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Multiple sources are reporting that Jacksonville has agreed to send wide receiver Dennis Northcutt to Detroit in exchange for safety Gerald Alexander.

The Jaguars were rumored to be shopping Northcutt recently -- a notion confirmed by Northcutt's agent (who, incidentally, is also Alexander's agent). The 31-year-old receiver is scheduled to make $2.75 million in 2009. But it was the presence of rookies Jarret Dillard, Mike Thomas and Tiquan Underwood, along with the free-agent signing of Torry Holt, that made Northcutt expendable for Jacksonville.

In fact, despite his 44 catches for 545 yards last season, the Jags were prepared to release Northcutt if a trade partner could not be found.

In the massively daunting project that is rebuilding the Detroit Lions' roster, there are going to be some moves that earn marquee billing -- trading for Julian Peterson was one, drafting No. 1 will be another. Those big-ticket moments will be the centerpieces of Detroit's quest to achieve respectability, or at least less-embarrassing mediocrity.

But while the Lions work hard to find some top-level talent, their ability to round out the roster with quality players may be just as important. So far this offseason, new Detroit general manager Martin Mayhew has done a solid job at that task. Mayhew's latest moves had Detroit inking wide receiver Ronald Curry and fullback Terrelle Smith to one-year deals.

On Wednesday, 15-year veteran Isaac Bruce made a decision regarding his future in the NFL as the 36-year-old wide receiver informed the 49ers he will be returning for the 2009 season. According to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, Bruce called head coach Mike SIngletary this morning and informed him of the news.

He led the 49ers with 61 catches and 835 yards in 2008, while also surpassing Tim Brown for the No. 2 spot on the NFL's all-time receiving yards list.

Maybe drafting Matthew Stafford would be a total success for Detroit. Maybe it would be an unmitigated disaster. There's just no way to know for sure how things will work out. It's a total crapshoot -- so the Lions should put the dice down, pick their money up and cash in whatever chips they hold in exchange for Denver quarterback Jay Cutler.

There were no bright spots in the 2008 Lions season, except that it ended. Predictably, coaches were fired, players were released and the arduous task of rebuilding is now underway. (Although, to be fair, Detroit has been rebuilding for the entire decade, but that was part of some Matt Millen master plan gone horribly wrong.)

Whatever, change is on the way, as they say. New head coach Jim Schwartz is young, smart and seemingly motivated. The Lions have yet to make headline-grabbing personnel moves, but they have signed wide receiver Bryant Johnson and running back Maurice Morris, and parted ways with over-the-hill Jon Kitna and the ineffective Leigh Bodden. And Wednesday, they also added defensive tackle Grady Jackson.

When the Titans selected receiver Brandon Jones in the third round of the 2005 draft, a lot of people who are paid to offer opinions on talent thought that he had the potential to be a real solid player at the NFL level. In four seasons, however, Jones has been largely average. When your career year came in 2006 and only featured 384 yards and four touchdowns, you're closer to Drew Bennett's career arc than Jerry Rice's.

Apparently, though, Jones is still living off of the hype he got in 2005, because that's the only way I can explain the fact that the 49ers have given him a five-year, $16.5 million deal with $5.4 million guaranteed.

While the deal is hardly an eye-opener in the wake of the gargantuan-money contracts being handed out, it can definitely be called "generous" given Jones' career production. It might also be called "desperation" on the 49ers' part, as they could lose both of 2008's starting receivers -- Isaac Bruce (retirement) and Bryant Johnson (free agency) -- in a relatively thin market.

Needless to say, whoever starts at quarterback for the 49ers this year will have his work cut out for him if Jones is the team's best target in 2009.

Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 2009 Offseason Roadmaps for front offices to navigate through the summer.

After the uneventful tenure of head coach Mike Nolan, the San Francisco 49ers decided to promote Mike Singletary to interim head coach during the 2008 season.

After a bizarre debut that saw Singletary address his team without pants, the 49ers finished the season on a 5-4 run under their new coach, ending the year with a 7-9 record. Had it not been for a confusing ending to a Monday night game against Arizona, the 49ers would have finished with a .500 record for the first time since 2002. So close, yet so far.

If San Francisco 49ers head coach Mike Singletary wants to have the "interim" label removed from his title, winning more games like this would certainly help the cause. The 49ers won their second straight on Sunday, and third in the past four games, handing the New York Jets a huge 24-14 loss.

Shaun Hill had himself a day for the 49ers, completing 28-of-39 passes for 285 yards and two touchdowns, while offensive lineman Joe Staley fell on a loose ball in the end zone in the first quarter, to help lead San Francisco to the win. Hill completed passes to ten different receivers in the win, and has been rock-solid for the 49ers since taking over as the team's starting quarterback. This, of course, brings up the obvious question of: what the hell were the 49ers thinking back in training camp?

Isaac Bruce and Bryant Johnson each hauled in six passes for the 49ers, while Bruce finished with a game-high 70 yards. Frank Gore rushed for 52 yards on 14 carries, and also caught a 4-yard touchdown pass from Hill late in the second quarter, giving the 49ers a 14-7 lead heading into the half.

So, while the 49ers are starting to play some actual football late in the season, the Jets, on the other hand, appear to be heading in the exact opposite direction.