Post by The President on Aug 24, 2006 8:03:29 GMT -5
www.nfl.com/nflnetwork/story/9616229
Looking at Lelie-Duckett deal from all angles
By Adam Schefter
Special to NFL.com
(Aug. 23, 2006) -- Three-team trades usually are as rare as they are complex. But the Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos and Washington Redskins cooked up a three-way deal with ramifications that rippled through each roster.
The Falcons get Ashley Lelie, the wideout they considered taking with the No. 18 pick in the 2002 draft, only to have then-head coach Dan Reeves opt for Michigan State running back T.J. Duckett instead.
The Broncos get, in all probability, a third- and fourth-round pick for a player they could not get a fourth-round pick this offseason from their favorite trading partner, the Redskins, who will have supplied Denver with a first-day pick in each of the past three drafts.
The Redskins get Duckett, a bruising running back who provides insurance against Clinton Portis' shoulder injury and Ladell Betts' hamstring strain.
And one of the most complicated three-team preseason trades in recent history now is complete, though its fallout will just now begin to be assessed.
LELIE'S BILL COMES DUE
Back in 2002, Reeves wanted to draft Lelie. Yet what kept gnawing at him, and others within Atlanta's organization, was Lelie's offseason hamstring injury. The Falcons were concerned it would be a lingering issue. It never was, but the Falcons selected Duckett, only to see Lelie go to the Denver Broncos on the very next pick, No. 19.
Few people have ever doubted Ashley Lelie's athleticism, but many have questioned his intangibles.
Whereas it once opted for a running back over a wide receiver, Atlanta now has run a reverse, opting for a wide receiver over a running back. The Falcons had been searching for one ever since they lost Brian Finneran in the opening week of camp to a season-ending knee injury.
Lelie has led the league in yards per catch in each of the past two seasons, making acrobatic catches seem routine. Yet some around the league have continually questioned his toughness. One head coach who had opposed Lelie in recent seasons, whose team had debated trading for the wide receiver during the offseason, called the wide receiver "soft." Others echoed a similar phrase.
But Atlanta needed a receiver who can make the types of plays Lelie can. In the Falcons offense, Lelie has a chance to become the most dominant receiver in it. However, he might not be there long.
Lelie's contract is scheduled to expire after this season and the Falcons have not had any contract talks with Lelie or his agent, Peter Schaffer, who helped mastermind the rare three-team trade.
Lelie can walk away from Atlanta after this season and he will be looking to cash in. He has to. For staying away from the Broncos minicamp and training camp, Lelie racked up close to $400,000 in fines -- $11,000 for missing minicamp, $14,000 a day for training camp.
Plus, Lelie could be obligated to return about one-third of his $3.3 million signing bonus to the Broncos. Factoring those numbers with the $600,000 in base salary Lelie is scheduled to make this season means that playing football this year actually could cost Lelie hundreds of thousands of dollars. Maybe even as much as a million.
And count on this: Denver is going to pursue the money as hard as it pursued a trade for Lelie. It has to. If it doesn't, it sends a message to other players that they can make the choice of holding out without paying the consequences.
TRADING PARTNERS
In the days leading up to the draft, and then again on draft day, the Broncos repeatedly shopped Lelie, hoping to trade him to the highest bidder. Only there were none.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers debated giving up a fourth-round draft choice to Denver, but never offered it.
The Houston Texans, with former Denver offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak in charge, considered dealing a fourth-round draft choice to Denver, but also never offered it.
Denver got zero -- zero! -- offers for Lelie.
Yet somehow it managed to transform no offers into a deal that looks like it will involve Washington's third-round pick in 2007 and the Redskins' fourth-round pick in 2008. Those are the most likely terms of the deal, but the exact terms will not be determined until after this season.
Depending on how each team fares this season, the two teams also could wind up swapping first-round picks, but only if Washington is scheduled to pick between No. 21 and No. 31 and Denver's first-round draft position is even higher. Unlikely, though not impossible.
Under that scenario, Denver also could get Washington's fourth-round pick in 2008 or the Redskins' third-round pick in 2007.
However it works out, the Broncos once again look as if they will have a first-day pick from the Redskins for the third consecutive year.
Two years ago, Denver acquired Washington's second-round pick in the Champ Bailey-for-Clinton Portis deal, and used it to select running back Tatum Bell.
The next year, Denver traded its 2005 first-round choice to Washington for the Redskins' 2006 first-round choice; Washington picked Auburn quarterback Jason Campbell in 2005 while Denver parlayed the Redskins pick into a trade-up for Vanderbilt quarterback Jay Cutler.
PITTSBURGH CAN'T BRING DOWN DUCKETT
Just as Lelie is headed into the last year of his contract, so is Duckett. So the Falcons and Redskins might be renting players for a year.
T.J. Duckett will continue to be a valuable backup, but in a different city.
Still, the Redskins needed to rent one before they determined if they want to buy. They have been hit hard at running back this summer. Portis still is recovering from a shoulder injury he suffered in the preseason opener against the Cincinnati Bengals.
When he talked outside his house the morning of Aug. 20, Portis made it very clear he "hopes" to be back for Washington's regular-season opener against the Minnesota Vikings, which will be on Monday Night Football. But he couldn't offer anything more than hope, and sounded as if he was determined to take the time he needs to make sure his shoulder is right before he returns to action.
Betts has been nursing a hamstring problem that has flared up at unpredictable times. Washington needed a back it could rely on, and it believes Duckett is the man.
Other teams had an almost equally strong belief in Duckett. On Aug. 22, one league source said the Pittsburgh Steelers were trying to land Duckett by offering a fourth-round pick. Pittsburgh felt Duckett could be a back who would help the Steelers replace Jerome Bettis, who now will talk about football on TV instead of playing it on the gridiron. But Atlanta thought it could get more back than what the Steelers were offering and, in the end, the Falcons turned out to be right.
Now Washington gets a back Pittsburgh was targeting.
CAROLINA ON HIS MIND
Carolina will pose physical and mental obstacles for Dolphins quarterback Daunte Culpepper on Aug. 24.
When Miami plays at Carolina, Culpepper will be back in Bank of America Stadium, where the former Vikings quarterback tore three ligaments in his right knee last October.
Daunte Culpepper will return to Bank of America Stadium with a different uniform and a reconstructed knee.
Some wondered whether Culpepper would be able to play this preseason, or at the start of the regular season. But he has come back, and now Culpepper is going back to the place he suffered his devastating knee injury.
"I do think him getting banged around a little bit last week probably is beneficial to him," Dolphins coach Nick Saban told Miami reporters this week. "Certainly if that's something that is psychologically affecting him, that would be something we need to manage."
How Saban will manage Culpepper against Carolina is consistent with how most coaches handle their starters in the preseason's third game, the game that most closely typifies a regular-season matchup. Saban feels that Culpepper needs to spend some time working with wide receivers Chris Chambers and Marty Booker, and tight end Randy McMichael. He will get it Aug. 24.
"In this game, we will probably play our starting team a little bit more, at least a half -- maybe a series in the second-half," Saban said. "I think you have to pick one of these games and say everybody has to know the game is not over at halftime. We have to come out at least -- and that might not be everybody but it will be the majority of people.
"We will still monitor some people's number of plays, number of carries, number of reps in terms of where they are in their development, where they are in their rehab relative to coming back from injuries, and how much they have played and kind of wean them back into it slowly."
AND THE WINNER IS ...
Halfway through their preseason schedule, the Patriots declared a winner to their kicking competition and the battle to be the man to replace New England sports legend Adam Vinatieri.
Stephen Gostkowski impressed Patriots coaches with his field-goal accuracy and kickoff length.
The Patriots cut veteran kicker Martin Gramatica and handed the job to rookie fourth-round pick Stephen Gostkowski. In the Patriots' first two preseason games, Gostkowski had connected on each of his four field-goal attempts and his four extra points, as well.
More impressive has been his leg strength. This summer, he has demonstrated a powerful leg, one that has consistently kicked the ball out of the end zone on kickoffs. Now Gostkowski will face the pressure of being the kicker to replace Vinatieri. And Gramatica will see if he can find another job elsewhere.
"He's accurate," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said about Gramatica hours before the team announced its final decision to stick with Gostkowski. "He handles the elements well. He's kicked in wind. I think that's a strength for him. He gets the ball off quickly. I thought he kicked off pretty well against Atlanta. I think he's very competitive. I'm not saying he's not the best kicker in camp. I'm just saying that I think he's very competitive and I've been around kickers for a long time. I think he's a very competitive kicker in the National Football League at this point."
Competitive. Just not as effective as Gostkowski.
Looking at Lelie-Duckett deal from all angles
By Adam Schefter
Special to NFL.com
(Aug. 23, 2006) -- Three-team trades usually are as rare as they are complex. But the Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos and Washington Redskins cooked up a three-way deal with ramifications that rippled through each roster.
The Falcons get Ashley Lelie, the wideout they considered taking with the No. 18 pick in the 2002 draft, only to have then-head coach Dan Reeves opt for Michigan State running back T.J. Duckett instead.
The Broncos get, in all probability, a third- and fourth-round pick for a player they could not get a fourth-round pick this offseason from their favorite trading partner, the Redskins, who will have supplied Denver with a first-day pick in each of the past three drafts.
The Redskins get Duckett, a bruising running back who provides insurance against Clinton Portis' shoulder injury and Ladell Betts' hamstring strain.
And one of the most complicated three-team preseason trades in recent history now is complete, though its fallout will just now begin to be assessed.
LELIE'S BILL COMES DUE
Back in 2002, Reeves wanted to draft Lelie. Yet what kept gnawing at him, and others within Atlanta's organization, was Lelie's offseason hamstring injury. The Falcons were concerned it would be a lingering issue. It never was, but the Falcons selected Duckett, only to see Lelie go to the Denver Broncos on the very next pick, No. 19.
Few people have ever doubted Ashley Lelie's athleticism, but many have questioned his intangibles.
Whereas it once opted for a running back over a wide receiver, Atlanta now has run a reverse, opting for a wide receiver over a running back. The Falcons had been searching for one ever since they lost Brian Finneran in the opening week of camp to a season-ending knee injury.
Lelie has led the league in yards per catch in each of the past two seasons, making acrobatic catches seem routine. Yet some around the league have continually questioned his toughness. One head coach who had opposed Lelie in recent seasons, whose team had debated trading for the wide receiver during the offseason, called the wide receiver "soft." Others echoed a similar phrase.
But Atlanta needed a receiver who can make the types of plays Lelie can. In the Falcons offense, Lelie has a chance to become the most dominant receiver in it. However, he might not be there long.
Lelie's contract is scheduled to expire after this season and the Falcons have not had any contract talks with Lelie or his agent, Peter Schaffer, who helped mastermind the rare three-team trade.
Lelie can walk away from Atlanta after this season and he will be looking to cash in. He has to. For staying away from the Broncos minicamp and training camp, Lelie racked up close to $400,000 in fines -- $11,000 for missing minicamp, $14,000 a day for training camp.
Plus, Lelie could be obligated to return about one-third of his $3.3 million signing bonus to the Broncos. Factoring those numbers with the $600,000 in base salary Lelie is scheduled to make this season means that playing football this year actually could cost Lelie hundreds of thousands of dollars. Maybe even as much as a million.
And count on this: Denver is going to pursue the money as hard as it pursued a trade for Lelie. It has to. If it doesn't, it sends a message to other players that they can make the choice of holding out without paying the consequences.
TRADING PARTNERS
In the days leading up to the draft, and then again on draft day, the Broncos repeatedly shopped Lelie, hoping to trade him to the highest bidder. Only there were none.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers debated giving up a fourth-round draft choice to Denver, but never offered it.
The Houston Texans, with former Denver offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak in charge, considered dealing a fourth-round draft choice to Denver, but also never offered it.
Denver got zero -- zero! -- offers for Lelie.
Yet somehow it managed to transform no offers into a deal that looks like it will involve Washington's third-round pick in 2007 and the Redskins' fourth-round pick in 2008. Those are the most likely terms of the deal, but the exact terms will not be determined until after this season.
Depending on how each team fares this season, the two teams also could wind up swapping first-round picks, but only if Washington is scheduled to pick between No. 21 and No. 31 and Denver's first-round draft position is even higher. Unlikely, though not impossible.
Under that scenario, Denver also could get Washington's fourth-round pick in 2008 or the Redskins' third-round pick in 2007.
However it works out, the Broncos once again look as if they will have a first-day pick from the Redskins for the third consecutive year.
Two years ago, Denver acquired Washington's second-round pick in the Champ Bailey-for-Clinton Portis deal, and used it to select running back Tatum Bell.
The next year, Denver traded its 2005 first-round choice to Washington for the Redskins' 2006 first-round choice; Washington picked Auburn quarterback Jason Campbell in 2005 while Denver parlayed the Redskins pick into a trade-up for Vanderbilt quarterback Jay Cutler.
PITTSBURGH CAN'T BRING DOWN DUCKETT
Just as Lelie is headed into the last year of his contract, so is Duckett. So the Falcons and Redskins might be renting players for a year.
T.J. Duckett will continue to be a valuable backup, but in a different city.
Still, the Redskins needed to rent one before they determined if they want to buy. They have been hit hard at running back this summer. Portis still is recovering from a shoulder injury he suffered in the preseason opener against the Cincinnati Bengals.
When he talked outside his house the morning of Aug. 20, Portis made it very clear he "hopes" to be back for Washington's regular-season opener against the Minnesota Vikings, which will be on Monday Night Football. But he couldn't offer anything more than hope, and sounded as if he was determined to take the time he needs to make sure his shoulder is right before he returns to action.
Betts has been nursing a hamstring problem that has flared up at unpredictable times. Washington needed a back it could rely on, and it believes Duckett is the man.
Other teams had an almost equally strong belief in Duckett. On Aug. 22, one league source said the Pittsburgh Steelers were trying to land Duckett by offering a fourth-round pick. Pittsburgh felt Duckett could be a back who would help the Steelers replace Jerome Bettis, who now will talk about football on TV instead of playing it on the gridiron. But Atlanta thought it could get more back than what the Steelers were offering and, in the end, the Falcons turned out to be right.
Now Washington gets a back Pittsburgh was targeting.
CAROLINA ON HIS MIND
Carolina will pose physical and mental obstacles for Dolphins quarterback Daunte Culpepper on Aug. 24.
When Miami plays at Carolina, Culpepper will be back in Bank of America Stadium, where the former Vikings quarterback tore three ligaments in his right knee last October.
Daunte Culpepper will return to Bank of America Stadium with a different uniform and a reconstructed knee.
Some wondered whether Culpepper would be able to play this preseason, or at the start of the regular season. But he has come back, and now Culpepper is going back to the place he suffered his devastating knee injury.
"I do think him getting banged around a little bit last week probably is beneficial to him," Dolphins coach Nick Saban told Miami reporters this week. "Certainly if that's something that is psychologically affecting him, that would be something we need to manage."
How Saban will manage Culpepper against Carolina is consistent with how most coaches handle their starters in the preseason's third game, the game that most closely typifies a regular-season matchup. Saban feels that Culpepper needs to spend some time working with wide receivers Chris Chambers and Marty Booker, and tight end Randy McMichael. He will get it Aug. 24.
"In this game, we will probably play our starting team a little bit more, at least a half -- maybe a series in the second-half," Saban said. "I think you have to pick one of these games and say everybody has to know the game is not over at halftime. We have to come out at least -- and that might not be everybody but it will be the majority of people.
"We will still monitor some people's number of plays, number of carries, number of reps in terms of where they are in their development, where they are in their rehab relative to coming back from injuries, and how much they have played and kind of wean them back into it slowly."
AND THE WINNER IS ...
Halfway through their preseason schedule, the Patriots declared a winner to their kicking competition and the battle to be the man to replace New England sports legend Adam Vinatieri.
Stephen Gostkowski impressed Patriots coaches with his field-goal accuracy and kickoff length.
The Patriots cut veteran kicker Martin Gramatica and handed the job to rookie fourth-round pick Stephen Gostkowski. In the Patriots' first two preseason games, Gostkowski had connected on each of his four field-goal attempts and his four extra points, as well.
More impressive has been his leg strength. This summer, he has demonstrated a powerful leg, one that has consistently kicked the ball out of the end zone on kickoffs. Now Gostkowski will face the pressure of being the kicker to replace Vinatieri. And Gramatica will see if he can find another job elsewhere.
"He's accurate," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said about Gramatica hours before the team announced its final decision to stick with Gostkowski. "He handles the elements well. He's kicked in wind. I think that's a strength for him. He gets the ball off quickly. I thought he kicked off pretty well against Atlanta. I think he's very competitive. I'm not saying he's not the best kicker in camp. I'm just saying that I think he's very competitive and I've been around kickers for a long time. I think he's a very competitive kicker in the National Football League at this point."
Competitive. Just not as effective as Gostkowski.