
NFL: May 23, 2006Posted: Tuesday May 23, 2006 10:21AM; Updated: Tuesday May 23, 2006 10:57AM
There has been speculation in Oakland that the Raiders might part company with Warren Sapp, who had a strong relationship with Lions coach Rod Marinelli with the Buccaneers. There has been speculation around the NFL that delaying the decision in Steve McNair's grievance until June 1 could restart trade talks between the Ravens and the Titans. Titans general manager Floyd Reese has since insinuated that his previous demand of a fourth-rounder has gone up. The consensus among former NFL executives is McNair only merits a second-day draft pick, a selection ranging from a fourth- to a sixth-round selection. Ricky Williams' possible run to the Canadian Football League remained on hold Monday -- and it could stay that way at least until the end of the week. The Dolphins and Toronto Argonauts, sources said, are discussing a key factor in allowing the suspended running back to play in Canada -- assurance for the Dolphins that Williams will return to Miami after one season in Toronto. The Lions discussed signing free agent Az-Zahir Hakim, who played for offensive coordinator Mike Martz in St. Louis in 1999-2001 and for the Lions in 2002-04. But with 12 wide receivers on the roster, they decided to look at the players they already had. Joey Porter missed the first week of the Steelers' voluntary workouts, and now the question is whether he will participate in any of them. Porter did not complain about his contract publicly during the Steelers' minicamp nor did he mention anything about plans to miss upcoming workouts. The Giants are willing to wait for Jay Fiedler to get healthy, and when he is, they are anxious to see if he fits as their backup quarterback. Word within NFL circles is that new Rams coach Scott Linehan was prepared to lure Vikings director of college scouting Scott Studwell to St. Louis had Studwell not been signed to a new three-year contract the other day. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||