Falling



Brian Cushing, LB, Texans: A four-game suspension made for an awful week for the Houston linebacker.



For the first four games of 2010 — vs. Indianapolis, at Washington, vs. Dallas and at Oakland — he won’t be with the team. His absence will put a big damper on the hopes for a hot start against the team that owns the AFC South and the team that has such a large following in Texas and well beyond.



Here are the likely candidates to fill in for Cushing while he is out: Xavier Adibi, Kevin Bentley and newly signed Danny Clark.



In a season when the Texans face what rates as the toughest schedule in the league based on last year’s records, they’ve got a giant challenge. And how will Cushing be when he gets back for a game against the Giants Oct. 10?



Rising



Titans helping Nashville recover: In the wake of the serious flooding in Nashville, the Titans proved themselves central characters in the drama. Waters in LP Field helped draw some national attention to an under-covered natural disaster.



At a Saturday blood drive hosted by Elise Reinfeldt, daughter of the Titans’ GM, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano stopped by with Tennessee governor Phil Bredesen and Nashville mayor Karl Dean.



Players, coaches and employees have been among the countless volunteers helping out those in need. And Wednesday, the team had an organized get-together working on four houses on a West Nashville street.

The Dolphins traded 2007 first-round choice Ted Ginn Jr. to the 49ers for little in return.

Carpenter

Barron

Miami seemed anxious to dump him.



The Rams and Cowboys are making similar moves by swapping 2005 first-round tackle Alex Barron for 2006 first-round linebacker Bobby Carpenter. Both players had worn out their welcomes.



The move makes sense for St. Louis on one level because Barron doesn’t fit into the team’s long-term plans, and he would have left after the 2010 season anyway. Might as well get something in return. Barron should have more value to the Cowboys than he would to the Rams because Dallas has shown an ability to piece together an effective offensive line using unwanted parts. Tackle Marc Colombo, disappointing as a first-round pick in Chicago, became a starter for the Cowboys. Guard Leonard Davis, disappointing as a first-round pick in Arizona, has gone to three Pro Bowls in three seasons since signing with the Cowboys.



What will the Cowboys get out of Barron?



“I think the bigger question is how will an organization like the Rams get more out of Bobby Carpenter than a franchise like the Cowboys were able to?” tre_fizzle responded to the question above.



Good question. I haven’t watched Carpenter play much NFL linebacker because Carpenter hasn’t been a regular starter. He owns three starts in four NFL seasons.



“I don’t see what St. Louis got out of the trade,” Matt Williamson of Scouts Inc. said during a phone conversation Monday. “Carpenter has been a complete bust. He feels like a linebacker without a position. He almost looks like a 3-4 outside linebacker. He was a good pass-rusher at Ohio State, but he is too stiff to be a true edge rusher and too stiff to be a 4-3 outside linebacker. I understand he is a former first-round pick, but I haven’t seen anything in the NFL that makes me think he can play linebacker.”



Williamson sees this as a “great” trade for the Cowboys.



“I was with the Browns and I was in on interviews with Barron (coming out of college),” Williamson said. “He is not a self-starter. I can see why his act would get old. Getting out of St. Louis could do him a lot of good. Barron has legitimate first-round talent, he plays both tackle spots and the bottom line is he plays a much more demanding position. I just don’t think you got anything back for the guy. I think Dallas became a much better football team and St. Louis became a slightly worse football team.”

LaDainian Tomlinson has not accepted any kind of backup role with the New York Jets.



That may eventually be the case, but the future Hall of Famer joined the Jets with no preconceived notions heading into the summer.



Tomlinson stopped by the ESPN 1050 studios in Dallas on Thursday, sitting in with the “Ben and Skin” show and talked about a role that hasn’t been finalized. He will compete for carries with sophomore Shonn Greene and rookie Joe McKnight.



“The thought process is kind of like when you go to college, when you graduate from high school and go to college, you don’t look to go in and start,” Tomlinson said. “If it happens, it happens. But you go in to find a role on the team, to be a part of something special. That’s where I am.



“I think at this point in my career, people put this label and this title on you once you get to a certain age: ‘Yeah, he has to be a backup now.’ I absolutely don’t believe that. You determine your role on the football field, and that’s what the Jets have been so great about, allowing me to do that.



“They didn’t put a label on me at all. They didn’t say ‘You know what? You’re going to be a backup.’ They said ‘No, you’re going to prove what you can do on the football field,’ and that’s all I can ask.”



Tomlinson, from Texas Christian University, also takes part in a discussion about whether Emmitt Smith or Barry Sanders was the better back, shares his thoughts on the Dallas Cowboys backfield and talks about his greatest single achievement on the field and off.

During a recent trip to Dallas, Washington Redskins left tackle Trent Williams was kind enough to place a call to the NFC East blog. He grew up about two hours due east of Dallas in Longview, Texas, where he used to play against Dez Bryant’s Lufkin High School team.



Williams was still a little overwhelmed by the fact that he went fourth overall in the draft. He said he had a good feeling about his relationships with the Redskins’ coaches, but he wasn’t certain about his destination until he received a phone call from coach Mike Shanahan shortly before his name was announced.



“He asked me if I was ready to make the commitment to being great,” said Williams. “And then he asked if I’d show up to training camp on time. I told him yes to both of those.”



Williams is well aware that his work ethic at Oklahoma came into question in the months leading up to the draft. Even the OU strength coach, Jerry Schmidt, told the Washington Post that Williams was “definitely not a gym rat.” Fortunately for Williams, Redskins wide receiver Malcolm Kelly was willing to vouch for him. The two played together in high school, college and now the NFL.



“That’s the guy I turn to with all my questions about the league,” said Williams. “We’re such good friends that I’ve always been able to lean on him.”



I asked Williams if he was surprised his former strength coach would make comments that could perceived as critical of him.



“I’m not a Sooner anymore,” said Williams. “I’m a Washington Redskin. None of that stuff matters to me at this point. I’m here to help this team get to a Super Bowl.”



Since high school, Williams said he’s patterned his game after All-Pro left tackle Walter Jones, who just announced his retirement from the Seahawks. Williams said he’s watched how Jones sets up opponents and he hopes he can have a similar career. Williams plans on locking down the left tackle position, but he knows he could also be called upon to help out at other positions.



I’ll have more from my interview with Williams throughout the week.

IRVING, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys have 24 players attending their 2010 rookie minicamp this weekend, but all eyes were on wide receiver Dez Bryant during Friday’s morning practice. The good news for Cowboys fans is that Bryant made several nifty catches, including one where he reached up and snatched the ball with one hand. I also observed Bryant adjusting to a deep ball nicely when one of the quarterbacks threw it over his wrong shoulder.



He was the most talented player on the field, which is a good thing since he was the only first-rounder to make an appearance Friday. But now the bad news: In the eight Cowboys rookie minicamps I’ve covered over the years, I’ve never seen a player struggle this much from a conditioning standpoint. Wide receivers coach Ray Sherman made sure that Bryant had plenty of reps in each drill. And it only took about 45 minutes for Bryant to walk over to the sideline and attempt to puke.



Several cameramen gathered later to say that Bryant only had “dry heaves,” but it was obvious that he was out of football shape. He later claimed to enjoy the whole experience since it had been so long since he’d scrimmaged.



“Just getting back in the flow,” Bryant told reporters after his first practice. “As the days go on, you will see a lot of progression.”



One of the lesser-known wide receivers in camp was overheard shouting at Bryant during practice, “These people didn’t come out here to see me. Let’s go!.”



Wide receivers coach Ray Sherman, who’s tutored some of the best in the league, said he wasn’t concerned about Bryant’s conditioning — or lack thereof. He even compared Bryant to Cris Carter and former Cowboys great Michael Irvin at one point.



“He’s in a class of his own, though” said Sherman. “He’s gonna be a special player. There’s no doubt in my mind.”



Bryant said he was relieved to find out the Cowboys have some similar routes to the ones he ran at Oklahoma State. He planned to spend a lot of time in his new playbook in order to learn the different terminology. On Friday, offensive coordinator Jason Garrett was purposely throwing a lot at Bryant to see how he responded. And like Sherman, he didn’t appear to be concerned that Bryant struggled with his conditioning. The Cowboys believe that some time with strength and conditioning coach Joe Juraszek will eventually do the trick.



LB Lee wears a brace: Former Penn State linebacker Sean Lee, a second-round pick, wore a brace on his left knee during Friday’s practice. He had told Dallas-Fort Worth’s 103.3 ESPN earlier this week that he would not wear a brace, but he was overruled by the Cowboys’ medical staff. Lee had tore his anterior cruciate ligament in ‘08 and missed that entire season. He wore a brace throughout his senior season at Penn State, but was hoping to lose it for good.



“I hope I don’t have to wear it [in 2010],” said Lee after practice.



He said that doctors and trainers wanted to be cautious since he was playing on a different surface than he’s accustomed to. I asked Lee to come up with the most important thing he learned from legendary coach Joe Paterno.



“Just the extreme passion that he brings,” said Lee. “He’s 83 and he still coaches with a sense of urgency. And just all the intangibles. He wants us to succeed on the field, but he also wants us to be good young men.”



Other notes: Tough day for the young quarterbacks on the roster. Eastern Washington’s Matt Nichols has a live arm, but he didn’t know where his throws were going. The wide receivers dropped so many balls I stopped counting…My pick to click (as far as undrafted players go) is former Fresno State running back Lonyae Miller. He had the misfortune of playing behind first-rounder Ryan Mathews, but it’s obvious the guy has some ability. He’ll definitely be a practice squad candidate…I enjoyed watching fullback Chris Gronkowski in drills. He appears to have fairly soft hands, but more importantly, he fired off the ball and brought a lot of aggression in blocking drills…I’ll have reports on the Redskins and Eagles throughout the weekend…Oh, and here’s the latest on the Scott Sicko saga. He’s “incredibly happy” to be a Cowboy after initially telling SI.com’s Peter King that he was turning down all offers to play in the league after being passed over in the draft.

The post-draft power rankings are out, and I’ve got one of the four ballots.



Keep in mind we’re building off rankings at the conclusion of the regular season. While we didn’t have official rankings after the playoffs, I did a ballot then which you can find here.



Teams from the AFC South ranked highest on average, same as they did to close last season (although their average ranking fell from 13.6 to 14.3). Teams from the NFC West ranked 21.5 on average, lower than teams from any other division.



Here’s how I voted in this round of rankings, with a note on each. (The parenthetical number is where I ranked the team in the last official vote):



1) New Orleans (1) – The champs stay on top until they prove unworthy of it.



2) Indianapolis (2) – I expect they pick up where they left off, but have O-line questions.



3) Minnesota (3) – Vikings were far better late in ‘09 than I expected, so they get their due now.



4) Baltimore (9) – I firmly believe the Ravens have had the best offseason of anyone.



5) N.Y. Jets (5) – Trip to the AFC title game moved them a lot in my eyes.



6) Green Bay (6) – I probably like Packers more than I should.



7) Dallas (7) – Will lose attention to Saints and Vikes in the NFC, and that may be a good thing.



Atlanta (15) – The Falcons were my preseason Super Bowl pick last year, and may be again.



9) San Diego (8) – It’s getting tiring rating them high, and then being disappointed every year.



10) Arizona (4) – Life post-Kurt Warner is going to be a bigger test for them than some think.



11) New England (11) – The Patriots need to prove themselves again to me.



12) Philadelphia (10) – Eagles have lots of turnover, but that’s not necessarily bad.



13) Cincinnati (12) – Can’t see a repeat of last year and Bengals were bypassed by Baltimore.



14) Houston (13) – Big question remains: Can they win in the division?



15) San Francisco (21) – Huge opportunity in wide-open division; going to be a popular dark horse.



16) Tennessee (16) – Replacing a ton of leadership and could have a holdout situation with Johnson.



17) Pittsburgh (14) – Too much turmoil thanks to Big Ben, not enough offensive line.



18) N.Y. Giants (19) – Too many question in the secondary and at linebacker.



19) Denver (17) – Not a fan of the tear down of everything Shanahan, firing of Nolan.



20) Carolina (18) – Not nearly as excited about Matt Moore at QB as they are.



21) Miami (20) – Probably on the rise in a tough division with Brandon Marshall in the fold.



22) Chicago (22) – I just don’t see Mike Martz and Jay Cutler as a good marriage.



23) Jacksonville (23) – Stuck with an average QB, young team in a strong division.



24) Oakland (24) – Going to be moving up this list and messing things up for a lot of opponents.



25) Seattle (25) – While Seahawks have done well, Carroll has a lot of roster rebuilding still ahead.



26) Buffalo (26) – Hard to find anything to get excited about here, unfortunately.



27) Cleveland (27) – Just don’t see them close to Baltimore’s level; Holmgren needs time.



28) Washington (28) – Mishmash of old running backs among my chief concerns.



29) Kansas City (29) – I don’t have big faith in Matt Cassell yet; new coordinators are intriguing.



30) Tampa Bay (30) – Still wonder if Morris is in over his head.



31) Detroit (31) – Bad division to make a lot of progress in.



32) St. Louis (32) – Sam Bradford is a start, but finish is a long way off.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting Denver All-Pro left tackle Ryan Clady suffered a patella tendon injury in his knee while playing basketball.

Clady

The Denver Post reported Clady had surgery Tuesday and that the tendon was “only 50-percent torn.”



Schefter is reporting that Clady is telling people he will be out three months. If Clady is out for just three months that means both he and Denver have dodged a bullet. Patella tendons that are completely torn usually take six to nine months to heal, ESPN’s Stephania Bell said Wednesday.



The left tackle is arguably Denver’s best player. Using Clady’s timeline, he should be ready to come back before the start of the regular season. Denver opens the regular season Sept. 12 at Jacksonville.



If Denver pursues former Dallas left tackle Flozell Adams, the best available tackle in a weak class, that would mean the team could be concerned about Clady’s ability to be ready for the regular season. At this point, that may be unnecessary.



Still, I’m sure Denver coach Josh McDaniels will let Clady know that he is displeased with his star player hitting the hard court during the offseason.



This could have been a disastrous blow for Denver had the injury been more serious. Denver’s offense is going to be challenged enough in 2010. It can’t afford playing without Clady, who became an instant star after Denver took him at No. 12 in the 2008 draft.

Now that the draft is over, it looks like things are picking up for Darren Sharper.



The free-agent safety, who spent last season with New Orleans, reportedly is visiting Jacksonville, and the Cowboys also are eyeing Sharper. Dallas and New Orleans have a healthy rivalry and the Cowboys likely would not mind tweaking a rival by taking away a player who was crucial in the Saints’ run to the Super Bowl.



The Saints have an interest in retaining Sharper, who had nine interceptions last season. But they’ll do it only at a reasonable price because Sharper is 34 and the Saints have other options. They haven’t come out and said it, but common sense tells you moving last year’s first-round pick, Malcolm Jenkins, from cornerback to safety is a possibility.



Jenkins has the size and skills to play safety and the Saints admitted that when they drafted him, but they wanted to try him at cornerback first. Jenkins showed some promise at cornerback last season, but Tracy Porter and Jabari Greer established themselves as top-notch starters. The Saints also used this year’s first-round pick on Florida State cornerback Patrick Robinson. That gives the Saints even more flexibility at cornerback and can be taken as a sign they’re ready to move Jenkins.



Don’t rule out the possibility of Sharper returning to the Saints. He’s got a pretty good idea of how high New Orleans will go. But he’s likely to get some decent offers now. That may prompt the Saints to step up a bit, but don’t look for them to go much higher with their offer.

The Washington Redskins were the only team in the division to keep this draft from being all about defense. The Giants’ once-vaunted defense was embarrassed in ‘09 and general manager Jerry Reese and coach Tom Coughlin spent three days trying to rectify the situation. Who will start at middle linebacker, though? It’s a fair question.



It was a memorable three days in the Beast. Now, let’s take a look back at what transpired. It’s never too early for some knee-jerk reaction.



Best move: I think Cowboys owner Jerry Jones moving up three spots in the first round to select Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant may have been the best move in the division. He’s a top-10 talent (No. 8 on the Boys’ board) who comes with some baggage. Yes, there were teams scared of him. But I couldn’t find a scout around the league who said he would’ve passed on Bryant at No. 24 overall. It was also a shrewd move because the Ravens were waiting for Bryant at No. 25. Patriots coach Bill Belichick blocked an AFC playoff team by making the trade with Jones.



Other teams were worried about Bryant’s association with Dallas area businessman David Wells, who helped guide (his nephew) Michael Crabtree into a holdout last fall. I’m told by folks at Valley Ranch that Jones knows exactly how to deal with Wells and that it shouldn’t be a problem. The unfair thing for Bryant was that some folks assumed he wasn’t a good kid because his stock was falling. Of the eight or nine scouts I asked about Bryant during the buildup to the draft, every one of them said he was essentially a good kid. He was just extremely immature and had a problem showing up to places on time. He’s hands down the best receiver in the draft and I think the potential reward far outweighs the risk — especially where he was drafted. The Tim Tebow trade immediately trumped Bryant’s selection in terms of excitement, but Bryant will be contributing a lot sooner than the former Florida quarterback.



Riskiest move: You’ll think I’m crazy (as usual), but the Redskins choosing Oklahoma left tackle Trent Williams No. 4 overall is one of the riskiest moves of the draft. I agree that he has tremendous potential, but he’s not a finished product at left tackle. Oklahoma State’s Russell Okung would have been a no-brainer starter at left tackle from Day 1. Williams has more versatility and he’s a better fit in the Redskins’ zone-blocking scheme, but it’s wrong to suggest that he’s anywhere close to the “safest” pick in the top-10. If you want to know why I’m a little skeptical, go back and watch the OU-BYU game on tape. Sam Bradford remembers what I’m talking about.



On the positive side, Williams is an exceptional athlete and I love watching him finish off blocks. I think Mike Shanahan always has Ryan Clady on his mind these days. And Williams has that type of potential. But you’re going to have to live with some mistakes. Don’t be shocked if Williams has to begin his career at right tackle. I shudder to think what he’ll look like in that first game against DeMarcus Ware. I flew back from Indianapolis with both of those players after the combine. Williams didn’t recognize Ware on that flight. Something tells me he won’t have a problem putting a face to a name Sept. 12.



Most surprising move: Maybe I haven’t been fair enough to Eagles general manager Howie Roseman. On the second day of the draft, I was really impressed by the way he moved all over the board and kept acquiring extra picks. I’d heard from both Eagles and Cowboys sources that the fourth round was going to contain a ton of “value,” and Roseman apparently took that to heart. By trading down twice in the 50s, he basically took over the fourth round. The Eagles had four picks in the fourth and then they found another pass-rusher in the fifth with Clemson defensive end Ricky Sapp. He’s an undersized player who has exceptional quickness. I think he probably reminded Andy Reid of Trent Cole, a player who the Eagles landed in the fifth round a few years back. I guess the “surprising” aspect of all this is how comfortable Roseman looked while running his first draft. Even the stoic Andy Reid admitted that he was entertained by watching Roseman at work.



It was also bold to move from No. 24 to 13 in order to land Michigan defensive end Brandon Graham. ESPN’s Sal Paolantonio has reported that Reid and Roseman may have wanted to preempt the Giants from taking Graham. Of course, general manager Jerry Reese will never acknowledge that he coveted Graham, but it’s an interesting theory.



File it away: I could almost sense that Tom Coughlin and Jerry Reese were seething about the ‘09 season during this draft. Everyone wanted them to take a middle linebacker in the first round, but it didn’t happen. The Giants made this draft about reclaiming the line of scrimmage. They started out with the immensely talented, but somewhat unproven, South Florida defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul and then selected an enormous defensive tackle from East Carolina named Linval Joseph in the second round. Even when you thought they might turn to offense in the sixth round, they went with a sleeper defensive end out of Williams & Mary named Adrian Tracy. This pick had Reese written all over it because he loves overachieving kids from small schools. Tracy’s not a three-down lineman by any stretch of the imagination, but he gives the Giants more options. If the Giants are able to become an elite defense again, we’ll point back to the 2010 draft as a major turning point. In terms of potential impact players, this reminds me of the ‘07 draft. And that’s a great thing for Giants fans.



One other thing to file away: The Cowboys moved up to take Penn State linebacker Sean Lee in the second round. They see him as the eventual successor to Keith Brooking at inside linebacker. Other scouts around the league were very concerned about Lee’s torn ACL that caused him to miss the ‘08 season. If he’s healthy, the Cowboys will have a starter in the near future. And you can probably go ahead and say goodbye to the Bobby Carpenter era. I’ll say one thing for Carpenter. I’ve never seen a guy respond to intense criticism with such extreme grace. Perhaps he’ll find a team that will truly value his ability to cover running backs and tight ends in space.

The Arizona Cardinals traded up in the second round to take linebacker Daryl Washington for good reason.



The Dolphins had taken linebacker Koa Misi with the 40th choice. The Ravens then took linebacker Sergio Kindle at No. 43.



Arizona entered the draft holding the 58th choice. The Cardinals successfully anticipated a run on linebackers when they traded up to take Washington with the 47th pick.



The Steelers took linebacker Jason Worilds at No. 52 and the Patriots took linebacker Jermaine Cunningham at No. 53. Dallas then took linebacker Sean Lee at No. 55. The Patriots selected linebacker Brandon Spikes at No. 62. The Colts drafted linebacker Pat Angerer with the next choice.



Eight linebackers had come off the board in a span of 24 choices. Teams running 3-4 defensive schemes — Arizona among them — drafted seven of the eight. It’s tough to know for sure whether Washington would have been gone at No. 58, but with all those linebackers coming off the board so quickly, Arizona played the odds well.