Offseason movement

Off-the-field decisions impact where on-field talent signs

When you consider all the ramifications of the salary cap, free agency and the entry draft, it's easy to see how the offseason decision-making process often explodes into a full-fledged soap opera.

Take the Ricky Williams saga. The Dolphins want him. They know that the top two running backs in the draft, William Green and DeShaun Foster, will be gone by the time they pick, and that the Saints have Deuce McAllister in the wings.

The Saints could get Miami's first-round pick but the deal seems to be snagged over a contingency clause -- "if" Williams achieves a certain goal, "then" New Orleans would receive something else. The Saints need to recognize that Ricky Watters and Garrison Hearst are available for no draft compensation, and such haggling could cost them the opportunity to move a marketable player.

Then there is the talk of Terry Glenn being traded to Green Bay. The Patriots want a third-round draft pick and the Packers want to send a fourth. Two pro personnel directors I spoke with consider Glenn to be the only legitimate No. 1 receiver available. If the Packers are genuinely interested in adding Glenn to their roster -- which many people feel would be a mistake at any price -- then it doesn't matter which pick you give. Just get it done.

The Bills spent last offseason deciding between Rob Johnson and Doug Flutie. This year, the Patriots face a similar crossroads. Keeping Tom Brady is a no-brainer, and there is no doubt they have a valuable commodity in Drew Bledsoe. But the asking price is shrinking as the demand does.

First, Miami re-signed Jay Fiedler. Then Chicago signed Jim Miller to what is this year's benchmark for quarterback deals. Trent Dilfer re-signed, Jeff Blake appears bound for Buffalo and either Johnson or Charlie Batch is headed to Houston. New England now needs to get what it can for Bledsoe and move on.

Ask London Fletcher how cold business can be in the NFL. Fletcher could never have imagined that a 30-year-old former backup from Canada would impact his standing in St. Louis. But Shelton Quarles has impressed Tampa Bay so much with his play off the bench that the Bucs decided to pass on re-signing Jamie Duncan. St. Louis wanted Fletcher back, but Duncan was cheaper so they signed him. Now, Fletcher will find less money available to him because teams know he's no longer a candidate to return to his old team.

Antowain Smith was asked why he re-signed with the Patriots so quickly after such a good season. "The grass isn't always greener on the other side," Smith said, and he ought to know. He was fired last year and had to restart his career. Smith learned the most important lessons: Be realistic in evaluating your value and know a good deal when it's staring you in the face.

Maybe the clearest sign of the times involved the 49ers. San Francisco offered its 25-year-old center, Jeremy Newberry, the same deal they said they would offer to Olin Kruetz of the Bears: six years, $20 million with a $5 million bonus. Kruetz no doubt would've taken it, Newberry signed immediately, and now the Bears will have to up their ante to keep Kruetz.

Pat Kirwan, who spent 12 years as a pro football coach, scout and personnel administrator, is an NFL analyst for CNN/Sports Illustrated.

 

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