POSTED 10:36 p.m. EDT; UPDATED 11:07 p.m. EDT, April 26, 2006

NO SIGNING BONUS FOR WOODSON

A league source tells us that cornerback Charles Woodson's contract with the Packers includes a signing bonus of . . . zero dollars, zero cents.

The reason for the team's decision not to pay Woodson has less to do with his skill and more to do with the fact that the Packers have plenty of cap room for 2006.  By funding Woodson's first-year pay through a roster bonus and base salary, $10.5 million can be handed to him with no proration in future years.

As a practical matter, this makes it easier for the Packers to cut ties with Woodson in any future season, since there would be no acceleration due to the portion of the signing bonus that applies to future years.

We're also told that, although the deal is being characterized as a seven-year, $52 million arrangement, it is as a practical matter a three-year, $18 million package.  Depending on Woodson's performance, he could be gone by 2007 or 2008.

Not a huge deal, but not bad for an aging, injury-prone cover man as to whom only one other team expressed serious interest.

WALKER'S CONTRACT DEMANDS MAKE TRADING HIM A CHALLENGE

Although we've heard from a league source that the Green Bay Packers are willing to trade receiver Javon Walker if the price is right, Walker's price tag for a new contract is making it difficult for anyone to justify swinging a deal.

The problem is that, if a team like the Eagles or the Broncos sends a first-day pick to the Pack for the 2004 Pro Bowler, Walker's new team acquires his rights for only one year -- unless they sign him to an extension contemporaneous with the trade.

And Walker, we hear, wants $10 million to $12 million in guaranteed money.  With only one solid NFL season after two less-than-stellar campaigns and a torn ACL suffered in Week One of the 2005 season, it's simply too much money to cough up.

It's the same problem that plagues efforts to trade Ashley Lelie of the Broncos and Donte' Stallworth of the Saints.  Both have one year left of their deals, both want more than the market will bear, so neither will be swapped unless and until their expectations get far more reasonable.

POSTED 9:59 p.m. EDT, April 26, 2006

BUSH SITUATION WILL GET UGLIER

We continue to talk to a variety of league and industry sources regarding the Reggie Bush brouhaha, we are convinced that, as more and more reporters dig (and digging they are) into the various relationships of Bush and his family members, there will be more evidence suggesting that Reggie, at some point during the 2005 football season, became ineligible for amateur intercollegiate athletics. 

Though the story seems to have hit a lull after nearly three days of new details, multiple media types are working the story hard, delving into nooks and crannies that otherwise would not have been examined but for the revelation that Bush's family was living in a house owned by a man who wanted to handle his marketing work.

We've already caught wind of some of the stuff they've found, and when the information is disclosed more people than Michael Michaels will likely be implicated.  Whether in the end a determination is made that Bush became ineligible remains to be seen.  For now, though, this story has tentacles -- and the tentacles are twisting and spreading and churning.

As always, stay tuned.

POSTED 5:13 p.m. EDT, April 26, 2006

SAINTS HOPING TO SLIDE TO NO. 4, BUT JETS NOT INTERESTED

A league source tells us that the New Orleans Saints, who hold the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, would like to trade down to No. 4 with the New York Jets, in the hopes of landing defensive end Mario Williams two spots lower (and for a lot less money).

The only glitch in the plan is that the Jets don't want to move up.  First, the Jets are not interested in quarterback Matt Leinart.  Second, the Jets could still get Leinart at No. 4, if they wanted him.

The Jets most likely will take offensive tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson with the fourth pick.  The Titans have locked on to Vince Young at No. 3.

Of course, all of this could change if the Texans ultimately draft Williams instead of Reggie Bush.  If/when the Saints are on the clock and Bush is on the board, expect all sorts of craziness to unfold as the Jets, Raiders, and possibly the Titans look to spring up by one spot to get Reggie.

NEW VIKINGS JERSEYS ARE UGLY

A reader has sent to us various images of the new Vikings jerseys, which are scheduled to be unveiled on Thursday afternoon.  Here's a look-see at the shirts to be worn by quarterback Brad Johnson.

It appears that the organization has ditched the profile of Hulk Hogan in a horn hat from the sleeves, relegating the Hulkster to the back of the jersey, just under the collar.

We think the new shirts are ugly.  The yellow collar on the home jersey stands out too much, and the old yellow and purple shoulder stripes on the away shirts (a la LSU and UCLA) should have been retained.

Another new feature for the Vikings this year will be purple pants.  Also, many observers expect the helmet logo to incorporate the more three-dimensional horn that currently appears on the front page of the Vikings' web site. 

POSTED 8:36 a.m. EDT; UPDATED 9:21 a.m. EDT, April 26, 2006

TEAM LEINART BRACING FOR SLIDE?

At a time when former USC tailback Reggie Bush is dealing with an unwelcome distraction that could disrupt his plan to be the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, his teammate who could have been the first pick in 2004 could now be facing a slide conjuring memories of the Aaron Rodgers plunge in 2005.

A source close to the Leinart camp tells us that Matt's handlers have accepted the reality that the Titans won't be drafting their guy at No. 3, barring a dramatic reversal of the current intention to acquire Texas quarterback Vince Young.  Per the source, new Leinart agent Tom Condon has attempted to get some kind of an assurance from each of the teams drafting in the top five -- but has gotten nothing.

At No. 4, the Jets are not expected to draft a quarterback.  Word is that they are looking to land Alabama's Brodie Croyle later in the day.

At No. 5, the Packers can't afford to spend another first-rounder on a guy who'll do nothing for them in 2006, especially since Lord Favre is coming back for one more year. 

At No. 6, the 49ers have their quarterback in Alex Smith.

We'd initially presumed that the Raiders would take Leinart at No. 7, but we're now hearing from multiple sources that they won't.

The Bills won't touch Leinart at No. 8, unless G.M. Marv Levy is even nuttier than we currently believe.

At No. 9, there's no way the Lions pounce on Leinart.

Then we come to the Cardinals at No. 10.  Will Denny Green be able to resist drafting a guy who falls into his lap, just like Randy Moss did eight years ago?  We've got the Cardinals taking offensive tackle Winston Justice, given the importance of beefing up the group of guys who are going to be charged with keeping those big-money skill-position players alive.

At No. 11, quarterback is one of the few positions that the Rams have covered.

At No. 12, we can't see the Browns taking Leinart.

Then come the Ravens at No. 13.  In our current mock draft, we've got them taking Vanderbilt quarterback Jay Cutler.  Though we're feeling a little wishy-washy about whether Brian the Brain will stake his future on another first-round signal-caller, it might be hard for the supposed offensive guru to not take Leinart, if he falls into the team's lap.

And we think that the lowest Leinart would go, if he gets past Baltimore, is Minnesota at No. 17.

So the 2004 Heisman winner won't fall as dramatically as Rodgers did a year ago, when the Jeff Tedford prodigy plunged from potentially being the No. 1 pick all the way to No. 24.  But given that Leinart was the presumptive No. 1 choice in 2005, and that he most likely would have been taken by the 49ers with the first pick, the possibility of sliding to No. 10 or lower translates into millions and millions of dollars of money that will never come back.

USC PLAYERS KNEW ABOUT BUSH GOINGS-ON

From the perspective of the USC football program, the only question regarding the Reggie Bush rigmarole that really matters is whether anyone in a position of authority knew or should have known that Reggie or his family were receiving benefits from any prospective agent.

Based on information we've picked up from several sources, it is now obvious to us that multiple members of the USC team knew that something was going on with Reggie.

What that "something" is remains to be a matter of contention.  Players knew about Bush's family living in a house that they didn't own.  Players knew that Bush was involved, to some extent, with the New Era group.

Regardless of whether Bush's eligibility actually had been compromised, the fact is that there was enough chatter in and around the locker room to trigger the program's duty to inquire.  That's the premise of the "should have known" standard.  The head coach and his staff can't plug their fingers into their ears and yell, "La la la la, we're not listening."  When there's information to suggest that a violation of NCAA bylaws might have occurred, the program has an obligation to look into it.

In this case, we believe based on what we've heard that coach Pete Carroll or someone who works for him should have done something to ensure that Bush was still technically eligible throughout the 2005 season.

NO. 1 PICK CAN GET AT LEAST $27.64125 MILLION GUARANTEED

Okay, so maybe we weren't wrong after all. 

On Tuesday morning, we took issue with a suggestion by John McClain of the Houston Chronicle that it would be impossible for the top pick in 2006 to get as much as $22 million in guaranteed money, even though the first overall pick in 2005 received $24 million in guaranteed cash.

On Tuesday night, we acknowledged that we were wrong and that McClain was right.  (Tastes like chicken.)

But now that we've cleared up our remaining area of confusion regarding the manner in which the 25 percent rule applies to rookie deals, we'll acknowledge only that McClain was on the right track, but that his attempt to explain the situation was woefully incomplete.

Per a league source with experience negotiating the contracts of high first-round picks, the maximum guaranteed money of $21.2625 million to the first pick is premised upon the receipt of an option bonus that extends an initial five-year deal to a six-year package.  If the player is willing to forgo an option bonus and thus sign a straight six-year deal, the maximum amount of guaranteed money that can be paid shoots to $27.64125 million.

The downside for the player, however, is that $6.37875 million of the guaranteed money won't be paid out until 2011.  In fact, a whopping $17.01 million under such a deal would be paid out after January 1, 2009, and the present value of that money would be significantly lower.

Still, if the player wants maximum "guaranteed" money beyond the $24 million that Smith received in 2005, there's a way to get it.  But the player will simply have to wait until 2011 in order to pocket it all.

And as we explained on Tuesday night, there are other ways to funnel lots of money to the player without calling it "guaranteed."

Bottom line -- if the guy taken with the No. 1 overall pick wants his contract to reflect the 20 percent jump in the salary cap under the new CBA, there's a new way to make it happen, even with only a five-percent bump in the rookie pool. 

BUSH UPDATE

Another news cycle, another round of the latest nuggets regarding the Reggie Bush story.

Per the Los Angeles Daily News, Bush has told USC officials that he didn't know that his parents had leased a house owned by one of the key players in New Era Sports & Entertainment.  The information apparently was provided to USC because the school's faculty athletic representative, Noel Ragsdale, is required to submit the Trojans' official position as part of the Pac-10's investigation.

Whether or not Bush knew what was happening, however, is irrelevant.  If his family received benefits from an agent, the relevant NCAA bylaws have been violated.

"Any deal with an agent or for marketing later, if the benefits were given to his parents, would be a violation of amateurism rules," a source told the Daily News.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the Pac-10's investigation into the matter is progressing.  "We're moving on it," Ron Barker, the Pac-10's associate commissioner for enforcement told the Times.  "We have made some progress and we'll go from there."

Meanwhile, the attorney for Lloyd Lake clarified his comments from a parole hearing in which an apparent link was confirmed between New Era and Bush.  "My intent was to establish that New Era was a viable business and not a front for some illegal purpose," Marc Carlos told the Times.  "There may have been tentative agreements [with Bush] or maybe they were in progress.  That's for someone else to figure out."

Agent Gary Uberstine strongly denied any link between one of Bush's teammates, USC offensive tackle Winston Justice, and New Era.  "He didn't do anything with them," Uberstine said. "He hooked up with Reggie and, if he was in a group of people that he didn't know, maybe they were there."  Statements from the transcripts first revealed on Tuesday by Liz Mullen of the SportsBusiness Journal indicate that Lake was recruiting Justice on behalf of New Era.

There's also some confusion as to whether the key statements of Lloyd Lake's lawyer and of NFLPA-certfied agent David Caravantes from the hearings regarding the revocation of Lake's parole represent actual sworn testimony.  Our best guess based on our limited (i.e., 15 years) of experience with the justice system is that the statement from Caravantes was given under oath and from the witness stand, and that the comments from Lake's lawyer were not made under oath.  Regardless, lawyers have a duty of candor to the Court at all times, and any lawyer who cares about his or her ability to continue to practice law will think long and hard before telling anything other than the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth to the person who wears the black robe.

So when Marc Carlos said that there was an agreement between Bush and New Era and that there were discussions regarding possible litigation and/or a settlement after Bush signed with someone else, the statements from Carlos are the next best thing to representations made under oath.  Whether his information from Lake was faulty is another issue -- but we've yet to see any basis for Lake to lie about the relationship between Bush and New Era.

Finally, Bernie Wilson of the AP reports that the Sycuan Tribe continues to insist that it had no involvement in New Era.  "We are going to have our attorney look at statement and transcript to see what actions we can potentially take," said Adam Day, the Sycuan assistant tribal manager. 

In the transcript of the Lake parole hearing, Caravantes makes specific reference to "Sycuan" as the entity with which he planned to partner.

Given the history of Lake and Michael Michaels, who owned the house in which Bush's family lived, we tend to think that the Sycuan tribe knew that the plan to start a sports marketing firm from scratch and land the presumptive No. 1 overall pick as one of their first clients was more than a little far fetched.  Lake, per the AP, has a criminal record extending back for more than a decade.  According to Monday's San Diego Union-Tribune, "Michaels was arrested under his Pettiford name in October 1999 on felony charges of making terrorist threats and discharging a firearm in a negligent manner in an incident involving current Sycuan Tribal Chairman Daniel Tucker." 

In our view, then, the tremendous financial success that the Sycuan tribe has enjoyed tells us that folks in charge were more than wise enough to pass on a joint venture involving Lake, Michaels, and their quest for Bush.

As to Caravantes' statements linking Sycuan to New Era, the explanation is simple.  We think that Michaels and/or Lake sold Caravantes on the deal by representing to him that the plan had the financial backing of the tribe -- and that neither Michaels nor Lake ever bothered to tell Caravantes that the tribe had refused to get involved.