Because of traffic around Glendale and the constant security around the University of Phoenix Stadium, Terry Bradshaw was 10 minutes late for his sit down with MVP Tom Brady. But Brady didn’t mind and seemed to enjoy the down time before facing Tuesday’s 2,000-plus reporters and TV crews on Super Bowl media day.

Bradshaw gave Brady a cigar – Tom doesn’t smoke – to give to his father should the Patriots beat the New York Giants and win a fourth title. “I know your dad is probably the only one in your family who really likes me,” Bradshaw joked with Brady. “I know you would rather have Joe Montana here doing this interview than me.”

Brady said no, no while admitting that growing up in the San Francisco area he always idolized Montana while acknowledging that Bradshaw was the first quarterback to win four Super Bowls.

“I can’t (you) tell how much all of us have been thinking about being part of history,” Brady said. “We talked about it just the other day as a team. To always be remembered in the history of sports would be something special.”

On the FOX pre-game show, Brady’s interview should be something special because the New England quarterback spoke about his life on and off the field. He genuinely seemed excited about spending time and talking football with Bradshaw.

“I know everybody is making a big deal that they finally put some great receivers around me,” Brady said, “but people forget that I had Troy Brown, David Givens and Deion Branch in past Super Bowls. Deion was the MVP of our last one. You ought to know that a quarterback is only as good as the people around him.”

On that note, Brady did say that Randy Moss is the most-gifted receiver he has ever played with. “He’s the most graceful runner at the position I have ever seen,” Brady said. “But Randy is more than just physical ability. It’s what he knows and how he thinks out there. Randy has a lot of football knowledge and he knows how to break down defenses and what will actually work and not work. It’s the whole package that makes him so special.”  

To Patriots owner Bob Kraft, Fox Sports is sort of like a good-luck charm. Yes, his Patriots lost their first Super Bowl with Kraft as the majority owner on FOX, but the man understands that the Green Bay Packers were better on Jan. 26, 1997. Of course, Kraft hasn’t forgotten that former coach Bill Parcells made Troy Brown inactive for Super Bowl XXXI in favor of special teams player Hason Graham, who couldn’t tackle MVP Desmond Howard, who had a record 244 of punt-kick return yardage in that 35-21 loss.

“I can still see Troy crying on the sidelines about not playing that day,” Kraft said Tuesday when bumping into me and Terry Bradshaw.

But the Patriots run of three Super Bowls in six years started on FOX, when Bill Belichick’s team upset the mighty St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI on Adam Vinatieri’s 46-yard field goal as time expired. That win in New Orleans was almost five months after September 11.

The Patriots won again after the 2003 season, before winning again on FOX in Super Bowl XXXIX in Jacksonville.

The Patriots this Sunday will be going for their fourth Super Bowl in seven years.

“That’s one thing you will always have over us, should we win,” Kraft said to Bradshaw. “Your Steelers won four titles over six years. It’s been a great run, but it’s always great to see you guys when we’re at a Super Bowl.”

Hey, there is a lot of criticism directed at quarterbacks, white and black, but Donovan McNabb is not right. I mean, physically he doesn't look right on the field. OK, he played a little better in the fourth quarter against the Redskins, but if you watch him closely he's not bending his left front leg and it's causing his throws to sail high and wide.

The only conclusion is that maybe his right leg, which suffered a torn ACL, isn't totally healed. Or that McNabb is still very much worried about his legs getting hit in the pocket. As good as McNabb was in the past, he's not playing very well right now and the NFL is a bottom line business. How many losses can the Eagles stand until McNabb is good again?

If they lose this Sunday to the Lions, Eagles coach Andy Reid might be tempted to play rookie Kevin Kolb, the second-round pick that so infuriated McNabb when he was drafted last April.

McNabb can say that he doesn't have a home-run hitter at wide receiver (remember what he and Terrell Owens accomplished during that Super Bowl season?), but that's the way it has always been in Philadelphia. Teams are going to jam his receivers because right now there is no fear of McNabb scrambling and making a lot of plays with his feet.

In two games, McNabb has completed just two passes that have gained more than 20 yards. Both came in Green Bay. He had none against the Redskins Monday night. By comparison, last season at this time, when McNabb was playing like a potential MVP, he had 12 passing plays of 20 yards or more, four of them good for touchdowns.

Evil Ernie

Of the terms being bandied about during Videogate or Spygate, is the "plausible deniability" line that Patriots coach Bill Belichick could invoke with commissioner Roger Goodell. What that means is that Goodell could interview players and coaches on the Patriots and all of them could answer honestly that they had no idea about Belichick's video methods.

However, there is one employee, Ernie Adams, that some rival coaches and general managers are pointing a finger at, claiming that Adams and Belichick cooked up this scheme together and that Adams, a veritable football genius, was the one who broke down the taped coaching signals and ascertained what plays would be beneficial to Belichick and his offensive strategy. Adams has been with Belichick since the two worked for the New York Giants. His title is football research director and his job duties include statistical evaluations and film coordination.

"I've know Ernie most of his career and I don't believe he is G. Gordon Liddy, the Watergate burglar," said a friend who works with another team. "He is an honest guy who I don't think would condone cheating. I just don't see him being a party to any of this."

Better than Curly

This is Brett Favre's 17th season in the NFL and what's impressive about his 149-82 won-lost record in the regular season is that it is a better record than coaches like Washington's Joe Gibbs and the recently retired Bill Cowher and Bill Parcells. Gibbs is a Hall of Famer. Another interesting point is that Favre's winning percentage of .645 is also better than Curly Lambeau, Green Bay's legendary coach. Curly was .631.

Texans in trouble

With the loss of superstar receiver Andre Johnson with a sprained knee, the Houston Texans and Matt Schaub will have to rely heavily on Kevin Walter and Owen Daniels this Sunday against the Colts, who were able to defeat Vince Young while minus two starting linebackers.

Walter and Owens have a total of eight receptions in two games. There is even a chance that Texans coach Gary Kubiak will start Andre Davis, who was inactive last Sunday against the Panthers. Davis, though, has the most NFL experience (104 career receptions) on a relatively young receiving corps. In two games, Johnson had 262 receiving yards, or 212 yards more than the team's other wide receivers combined.

Adam off-target

Last Sunday might have been the worst game of Adam Vinatieri's pro career. He had an extra-point attempt blocked, a field-goal partially blocked and he pulled a 36-yard field goal attempt wide left. This stuff has happened before but not all in the same game. Since the 1999 season, Vinatieri has had only four out of 494 kicks blocked. Colts coach Tony Dungy blamed Vinatieri, too, saying that his kicks were too low and that's why they were blocked. 

 

 

The Cleveland Browns are pretty transparent when it comes to rookie quarterback Brady Quinn. First they trade away his main competition, Charlie Frye, to Seattle and then sign third-string quarterback Ken Dorsey, a player Quinn said really aided him in understanding the playbook and the NFL in general. Hey, every starter needs a confidante.

The Browns will now start Derek Anderson (0-3 as a starter) against the Bengals this Sunday. If he fails, Quinn could start the following week against the Oakland Raiders. Cleveland thought Frye gave the team its best chance to win and he didn't survive last week's first half. I mean, how much confidence do they really have in Anderson?

"Some people think we're doing some kind of experiment, but we're not," said general manager Phil Savage, who announced the moves. "We are trying to win. I think our team knows we're very serious about winning, and I think they'll have confidence in whoever we put out there."

Yeah, right!

Culpepper to the rescue

The Raiders have no choice but to start Al Davis's favorite quarterback, Daunte Culpepper, this Sunday against the Broncos. With Josh McCown having a broken finger, it seems very unlikely that he will play. With rookie JaMarcus Russell getting his first taste of practice today, the Raiders will take the two-week roster exemption for Russell before activating him.

Harsh words on Rex

First, Chargers defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell eased any fears that he wouldn't be able to creatively bring the pressure like Wade Phillips did last season. The Chargers were all over Chicago quarterback Rex Grossman last Sunday and rookie safety Eric Weddle has found a niche rushing the quarterback. And it was totally by design.

Inside linebacker Matt Wilhem, who is replacing Donnie Edwards, said that new linebackers coach Ron Rivera, who was dumped by Lovie Smith, told his players "that Rex was kind of a mental midget, so you can get into his head and create that thought."

LT pokes fun at Belichick

Remember, Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson questioned Bill Belichick's integrity after a playoff loss last January because some of his players danced on the San Diego insignia after the Pats won a first-round playoff game.

"I think the Patriots actually live by the saying, 'If you're not cheating, you're not trying,'" LT said.

Great news in Buffalo

There is no greater news league-wide than that it's looking like Bills tight end Kevin Everett is going to be able to walk again. If he does walk, the Buffalo players now know that head trainer Bud Carpenter and his assistants did a tremendous job in stabilizing Everett and making sure the surgeons had a chance of fixing him. There has been tremendous progress made on spinal injuries and Everett is a living, breathing example.

The Raiders and the agents for No. 1 pick JaMarcus Russell made significant progress Saturday night and their negotiations will continue after today’s game. Sources on both sides believe that a contract could be in place by Tuesday.

The final parameters could be very interesting because the total guaranteed money might end up being very close to what the club offered a couple weeks ago. The big question then will be why wasn’t this deal done earlier?

You can bet that Russell and his family have become very impatient with the talks, thus negating the rumors that the LSU quarterback didn’t want to play for the Raiders in the first place. If that was really the case, this deal would never get done.

Finally, it will be interesting if backup quarterback Daunte Culpepper is in uniform today. The Raiders owed him a bonus at the start of the season and basically guaranteeing him a total of $3.2 million, including bonuses and salary. Agents are saying that the Raiders were going to grind on Culpepper – force him to redo his contract -- in order to free up more money for Russell.

The Raiders will be curious today, when meeting face-to-face with his agents, if unsigned No. 1 pick JaMarcus Russell is somewhere close by. If Russell is still in Atlanta or Mobile, Ala., his hometown, the club will know that agents Ethan Lock and Eric Metz aren’t really serious about finally getting a deal done.

The Raiders, who are limited by their current rookie salary cap pool number of $2.975 million, have frustrated Russell’s agents because the maximum allowed hard-cap guaranteed money, no matter the structure, is $29 million.

However, the Raiders have discussed adding another $2 million to that total in what is called soft-cap dollars, money that can be earned by inserting incentives that will be easily attained by Russell. For example, an easy incentive would be if he takes 30 percent of the snaps in 2008 or 2009. However, Russell’s people may want more than $31 million. They originally asked for $35 million.

Last year’s No. 1 pick, Mario Williams, received $26.5 million in guaranteed money. Reggie Bush, who was perceived as the best player in last year’s draft, received a bonus package very similar to what Houston paid Williams. This year’s second overall pick, Calvin Johnson, received $27.2 million in guarantees, and he was believed to be the best all-around player in the draft.

If Russell gets $31 million, it would be a significant boost over what Williams and Bush received last season.

There were rumors on Thursday that the Raiders were going to play hardball with Daunte Culpepper, who will be the backup quarterback on Sunday behind Josh McCown, and ask him to reduce his $3.2 million contract, thus freeing up more money for Russell. However, the Raiders have no intention of messing with Culpepper, who remains a favorite of owner Al Davis.

Rookie head coach Lane Kiffin, who still declines to name his starter against the Lions, picked McCown over Culpepper.

With the agents for JaMarcus Russell still debating how to best guarantee $31 million to their client, Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin can’t seem to choose between Josh McCown and Daunte Culpepper for Sunday’s start against the Detroit Lions.

We know that owner Al Davis prefers Culpepper as his quarterback. Consequently, Kiffin must be in McCown’s corner for now and that’s the reason for delaying any announcement.

During last week’s final cuts, Kiffin and Davis both seemed to get their way.

Davis, who makes the majority of the Raiders’ personnel decisions, allowed the coaches and personnel staff to pick Quentin Moses atop the third round and he got the final say by cutting the defensive end from Georgia. Receiver Alvis Whitted was perceived as a Davis player, but he got the ax, too.

And then there was guard Kevin Boothe, who graded out as the team’s best offensive lineman a season ago. Boothe didn’t fit Kiffin’s new blocking system and was released. And Boothe probably will end up helping the New York Giants.

If McCown gets the start against the Lions, we’ll know that Kiffin won the first big battle with his owner.

Denver pays Rice

Simeon Rice received $2.1 million to sign with the Broncos, who also guaranteed his base salary for this season, and the overall deal is slightly better than what his former team, the Tampa Bay Bucs, were offering before he was released.

However, it will be interesting to see how much Rice plays this Sunday. The Rams passed his shoulder during a physical, but they were leery that he really wasn’t ready to play. The Titans thought the same thing. Rice could end up earning almost $4 million if he hits some incentives.

 

Leftwich & Baltimore

 

Byron Leftwich makes sense for the Ravens, who definitely don’t believe in Kyle Boller anymore as the backup. The Ravens, because of their defense, remain a strong Super Bowl contender, and who really knows how much longer 34-year-old Steve McNair can stay healthy? Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome liked Leftwich coming out of Marshall, plus he knows all about him from Jaguars personnel man Shack Harris.

 

If anyone can fix Leftwich and make him a more accurate passer, it’s Ravens head coach Brian Billick. Now, the deal is whether or not Leftwich will agree to a contract that makes sense for Baltimore right now. This is a better opportunity for Leftwich than vice versa. I mean if he doesn’t sign with Baltimore, who really wants him?

 

Bulletin board chuckles

 

The big game this Sunday is Chicago at San Diego, and now the Bears are all hot that LaDainian Tomlinson picked the Bears to run through, past and over in his new Nike commercial. Well, L.T. claims he didn’t; it’s just that he vetoed the Patriots. Well, seriously, he should have allowed Nike to use the Patriots. No one really thinks of New England in the same breath, historically, with Chicago’s defense.

           

To hear the Bears getting mad about the commercial is pretty funny, too. Do you think Brian Urlacher would turn down a big check from Nike to do a commercial? L.T. took the money and ran. He may do that Sunday, too. I can’t imagine that Urlacher and Co. needed a commercial to get fired up about playing the Chargers and L.T. on opening day.

           

Finally, the bad news in Chicago is that Rex Grossman won’t have rookie tight end Greg Olsen (knee sprain) available as a reliable check-down receiver against the San Diego pass rush.

 

Simms and Tampa Bay

The Bucs were the only team to keep four quarterbacks on their final 53-man roster. Fourteen teams kept two quarterbacks while the rest decided on three. Seventeen backups have never started a NFL game and four of them have never thrown a pass in the NFL.

 

This is why the Bucs kept Simms. He has potential trade value, considering the NFL quarterbacking landscape. He may be fourth-string in Tampa Bay, but he could be viewed by a lot of teams to be better than their backup or third-stringer. Mentally and physically, Simms simply hasn’t looked himself this summer. But that doesn’t mean he won’t come around. And, who knows, if Jeff Garcia goes down in December, Jon Gruden might even turn to Simms if he’s still around.

 

When a team like Kansas City opts to sign Tyler Thigpen as a third quarterback, you know there is hope for Simms, and the Bucs may eventually do a trade.

 

Look in the mirror

 

Arizona’s Rod Graves, who drafted Buster Davis in the third round, said he was surprised the Florida State linebacker refused to sign with the team’s practice squad after being cut last weekend.

           

“It says something else about the player,” Graves said. “I certainly thought Buster was the kind of guy who would carry a chip on his shoulder and accept that challenge and want to prove that the decision to release him was a mistake.”

           

When evaluating players for the draft, Graves must make decisions on whether any player has the heart and mindset to succeed in the NFL. Graves can question Davis, but we can also question Graves to risking the 69th choice in the draft on a player who took the money and ran.

If he controlled the checkbook, Packers coach Mike McCarthy might have paid to keep Ahman Green. Not the ridiculous amount the Texans paid, but something more than reasonable. “He’s a guy who should have retired a Packer,” McCarthy said.

McCarthy’s new plan was to have a committee of running backs. The top three in the rotation were going to be Vernand Morency, Noah Herron and second-round pick Brandon Jackson.

Well, McCarthy’s plan took a hit the first day of camp when Morency went down with a knee injury and now Jackson has a concussion. Herron has been a steady-eddie kind of back; he’s not a big-play threat. In the first three preseason games, the Packers are averaging 95.7 yards rushing, 19th overall.

DeShawn Wynn, a seventh-round pick out of Florida, missed 18 days of camp with a right thigh muscle strain. Wynn has untapped ability, but he’s always been an injury question.

There is no doubt that McCarthy wanted to lean on Jackson and Morency this season, but already you have to wonder about their durability. And with top receiver Donald Driver nursing a foot sprain until opening Sunday, Green Bay doesn’t have many weapons for Brett Favre to choose from.

Good thing Green Bay has a defense. This could be the lowest scoring team in Packerland since Mike Holmgren’s first team scored only 276 points in 1992.

It’s Preseason, Baby

Bucs coach Jon Gruden may complain about officiating, but he understands that preseason games can be a lot like the real thing.

“A lot of people are whining about all the blitzing this preseason, I’m reading and hearing. ‘There’s too much blitzing going on in the preseason.’ It’s a blitz league. People are blitzing 25, 35 times a game nowadays and blitzing from all over the place. Double-corner blitzes, all-out blitzes, zone blitzes – all kinds of blitzes. You either deal with the pressure or you don’t, and the preseason is a good opportunity to prepare yourself for the reality of this league.”

Edwards had no choice

The plan was to push Brodie Croyle into the starting quarterback role in Kansas City, but the second-year kid played so poorly in preseason that Coach Herman Edwards had no choice but to name injured Damon Huard, 34, as the starter in Week 1. The Chiefs wanted to be able to bring Huard off the bench when Croyle struggled and now it’s happened before the team even reached the regular-season. Now after 10 seasons as a NFL backup, Huard is the starter and he sounds like he has no intentions of giving up the job.

RV Living

Being a veteran, Titans center Kevin Mawae could have slept in his own bed during training camp. Instead, he chose to park his 36-foot RV near the main entrance to the club’s facility and spend his nights there. Mawae had simple reasoning. It takes him 30 minutes to drive home, but with the RV he was asleep five minutes after parking his body in bed.

Perfect words by Vick

Most who heard Michael Vick apologize on Monday for his guilt in the federal dogfighting case were impressed by his contrition and overall tone. It was the first big step toward rehabilitating his image. It’s simply too bad he didn’t speak truthfully with his fans from the beginning and with Commissioner Roger Goodell.

The other interesting development in Atlanta is who will take the fall for Vick’s huge contract and the team being unaware of the player’s off-the-field activities? Is GM Rich McKay under pressure from owner Arthur Blank? And what happens if an arbitrator or a judge rules that Blank can only recover $3 million of the $7.5 million signing bonus that was paid Vick in 2004?

The Cowboys are being billed as a serious threat to Philadelphia’s dominance in the NFC East, but in order to do it they need solid seasons from veterans Terry Glenn and Greg Ellis. The only issue is that Glenn, who had right knee surgery, won’t play in the preseason and Ellis may rest too.

On Tuesday, Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said that Glenn’s knee is fine and predicted the No. 2 receiver would start practicing after the final preseason game. He also said that Ellis could rest until “walk through on Saturday” before the regular-season opener and be able to pass rush New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning.

Trotter Landing Spots

Jeremiah Trotter was never great laterally, but he remained one of the toughest straight-line middle linebackers in the game. He can still dominate a center/guard and open a hole for a pass-rushing teammate.

Trotter, who may opt to retire because of his degenerative knees, would fit with the Rams, allowing Will Witherspoon to play weak-side linebacker, and he could be the muscle that the Saints have been searching for inside. Brian Simmons has been unable to unseat under-sized Mark Simoneau (slowed by a right ankle sprain), who is more guile and speed than pure power.

By releasing Trotter, a true leader and a four-time Pro Bowler, the Eagles once again showed their competitors they can make the tough decision and move on without a key veteran. I was in Dallas when the news came and, believe me, quarterback Tony Romo was stunned by the news. He raved about Trotter’s strength and relentless play last season.

But the Eagles have a knack of moving on without some veterans and making the tough decisions and other teams simply nod in praise of Coach Andy Reid and executive Joe Banner. Philadelphia, one of the NFC’s better teams, will now be started two linebackers – Omar Gaither and Chris Gocong – who were 2006 draft choices.

Sapp to Indy?

With the loss of Booger McFarland, the Colts have been looking for a defensive tackle to make their front four complete. Warren Sapp, now with the Raiders, was one of Tony Dungy’s favorite players in Tampa Bay, and the big fella is coming off a very good season and he’s in super shape. Wouldn’t it be nice to see Sapp and Dungy finish out their careers together?

Loose Chad

One preseason quarter doesn’t make a season, but Chad Pennington, one of the game’s genuine good guys, tossed two interceptions against the Vikings last Friday night and nothing about it was very pretty.

On the first one, he apparently didn’t see Darren Sharper and threw it right to the veteran safety. On the second one, Pennington also had to know better. He was under brutal pressure, and while falling, lofted a soft pass toward his check down receiver along the sideline and Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway broke on the ball, catching it in stride for a touchdown.

Pennington doesn’t have the arm velocity to take such chances. You have to wonder why Jets Coach Eric Mangini is thinking seriously about giving Kellen Clemens, the backup QB with the much stronger arm, a realistic shot at competing. Right now, though, Mangini seems more intent on making sure his players listen to Mozart during teaching drills and making sure his assistant coaches don’t reveal any secrets.

As the no contact between No. 1 pick JaMarcus Russell’s agents and the Raiders continue, you have to ask how do these parties resolve the stalemate?

Well, the Raiders could cave and simply pay Russell what he wants, something that owner Al Davis seems reluctant to do.

Two, Russell could decide to simply sit out the season. Of course, he would be losing whatever present-day dollars he could collect from Oakland. There is also a full season of lost earning power. I mean, could he make up the dollars lost by staying home for an entire season? And how does he make those Oakland mortgage payments?

Finally, the two sides could work out a trade.

Whoops, that can’t happen now. The deadline passed on Aug. 10 when the agents and the Raiders weren’t even talking to one another.

Russell may not be traded until after the end of the 2007 league year (roughly March 1, 2008).  

Here are the league guidelines on what can happen next:

 

Russell may be traded between the first day of the 2008 league year and the 2008 college draft on April 26. In this case, the trading club must sign the player to a contract prior to trading him to the acquiring club (i.e. Drew Henson from Houston to Dallas).

 

If Russell is not signed by prior to the 2008 draft then he is eligible to be drafted in 2008 by any club other than the club that drafted him in 2007. However, the club acquiring another club’s draft pick after the player has initially been selected will not receive any additional rookie pool room to sign the player. Translation: there could be less money available to Russell and if not that, for the other the rookies this team would select. Regardless, it won’t be a pretty picture for someone.

 

Simms messed up

 

There is something wrong with Chris Simms, but the Bucs don’t necessarily believe it is all physical. Simms is not performing very well and many close to him have speculated that it relates to last season’s horrendous ruptured spleen when the then-starting quarterback almost died. Simms’ supporters don’t want to believe coach Jon Gruden and GM Bruce Allen on this situation, considering they are the ones who gave Jeff Garcia the same contract deal Simms received.

 

Yes, Gruden has moved on. Garcia is his starter while Luke McCown and Bruce Gradkowski battle for the backup position. Simms is a forgotten man in the rotation and he knows that Gruden has basically thrown up his arms.

 

Simms faces being released if he doesn’t start improving. If that happens, he’s talked about sitting out the season. Said one insider: “He’s probably thinking that because he fears that another team might cut him, too.”

 

Strahan returning?

 

After speaking with a couple of his defensive teammates at the Giants’ Albany training camp on Thursday, the general consensus is that they expect Michael Strahan to return to the team and play this season. Everyone understands how difficult the retirement decision is for Strahan, but they simply believe he’s too good right now to retire and that deep down he still wants to play. Timeline? Maybe next weekend. The Giants break camp prior to their third preseason game.

 

Don’t Forget Ravens

 

The buzz around the league is that don’t discount the Baltimore Ravens when discussing possible Super Bowl teams. The Ravens thoroughly out-played Philadelphia last Monday and the Eagles are again considered a favorite to win the NFC East.

 

“It’s difficult at time to judge these preseason games,” Giants coach Tom Coughlin told me. “Some teams plan basic stuff in these games in order to evaluate their own young players. Well, Baltimore’s basic defense is to blitz and they blitzed Philadelphia 37 times in that game. They’re good, though. But that’s how you get a lopsided game in preseason.”

 

Quinn should start

 

OK, I will accept the idiotic premise that Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson know whatever offense the Cleveland Browns are running at the moment, but shouldn’t this franchise have first-round pick Brady Quinn on the fast-track to a starting position? I mean, Quinn ranked in the top five of GM Phil Savage’s draft board and that’s why he made the trade with the Cowboys. Isn’t Quinn the future of this franchise? I know Coach Romeo Crennel wants to win and possibly keep his job, but the Browns need to get their future QB involved quickly.

As his football world crashes down around him, you have to wonder why Falcons QB Michael Vick didn't seek a plea bargain when the first of his three co-defendants made a deal with the federal prosecutor. Now, with all three of them agreeing to seek a deal, Vick is now isolated with the dog-fighting indictment and may not have any information that can satisfy the government, thus avoiding some prison time.

The Falcons were always worried that Vick wouldn't seek a deal in order to save himself. Hey, in cases like these, a man may be innocent, but if others admit guilt and testify against you -- like these three men will do -- it is extremely difficult to beat the charges.

And who knows what other charges federal prosecutors may be holding over Vick. There is talk of another grand jury against him, plus talk about a RICO indictment, and those charges often start with a 20-year sentence.

Vick may decide to fight the charges in a Richmond courtroom if he can't strike a favorable deal -- little or no jail time -- with prosecutors. A jury may believe Vick and find his co-defendants untrustworthy. Hey, anything is possible with a jury. Vick only needs one juror to believe him.

Insiders always worried about the reckless, criminal-fringe side of Vick's entourage and friends. Now, all three of these so-called friends flipped on him in order to save themselves. Vick needed a friend like Greg Anderson, the personal trainer for Barry Bonds who chose prison over making statements that might have linked the home run king to illegal substances.

What Vick and his attorneys, Larry Woodward and Billy Martin, should be focusing on now is how to guarantee Vick is available for the 2008 season.

This season is lost because there is apparently enough ammunition available that Vick probably will be suspended for the season. Heck, Commissioner Roger Goodell could act as soon as Vick admits guilt in this case, which could happen by this weekend.

By admitting guilt, Vick is basically saying he gambled on dog fights and that he also lied to the commissioner about his involvement in the dog-fighting ring. Even if Vick was simply the money man supporting the ring and never tortured any animals, he is no less guilty.

But this is also America, where society is forever willing to give someone a second and even a third chance. The Falcons may never want him back as their quarterback if Vick admits guilt, but that doesn't mean another team won't sign him. Vick is a physical talent — he was the first visiting quarterback to ever win a playoff game in Lambeau Field.

After a season on the sidelines, Vick might even appeal to several teams as a running back. He did set the NFL rushing record for quarterbacks last season.

Granted, Vick would have to satisfy dog lovers everywhere. Those PETA pickets won't rest unless he's remorseful and helps build a dog shelter or two. What Vick won't see, though, is a team willing to give him $37.85 million over the last three years like the Falcons did when they renegotiated his original contract.

Atlanta's owner may have a difficult time getting his money back, too, if Vick doesn't play again for him. The bulk of Vick's money was paid in roster bonuses in 2005 and 2006 seasons. They might be able to get $3.75 million from his signing bonus and could argue that the $29 million in roster bonuses should be pro-rated, too, but that's going to be awfully tough to prove.

Holcomb available?

The Eagles have other issues after being whipped by Baltimore last night in a preseason game, but there have been rumblings that the Vikings, and others, have an interest in Philly quarterback Kelly Holcomb, who may end up a third stringer on Philadelphia's depth chart behind Donovan McNabb and A.J. Feeley.

But the Eagles won't give Holcomb away and are telling teams they plan to keep him on their final 53-man roster. The Eagles want decent compensation for Holcomb, who is definitely better than some teams' current backups.

Larry Johnson seems the closest to returning to work among the league's three major holdouts. Michael Strahan is still considering retirement from the Giants, although some suspect he may report once the team leaves its Albany training camp. And, basically, there is absolutely nothing new with No. 1 pick JaMarcus Russell and the Raiders. With this long of a holdout, Russell may be looking at a red-shirt season at this point.

Johnson and the Chiefs have been making progress on a long-term contract that could include guarantees ranging between $15 and $19 million. Even if Johnson actually gets the higher number, he will still fall short of what LaDainian Tomlinson received ($21 million guaranteed and $60 million over eight years) received from the Chargers prior to the 2004 season.

But, then, LJ isn't as good as LT and many clubs don't view the running back position to be as valuable as quarterback, defensive end and cornerback. For example. the Colts will pay Dwight Freeney $30 million in guaranteed money between now and the 2008 season.

Kansas City holds the leverage edge against Johnson because he still has one season remaining on his contract and the club likes what it has seen from Michael Bennett and Louisville rookie Kolby Smith. And if Priest Holmes's dream of returning to the field becomes a reality, KC wouldn't be in terrible predicament without Johnson. I mean, the Chiefs have greater concerns regarding a winning and losing than simply who is at running back.

Umpire in backfield

This past weekend was the first time that league officials experimented with shifting the umpire from the defensive side, usually at the depth of a linebacker, to the offensive backfield. For any long-time football fan, seeing no official in the middle of the defensive action probably looked pretty weird.

The league will also try this experiment during the third weekend of preseason games with the umpire on one side and the referee on the other in the offensive backfield. The idea is to see if the umpire can still call holding penalties while also removing him from the center of the play where occasionally he had players knocking him over.

"I'm not sure I like it," Rams Coach Scott Linehan told me after Friday night's game in Minneapolis against the Vikings. "It looks like (the umpire) could get in the way of the quarterback when he's scrambling in the pocket."

Having the umpire in the offensive backfield may have also cost the Rams a third-quarter touchdown when rookie receiver Derek Stanley caught a deflected pass. Ryan Fitzpatrick's pass hit a downed Minnesota defender on the arm and then the ball bounced up to Stanley. The pass was rule incomplete on the field and the play whistled dead. However, referee Ed Hochuli properly reversed the call and gave Stanley a 19-yard reception. But had umpire Chad Brown been in his proper place he may seen the catch and never blown the play dead, leading to a 54-yard touchdown.

No love lost

Linebacker Donnie Edwards, who couldn't work out a contract with the Chargers, is back with the Kansas City Chiefs, where he became one of the game's best tacklers and playmakers.

Edwards is still fuming, though, about San Diego General Manager A.J. Smith.

"Football is a great team game, but this guy thought it was all about him," Edwards said. "I mean, doesn't he think Marty (Schottenheimer) was trying to win? I always thought that we were all in this together, trying to win a championship. The players, the coaches, the personnel people, everybody on a team. But not in San Diego. It's all about how (Smith) sees it. No one else seems to matter.

Edwards used a couple other words when referring to Smith, but we really can't use those references.

Green homesick

Even before he was booed by the hometown fans on Saturday, new Miami quarterback Trent Green was telling a few Kansas City teammates that he was missing his former surroundings. Imagine that! Does anybody really think that KC is a better place (it is a much better football town) than Miami and South Beach, one of the hippest locations on earth? Of course, the Chiefs probably are a much better football organization than Miami these days.

There is no doubt that Larry Johnson was the second-best running back behind LaDainian Tomlinson over the last two seasons. Johnson isn’t in training camp with Kansas City because he wants to be paid like Tomlinson and wants his $1.7 million base contract torn up. The Chiefs will give him a raise, maybe, but they will never give him the $28 million in guarantees that Tomlinson received.

I don’t see how Johnson’s holdout – apparently he listens a lot to his mother – comes to a satisfactory conclusion because Chiefs President Carl Peterson is pretty stubborn and firmly believes that no other team would give Johnson that kind of bonus money, either.

The Chiefs might go halfway with L.J., but there are reports that Coach Herm Edwards wouldn’t mind trading him, believing the holdout distraction is not worth the aggravation. And if Johnson waits until the 10th game in order to get credit for this season, you can bet that next year the Chiefs will slap the franchise tag on him if they negotiate a fair contract.

Translation: he may never receive what he thinks he deserves out of the Chiefs.

No one knows whether Priest Holmes can really replace Johnson until he plays in a preseason game and displays his old magic. The Chiefs are taking a very hard-line stance on Johnson, and without him it won’t matter who the starting quarterback is. KC won’t win.

Packer prediction

The Packers were the 11th team I’ve seen this summer and I must say that their starting cornerbacks, Al Harris and Charles Woodson, may be the two most engaging players on the same team that I’ve met in a long time. Both veterans are great talkers and know the game. Both also played at a very high level last season, even though Woodson was hurt in 10 of his 16 starts. Another thing, they like small town Green Bay and their fans.

White or black, “we’re all in the same boat,” Harris said. “There aren’t a lot of things to do. But our fans love their Packers and they love football. They are better fans than those in Philadelphia. I mean some of their fans rented a bus simply to go boo Donovan McNabb on one of his biggest days of his life when he was drafted in the first round.”

But Harris made a bold statement to me. Harris said second-year safety Atari Bigby reminds him of Brian Dawkins, the Eagles’ All-Pro. Harris thinks Bigby, who is working on the second team right now, can be that good.

“I really like him, too,” Woodson said of Bigby. “Keep an eye on him. You’ll see what we like when the (game) lights come on.”

Bears won’t deal Orton

Kyle Orton, who won 10 games as a rookie quarterback, is now third on the depth chart behind Rex Grossman and Brian Griese. And he’s a quarterback that the Falcons are keeping an eye on just in case Joey Harrington busts out. But the word in Chicago is that Orton isn’t available at any price. “If we wanted to do something like that, we never would have allowed J.T. O’Sullivan to end up in Detroit,” said one Chicago insider.

We all know that Chicago has never had the greatest quarterback situation, but the front office likes these three players and won’t make a deal with the team on a Super Bowl mission. Another thing to consider is that Rex Grossman is in the final year of his contract.

Bucs to collect?

Tampa Bay has filed its grievance against quarterback Jake Plummer to recoup $7 million in signing bonus money that the Broncos paid him. It is an odd situation, but the Bucs technically view Plummer as a holdout because they did trade a seventh-round pick to Denver for his rights. And when team acquires a player’s rights, they technically are obligated to the terms of that player’s contract. This is why it’s the Bucs, not the Broncos, seeking the money.

The Bucs believe they will eventually get the money from Plummer, who claims he’s retired. Remember, if Plummer would actually change his mind and play for the Bucs, they owe Denver a fourth-round pick.

Bulletin board stuff

Todd Monken developed a few NFL receivers while coaching at LSU and now he’s a first-year assistant for Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville. He really likes Mike Walker, a third-round pick out of Central Florida. The Jags play the Saints this season and Monken started to make some comparisons.

“When Joe Horn went down, the Saints had (Devery) Henderson. What was that other guy’s name? Colston, Goldston (rookie Marques Colston). You can’t tell me Mike Walker is not as good as that guy Goldston or Colston. And they had a good quarterback and had explosive guys and just put them in the right spots to make it work. Why can’t we do that?’’

Colston, a seventh-round pick last year, is billed as the Saints’ No. 1 receiver. Meanwhile, the Jaguars former first-round picks at the position – Matt Jones and Reggie Williams – continue to struggle. Jones has another sore hamstring while Williams is listed as third team on the depth chart.

“It is what it is. Guys take reps based on where they’re at. If they (Williams and Jones) can’t figure (it) out, you can’t paint more of a vivid picture,’’ Monken said. “It’s time for Reggie and Matt to do it. If not now, when?’’

Every kid’s favorite

Hats off to Tennessee quarterback Vince Young, who takes plenty of time to sign autographs after practices. But what was really impressive was when it was Young’s official team day to sign, hundreds of kids showed.

Young signed for everyone, spending more than an hour.

Now, that everyone knows that No. 2 pick Calvin Johnson, the best player in this year's draft, received $1 million more in guaranteed money than Reggie Bush, the best player and also the second player selected in last year's draft, it is mind-boggling to think that the Raiders and top pick JaMarcus Russell can't strike an agreement. Yes, there should be a higher market for a quarterback, but with his long holdout Russell is virtually guaranteeing himself that he won't see the field this season unless Daunte Culpepper and Josh McCown suffer serious injuries.
 
The Raiders are stuck on about $30 million in guaranteed money while Russell's agents are asking for $35 million. Oakland's offer is a reasonable percentage increase over the $26.6 million last year's No. 1 pick Mario Williams received. But this holdout figures to continue unless Russell comes down.
 
If that never happens, the next scenario is for Russell to sit out the year and re-enter next year's draft. If that happens, Russell might get what he's asking now or then again, he could drop a little because teams may view his price as too high. Is that a risk he's willing to consider right now?

Croyle really No. 1?

After watching the Chiefs and Vikings practice against each other last week, the best young quarterback on the field was the Chiefs' Brodie Croyle and not Tarvaris Jackson, Minnesota's starter this season.

Chiefs head coach Herm Edwards is rotating Croyle and Damon Huard in drills and figures to do the same once preseason games start. But if you listen to the team whispers, the job is really Croyle's to lose. He's the future, plus everyone knows that Huard is best coming off the bench.

Croyle is pretty composed young man and the way he sees it his career is way ahead of schedule because he figured to be sitting behind Trent Green for two seasons. But with Green gone, his opportunity has come much faster.

Now, there is some Brett Favre in Croyle. Not the arm, but the aggressive nature. He wants to go down the field and take a few chances.

"I get the 'Don't be a gunslinger' talk about twice a week in practice," Croyle said. "Don't be Brett Favring it. I'm trying to take care of that. But the other night in the huddle, I said, 'Boys, give me some time because I'm throwing it deep.' That got a chuckle out of the linemen. But we're keeping that to a minimum right now."

Of course, Croyle can laugh now at his NFL introduction last season. He says the speed of the NFL has slowed down a bit, but all he remembers of his first pass against the Steelers was looking at Pro Bowl safety Troy Polamalu lined up near the line of scrimmage.

"We ran play action and sometime while I turned around Polamalu was way back in cover two," Croyle said. "I was thinking, "wow, that was really fast. That's covering a lot of ground.' I ended up throwing my first completion and interception for a touchdown all on the same pass. When I came to the sidelines, all the guys were laughing and one of them said to me, "It's fast, isn't it?' After a while, I think I finally settled down. And that's what I'm working on now. Trying to make better decisions."

Where's the game?

Peyton Manning and I had the same problem in Terre Haute, Ind. on Sunday night. I couldn't find a bar that had the NFL Network in order to watch some of the Saints-Steelers' preseason game. Manning couldn't get the game, either, from his dorm room at training camp.

"You have to tell the league they have to fix this," Manning said. "It doesn't make sense to have the first preseason game on their network and we can't watch it. This shouldn't be happening."

Camp Cupcake

This is the reference line to how new Cowboys coach Wade Phillips is running his training camp. At least, this is the observers' view of camp when compared to four summers under Bill Parcells.

Phillips has always been known as a players' coach and practices have been a little milder until Monday's when a couple of fights broke out, one initiated by running back Julius Jones.

There are a couple NFC general managers, though, who are worried about the Cowboys, believing that Phillips will really improve the play of pass rusher DeMarcus Ware and safety Roy Williams. If Tony Romo can improve, Dallas is being discussed as a potential playoff contender to Chicago and New Orleans.

With Raiders owner Al Davis admitting his club’s frustration over potentially paying a $17 million option bonus to No. 1 pick JaMarcus Russell, it’s impossible to say which way this contract turns if reports are accurate that receiver Calvin Johnson, the second overall selection in last April’s draft, received $27.5 million in guaranteed money today from the Detroit Lions.

Specific details on Johnson’s contract haven’t been released, but most believe to reach that $27.5 million level the Lions had to use an option-bonus format. Detroit had a smaller rookie pool number than the Raiders to negotiate with.

The Raiders simply don’t want to pay huge option bonuses to their future quarterback without any forfeiture clauses. The entire league is waiting to see how the Russell contract will be structured simply because of its future implications with other top draft picks. Plus, most salary cap experts believe the Raiders will never get to $30 million in guaranteed money and that Russell may want more than that.

There has been some speculation that Oakland’s total guaranteed money offer is $24 million, or what the 49ers gave Alex Smith two years ago. But that doesn’t make much sense, either.

Minter struggling Teams never know when certain veterans are going to hit the wall physically, but Carolina’s trade for Bears safety Chris Harris on Thursday puts an exclamation point on free safety Mike Minter’s tenuous future with the Panthers. Minter may still have a job, but he may not longer be a starter. What is scary for the Panthers, who still have one of the game’s best defensive lines, is that Harris is a physical hitter but Chicago thought he was a step slow in pass coverage. The other starting safety in Carolina is inexperienced Nate Salley.

Speaking of the Panthers, defensive tackle Kris Jenkins is working himself back into shape and he may actually weigh a little less than fellow tackle Ma’ake Kemoeatu. They are both in the 360-pound range at the moment. Many think that Jenkins, who has been slowed by injuries for a couple of seasons, could be on the verge of returning to his 2003 form when he was the game’s best interior defensive lineman.

More money for Smith?

The reverberations of the Dwight Freeney contract seem to be headed toward New Orleans. Will Smith, the Saints’ excellent young defensive end, is entering his fourth NFL season. He had 10½ sacks last season and has forced 11 fumbles in his career. According to some agents, the Saints have started to discuss a big money extension with the player who still has one more season before hitting free-agency.

 

Petrino likes Ray Rice

 

Atlanta head coach Bobby Petrino still shakes his head over his tough loss to Rutgers last season while coaching Louisville. Petrino says he will still keep tabs on college football this season. Asked if he will devote hours on Saturday watching college games like Steve Spurrier did when he coached the Redskins, Petrino laughed and said he doubted that he would do that.

 

There is no question that Petrino thinks that Rutgers’ rugged running back Ray Rice will be a first-round pick when he’s available for the NFL draft.

 

He’s so physical and his legs are so big and strong,” Petrino said of Rice. “People bounce off of him and in the fourth quarter he’s really good, which is the best indicator o####ood back. He gets stronger as the game goes on.”

 

Cleveland Comebacks

 

The Browns have to be very encouraged with how great tight end Kellen Winslow, Jr. looks in training camp. Winslow looks as good as new after microfracture surgery on his right knee. That operation was his third one on the knee.

 

Also, cornerback Gary Baxter is limited, but shows signs of being able to play this season after having surgery on both of his patellar tendons last October. I don’t think any NFL player has ever returned to be a starter in the league after such drastic operations.

 

And the news is also good on center LeCharles Bentley. The word is that Bentley should be playing in September and that the coaching staff simply wanted to postpone his return to practice in order to keep a roster spot available for a younger player. If the Browns activated Bentley now and passed him physically, they would have to release someone else. Why rush him into the fray early in camp when there’s still plenty of time to get him ready?

 

And, finally, everyone is raving about the slimmer Jamal Lewis, who is less than 240 pounds, who sounds like he’s ready to prove a point to his former team, the Ravens, and everyone else for thinking he might be finished as a big-time running back.

 

The Jenny Craig Line

 

There are few things missing in Arizona this training camp. First, Edgerrin James removed his familiar gold teeth and put them in a very safe place. Edge claims he’s still the same dude, but the smile is lot tamer.

 

But the most noticeable sight is the weight loss of Edge’s offensive line. They seem to be determined to impre