Daily Roundup- Monday March 2nd

NFL Free Agency has arrived and with Johan Santana feeling fine after a throwing session and me finally being able to breathe, its time to hone in on the free agent stories that were left for dead by me during the weekend got a few good ones that I will post later but for now, lets look at what the locals did.

Speaking of locals, the Giants who were never in on the big names according to super GM Jerry Reese, had their minds set on a few particular guys and went out and got them. First Michael Boley, the LB who lost time with the Falcons after Mike Smith came and changed their scheme, and then Rocky Bernard the long time DT who left the Seahawks and now they have Chris Canty the 6-7 300+ pound bruiser who will probably immediately start at the tackle position next to Fred Robbins making Barry Cofield part of the rotation.

This is not surprising in the sense that Reese knew that depth was going to be key for this Giants team especially as the season kept going and the team wore down because of the lack of depth that the Giants had. They played very well up until the end, minimizing huge errors but certainly the G-Men had their minds made up to make sure that they were not going to go through that again even if they are getting back Osi next year. The Giants should be well equipped now to go after another LB and a big play WR.
The thought was that TJ Houshdmandzedeh was going to be available but he’s apparently deciding between Seattle, Minnesota and perhaps returning to Cincy where he said he wouldn’t resign but Carson Palmer is desperately calling him non stop to make sure he comes back according to several reports. So the Giants might have to look for help on the WR front from either the draft or the New York law system where Plaxico Burress’ football career is on the line.



Hold off on purchasing your Krypto-Nate shirts, DC Comics says if you’re going to blatantly rip off one of our characters and go against licensing agreements, then you’re going to have to give us a call and share the wealth baby!

Was the NBA really going to be that stupid to not call DC Comics and ask for permission? Their offices are literally next door to each other in Manhattan. That’s pretty bold. Don’t they know that we’re in a recession? They were trying to make profits on such a famous DC Comic character and not have their permission? Boy, David Stern’s crew got a lot of grapefruits to try that.


Now on to one of the more interesting and downright shady underneath the desk kind of midnight poker game, I just lost a bet to you kind of deals that old pals Bill Belichiek and Scott Pioli made. The Patriots sent Matt Cassell, that franchised QB who was going to be their biggest bargaining chip to the Chiefs for a second round draft pick. That’s it. Done. A second rounder. Anyone else feeling kind of cheated?
Well speaking of cheated, the Pats actually had a better deal on the table in the form of a three way deal that would’ve sent Cassell to the Broncos and reunite him with Josh McDaniels, Jay Cutler to Tampa Bay who had boat loads of money and were looking for a franchise like QB, and the 12th overall pick to the Patriots.
News of a trade involving him got back to Jay Cutler and that of course got him pissed and now new coach Josh McDaniels has an even bigger headache. It also further goes to show that he will not help out his former assistants who leave him to bigger and better deals than he currently commands.
Just for kicks, here’s Jason Whitlock’s take on the trade.

Ok, let’s rehash shall we because after a few days to think about it, I understand from everyone’s perspective what they are thinking. First the hard part, understanding why Bill Belichiek wanted a second round pick over the 12 overall pick in the draft. The Patriots have always preferred second round draft picks because most of the time the gems are in the second round and they are much easier financially to sign to contracts. While last year the Pats did sign a first rounder, they were absolutely sure that he was going to be a star which means that they are not sure the top tier guys in the draft from 1-15 are going to be sure things so they decided to not sign off on anyone. Plus, you have to follow the tier system in signing these guys. If the number one draft pick gets 40 mil in guaranteed money, then you work your way down, the 12th pick might be looking at 12-15 million in guaranteed money which is still pretty ridiculous for an unproven guy who is likely there because of some awesome work out at the Combine which has Todd McShay salivating while he talks about the guy on every single Sportscenter.
So the Patriots are more fond of second round picks. You can understand why Josh McDaniels would rather have Cassell than Cutler because its an easier transition and he already knows the system so the timing would be advanced in their progression. Now McDaniels has to teach Cutler the system and hope he understands it as quickly as a guy who sat on the bench for the first four years and never got a single snap off did after a few games of knocking off the rust.
Finally, Belichiek and Pioli are boys. Boys look out for one another. I can respect that but making everyone believe that it was just coincidence that Pioli was the Chiefs GM is going to be tough. Its clearly I’m gonna look out for you so you will make sure to stay out of my way.


I leave you with two things: A promise that an article is on its way and a what if Jerry Jones had never bought the Cowboys considering its been 20 years since that fateful day.

It would have been a wonderful world indeed.