Friday, July 29, 2011

Two marginal players,
playing their way off the team

The following is from an article by Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (emphasis added):

Tomlin emphasized that the traditional first-day running test Thursday was not a test. He called it a "conditioning evaluation."

'We don't know where these guys have been,' Tomlin said. "More than anything, we wanted to see where they are from a conditioning standpoint."

While Tomlin said it went "extremely well," there were several players who could not continue. Two of them were wide receiver Limas Sweed and running back Jonathan Dwyer, who looks as though he could play nose tackle. Adams and Casey Hampton also cut their number of runs short but likely were given a pass because of their ages.


There are no words to express the stunned feeling here regarding these two underachievers. Limas Sweed has been skating on very thin ice with his head coach ever since his dropped pass in the 2009 AFC Championship game versus Baltimore; a drop made all the worse by his unwillingness inability to get off the turf immediately thereafter. The guess here is that Kevin Colbert will bring in more wide outs, irrespective of what Plaxico Burress decides to do.

As for Jonathan Dwyer . . . he was a one camp wonder, and if he is not amongst the first cuts (on or about August 30) it will be a big surprise.

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Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Cap maneuvers

Everyone knows that the Steelers are over the salary cap, if only because it was published here.

Fortunately more informed analysis of the salary cap is available to us all ~ the good folks at Football Outsiders are offering their expertise.  According to them the Steelers are likely to cut Flozell Adams and then sign LaMarr Woodley to a long-term, cap friendly deal.


Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Undrafted free agents signed

The Steelers signed a host of undrafted free agents, and if you want to know more about these players the Steelers have you covered.

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Free agency, category six

Last and arguably least, are the category six free agents.  According to the NFL "[t]he players in category No. 6 may be signed with no rights of any character held by the Old Club.  There is no signing deadline applicable to these players" (as opposed to category five free agents who may be signed by any other team up and until September 3, 4:00PM EDT).

Here are the category six free agents:

Pittsburgh
Harris, Tuff, DB, Montana


Arizona
Adams, Michael, DB, Louisiana-Lafayette

Broughton, Nehemiah, RB, Citadel

Dykes, Keilen, DT, West Virginia

Iwebema, Kenny, DE, Iowa

Maui'a, Reagan, RB, Hawaii


Baltimore
Sanders, Daniel, C, Colorado


Buffalo
Brohm, Brian, QB, Louisville

Ganther, Quinton, RB, Utah

Stupar, Jonathan, TE, Virginia


Chicago
Aromashodu, Devin, WR, Auburn


Cincinnati
White, Marvin, DB, Texas Christian


Cleveland
Adams, Titus, DE, Nebraska

Costanzo, Blake, LB, Lafayette


Dallas
Greisen, Chris, QB, Northwest Missouri State


Detroit
Nordin, Jake, TE, Northern Illinois

Smith, Kevin, RB, Central Florida


Green Bay
Bell, Josh, DB, Baylor


Indianapolis
Hart, Mike, RB, Michigan

Richardson, Mike, DB, Notre Dame

Robinson, Gijon, TE, Missouri Western

Santi, Tom, TE, Virginia

Silva, Jamie, DB, Boston College


Jacksonville
Smith, Bryan, DE, McNeese State


Kansas City
Leggett, Maurice, DB, Valdosta State


Miami
Haynos, Joey, TE, Maryland


Minnesota
Young, Albert, RB, Iowa


New Orleans
Dunbar, Jo-Lonn, LB, Boston College

Waters, Anthony, LB, Clemson


N.Y. Giants
Brown, Courtney, DB, Cal Poly


St. Louis
Butler, Quincy, DB, Texas Christian

Darby, Kenneth, RB, Alabama

Johnson, Curtis, LB, Clark Atlanta


San Diego
Beckwith, Darry, LB, Louisiana State

Latsko, Billy, RB, Florida


San Francisco
Patrick, Chris, T, Nebraska


Tampa Bay
Huggins, Kareem, RB, Hofstra


Tennessee
Allred, Colin, LB, Baylor




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Free agency, category five

 This is, by a significant margin, the largest category of free agents.  These are the unrestricted free agents who may be signed with no compensation to their old club.

Pittsburgh
Colon, Willie, T, Hofstra

Eason, Nick, DE, Clemson

Essex, Trai, G, Northwestern

Fox, Keyaron, LB, Georgia Tech

Gay, William, DB, Louisville

Hoke, Chris, NT, Brigham Young

Madison, Anthony, DB, Alabama

Moore, Mewelde, RB, Tulane

Scott, Jonathan, T, Texas

Sepulveda, Daniel, P, Baylor

Spaeth, Matt, TE, Minnesota

Suisham, Shaun, K, Bowling Green

Taylor, Ivan, DB, Louisiana-Lafayette

Warren, Greg, LS, North Carolina


Arizona
Abdullah, Hamza, DB, Washington State

Batiste, D'Anthony, T, Louisiana-Lafayette

Branch, Alan, DT, Michigan

Breaston, Steve, WR, Michigan

Claxton, Ben, C, Mississippi

Faneca, Alan, G, Louisiana State

Graham, Ben, P, No College

Lutui, Deuce, G, Southern California

McBride, Trumaine, DB, Mississippi

Patrick, Ben, TE, Delaware

Robinson, Bryan, NT, Fresno State

Sendlein, Lyle, C, Texas

Spach, Stephen, TE, Fresno State

Ware, Matt, DB, UCLA

Watson, Gabe, NT, Michigan

Wright, Jason, RB, Northwestern


Atlanta
Blalock, Justin, G, Texas

Bryant, Matt, K, Baylor

Clabo, Tyson, T, Wake Forest

Dahl, Harvey, G, Nevada

Finneran, Brian, WR, Villanova

Johnson, Thomas, NT, Middle Tennessee

Koenen, Michael, P, Western Washington

Nicholas, Stephen, LB, South Florida

Norwood, Jerious, RB, Mississippi State

Peterson, Mike, LB, Florida

Snelling, Jason, RB, Virginia

Williams, Brian, DB, North Carolina State


Baltimore
Bulger, Marc, QB, West Virginia

Burgess, Prescott, LB, Michigan

Carr, Chris, DB, Boise State

Chester, Chris, G, Oklahoma

Gaither, Jared, T, Maryland

Houser, Kevin, LS, Ohio State

Houshmandzadeh, T.J., WR, Oregon State

Landry, Dawan, DB, Georgia Tech

McClain, Le'Ron, RB, Alabama

Moll, Tony, T, Nevada

Stallworth, Donte', WR, Tennessee

Washington, Fabian, DB, Nebraska

Wilson, Josh, DB, Maryland

Yanda, Marshal, G, Iowa


Buffalo
Ayodele, Akin, LB, Purdue

Ellison, Keith, LB, Oregon State

Florence, Drayton, DB, Tuskegee

McCargo, John, DE, North Carolina State

Posluszny, Paul, LB, Penn State

Whitner, Donte, DB, Ohio State

Youboty, Ashton, DB, Ohio State


Carolina
Alexander, Gerald, DB, Boise State

Anderson, James, LB, Virginia Tech

Hodge, Abdul, LB, Iowa
   
Hudson, Marcus, DB, North Carolina State
   
Johnson, Charles, DE, Georgia
  
King, Jeff, TE, Virginia Tech
  
Landri, Derek, DT, Notre Dame
   
Lloyd, Rhys, K, Minnesota
 
Marshall, Richard, DB, Fresno State
  
Moore, Matt, QB, Oregon State

Morris, Chris, C, Michigan State

Petitti, Rob, T, Pittsburgh
    
Rosario, Dante, TE, Oregon
 
St. Pierre, Brian, QB, Boston College

Williams, DeAngelo, RB, Memphis

Williams, Jamar, LB, Arizona State
  
Wilson, C.J., DB, Baylor


Chicago
Adams, Anthony, NT, Penn State

Bullocks, Josh, DB, Nebraska

Clark, Desmond, TE, Wake Forest

Collins, Todd, QB, Michigan

Davis, Rashied, WR, San Jose State

Graham, Corey, DB, New Hampshire

Iwuh, Brian, LB, Colorado

Kreutz, Olin, C, Washington

Manning, Danieal, DB, Abilene Christian

Maynard, Brad, P, Ball State

Roach, Nick, LB, Northwestern

Tinoisamoa, Pisa, LB, Hawaii

Wilson, Rod, LB, South Carolina

Wolfe, Garrett, RB, Northern Illinois


Cincinnati
Benson, Cedric, RB, Texas

Chambers, Kirk, T, Stanford

Fanene, Jonathan, DE, Utah

Johnson, Brandon, LB, Louisville

Jones, Dhani, LB, Michigan

Joseph, Johnathan, DB, South Carolina

Kelly, Reggie, TE, Mississippi State

Leonard, Brian, RB, Rutgers

Mathis, Evan, G, Alabama

Ndukwe, Chinedum, DB, Notre Dame

Owens, Terrell, WR, Tenn.-Chattanooga

Ratliff, Keiwan, DB, Florida

Williams, Roy, DB, Oklahoma

Wilson, Gibril, DB, Tennessee


Cleveland
Bell, Mike, RB, Arizona

Elam, Abram, DB, Kent State

Estandia, Greg, TE, Nevada-Las Vegas

Mitchell, Jayme, DE, Mississippi

Piscitelli, Sabby, DB, Oregon State

Robinson, Derreck, DE, Iowa

Roth, Matt, LB, Iowa

Smith, Robaire, DE, Michigan State

Sorensen, Nick, DB, Virginia Tech

Stuckey, Chansi, WR, Clemson

Trusnik, Jason, LB, Ohio Northern

Vickers, Lawrence, RB, Colorado

Womack, Floyd, G, Mississippi State

Wright, Eric, DB, Nevada-Las Vegas

Yates, Billy, G, Texas A&M


Dallas
Barron, Alex, T, Florida State

Bowen, Stephen, DE, Hofstra

Free, Doug, T, Northern Illinois

Hatcher, Jason, DE, Grambling

Hurd, Sam, WR, Northern Illinois

Kosier, Kyle, G, Arizona State

Sensabaugh, Gerald, DB, North Carolina

Spears, Marcus, DE, Louisiana State

Williams, Leon, LB, Miami


Denver
Eckel, Kyle, RB, Navy

Fields, Ronald, NT, Mississippi State

Harris, Ryan, T, Notre Dame

Maroney, Laurence, RB, Minnesota

Thomas, Marcus, DE, Florida


Detroit
Brown, C.C., DB, Louisiana-Lafayette

Carpenter, Bobby, LB, Ohio State

Ciurciu, Vinny, LB, Boston College

Clark, Brian, WR, North Carolina State

DeVries, Jared, DE, Iowa

Gandy, Dylan, C, Texas Tech

Hill, Tye, DB, Clemson

Houston, Chris, DB, Arkansas

Johnson, Landon, LB, Purdue

McBride, Turk, DE, Tennessee

McDonald, Brandon, DB, Memphis

Rayner, Dave, K, Michigan State

Stanton, Drew, QB, Michigan State

Wendling, John, DB, Wyoming


Green Bay
Bigby, Atari, DB, Central Florida

Colledge, Daryn, G, Boise State

Crosby, Mason, K, Colorado

Hall, Korey, RB, Boise State

Jackson, Brandon, RB, Nebraska

Jenkins, Cullen, DE, Central Michigan

Jones, James, WR, San Jose State

Kuhn, John, RB, Shippensburg, Pa.

Smith, Anthony, DB, Syracuse

Spitz, Jason, C, Louisville

Wilhelm, Matt, LB, Ohio State


Houston
Anderson, Mark, DE, Alabama

Bentley, Kevin, LB, Northwestern

Bulman, Tim, DE, Boston College

Butler, Rashad, T, Miami

Diles, Zach, LB, Kansas State

Green, Jarvis, DE, Louisiana State

Jones, Jacoby, WR, Lane

Leach, Vonta, RB, East Carolina

Leinart, Matt, QB, Southern California

Lewis, Damione, DT, Miami

Paymah, Karl, DB, Washington State

Pollard, Bernard, DB, Purdue

Studdard, Kasey, G, Texas

Turk, Matt, P, Wisconsin-Whitewater


Indianapolis
Addai, Joseph, RB, Louisiana State

Bullitt, Melvin, DB, Texas A&M

Dawson, Keyunta, DE, Texas Tech

Francisco, Aaron, DB, Brigham Young

Hagler, Tyjuan, LB, Cincinnati

Hamlin, Ken, DB, Arkansas

Johnson, Antonio, DT, Mississippi State

Johnson, Charlie, T, Oklahoma State

Muir, Daniel, DT, Kent State

Rhodes, Dominic, RB, Midwestern State

Session, Clint, LB, Pittsburgh

Vinatieri, Adam, K, South Dakota State


Jacksonville
Bouman, Todd, QB, St. Cloud State

Considine, Sean, DB, Iowa

Durant, Justin, LB, Hampton

Edwards, Trent, QB, Stanford

Morrison, Kirk, LB, San Diego State


Podlesh, Adam, P, Maryland

Sims-Walker, Mike, WR, Central Florida


Kansas City
Anderson, Charlie, LB, Mississippi

Battle, Jackie, RB, Houston

Castille, Tim, RB, Alabama

Copper, Terrance, WR, East Carolina

Croyle, Brodie, QB, Alabama

Daniels, Travis, DB, Louisiana State

Edwards, Ron, NT, Texas A&M

Mays, Corey, LB, Notre Dame

McGraw, Jon, DB, Kansas State

Niswanger, Rudy, C, Louisiana State

O'Callaghan, Ryan, T, California

Pope, Leonard, TE, Georgia

Smith, Shaun, DE, South Carolina

Vrabel, Mike, LB, Ohio State

Wiegmann, Casey, C, Iowa


Miami
Brown, Ronnie, RB, Auburn

Cobbs, Patrick, RB, North Texas

McDaniel, Tony, DE, Tennessee

McQuistan, Pat, T, Weber State

Moses, Quentin, LB, Georgia

Pennington, Chad, QB, Marshall

Procter, Cory, G, Montana

Thigpen, Tyler, QB, Coastal Carolina

Williams, Ricky, RB, Texas


Minnesota
Baskett, Hank, WR, New Mexico

Cook, Ryan, G, New Mexico

Edwards, Ray, DE, Purdue

Evans, Fred, NT, Texas State

Favre, Brett, QB, Southern Mississippi

Frampton, Eric, DB, Washington State

Jackson, Tarvaris, QB, Alabama State

Leber, Ben, LB, Kansas State

Lewis, Greg, WR, Illinois

Longwell, Ryan, K, California

Ramsey, Patrick, QB, Tulane

Rice, Sidney, WR, South Carolina

Sheppard, Lito, DB, Florida

Tahi, Naufahu, RB, Brigham Young

Walker, Frank, DB, Tuskegee

Williams, Pat, NT, Texas A&M


New England
Faulk, Kevin, RB, Louisiana State

Graham, Shayne, K, Virginia Tech

Light, Matt, T, Purdue

McGowan, Brandon, DB, Maine

Morris, Sammy, RB, Texas Tech

Ojinnaka, Quinn, G, Syracuse

Page, Jarrad, DB, UCLA

Taylor, Fred, RB, Florida

Warren, Gerard, DE, Florida

White, Tracy, LB, Howard


New Orleans
Ayodele, Remi, NT, Oklahoma

Betts, Ladell, RB, Iowa

Bushrod, Jermon, T, Towson

Charleston, Jeff, DE, Idaho State

Clark, Danny, LB, Illinois

Evans, Heath, RB, Auburn

Giordano, Matt, DB, California

Goodwin, Jonathan, C, Michigan

Hargrove, Tony, DT, Georgia Tech

Harper, Roman, DB, Alabama

Humphrey, Tory, TE, Central Michigan

Jones, Julius, RB, Notre Dame

Mitchell, Kawika, LB, South Florida

Mitchell, Marvin, LB, Tennessee

Moore, Lance, WR, Toledo

Prioleau, Pierson, DB, Virginia Tech

Reis, Chris, DB, Georgia Tech

Roby, Courtney, WR, Indiana

Shanle, Scott, LB, Nebraska

Sharper, Darren, DB, William & Mary

Strief, Zach, T, Northwestern

Thomas, David, TE, Texas

Torrence, Leigh, DB, Stanford

Wilkerson, Jimmy, NT, Oklahoma

Wynn, DeShawn, RB, Florida

Young, Usama, DB, Kent State


N.Y. Giants
Blackburn, Chase, LB, Akron

Boothe, Kevin, G, Cornell

Boss, Kevin, TE, Western Oregon

Bradshaw, Ahmad, RB, Marshall

Bulluck, Keith, LB, Syracuse

Clayton, Michael, WR, Louisiana State

Cofield, Barry, DT, Northwestern

Grant, Deon, DB, Tennessee

Hagan, Derek, WR, Arizona State

Johnson, Michael, DB, Arizona

Kiwanuka, Mathias, DE, Boston College

Smith, Steve, WR, Southern California

Sorgi, Jim, QB, Wisconsin

Tollefson, Dave, DE, Northwest Missouri State

Wilkinson, Gerris, LB, Georgia Tech


N.Y. Jets
Clemens, Kellen, QB, Oregon

Coleman, Drew, DB, Texas Christian

Cromartie, Antonio, DB, Florida State

Edwards, Braylon, WR, Michigan

Ellis, Shaun, DE, Tennessee

Folk, Nick, K, Arizona

Holmes, Santonio, WR, Ohio State

Hunter, Wayne, T, Hawaii

Ihedigbo, James, DB, Massachusetts

Laury, Lance, LB, South Carolina

Pool, Brodney, DB, Oklahoma

Pryce, Trevor, DE, Clemson

Richardson, Tony, RB, Auburn

Smith, Brad, WR, Missouri

Smith, Eric, DB, Michigan State

Weatherford, Steve, P, Illinois


Oakland
Asomugha, Nnamdi, DB, California

Barnes, Khalif, T, Washington

Brown, Ricky, LB, Boston College

Condo, Jon, LS, Maryland

Frye, Charlie, QB, Akron

Gallery, Robert, G, Iowa

Gradkowski, Bruce, QB, Toledo

Henderson, Mario, T, Florida State

Higgins, Johnnie Lee, WR, Texas-El Paso

Howard, Thomas, LB, Texas-El Paso

Huff, Michael, DB, Texas

Miller, Zach, TE, Arizona State

Moss, Jarvis, LB, Florida

O'Sullivan, J.T., QB, California-Davis

Satele, Samson, C, Hawaii

Walker, Langston, T, California

Williams, Sam, LB, Fresno State


Philadelphia
Akers, David, K, Louisville

Bradley, Stewart, LB, Nebraska

Cole, Nick, G, New Mexico State

Gaither, Omar, LB, Tennessee

Harris, Antoine, DB, Louisville

Harrison, Jerome, RB, Washington State

Hobbs, Ellis, DB, Iowa State

Jean-Gilles, Max, G, Georgia

Jordan, Akeem, LB, James Madison

McCray, Bobby, DE, Florida

Mikell, Quintin, DB, Boise State

Patterson, Dimitri, DB, Tuskegee

Rocca, Saverio, P, No College

Sims, Ernie, LB, Florida State

Wells, Reggie, G, Clarion


St. Louis
Clayton, Mark, WR, Oklahoma

Dockery, Kevin, DB, Mississippi State

Fells, Daniel, TE, California-Davis

Gibson, Gary, DT, Rutgers

Goldberg, Adam, G, Wyoming

Hovan, Chris, DT, Boston College

Johnson, Darcy, TE, Central Florida

Lewis, Michael, DB, Colorado

Robinson, Laurent, WR, Illinois State

Ryan, Clifton, DT, Michigan State

Schouman, Derek, TE, Boise State


San Diego
Barnes, Antwan, DE, Florida International

Burnett, Kevin, LB, Tennessee

Carter, Tyrone, DB, Minnesota

Cesaire, Jacques, DE, Southern Connecticut

Clary, Jeromey, T, Kansas State

Cooper, Stephen, LB, Maine

Dearth, James, LS, Tarleton State

Floyd, Malcom, WR, Wyoming

Hughes, Dante, DB, California

Johnson, Travis, DE, Florida State

McMichael, Randy, TE, Georgia

Moore, Brandon, LB, Oklahoma

Mruczkowski, Scott, C, Bowling Green

Naanee, Legedu, WR, Boise State

Neill, Ryan, LS, Rutgers

Oliver, Paul, DB, Georgia

Siler, Brandon, LB, Florida

Sproles, Darren, RB, Kansas State

Volek, Billy, QB, Fresno State

Washington, Kelley, WR, Tennessee

Watkins, Pat, DB, Florida State

Weddle, Eric, DB, Utah


San Francisco
Baas, David, C, Michigan

Evans, Demetric, DE, Georgia

Franklin, Aubrayo, NT, Tennessee

Goldson, Dashon, DB, Washington

James, William, DB, Western Illinois

LaBoy, Travis, LB, Hawaii

Lawson, Manny, LB, North Carolina State

McDonald, Ray, DE, Florida

Reed, Jeff, K, North Carolina

Sims, Barry, T, Utah

Smith, Alex, QB, Utah

Smith, Troy, QB, Ohio State

Spikes, Takeo, LB, Auburn

Westbrook, Brian, RB, Villanova

Wragge, Tony, C, New Mexico State


Seattle
Babineaux, Jordan, DB, Southern Arkansas

Brock, Raheem, DE, Temple

Gordon, Amon, DT, Stanford

Hasselbeck, Matt, QB, Boston College

Herring, Will, LB, Auburn

Hill, LeRoy, LB, Clemson

Jennings, Kelly, DB, Miami

Locklear, Sean, T, North Carolina State

Losman, J.P., QB, Tulane

Mare, Olindo, K, Syracuse

Martin, Ruvell, WR, Saginaw Valley

McCoy, Matt, LB, San Diego State

Mebane, Brandon, DT, California

Milloy, Lawyer, DB, Washington

Pitts, Chester, T, San Diego State

Richardson, Jay, DE, Ohio State

Robinson, Michael, RB, Penn State

Siavii, Junior, DT, Oregon

Spencer, Chris, C, Mississippi

Stokley, Brandon, WR, Louisiana-Lafayette

Terrill, Craig, DT, Purdue

Willis, Ray, T, Florida State


Tampa Bay
Black, Quincy, LB, New Mexico

Crowder, Tim, DE, Texas

Gilmore, John, TE, Penn State

Hayward, Adam, LB, Portland State

Joseph, Davin, G, Oklahoma

Koutouvides, Niko, LB, Purdue

Ruud, Barrett, LB, Nebraska

Stovall, Maurice, WR, Notre Dame

Trueblood, Jeremy, T, Boston College

White, Stylez G, DE, Minnesota

Williams, Carnell, RB, Auburn


Tennessee
Babin, Jason, DE, Western Michigan

Ball, Dave, DE, UCLA

Collins, Kerry, QB, Penn State

Douglas, Marques, DT, Howard

Ford, Jacob, DE, Central Arkansas

Hall, Ahmard, RB, Texas

Harris, Leroy, G, North Carolina State

Hood, Roderick, DB, Auburn

Moss, Randy, WR, Marshall

Nickey, Donnie, DB, Ohio State

Scaife, Bo, TE, Texas

Simms, Chris, QB, Texas

Thornton, David, LB, North Carolina

Tulloch, Stephen, LB, North Carolina State

Winborn, Jamie, LB, Vanderbilt


Washington
Blades, H.B., LB, Pittsburgh

Brown, Jammal, T, Oklahoma

Buchanon, Phillip, DB, Miami

Doughty, Reed, DB, Northern Colorado

Furrey, Mike, WR, Northern Iowa

Golston, Kedric, DE, Georgia

Grossman, Rex, QB, Florida

Heyer, Stephon, T, Maryland

McIntosh, Rocky, LB, Miami

Moss, Santana, WR, Miami

Rogers, Carlos, DB, Auburn

Wilson, Chris, LB, Northwood, Mich.




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Free agency, category four

 These are those "[p]layers with four or more accrued seasons who negotiated Rights of First Refusal with their Old Clubs."   Signing players in this category may involve compensatory picks.  For 2011 there is only one player in category four:


Kansas City
Curtis, Kevin, WR, Utah State

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Free agency, categories two and three

Our look at the various free agency categories continues with category two.  These following are "[p]layers with three or more accrued seasons who have been designated as Franchise players," and as such their current team "has a Right of First Refusal" and would receive  "compensation of two No. 1 Draft Choices."  The Steelers have no players in category two :

Cleveland
Dawson, Phil, K, Texas


Kansas City
Hali, Tamba, LB, Penn State


New England
Mankins, Logan, G, Fresno State

San Diego
Jackson, Vincent, WR, Northern Colorado

 Category three free agents are those who have been tagged as "transition players," and there are no NFL free agents in that category.

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Free agency, category one

Free agency negotiations are underway, and understanding the intricacies of NFL free agency is vital to understanding the process.  For example, free agency is not the same for all free agents.  There are six categories of free agents, and in our continuing effort to give you all the information we will break the free agents down by those categories.

The first group of free agents, category one, are those "Restricted Free Agents who received Qualifying Offers from their Old Clubs and are subject to the First Refusal/Compensation system of the NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement."  In other words, to sign these free agents the signing team would have to provide compensation to the former team (in some cases the current team has made an offer which provides them with a right of first refusal but no compensatory pick):

Here is each team's category one free agents (name, position, college, and compensatory pick):

Pittsburgh
Dixon, Dennis, QB, Oregon, 5th round pick

Hills, Tony, T, Texas, 4th round pick

Arizona
Doucet, Early, WR, Louisiana State, 3rd round pick

Hightower, Tim, RB, Richmond, 2nd round pick

Keith, Brandon, T, Northern Iowa, 2nd round pick


Atlanta
Grimes, Brent, DB, Shippensburg, 1st round pick

Weems, Eric, WR, Bethune-Cookman, 2nd round pick


Baltimore
Cousins, Oniel, T, Texas-El Paso, 3rd round pick

Gooden, Tavares, LB, Miami, 3rd round pick

McClain, Jameel, LB, Syracuse, 2nd round pick

Nakamura, Haruki, DB, Cincinnati, 6th round pick

Parmele, Jalen, RB, Toledo, 6th round pick

Smith, Marcus, WR, New Mexico, 4th round pick

Talavou, Kelly, NT, Utah, No compensation

Zbikowski, Tom, DB, Notre Dame, 3rd round pick


Buffalo
Chandler, Scott, TE, Iowa, 4th round pick


Carolina
Clowney, David, WR, Virginia Tech, 5th round pick

Jansen, J.J., LS, Notre Dame, No compensation

Senn, Jordan, LB, Portland State, No compensation


Chicago
Hanie, Caleb, QB, Colorado State, No compensation


Cincinnati
Cook, Kyle, C, Michigan State, 2nd round pick

Livings, Nate, G, Louisiana State, No compensation

Palmer, Jordan, QB, Texas-El Paso, 6th round pick

Roland, Dennis, T, Georgia, No compensation


Cleveland
Moore, Evan, TE, Stanford, 2nd round pick


Dallas
Ball, Alan, DB, Illinois, 7th round pick


Denver
Prater, Matt, K, Central Florida, 2nd round pick

Woodyard, Wesley, LB, Kentucky, 2nd round pick


Detroit
Avril, Cliff, DE, Purdue, 1st round pick

Felton, Jerome, RB, Furman, 5th round pick

Fluellen, Andre, DT, Florida State, 3rd round pick


Houston
Brisiel, Mike, G, Colorado State, 2nd round pick


Indianapolis
Foster, Eric, DE, Rutgers, 2nd round pick


Kansas City
Carr, Brandon, DB, Grand Valley State, 1st round pick

Cox, Mike, RB, Georgia Tech, No compensation

Gilberry, Wallace, DE, Alabama, 2nd round choice

Richardson, Barry, T, Clemson, 2nd round choice

Miami
Garner, Nate, T, Arkansas, 2nd round choice


Minnesota
Abdullah, Husain, DB, Washington State, 2nd round choice

Henderson, Erin, LB, Maryland, No compensation

New England
Green-Ellis, BenJarvus, RB, Mississippi, 2nd round choice


New Orleans
Nicks, Carl, G, Nebraska, 1st round choice


N.Y. Jets
Turner, Robert, C, New Mexico, No compensation
  

Oakland
Bush, Michael, RB, Louisville, 1st round pick


St. Louis
Chamberlain, Chris, LB, Tulsa, 7th round pick

Foster, Renardo, T, Louisville, No compensation

Greco, John, G, Toledo, 3rd round pick

Vobora, David, LB, Idaho, 7th round pick


San Diego
Applewhite, Antwan, LB, San Diego State, 2nd round pick

Tolbert, Mike, RB, Coastal Carolina, 2nd round pick


Seattle
Polumbus, Tyler, T, Colorado, No compensation


Tampa Bay
Barth, Connor, K, North Carolina, 2nd round pick

Lee, James, T, South Carolina State, 2nd round pick

Lynch, Corey, DB, Appalachian State, 6th round pick

Mack, Elbert, DB, Troy, No compensation

Okam, Frank, NT, Texas, 5th round pick

Spurlock, Micheal, WR, Mississippi, No compensation


Tennessee
Bailey, Patrick, LB, Duke, No compensation

Otto, Mike, T, Purdue, 7th round pick

Shaw, Tim, LB, Penn State, 5th round pick







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Monday, July 25, 2011

The all-new NFL calendar

2011 NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE CALENDAR

JULY
July 25                      
NFL will publish the 2011 Free Agency List, which will become effective July 29, 2011 at 6:00 p.m., New York time.                

July 26                      
At 10:00 a.m., New York time, Club facilities open. Players may report for physicals and voluntary strength and conditioning.

At 10:00 a.m., New York time, Trading begins for 2011 League Year.

Rosters expanded to ninety (90) man limit.

At 10:00 a.m., New York time, Clubs may negotiate with and SIGN their own Drafted Rookies and any Undrafted Rookie. Clubs may have such players report to the Club’s facilities for physical examinations prior to signing.

All 2011 Contracts signed on or after July 26 shall be binding upon the player and the Club when signed, but shall not become effective unless a CBA is ratified by the NFLPA (August 4)

At 10:00 a.m., New York time, Clubs may NEGOTIATE with, but not sign, or extend Offer Sheets to, their own UFAs, RFAs, Exclusive Rights Players and Franchise Players and other Clubs’ UFAs, RFAs, non-exclusive Franchise Players and free agents.

July 26-27                 
A Club may require a player to report for a mandatory physical examination in order for the player to qualify for any bonus in a preexisting contract if the “measuring date” for such a bonus has been changed pursuant to CBA Article 11 (Transition Rules for the 2011 League Year).

July 27                      
Camp opens for ten Clubs whose first preseason game is on August 11 (ARZ, BLT, DAL, DEN, JAX, NE, OAK, PHI, SD, SEA)        

July 28                      
Camp opens for ten Clubs whose first preseason game is on August 12
(ATL, CIN, DET, KC, MIA, NO, PIT, SF, TB, WAS)

At 4:01 p.m., New York time, waivers begin for the 2011 League Year

July 29                      
Camp opens for ten Clubs whose first preseason game is on August 13 (BUF, CAR, CHI, CLV, GB, IND, MIN, NYG, STL, TEN)

At 6:00 p.m., New York time, Clubs may SIGN, or extend Offer Sheets to, all eligible players, in addition to Drafted and Undrafted Rookies.  Clubs may have such players report to the Club’s facilities for physical examinations prior to signing.  Eligible players may visit or try out at any Club facility.

Veteran players who sign Player Contracts on or after 6:00 p.m., New York time, on July 29 shall be required to report to, and remain with, their Clubs, except that, prior to the start of the 2011 League Year on August 4, such players may not participate in on-field activities, workouts, weight training or other physical activities, but shall be required to attend meetings, classroom instruction and any other non-physical activities scheduled during the Club’s preseason training camp.

The restrictions set forth above shall not apply to Drafted or Undrafted Rookies who are under contract, regardless of the date upon which such players signed their Player Contracts. If any such player is injured as the result of participating in training camp activities, the terms of the player’s contract shall cover such injury whether or not the CBA is ratified.

If a preexisting contract contains a “measuring date” related to Salary and/or the exercise or non-exercise of any Club option, which measuring date: (A) was expressed as a calendar date that fell between March 11, 2011 and July 25, 2011 or (B) was expressed solely as being related to a certain number of days from the start of the 2011 League Year, such measuring date shall be deemed amended to be 4:00 p.m., New York time on July 29, 2011, provided the player has undergone any physical examination required by the Club on July 26 or 27.  If the player fails or refuses to undergo such physical, as directed by the Club, the measuring date shall be extended by one day for each day the player fails to report for the physical.

July 31                      
Camp opens for two Clubs whose first preseason game is on August 15 (NYJ, HST)


AUGUST
August 4                    
First day of 2011 League Year at 4:01 p.m., New York time, assuming NFLPA has ratified the CBA
                     
Top 51 begins at 4:01 p.m., New York time
               
All Clubs must be within the Salary Cap at 4:01 p.m., New York time

All 2011 contracts signed on or after July 26 become effective at 4:01 p.m., New York time, assuming NFLPA has ratified the CBA        

August 9                    
Deadline for players under contract to report to their Clubs to earn an Accrued Season for free agency

August 11-15                                                                               
First Preseason Weekend

August 12                  
Deadline: if a Drafted Rookie has not signed a Player Contract by August 12, he cannot be traded during his initial League Year and may sign a Player Contract only with the drafting Club until the day of the Draft in the next League Year

August 13-17                                                 
Each Club has until five days prior to its second pre-season game to provide any tendered but unsigned Exclusive Rights Player or Restricted Free Agent with written notice of the Club’s intent to place the player on the Exempt List if the player fails to report at least the day before the Club’s second preseason game.

August 18-22             
Second Preseason Weekend
                
August 20                  
Deadline for signing of Offer Sheets by Restricted Free Agents
                                  
Deadline for June 1 Tender to Unrestricted Free Agents.  If the player has not signed a Player Contract with a Club by September 3, he may negotiate or sign a Player Contract from September 3 until the Tuesday following the tenth week of the regular season, at 4:00 p.m. New York time, only with his Prior Club

August 24                  
Deadline for Old Club to exercise Right of First Refusal to Restricted Free Agents

August 25                  
Deadline for June 1 Tender to Restricted Free Agents who have received a Qualifying Offer for a Right of First Refusal Only.  The Prior Club shall be the only Club with which the player may negotiate or sign a Player Contract during the period from August 25 until the Tuesday following the tenth week of the regular season.

August 25-28             
Third Preseason Weekend.

August 30                   
Possible roster reduction from 90 players to 75 players


SEPTEMBER
September 1-2                       
Fourth Preseason Weekend.

September 3             
Signing Period ends for Unrestricted Free Agents who received the June 1 Tender.

Roster reduction to 53 players

September 5             
Deadline for June 15 Tender to Restricted Free Agents.  If player’s Qualifying Offer is greater than 110% of the player’s prior year’s Paragraph 5 Salary (with all other terms of his prior year contract carried forward unchanged), the Club may withdraw the Qualifying Offer on September 5 and retain its exclusive negotiating rights to the player, so long as the Club immediately tenders the player a one-year Player Contract of at least 110% of his prior year’s Paragraph 5 Salary, with all the terms of his prior year’s contract carried forward unchanged.

September 8-12                   
First Regular Season weekend.

September 18-19              
Second Regular Season weekend

September 20           
Deadline at 4:00 p.m., New York time, for any Club that designated a Franchise Player to sign such player to a multi-year contract or extension.  After this date, the player may sign only a one-year contract with his Prior Club for the 2011 season, and such contract may not be extended until after the Club’s last regular season game.

Labor peace gives way to pandemonimum

Now that a collective bargaining agreement has been agreed upon the business of getting players together to play the games will get underway on Tuesday.  In Pittsburgh all of this is complicated by the reality that the Steelers have their draft picks to sign and are already $10,300,000 over the newly formulated salary cap.  With that in mind, here is a list of Steelers restricted free agents (RFA) and Unrestricted Free Agents (UFA).

RFAs
Dennis Dixon
William Gay
Tony Hills
Jeremy Kapinos
Doug Legursky
Ryan Mundy
Daniel Sepulveda

UFAs
Willie Colon
Nick Eason
Trai Essex
Keyaron Fox
Tuff Harris
Chris Hoke
Keenan Lewis
Anothony Madison
Mwelde Moore
Jonathan Scott
Matt Spaeth
Sean Suisham
Stevenson Sylvester
Ike Taylor
Greg Warren

Based upon available salary data, Flozell Adams seems a likely candidate for being cut ($5,000,000 2011 salary) despite having solidified the offensive line last season.  That move would reduce the Steelers overage to $5,300,000, and the question would then become is Aaron Smith willing to re-work his contract or would the Steelers cut him ($4,500,000 2011 salary).  The answer to that might depend upon the willingness of Ben Roethlisberger ($11,600,000), LaMarr Woodley ($10,091,00 in the final year of his contract), Max Starks ($6,575,000 for the next two seasons), Troy Polamalu ($6,400,000 in the final year of his contract), et al to re-work their deals.

The good news is fans won't have to wait very long to find out the answers ~ teams have until August 4 to get under the cap.

It's been so long: A 2011 refresher

It is wonderful to see that the players and owners were finally able to devise a mutually agreeable plan for dividing the $9,000,000,000 pie that is the business of professional football.  The view here has always been that there was far too much at stake for any games to be missed ~ especially the preseason (which is pure profit for the owners, in as much as players are not paid until the first week of the regular season) ~ and the abbreviated camp season is a win for the players, if not the coaches.

Because it has been quite some time since any football has been discussed it might be useful to begin a quick review of where we were before the lockout began: The NFL draft. To be honest it has been difficult recalling who was drafted (that may just be a function of getting older), so here is the first class of draftees whose salaries will be governed by the new collective bargaining agreement; and who, because of the lack of OTAs, will most likely make their biggest contributions this season on special teams:

1. Cameron Heyward (Ohio State), DE, 6'5", 294 lbs
Athletic enough to play OLB but one has to wonder if his selection has more to do with Aaron Smith's recent spate of injuries.

2. Marcus Gilbert (Florida), OL, 6'6", 330 lbs
Considered an outstanding pass blocker, but is he the answer at left tackle?

3. Curtis Brown (Texas), DB, 6', 0", 185lbs
Decent speed and excellent leaping ability; but has to improve upper body strength to contend with physical receivers and/or to provide effective run support.

4. Cortez Allen (Citadel), DB, 6'1", 197 lbs
Faster and stronger than the third round pick; a good system player who lacks the instincts of a more polished player.

5. Chris Carter (Fresno State), DL, 6'1", 248 lbs
Seems a reach on paper ~ some projected him as a rookie free agent ~ but is versatile enough to play down or at ILB.  Special team potential.

6. Keith Williams (Nebraska), OL, 6'4", 318 lbs
Shorter arms means this value selection projects to the guard position, and he showed a good ability to pull.  Needs to develop more upper body strength.

7. Baron Batch (Texas Tech), RB, 5'9", 200 lbs
Good inside runner who can also catch the ball out of the backfield; but if he cannot block then he has no chance of making the team.

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The Steelers report via social media

This item was posted on the Steelers official Facebook page:

"Steelers players to report to Saint Vincent College on Thursday, July 28. The first practice that will be open to the public will be on Friday, July 29. The complete training camp schedule to come later, exclusively on Steelers.com."


Time for football!

Various media outlets (i.e. NFL Network & ESPN) are reporting that the NFLPA team representatives and the players themselves, have voted to accept the terms of the recently negotiated collective bargaining agreement.

The agreement is 10 years in duration, meaning that no one will have to worry about NFL labor issues until February 2021, and there is no opt out clause for either side (a significant change from the previous agreement).

According to media outlets teams will be able to negotiate with their own free agents beginning Tuesday, July 26 and the traditional free agency period (i.e. the time when teams can begin negotiating with free agents from other teams) will begin Saturday, July 30 Friday at 6:00PM EDT [UPDATE: Judy Battista of the New York Times reports that free agency begins on Friday].

The start dates for training camps will be tied to each team's preseason schedule, with all teams beginning camp two weeks prior to their first preseason game.  If that is the case then the Steelers will open camp on Friday, July 29.


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Thursday, July 21, 2011

For the couple who should have everything

Summer is a quiet time for me, what with my extended vacation.  But typically professional football offers some diversion.  Of course that is not the case so far this summer, so I am left to entertain myself.

Recently I came across an item at WGAL.com  (Lancaster's news leader) that provided a link to the online wedding registery for Ben Roethlisberger and Ahsley Harlan.  I have taken the time to sort the items by those that are "still needed," and you can see that list here.

So, let's all work together to ensure that the happy couple has all of the pots, pans, and towels that they need as they begin their life together.

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