---

POSTED 10:41 p.m. EST, March 30, 2006

CASSERLY SAYS TEXANS HAVE "VERBAL AGREEMENT" WITH MOULDS

Texans G.M. Charley Casserly says that his team has reached a "verbal agreement" with Bills receiver Eric Moulds regarding a contract, if the Texans likewise can reach an actual agreement with Moulds' current team regarding a trade.

However, Casserly tells WHAM-TV in Rochester that there are "many dots to be connected" before a deal is done.

Meanwhile, Moulds can now shop the "verbal agreement" with the Texans to another team, such as the Eagles.

The Bills are believed to want a fourth-round pick or a fifth-round pick in exchange for the veteran Pro Bowler.

---

SAM I AM ALMOST A BENGAL

Defensive tackle Sam Adams is close to becoming a member of the Cincinnati Bengals.

Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com reports that a three-year deal for the veteran line clogger is "imminent." 

Adams, 33, goes 340 pounds and is one of the premier run stuffers in the NFL.  He previously played for Bengals coach Marvin Lewis when Lewis was the defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens.

The deal, per Hobson, is worth $3 million in 2006 -- and up to $4 million with incentives.

---

POSTED 4:22 p.m. EST; UPDATED 5:04 p.m. EST, March 30, 2006

MOULDS HEADED OUT OF BUFFALO?

The team eventually could be leaving town.  For now, it looks like its star receiver will be on the move.

John Clayton of ESPN.com reports that the Buffalo Bills are close to trading Eric Moulds to the Texans or the Eagles.  WIP Radio in Philly has reported that Moulds and the Texans have struck a deal as to his contract, which means that the only impediment is an agreement between the Bills and Texans as to the terms of the trade.

Moulds reportedly wants a three-year deal worth $5 million a season, and the Bills reportedly want a fourth-round pick.  Both, in our view, are bargains -- especially since the draft does not contain an excessive amount of quality pass-catchers this year.

The Bills have asked Moulds on multiple occasions to take a pay cut, and he has declined.  More recently, the team permitted Moulds to set up a trade.

---

THURSDAY AFTERNOON ONE-LINERS

Coach Chin will be the cover boy for a new NFL video game that focuses on strategy, not game play.

Watching too many sporting events in the television room equals no sporting events in the bedroom.

Tory Woodbury is keeping a diary of his experiences in NFL Europe.  (Day 1:  "I didn't know white people could smell so bad.")

Seahawks WR Darrell Jackson (knee) is out until the start of training camp.

Balco founder Victor Conte is free after four months in prison (so the last thing he wants to talk about is taking shots of anything in the butt).

Panthers coach John Fox, on the tit-for-tat between the Vikings and Seahawks regarding poison pilled offer sheets:  "I think when emotions get involved, the best decisions aren't always made," Fox said. "I'm not saying that was the case here. . . .  I guess I am saying that was the case here."

The Big Show regrets not putting the big tag on the big guard who gave his old team the big finger.

Former Rams coach Mike Martz and Rams RB Steven Jackson disagree on whether Jackson was in Martz's doghouse in 2005. 

Massachusetts high schools are adopting instant replay.  (Editor's note:  This item apparently was an early April Fool's joke.  If so, it really wasn't very funny.)  

The Jets have signed CB Andre Dyson to a five-year, $11.5 million contract with $3 million in bonuses.

Bucs coach Jon Gruden wants WR Michael Clayton to step it up in 2006.

The decision of the Commish not to fine Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren for his post-Super Bowl comments critical of the officials serves only to confirm that the rules don't mean crap, because in the end the NFL is going to do whatever it wants to do in any given situation.

---

POSTED 12:43 p.m. EST; UPDATED 1:15 p.m. EST, March 30, 2006

DUNN PREPARING FOR THE INEVITABLE

For more than three years, the NFL Players Association has been trying to impose a two-year suspension on agent David Dunn.  As we hear it, Dunn is now coming to grips with the likelihood that he soon will have to contend with a 731-day time out.

A league source tells us that Dunn is attempting to steer clients to his partner, Joby Branion, during Dunn's suspension.  Dunn then would resume the representation after his suspension ends.

The NFLPA's agent regulations prohibit a Contract Advisor from "[e]ntering into any business relationship with another Contract Advisor to share fees and/or provide negotiation services for players during a time period commencing when a Disciplinary Complaint has been filed against such Contract Advisor pursuant to Section 6 of these Regulations and ending when disciplinary sanctions become final or, if the sanctions include a suspension or revocation of Certification, at the end of the period of the suspension."  In English, another agent can't agree to step in and take over another guy's practice while the guy is on suspension, and the other agent definitely can't promise to funnel a pie of the piece to the agent on suspension.  

It's unclear whether this provision applies where an agent turns over his clients to one of the partners in a pre-existing practice that already provides for a full or partial sharing of the agents' revenues.  The plain language of the rule, however, suggests that it does. 

We'd previously heard scuttlebutt that Don Yee would become the front man for Dunn's clients while Dunn is serving his suspension.  Perhaps, in the end, Yee realized that he might be getting himself in trouble if he enters into such an arrangement -- especially if Dunn is looking to get a chunk of the cookie while he otherwise sits in the corner.

Dunn's suspension arose from testimony given during the trial of the lawsuit filed after Dunn left Leigh Steinberg's firm, allegedly taking clients who were under contract with Steinberg.  The eight-figure adverse verdict entered against Dunn enabled him to file bankruptcy, which blocked the NFLPA's efforts to impose the suspension.

But the NFLPA has not relented.  We've heard that union president Troy Vincent has vowed that the organization will eventually "get" Dunn.  Given everything that has transpired, we have a feeling that the NFLPA will also be inclined to "get" anyone who tries to help him continue to work as an NFL agent during the looming suspension.

---

SOME CLARIFICATION ON THE FUTURE OF PFT

In the interests of clearing up any confusion we might have created on Wednesday regarding our new arrangement with Sprint, we need to stress that all of our content will still be available on the web free of charge even after we begin sending wireless updates to the Sprint and NEXTEL phone networks.  The wireless updates (e.g., "Kellen Winslow just fell off of his couch") will be available exclusively to Sprint and NEXTEL customers.

So don't fret, PFT fans.  The site won't change at all.

But, of course, you'll only get our wireless updates if you get your Sprint and/or NEXTEL phones.

---

POSTED 12:12 p.m. EST, March 30, 2006

BILLS A PRIME CANDIDATE FOR L.A?

In response to our story regarding the possible candidates for a move to Los Angeles, one league source has advised us that he believes the Buffalo Bills are a prime candidate to ultimately fill the market that was vacated more than a decade ago by the Raiders and the Rams.

"Their owner is 88 years old," said the source.  "The team will be sold when he dies.  Their lease is very easy to get out of, and the economy of Buffalo and ability for the team to make money outside of ticket sales is probably the worst in the league.  Their season ticket base may be the worst in the league."

As we said earlier on Thursday, one of the current teams will make the move, possibly by the end of the decade.

If the team that moves is the Bills, we wonder whether the franchise will change its nickname.  While even suggesting such a thing likely constitutes a second-degree felony within the greater Buffalo area, "Los Angeles Bills" just doesn't sound right.  

Sure, the NBA's Lakers kept their name when they moved from the land of 10,000 of inland bodies of water to the land of 10,000 pockets of smog, but the "L" thing made it sound okay.  Maybe the Bills become the "Los Angeles Buffaloes" or the "L.A. Bulls" or something close to the current name.  Or maybe they go the way of the Oilers, which became the Titans after the team moved to Tennessee.

Regardless, the franchise currently known as the Buffalo Bills should be considered as a possible candidate for a move to Los Angeles -- and that unfortunately could mean the disappearance of a very important aspect of the league's history.

---

POSTED 7:43 a.m. EST, March 30, 2006

JAGS NOT AN L.A. CANDIDATE

Vito Stellino of the Florida Times-Union reports that Jacksonville Jaguars owner Wayne Weaver has said that he won't be moving his team to Los Angeles.

"Jacksonville is not going to L.A.," he said.  "We're not a contender for L.A."

Fine.  But don't you think every owner would say the same thing right now?  It's nearly April, and tickets need to be sold and buzz needs to be created for the coming campaign.

But the various news items regarding the NFL's ongoing desire to put a team back in Los Angeles (indeed, there's talk in some circles of two teams eventually landing there) means that, absent expansion, one or two of the current franchises will move.

And in a league that has become obsessed with the obligation of each franchise to earn as much money as possible, it makes sense that teams in underperforming markets will be the prime candidates to relocate.

If the Jags aren't on that short list, then who is?  Arizona?  They're getting a brand new stadium in the desert, so they're not going anywhere.  Besides, the Cards aren't coming up short in the earnings department because of their location, but because of their ownership.

The potential pool of candidates to move, as we see it, are teams that either have yet to leverage a new stadium in their current geography or who aren't making much money in a venue that is more than five years old.  And that means the teams who could move are the Bills, Jags, Chiefs, Chargers, Vikings, and Saints.  We'll throw the Cowboys into the mix as well since we don't know what the hell is going on with their quest for a new stadium -- and since we're convinced that Jerry Jones would move "America's Team" anywhere in "America" if he thought he'd come out of the transaction with more money in his man purse.

So despite what Weaver says now, his team is in the mix.  And Weaver likely will be more inclined to think in those terms when he sees that the team's 12-4 season in 2005 has not translated into a sold out stadium on a weekly basis in 2006.

---

CHILDRESS ACTS LIKE A CHILD

You'd think that Vikings coach Brad Childress has better things to do.  The draft is less than a month away.  Minicamps are coming up.  Potential free agents are still floating around.

But yet Childress still has time to continue to pick at the scab on his butt otherwise known as Daunte Culpepper.

Although Childress previously has vowed that he was done talking about Culpepper, the rookie head coach can't help himself, it seems.  This time around, Childress is dissing Daunte's decision to rehab his shredded knee in a location that, in Brad's apparent view, isn't good enough for an NFL quarterback.

"He's rehabbing in a HealthSouth place in Orlando. . . .  I close my eyes.  I'm seeing a Chinese restaurant, a HealthSouth place, a laundromat.  Basically a strip mall that he's rehabbing himself at.  And I'm thinking, what did they have in there?  They had a StepMaster and some other things.  In other words, all the modalities we have in our training room, all the different things [he didn't have]. . . .  I just thought it would be better [to train in Minnesota]."

Childress said that, when trainer Eric Sugarman went to Florida in February to check out Culpepper's progress, the quarterback agreed to attempt some basic movement drills.   To do the drills, Culpepper led Sugarman out of the rehab facility -- and into the parking lot of a Wal-Mart.

"So you can understand where I'm coming from," Childress said.  "The Chinese restaurant, the laundromat, then he's in an alley, out the back door and into the Wal-Mart parking lot.  I'm like, 'What's wrong with this picture?' . . .  This is our franchise quarterback. . . .  Is he better served here in the fieldhouse or in the Wal-Mart parking lot?"

In our view, Childress is better served shutting his yap about Culpepper, and then sticking to his vow to do so.

But, you see, the problem could be that the Triangle of Authority is feeling more than a little nervous about the possibility that Culpepper will make them look like a Circlejerk of Fools for trading him away for a second-round pick in the April draft, and so Childress naturally feels compelled to continue to explain in March, April, May, and June the basis for a decision that could end up coming off as a very bad one come September, October, November, December, January, and/or February. 

Really, do you think it's a coincidence that Childress broke his promise to not say anything more about Culpepper the day after the NFL announced that Culpepper's new team will be playing in the national spotlight on the two biggest Thursdays of the league year?

We sure don't. 

And we also think there's a strong correlation between a man's ability to hold his tongue and his ability to lead others effectively.

But what, you ask, should Childress have done differently?  If, as it seems, Culpepper was making poor decisions about the process for rehabbing his surgically repaired knee, how should Childress have made it known?

The answer is easy, friends.   The coach, or others in the organization, should have leaked the information on an off-the-record basis to the media.  That way, the story would have gotten out, without Childress having to say another public word about the situation.

One last note on this.  Moving forward, Childress needs to keep in mind that Culpepper is now the property of another team.  Under league rules, Childress really shouldn't be saying anything at all about him.  So maybe the league office will do us all a favor and remind Brad that the time has come to zip his lip regarding the guy that he traded away.

---

THURSDAY MORNING ONE-LINERS

Packers coach Mike McCarthy kinda-sorta blames Mike Sherman for Lord Favre's interception-fest of 2005.

The 'Skins could be interested in LB Nate Wayne and/or LB Keith Adams.

Fat Albert's base salary has shot to $3.6 million due to a contract escalator; his cap number is now $6.2 million.

The Big Show could be angling to become a G.M. again (possibly without the title of head coach).

There's no way in hell that Tags is out by July 2006.

Titans owner Bud Adams apparently wants his team to take a quarterback at the top of round one.

Redskins coach Joe Gibbs explains why it's hard for the defending champ to get back to the top of the mountain.

Mike Pereira is going to check out NASCAR's advanced system for replay review (could it be that someone in the league office with more than a little juice reads our stuff . . . and sometimes agrees with it?).

Dookie's deal was for the one-year minimum.

Randy Moss will return to Minnesota for a preseason get-together.

There's no indication that the Vikings will challenge the poison pills contained in the Nate Burleson offer sheet, which means that the team most likely won't match the deal and allow Burleson to leave for Seattle in exchange for a third-round pick in the draft.

QB Jason Campbell reportedly "will be given a chance" to win the No. 2 job behind Mark Brunell in Washington (we're glad to hear that since, you know, the team burned a first-round pick on the guy in 2005).

OT Brad Hopkins is "leaning toward retirement" (and we're "leaning toward not giving a sh-t"). 

---

POSTED 12:14 a.m. EST, March 30, 2006

PACKERS SPLIT ON WHETHER THEY WANT FAVRE

Although we've heard on multiple occasions that Packers quarterback Brett Favre has informed the team that he plans to play in 2006, we're now told that there is and has been a difference of opinion within management of the organization as to whether he should return.

For those in the front office and coaching staff who don't want Favre back for another season, the concern is that the fans would revolt if the team were to nudge him into retirement or, even worse, to another team.

We've heard that Favre isn't fond of G.M. Ted Thompson, and we have a feeling that Thompson wouldn't shed too many private tears if Favre were to pack up and leave.

Still, we think it's in the franchise's best interests for Favre to walk away.  If they were a player or two away from contending for the Super Bowl, it would be different.  As it stands, every year that Favre hangs around delays by one more year the team's ability to strip down and rebuild.

Why else do you think Thompson insists on banking all of that cap room?  He can use some of it during the season to lock up young players who are producing at a high level, and he can carry the rest of it into 2007 through dummy LTBE incentives.

---

EARLY THURSDAY MORNING ONE-LINERS

From the "How Can We Get Rid Of This Guy Without Firing Him?" file, Texans G.M. Charley Casserly is a top candidate to replace Art Shell in the league office.  (The Packers have also floated Lord Favre's name for the job.)

QB Jon Kitna is currently at the top of the depth chart in Motown.

The Packers say there's no deadline for Lord Favre's decision.

The Broncos have re-signed LB Keith Burns.

The Bengals have re-signed LB Hannibal Navies to a one-year deal.

The 49ers have re-signed TE Terry Jones.

The Fins have re-signed RB Sammy Morris.

Hours after the St. Louis chapter of the NAACP said that it would attempt to secure the reinstatement of radio host Dave Lenihan, who used a racial slur last week while discussing the possibility that Condoleezza Rice will be the next NFL Commissioner, Lenihan and KTRS agreed to part ways.

The bidding for NFL.com could involve some extremely serious jackola.

Click here for our NFL news and analysis from March 29.  (Or you can watch reruns of MadTV, which are actually funnier than any of the new crap that SNL offers up.)