faba Posted June 9, 2005 Share Posted June 9, 2005 New talent infuses the free-agent hot list By Pat Kirwan NFL.com Senior Analyst (June 8, 2005) -- I have a weekly discussion with a few of my personnel colleagues around the NFL about free agents on the street. Inevitably, a few say there are still some decent players out there, while others say the free-agent scene looks pretty bad. The truth is, there are still some decent players available and teams looking to bolster the back end of their rosters can get it done. In the three weeks since I last posted a free-agent hot list, players like fullback Harold Morrow, tight end Marcellus Rivers, tackles L.J. Shelton and Marcus Spears, center Brock Gutierrez, defensive tackle Keith Traylor and safety Antuan Edwards have been signed to contracts. It's no surprise to me that the Patriots signed the last player mentioned because June is always a time New England is busy grabbing bargains in the market place. I got a chance to talk with Gutierrez this week and he's thrilled to be joining Steve Mariucci and the upstart Lions. Gutierrez was on my hot list for three months and is quite happy to finally come off the list. The signing of Traylor will do very nicely for Nick Saban down in South Florida now that the Dolphins have released former Pro Bowl defensive tackle Tim Bowens. There has been an injection of new talent now that June 1 has come and gone, and I expect a steady flow of good players to the list as we get closer to July 1 and teams start getting serious about signing their draft picks. Last year, 203 draft picks signed their rookie contracts in the month of July and, for at least 10 teams, that means veteran players had to renegotiate or be cut. For now, it's time to find some solid bargains from the list below to give depth and create leverage for the clubs being threatened by holdouts from players looking for more money. As I said to one personnel director who didn't particularly care for the available talent, "I bet you'll wish you had two or three of these guys come late November and early December." Some need a serious medical checkup, but now is a good time to bring them in and have the team medical staff give them the twice over. Position 1 2 3 4 5 QB Jeff Blake Vinny Testaverde Kordell Stewart Quincy Carter Shaun King RB Amos Zereoue Chad Morton Dorsey Levens Tyrone Wheatley Eddie George FB Omar Easy Stanley Pritchett WR Johnnie Morton Koren Robinson Az-Zahir Hakim Freddie Mitchell Tai Streets TE Cam Cleeland Zeron Flemister Chad Lewis ® Ken Dilger ® OT Scott Gragg Aaron Gibson Matt Willig Marcus Price Jason Mathews OG Dan Neil Chris Terry Frank Middleton Tom Nutten C Jerry Fontenot Bill Conaty Gennaro DiNapoli DE Travis Hall Kenny Mixon Brad Scioli DT John Parrella Ellis Johnson Eric Downing Norman Hand ILB Rob Morris T.J. Slaughter Darrin Smith Roman Phifer OLB Peter Boulware Kevin Hardy Anthony Simmons Torrance Marshall S Brock Marion Eric Brown Shawn Wooden Curtis Fuller CB Ty Law R.W. McQuarters Bobby Taylor Terrell Buckley Dewayne Washington If a team is in the market for a wide receiver, there are some names to think about. But what's ironic is that two of the names on the hot list, Koren Robinson and Freddie Mitchell, were both first-round picks in the 2001 draft but messed up their opportunity to star in the NFL. Also, I would think a team might be able to go to camp with these linebackers and secondary players (if they were all healthy, of course) and do a decent job. Don't you think somehow Bill Belichick could get this group to be productive? Some of these players believe there is a big pay day waiting for them this time of year, but I have my doubts that any of these players will see much more than the veteran minimum. If they prove they are healthy and have a good 2005 season, a small percentage of them can restart their careers. For the time being, they need to be satisfied getting signed and having an opportunity to keep their careers alive. I promise you one player from this hot list will make an impact on some team's playoff run before January comes along. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#90 Posted June 9, 2005 Share Posted June 9, 2005 Chris Terry would be a nice bargain and add much needed depth to our o-line! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetdawg Posted June 9, 2005 Share Posted June 9, 2005 WOW I saw few ex JETS roman fifer/chad morten! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetsfan80 Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 How is Dan Neil not signed yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
124 Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 I'd still like to see either Boulware or Law in green but both possiblites are extremely slim. Oh well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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