Draft Previews

Kansas City Chiefs

Last year - 4 - 12 (4th in AFC West)

Team needs - Everything!

Players in - Thomas Jones RB, Ryan Lilja G, Shaun Smith DT, Jerheme Uban WR, Casey Weigmann C.

Players out - Wade Smith G, Andy Alleman G, Sean Ryan TE.

Draft Positions:

1st Round : 5th pick
2nd Round : 4th pick, 18th pick
3rd Round  4th pick
4th Round : 4th pick
5th Round : 5th pick, 11th pick, 13th pick.

Total : 8 picks.

There are obviously alot of options here for the 'need riddled' Chiefs.  The obvious pick for me here would be to bring in S Eric Berry.  Berry is a play maker, and would definatly improve this defence.  The only problem with this pick up is the HUGE need the Chiefs have on the OL.  Also looking through the players that they have lost in the off season, they have a big hole in the inside of that line.  I think that the Chiefs may pass on Eric Berry, and take Iowa G Brian Bulaga.  He is a great player, and is rated as the 2nd best OL in the draft.  The fact that OL is seen as one of the most important positions in the moden game, suggets that they may well take Bulaga, over Berry.

Seattle Seahawks

Last year - 5 - 11 (3rd in NFC West)

Team needs - QB, RB, WR, OL, DL, S.

Players in - Chris Baker TE, Sean Morey WR, Charlie Whitehurst QB.

Players out - Corey Redding DE, Nate Burleston WR, Lance Laury LB.

Draft Positions :

1st Round : 6th pick, 14th pick
2nd Round : 28th pick
4th Round : 6th pick, 29th pick
5th Round : 8th pick
6th Round : 7th pick
7th Round : 6th pick, 38th pick

Total : 9 picks.

The addition of former Chargers QB Charlie Whitehurst will probably rule out the possibility of the Seahawks selecting QB Jimmy Clausen.  Eric Berry is obviously an option again here, and he will probably have compertition from the OL and DL positions.  To be honest I cannot see the Seahawks taking any of the DL players over Berry, but the OL player in question may well be Oaklahoma's Trent Williams.  I think that the fact that the Seahawks pick again at 14 in the first round may sway them towards Berry, but I believe that they will take Williams, so that they don't have to take a 2nd tier OL.  The OL tend to get selected very early in the draft, and new coach Pete Carroll won't want to risk not getting an elite guy. 

So thats it for the Redskins and Seahawks, next up are the Cleveland Browns and the Oakland Raiders.  If you want to get in touch regarding anything NFL related Email - nflgbview@googlemail.com, twitter - www.twitter.com/nflgbview, facebook - http://tinyurl.com/yaxmcsq or just leave a comment.  Would like to here what you think regarding the draft, any mock drafts very welcome.  I will be releasing my 1st Round mock draft on Wednesday 21st April - one day before the draft kicks off.

Draft Previews

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Last year - 3 - 13 (4th in NFC South)

Team needs - Almost everything, seem ok on OL

Players in - Sean Jones FS, John Alston OLB.

Players out - Antonio Bryant WR, Brian Clark WR, Will Allen FS, Matt McCoy OLB.

Draft Positions:

1st Round : 3rd pick.
2nd Round : 3rd pick, 10th pick.
3rd Round : 3rd pick.
4th Round : 3rd pick.
5th Round : 22nd pick.
6th Round : 3rd pick.
7th Round : 3rd pick, 10th pick, 25th pick, 46th pick.

Total : 11 picks

When it looked like the Rams and Lions were going to take the 2 DT's, this pick looked a very difficult one for the Bucs.  They feel that they have their QB of the future Josh Freeman, so that counted out QB Jimmy Clausen.  Their OL is quite set, so should they spend the pick on one of the OT??  The other option would have been S Eric Berry, which may well have been their best option, but with their main need being DL, it was a shame to miss out on Suh and McCoy.  It now looks very likely that the Rams are going to take QB Sam Bradford, leaving the Lions to select 1 of the DT's, and leaving 1 open for the Bucs.  The Rams choice to go QB is a massive bonus for the Bucs, who now look likely to get a top quality player, in a position that is a big need.

Washington Redskins

Last Season - 4 - 12 (4th in NFC East)

Team needs - QB, RB, OL, WR, DE, S

Players in - Artis Hicks G, Rex Grossman QB, Josh Bidwell P, Larry Johnson RB, Maake Kemoeatu, Sean Ryan TE.

Players out -  Antwaan Randel El WR, Marcus Mason RB, Quinton Ganther RB.

Draft Positions :

1st Round : 4th pick
2nd Round : 5th pick
4th Round : 5th pick
5th Round : 4th pick
7th Round : 4th pick

Total - 5 picks.

It is slightly worrying that a team with such a poor record last year, has so few picks in the draft.  This though shows just how much the Redskins seem to over commit on deals that they want done.  A strange decision they have made to me is to bring in RB Larry Johnson, to team up with Clinton Portis.  Now they have 2 older RB's, with poor injury records.  Surely they must draft a RB at some position in the draft, but I think any RB at pick 4 is a huge reach.  This means that the selection is between QB (Jimmy Clausen), OL or S (Eric Berry).  Both Clausen or Berry would be good pick ups here, but do you really know what current QB Jason Campbell has done wrong in that really poor offence, behind that pourous OL?  Do you really think Clausen will be able to do any better??  I don't.  I believe that if the Redskins want to move forward, the only way to go is to get the best OT on the board.  This player will probably be Russell Okung from Oaklahoma State.

So that is the preview for the Buccanneers and the Redskins, next up are the Kansas City Cheifs and the Seattle Seahawks. If you want to get in touch regarding anythinf NFL related please get in touch Email - nflgbview@googlemail.com, twitter - www.twitter.com/nflgbview, facebook - http://tinyurl.com/yaxmcsq or just leave a comment.  Don't forget to vote for the UK's team in the poll on the right, we have a tie at the moment, and please join the facebook page and help to spread the 'nflgbview' word.  Thank you.

Draft Previews

Sorry I'm a bit behind schedule with getting these previews out.  There have been extra draft picks awarded to some of the NFL teams.  The reason for these extra picks is a very confusing one, but it is to do with teams losing free agents and the CBA (Collective Bargining Agreement).  The teams that have benefited from these extra picks are as follows:

Atlanta Falcons : 3rd Round - 35th pick, 4th Round - 34th Pick.
Carolina Panthers : 6th Round - 33rd and 35th pick, 7th round - 42nd pick.
Cincinnati Bengals : 3rd Round - 33rd pick, 4th Round 33rd pick.
Detroit Lions : 7th Round, 48th pick.
Green Bay Packers : 5th Round - 38th pick.
Indianapolis Colts : 7th Round - 33rd and 39th pick.
Jacksonville Jaguars : 6th Round - 34th pick.
Miami Dolphins : 7th Round - 45th pick.
Minnesota Vikings : 5th Round - 36th pick.
New England Patriots : 6th Round - 36th pick, 7th Round - 40th, 41st and 43rd pick.
Oakland Raiders : 7th Round - 44th pick.
Philadelphia Eagles : 7th Round - 36th and 37th pick.
Pittsburgh Steelers : 5th Round - 33rd and 35th pick, 7th Round 35th pick.
San Diego Chargers : 5th Round - 37th pick.
San Francisco 49'ers : 6th Round - 37th pick.
Seattle Seahawks : 7th Round - 38th pick.
St Louis Rams : 7th Round - 47th pick
Tampa Bay Buccaneers : 7th Round - 46th pick.
Tennessee Titans : 3rd Round - 34th pick, 6th Round - 38th pick, 7th Round - 34th pick.

So as you can see the draft may take on a different look now, and here is a preview for the first two teams that are picking.

St Louis Rams

Last year - 1 - 15 ( 4th in NFC West)

Team Needs - Everything!!

Players in : Hank Fraley G, Fred Robbins DT, Dacey Johnson TE, Kevin Dockery CB, A.J Feeley QB.

Players out : Lenon Paris OLB, Ruvell Martin WR, Jonathan Wade CB.

Draft Positions :

1st Round : 1st pick
2nd Round : 1st pick
3rd Round : 1st pick
4th Round : 1st pick
5th Round : 1st pick
6th Round : 1st pick
7th Round 1st pick, 19th pick, 47th pick.

Total : 9 picks.

The obvious thing that jumps out to me is that the top 3 players in the draft are either QB (Sam Bradford) or DT (Ndamukung Suh and Gerald McCoy).  Looking at the players that the Rams have bought in DT Fred Robbins and QB A.J Feeley shows to me that they are very much looking at taking QB Sam Bradford with the number 1 pick.  A.J Feeley is definatley not a starting QB in the NFL, where as Fred Robbins is a very good DT, and will definatley start.  I feel pretty sure that the Rams will take Bradford to be their franchise QB, and will look to fill more of their numerous needs, with the other 8 picks they have.

Detriot Lions

Last year - 2 -14 (4th in NFC North)

Team needs - Everything

Players in : Nate Burleson WR, Brian Clark WR, Landon Johnson OLB, Kyle Vanden Bosch DE.

Players out : Larry Foote MLB.

Draft Positions :

1st Round : 2nd pick
2nd Round : 2nd pick
3rd Round : 2nd pick
4th Round : 2nd pick
5th Round : 2nd pick
7th Round : 7th pick, 48th pick.

Total : 7 picks.

So with QB Sam Bradford off the board, the Lions will have to pick between the 2 DT's Ndamukung Suh and Gerald McCoy.  I believe that they will take Suh.  At the combine Suh was definatley had the more impressive workout.  Suh had 32 reps on the bench press, compared to McCoy's 26.  I think that this strength differential will be the deciding factror in them taking Suh.  They will have a further 6 picks to improve their team, which does need some improvement.  But the arrival of Suh, alongside free agent arrival Kyle Vanden Bosch should see a marked improvement on the defensive line.

So that is the preview for the Rams and the Lions, tomorrow I will go through the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Washington Redskins draft preview.  If you want to get in touch regarding anything NFL related please get in touch.  Email - nflgbview@googlemail.com, twitter - www.twitter.com/nflgbview , Facebook - http://tinyurl.com/yaxmcsq or leave a comment.

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Free Agency Update

So 2 weeks into the 'Free Agency Period' and there have been a few players that have changed teams, and some that haven't.  Here I will break down the moves of the big name players, postion by position.

QB



The team that has done the most shuffling with QB's is the Cleveland Browns.  With Mike Holmgren now in Cleveland, and a supposed change of offensive system, it was not a suprise to see that they bought in Seneca Wallace after releasing Derek Anderson.  Anderson was struggling, and Wallace has been the backup QB in the Mike Holmgren system in Seattle for years.  What happened with the other QB confused me though.  The Browns then traded Brady Quinn to the Broncos (for next to nothing) and bought in the interception machine Jake Delhomme.  Delhomme has struggled the past year or so, in a run first offence in Carolina.  Do the Browns really think he will be reliable in the 'West Coast Offence' that they are looking to install?  I feel that the Broncos have got a steal bringing in Brady Quinn.  Quinn is young, and hasn't been impressive yet in the NFL, but there is definatley room for improvement.  Behind Kyle Orton in Denver he will have time to develop, and in time may become a decent starter.

Derek Anderson was picked up by Arizona, and will compete with Matt Leinart for the starting job following Kurt Warners retirement.  Former Chargers 3rd string QB Charlie Whitehurst was picked up by Seattle to replace Wallace.  Other QB moves include David Carr to San Francisco to replace Sean Hill who was traded to the Lions.  Washington pick up Rex Grossman (I think your job is safe Jason Campbell).  The Rams picked up A.J Feeley, who may well be the backup to number 1 pick Sam Bradford - more to come later in the peice.

RB



The major name at the RB position to move was LaDanian Tomlinson.  He spent a couple of days with the Minnesota Vikings, decided this wasn't where he wanted to play, therefore ended up with the Jets.  Im slightly confused about this move also as the Jets released Thomas Jones to get L.T?? Really?  I believe Thomas Jones has alot move to offer than L.T backing up Shonn Green in New York.  Green is very young, and is yet to go through a full NFL season as a starter.  Therefore there is a question whether his body can stand up to the constant pounding that takes place.  If Green does get injured, I believe Jones would have been alot better to bring in than L.T.  I believe this may be a bit of a publicity stunt - The leagues best rush attack brings in L.T.  Sounds good on paper.  Will it work??

Kansas City definatley gained from the Jets publicity stunt here as they picked up released Thomas Jones.  I think that he is the perfect compliment to their very impressive young RB Jamal Charles.   Also the Washington Redskins picked up former Chiefs RB Larry Johnson.  Just one thing to say - Washington, What are you doing????

WR



The major talking point at this position was - Who are the Bengals going to get?  Alot of people (including me and Ochocinco) wanted to see them bring in Terrell Owens.  The Bengals had meetings with both T.O and former Buccaneer Antonio Bryant, and decided to go with Bryant.  This is not a suprise to me as T.O and Ochocinco on the same team would have been great to watch, but could also be a very difficult situation to manage.  Bryant though is a great talent, and will without doubt, improve the Bengals passing game.  T.O is still avaliable.

The Baltimore Ravens were another team that needed WR help.  They decided to trade draft picks to get former Cardinal Anquan Boldin.  This is a great move.  Boldin is very tough, and very talented, therefore he will fit right in , in Baltimore.  The Steelers also re-tooled at the postition, bringing in Arnaz Battle and bringing back former player Antwaan Randle - El.  Detriot, who have been active as you will see later, bought in Nate Burleson (from Seattle) and Brian Clark (from Tampa).

TE

Not much to report at this position really apart from the Patriots allow both Ben Watson (to Cleveland) and Chris Baker (to Seattle) to leave, before picking up former Titan Alge Crumpler.  Not quite sure how much Crumpler has left, but the Pats have a great record with getting the best out of ageing players.  Also something that could be of interest is the fact that the Bears bought in a blocking TE in the form of former Charger Brandon Manumaleuna.  With the change of OC to a less pass to the TE system, could that be the end of Greg Olsen in Chicago??

OL

No major movement at this position.  The Cardinals have bought in former Brown Rex Hadnot who is a good run blocker as the Cardinals look to become a more run oriented team.  Bills bring in former Raider Cornell Green,  Browns bring in Tony Pashos and the Chiefs bring in Casey Weigmann.  All these moves are for depth more than improvement in my opinion.  As is the addition of Richie Incognito in Miami.

DL



There are quite a few talking points at this position.  The first I want to bring up is the signing of one of the top players in this free agency period - Julius Peppers, to the Chicago Bears.  The Bears who don't have many draft picks this year have realised that they have holes, and that they would not be able to address these needs though the draft.  Without doubt one of their major needs was either a DE or a OLB that could provide a pass rush.  Peppers was the best avaliable, so the Bears went aggresivley after him.  I like this move, as well as the one for RB Chester Taylor, and without doubt, the Bears will be a better team this year.

Another team in desparate need for a pass rush was the Jacksonville Jaguars.  They have gone out and picked up Aaron Kampman.  This is a great pickup for the Jags as Kampman willget after the opposing QB all day, he has a very high motor.  Another move that I really like is the addition of Kyle Vanden Bosch to Detroit.  Talk about getting after players that you want, the Lions turned up at Vanden Bosch's house at 12.01am, as soon as the free agency period began.  This addition is very good for the team in the short term as regards to his production on the field, but I believe it will even better for the team in the long run.  Vanden Bosch is a model proffesional.  He prepares hiself very well for games, and his desire for success is amazing.  These are traits that the struggling Lions are desparate to bring into their locker room.  Also he will be a great role model for either Ndamukung Suh or Gerald McCoy - whichever DT that the Lions get with the number 2 pick in this years draft.



Another major talking point at this position is the addition of Fred Robbins to the St. Louis Rams.  In my eyes the Rams wouldn't have added this player if they were going to draft a DT (Suh or McCoy) in the draft.  Also the addition of probable backup QB A.J Feeley shows me that they re going to take QB Sam Bradford with that number 1 pick.  The winner in all this?  The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who at 3 in the draft, will get either Suh or McCoy.  Another D line I will be interested to see next year is the one of the Broncos.  They have picked up DE's Justin Bannan (Ravens) and Jarvis Green (New England) as well as NT Jamal Williams (San Deigo).

LB 



The major player at this position was Karlos Dansby.  The Miami Dolphins had a major need at the ILB position and they went out and got the best player avaliable at that position.  I was under the impression that the Phins would draft LB Rolando McClain with their 1st round pick, but this move may leave them open to address their other needs.  This was a big loss for the Cardinals, who picked up Paris Lennon. 

Other notable moves were Scott Fujita to the very active Browns and Larry Foote returning to the Steelers.  The Steelers showing once again that its better to bring in players that you've had before.

CB

The major move at this position as far as free agency goes is Dunta Robinson to the Falcons.  The Falcons had a huge need in the secondary, and really liked Robinson (they tried to sign him last year).



But the major move at this position was a trade.  The New York Jets (active again) traded a 3rd round 2011 draft pick to the Chargers for Antonio Cromartie.  Cromartie is a very good player, and what a combo now with him opposite probably the best CB in the league Derrell Revis.  The Jets like to get alot of presure on the QB with thier front 7, and therefore have their CB's quite often in man to man coverage.  Cromartie is obviously an upgrade, but it will be interesting to see how he will cope with the pressure of being opposite Revis.  Most teams in the NFL realise that Revis is the best corner, so therefore don't tend to throw to his side.  This means Cromartie is going to have alot more balls his way.

S



The major S move is Antrel Rolle to the Giants.  This was a major need for the Giants and they went up against the Dolphins for his services.  Rolle decided that New York was the place for him and he will definatley improve a secondary that was very poor last year, and as probably the reason the Giants didn't make the playoffs.  Other moves include Nate Jones to the Broncos, Will Allen to the Steelers and Brodney Pool to the Jets.

So as you can see there has been some movement in the free agency period, although it has been reduced because of the CBA.  There will be more though in the coming weeks, be sure to keep checking up as 'nflgbview' will report everything that you need to know.  If you have any points or questions free agency related or just NFL related get in touch - email - nflgbview@googlemail.com, twitter - www.twitter.com/nflgbview, facebook - http://tinyurl.com/yaxmcsq or just leave a comment.

Starting tomorrow, in the run up to the draft, I will be previewing each team individually.  Looking at their needs and options for the upcoming draft.  Tomorrow I will be focusing on the St. Louis Rams, who hold the number 1 pick.  Every day from now until the draft, I will take a look at another team.

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2010 Combine Reaction.

So amongst all the free agency talk, the reaction from the combine in Indinapolis has got lost slightly.  Here I will give you the names of some of the players that impressed.  I will also discuss how this performance may effect these players draft stock.

Day 1 of the combine, seems like a long time ago now, was the day for the Offensive Linemen and the Tight Ends. 

The OL that really caught the eye was Maryland Tackle Bruce Campbell.  On a day where alot of he players taking part were, lets say, not quite so athletic, Campbell took your breathe away with an amazing display.  Click here to see the workout - http://tiny.cc/TNpWn  There are though a few questions regarding his ability to stay focused at all times, but undoubtedly this workout must make him a 1st round selection.

The top TE performance of the day came from Pittsburgh's 6'2 230lb player Dorin Dickerson.  This workout will have consoilidated his position as the number 3 TE behind Gresham and Gronkowski.

Day 2 saw the attention change over to QB's, RB's and WR's.  There was alot of pace on the field with the speedy WR's and RB's compared to the previous day.

The standouts when it came to the WR's were Notre Dame's Golden Tate - http://tiny.cc/8eyRa and Jacoby Ford of Clemson -  http://tiny.cc/vccaY. Both of these WR's showed good hands and very good speed which will undoubtedly make Tate a 1st rounder (probably 1st WR selected).

Not many of the top QB's did much throwing at the combine due to injury, or just because they chose not to.  One QB that did compete in all workouts though, and has since helped his stock rise, was West Virgina's Jarrett Brown.

To see Brown's workout click here - http://tiny.cc/cYbOG.  He showed all of the neccesary physical attributes to be a very good QB.  He will not break into the top 5 QB's that are pretty much set (Bradford, Clausen, McCoy, Tebow, Pike) but he should be the 6th or 7th selected after this performance.

One RB that had alot of pressure on him coming into the combine was Fresno State's Ryan Matthews.  Matthews was seen before the combine as the 2nd back on the board, although he had not played at the top level in college.  All the scouts wanted to see what he could produce, and they were all impressed with hat they saw.  Watch Ryan's workout here - http://tiny.cc/AWx0f  His speed and hands look very impressive, and although he isn't the tallest back, he is certainly built.

Also impressive at the combine was Cal's Jahvid Best.  He and Matthews will have definatly put some pressure on the percieved number 1 back C.J Spiller. It will be interesting to see in what order those thee come off the board in April.  One thing is for sure though, they will ALL be off the board by the middle of the 2nd round (if not before).

Day 3 of the combine saw the firstset of defensive players workout.  The group included all DL and LB's, including probably the best 2 players in the draft Ndamukung Suh and Geald McCoy.  Both had good workouts, although McCoy did struggle slightly with the benchpress. 

If I was to pick a couple of standouts though my selections would have been Lamarr Houston of Texas and Penn States Jared Odrick. 

At the LB spot just on particular player stood out.  That player was Missouri's Sean Witherspoon.  Witherspoon looked very quick and agile on the day, and with very good performances for the Missouri Tigers last year, he is going to be a solid 1st round selection.

Day 4 saw the DB's workout.  The main man who everyone wanted to see was Tennessee's Eric Berry.  The S is expected to get drafted in the top 5 in April, and his workout didn't disappoint. See him in action here - http://tiny.cc/3WqzF

The other DB that impressed was USC's Taylor Mays.  The most impressive part of his workout was his 40 yard dash.  Watch it here - http://tiny.cc/F5BSW  It turned out he hadn't run a 4.24, it was actually a 4.43, but that is very quick for somebody his size.

So there are a few of the impressive perfomances at the combine.  Let me know your thoughts on the combine and how you would rate the draft stock of the mentioned players and all others.  Email - nflgbview@googlemail.com, Twitter - www.twitter.com/nflgbview, or facebook - http://tinyurl.com/yaxmcsq.  Or you could just leave a comment.

Free Agency

Tomorrow - Friday 5th March - is the beginning of the NFL Free agency period. This period is a confusing one most years, but this year, with the lack of a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) it is even worse.  I will try my best to keep this as simple as possiable.

There are 2 different types of free agent - a Unrestricted Free Agent (URFA) and Restricted Free Agent (RFA).  The difference between these types is that a URFA can go out and sign with any team he wishes, without any penalty to that team.  A RFA's team may match any offer offered to their player, and if the player decides to move teams, the original team will recieve draft picks as compensation.  Still with me??  OK, here is a list of players that are:

URFA - availiable to everyone without penalty! (Players of Interest)

QB's

Charlie Batch, Kyle Boller, Mark Brunnell, David Carr, Daunte Culpepper, A.J Feeley, Rex Grossman, Josh McCowen, Chad Pennington, Patrick Ramsey, Chris Redman, Brian St. Pierre.

RB's

Jamal Lewis, LaMont Jordan, Dantrell Savage, LaDainian Tomlinson, Brian Westbrook, Chris Brown, Kevin Faulk, Samkon Gado, Ahman Green, Justin Griffith, Verron Hayes, Jeremi Johnson, Larry Johnson, Dan Kieder, Willie Parker, Arian Peterson (Bears), Tony Richardson, Aaron Stecker, Chester Taylor, Chris Wilson.

WR's

Tory Holt, Devard Darling, Justin Jenkins, Nate Burleston, Arnaz Battle, Marty Booker, Antonio Bryant, Chris Chambers, Terrance Cooper, Mike Furry, Joey Galloway,  Greg Lewis, Brandon Lloyd, Martin Ruvell, Derick Mason, Sean Morrey, Muhsin Muhammed, Kassim Osgood, Terrell Owens, Josh Reed, David Tyree, Bobby Wade, Kevin Walter, Kelley Wahington.

TE's

Derek Fine, Fontel Mines, Anthonny Becht, Dan Campbell, Alge Crumpler, Darnell Dinkins, Casey Fitzsimmons, Micheal Gaines, Ben Hartstock, Will Heller, Reggie Kelly, Bandon Manumaleuna, Randy McMichael, Billy Miller, Jeff Robinson, Sean Ryan, L.J Smith, Ben Watson, Todd Yoder.

OL

Tyler Reed, Orlando Pace, Hank Fraley, Tra Thomas, Casey Weigmann, Jeremy Bridges, Chad Clifton, Damion Cook, Kynan Forney, Mike Gandy, Brandon Gorin, Conell Green, Rex Hadnot, Ben Hamilton, Artis Hicks, Russ Hochstein, Montrae Holland, Jon Jansen, Levi Jones, Nick Leckley, Kevin Mawae, Damion McIntosh, Seth McKinney, Stephen Neal, Dennis Norman, Tony Pashos, Chester Pitts, Casey Rabach, Tutan Reyes, John Runyan, Ephraim Salaam, Kendell Simmons, Barry Sims, Wade Smith, Mark Tauscher, Ryan Tucker, Keydrick Vincent, John Wade, Langston Walker, Bobbie Williams, Mike Williams, Billy Yates.

DL

Jared DeVires, Jason Babbin, Justin Bannon, Tyler Brayton, Alfonso Boone, Kendrick Clancey, Phillip Daniels, Ryan Denney, Marques Douglas, Nick Easton, Dwan Edwards, Jason Ferguson, Jarvis Green, James Hall, Reggie Haywood, Vonnie Holiday, Tank Johnson, William Joseph, Jervon Kearse, Jimmy Kennedy, Travis Kirschke, Leonard Little, Adewale Ogunleye, Julius Peppers, Corey Redding, Fred Robbins, Bryan Robinson, Ian Scott, Paul Spicer, Hollis Thomas, Kyle Vanden Bosch, Jimmy Wilkerson, Renaldo Wynn, Jeff Zgonina.

LB's

Antonio Peirce, Derrick Burgess, Gary Brackett, Tully Banta-Cain, Monty Beisel, Bertrand Berry, Keith Bulluck, Rocky Boiman, Khary Campbell, Vinny Ciurciu, Danny Clark, Angelo Crowell, Karlos Dansby, Chris Draft, Larry Foote, Ryan Fowler, Scott Fujita, Tony Gilbet, Nick Greisen, Larry Izzo, Aaron Kampman, Paris Lennon, D.D Lewis, Darrell McClover, Chike Okeafor, Brian Scott, Junior Seau, Josh Stamer, Jason Taylor, Chaun Thompson, Pisa Tinoisamoa, Jeremiah Trotter, Jeff Ulbrich, Mike Vrabel, Tracey White, Matt Wilhelm, Sam Williams.

CB's

John Wendling, Will Allen, Dre Bly, Leigh Bodden, Ralph Brown, Verron Fox, Nick Harper, Walt Harris, Anthony Henry, Roderick Hood, Corey Ivy, William James, Todd Johnson, Kevin Kaesviharn, Ty Law, Ken Lucas, Lawyer Milloy, Dunta Robinson, Brian Russell, Benny Sapp, Deshea Townsend, Frank Walker, Matt Ware, Dante Wesley, Brian Williams.

S's

Mike Brown, Tyrone Carter, Ryan Clark, Nick Ferguson, Clinton Hart, Nate Jones, San Jones, Marquand Manuel, Jermaine Phillips, Hank Poteat, Pierson Prioleau, Mark Roman, Darren Sharper, Roy Williams.

P's

Mitch Berger, Jeff Feagles, Chris Hanson, Hunter Smith, Matt Turk.

K's

Jay Feeley, Shayne Graham, Neil Rackers, Matt Stover.

So as you can see from the list it is not the best ever class of free agents.  The reason for this is that without a CBA, players are only eligable to become URFA after playing 6 years in the league (instead of the usual 4).  Therefore alot of players that would have been URFA have fell into the RFA catagory.

I am not going to list all of the RFA here as most of them are likely to stay with their current teams.  If you do wish to see all of the RFA's you can take a look at my 'So you think you could be a GM' post -http://tinyurl.com/yzqqacw and see ALL free agents for all teams.  Here you will be able to look at which players for your team are RFA's, and which you would like to keep.

Heres where free agency gets even more confusing.  In this year without a CBA, other rules have come into play effecting the top 8 teams from last years playoffs.  The TOP 4 teams (i.e Saints, Colts, Vikings, Jets) may only sign a URFA if they lose one of their URFA.  Also, they may only pay the FA they sign less, or equivilant to the salary of the lost FA.  The next 4 teams (i.e Chargers, Cowboys, Cardinals, Ravens) still may not sign a player until they lose one.  But they do have more flexability with the wage structure.  They may pay one player over $5.5m, and one player $3.7m or less.  Hope your still with me!!

So take a look through the list of free agents, Who would you like to see your team sign??  Let me know Email - nflgbview@googlemail.com, Twitter - www.twitter.com/nflgbview, or search nflgbview on http://www.facebook.com/, or leave a comment.

Tomorrow should be an exciting day with players like L.T, T.O, Brian Westbrook and Julius Peppers all likely to be on the move.  Never fear - nflgbview will keep you up to date.

Franchised Players

So lost somewhere amongst all of the combine coverage, last Thursday 25th Feb was the deadline for teams to apply the franchise tag.  Only 6 teams decided to use this option, and here is the complete list.

Aubrayo Franklin   DT   49'ers
Olindo Mare          K     Seahawks
Ryan Pickett          DT   Packers
Jeff Read               K     Steelers
Richard Seymour   DE   Raiders
Vince Wilfork        DT   Patriots

As you can see from this list, defensive tackle is now being seen as a very important position.  All Franklin, Pickett and Wilfork play as the nose tackle, in a 3 - 4 defense.  The league has seen a number of teams change over to the 3 - 4 over the past few years.  The nose tackle is a very important position in the 3 - 4.  Without the nose tackle taking up blockers and space, the linebackers are unable to come through and make plays.  There are very few true nose tackles in the NFL, and this is why these teams are making sure they keep hold of them.  I just wonder how these choices may effect the true nose tackles that are coming into th NFL via the draft this year (i.e Terrence Cody - Alabama etc.)  Surely the draft stock of Cody and company must be rising.

Richard Seymour had a good season in Oakland last year, starting all 16 games, and having 47 tackles an 4 sacks.  The Raiders traded alot to bring Seymour in from the Pats last year, and don't want to lose him so soon.  The decisions I don't really understand is the franchised kickers??  Reed and Mare are undoubtedly 2 of the best kickers in the league.  Reed last year made 27 of 31, and Mare made 24 of 26.  But can you really justify paying these players $2.8 million??

So with franchise tags been handed out, the combine taking place, and free agency on the horizon, the NFL is very busy at the moment.  Come back tomorrow to take a look at a combine wrap-up.  I will take a look at players that I have mentioned before, wether they under or over performed and see if any players have now introduced theirselves at the combine.  If you want to get in touch email -nflgbview@googlemail.com, twitter - www.twitter.com/nflgbview, or search nflgbview on http://www.facebook.com/.