Diner Morning News: Edwards On The Move?

FROM MICHAEL LOMBARDI:

23 March 2009

QUOTE:   “To solve any problem there are three things to ask yourself: First what could I do? Second, what could I read?  And third, whom can I ask?”  ~ Jim Rohn 

FROM MIKE GARAFOLO OF THE STAR-LEDGER... I don't doubt the Giants inquired about (Braylon) Edwards. And when Jerry Reese is asked about this report, he'll probably give us the old, "We investigate everything. You know that." But the exchange of several offers indicates this was more than just due diligence here. And while (the Giant Insider’s Ken) Palmer is suggesting the talks could spark again come draft time, I'm thinking Plaxico Burress' legal situation could be the catalyst. If he goes to jail or is suspended for a while, the Giants will need to move along to the plan they have for Burress' absence. And like Tom Coughlin said at the scouting combine, "It'd be great to have a player, if it's not Plaxico, but with Plaxico's magnitude, on our football team." That player could be the 6-3, 215-pound Edwards, who surely wowed the Giants with his five catches for 154 yards and a touchdown against them last season -- even if he has had a bad case of the dropsies of late.

This would be a difficult trade for the Browns to make because they’d have to ask themselves which Braylon Edwards they’re trading.  Are they trading the ‘08 Edwards or the ‘07 Edwards?  Depending on which year, the compensation value would be dramatically different.  Both versions of Edwards will have a case of the dropsies; however, the ‘07 drops were not as severe as the ‘08 drops.

The hardest trades are the ones in which you trade a player without really knowing what he is or what he will become.  The unknown is tough to deal with, as is figuring what’s fair compensation.  If the Browns decide to trade Edwards, it will be because they don’t want to invest the money and extend his contract more than they want to move along and find a new player. 

With Edwards being a free agent in a year, it does in theory reduce his real value, but the Browns should ask for additional compensation if the other team extends or franchises him.  The Browns can’t sell short Edwards’ value if they decide to trade him, even though he has a contract issue and very inconsistent hands.  Because they’re a new staff, they really don’t know who Edwards is as a player and should give him next season before deciding to extend or trade him or just walk away.  Patience is a virtue when dealing with this situation, and it’s vital to know the full value of the player. 

FROM RICH CIMINI OF THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS... (From Kansas State QB Josh Freeman’s blog): "On Saturday, I went home to KC to see my family and friends with Jeron Mastrud and I continued to study [sic]. I drove back to Manhattan Sunday night and caught a late night movie. I got up pretty early and put in quite a few hours of studying the playbook and taking notes. The Jet GM and coaches then met me for dinner and then we went back to the football complex and had a chalk talk. It went pretty smoothly. This morning, I met them at the football complex and we headed indoors. Their OC, Brian Schottenheimer put me through a half-hour workout where I think he, the other coaches, and the GM just wanted to see me in person. After that I thanked them for coming out and we parted ways. I hope they liked me as much as I liked them. I guess only time will tell." Yeah, I guess. I'd be surprised if the Jets took him with the 17th pick. Scouts tell me he'll need a couple of years on the bench before he's mentally ready for the pro game.

I really believe the ‘09 NFL Draft will be called the “Josh Freeman Draft.”  Freeman is hot right now; he’s an attractive player, and he has the teams picking in the teens wanting to acquire him.  What cracks me up is that teams are willing to tell him how much they love him and send a huge red flag to teams picking behind them that they’d better trade up. 

Mark Sanchez is the sleeper candidate right now.  Not many are talking about him, but I hear he’s throwing the ball well in his private workouts and will have a sensational workout when the scouts come to USC to observe him.  Staying in school may have served him better, but as the process of evaluation continues, Sanchez will impress everyone with his leadership skills, intelligence and talent. 

Freeman is a talent, but he needs time and the right system to be fully effective.  He will not be ready next year. But because so many teams lack talent at quarterback, there’s a huge amount of interest in him, which I find intriguing.  Why is there so much interest in Freeman, yet Matt Cassel had only one team pursue him?  Freeman has no pro tape and Cassel had 15 games to view, but Freeman is hot and Cassel was cold.  I just don’t get it. 

As we approach April, teams should be careful that Freeman might be the decoy candidate and Sanchez has all the interest.  Nevertheless, this draft will not take shape in the first round until Sanchez comes off the board and teams’ desperation to fill a void at quarterback comes to the surface.  Some team picking in the low teens can really benefit from this feeding frenzy.  If I’m working with Buffalo or Denver, I’m praying Sanchez goes to Jacksonville at seven and I can sell off the pick to all the Freeman lovers. 

FROM TOM KOWALSKI OF MLIVE.COM... Because the Lions have the first pick, they are allowed to begin negotiating before the April 25 draft. "By the rules, we could agree to terms with somebody tomorrow if we wanted to," (team president Tom) Lewand said. The top four prospects for that first pick are believed to be Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford, Baylor left tackle Jason Smith, Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry and Virginia left tackle Eugene Monroe. Lewand indicated he has been in contact with the agents of other players as well. One of those might be Boston College defensive tackle B.J. Raji, who made a visit to Allen Park last week to interview with Lions officials.

This is a smart move by the Lions. They have to get the player signed before the draft, and they need to start this process early.  Now, the agents in this negotiation know the rules of engagement.  They’ll act as if they don’t care if their player is the first pick, but in reality, they care a great deal.  The college draft for agents is all about the ability to sell them off next year based on their work this year.  In addition, having the first overall pick is a signature moment for agents, and they will wilt as long as the Lions apply the pressure. 

FROM VITO STELLINO OF THE FLORIDA TIMES-UNION... The Jaguars appear to be taking a close look at former Southern California quarterback Mark Sanchez.  Sanchez was scheduled to meet Sunday night with a Jaguars scout, according to Scout.com.  Sanchez was then scheduled to fly to New York to meet with the Jets and go to Washington to meet with the Redskins.  Sanchez and Matthew Stafford of Georgia are rated as the top two quarterbacks in the NFL Draft.  Gene Smith, the Jaguars' general manager, was traveling to Dana Point, Calif., on Sunday to attend the league's owners’ meetings and was not available for comment.

What struck me reading this item was not the Jaguars bringing in Sanchez, but the ‘Skins showing an interest in the USC quarterback.  Clearly, the ‘Skins are doing their due diligence as it relates to the quarterback position.  They have to feel a little uneasy with the play of Jason Campbell, and as I’ve written many times, they’ll be looking for a quarterback at this time next year. 

So how do the ‘Skins now say they’re not interested in the Cutler derby if that ever gets off the ground?  If they’re looking at Sanchez and are willing to fly him into Washington, then they have to be interested in Cutler. 

FROM HOWARD BALZER OF THE SPORTS XCHANGE...  Asked about a report by Pro Football Weekly that (shifting the draft from late April to late February) is being contemplated, (Rich) McKay told The Sports Xchange: “We’ve never discussed it. We’ve discussed the offseason calendar a lot, but there has been no discussion of moving the draft up. We had that discussion eight years ago, but I don’t think we’ve had it since then. We’ve discussed the calendar, but that wasn’t any of the things we discussed.”  Said St. Louis Rams general manager Billy Devaney: “This is the first I’ve heard of anything like that.”  McKay’s reference to the offseason calendar is related to ongoing discussion within the league concerning how things would be affected should the league decide to increase the regular-season schedule to 17 or 18 games. More talk about that topic will take place at the meetings this week, but McKay reiterated there has been no talk of moving up the draft.

As long as the coaches are involved in the draft, it will never be moved to February.  There are too many mistakes made in the draft when teams have time to prepare; can you imagine the mistakes that would be made if the amount of preparation time were reduced?  This idea will not get much support from any team that uses coaches in the evaluation process.

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