POSTED 10:13 p.m. EDT, April 21, 2006

GIANTS CLOSE TO LANDING LAVAR

Newsday reports that the New York Giants are close to signing free-agent linebacker LaVar Arrington.

And since the article wasn't written by Bob "T.O. Defeats Eagles" Glauber, we're prepared to say that the item is legit.

Arrington reportedly wants $18 million in guaranteed money.  He returned to New York for a second visit with the team on Thursday, and he took a physical.  We heard the physical included an MRI on his knee.

There have been rumblings that Arrington's knee has no cartilage, and that he will eventually need microfracture surgery.  Apparently, the Giants concluded otherwise, or they wouldn't be so close to doing the deal.

Meanwhile, the Packers have been advised that they are out of the Arrington derby.

POSTED 9:22 p.m. EDT, April 21, 2006

ESPN "DECISION MAKERS" PIECE CREATES A BUZZ

Though it's not our business to pimp the work product of other web sites, we're not going to ignore an item that has prompted plenty of attention and chatter in league circles.

We're told that the annual ESPN.com/Scouts, Inc. analysis of each NFL team's decision makers is raising plenty of eyebrows and causing quite a commotion -- but perhaps not for the reasons that the Boys in Bristol had intended.

Part of the problem, as some league sources see it, is that the item run without a byline.  Thus, there's no way to assess the credibility of the piece, since there's no way to know who wrote it.  Moreover, the absence of an identified author creates the possible impression that the information represents the "official" position of Scouts, Inc. and/or ESPN.com.

Why is any of this this relevant?  Because two of the current Scouts, Inc. employees -- Jeremy Green and Keith Kidd -- are former NFL scouts with possible axes to grind and/or asses to kiss among the ranks of the very personnel departments that are being evaluated.

And there are league insiders who believe that Green and Kidd had key roles in the compilation of the 2006 version of the review of who has the juice in each front office.

Both Green and Kidd worked for the Browns.  Kidd left when Dwight Clark departed in 2002, and Green was let go in early 2005.  Kidd also worked for the Patriots, "resigning" in February 2005.  (We hear that maybe it really wasn't a voluntary exit.)

And with both men now not working for NFL teams for more than a year, both arguably are hoping to re-enter the game at some point.  Possibly as soon as the shuffling that will occur after the 2006 draft.

Against this background, then, some of the opinions expressed by the unidentified author(s) of the analysis could make sense.

Starting with the AFC version of the report, Pats V.P. of player personnel Scott Pioli is described as a "'yes man,'" who "grabs the majority of the headlines."  (Yeah, that Pioli is always mugging for the camera.)  The report also claims that football research director Ernie Adams "will have as much input as Pioli on draft day," which makes us wonder whether Kidd will call Adams for a job if/when Adams gets a gig with hiring authority.

Next to get pitched under the bus without an identifiable driver is former Patriots defensive coordinator Eric Mangini.  Writes the unnamed writer:  "Mangini was a solid defensive coordinator in New England, but those close to the organization will tell you that player evaluations were not his strong suit." 

Next up -- the Browns and director of player personnel Bill Rees, who might have had a little input into the decision to dump director of pro personnel Jeremy Green:  "In the past Savage has relied heavily on his director of player personnel, Bill Rees.  However, Rees has terrible people skills and has basically alienated himself from everyone in the organization, including the college scouts.  Rees will have a reduced role on draft day and his job status will come under scrutiny once the draft has ended."   

On the NFC side of the equation, Cardinals coach Dennis Green and former Browns exec Lal Heneghan draw praise.

As to Green, the father of Jeremy:  "Dennis Green is the top guy in Arizona and more involved with personnel decisions than most head coaches around the league.  Green is very aggressive with his roster moves, which is in direct contrast to chairman and president William Bidwell's past philosophy.  Green knows exactly what he wants and does everything possible to get his guys."

Regarding Heneghan, who recently joined the 49ers:  "Scott McCloughan is second to Nolan, but he doesn't have the power that his title would indicate.  McCloughan seemed to be in over his head in terms of running and managing his department, but that's where the hiring of Heneghan should help."

Huh?  McCloughan is a personnel guy, and Heneghan is a contracts guy.  And Heneghan wasn't hired to help McCloughan, but to beef up a lackluster administrative operation featuring 20-something Paraag Marathe and soon-to-be-scuttled (we hear) Terry Tumey.

Look, we're not going to tell ESPN how to do its business.  (Okay, maybe we will.)  At a minimum, an editorial item masquerading as hard news at least should identify the author, and the author shouldn't be a guy who has held, or who could be looking for, a front-office job with any of the NFL teams.  Instead, the import of this piece requires, in our view, the direct involvement of one of the ESPN journalists with no history in a front office, and no desire to join one.  Otherwise, the breakdown of NFL decision makers can carry no credibility, because the reader has no way of assessing the potential biases and prejudices of those who compiled it.

With that said, we've got no problem with Kidd or Green serving as the sources for an item drafted by someone like Chris Mortensen or John Clayton, since both of those guys are trained to ferret through the inherent likes and dislikes of the folks who give them info, in the hopes of ensuring that the end result is accurate, fair, and balanced.

Though the decision makers report is intriguing, we simply don't know how much stock, if any, to put in the information, since we've got no idea who actually put the thing together.

POSTED 7:42 p.m. EDT; UPDATED 8:04 p.m. EDT, April 21, 2006

LEINART TEMPTING FATE WITH VEGAS PARTY?

In response to rumors of a lavish post-draft party in Vegas to be held by USC quarterback Matt Leinart, an industry source tells us that Leinart could be stirring up the football gods against him, if the reports are indeed accurate.

Per the source, former Chargers quarterback Ryan Leaf was in the process of being whisked from New York to San Diego on draft day 1998, via the Spanos family corporate jet.  A bash was scheduled for the next day at team headquarters to introduce the No. 2 overall selection.  Leaf asked if the plan could make a stop in Las Vegas, and the Spanoseses agreed.

Said the source:  "Leaf and a couple buddies were dropped off in Vegas where he was doing shooters most [of] the night at the blackjack tables; the traveling Spanos party went on to San Diego.  The jet was sent back to Vegas the next morning to retrieve a hung over Leaf, who was so delirious the next day that he promises taking the team to many Super Bowls (plural) in the future at the event at the Chargers' facility."

Tread lightly, Mr. Leinart.  After all, for every Peyton Manning, there's a Ryan Leaf.  In 2006, the odds are that one, maybe two, of the top three quarterback prospects won't pan out. 

Will Leinart be the one to succeed?  Only if what happens in Vegas really does stay in Vegas.

FOLEY'S ROLE IN JAX DEBATED

In response to our item from Friday morning regarding the decision of Vikings director of player personnel Fran Foley to tout on his resume the draft choices made during his stint with the Jaguars' pro personnel department, we've heard from multiple league sources who have opinions, and information, regarding the matter.

Said one source:  "[T]here is a certain amount of cross-pollination in our business. . . .  It’s not necessarily fair, in my opinion, to say that Foley had no part in certain players being drafted.  He may (or may not) have watched the tape and campaigned strongly for a particular player who ended up being good.  I don’t know because I don’t know the guy.  I know he’s not well-respected in our field.  It basically depends on his involvement in the draft process.  Just because he’s worked primarily in pro doesn’t mean he hasn’t contributed in college."

Other source having knowledge of Foley's work in Jacksonville, however, said that Foley had no role in the Jaguars' drafts.

"He had absolutely nothing to do with the draft except handle team needs and run the mock draft," said the source.  "When it came to the college draft, [coach Tom] Coughlin wanted nothing to do with the pro guys.  He totally relied on himself and the college scouts.  To be totally honest with you, one of Fran's great strengths was running Tom Coughlin's Charity Golf Tournament.  Fran is a good man and person but for him to make the final call in a draft room, I might have some questions about that."

Vikings owner Zygi Wilf has said that Foley will have the final say on draft day.  After the draft, Foley will decide whether the team will retain its staff of scouts and personnel execs.

Look, we're not wishing failure on the guy.  And we likely wouldn't have ever even focused on Foley's actual qualifications for the job he now holds if his bio hadn't contained one, or more, discrepancies.  Even if his "I didn't read my own resume" routine is the truth (and our bullpoopie meter honed through 15 years of practicing law indicates that it isn't), attention to detail is a critical attribute in any high end job.

Think about it this way.  Would Nick Saban allow his own resume to say anything other than the 100 percent accurate truth?  How about Bill Belichick?  The Tuna?

So this whole story, as trivial as it may seem on the surface, is evidence of a character flaw that will, in our estimation, eventually manifest itself at some point, to the detriment of the franchise.

POSTED 7:30 p.m. EDT, April 21, 2006

RUMORS OF COWBOYS-RAVENS DEAL ARE OFF THE MARK

It always pains us to be required to actually debunk rumors, since our primary endeavor is to monger them.  Still, at a time when phony information is moving through the grapevine faster than spoiled egg salad through a lactose intolerant Labrador, we feel compelled to speak out whenever we catch wind of something that is off the mark.

There are rumors making the rounds of a potential blockbuster trade between the Ravens and the Cowboys.  We've learned through a league source with knowledge of any such discussions that, well, there are no such discussions.

None.  Zero.

Really, what would the trade be?  Neither team holds a top ten pick.  Ray Lewis likely wants out of Baltimore, but the last place he'd want to go is to a team that runs a 3-4, since he needs a couple of wide bodies to prevent offensive linemen from knocking him on his butt. 

Who else?  Kyle Boller?  For who?  And why would the Cowboys want him?

Besides, any player-for-player trade likely wouldn't go down until after the draft, giving each team a chance to address any holes resulting from the move without other teams knowing that they suddenly have needs.

Before or after the draft, nothing is going down.

POSTED 4:58 p.m. EDT; UPDATED 6:33 p.m. EDT, April 21, 2006

POSTED 1:12 p.m. EDT; UPDATED 2:56 p.m. EDT, April 21, 2006

RAY-RAY SLAMS BRIAN THE BRAIN

Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis, who reportedly is unhappy with his current contract but who by all appearances will receive neither a new deal, a trade, or a release, has taken a public swipe at coach Brian Billick -- and another one at the organization.

Asked for his thoughts in a Comcast SportsNet interview regarding the decision of owner Steve Bisciotti to keep Billick for 2006, Lewis hesitated for effect. 

Said Billick in response:  "I saw the piece and I can't control the conclusions that people want to draw from anything that's said.  All I know is Ray is in the building.  Ray is interactive.  He's working hard and he's upbeat about going forward.  That's what I draw from a direct interaction with Ray."

In a subsequent interview with ESPN, Lewis was pointed in his criticism of the team's defense, which he surely assumes is responsible for the apparent diminution of his skills over the past few years.  He claims that the departure of defensive tackles Sam Adams and Tony Siragusa hurt his game. 

"We won the Super Bowl in 2000 because I had two guys in front of me that told me, 'You will not be touched.'  If you take that away from me, now I've got to alter, now I've got to bubble around people and that ain't my game.  When you took those guys away from me, you took a piece of me with them."

Still, Lewis claims that he doesn't want out.  We think.

"I've never told one time anybody in the organization that I don't want to be in Baltimore," Lewis said. "The issue is, are you going let me do what I do?' and if not, let me go.

"Baltimore is my city.  Traded?  Nah. But at the same time, it's just like any other businessman or businesswoman in America.  'What's better for me?'  Because if I'm not being used right, you may as well just let me go."

Our guess?  Lewis has resisted talking about the situation as long as he could.  Now that he has started, we don't think he'll be able to stop.

FRIDAY AFTERNOON ONE-LINERS

The Seahawks have cut C Joey Hollenbeck, CB Kevin House, CB Chonn Lacey, and CB Jeremy LeSueur.

2006 MVP Shaun Alexander will appear on the cover of Madden NFL 2007.

Agent Major Adams says that QB Vince Young's visit with the Jets "went real well."  (Major probably thought the same thing after Vince took the Wonderlic.)

The Nashville Tennessean finally has acknowledged the report from WKRN that provides key info regarding the relationship of Titans CB Pacman Jones with a suspected drug dealer.

The Eagles have extended president Joe Banner through the 2010 season.

The Panthers have signed LB Na'il Diggs.

Dolphins coach Nick Saban cites the tampering rule in response to questions regarding Lions QB Joey Harrington.  (Of course, the fact that Harrington has been permitted to shop himself via a trade is an exception, but relying on the tampering rule sounds a lot better than merely stonewalling.)

From the "Things That The Real Media Have Said That We Wouldn't" file (it's extremely thin, by the way), Gil Lebreton of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says that the Cowboys "are quietly frantic to get back to a Super Bowl before Bill Parcells has to be propped up like the guy in Weekend at Bernie's."

The judge in the Moe Williams case called the Love Boat a "floating orgy."

The Falcons have only drafted five players from the University of Georgia.

Former Giants DL Keith Hamilton, on probation for drug charges, will not receive jail time for hitting his 12-year-old son with an electric cord.  (It's good to see a guy living well after his NFL career ends.)

The Postons hope to get for LB LaVar Arrington the deal they landed for LB Julian Peterson with the Seahawks.  (And if they can't, we hope Arrington asks them why in the hell Peterson was the one that got the Seattle deal.)

Former Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil was approached by NBC and the NFL Network, but he says he isn't interested in a full-time routine.

POSTED 6:25 a.m. EDT, April 21, 2006

ADDITIONAL FOLEY RESUME FLAW CONFIRMED

When word broke earlier this week of a longstanding misrepresentation in the bio of Vikings director of player personnel Fran Foley, a league source pointed out to us that there likely was another flaw regarding the characterization of his early-career coaching credentials.

Foley's resume states that he was the defensive line coach at Colgate in 1984, the defensive ends coach at the Citadel in 1985, and the tight ends/specialists coach at Rutgers in 1986.  Our source explained to us that this information subtly overstates these positions by failing to omit that young coaches typically begin as "graduate assistants," which is a fancy-schmancy title for "kid who gets coffee for the real position coach."

Per Albert Breer of the Metro West Daily News, our source apparently is right on the money.  Framingham State athletic director Tom Kelley told Breer that Foley was a "grad assistant" at Colgate.

Is this a big deal?  We sure think so.  Lying is lying, regardless of whether it's blatant -- or whether it comes in the form of fuzzy details that are spun in a favorable light while still maintaining for the author a sense of plausible deniability.

On further review of Foley's bio, we've found even more evidence of unfair puffery.  Consider this statement regarding Foley's time with the Jaguars:  "There were 5 players drafted while Foley was on staff that were honored as Pro Bowlers, highlighted by T Tony Boselli and current DTs Marcus Stroud and John Henderson."

The problem, of course, is that Foley had no responsibility for college scouting while in Jacksonville.  Instead, he was the Assistant Director of Pro Personnel and the Director of Pro Scouting.  In NFL parlance, these titles means that Foley's responsibility was the assessment of guys who are already out of college and into the professional game.

In other words, Foley had no more role in drafting those players than the guy who plucks the beer bottles out of the toilets after home games.

Foley's resume similarly claims credit for draft decisions in San Diego -- even though he was merely the director of pro scouting there, too.

That's why experienced football people regard this issue as somewhat troubling.  As one league source asked us on Wednesday, "What in Fran Foley's bio gives him the experience to run a NFL personnel department?"

In all fairness, it's not unprecedented for a guy with experience primarily in college scouting or pro scouting to win a promotion to the top personnel job, but it usually happens for guys who have been associated on a consistent basis with playoff teams.  In Foley's case, he got the Minnesota job after three seasons with a franchise that went to the playoffs once during his tenure, losing in the first round.

Of course, Foley's bio doesn't mention that fact.

LEINART HAS POST-DRAFT BASH PLANNED?

We're told that USC quarterback Matt Leinart has made plans for a lavish post-draft party in Las Vegas.  The same source who tipped us off to the termination of agent Leigh Steinberg and the retention of agent Tom Condon tells us that Leinart intends to take a posse of 30 to Las Vegas to celebrate his official entry into the NFL.

There are, we're told, 30 plane tickets, 30 rooms reserved, and $140,000 earmarked for the event. 

The party is planned for the weekend after the draft.  We hope that Leinart's people cross-checked the post-draft minicamp schedules of the teams that might draft him before making any nonrefundable purchases.

FRIDAY MORNING ONE-LINERS

WR/KR/PR Jeremy Bloom met on Thursday with the Steelers.

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger will attend the White House Correspondents Dinner.  ("He's the quarterbacker," as the Commander-in-Chief might say.)

Moe Williams' sentence includes a $300 fine and 30 hours of community service.

Agent Carl Poston apparently appealed on Thursday his two-year suspension via arbitration.  (We say "apparently" because the article mentions that a "judge" will make the decision, which could be a reference to the separate lawsuit that Poston has filed.  Because most journalists know about as much about the legal system as we know about journalism, the end result is a stew of ambiguity.)

The Ravens might be trading down from spot No. 13 in the first round of the draft.

Steelers CB Ike Taylor, a restricted free agent tendered at the first-round level, has until 4:00 p.m. Friday to sign an offer sheet with another team.

Scouts think that the frame of former George Mason hoopster Jai Lewis is best suited for the offensive line.

The NFL Network is talking to Bryant Gumbel and Cris Collinsworth about taking over the broadcasts of the eight regular-season games.