OFFICIAL 2009 NFL PRESEASON & TRAINING CAMP THREAD

Originally Posted by dmxfury

If Crabtree somehow sat out, and the 49ers somehow drafted him again, that would be the best thing ever in the NFL. Better than seeing an 0-16 team
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They should do that just to be spiteful...
 
I changed the thread to the preseason & TC thread.....here's the PS schedule




[table][tr][td]HALL OF FAME WEEKEND[/td] [/tr][tr][td]SUN, AUG 9[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Tennessee 21, Buffalo 18[/td] [/tr][/table][table][tr][td]

WEEK 1[/td] [/tr][tr][td]THU, AUG 13[/td] [/tr][tr][td]New England 27, Philadelphia 25[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Baltimore 23, Washington 0[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Pittsburgh 20, Arizona 10[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Oakland 31, Dallas 10[/td] [/tr][tr][td]FRI, AUG 14[/td] [/tr][tr][td]St. Louis 23, NY Jets 20[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Minnesota 13, Indianapolis 3[/td] [/tr][tr][td]New Orleans 17, Cincinnati 7[/td] [/tr][tr][td]San Francisco 17, Denver 16[/td] [/tr][tr][td]SAT, AUG 15[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Atlanta at Detroit[/td] [td]4:00 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Ford Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Chicago at Buffalo[/td] [td]7:00 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Ralph Wilson Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Cleveland at Green Bay[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Lambeau Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Tampa Bay at Tennessee[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]LP Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Houston at Kansas City[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Arrowhead Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Seattle at San Diego[/td] [td]10:00 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Qualcomm Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]MON, AUG 17[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Jacksonville at Miami[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Land Shark Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Carolina at NY Giants[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]ESPN[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Giants Stadium[/td] [/tr][/table][table][tr][td]

WEEK 2[/td] [/tr][tr][td]THU, AUG 20[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Cincinnati at New England[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Gillette Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Philadelphia at Indianapolis[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]FOX[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Lucas Oil Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]FRI, AUG 21[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Tennessee at Dallas[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]FOX[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Cowboys Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Atlanta at St. Louis[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Edward Jones Dome[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Kansas City at Minnesota[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Metrodome[/td] [/tr][tr][td]SAT, AUG 22[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Detroit at Cleveland[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Cleveland Browns Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Carolina at Miami[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Land Shark Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Pittsburgh at Washington[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]FedEx Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Tampa Bay at Jacksonville[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Jacksonville Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]New Orleans at Houston[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Reliant Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Buffalo at Green Bay[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Lambeau Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]NY Giants at Chicago[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Soldier Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Oakland at San Francisco[/td] [td]8:15 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Candlestick Park[/td] [/tr][tr][td]San Diego at Arizona[/td] [td]10:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]U of Phoenix Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Denver at Seattle[/td] [td]10:30 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Qwest Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]MON, AUG 24[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]NY Jets at Baltimore[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]ESPN[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]M&T Bank Stadium[/td] [/tr][/table][table][tr][td]

WEEK 3[/td] [/tr][tr][td]THU, AUG 27[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Jacksonville at Philadelphia[/td] [td]7:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Lincoln Financial Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]St. Louis at Cincinnati[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Paul Brown Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Miami at Tampa Bay[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]FOX[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Raymond James Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]FRI, AUG 28[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]New England at Washington[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]CBS[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]FedEx Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Green Bay at Arizona[/td] [td]10:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]U of Phoenix Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]SAT, AUG 29[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Indianapolis at Detroit[/td] [td]1:00 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Ford Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]New Orleans at Oakland[/td] [td]4:00 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Tennessee at Cleveland[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Cleveland Browns Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Buffalo at Pittsburgh[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Heinz Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Baltimore at Carolina[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Bank of America Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]San Francisco at Dallas[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Cowboys Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]San Diego at Atlanta[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]CBS[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Georgia Dome[/td] [/tr][tr][td]NY Jets at NY Giants[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Giants Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Seattle at Kansas City[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Arrowhead Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]SUN, AUG 30[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Chicago at Denver[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]NBC[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Invesco Field at Mile High[/td] [/tr][tr][td]MON, AUG 31[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Minnesota at Houston[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]ESPN[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Reliant Stadium[/td] [/tr][/table][table][tr][td]

WEEK 4[/td] [/tr][tr][td]THU, SEP 3[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Detroit at Buffalo[/td] [td]6:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Ralph Wilson Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Philadelphia at NY Jets[/td] [td]7:00 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Giants Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Washington at Jacksonville[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Jacksonville Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]NY Giants at New England[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Gillette Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Indianapolis at Cincinnati[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Paul Brown Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Baltimore at Atlanta[/td] [td]7:30 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Georgia Dome[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Cleveland at Chicago[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Soldier Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Miami at New Orleans[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Superdome[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Green Bay at Tennessee[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]LP Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Kansas City at St. Louis[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Edward Jones Dome[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Pittsburgh at Carolina[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Bank of America Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Arizona at Denver[/td] [td]9:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Invesco Field at Mile High[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Oakland at Seattle[/td] [td]10:00 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Qwest Field[/td] [/tr][tr][td]FRI, SEP 4[/td] [td]TIME (ET)[/td] [td]TV[/td] [td]RESOURCES[/td] [td]LOCATION[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Houston at Tampa Bay[/td] [td]7:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Raymond James Stadium[/td] [/tr][tr][td]Dallas at Minnesota[/td] [td]8:00 PM[/td] [td]NFL[/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Metrodome[/td] [/tr][tr][td]San Francisco at San Diego[/td] [td]10:00 PM[/td] [td] [/td] [td]Tickets | Travel[/td] [td]Qualcomm Stadium[/td] [/tr][/table]
 
Camp Confidential: Dolphins still eager to prove

August 16, 2009 11:30 AM

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[/td] [/tr][tr][td] [/td] [td]Steve Mitchell/US Presswire[/td] [/tr][tr][td] [/td] [td]Miami Dolphins coach Tony Sparano wants his team to stay hungry,[/td] [/tr][/table]
Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Graham

DAVIE, Fla. -- As long as Tom Brady stays healthy and Bill Belichick is in charge, the New England Patriots will be considered a Super Bowl contender.

Stands to reason they also are prohibitive favorites to take the AFC East crown.
[table][tr][td] [table][tr][td] [table][tr][td]Camp Confidential: AFC East[/td] [/tr][tr][td]• Bills: Thurs., July 30
• Jets Sat., Aug. 1
• Patriots Wed., Aug. 5
• Dolphins: Sun., Aug. 16
• Training camp index[/td] [/tr][/table][/td] [/tr][/table][/td] [/tr][/table]Understandably, some of the Miami Dolphins are upset. Outside linebacker Joey Porter publicly expressed indignation that the defending division champs are being disregarded. Inside linebacker Channing Crowder got into a sniping match with New York Jets coach Rex Ryan, who declared his team's objective was to win it all.
But don't expect Dolphins coach Tony Sparano to cause a ruckus over a perceived oversight. He's quietly embracing it. Sparano doesn't want his team to act as if it has accomplished anything.

"What I don't want to do is to think we are good by any stretch of the imagination," Sparano said this past week during a break at training camp. "I think that we need to make sure this team stays hungry and continues to want to do the hunting out there."

Key Questions

Who will emerge as Chad Pennington's top target?

Analysts listed receiver as an area of grave need. The Dolphins' front office obviously didn't agree. They didn't sign any free-agent help and waited until the second day of the draft to select any receivers.

Miami wide receivers caught only five touchdown passes last year and managed only 11 receptions of 25 yards or more. The top three averaged 11.9 yards per catch.

Greg Camarillo was Pennington's obvious go-to guy last year, grabbing 55 passes through the first 11 games. But a torn knee ligament sidelined him for the final five games and puts a dubious spin on his projected role.

Davone Bess, who possesses a similar skill-set to Camarillo's, had 54 receptions last year. Ted Ginn finished with a team-high 56 catches for 790 yards, uninspiring numbers for the ninth overall pick of the 2007 draft.

Seven of tight end Anthony Fasano's 34 receptions were touchdowns.

But when the Dolphins need to convert a critical third-and-8 play, whom will defenses worry about?

Third-round draft picks Patrick Turner and Brian Hartline have had decent camps so far. Turner is tall and catches anything he gets his hands on, while Hartline is more of a possession receiver. Maybe one of them can emerge, but it's too soon to count on either of them.

Can a rookie win the starting right cornerback job?
[table][tr][td] [/td] [td]
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[/td] [/tr][tr][td] [/td] [td]Joel Auerbach/US Presswire[/td] [/tr][tr][td] [/td] [td]Dolphins cornerback Vontae Davis is expected to compete for the starting spot.[/td] [/tr][/table]The Dolphins drafted Vontae Davis 25th overall, making him the first pure cornerback off the board. They took Sean Smith with the 61st pick.
Both were expected to compete with veteran free agent Eric Green for the starting spot opposite Will Allen. But a week into training camp, Smith was taking Green's first-team reps.

Earning a coach's trust is difficult for a rookie, especially at a position as pressure-drenched as cornerback. Smith has been convincing.

He's 6-foot-4, and the Dolphins drafted him to compete with the likes of Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, Andre Johnson and the other big receivers they'll face this year. But to overtake a higher draft pick and a veteran so early in camp is an encouraging development.

Will new center Jake Grove and new assistant Dave DeGuglielmo transform the offensive line's personality?

Dolphins football operations boss Bill Parcells and Sparano didn't like what they saw out of their offensive line last year. One of the first offseason moves was to fire veteran O-line coach Mike Maser and hire DeGuglielmo, a New York Giants assistant.

One of their chief personnel priorities -- maybe the biggest -- was to find a run-blocking center.

The Dolphins wanted better success between the tackles. It didn't help that both of their opening-day starting guards were lost along the way. But they identified the main problem was second-year center Samson Satele, who started all 32 games of his career.

They signed Grove, an Oakland Raiders free agent, and then traded Satele to the Raiders for a sixth-round draft pick and a swap of fourth-round picks.

Newcomer to watch
[table][tr][td] [table][tr][td] [table][tr][td]
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[/td] [/tr][/table][/td] [/tr][/table]Taylor [/td] [/tr][/table]Jason Taylor looks familiar in his uniform, but don't expect him to be the same player he was before the Dolphins traded him to the Washington ******** last summer.
Sure, Taylor still can be an impact pass-rusher. But he will be playing a new role and a different position from the one where he amassed almost all of his 120.5 career sacks.

Porter is the weakside outside linebacker. Taylor, a fixture all those years with his hand on the ground as Miami's right defensive end, will be the strongside outside linebacker. That means Taylor usually will line up on the left side in a two-point stance.

The Dolphins brought him back to be more of a situational pass-rusher, not to play every down. He should split snaps with incumbent Matt Roth (a run-stopper with limited coverage skills) and Cameron Wake (a Canadian Football League phenom who recorded 39 sacks in two seasons).

A mysterious situation has kept Roth sidelined through the first two weeks of camp. His agent claimed he had a groin injury. The Dolphins claimed he was ill and out of shape. Either way, that has allowed Taylor to get more reps so far.

Market watch
[table][tr][td] [table][tr][td] [table][tr][td]
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[/td] [/tr][/table][/td] [/tr][/table]Ginn [/td] [/tr][/table]Dolfans have been waiting for Ginn to live up to his billing and can only hope this is the season he finally puts it together. The club showed confidence in the speedster by declining to go after any veteran receiver help.
"Teddy is going into his third year, and I think it's time for him to really show what he was drafted here to do," Dolphins general manager Jeff Ireland said prior to the draft.

Observation deck

Ronnie Brown, who got off to a slow start in training camp last year because he was coming off knee surgery and a wrist injury, has looked sharp. His quickness and maneuverability stands out next to the other backs, including Ricky Williams, who doesn't look as explosive as he did a year ago. ... Williams is 32 years old and starting to show it. ... Rookie quarterback Pat White better be able to contribute from the Wildcat formation because he has been lousy as a quarterback. What makes White a threat is his ability to pass and run out of the formation, but his arm has been scattershot since he arrived. Defenses should force him to throw it. ... Kickers always have been expendable on a Parcells team. The Dolphins unearthed a gem last year with undrafted rookie Dan Carpenter, allowing them the save money by cutting Jay Feely. But Carpenter might have lost his footing. The club signed free agent Connor Barth to push him. Carpenter hasn't responded as well to the competition as the front office hoped. ... Rookie receivers Turner and Hartline, both third-round draft choices, have looked impressive. Turner is a tall target with soft hands who could turn into a third-down and red zone weapon. ... Sparano seems to be gaining confidence in third-year defensive tackle Paul Soliai, a fourth-round draft pick in 2007. Soliai is listed at 6-foot-4, 355 pounds. He twice was suspended for one game last year for weight issues. "A year ago I questioned how important this whole thing was maybe to Paul. ... From a professional standpoint, I think this guy is starting to get it. He is starting to figure out that this isn't only a hobby," Sparano said.
 
Couple catches for Ginn.
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Ricky ran HARD!
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Got somethin at least outta Wilford, bout damn time.
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And the rookie CB's
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Gad Dayummmmm . my boy just called told me Sean Smith and Jason Allen got that Swine Flu
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is this confirmed? and are the Dolphins quaranteening themselves?
 
What are your guys' expectations of Marshawn Lynch this year (after the 3-game suspension of course)?
 
GUNNA GET IT wrote:
Gad Dayummmmm . my boy just called told me Sean Smith and Jason Allen got that Swine Flu
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is this confirmed? and are the Dolphins quaranteening themselves?



It was an ESPNesq type of false report. A reporter @ the Miami Herold reported that it was swine flu but he misunderstood. Sean Smith had the 24 hr bug andJason has the regular flu but were going to be tested for swine flu too. Somehow, the reporter thought that it was official. Ever since reporting it, he'sbeen trying to say how it wasn't his fault and all

Sean will be at practice tomorrow and jason by mid week.

Sean Smith has been an absolute BEAST and is already the right side starter.Vontae has been coming along amazing the past 2 weeks. And who everyone declared areach (including myself), Pat Turner has also been a stud and Hartline catches everything. Also look out for Chris Clemons, FS/SS, might be one of the stealsin this draft. 5th rounder out of Clemson. Pat White is getting better taking snaps right under the center. Everything else, the world knows what he can do.
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Texans D looked horible last night. Got dominated psychically and they (Saints) were missing a few lineman.

Mike Bell tore us up
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[h2]Dolphins cut Wilford after one season[/h2]
Comment Email Print Share
ESPN.com news services

DAVIE, Fla. -- The Miami Dolphins have given up on their experiment with Ernest Wilford at tight end -- or anywhere else.

Wilford's contract was terminated Monday. The Dolphins also waived running back Anthony Kimble, nose tackle Joe Cohen and linebackers Orion Martin and Tearrius George. Receiver Chris Williams was waived injured.

Wilford, Miami's biggest free-agent bust since the Bill Parcells regime took over, moved from receiver to tight end this year. He caught a 33-yard touchdown pass against Jacksonville's reserves in the exhibition opener but had no catches in the second preseason game Saturday.

Wilford, 30, signed a four-year, $13 million contract last season with the Dolphins in a frenzy of moves at the start of free agency.

However, he never fit into the Dolphins offense. He played in only seven games and caught three passes for 25 yards.

He caught 141 passes during his first four seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars before leaving for the Dolphins.

Information from ESPN.com's John Clayton and The Associated Press was used in this report.




Dolphins also trade Andy Alleman & Ike Ndukwe to the Chiefs for undisclosed draft pick(s)
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[h2]Source: Rivers gets 6-year, $92M deal[/h2]
Comment Email Print Share
By Len Pasquarelli
ESPN.com
Archive

San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers, who has thrown for more than 10,000 yards over the past three seasons, has agreed to a new contract extension with the club.

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Rivers

The extension is for six years and is worth $92 million, a source told ESPN.com. About $38-39 million is guaranteed. More importantly, the deal will keep Rivers off the free-agent market next spring, and will preclude the Chargers from having to exercise a franchise designation to retain him. The extension comes amid reports that the Chargers would have a difficult time reaching an extension accord with Rivers, a first-round choice in the 2004 draft.

But the negotiating climate turned over the weekend, and keeping Rivers for the long term with the extension is a coup for general manager A.J. Smith, who has done an exemplary job in keeping the nucleus of his roster intact with contract extensions.

It is not yet known what altered the tenor of contract discussions, but it's believed that Rivers became personally involved in the talks.

"This is a great day for the Chargers and Chargers fans," Chargers president Dean Spanos said. "Philip has proven he has all of the necessary qualities to be a successful quarterback in the NFL. He's a proven winner and an unquestioned leader for this football team."

Without the deal, Rivers would have been eligible for unrestricted free agency next spring, with or without an agreement between the league and union on an extension of the collective bargaining agreement. San Diego would almost certainly have retained Rivers by naming him a franchise player, but at a cost believed to be about $16 million for a one-year tender.

Rivers, 27, was entering the final year of the six-year, $40.5 million rookie contract he signed in 2004 after a lengthy and sometimes acrimonious negotiation.

After sitting behind Drew Brees his first two seasons in the NFL, Rivers became the San Diego starter in 2006, when Brees departed for New Orleans as a free agent.

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/nflnation
He has started all 16 games in each of the past three seasons, and the former North Carolina State star is coming off a career year in which he led the league in passer rating (105.5) and touchdown passes (34), and was fourth in the NFL in passing yardage (4,009 yards). He completed 312 of 478 attempts last season, with only 11 interceptions.

For his career, Rivers has completed 890 of 1,428 passes for 10,697 yards, with 78 touchdown passes, 36 interceptions, and a passer rating of 92.9. Most of that production has come in the past three seasons, with Rivers seeing only limited action in 2004 and 2005. Before 2006, he had yet to start a game.

Rivers was the fourth overall choice in the 2004 draft, selected by the New York Giants. Within an hour of that choice, however, he was traded to San Diego for quarterback Eli Manning, the first pick in that year's lottery. Manning recently signed a six-year, $97.5 million extension to his deal.

An extremely accurate passer despite a somewhat unconventional delivery, Rivers has emerged as a leader for the Chargers, who many feel possess the most talented roster in the league.

He has solidified his standing with his teammates because of his toughness and ability to play through pain.

Two years ago, Rivers played in the AFC championship game at New England despite a knee injury that kept him out of practice for much of the pregame preparations.

It was subsequently revealed that Rivers played with a damaged anterior cruciate ligament that later required surgery.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

By Len Pasquarelli
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Even though those picks probably aren't worth nothin, I'm always in favor of addin picks when you can.
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Rivers deserves that money. Good signing by SD.
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[h1]Seahawks not talking about Edgerrin, yet[/h1]
Posted by Mike Florio on August 24, 2009 9:45 PM ET

We were the first to report (hey, if no one else is gonna say so, then we're the only ones who can) that running back Edgerrin James had agreed to terms with the Seahawks.

Since then, the report is everywhere -- ESPN, NFL.com, etc.

But the Seahawks have yet to acknowledge that James is joining the team.

Per the Associated Press, a Seahawks spokesman declined to comment on the matter and said that the team would address on Tuesday the "speculation" linking the eleventh man on the all-time leading rusher list to Seattle.

Attention Seahawks spokesman . . . it ain't speculation. And to call the reports "speculation" is to tell something other than the truth.

But, as we've pointed out several times over the past few weeks, they all lie in the name of strategic objectives. In this case, our guess is that word got out before the Seahawks had a chance to harvest T.J. Duckett's playbook.

by Mike Florio
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Originally Posted by heat23



[h1]Seahawks not talking about Edgerrin, yet[/h1]
Posted by Mike Florio on August 24, 2009 9:45 PM ET

We were the first to report (hey, if no one else is gonna say so, then we're the only ones who can) that running back Edgerrin James had agreed to terms with the Seahawks.

Since then, the report is everywhere -- ESPN, NFL.com, etc.

But the Seahawks have yet to acknowledge that James is joining the team.

Per the Associated Press, a Seahawks spokesman declined to comment on the matter and said that the team would address on Tuesday the "speculation" linking the eleventh man on the all-time leading rusher list to Seattle.

Attention Seahawks spokesman . . . it ain't speculation. And to call the reports "speculation" is to tell something other than the truth.

But, as we've pointed out several times over the past few weeks, they all lie in the name of strategic objectives. In this case, our guess is that word got out before the Seahawks had a chance to harvest T.J. Duckett's playbook.
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by Mike Florio


It is official now I believe. 1 year 2 million non-guaranteed. IDK about this move but at least he knows the division winners playbook. He has got to be betterthan Julius Jones, right?
 
Tampa Bay Buccaneers end experiment as Jermaine Phillips moves back to safety from linebacker

By Stephen Holder, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Wednesday, August 26, 2009
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Sports (General)

TAMPA

If the last several months of Jermaine Phillips' career have been a blur, then the next few weeks probably will be a whirlwind.

The ultimate team player, Phillips has officially been moved back to safety from weakside linebacker, the position he switched to during the offseason at coach Raheem Morris' suggestion.

Phillips' transition to linebacker is, at best, "kind of on hold right now," Morris conceded. Phillips hasn't practiced at linebacker this week and has worked full time at his original position.

The move becomes necessary, Morris said, because of the lack of depth at safety, brought about by the four-game suspension of starting free safety Tanard Jackson for a violation of the league substance-abuse policy. That suspension starts in Week 1.

Even if necessary, it's a dramatic move to make less than three weeks before the regular season. The change also calls for inexperienced Geno Hayes to become the likely weakside starter.

The decision also leaves some unanswered questions. Once Jackson returns, what then? Does Phillips, one of the team's better defenders, remain at safety?

"My long-term (plan) is going (back) to linebacker," Morris said of Phillips. "I just think he has a chance for a second career there. I could be wrong, but I thought he had a chance for a second career like Rodney Harrison with the Patriots. Rod Woodson was a corner but went to safety. Players like that, they move around. He could be a 30-year-old special player."

What also will have a bearing on the outcome is the play of former FSU standout Hayes, a 2008 sixth-round pick who figures to have competition from Adam Hayward for the starting job.

Another question: Can Phillips re-adjust on the fly given the team's new defensive scheme? And he's playing free safety rather than his original position, strong safety.

"Right now, we're just trying to get him acclimated to safety," Morris said. "He's been (practicing) mostly free because there's a little bit less reads over there, a little bit easier to teach. But they all will be interchangeable.

"Last year, we put in quarters (coverage) and (Phillips) played a bunch of it," Morris added. "There's a lot of carryover. It's just translating the verbiage."

Morris will use Phillips, Sabby Piscitelli and Will Allen as a three-man rotation at the two safety positions until Jackson returns. The Bucs used three last year, with Piscitelli seeing time as the No. 3. Morris said he was concerned about the dropoff after Allen, a former starter, saying he was not convinced using journeyman Donte Nicholson as part of the rotation would work.

Asked if he was making the decision, in part, because of Piscitelli's pair of costly mistakes against Jacksonville on Saturday, Morris objected.

"I don't hit the panic button because Sabby got beat for a touchdown," he said. "You need three (safeties). Every year, somebody's broken a forearm, somebody's got a stinger, somebody's knocked themselves out. We did it last year."

Morris approached Phillips about a position change earlier in the year, and though Phillips agreed to try it, he admitted it was something of an experiment. Even Morris said recently the team wouldn't know whether the move was a success until Phillips saw live action at a position much more physical than safety.

In two preseason games, Phillips seemed to have less impact at linebacker than at his original position, though Morris pointed to a sure-handed open-field tackle of Jaguars back Maurice Jones-Drew on Saturday night.

Morris said, "I was starting to see something special out of Jermaine. He was learning how to play the position. He was starting to get confidence."

Just as critical as the moves at safety is how the linebackers are affected.

Phillips was expected to start on the weakside, but Hayes now steps in and essentially takes over for Derrick Brooks, the future Hall of Famer who was released in February.

"How Geno plays is going to determine a lot of things," Morris said. "Geno will get the first crack at it. It causes you to do some shuffling of the deck. But we're prepared for it. These guys have been getting a lot of reps. They're young, they're fast and they're explosive."

And now Hayes, in particular, will be tested like never before.

Stephen F. Holder can be reached at sholder@sptimes.com

Let's go Geno
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