Now what? With the Bears backing off Arizona State pass rusher Terrell Suggs as the fourth pick in the draft after Wednesday’s disappointing workout, the urge to trade down goes up. Trouble is, the opportunity to trade down goes down right along with Suggs’ stock.
The Houston Texans, drafting third, are more disappointed than the Bears because they thought Suggs was fast enough to play linebacker in a 3-4 defense. The Texans also have been more vocal than the Bears about inviting a deal to move down. There are four teams with two No. 1 picks: Jets (13, 22), Patriots (14, 19), Saints (17, 18) and Raiders (31, 32). Those are the teams with the most ammunition to trade up, but they need incentive that a slow Suggs failed to provide.
Last year the third pick in the draft, Detroit Lions quarterback Joey Harrington, signed a six-year, $36.5 million contract. The fourth pick, Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Mike Williams, signed a six-year, $34.5 million deal. The total money for No. 13 (receiver Donte’ Stallworth) and No. 22 (Bryan Thomas) combined was $15.6 million. Total money for No. 14 (Jeremy Shockey) and No. 19 (Ashley Lelie) also was $15.6 million. That’s two first-round players for less than half the price of one top player.
Since pro football contracts aren’t guaranteed and contracts get restructured, the initial signing bonus payout is more relevant. There, the difference was about $9 million for one top player and $9 million for the two later players.
In one-tenth of a second, Suggs could have lost as much as $20 million if he falls out of the top 10. His 40-yard dash times–4.7, 4.8–were baffling for a player who set an NCAA sacks record, flashing speed off the edge.
“He’s faster on the field than he is working out,” Houston general manager Charley Casserly said, hopefully.
Casserly said he will continue to evaluate Suggs, who will have another workout before the April 26 draft.
“He’s a good football player,” Casserly said. “The question you have to answer before the draft is will he be worth the third pick or the 17th pick.”
If the top players aren’t “special,” teams are loathe to spend special money. Unless the Texans or Bears can entice a team to fall in love with somebody like Marshall quarterback Byron Leftwich or Miami receiver Andre Johnson, they will find it difficult to trade down. And before anybody makes a deal with the Bears, they will have to make sure their player will be available at No. 4 and not get snatched at No. 3.
The Lions, drafting second, are the only team presumably content to stay and apparently are focused on Michigan State wide receiver Charles Rogers. But the Lions are worried about the Texans making a deal with the No. 1 Cincinnati Bengals to jump over them for Rogers.
The Bengals are zeroing in on quarterbacks Carson Palmer and Leftwich, and new coach Marvin Lewis also wants to consider Kansas State cornerback Terence Newman. Bengals President Mike Brown, weary of missing on quarterbacks, is said to be favoring Heisman Trophy winner Palmer.
Like the Bears, the Bengals are waiting for Leftwich’s April 7 workout. He hasn’t been able to do anything since recovering from a cracked leg bone.
If the can’t-miss Newman prevails in the Bengals’ decision, the Bears will be staring both top quarterbacks in the face. The Lions (Harrington) and Texans (David Carr) grabbed the top two quarterbacks last year. Note the impact of the rookie QBs: The Lions drafted third last year and regressed to second this year, and the Texans improved from first to third.
And what if the Bengals take Palmer and the Bears stay at No. 4? Newman is the best player who might be available, followed by Johnson, Kentucky defensive tackle Dewayne Robertson and Utah offensive tackle Jordan Gross, depending on where Leftwich falls in the final evaluation. For need, the Bears’ order would be Newman, Gross, Robertson and Johnson, with Leftwich again figuring somewhere in the equation. Or maybe they will forget all about the slow workout and take Suggs after all. This is far from settled.
Expanded playoffs: The push by Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt to eliminate byes in the playoffs by expanding to a 16-team format gained less support at NFL owners meetings than the tabled proposal to go to 14 teams.
Commissioner Paul Tagliabue wants to delay any expansion until at least 2004. There are many owners who believe that playoff byes are earned throughout the regular season and are a well-deserved competitive advantage. But a 14-team playoff with one bye per conference would predetermine the Super Bowl matchup 85 percent of the time if the success of past bye teams holds.
While expanded playoffs would earn money for television, Hunt’s 16-team format also would create the problem of how to televise the first eight games in one weekend without overlap. Hunt admitted he hadn’t thought out the details.
“Theoretically, you’d have to have one Friday, three Saturday, three Sunday or maybe four, I’m not sure,” Hunt said. “You could do four Saturday and four Sunday, I guess. You’d have to start early. I’ve always thought there was room for another game on Thanksgiving Day too.”
Said Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis: “Lamar is a visionary. I hope I’m alive when that [16-game playoff] happens.”
Parcells parcels: Dallas Cowboys coach Bill Parcells, 61, said the examples of 66-year-old Dick Vermeil and 59-year-old Marty Schottenheimer convinced him to return.
“Some of my contemporaries have been a bit of an inspiration to me, Vermeil particularly,” Parcells said. “He went into Kansas City and it was a tough situation and he undertook the Rams when they were really down and out. I like him a lot personally and I admired what he did. I’m sitting there looking at him and I say, `You know, I might just be able to still do this.'”
After he left the Jets in 1999, Parcells said, “Write it on your chalkboard: I’m never coaching again.” He said he didn’t regret saying it.
“That’s the way I felt at the time,” he said. “I’m not apologizing for it. As I said, this is a business that can wear me out. You know what kind of personality I am–Type A. I know that. But I’m past all that. This is a different enterprise now for me. I’m enthusiastic. I’m energized. I look forward to it. Will it beat me down again? Yes. The answer is yes, it will. But until it does, I’m giving it everything I’ve got.”
Gruden scowls: Super Bowl winner Jon Gruden of the Bucs didn’t enjoy getting pats on the back at the recent owners meetings.
“I think what it does is turns a coach to a big, red, fat tomato and people are going to take a big bite out of you,” he said. “I don’t have a great desire for these kinds of things. I think a coach should be home in his office, working on his team. The owners and GMs should come here and determine league policy. If you want to go golfing, get a new profession. That’s the way I look at it.”
Cowher on Kordell: Steelers coach Bill Cowher, after eight years with Kordell Stewart: “Kordell is a very level-headed guy. I think he’s looking at this as an opportunity, a fresh start. They’re getting a player who has won a lot of football games. He’s very resourceful. A good thing you have around him in Chicago is a good running back, a good group of receivers, a good supporting group. I think he can give them some stability at that position. He has mobility. He’s got an understanding of the game. He’s a good football player.”
