When the Cardinals kept Kevin Kolb on the roster, paying him a 7 million dollar bonus to do so, many believed that it was a sign that Kolb would be the starter until further notice. However, that doesn’t appear to be the case. Today Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt said there would be an even competition between Kevin Kolb and John Skelton.

Kolb was the organization’s big money investment as they gave up a 2^nd round pick for him and gave him a 63 million dollar deal over 6 years, though with minimal guaranteed money. However, Skelton might have actually outplayed him last season. Skelton went 6-2, whereas Kolb went 2-6. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if Skelton won the job in camp and even if Kolb does, he could be on a short leash. If Kolb doesn’t lock down the job this season, he won’t be back in 2013. He’s owed 9 million again next season.

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In March, the Dolphins traded Brandon Marshall to the Chicago Bears for a pair of 3^rd round picks in a deal that was likely fueled mostly, but not entirely by Brandon Marshall’s recent charges in a fight at a night club in which he allegedly slugged a woman. However, after today’s news, the Bears have to be feeling like they got a steal.

According to attorney Harvey Steinberg, the charges were dropped against Marshall as they couldn’t find any evidence against him. Marshall shouldn’t face any discipline from commissioner Roger Goodell and could have one of his best career seasons as Jay Cutler’s #1 option once more. Meanwhile, the Dolphins are left with a receiving corps with no receivers that surpassed 549 yards last season. Marshall is worth a fairly high pick in fantasy drafts and the Bears could be a real sleeper team in 2012. Remember, they were 7-3 last year before Cutler and Forte got hurt.

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It’s arguable that no player is more valuable to his team right now than Drew Brees is to the Saints. Before he signed with them, there was talk that the Saints could leave New Orleans and now any talk of that nature would be ridiculous as Drew Brees has turned the Saints into a perennial contender and a Super Bowl Champion. Given how willing teams have been to resign their quarterbacks over the past few years, it’s ridiculous that Brees still does not have a long term deal.

The Colts gave Peyton Manning 90 million over 5 years last offseason despite a neck surgery and the Broncos gave Manning 96 million over 5 years this offseason despite 4 neck surgeries. The Patriots, notorious for being stingy with resigning their own players, gave Tom Brady 72 million over 4 years last offseason a year before his contract ran up. Michael Vick got 96 million over 6 years last offseason after just one good year. Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, and Ben Roethlisberger all got similar deals before their contracts expired.

However, Brees was not given a long term deal last offseason and still does not have one this offseason and is still franchise tagged. This is ridiculous. The Saints couldn’t have legitimately thought Brees’ value would go down from last offseason to this. If anything, it went up after he broke Dan Marino’s single season passing yards record.

He’s worth almost anything they give him and now, more than ever, they need to resign him because they need some good press and karma after BountyGate. Brees’ situation is obviously very damaging for team chemistry. Brees can’t practice with new players and the other players will see the front office as one that isn’t looking out for them. Brees today said that he is, understandably, “extremely frustrated.”

My money is still on a deal being worked out before the July 16^th deadline for franchise players to be extended, because if he does play out the season under the franchise tag, the Saints would have a choice between paying him even more money under another franchise tag in 2013 and pissing him off more or potentially losing him to another team, but it doesn’t sound imminent and it needed to be done yesterday.

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There was speculation earlier in the offseason that long time Packer Donald Driver could be cut, but now it appears that he will be back on a restructured deal. His player rep today said that he expects his client and the Packers to work out a restructured deal after his client is done on Dancing with the Stars. Driver won’t be any higher on the depth chart than 4^th behind Greg Jennings, Jordy Nelson, and James Jones and could be 5^th behind 2011 2^nd round pick Randall Cobb.

Driver had a mere 37 catches in 2011, his worst total since 2001. However, Driver is a class act and one the Packers’ all-time greats, with 735 catches for 10060 yards and 59 touchdowns over 13 seasons, greatly exceeding expectations as a 7^th round pick out of Alcorn State. His 10060 yards ranks tied for 35^th all time with Shannon Sharpe.

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Antonio Gates was once one of if not the best tight ends in the league, but injuries have slowed him in the past 2 years, though 114 catches for 1560 yards and 17 touchdowns in 23 less than 100% games is not too shabby. Head Coach Norv Turner said today that Gates is back to his pre-injury form, though that should be taken with a grain of salt. Coaches often talk up their own players, sometimes even in somewhat of a delusional way.

Even if Gates is 100% right now, he is an injury prone player at this point and he turns 32 in June. We may never see the old version of Antonio Gates again, though this version still isn’t that bad. The Chargers lost Vincent Jackson this offseason and don’t have a proven true #1 receiver on the roster so Philip Rivers may rely heavily on Gates again this season as he did in 2010 when Vincent Jackson was holding out, especially in the red zone. He’s my pick to lead the team in receiving and a top 3 fantasy tight end barring a major injury.

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Today was not a good day for NFL players. Not only was Raiders linebacker Rolando McClain sentenced to 6 months in jail, Jets defensive tackle Kenrick Ellis was sentenced to 3 months in jail stemming from assault charges from an incident while Ellis was still at Hampton University. A 3^rd round pick in 2011, Ellis barely played as a rookie, but could still be a potential successor for an aging Sione Pouha at nose tackle.

Ellis should consider himself lucky that he got 3 months, rather than the 20 years or possible deportation that was being discussed for the Jamaican born Ellis. Ellis will also probably get a suspension from Roger Goodell so he might not play much this season, but the Jets weren’t really counting on him much this year because Sione Pouha is still a capable player.

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When Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma was suspended for the entire 2012 season for not only allegedly participating in the BountyGate scandal, but also funding it, he immediately appealed the suspension. Today, he took things one step further, sueing Roger Goodell for defamation of character. Vilma believes Goodell made public statements that were “false” and “injurious” to his professional reputation. Vilma also says that Goodell did not turn over any evidence to the accused.

It’s unclear if this lawsuit will be successful, but it probably won’t help him get on the field in 2012. The Saints are moving forward as if Vilma will not be a member of their team in 2012 and maybe never again. They signed 3 starting caliber linebackers this offseason in Curtis Lofton, Chris Chamberlain, and David Hawthorne and also have 2011 3^rd round pick Martez Wilson in the mix. If Vilma plays again in the NFL, it might be in a different uniform.

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When Bobby Massie, once a projected 2^nd round pick in a weak offensive tackle class, fell to the Arizona Cardinals in the 4^th round of the 2012 NFL Draft, many saw it as a steal. Massie seemingly fell for no reason, a belief backed up by Adam Schefter tweeting that he asked a high level executive in the NFL why Massie fell, to which he responded “no idea.” It appears the Cardinals feel they also got a steal. Sources say that Massie will be given “every opportunity” to be the Cardinals starting right tackle.

On a line has surrendered the most sacks in the league over the past 2 years combined, there might not be much competition to speak of. Jeremy Bridges and D’Anthony Batiste represent his competition, an underwhelming pair. If Massie is able to pan out as a starter and a good one, it would represent 3 straight years where the Cardinals have found a starter in the 4^th round. Fellow 4^th round picks Sam Acho and O’Brien Schofield are starters on defense for the Cardinals.

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Ed Reed made some Ravens fans nervous today when he said he was “not 100% committed” to playing in 2012. However, it appears there’s nothing to fear. Reed seems to always do something like this around this time every offseason and he clarified his comments later in the day by saying that his goal is to “play football in the years to come” and that this is just the time of year when players “think through things.”

Ravens fans biggest concerns with Reed should be his age, 34 in September, his health, last year was the first year in 3 years where he played all 16 games, and his impending free agency after the season. The Ravens have not extended Reed beyond the 2012 season and while there have been some talks in the past, I expect Reed to “think through things” a little bit more seriously next offseason when he’s a free agent.

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One minor issue with Morris Claiborne coming out of LSU was his wrist. Offseason wrist surgery made it impossible for him to workout privately with teams. However, it was a minor issue and did not make his stock fall very far, if at all, as he was selected 6^th overall by the Cowboys, who traded away a 2^nd round pick to move up 8 spots to grab him. Claiborne said today that he expects to be ready for minicamp, which is definitely a good thing. Rookie cornerbacks normally take longer than most positions to get used to the speed of the NFL game so every practice counts.

On top of that, Claiborne, while he is the future at cornerback opposite Brandon Carr, is no sure thing to be a week 1 starter. The Cowboys are not lacking in experienced depth at the position with Orlando Scandrick and Mike Jenkins and do not need to start Claiborne if they feel he’s not ready. My money is on him being ready, however.

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