|
|
 |
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Video Plus Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities 
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
|  |
Will play for food Many talented players likely to be on the sideline this fall
Updated: Thursday May 31, 2001 8:24 AM
There are some harsh realities that many NFL veterans will have to face if they aren't on teams by next week. There are currently 271 players out of work who saw action in the league last fall. Another 15 players will be cut after June 1, bringing the total to 286. There were 246 players drafted in April and with the cap as it is, just about all of these picks will make rosters. Factor in another 10 undrafted rookie free agents making clubs and the math is simple, 25 to 30 jobs available for veterans on the street. No more than 10 percent of the unemployed will receive paychecks in 2001. The linebacker market is going to become more complicated in a few days. Winfred Tubbs and Chris Slade have been available for months. Come June 2, these two productive players are probably going to be competing with Barry Minter, Todd Collins and Lonnie Marts. I know all these veterans think they're worth $1 million a year, but the reality is the money just won't be there. The only linebacker who could generate big bucks if he's let go is Jacksonville's Kevin Hardy. People close to that situation told me Hardy could be released if he won't renegotiate and a few clubs have told me they are very interested. The wide receiver position is even more saturated and soon will be completely flooded. Look at the production level of some of the guys who have been on the street for a while. Charles Johnson had 56 catches for 642 yards and seven touchdowns before losing his job with the Eagles; Derrick Mayes caught 29 balls for 264 yards and one touchdown in Seattle; and Yancey Thigpen totaled 15 grabs for 289 yards and two touchdowns with Tennessee. By the end of the week, this group will be joined by Jerry Rice and Herman Moore. Johnson is making the rounds, having visited Jacksonville and New England. In fact, he looks like the Patriots' first choice. At this point in the offseason, the market has turned in favor of the clubs. Teams want to do incentive-based deals but most of these wideouts would too easily earn production-based incentives. New England and Johnson could develop an unlikely incentive-based contract on the team's performance, not on Johnson's statistics, just to close the deal. For instance, if Johnson were to catch 20 passes and the Patriots were to win six games, Johnson would receive a $500,000 bonus. Antowain Smith is the best running back on the market right now, but in a few days he will be up against former Steeler Richard Huntley. Smith rushed for 354 yards and four scores while Huntley averaged 4.7 per carry and got in the end zone three times. In this musical chairs game being played, someone will lose out on the money. Despite having led the Panthers with five interceptions, Eric Davis has been out of work for months. Soon Phillippi Sparks, Carlton Gray and Deion Sanders will all join him on the unemployment line. I suspect no one in this group can generate a $1 million contract and honestly a club would be foolish to even consider it. The truth is staring right at these guys. I sure hope they got their college degrees when they had the chance because they're going to need them soon. Pat Kirwan, who spent 12 years as a pro football coach, scout and personnel administrator, is an NFL analyst for CNN/Sports Illustrated and a regular contributor to CNNSI.com.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
