POSTED 10:49 p.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

JAMES STILL IN 'ZONA

 

Running back Edgerrin James stayed in Arizona through Saturday, and he's attending the Phoenix Suns' game on Saturday night with Kendrick Clancy and Milford Brown.

 

All three visited with the team on Saturday, and Clancy signed a four-year, $8.1 million deal.

 

We're told that the Cards plan to make a big push to get James under contract, even though coach Dennis Green recently said that the team won't pursue any big-ticket free agents.

 

POSTED 6:50 p.m. EST; UPDATED 7:00 p.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

PRYCE IS RIGHT IN BALTIMORE

 

A league source tells us that defensive lineman Trevor Pryce will soon be signing with the Ravens.

 

Per the source, Pryce will sign a five-year, $25 million deal, with a $10 million signing bonus.

 

Pryce was cut by the Broncos on March 1, after spending his entire career there.

 

In 2005, Pryce started in every game, and recorded 31 tackles, two assists, and four sacks.

 

VIKES BLOWING SMOKE ON DAUNTE?

 

With the first day of the 2006 league year coming to an end, we're starting to wonder whether the Minnesota Vikings were telling tales when they leaked on Thursday the news that they soon would have a trade partner for quarterback Daunte Culpepper.

 

In the two days since, various teams have been scratched from the list of potential candidates.  Our current best guess is that the only team seriously interested in Culpepper is Miami, assuming that the Fins don't manage to ink Drew Brees to a contract before he signs with the Saints.

 

There are reports that the price tag remains a second-round pick, consistent with our initial report on the matter from a month ago. 

 

By indicating on Thursday night that a deal would be done within 24 hours but withholding the name of the team who was interested, the Vikings might have been hoping to churn up interest in order to get something/anything for a guy who is destined to be cut before his $6 million roster bonus comes due.

 

POSTED 6:22 p.m. EST; LAST UPDATED 6:50 p.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

JAGS SIGN WILLIAMS

 

Sean Jensen of The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports that former Vikings cornerback Brian Williams has signed with the Jaguars, a day after the team revoked the transition tender.

 

He signed a six-year, $32 million deal with a $10 million signing bonus.  It's a deal the Vikes surely would not have matched, given the presence of Antoine Winfield and Fred Smoot.

 

Williams will be reuinted with former Vikings coach Mike "Meathead" Tice, who said after joining the Jags that he'd already spoked to one of his former Minnesota players about making the jump to Jacksonville.

 

Interestingly, it was Williams who lobbied Tice in 2005 to give receiver Koren Robinson a chance after his release from the Seahawks and treatment for alcohol dependency.  Now, Tice and Williams are together with a new team, and Robinson signed a new deal to stay in Minnesota.

 

As to Robinson, we've heard that his deal has an team option after the first year, in which he'll make only $3 million.

 

VIKES SIGN LONGWELL

 

A year ago, the Vikings signed kicker Paul Edinger of their NFC North rivals in Chicago.

 

It didn't quite work out.

 

So now the Vikings have looked to another NFC North foe, the Packers, for his replacement.

 

According to The Minneapolis Star Tribune, the Vikings have signed former Green Bay kicker Ryan Longwell.  Terms were not yet available.

 

The departure of Longwell from Green Bay could mean that the Pack will make a play for Adam Vinatieri of the Patriots.

 

SATURDAY EVENING ONE-LINERS

 

WR Joe Jurevicius has signed a four-year, $10 million deal with the Browns.

 

Former Seahawks S Marquand Manuel has signed a five-year, $10 million deal with the Packers, including a $2 million signing bonus.

 

The Bills have signed former Redskins TE Robert Royal to a four-year, $10 million deal with a $2.5 million signing bonus.

 

POSTED 2:35 p.m. EST; UPDATED 2:47 p.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

KEMOEATU MAKES MONEY

 

Adam Schefter of the NFL Network reports that the Panthers have snatched defensive tackle Maake Kemoeatu from the Ravens and other interested suitors with a five-year, $23 million contract including $8 million in guaranteed money.

 

The Ravens had targeted Kemoeatu as the free agent they most wanted to retain.  Also expected to pursue him were the Redskins and the Dolphins.

 

Though Kemoeatu is, on the surface, a replacement for Brentson Buckner, who was cut last week, we wonder whether Kemoeatu's arrival might spell eventual doom for Kris Jenkins, who has been plagued by injuries of late.  He has played in only five games the past two seasons.

 

RAMS LAND CHAVOUS

 

ESPN's Len Pasquarelli reports that the Rams have signed former Vikings safety Corey Chavous to a five-year deal.

 

His compensation for 2006, counting bonus and salary, will exceed $6 million.

 

The 30-year-old Chavous was unhappy a year ago with his contract in Minnesota, and he stayed away from most if not all offseason voluntary workouts.  The Vikings made no effort to re-sign him.

 

POSTED 1:58 p.m. EST; LAST UPDATED 2:10 p.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

BENTLEY GETS $12.5 MILLION GUARANTEED

 

Sean Jensen of The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports that center LeCharles Bentley's contract with the Browns is for six years and $36 million.

 

The package includes $12.5 million in guaranteed money and averages $6 million per year.

 

And we're continuing to hear that Bentley had a deal in place with the Eagles, but that the Browns got involved late in the game and offered more money.  Even though the Eagles might be miffed, we see it as the price a team pays for working out agreements before the period for properly working out agreements starts.

 

K-ROB GETS $10 MILLION IN BONUSES

 

Sean Jensen also reports that the contract signed by receiver Koren Robinson is worth $12.7 million over three years, with $10 million in bonus money. 

 

Of the bonus money, $5.5 million is guaranteed. 

 

Our guess is that the remaining $4.5 million is in the form of annual and/or periodic roster bonuses aimed at protecting the team against a relapse by Robinson of turdish conduct.

 

LEBER VISITS VIKES

 

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports the Vikings are bringing in linebacker Ben Leber on Saturday for a visit.  On Sunday, Leber reported on "buzz" that a deal already was in place between the Vikes and the four-year Chargers defender.

 

As the Eagles learned on Saturday, however, deals in principle don't mean poopie.

 

POSTED 1:35 p.m. EST; UPDATED 1:50 p.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

GIVENS HAD NO DEAL WITH BROWNS

 

A league source tells us that, despite a Friday night posting on the team's official web site that an agreement had been reached between the Browns and receiver David Givens, no deal ever was in place.

 

Per the source, the Browns never even made a financial offer to Givens.  Although there might have been some "off the record"/hypothetical contact between the Browns and his agent, Brad Blank, at the scouting combine, word is that no numbers ever were discussed between Cleveland and Blank, either before or after the start of free agency.

 

So how then did the story of Given's arrival end up on the team's web site?  Our best semi-educated guess, based on the info we've gathered, is that Browns reporter Zac Jackson had articles already written regarding the signing of Givens.  Indeed, a reader told us that there were other postings, which have since been erased, announcing the signing of punter Dave Zastudil and the re-signing of left tackle L.J. Shelton.  Neither has occurred.

 

And we simply don't buy the hacker theory that Blank floated on Saturday to ESPN.  Hackers wouldn't have screwed up the headline and the date of the item, and they likewise wouldn't have been able to cobble together something that looks like a story Jackson would have written.

 

The mistake was made when the pages got posted on the team's live site.

 

So it appears that Givens didn't renege on a deal with the Browns.

 

BROWNS BAG SHAFFER, TOO

 

ESPN's Len Pasquarelli reports that Browns have reached a verbal agreement with tackle Kevin Shaffer on a deal worth more than $5 million per year.

 

Shaffer joins center LeCharles Bentley as two new members of the Cleveland offensive line.

 

Look for the Browns to remain active, since they had $30 million or more in cap space entering free agency.

 

CLANCY IN THE CARDS

 

Adam Schefter of the NFL Network reports that defensive tackle Kendrick Clancy has reached an agreement with the Arizona Cardinals.

 

Clancy spent 2005 with the New York Giants after playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers.  There were reports that Clancy and the Giants were working on a new deal.  Because he had signed a contract in New York for the one-year minimum at a cap charge of only $460,000, the Giants were not permitted to strike a new agreement with him before the start of the 2006 league year.

 

But not long after the league year started, Clancy was on a plane for Arizona.  And not long after he landed, a deal was in place. 

 

POSTED 12:26 p.m. EST; UPDATED 12:31 p.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

BENTLEY BACKS OUT ON EAGLES

 

Mark Eckel of The Trenton Times accurately reported that center LeCharles Bentley had a deal in place with the Eagles.

 

In light of reports and rumors that Bentley is close to signing (or already has signed) with the Browns, we've learned from a league source that Bentley did indeed have a deal in place with the Eagles, and that Bentley has backed out of the verbal agreement.

 

Since the arrangement between the Eagles and Bentley was a violation of NFL rules, it is likewise unenforceable.  But we're told that the team is red-hot regarding the development. 

 

So look for Bentley to land with the Browns.  Unless, of course, he reneges on that deal, too.

 

GIVENS RENEGED ON BROWNS, TOO?

 

We've tracked down more information regarding the events that caused David Givens to go from being inadvertently announced as a new member of the Browns before free agency even started to dropping off of the team's radar screen altogether.

 

Givens, we hear, had a verbal deal in place with the Browns.  But, like LeCharles Bentley in Philly, Givens backed out, presumably because either or both of those teams came up with more money than the Browns had offered.

 

Now, Givens will focus on the Dolphins and the Texans.

 

POSTED 11:59 a.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

FINS TRY TO BOX OUT SAINTS ON BREES

 

Alex Marvez of The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that Dolphins coach Nick Saban and G.M. Randy Mueller traveled to Birmingham, Alabama on Saturday morning to meet with free-agent quarterback Drew Brees.

 

Brees also was scheduled to meet with the Saints on Saturday.

 

The soon-to-be-former Charger was scheduled to travel to Miami on Sunday for a visit, but Saban reportedly was concerned that Brees might cancel the trip and sign with the Saints.

 

Brees has been in Alabama for rehabilitation of a shoulder injury, which was surgically repaired earlier this year.

 

It recently was reported that the Saints, Lions, and Dolphins had made offers to Brees before the free agency period began.

 

POSTED 10:12 a.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

EDGE IN 'ZONA

 

The Cardinals have announced that running back Edgerrin James, defensive tackle Kendrick Clancy, and guard Milford Brown are visiting the team on Saturday, the first day of free agency.

 

Quarterback Kurt Warner said before re-signing with the team that he plans to lobby the organization to pursue James, who would be a solid complement to a stellar corps of young receivers.  It appears that the Colts are not making a serious play to retain James, who has spent seven seasons in Indianapolis.

 

Clancy spent last season with the Giants, who have been trying to re-sign him.  Brown was drafted by the Texans in 2002.

 

MORE SATURDAY MORNING ONE-LINERS

 

Now that hs can't sign with the Browns resulting inviting the league office to stick a microscope into certain orifices into which microscopes don't naturally fit, WR David Given plans to visit the Dolphins and the Texans.

 

The Packers could make a play for K Adam Vinatieri; team V.P. Andrew Brandt was at one time Vinatieri's agent.

 

The Titans are setting up individual workouts with the top three QB candidates in the draft.

 

The Ravens are talking to RB Jamal Lewis and RB Chester Taylor; if they can't retain either, they might make a run at RB Edgerrin James.

 

Although franchised DE John Abraham plans to visit four teams, there's corroboration in The Rocky Mountain News of our report that the Broncos and Jets are working toward getting a deal done.

 

Terry Bradshaw shows his ass in a new movie released on Friday (so how is that any different than every Sunday of the NFL season?).

 

S Marlon McCree is visiting with the Chargers.

 

From the "Someone Peed In Mike Vick's Gene Pool" file, the Saints plan to release QB Aaron Brooks.

 

Ken Berger of Newsday writes that franchised DE John Abraham will lose his right to negotiate with other teams in two weeks.  (Ken, maybe you should quit asking Bob Glauber questions about the CBA.)

 

The Bengals released DE Duane Clemons on Friday.

 

LB LaVar Arrington plans to visit the Giants as soon as Sunday.

 

POSTED 8:54 a.m. EST; UPDATED 9:22 a.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

LeCHARLES IN LeCHARGE

 

Mark Eckel of The Trenton Times reports that the Eagles reached agreement on a "mega-deal" with free agent center LeCharles Bentley, even before free agency launched.

 

A "key member" of another team told Eckel that the deal was in place for close to a week.

 

The agreement reportedly pays out $17.5 million in guaranteed money over the first three years of the deal.

 

Bentley was drafted by the Saints in 2002 from Ohio State.

 

SATURDAY MORNING ONE-LINERS

 

The Vikings reached agreement with WR Koren Robinson on a three-year deal.

 

RB Chester Taylor is visiting the Vikings on Saturday.

 

Twelve teams supposedly have expressed an interest in LB LaVar Arrington.

 

Former NFL RB Craig Heyward will undergo surgery for a second time to remove a recurring brain tumor.

 

Last year's Javon Walker is poised to be this year's T.O.

 

The Saints won't be able to bitch about the Eagles' tampering with C LeCharles Bentley, given that New Orleans reportedly is the destination to which QB Drew Brees was referring in his Friday comments.

 

Vikings WR Nate Burleson has fired his agent.

 

Add the Cardinals to the list of potential tamperers.  (Hell, add every team.)

 

The Fins plan to address the quarterback position before doing anything else in free agency.

 

The Falcons most likely will not retain OT Kevin Shaffer, who is now a free agent.

 

Sean Jensen of The St. Paul Pioneer Press narrows the field of potential Culpepper trade partners to the Dolphins, Lions, Cardinals, and Titans.

 

Though they'll be losing some of their money under the new revenue sharing plan, Texans owner Bob McNair doesn't intend to raise ticket prices (good move, Bob, considering that 2-14 record from last season).

 

POSTED 8:22 a.m. EST; UPDATED 8:47 a.m. EST, March 11, 2006

 

CLEVELAND STEPS IN SOMETHING BROWN?

 

We've been pounding away of late on the fact that teams rampantly have been tampering with free agents who weren't yet free -- and who thus were still the property of another team.

 

We've seen agents concede that tampering occurs, we've read reports of deals already done, and we spit our Kool-Aid against the computer screen on Friday night when we read comments from Drew Brees acknowledging that he's "already got things lined up" with other teams.

 

The Cleveland Browns might have taken the thing to a new level on Friday night, posting on their official web site a story announcing the signing of Patriots receiver David Givens before the official launch of free agency.

 

The article later was taken down.  But not before one of our readers could capture an image of the screen.

 

 

Here's the full text of the article, courtesy of another reader:

 

--------------------------------------

 

The Browns made an immediate splash in the free agent market Saturday by signing wide receiver David Givens.

Givens, who played his first four NFL seasons with the Patriots and won two Super Bowl championships, seems to be a perfect fit for a Browns team that made adding an experienced, reliable receiver a top offseason goal.

Givens bolsters a Browns' receiving corps that awaits the return of last year's top draft pick, Braylon Edwards, from a December ACL injury, and also features veteran Dennis Northcutt.

Last year's leading receiver, Antonio Bryant, is a free agent.

Givens, 25, caught a career-high 59 passes for 738 yards in 13 games last season. He caught 5 passes for 54 yards and a touchdown in the Patriots' playoff loss in Denver in January.

He posted a career-high 6 touchdowns in 2003, and had a career-high 874 receiving yards in 2004. His career totals include 158 receptions, 2,214 yards and 12 touchdowns; he's also the Patriots all-time leader in postseason touchdown receptions with 6.

Givens was a seventh round draft choice out of Notre Dame in 2002. He signed a one-year max tender with the Patriots last season as a restricted free agent.

In Cleveland, Givens is reunited with Romeo Crennel and assistant head coach Jeff Davidson. Crennel was previously the defensive coordinator in New England and Davidson coached the offensive line and tight ends. Browns Special Teams Coach Jerry Rosburg held the same position at Notre Dame for two of Givens' four seasons there. Givens blocked three punts while playing under Rosburg in 2000.

Givens played a limited offensive role and contributed on special teams as a Patriots rookie in 2002, when he caught 9 passes for 92 yards and a touchdown in 12 games. He caught 34 passes for 510 yards and 6 touchdowns in 2003 in 13 games (5 starts) in 2003, including a career-long 57-yarder.

His breakout season came in 2004, when he led the Patriots with 56 catches for 874 yards. He had four games with 100-plus receiving yards, a touchdown catch in each of the Patriots' three postseason games, and converted first downs on 47 of his 56 regular-season receptions.

 

--------------------------------------

 

Wow. 

 

Yet another reader explains to us that there were three separate press releases posted on the web site Friday night regarding the Browns' signing of Givens, of Ravens punter Dave Zastudil (another example of potential tampering), and the re-signing of left tackle L.J. Shelton.  The links to all three are now dead, leaving a gap of three consecutive numbers in the system used on the Browns' official site.

 

 

But numbers before and after 5199 through 5201 contain active stories.

 

ESPN reports that Givens' agent, Brad Blank, says that someone must have hacked into the Browns' web site.

 

As to the hacker defense, note in the screen capture that the date on the story is March 30, 2006 and that the title is "GIvens."  Would hackers have made such errors, when their sole objective is to create the appearance that their phony work isn't?  At a minimum, wouldn't they have inserted a title like "Browns sign David Givens"? 

 

Even if it this was the product of teenagers with nothing better to do on a Friday night (and who also happen to have the writing skills of an experienced sports journalist), there's enough smoke here to merit a look-see from the league office.

 

FOSTER RE-SIGNS WITH PANTHERS

 

We reported on Friday that the Panthers and Vikings could remove the transition tags from running back DeShaun Foster and cornerback Brian Williams, respectively.

 

And as it turns out, neither were restrained by the tag as 12:01 a.m. on Saturday.

 

The Vikings indeed stripped the transition tag from Williams.  Although others have suggested that the reason for the move was the spike in his tender (which would have left the Vikes with only $32 million or in cap space), the deeper reason was the fear that the new rules regarding transition tenders applied as of 12:01 a.m., allowing Williams to sign the offer and convert it into a fully-guaranteed payment.

 

As to Foster, the tag won't be necessary because, according to Jay Glazer of FOXSports.com, Foster has signed a three-year, $14.5 million deal to stay with the team.  The package could escalate to $17.5 million.

 

The previous thinking was that the Panthers had used the tag on Foster to give them a fallback in the event that they couldn't sign another running back on the open market.  But with Shaun Alexander gone, it appears that the Panthers weren't interested in any of the other available tailbacks.

 

Foster suffered a broken ankle in a playoff win at Chicago.  Injuries have marred his career, limiting him to only 33 games in four seasons.  His best effort came in 2005, in which he appeared in 15 games and rushed for 879 on 205 carries.

 

On average, the package is on par with deals signed a year ago by Raiders running back LaMont Jordan and Bengals running back Rudi Johnson.  But those deals were five years in length, which most likely allowed Jordan and Johnson to receive higher signing bonuses than the amount paid to Foster.

 

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