pursue Woodson.

CB Fernando Bryant signs with the Jets Apparently the Jets are serious about changing their team this year. And the Jags aren't interested in changing their team at all. The Jets add another marquee defensive player with Fernando Bryant, the #6 free agent CB and the 2nd best remaining corner after Bobby Taylor. They signed Bryant to an $8.76 M/3-year contract to lure him away from Jacksonville. The Jags, meanwhile, have added to their already strong offense but don't seem interested in protectign what few assets they had on a poor defense. They didn't even give Bryant an offer. Neither did anyone else, outside of the Jets.

WR Donald Driver signs with the Raiders The Raiders scored their replacement for Tim Brown, who retired after starting across from Jerry Porter, one of the few remaining stars the Raiders have left after a brutal retirement and free agent purge. Driver, who played with Green Bay last year, signed a $1.33 M/2-year contract. The Raiders were the lone team on him.

TE Jim Kleinsasser signs with the Rams Like top free agent TE Dunn, Kleinsasser didn't start last year for his team, the Vikings. Nevertheless, he came into this class as the #4 TE available, and is the second best remaining at his position. The Rams signed him to a $3.04 M/3-year contract to replace the free agent departed (and less highly-regarded) Cameron Cleeland. The Vikings did not pursue Kleinsasser, which makes sense since he was a backup for them.

T John Tait signs with the Cowboys The Cowboys are building one heck of a line with two big free agent tackle signees in Jones and Tait. And I lost out on my first free agent. Tait, a former Chief, signed a $15.09 M/4-year deal to move over to Dallas. The Cardinals' offer of $14.71/4-years was a close second. Tait, the #6 free agent T, also turned down significantly smaller 4-year offers from the Bears, Browns and Texans.

T Damion McIntosh signs with the Cards It seems fitting that on the same day I lose Tait, I secure the signature of my backup choice McIntosh. The #9 T, McIntosh is a much better tackle right now than Hill and immediately moves into one starting spot. He also has a great upside and could end up better than every tackle in this free agent class except for the uber-studs Pace and Jones. There will be growing pains, of course. McIntosh signed for $5.15 M/3-years, and the Cards were the only ones pursuing him. Last year, McIntosh played for the Chargers.

WR Travis Taylor signs with the Lions Slowly but surely, the wide receiver class is being signed away. For the Lions, this is a key signing. Except for #1 WR in the making Charles Rogers, pretty much the entire receiver corp for the Lions was allowed to walkvia free agency. Taylor, who was the Ravens' top receiver last year, signed for $13.67 M/4-years, taking the Lions' offer over a slightly less lucrative offer from the Jets. Taylor, the #7 WR, will likely hold down the Lions' top WR spot until Rogers is ready.

C Jerry Fontenot re-signs with the Saints Fontenot is easily the best center and the second best line prospect still available in this class. Luring him back to New Orleans is likely a key to the Saints' offseason. Fontenot signed a surprisingly small $6.80 M/2-year deal. Fortunately for the lowballing Saints, for some reason Fontenot received no other offers.

P Tom Tupa signs with the Cowboys Obviously, if you're the best kicker or punter on the market, you get soem attention. Just like #1 kicker John Kasay was the only kicker (so far) who has received offers from multiple teams, #1 punter Tupa is also the only punter with more than one offer. Tupa, who signed a $2.42 M/2-year contract, turned down seven other offers, including a couple three-year offers and more lucrative contracts. Tupa played with the Buccs last year, but they weren't among the teams bidding for his services.

NOTES FOR DAY FIVE

Well, we aren't signing stars, but free agency is rounding into shape for us. We have two good, developing tackles under contract, got a top notch kicker, and got our key defensive need in a good corner to play opposite of Starks. There is still a ways to go, though, as we seek help in other areas, such as at punter, backup safety and cornerback and the guard position.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Six

Big Signings

P Dan Stryzinski signs with the Broncos After losing two of the top linebackers int he league, you have to consider signing a punter to be a bit of a whimper for Denver. Still, if you need a punter... Stryzinski was the #4 free agent P and the second-best remaining at the position. He signed a $1.71 M/2-year contract. Stryzinski was not being sought after by any other teams, inclduing his former Jets.

S Victor Green signs with the Raiders Little by little, the Raiders are taking care of business and trying to get back some of the star power they have lost. QB and CB remain question marks, but the Green signing will at least give them a competent replacement for the retired Rod Woodson. Green, the #7 free agent S, signed for $3.11 M/3 years. Last year, he played with the Saints, who did not make him an offer. Green chose the Oakland offer over a lesser offer from the Chiefs.

K Doug Brien signs with the Texans Brien was the last of the top four kickers who were above and beyond the rest of this free agent class's specialists. Brien was the #3 kicker, and played for the Jets last year. Brien signed a $5.46 M/3-year deal with Houston, rejecting a cheaper offer from the Skins.

QB Mark Brunell signs with the Steelers In some ways, this move is a big risk, and in other ways, the Steelers are improving the position. This is what happens when a player tremendously overachieveslike Maddox did last year. He is still out there, waiting for a contract to sign, while the Steelers instead offered their contract to the best remaining QB out there--Brunell, who didn't even start for the Jags last year. Brunell, a distant #2 at QB behind Manning, agreed to a $3.90 M/2-year deal to take over the job under center for the world champs. In real life, this would be huge news, of course. Furthermore, Brunell did not have an offer from anyone else when he signed with Pittsburgh.

DT Brentson Buckner signs with the Texans What is more surprising? That Buckner, the #9 free agent DT, didn't start for the defensively-strapped Panthers, or that the Panthers had the tackles to put Buckner on the bench, and still performed very poorly on defense? Regardless, Buckner will get the opportunity to show his stuff as a starter for the Texans, after he signed a $2.29 M/2-year contract. He was only pursued bu Houston.

ILB Bernardo Harris signs with the Seahawks While Seahawks fans breathe a sigh of relief as the team ends a bad run of free agent losses that saw six starters, including five on defense, leave, I am stunned to wonder at the incredible amount of influence in Harris, a decent linebacker to be sure, but certainly not expected to be the top free agent in terms of interest. Nonetheless, Harris received no less than 12 total offers as the top remaining ILB in this class, #3 overall to begin with. He was ranked much lower than the top guys in Wilson and Godfrey (whom he will be replacing in Seattle), but he was the best of the mediocre bunch that followed them. The former Raven took the money, as the Seahawks offered him the best deal at $2.21 M/2 years. Every single one of the other offers was for two years and varied from $1.64 M to $2.17 M. The next best offers came from Jacksonville, Philadelphia and San Francisco. The Ravens did not make an offer to retain Harris. Harris, who split time with the Ravens, should be an important cog for the Seahawks, whose defense is looking much more suspect now with all their losses.

Other Signings

The Falcons signed S Doug Evans away from Seattle for $2.96 M/3 years.

NOTES FROM DAY SIX

I really have nothing to add at this point. The Harris and Brunell deals were eye openers, but I have already talked about those at length.

The day was unexciting for the Cards, which didn't receive any signatures. It was sometime around here that I started getting topped for G Matt Stinchcomb, on whom I had been leading for most of the way. As there were precious few good guards available, I was trying to land Stinchcomb, so I did increase my offers to try and stay on top, unlike how I handled Tait.

CR

[SnDvls]

BLADE- I'm a Dec 2003 grad but I interned in the media relations office last fall and got to write up the football game recaps which was a blast.

CR- Nothing against vowels that was my AOL screen name a long time ago and what I tried to get as a plate for my truck. Just never put them back in I guess LOL. Anyhow keep up the good work and ward off the evil east coast bias.

[DolphinFan1]

Boo, the Dolphins didn't sign any free agents so far. Who is the GM of this team?

[Chief Rum]

SnDvls: Will do. Not surprised you couldn't egt that ona license plate. I would imagine that was taken a long time ago.

DOlphinFan1: Actually, considering I am listed as a GM, I wish that the other teams would have GMs listed, too. It would be even better if the GMs had their own personality and style for doing their job. Don't expect much out of the Fins. Only the Titans had less cap room than Miami.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Seven

Big Signings

CB Bobby Taylor signs with the Ravens The Ravens replaced McAllister with a corner who is almost as good, while the Eagles supplied their second top notch corner to another team, leaving their own secondary in somewhat of a shambles. Taylor was one of the last top players left in this class. Taylor was the #5 CB coming into this free agency. He signed for $13.22 M/3-years. But I haven't gotten to the best part. Taylor received a lot of attention. He chose his offer over not one better deal, not two better deals, but ALL better deals! That's right, Taylor turned down more money (and in on case more years as well) from every single other offering team (there were six others) to go to the Ravens. Wow, what's going on there? All six teams must be disappointed, of course, but Atlanta in particular must be annoyed, since not only were they the only team to offer four years, they also offered by far the highest salary per year, at over $5 M. The Eagles did not make an effort to retain Taylor, their third major free agent loss on defense this season.

RB Eddie George signs with the Patriots After losing so much, we're down to small steps for the Pats as they try and recover from a horrible free agent season. George is the #2 RB available, and first back overall, to come to terms with a team, although this is not a surprise given that the running back class is not very strong, but provides a lot of options that are no doubt keeping offers down. George signed for $1,56 M/2 years, and will replace the tandem of Antowain Smith and Kevin Faulk, both of whom were let go to free agency. No one else, including George's only previous NFL employer the Titans, made the former star an offer.

T Orlando Pace signs with the Jets The Jets may be losers on the field, but they certainly know how to play the free agency game. Pace becomes the Jets' third big signeee, after DT Sapp and CB Bryant signed earlier in free agency. Pace, of course, is by far the biggest free agent they signed--both literally and figuratively. He was easily the best of the remaining free agents, and he may have been the top ticket to be punched from the very beginning. The #1 tackle, Pace, like Jones before him, can drive an entire line with his massive skills. All in all, Pace didn't really sign for that much ($42.16 M/5 years), and as it turns out, he pulled a "Taylor" and also signed his name to the least contract being offered to him! And he had some doozies, too. The big one he turned down was from the Texans. They offered him no less than $71.11 M/6 years, for almost $12 M a year. He signed for a little over 8. That's just disgusting, at least if you're a free-wheeling capitalist. I have no idea what drove the man to sign a cheap deal with the 1-15 Jets, when he could have had more money and played with Buffalo, for instance, a playoff team. With the signing of Pace, the true big names of this class are now pretty much signed.

S Donovan Darius signs with the Falcons The Falcons made up for failing to sign Taylor by landing Darius, the #3 S in this class. And Jacksonville continues to run its free agency like the defense will fix itself, despite the loss of two major secondary performers in Darius and Bryant. Darius and previous signee Bailey now give the Falcons two very nice big guns in the defensive backfield. Unlike the Jags, the Dirty Birds seem to realize it was their defense which kept them out of the playoffs, and which needs to be improved. Darius signed for $11.07 M/4 years, and did not receive an offer from any other team.

DT Cornelius Griffin signs with the Cowboys Dallas is really making noise now, with its third major signing of the offseason. Griffin isn't quite the big signing that Kearse and Jones were, but he was the #6 DT in free agency, and the best remaining DT available. He and Kearse should make for a fine combo in Dallas's defensive front. Griffin, who played with the Giants last year (ouch, double blow, lost 'im to a division rival), signed a $13.60 M/4-year deal. Unlike Pace and Taylor, Griffin definitely chased the money, as the Cowboys offered far more ($3 M more actually) than any of the other teams bidding on Griffin. The Bears, Pats and Skins were on the losing end of this bidding war. The Giants did not make an offer.

Other Signings

The Browns signed CB Kevin Mathis away from the Atlanta for $1.78 M/2 years.
The Skins signed DE Eric Hicks away from Kansas City for $3.14 M/3 years.
The Bears signed T Barry Sims away from the Raiders for $2.93 M/2 years.

NOTES FROM DAY SEVEN

Nothing to add, really. BTW, if you're wondering Pace and Taylor are represented by different agents.

CR

[sachmo71]

Don't burn out, Chief! We're reading!

[Chief Rum]

lol...funny you should be the one to bump it back up. I stopped briefly for two reasons. 1) I had brief Internet problems, but was bored, so I continued into the regular season in the dynasty (but haven't posted everything up yet). 2) I am adding the final touches to the Ducks' roster file to ship over to you.

I haven't forgotten this. Just getting some other stuff out of the way.

CR

[Vikings13]

Nice read so far. Your Dynasty is what convinced me to buy this game, so you should start petitioning Jim for commission...

I'll be lurking. Gee, that sounds creepy, doesn't it?

[mtaystl03]

Geez, what are my Rams gonna do about losing both Pace and Timmerman on the o-line? Good to see they got McCallister though! Great dynasty!

[Kokoshin]

C´mon, Chief, don't give up yet

It's one of the best dynasties I've ever get into.

[Northwood_DK]

Wow. This is definitely the best dynasty I have ever seen. Great layout and incredible depth. I cannot wait for the upcoming draft.

Good luck in the future with the Cardinals.

[Chief Rum]

Heh heh thanks for the support, guys.

Don't worry, I remain very interested in this dynasty. You know how it is with this game, though--you start playign and forget to post!

I said before that I had actually run the dynasty through to training camp weeks ago (not long after I started this). Well, I started up my in-game play and have run through most of the next season (taking copious notes, of course).

I will be returning to my posting later today (Wednesday) to get through free agency and present the draft.

My hope is to get to preseason today, but the way I do things, I will probably find a way to provide too much detail and bog me down some. Fortunately, you guys like detail.

Keep on reading!

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Eight

Big Signings

CB Jason Webster signs with the Ravens McCallister who? After just two days, Baltimore not only replaces McAllister with Taylor, but then get better at the other corner spot with former Niner Webster, the #10 CB available in FA. Webster signed a sizable, $19.62 M.5-year deal, which was quite a bit higher than the offers he got from Jacksonville and Kansas City, the other two teams with offers in on him. The Niners didn't make an offer.

G Kevin Donnalley signs with the Jags Jacksonville made a key addition to their line by signing this vet, the #7 G available in free agency. Donnalley signed for $4.16 M/2-years. He will help replace the three solid line starters the Jags lost to free agency. onnalley did not receive an offer from anyone else, including his 2003 squad, the Panthers.

P Chris Gardocki signs with the Niners San Francisco filled a hoel by signing the #5 P in feee agency, and the best remaining of the punting specialists in the class. Gardocki signed a $1.60 M/2-year contract to leave Cleveland. He received no other offers.

K Jason Hanson signs with the Ravens Baltimore continued a solid recent run in free agency bi inking the top remaining free agent kicker. Hanson, the #5 K in free agency, is leaving his longtime team, the Lions, for $1.83 M/2 years. Unlike most other free agents, the Lions actually made an effort to retain him, but they fell short of the Ravens' offer by more than $200K overall. Hanson also turned down an offer from the Jets.

WR Troy Brown signs with the Vikings The Vikes continue to take players from the poor Pats. Brown is the #3 WR in a mediocre free agent class for the position. He signed a nice $6.96 M/2-year deal, which is far more than receivers not too far behind him have been getting. The Chiefs are bridesmaids again, as the only other team competing for Brown. The Pats didn't make an offer.

C Rich Braham signs with the Ravens Braham becomes the next feather in an impressive cap for the Ravens today. Braham is the #4 overall C in free agency, and twice is nice, he comes to the Ravens from division foe Cincy. Braham signed a $4.29 M/3-year deal. No one else made him an offer.

RB Curtis Martin signs with the Buccaneers It isn't a great running back class, but you can't fault the Buccs for signing the best there was. Martin was the #1 RB entering free agency, and joins Tampa Bay from the poor, pathetic Jets. Martin isn't a truly dominant back, but he's better than Thomas Jones and Michael Pittman, both of whom are also in this free agent class, and who are still out there and available. Martin signed for $1.97 M/2-years, taking Tampa Bay's offer over similar offers from the Cowboys and Eagles.

OLB Cornell Brown signs with the Raiders The Raiders continue to try to come back from perhaps the worst combined free agency/retirement purge in the league. Brown will help replace Barton and Romanowski, who manned the outside linebacker spots for the Silver & Black last year. Brown was signed away from the Ravens, in the one loss they had today. Brown signed a $3.49 M/3-year deal, which was much more lucrative than the other offers he received. Brown also received interest from the Browns (where they already have a guy named Cornall Brown), Chargers, Broncos and Lions. The Ravens did not make an offer.

Other Signings

The Ravens signed DT Shaun Rogers away from Detroit for $1.30 M/2-years.
The Panthers signed CB Terrell Buckley away from Miami for $2.20 M/2-years.
The Chargers signed T Jason Matthews away from Tennessee for $3.11 M/2-years.
The Skins signed DT Jason Fisk away from San Diego for $1.54 M/2-years.

NOTES FROM DAY EIGHT

Well, the Ravens are certainly making an impact.

As for the Cards, we had no one signed again. We are continuing to fight for G Stinchcomb, and SS Anthony Dorsett is also getting strong attention from others that is forcing us to increase our offer.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Nine

Big Signings

DE Duane Clemons re-signs with the Bengals Clemons, the #9 DE in free agency, was a key signing for the Bengals, who are coming off of a season where they can build off of a better than expected performance. Clemons signed for $4.72 M/3-years. No other team made him an offer.

ILB Don Davis signs with the Falcons The Falcons are having a very nice free agency themselves on defense. Davis becomes another key signing for them, as they make the Patriots worse once again. David didn't play at all last year for New England, but he was good enough to be the #6 best free agent ILB in this class. Davis accepted a $2.87 M/3-year deal, and turned down lesser financial offers from the Bengals and Skins. The Patriots didn't make an offer (of course).

S Anthony Dorsett re-signs with the Raiders The Raiders signed another key guy to rebuild their shattered team, and the Cardsa lose out on one of their big ticket free agents. Dorsett was if not the best, one of the best remaining free agents in this class. He came into this as the #2 free agent S, behind only Terrell. Dorsett also signed cheap to return to his 2003 employers, signing for $6.83 M/3-years. Only one team offered less than the Raiders. Dorsett truned down offers from us, the Bengals, the Jags, the Vikings and the Eagles. Jacksonville and Philly in particular should be upset. The Jags offered the most per year and the most years, while the Eagles had the highest 3-year offer.

G Jamie Nails signs with the Falcons The Falcons got a big signing when they got one of the top remaining line free agents to sign. Nails, formerly of the Dolphins, was the #3 G in free agency and the best guard remaining unsigned. Unlike other big ticket free agents, Nails followed the money, signing for $12.38 M/4-years. Nails took the Falcons' offer over ones from the Panthers, Bears, Vikings and Browns. Nails will replace Claridge in the Falcons' offense and fill one of the few offensive holes they had. The Fins didn't make an offer.

DE Brady Smith signs with the Skins The Falcons have their one loss of an otherwise good day. Former Atlanta defensive end Smith, the #10 DE available in free agency, signed a $2.40 M/2-year contract with the Skins, another team that has done well for itself on defense. No other team made an offer for Smith, including the Falcons. Ironically, Smith's signing is somewhat retribution by the Skins for the Falcons' signing of star corner Champ Bailey (although the Falcons won out on that one bya good margin).

T Spencer Folau signs with the Vikings The signing of Nails and now Folau makes the remaining line class razor thin. Folau, the #5 T in free agency, became another big signing for the Vikings, who are beginning to build a quality class themselves. The former Saints T signed for $9.83 M/3-years, which was the best offer he received. He also got offers from the Ravens, Browns and Bears. The Saints did not give Folau an offer.

NOTES FROM DAY NINE

The signing of Dorseet to the Raiders nixed one of my offseason plans, so I made an offer to backup safety Arturo Freeman, a starter-quality player trapped in a talent-laden defensive backfield. Hopefulyl I wil be able to close the deal with him.

It was somewhere around now that I also decided to make an offer to...Marc Bulger. I know at least one of you will like that. Bulger just made sense to at least get an offer. He looked good enough to compete with Blake for the starting job, and he had the best upside of any quarterback in the class besides Manning. I wasn't really interested in a passer, but Bulger wasn't getting any interest and the quarterback draft was weak. I knew I would at least want a better bvackup for Blake than I had last year, so I made Bulger an offer.

CR

[mtaystl03]

If you sign Bulger, he will start for you.

[Chief Rum]

Originally posted by mtaystl03
If you sign Bulger, he will start for you.

In real life, it would be easy. It's not so clear cut here with the X-factor. Bulger is rated below Blake at the moment. He has much better upside, but does that mean he will play better this year? Or will he have to backup for a bit and take over down the road? Who knows?

But that's a discussion for a later time, considering I haven't even signed him yet.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Ten

Big Signings

QB Tommy Maddox signs with the Cowboys Wow, what a big signing at this point. Of course, this is me imagining the reaction if this were to happen in real life. The Super Bowl MVP and top-rated passer in the league moving over to Dallas, a playoff team that could really use a quarterback. Is this a mtch made in Heaven? A fairy tale? Or is this just setting up the grand failure you would expect from a guy with Maddox's actual talent, which is more than mediocre, it is probably subpar. Maddox's departure from the champs was pretty much set when they signed Brunell, of course. Maddox, the #4 free agent QB, signed a $6.77 M.3-year deal to replace Quincy Carter, another free agent of even less talent. The Boys won last year in spite of him, so this should be a step up in that respect at least. What a shocker--no one else was making offers to Maddox. I guess that wouldn't be entirely realistic. Let's face it, you don't throw 34 td's against just 10 INTs, with a 108 QB rating without getting some offers in the offseason.

RB Antowain Smith signed with the Saints Well, with Eddie George signed up as one of the Pats' few actual free agent targets, you figured they wouldn't bring back Smith. The #8 free agent RB, Smith signed with the Saints for $2.56 M/3-years. Of course, incumber Deuce McCallister is still with the Saints and, last I checked, one of the better backs in the league, so this looks like a demotion for Smith. No other teams made offers for Smith.

FB Greg Comella signed with the Vikings The Vikings are doing soem good things in this free agency. Comella might not be a high profile free agent, but he is the #1 FB in this free agent class, and one of the better fullbacks in the league. Comella turned down more money overall from the Saints, and more money per year from the Bengals to sign with Minnesota for $7.81 M/5-years. Comella, a former Texan, also turned down offers from the Giants, Steelers and Browns.

ILB Mike Maslowski signs with the Texans The Chiefs had good momentum early but the losses of guys like Woods, McCleon and Maslowski is beginning to counter the strides they made previously. Maslowski entered free agency as the #8 available ILB. He signed with the Texans for $2.25 M/3-years. Houston was the only team going for him.

OLB Na'il Diggs signs with the Falcons The Dirty Birds came into the offseason with a horrible defense. You can't say they aren't making an effort to change that. They signed Diggs, the #7 OLB in free agency, to a $4.36 M/4-year deal. Diggs comes from the Packers and didn't receive any offers from other teams.

T Mike Gandy signs with the Steelers Not only are the Bears losing out on guys like Naisl and Folau, they are also losing the linemen they had last year. Gandy switched over to Pittsburgh after inking a $2.71 M/2-year deal. Gandy, the #8 T, actually took the smallest offer on the table to play with the champs, turning down more lucrative offers from the Panthers and Patriots (yes, the Patriots).

K Rian Lindell signs with the Giants Lindell crossed the state of New York to find a new job. The #7 K left Buffalo for a lengthy 5-year, $6.41 M contract with the Giants. The Giants were the only team who made an offer to Lindell.

DT John Parrella signs with the Browns The Browns weren't very good last year, but they are getting some key defensive players. After adding the top ILB in Godfrey, the Browns added the #7 DT in Parrella. The former Raider actually took less money from the Brown then he was being offered by his old team. He signed a $5.31 M/2-year deal, turning down offers from the Raiders, of course, and also the Broncos, Saints, Steelers and Chargers.

Other Signings

The Patriots signed DT Grady Jackson away from New Orleans for $1.98 M/2-years.
The Niners signed CB Antoine Wingfield away from Buffalo for $1.33 M/2-years.
The Broncos signed CB Andre Dyson away from Tennessee for $2.46 M/3-years.

NOTES FROM DAY TEN

I don't really have anything to add except to note that even the weak positions now are getting picked apart. Pretty soon, the big signings (the top 7-11 at each psotiion) will be few and far between.

I have the high offers on Freeman and Bulger. I am still struggling to land Stinchcomb, as there other teams that seem to want to have him.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Eleven

Big Signings

T Orlando Brown re-signed with the Ravens Baltimore has been spending most of its time signing other free agents, but this is one they brought back themselves. As the #4 T, Brown is one of the best remaining linemen, and is the best T still unsigned. He re-signed with the Ravens for $9.27 M/3-years. Brown also took the Ravens offer over a far more lucrative one from the Lions ($15.55 M/4-years).

DT Dan Wilkinson signed with the Falcons BAM! Another big defensive signing for the Falcons. It would be shocking if they weren't able to turn this into the playoff spot they just missed out on last season. Big Daddy was one of the primary reasons the Lions surprised and challeneged for the NFC North title, and is the top remaining DT. The #8 DT signed for $8.09 M/3-years. He turned down a lesser offer from Green Bay, and didn't get an offer from the Lions.

RB Corey Dillon signed with the Chargers Hmmm, interesting move. Dillon isn't what he used to be, it seems, as one of the once more dependable and talented backs is just #6 in a weak RB free agent class, but he could certainly start a few places. It appears he is content to back up LaDainian Tomlinson. Mr. Moody signed a $3.55 M/4-year deal to leave Cincy, and no one else made him an offer.

G Kerry Jenkins signed with the Bears The Bears finally got a lineman. Jenkins, the #5 G in free agency, comes to Chicago via Tampa Bay. He signed for $2.66 M/2-years, and no one else made him an offer, including Tampa Bay.

RB Duce Staley signed with the Bills The Bills got screwed by the "disappearance" of Willis McGahee and an apparent lack of concern over the loss of free agent RB Travis Henry, so they have brought in Staley, the #3 RB in free agency, and the best remaining back out there. Staley signed a $2.43 M/3-year deal with Buffalo. No one else was vying for his services.

OLB Eric Barton signed with the Ravens The Raiders take another hit as yet another defensive free agent leaves Oaktown. Barton has joined the Ravens, who are continuing a defensive overhaul of apparently every position except those of star linebackers Ray Lewis and Peter Boulware. Barton was the #8 OLB, and the top remaining OLB on the market. He signed for $2.14 M/3-years, and the Ravens were the only ones to offer him.

C J.P. Machado signed with the Bengals After missing out on several other top free agents, the Bengals finally got back on a winning track, landing probably the best remaining lineman on the market. Machado came into free agency as the #3 C, and his upside is so high that he might end up the top center in the league one day. He signed a $3.86 M/3-year deal to leave the Jets and, surprisingly, had no other teams interested in him.

ILB Orlando Ruff signed with the Falcons Brooking has a partner in the middle now. Ruff, the #7 ILB in free agency, played with the Saints last year. He signed a very small $680K/1-year offer from the Falcons and joina lomng list of defensive free agents whom have found new homes in Atlanta. Obviously from his contract, no other team made an offer for him.

S Rogers Beckett signed with the Lions The Lions have mostly been losing players, especially on defense, but they got a good one in return here. They signed Beckett, the #5 S and one of the best remaining free agents, away from Cincy for $2.81 M/3-years. Beckett will replace Corey Harris in the Lions' defensive backfield. The Lions were the only team with an offer on the table for Beckett.

K Paul Edinger signed with the Skins The last remaining top kicker in Edinger changed addresses from Chicago to D.C. today when he signed a very lucrative $9.29 M/6-year contract. The #6 K, Edinger turned down an offer from the Panthers that wasn't quite as rich.

RB Michael Bennett signed with the Seahawks The Seahawks didn't even lsoe Maurice Morris, much less Shaun Alexander, so I am not sure I understand this move by Bennett, the #10 RB in free agency. Bennett isn't as good as he appears to be in real life, but he could probably be the main guy for a team or two out there. The former Viking signed a $1.18 M/2-year deal with the Hawks, a team which apparently can only sign free agents at positions they don't need. Well, as a division foe, you won't see me complaining. Bennett's new employers didn't have to fight off anyoen for him, including the Vikings.

Other Signings

The Patriots signed DT Gilbert Brown away from Green Bay for $1.67 M/2-years.
The Chiefs signed K Jeff Wilkins away from St. Louis for $3.22 M/3-years.
The Broncos signed TE Kyle Brady away from Jacksonville for $2.30 M/3-years.
The Bengals signed DT Seth Payne away from Houston for $1.66 M/2-years. Payne turned down an offer from the Saints.
The Chiefs signed CB David Macklin away from Indianapolis for $2.01 M/3-years.

NOTES FROM DAY ELEVEN

The Stinchcomb back-and-forth is beginning to really concern me like the Tait negotiations did. Since the good guards seem to be disappearing, I figured it was time for me to make an offer to another guard, just in case. When I did this with the tackles, I ended up getting McIntosh, who looks like a good sort. I hope I can get another solid guy here. I decided to make an offer to Dave Fiore, formerly of the Skins.

CR

[mmarra82]

Chief Rum-

Your coverage of the Cardinals dynasty is incredible. Your job inspired me to redo my New York Jets Dynasty. I have attempted to give preseason previews and will attempt to offer to the readers the analysis that you provide.

Thanks,
Michael Marra
mmarra82
NEW YORK JETS DYNASTY

[Blade6119]

your not getting anybody...man...hopefully the weeks comin up are better...how does the draft look?

[Chief Rum]

mmarra82: Glad to hear it, Mike. I will be checking out your dyansty, and good luck with the Jets. Judging by my dynasty, you have your work cut out for you.

Blade6119: "Ahh...the impetuousness of youth...ah-ha..."

The names may not be big, but I think I am making some nice talented additions to the team. Give thema chance. They may surprise you.

Most of the big names are gone, but I still ahve some players I am targetting. The draft is coming up pretty soon. I don't know how to grade it--it's the only one I have done.

Keep reading, folks!

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Twelve

Big Signings

P Jessie Samuels signed with the Rams Here's a nice story for you. Samuels was an unwanted undrafted free agent last season. For two games, the Jets lost their starter Dan Stryzinski, and need a replacement. They signed Samuels. For two games for the oft-punting Jets, Samuels boomed the ball for 46.0 yards per punt (16 total punts). He was cut again when Stryzinski came back, but that performance alone (and solid ratings) has made Samuels a surprise success story, at least with regards to money. He got $780K/2-years from the Rams. No one else made an offer for the #6 P.

P Jeff Feagles signed with the Chiefs Feagles, the #8 P, moved from the Giants to the Chiefs in this deal. He signed a $870K/1-year offer. No other team was interested in him.

G Mike Compton signed with the Buccs The Patriots are now losing players off of their offense as well. Compton will help replace the departed guards Coleman and Jenkins on Tampa Bay's line. He agreed to a $3.70 M/3-year deal, taking the Buccs offer over a lesser offer from the Browns. The Pats, as is their way, made no offer to him.

P John Jett re-signed with the Lions The Lions made a big special teams move when they brought back their 2003 punter in Jett. Jett, the #3 P in free agency and best remaining punter on the market, signed a $5.13 M/4-year deal to rturn to Detroit. He took the Lions' offer over others from the Eagles, Buccs, and Skins. Washington's offer was better than the Lions' offer.

WR Antonio Freeman signed with the Chiefs The crop of receivers in this calls may not be too impressive, but that didn't stop the #1 WR from singing a very nice deal to go from the Packers to the Chiefs. Freeman becomes a legit receiver for the Chiefs, which have seemingly gotten by with medicority at the position for years now (not that Freeman is much better). Freeman signed a $12.46 M.3-year deal. The Chiefs need not have offered so much--no other team made an offer for Freeman.

OLB Steve Foley signed with the Raiders The Raiders have now replaced both of their departed OLB. The #6 OLB in free agency, Foley comes to the Raiders from Houston. He will pair with #5 free agent OLB Cornell Brown to replace the retired Romanowski and new Raven Barton. Foley signed a $1.65 M/2-year deal. No other teams were pursuing Foley.

RB Michael Pittman signed with the Ravens Former starter Pittman apparently isn't looking to return to starter status anymore. If he was, he certainly wouldn't sign with Baltimore, which features one of the league's best backs in Jamal Lewis. Pittman backed up Thomas Jones last year for Tampa Bay, and was the #9 RB going into free agency (Jones was #5). Pittman signed a $560K/1-year deal, and wasn't offered any contracts by any other team.

P Scott Player signed with the Steelers We lost somebody! I knew if I went long enough, I would eventually see the league get to the miserable level my free agents-to-be were on. Player was the only one in a position's top ten, as the #9 punter. Of course, I need a punter and almost all of the guys who are rated better than Player are gone, so I guess you could say I'm not doing too good a job here with punting. Player signed a $560K/1-year contract to play for the champs. No one else offered hima deal.

WR Bobby Shaw signed with the Giants Shaw followed int he path of former teammate K Lindell, when he, too, left the Bills for the Giants. Shaw, the #10 WR, signed for $1.49 M/2-years. The Giants were the only team on him.

QB Marc Bulger signed with the Cards I will generally take losing a punter while getting a quarterback. Bulger is a potentially big signing for the Cards, even if he may not unseat Blake at the position this year. Bulger has tremendous upside and I am looking forward to seeing what he can do. He signed for $5.55 M/3-years, and was not pursued by any otherteams, inclduing his former team, the Rams.

P Brian Moorman signed with the Giants Apparently the highway between Buffalo and New York City is a one-way road. Moorman becomes the third former Bill to cross the state to join the Giants. He joins Lindell again as the specialist twosome for the Giants after both served int hat acapacity for the Bills. Moorman, the #7 free agent P and the last top specialist ont he market at either kicking position, signed with the Giants for $4.30 M/5-years. He did not receive any other offers.

S Corey Harris signed with the Saints The Lions have their guy in Beckett, so it was no surprise they let Harris walk. Harris, the #5 S in free agency, signed a $2.59 M/3-year deal with New Orleans. He only had one offer on the table.

Other Signings

The Chargers signed OLB Jeff Gooch away from the Lions for $700K/1-year.
The Seahawks signed DE Regan Upshaw away from the Skins for $2.45 M/2-years.
The Packers signed G Damien Woody away from the Patriots for $2.52 M/2-years.
The Giants signed OLB Adalius Thomas away from the Ravens for $1.26 M/2-years.
The Jags signed T Todd Wade away from the Fins for $3.63 M/3-years.
The Pats signed T Maurice Williams away from the Jags for $4.20 M/3-years.

NOTES FROM DAY TWELVE

Well, signing Bulger was a big deal for us, even if on a league-wide scale he isn't that good. I still have the top offers on G Fiore and CB Buchanan and S Freeman, but I still have hope I can sign Stinchcomb, one of the best of the remaining free agents.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Thirteen

Big Signings

CB Ray Buchanan signed with the Cards There we go! I was practically leading for him all free agency. Buchanan is the #11 CB available in this free agency, but the position was the deepest in this class, so that ranking isn't nearly as bad as it seems. Also, Buchanan isn't expected to start--pretty nice luxury for a backup. Buchanan signed a $5.26 M/2-year deal, taking our offer over lesser offers from the Chiefs and Browns. Buchanan comes to us from Atlanta.

DE Ray Lee Johnson signed with the Bills Johnson was one of the best free agent defenders left in this class. He came into free agency as the #7 DE available. The former Charger inked a $2.51 M/2-year deal. He did not receive any interest from any team besides the Bills.

S Bracy Walker signed with the Bengals This is like a trade. Earlier in the offseason, the Lions signed former Bengal Beckett. Now the Bengals get former Lion Walker. Of course, the Lions also lost Harris, so they aren't even at the position just yet. As for the Bengals, they get the #8 S in Walker, who signed a $3.26 M/3-year contract. The Bengals were the only team to make him an offer.

G Tom Ackerman signed with the Seahawks Been a while since the Hawks signed anything approaching a significant free agent. Ackerman isn't a guard, so he can't replace the Hawks' two missing tackles, but it can't hurt to have another key lineman around. Ackerman, a former Titan, was the #10 G available in free agency, and signed for $6.52 M/3-years (nice deal, actually). Ackerman's only offer was from Seattle.

DE Lance Johnstone signed with the Texans Johnstone is one of the last of the top DEs available. The former Viking came into free agency ranked #11 among those available. He signed a deal for $2.27 M/2-years. No one else pursued Johnstone.

TE Stephen Alexander re-signed with the Chargers Getting a quality receiver at this point is always a nice get, even if it's a tight end. Alexander was the #3 free agent TE and was one of the top-rated remaining free agents in this class. Alexander signed a $1.43 M/2-year deal. The Chargers were the only team that made an offer.

Other Signings

The Seahawks signed P Mitch Berger away from New Orleans for $3.09 M/3-years.
The Bengals signed S Jason Sehorn away from Miami for $1.58 M/2-years.
The Niners signed G Chris Villarrial away from Chicago for $4.22 M/3-years.
The Vikings signed DT John Browning away from Kansas City for $3.05 M/3-years.
The Bears signed DT Michael Myers away from Dallas for $1.74 M/2-years. Myers turned down offers from the Steelers and Giants.
The Lions signed CB Fred Weary away from the Rams for $2.19 M/3-years.
The Vikings signed ILB Chris Draft away from the Falcons for $1.48 M/2-years. Draft turned down offers from the Bengals, Chargers, Bears, Packers, Eagles, Broncos and Lions (and he wasn't even one of the top nine ILB in free agency).

NOTES FROM DAY THIRTEEN

After our second major signing in a couple days, we're looking pretty good right now, at least with respect to what we wanted to do. We have out tackels lined up and our corners. Those were probably our biggest need areas. We also have a quarterback and kicker signed up. But we still need help at guard and at safety. We're still on top for Freeman at S, and we're still contedning for STinchcomb. Is that guy going to sign sometime soon or what?

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Fourteen

Big Signings

ILB Wali Rainer signed with the Steelers The Steelers made a nice late free agency addition in getting Rainer, the #5 ILB on the market and the best remaining ILB overall. Rainer, who played with the Lions last season, signed for $2.62 M/3-years. Adding fuel to the intradivisional rivalry developing between the top two teams in the AFC North, Rainer actually took less money from the Steelers than he was offered by the Ravens. The Buccs were also turned down.

OLB Barrett Green signed with the Packers The Packers did double duty on this one, grabbing a solid OLB with better upside than all but the top OLBs in this free agent class, and also grabbing a good defender from a division rival. The Lions lost their second straight LB when Green, the #9 OLB in free agency, signed an unexpectedly rich $13.14 M/4-year contract to go to Green Bay. No other team made an offer for the OLB.

ILB T.J. Slughter signed with the Patriots Finally, the Pats sign an impact defensive player on defense. Sure, it pales in comparison to what they have lost, but it's a step in the right direction at least. Slaughter entered free agency is the #9 ILB available. The former Jaguar signed a $1.32 M/2-year deal to move up north. The Pats were the only team on him.

G Matt Stinchcomb re-signed with the Raiders Well, I did what I could. I kept topping offers and staying on this guy, and when it all came down to it, I had the best offer on the table for one of the best linemen left in free agency. The home cooking was too strong, though, as Stinchcomb turned down my money, and that of many other teams, to return to Oakland. Stinchcomb, the #4 G in free agency, went back to the Raiders for $18.70 M/4-years. Our offer was $19.47/4-years. The Vikings also topped the Raiders' offer. Inall, Stinchcomb turned down offers from us, the Vikings, Seahawks, Falcons, Texans, Chargers, Browns and Panthers.

TE Byron Chamberlain signed with the Saints The Saints added another set of arms in the #9 TE going into free agency. Chamberlain played with the Skins last year. He signed with the Saints for $2.42 M/3-years. No other teams made him an offer.

Other Signings

The Browns signed G Travis Claridge away from Atlanta for $2.63 M/3-years.
The Eagles signed WR Darrell Jackson away from Seattle for $1.52 M/2-years.
The Packers signed P Earl Rhodes, who did not play last year, for $310K/1-year.
The Falcons signed G Todd Perry away from the Fins for $3.50 M/3-years.
The Jags signed CB Corey Fuller away from the Ravens for $1.82 N.2-years.

NOTES FROM DAY FOURTEEN

The dream is over. Stinchcomb is gone. Fortunately, I put in my offer for an insurance policy in the Skins' Dave Fiore, and I am still leading for his services. I am also still leading the way for Freeman at S.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Fifteen

Big Signings

FB Fred McCrary signed with the Bears The Bears landed the #6 free agent FB when they inked McCrary. The former Patriots back becomes just the latest in a long string of defections from the New England area. McCrary agreed to a $1.81 M/2-year deal. No other teams made him an offer.

S Arturo Freeman signed with the Cards It took a while and one swing and a miss on Dorsett, but we finally got that third key safety we were looking for. Freeman, who was a backup for Miami last year, was just a shade lower rated than the top available free agent safeties. He signed a $670K/1-year deal. Freeman turned down a slightly less lucrative deal from the Eagles in taking our offer.

FB Dan Krieder signed with the Giants Krieder becomes the second fullback to change addresses today. The former Steeler was rated as the #5 FB entering free agency. He signed a $2.04 M/3-year deal to move to the Big Apple. The Giants were Krieder's lone suitor.

FB Terrelle Smith signed with the Bills Smith must have really liked Buffalo. The #2 FB--with the upside to be as good as the #1 free agent FB Comella someday--took less from the Bills than he was offered by the Broncos and Panthers. Smith, who played with the Saints last year, signed for $4.22 M/4-years. The Broncos and Panthers were the only other teams on Smith.

Other Signings

The Bears signed G Zach Wiegert away from Houston for $2.52 M/2-years.
The Bills signed CB Donnie Abraham away from the Jets for $3.24 M/3-years.
The Jags signed CB Ray Mickens away from the Jets for $1.64 M/2-years.
The Jags signed OLB Henri Crockett away from Minnesota for $2.74 M/3-years.
The Browns signed OLB Derrick Rodgers away from New Orleans for $2.68 M/3-years.
The Niners signed CB Fred Thomas away from New Orleans for $3.19 M/3-years.
The Rams signed OLB Mike Vrabel away from New England for $7660K/1-year.
The Ravens signed DE Kenny Mixon away from Minnesota for $770K/1-year.
The Vikings signed S Damien Robinsons away from Seattle for $1.30 M/2-years.
The Ravens re-signed WR Marcus Robinson for $1.64 M/2-years.
The Browns signed P Micah Knorr away from Denver for $1.29 M/2-years.
The Panthers signed T Jonas Jennings away from Buffalo for $2.60 M/2-years.
The Patriots signed G Chris Gray away from Seattle for $3.50 M/3-years.
The Packers signed CB James Trapp away from Jacksonville for $800K/1-year.
The Browns signed T Everett Lindsay away from Minnesota for $2.61 M/2-years.

NOTES FROM DAY FIFTEEN

Not really much to report today. We don't have too many offers out there, and the only one I would call a need area is the one aimed at G Dave Fiore.

CR

[sachmo71]

What on earth did the Pats spend their money on? Someone (or ones) must be costing them a fortune!

[RawIsDan]

Excellent report Chief. You helped me kill some slack time at work !

[Chief Rum]

Originally posted by sachmo71
What on earth did the Pats spend their money on? Someone (or ones) must be costing them a fortune!

It's hard to say, Chris. I looked at their end of free agency roster (end of the first free agency, that is), and they are about $24 M under the cap. Maybe they aren't making good money and need to keep costs down?

I will say this: $20 M of that $55 M is tied up in three players; Ty Law, Tom Brady and Willie McGinest. And they needed to renegotiate Brady and LB Roman Phifer's contract to get what they could.

As far as I can tell the Patriots are just really bad with either contracts or talent evaluation. They are getting beat for free agents, and they let a ton of guys go. And I don't feel they're even making enough offers.

Originally posted by RawIsDan
Excellent report Chief. You helped me kill some slack time at work !

Chief Rum's dynasties--contributing to the laziness of the American worker. Glad I could do my part as a citizen of this fine country.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Sixteen

Big Signings

G Jermane Mayberry re-signed with the Eagles Philly hasn't done much to bring back their departed free agents, but at least they got one. Mayberry was the #11 G in free agency, and one of the last remaining line free agents that could be said to be among the best free agents at his position. Mayberry re-signed for $7.80 M/3-years. No one else made him an offer.

P Toby Gowin signed with the Cards This was a signing of little real consequence, but nonetheless, still quite necessary. I still don't know why I decided to go for Gowin instead of just bringing back Player. Player is actually saupposed to be better. Anway, Gowin finally signed after having us his lone suitor for sixteen weeks. The former Cowboy signed for $700K/1-year.

T Victor Riley signed with the Texans Getting a solid free agent tackle at this point of free agency is quite an achievement. Houston won the small war for the services of #7 T Riley, who played with the Saints last year. Riley took the money, as Houston's offer was the best at $4.87 M/3-years. He picked the Texans' offer over ones from the Bears, Hawks, and his 2003 employer, the Saints.

FB Brad Hoover signed with the Bengals The Bengals signed the #4 FB in free agency in Hoover. The former Panther FB signed for $1.28 M/2-years. No one else made Hoover an offer.

FB Patrick Hape signed with the Steelers Pittsburgh signed the best remaining FB in Hape. The former Bronco came into free agency as the #3 FB on the market. He signed a $700K/1-year deal to leave the rarified air of Colorado for the world champs. Hape was only being courted by the Steelers.

G Dave Fiore signed with the Cards Just like that, our free agency is beginning to wrap up. Fiore isn't really what we were looking for, but he still represents a nice upgrade for our second guard position. Fiore, a former SKin, signed for $2.45 M/2-years. We were the only team on the guard.

C Mike Flynn signed with the Jags This has been a largely successful offseason for the Ravens, and the Jags have yet to really replace the huge offensive line starters they lost, but this one goes against both. Flynn, the #2 C going into FA, was probably the best remaining lineman in this free agent class, and ranked high before a single signing was made. For all the good the Ravens have done, they will likely feel his loss on the line. The Jags signed Flynn for $13.24 M/5-years. Showing that NFL GMs are indeed dumb, no one else (including the Ravens) made Flynn an offer.

CB Artrell Hawkins signed with the Seahawks The Seahawks, like teams like the Patriots and Eagles, have largely been kicked around this offseason. So they must enjoy that they managed to land one last big free agent to help replace all that they have lost. Hawkins, the #9 CB in a deep class, is a nice signing at this point, and he didn't come easy. The Hawks signed him over eight other teams, including an offer from the Cowboys that was just as strong per annum, and offered another year more than the Hawks' did. Hawkins, a former Bengal, signed for $3.47 M/3-years. In addition to the Cowboys, Hawkins turned down offers from his former employers the Bengals, Lions, Vikings, Broncos, Rams, Bears and Pats.

Other Signings

The Lions re-signed TE Mikhael Ricks for $1.66 M/2-years.
The Saints signed OLB Danny Clark away from Jacksonville for $1.82 M/3-years.
The Eagles signed CB Terry Cousin away from the Panthers for $2.56 M/3-years.
The Lions signed OLB Charlie Clemons away from the Texans for $1.67 M/2-years.

NOTES FROM DAY SIXTEEN

The signings of Gowin and Fiore just about rbing to close my free agency. I would spend more if there was something worth it to spend it on, but the top free agents are all pretty much gone.

Still, either because I struck out on a couple of the bigger free agents, or I just had too much cap room for what I needed, I found myself with a good amount of remaining cap space at this point.

I decided I could still use another cornerback, given how week the position was last year. All in all, David Barrett didn't do too bad for me. No, he's not an option as a satrter, but he had good talent for a dime corner, and he was a very good run defender besdies. So I decided to toss on an offer to bring back the unrestricted free agent.

I think you will only be seeing at best little moves from me at this point.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Seventeen

Big Signings

None

Other Signings

The Bengals signed TE Itulu Mili away from Seattle for $580K/1-year.
The Broncos signed S Keion Carpenter away from Atlanta for $640K/1-year.
The Panthers signed K Phil Dawson away from Cleveland for $1.42 M/2-years. Dawson turned down offers from the Lions, Falcons and Browns.

NOTES FROM DAY SEVENTEEN

Nothing to add.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Eighteen

Big Signings

DE Aaron Smith signed with the Seahawks The Seahawks are at least making small gains in the late going, which is more than I can see for other free agency losers like Philly and the Pats. Smith is probably the best remaining free agent defender in the class. He was the #5 DE going into free agency after winning a ring with the Steelers last year. He signed with the Hawks for $2.25 M/2-years, taking their offer over a slightly lesser one from the Cowboys.

Other Signings

The Texans signed G Bob Hallen away from the Chargers for $3.61 M/3-years.

NOTES FROM DAY EIGHTEEN

Nothing to add today either. We have the lead offer on Barrett.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Nineteen

Big Signings

CB David Barrett re-signed with the Cards We are now officially deep at cornerback. The return of Barrett give us four starter, or near-starter quality corners to man all of our main defenses. Barrett signed for $1.55 M/2-years. He took our offer over a worse one from the Falcons.

TE Kris Mangum signed with the Eagles The Eagles finally stuck their hands out long enough to grab a ranked free agent. Mangum, the #8 TE available in free agency, took a $2.21 M/3-year deal to leave the Panthers, his 2003 employers. No one else was bidding on him.

Other Signings

The Jags signed S Tyrone Carter away from the Ravens for $2.37 M/3-years.
The Giants signed CB Jeff Burris away from the Bengals for $1.84 M/2-years.
The Ravens signed DT Henry Ford away from the Saints for $1.64 M/2-years.
The Browns re-signed CB Daylon McCutcheon for $2.21 M/3-years.
The Lions signed G Corbin Lacina away from the Bears for $7.11 M/3-years.

NOTES FROM DAY NINETEEN

With the Barrett signing, our free agency is pretty much done for this phase.

CR

[Chief Rum]

Day Twenty

Big Signings

WR Jerry Rice signed with the Jets Technically, Rice is no longer good enough to have been ranked among the top 10-11 WRs in this free agent class. But I felt he was just too big a name to hide in the Other Signings. Rice leaves the Raiders for the worst team in the NFL, signing a $1.03 M/1-year deal. No one else expressed any interest in him.

RB James Jackson signed with the Cowboys It just goes to show how weak this free agent class was at RB when you consider that A) the #4 RB in the class was a backup, and B) He didn't sign until the last day of free agency. The Boys signed Jackson to replace free agent-departed starter Troy Hambrick, who is actually rated worse than Jackson. He served as a backup running back for the Browns last year. He signed a $1.20 M/2-year deal, and was pursued by no one but Dallas.

Other Signings

The Panthers signed G Andy McCollum away from St. Louis for $2.61 M/2-years.
The Rams signed G Fred Weary away from Houston for $2.63 M/3-years.
The Buccs signed WR Johnnie Morton away from Kansas City for $2.20 M/2-years.
The Saints signed P Chad Stanley away from Houston for $2.65 M/3-years.
The Falcons signed WR Robert Ferguson away from Green Bay for $2.24 M/3-years.
The Falcons signed CB Tyrone Poole away from New England for $2.40 M/3-years.
The Packers signed OLB Adrian Ross away from Cincinnati for $1.30 M/2-years.
The Jets signed RB Trung Canidate away from Washington for $2.26 M/3-years.
The Cowboys signed DE Marco Coleman away from Washington for $2.23 M/2-years.

NOTES FROM DAY TWENTY

All right, everyone let out a deep breath. It's done. The first phase of free agency is over.

CR

[Blade6119]

congratz