Earlier this offseason, there was some speculation that Devin Hester could be contributing in a bigger role offensively this year. This speculation was fueled by Brandon Marshall saying Hester could outperform him and an ESPN Chicago report that Hester would start opposite Marshall. However, the Bears acknowledged today that his offensive snaps would be limited once again. He’ll still remain their top return man, where he’s arguably the best of all time. He will have special packages where he’s used offensively, but he’s still not any higher than 4^th on their depth chart behind Marshall, Alshon Jeffery, and Earl Bennett.

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Rashean Mathis is one of the Jaguars’ long tenured players, but he’s 32 in August and tore his ACL last season. However, the Jaguars still resigned him to a one year deal with minimal risk this offseason, even though he was not yet 100% back from that injury. Until now it had been unclear when he would be 100%, but Head Coach Mike Mularkey believes he could be 100% for mandatory minicamp in June.

Mathis will need a good training camp to stay on the roster. The Jaguars will have to pay him a million dollars if he’s on the active roster week 1 and if he can’t beat out one of Derek Cox, William Middleton, Aaron Ross, and Ashton Youbouty for a spot in dime packages, he could be too cost prohibitive for the Jaguars as a 5^th cornerback.

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It’s been pretty universally understood for a couple weeks, but today Jaguars Head Coach Mike Mularkey confirmed that the reason Maurice Jones Drew is absent for voluntary OTAs is because he’s unhappy with his contract. MJD is owed 4.45 million in 2012 in the 4^th year of a 5 year contract, but like Chris Johnson last offseason, he knows how quickly things can change at the position so he wants his money sooner rather than later. MJD was basically the Jaguars whole offense last year, but they might have to cave and earlier than the Titans did last offseason with Johnson. Another report says there have been no contract discussions between the two sides yet.

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Dashon Goldson is one of several still unsigned franchise players and he doesn’t seem to be in a big hurry to sign. According to CSN Bay Area, Goldson has no plans to sign the tender or even visit the Bay Area. It’s clear he’s unhappy and wants the long term deal they did not give him last offseason when he was a free agent.

Goldson is coming off a career best season in which he made the Pro Bowl, as he had 6 interceptions on the league’s best defense, but in depth statistics show he was one of the more frequently torched safeties in one on one coverage in the league. The 49ers would be wise not to give him a huge, long term deal, especially since he only has one good season on his resume. He is, however, a perfect fit for the 49ers defense. With their pass rush, his playmaking abilities are able to be best utilized as the front 7 forces frequent hurried throws.

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DeMarco Murray was one of the breakout stars of the 2011 NFL season, especially in fantasy football circles as he rushed for 897 yards and 2 touchdowns on 164 carries after an injury to Felix Jones left the door open for him. That was until he suffered an injury himself, an ankle injury that ended his season. As of today, doctors have cleared him for a full return to practice from this ankle injury.

Murray will continue to be the lead back this year over an injury prone and overall disappointing Felix Jones and could be among the league’s leaders in rushing if he plays like he did last season and stays healthy for the whole year. He did have a reputation for being injury prone coming out of Oklahoma, which dropped him to the 3^rd round of the 2011 NFL Draft, so there is some buyer beware on him early in fantasy drafts.

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The Raiders struck gold with a wide receiver in the 5^th round of the 2011 draft, taking Denarius Moore, who proved to be an instant contributor last season as a rookie. The way Juron Criner has been impressing in practice, the Raiders coaching staff might be thinking they’ve struck gold again. Criner, also a 5^th round pick, but from this year’s draft, has really impressed in rookie minicamp, making at least 4 head turning catches in a 20 minute span, according to the Contra County Times.

This is still minicamp, but many felt Criner was a steal in the 5^th round. He’s not a vertical threat, but he’s got great hands and body control and made several jawdropping catches in his time at Arizona. He’ll start the season as no higher than 4^th on the depth chart behind Darrius Heyward-Bey, Denarius Moore, and Jacoby Ford, but he offers a possession receiver element that none of those 3 do so he could push for playing time early, especially if he continues to impress in practice.

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Jaguars Head Coach Mike Mularkey said earlier this week that there is absolutely no competition at quarterback between incumbent Blaine Gabbert and free agent acquisition Chad Henne. However, there are some in the Jaguars organization who believe Henne is the better quarterback, according to SI’s Don Banks. Banks did not mention names, but it’s possible that GM Gene Smith is not among them since he traded up to get Gabbert in 2011, essentially tying his job security to his success. Gabbert will start the season as the starter, but could easily be pulled midseason for Henne. There’s no guarantee Henne would be any better, however.

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The 49ers will have to wait a year to see their 2012 5^th round pick hit the field as linebacker Darius Fleming has torn his ACL. The injury, which was suffered in practice, but did not happen because of contact, will likely sideline him for the entirety of the 2012 season. With two solid rush linebackers after on the roster in Aldon Smith and Ahmad Brooks, the 49ers were looking at Fleming, formerly of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, as purely a depth player at most in 2012, so they won’t miss him much. Still, you never like to see an injury happen to a player before he can ever play in an NFL game.

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The Raiders have signed free agent fullback Owen Schmitt, previously of the Philadelphia Eagles, reuniting him with Gregg Knapp, the Raiders’ offensive coordinator who was the Seahawks offensive coordinator in 2009 when Schmitt played for them. Schmitt, once one of the league’s most promising young fullbacks as a 5^th round pick, has seen his promise go south over the past few years thanks to injuries.

Schmitt is a long shot to make the Raiders’ 53 man roster because they already have a solid fullback in Marcel Reese and most teams don’t carry more than one. Schmitt was likely just signed for practice purposes as Reese is skipping practices after not yet signing his exclusive rights tender. Schmitt could make the roster as a pure special teamer, but it’s unlikely.

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