7/28/07
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 We're
back for another season at FF today and let's get started with
the Tank
Johnson situation in Chicago. The Bears saw fit to release
the troubled defensive tackle after his latest skirmish with
the law, an arrest for DUI and speeding, despite being told
by the team that he was on a short leash and with the league
having dangled the carrot of reducing his suspension from eight
to six games with good behavior. His release comes as no surprise
given that Johnson has shown an inability to learn from his
many mistakes and the repercussions of them. Clearly, the team
felt Johnson could not be relied upon and therefore it was time
to cut the cord. The impact of his release on the Bears defense
shouldn't be considered a major issue, however the team's depth
at defensive tackle is nowhere near what it was last season.
With Johnson out of the picture and top reserves Ian
Scott and Alfonso
Boone having signed with the Eagles and Chiefs, the Bears
will turn to one of free agent Anthony
Adams, Israel
Idonije or Dusty
Dvoracek to start opposite Tommie
Harris. A former 2nd round pick, Adams registered just six
sacks in four seasons with the 49ers while Idonije rotates between
tackle and end but lacks the size to start at tackle. The wild
card is Dvoracek, a 3rd round selection in 2006, who missed
all of his rookie year with a foot injury. Don't be surprised
if the Bears look to pick up a veteran tackle prior to training
camp. The Bears defense still figures to be one of the top units
in the league but isn't likely to be as stout against the run
without Johnson .
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 With
commissioner Roger Goodell's decision to bar Michael
Vick from the Falcons training camp, the team is now forced
into the unenviable position of having to assume Joey
Harrington will move into the starting role for at least
part, if not all, of the season. Regardless of whether Vick
can avoid being convicted of two felony charges related to dog
fighting, it appears there is enough evidence for Goodell to
suspend Vick under the league's personal conduct policy and
for the Falcons to suspend him for conduct detrimental to the
team. Although the NFLPA will likely object to any such sanctions
with the potential of forcing the Falcons to pay Vick his salary
during any period for which he is suspended, both moves would
buy the league and the Falcons some time in dealing with the
situation. Worse yet for the Falcons, the team now has considerable
egg on its face for trading backup quarterback Matt
Schaub and a swap of 1st round picks to the Texans in the
off-season for two 2nd round picks. Lawyers have commented that
the case against Vick is strong, that the judge in the case
is known for handing down stiff sentences and that the U.S.
District Court in Virginia is known as the "rocket docket" for
getting its cases to court quickly and for not allowing trials
to languish.
- The jury is still out on the Marv Levy regime in Buffalo
where the octogenarian has managed a couple of solid drafts
but chose to gut the team of some of their key veterans and
leaders this off-season. Look for the wolves to start howling
in Buffalo if the Bills are unable to sign defensive tackle
Darwin
Walker to an extension after having traded linebacker Takeo
Spikes and backup quarterback Kelly Holcolmb for a 2007
7th round pick and Walker, despite having been told that Walker
had no intention of reporting without a new deal in place. The
Bills have the option of sending Walker back to the Eagles for
a 2008 6th round pick but the masses in Buffalo won't look kindly
upon Levy for shipping out the popular Spikes for a pair of
low round draft picks. With the secondary possibly starting
three second year players (provided 2006 3rd round pick Ashton
Youboty holds off veteran Jason
Webster), the team will need a solid pass rush to compensate
for their young secondary and Walker is one of the league's
most underrated pass rushers at the tackle position. Simply
put, the Bills need to get him under contract.
- With left tackle Travelle Wharton and center Justin Hartwig
returning after missing most of last season with injuries and
the team using a 2nd round pick on Ryan Kalil, the top center
in the draft, there figure to be plenty of competition along
the Panthers offensive line in training camp. The unit suffered
with Wharton and Hartwig out for most of last year with the
running game averaging 104 yards per game and 3.9 yards per
carry. Wharton and Jordan Gross, who the team is currently attempting
to lock up long term, will line up at the tackle positions with
Mike Wahle manning the left guard position. However, it's anybody's
guess at center and right guard with Kalil and Hartwig the favorites
at center and loser of that battle up against Evan Mathis (15
starts last season) and Will Montgomery for the right guard
spot. Jeremy Bridges and Todd Fordham figure to be the backup
tackles and Geoff Hangartner, who replaced Hartwig for 15 games
last season, also in the mix, this unit should see significant
improvement from last season. Look for running backs DeShaun
Foster and DeAngelo
Williams to improve their stats in 2007.
- Keeping with the Panthers, the team was unable to bolster
the strong safety position during the draft and free safety
so training camp will determine whether second year player Nate
Salley or veteran journeyman Deke
Cooper moves into the starting line-up to replace the departed
Shaun Williams. With free safety Mike
Minter entering his 11th and final season in the league
and having been forced to accept a pay reduction to return,
the Panthers will field one of the weaker safety combinations
in the league in 2007. Fortunately for the Panthers, the team
is loaded at cornerback with three solid players that could
start for most teams in Chris
Gamble, Ken
Lucas and Richard Marshall. Nonetheless, the team's inability
to land former Jaguars safety Donovin Darius could come back
to haunt them.
-
 Training
camp hasn't started yet in Tampa but with coach Jon Gruden needing
a strong season in order to secure his status with the team,
competition looks to be heated at a number of positions, not
just at quarterback where Jeff
Garcia, Chris
Simms and possibly Daunte
Culpepper will fight it out. There figures to be an interesting
battle to determine who will start opposite Joey Galloway at
wide receiver. Michael
Clayton burst onto the scene three years ago with 80 receptions
for 1,193 yards and seven touchdowns. However, after racking
up just 65 receptions and one touchdown over the last two years,
the former 1st round pick needs to fend off Maurice
Stovall, last year's 3rd round selection, in order to remain
in the starting line-up. Stovall struggled with drops last pre-season
but played well over the team's last three games in 2006. It
says here that Stovall will overtake Clayton and provide the
team with the quality possession receiver they need to complement
Galloway's deep speed.
- The Colts suffered a rather large blow with the news that
left tackle Tarik Glenn is expected to retire prior to training
camp. Although Glenn never reached the upper echelon of left
tackles in the league, he is a solid player that has been remarkably
durable, missing only six games during his ten years in the
league. Glenn's pass blocking ability has protected quarterback
Peyton
Manning's blind side for his entire career and although
the team's penchant for avoiding sacks is largely the result
of Manning's intelligence and quick release, Glenn's contribution
shouldn't be discounted. Since Manning has been under center,
the Colts have allowed the fewest sacks in the league. If Glenn
departs, look for either rookie 2nd round pick Tony Ugoh or
last year's 6th round pick, Charlie Johnson, to move into the
starting line-up. Although the team is high on Ugoh (they traded
their 2008 1st round pick and a 4th round selection in this
year's draft to get him), if they decide he isn't quite ready,
it's possible that Johnson will move from his more natural position
of guard to right tackle with Ryan Diem sliding over to the
left tackle position. If neither option looks amenable part
of the way into training camp, the team will likely look to
add an experienced veteran to the mix.
- Browns center LeCharles Bentley has been cleared by his doctors
to return to the team. After being the team's free agent prize
last off-season when he was one of the most sought after free
agents on the market, Bentley suffered a torn patella tendon
during his first contact at training camp. At the time the team
expected him to miss all of 2006 with his return to open 2007
in doubt. Subsequently Bentley suffered a staph infection so
serious his future in football was in doubt. However, despite
enduring four surgeries and recently being expected to undergo
a fifth surgery that would have sidelined him for all of 2007,
Bentley will open training camp with the Browns provided he
passes the team's physical. It's expected Bentley will not participate
in contact drills into mid-August but his return could be a
major development for a Browns team that has struggled to field
a decent offensive line since re-entering the league. With a
healthy Bentley at center, free agent addition Eric Steinbach
at left guard and rookie Joe Thomas, the third selection in
this year's draft, at left tackle, the team has a potentially
devastating left side of the line. With mauler Ryan Tucker,
Seth McKinney and Kevin Shaffer expected to round out the offensive
line, Jamal
Lewis' chances of a strong bounce back season are improving.
- Despite the loss of veteran Joe
Horn during the off-season, the Saints are excited about
their receiving corps and feel they actually have a more talented
unit than last season. With expected improvement from Marques
Colston and Devery
Henderson plus the selection of Robert
Meachem in the 1st round of this year's draft and the free
agent signings of tight end Eric
Johnson and wide receiver David
Patten, the team has plenty of options in the passing attack.
In particular, look for Johnson to be a major contributor in
2007 provided he can remain healthy, certainly a challenge given
that the veteran has played in only 57 of a possible 96 regular
season games since entering the league in 2001.
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