Part two of the series I accidentally forgot about

Yeah, oops. Don’t cry though, because now that I’ve remembered, I’m going to finish what I started.

Last time, as a reminder, we revealed our picks ranked between ten and six.

10. Vince Young
9. Donovan McNabb
8. Steven Jackson
7. Matt Hasselbeck
6. Frank Gore

The final five candidates have been consistent performers in the NFL, and will continue to be so until they hang up their cleats. These are the stars of this era, but folks like Gore, Jackson and Young could soon push for their own spots among the league’s best of the best.

Cornerbacks? Who needs ‘em?

For the second time in two weeks, the Chicago Bears have traded away a reserve defensive back. Cornerback Dante Wesley, who had been the teams’ projected dime back, has been moved to the New England Patriots. For the Pats, it’s a clear sign that they’re bracing for the Asante Samuel holdout to last well into the season.  For the Bears, who knows what the hell they are doing.

All injuries, all the time…

– Chester Taylor looked like he could be done for the year after being carted off the practice field in writhing pain, the result of a blow delivered as Taylor attempted to catch a pass that was strung out in front of him.  Childress, though, downplayed the injury, calling it a right arm “contusion.” This, of course, is during a time when Adrian Peterson obviously needed a better opportunity to win the starting job.

Hold out news from around the NFL

With many NFL camps in full swing, it’s time to look at some players who were hold out possibilities. 

Larry Johnson, Marc Bulger, Lance Briggs, Asante Samuel, Michael Strahan, and Pete Kendall. 

Well let’s first look over who did end up reporting to camp. 

Lance Briggs of the Bears decided, along with his agent Drew Rosenhaus, that it would be in the best interest for the linebacker to be in camp on time, and be able to perform well enough to try again for a new contract next year.  Briggs signed his $7.2 million tender well in advance of Chicago’s first practice.

– Tarik Glenn has officially called it quits, and with that, the Colts’ chance of repeating takes a major hit. Peyton Manning’s blindside will now be protected by rookie second rounder Tony Ugoh. Little Trouble for Big Country.

– Dolphin’s rookie quarterback John Beck(also known as Not-Brady Quinn) was impressive in camp sessions today, and Ted Ginn was at home without a contract.

– Arthur Blank was allegedly on the verge of suspending Michael Vick for four games this season.

It’s alright, everybody’s doing it…

With the salary cap having gone through the roof and many agents around the league clamoring in the ears of their talented clients, next week could see an abundance of holdouts and salary demands.

Agents for Asante Samuel and Lance Briggs have both come out and threatened to have their clients sit out not only training camp, but most of the regular season as well. These messy events take place every offseason thanks to the franchise tag, a tool used by teams to keep their star players from flying the coop. Of course, there’s a new salary cap in town now, and with it, a slew of new problems, disagreements, and ultimately greed.

Brett Favre Continues His Slow Assault on the NFL Record Book…. 

It’s been a little over a week now since we first looked at some milestones that were on the horizon for running backs.  This time its the quarterbacks and two guys who are mentioned way too much by the mainstream media. 

Brett Favre is either first or second in just about every category there is for a quarterback, and is within striking range of owning every major NFL passing record.  He also leads the league in getting his ass kissed by T.V. commentators.(Look it up)

– Can the Lions get Calvin Johnson into camp on time? If not, Jon Kitna might only throw for 40 touchdowns this year.

– The Vikings are dropping subtle hints about acquiring a veteran quarterback. We’re going to go ahead and drop subtle hints that the Vikings’ passing game will be horrendous.

– The Boston Globe lays out the Patriots’ options at cornerback. Maybe Bill Belichick should call up Deion Sanders.

– Football player Will Smith may soon be as rich as movie star Will Smith. The timing of Dwight Freeney’s mega deal couldn’t have come at a worse time for New Orleans.

– Wade Phillips wants to instill more of a “family atmosphere” within the Cowboys’ roster. Terence Newman, one of the leaders of the Boys’, is apparently a key to this. What’s he gonna do, get his grandmother to rob some boy scouts?

– As a teenager, new Raiders’ coach Lane Kiffin dreamed of being a head coach in the NFL. A few years later, he’s the head man in Oakland and nearly finished with puberty.

– Will the Lions beat the clock in signing Corey Redding? With just under two hours to go we expect an announcement here any minute. This seems much more likely than the other two franchised players, Asante Samuel and Lance Briggs, signing their offers.

Patriots-Dolphins Pipeline Continues….

According to the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson, free agent running back Corey Dillon is looking to become a Miami Dolphin.  Although there doesn’t seem to be any discussions as of yet, this is the first indication since Dillon’s release from the New England Patriots of where he might end up.

The benefit for the Phins would be a big back able to fill the void vacated by Sammy Morris, who coincidentally signed with Dillon’s old squad.  Behind Ronnie Brown sits 3rd round pick Lorenzo Booker out of Florida State, and 5th year man Jesse Chatman, who has a total of 79 carries in four seasons. 

– Troy Brown has re-signed with the New England Patriots to another one year contract. It’s pretty amazing how a guy who can do that much for one organization continues to receive one and done deals late into the offseason.– Ex-Eagle linebacker Dhani Jones is now a New Orleans Saint, providing a possible starter and definite depth to an already solid linebacking corp. Now if only they can turn down their suck in the secondary.

Short Slants

– Anthony Waters, the Chargers rookie inside linebacker who will be looking to start this year, has officially been charged with assault. Someone threw a rock at his car and he proceeded to make the gentleman a bit bloody. NGPF advocates this. If you throw a rock at our car, we will beat your ass, too. Free Anthony Waters!

– The Falcons seem to have insurance against more rotting animal corpses being found on Michael Vick owned properties.

– Ravens’ quarterback Steve McNair triumphs over a stupid law.

Extra, Extra! “Vasher Signing Signals End of High Priced Cornerbacks,” Screams Mainstream Media

The Boston Globe joins the parade now forming to proclaim the cornerback market crash after the Chicago Bears inked Nathan Vasher to a five-year, $28 million deal.  Suddenly because of the less lucrative contract extensions signed by Broncos’ corner Dre Bly and Vasher, people are proclaiming Asante Samuel, well, cornered. 

Contract extensions traditionally are worth a lot less than deals signed with new teams on the open market as profootballtalk.com touches on.  Extensions are usually a goodwill gesture on the part of the team to ensure that a talented player will never see the deadly auction block that is free agency in the NFL. 

Tony Romo’s Next Destination?

The contract extension talks between the Dallas Cowboys and their young quarterback Tony Romo seem to be over, at least for the time being.  In all likelihood, as the Dallas Morning News points out, Romo will probably receive a large contract at some point during the 2007 season. 

Depending on how the first month of the season goes for Romo, however, the leverage of either side could swing widely.  The downside for the Cowboys is if Romo has a great start to the ‘07 campaign he could start to think about opting for free agency in the spring.  The price tag to lock him up would certainly rise significantly.

Bears Decommission Tank

The Chicago Bears’ website is reporting that DT Tank Johnson has been waived.  The latest incident involving the Ex-Bear was, apparently, the straw that broke the camel’s back. 

And like so many teams this offseason, they seem to have no problem letting a player go who’s embarrassed their organization one too many times.  Anthony Adams, whom the Bears picked up this offseason from the San Francisco 49ers, will slide into the starting spot opposite Tommie Harris. 

Tank still has eight games to serve on his suspension, and after the most recent run-in with the law in Arizona on suspicion of DUI, that could balloon into a full year or more (i.e. Bye-Bye-Tankie).

Packer Trade Rumors

Rumors continue to circulate around the net that the Green Bay Packers will make a move before training camp opens July 28th. None of their draft picks seem to be inspiring awe, and they did next to nothing in free agency. While most of the talk circulates around current free agents still looking for a job, we find it hard to believe that making a move on one of them would help the team let alone make Brett Favre happy.

The AFC Rejoices as The Boston Redsox and New York Yankees of the NFL Are Left Stranded, Crying

The most dominating QBs in the National Football League have become nothing but a pile of limbs and bloodied Super Bowl rings, leaving the league with a marketing disaster and both the AFC East and South left to emphatically high-five each other until their hands are chafed with love.

Several illegitimate children and their respective “baby mommas” are now calling the Brady residence in search of his money (and allegedly to send their condolences).