Category: NFL (Page 802 of 1282)

Rams rumored to be shopping Orlando Pace and Torry Holt

The St. Louis Rams might be willing to part with long-time veterans Orlando Pace and Torry Holt this offseason.

Torry HoltThat bring us to Holt and Pace. The Rams would free up $8 million of cap space by cutting or trading Holt by June 1. They’d save $6 million by cutting or trading Pace by June 1.

So in essence, the Rams would double their cap room — from $14 million to $28 million — by dispatching Pace and Holt. These would not be easy decisions. Pace and Holt have been to seven Pro Bowls a piece. They were mainstays of the Greatest Show on Turf squads. They have conducted themselves in exemplary fashion on and off the field in St. Louis.

But with the arrival of Spagnuolo, the franchise is two coaching tenures removed from the “glory days” of Rams football. Will the wave of change sweeping over Rams Park extend to Pace and Holt — a pair of Hall of Fame candidates?

League sources told the Post-Dispatch that an NFL club — believed to be Tennessee — was offering a first-round pick for Holt before the trading deadline last fall. The Rams decided against making the trade, the source said.

It must be tough for a team to part with franchise-type players, but all good things must come to an end. The Rams need to turn a new leaf and what better way then to hire a new head coach and part with some of the aging veterans? These guys can’t play forever and as sad as it would be for some St. Louis fans not to see Pace and Holt in Ram uniforms next year, it’s an inevitable process. This team needs a new core group of players.

Martz to run Cardinals’ offense in 2009?

Could the NFC Champions considering hiring the “Mad Scientist” to run their offense in 2009?

Mike MartzFile this one in the rumor category . . . but I’ve heard that the Cardinals called the 49ers on Friday to ask for the cell number of Mike Martz, whom Singletary fired two days after the season. I have not been able to confirm this happened, so take it for what it’s worth.

So might Whisenhunt seriously consider Martz as the man to take over the offense? Might that help convince Kurt Warner to go ahead and sign a two-year deal to remain with the Cardinals? Certainly, the Cardinals’ talent on offense would seem to be a better fit for Martz’s offensive style than what he had last season with the 49ers.

Even though it’s only a rumor it’s certainly a viable one. Warner and Martz have worked together before and considering the Cardinals don’t have much of a running game for Mad Martz to ruin, this could be a nice match.

Could you imagine what Larry Fitzgerald, Steve Breaston and Anquan Boldin (assuming he’s still in ‘Zona next year) could do in Martz’s offense? Wow.

Jamal Anderson busted on drug charges

This is a surprise.

Former Atlanta Falcons running back Jamal Anderson was arrested and booked into an Atlanta-area jail late Saturday night on a felony possession-of-cocaine charge and possession-of-marijuana charge, a misdemeanor.

Anderson, an NFL analyst for ESPN’s First Take this past season, was booked into the Fulton County jail in Georgia and denied bond.

His first hearing was set for Monday morning, the Fulton County sheriff’s office said Sunday.

Anderson, 36, was arrested at the Peachtree Tavern in the community of Buckhead after an off-duty officer working security at the club alerted police, according to The Associated Press, citing a police spokesman.

Police found a suspected marijuana cigarette in Anderson’s pocket, local reports said. Another man with Anderson was also arrested. Police said both men were in possession of cocaine, according to the reports.

Anderson never struck me as someone who would get into this kind of trouble, but who knows these days. The marijuana is not the big deal here. The hysteria surrounding the Michael Phelps story is absurd, but cocaine is another matter.

Cards could face major changes next season

The Arizona Cardinals aren’t even a week removed from losing Super Bowl XLIII and already they need to fill both coordinator positions, convince starting quarterback Kurt Warner to return next season and deal with wide receiver Anquan Boldin’s continued unhappiness. Oh yeah, and linebacker Karlos Dansby is also set to become a free agent.

On Friday, the Chiefs hired Todd Haley – the mastermind behind the Cardinals’ dynamic offense in 2008 – to become their next head coach. Not 24 hours later, Arizona fired coordinator Clancy Pendergast, despite his success coming up with defensive schemes to thwart top NFC runners Michael Turner, DeAngelo Williams, Brian Westbrook and Willie Parker in the playoffs.

The loss of Haley is significant because he developed all the game plans and called the plays for the Cards’ biggest strength: their offense. It’s unsure at this point why the team fired Pendergast, but the franchise must have someone waiting in the wings because you don’t make a dramatic move like that without having a game plan in place.

If Arizona can’t re-sign Warner and Dansby, then has to part with Boldin because they can’t appease his contract demands, then we could be looking at a very different Cardinals team than the one that took the field last Sunday in the Super Bowl. By all accounts, the team shouldn’t have much of a problem convincing Warner to return, but Dansby will be a highly sought-after free agent who is only 27 and in the prime of his career.

Boldin’s situation is a different animal. He requested that the team trade him last preseason due to a lack of contract respect, and then threw a tantrum on the sidelines during the NFC Championship Game because Haley replaced him during a pivotal offensive series. Just recently, Boldin said that his relationship with the Cardinals was irreparable. At the end of the day, the team might not have a choice but to cut ties with the underrated receiver and trade him so his situation doesn’t continue to be a distraction.

In order for the Cards not take a major step back, the two coordinators that the team chooses will need to be sound hires. It would be wise for Arizona to then make re-signing Warner and Dansby their next priority, and then deal with Boldin since he’s already under contract and can’t bolt on his own accord. Nevertheless, this will be an interesting offseason in Arizona.

Top 10 active NFL passing leaders

The 2008 NFL season is now in the books. Well, unless you love football so much that you actually watch and care about the Pro Bowl tomorrow. You know how I would care about it? If I was in Hawaii. But that’s just me. Anyway, as some of the game’s great quarterbacks padded their career stats, let’s take a look at the active Top 10 in passing yards:

1. Brett Favre, New York Jets (65,127)—Sure, he led the NFL in interceptions this past season with 22, but Favre threw for 3472 yards and 22 touchdowns. Will this number stand, or will Favre add to it? I think I speak for every sportswriter out there when I say I’m tired of reading about and writing about Favre’s impending retirement.

2. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts (45,628)—With 20,000 yards to catch Favre, it will take Manning, who has averaged over 4000 yards per season for 11 years, another five seasons to get there. Manning is only 32, so I’d bet on that. Well, unless Favre retires and unretires a few more times.

3. Kerry Collins, Tennessee Titans (37,393)—It’s hard to believe Collins is only 36 years old, and leading the Titans to the best record in the NFL in 2008 sparked a fire under him. And that fire will continue to burn in Nashville despite how Vince Young feels about it.

4. Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia Eagles (29,320)—McNabb is 82-45-1 as a starter over 10 seasons in Philly. Wait, can NFL games end in ties? Anyway, McNabb has thrown 194 touchdowns with just 90 interceptions. But the guy has no rings, and was so nervous in his lone Super Bowl appearance that he vomited in the huddle. I don’t get it.

5. Brad Johnson, Dallas Cowboys (29,054)—Johnson stopped putting up meaningful numbers a few seasons ago, and he looked awful for those three games he started in place of Tony Romo this year. Let’s just say we shouldn’t expect ol’ Brad to reach 30,000 passing yards for his career.

6. Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals (28,591)—Okay, so he didn’t win his second Super Bowl ring, but Warner still has an amazingly accurate arm at 37. He said he won’t tease us all with retirement talk ala Favre, but my feeling is he’s not anywhere close to being done.

7. Trent Green, St. Louis Rams (28,475)—Green has started the equivalent of one season’s games over the past three, and he’s taken some brutal hits that have left given him multiple concussions. If I was Green, and I know I’m not, I would hang it up now.

8. Jon Kitna, Detroit Lions (27,293)—Kitna has had some bad luck. He played on some bad Bengals teams and then signed with the Lions in 2006. And though Kitna went down with an injury after four games this past season, he still was part of the first 0-16 team in NFL history.

9. Tom Brady, New England Patriots (26,446)—Here’s the irony. Brady had 76 passing yards before a brutal knee injury ended his season in Week 1. If he had played 16 games, there’s a very good chance he’d be as high as fourth on this list today.

10. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints (26,258)—Brees came within 15 yards of Dan Marino’s single season record of 5084 passing yards, but he still made fantasy owners happy, and still climbed onto this list as a result.

Source: Pro Football Reference

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