FanHouse Draytonflorence

It was rumored yesterday that Antonio Cromartie might be on his way out of San Diego, provided that the Chargers could land Drayton Florence, the man Cromartie replaced after Florence left for Jacksonville last year.

But Florence signed with the Bills late Tuesday evening, and A.J. Smith very quickly alerted the media that Cromartie would remain a Charger in 2009.

Antonio Cromartie may have taken a step back last year as the San Diego Chargers' defense struggled without Shawn Merriman to pressure the quarterback and stuff the run. But he's still a freakish athlete and the type of player you would expect the Chargers to hold onto tightly.

Of course, then word on the street (specifically the Bolts Blog) leaks that the team will look to trade Cromartie if/when Drayton Florence, recently released by the Jaguars, signs back in San Diego.

A year ago, the Jaguars were fresh off an 11-win season, an appearance in the AFC Divisional playoffs, and seemingly primed to make a similar run in 2008. With their franchise quarterback in place, the front office targeted wide receiver and cornerback as two positions of need last offseason. That subsequently led to the team signing Jerry Porter and Drayton Florence.

Twelve months and $23 million dollars later, Jacksonville has seen enough: the club released both players today. Florence defended three passes and didn't register an interception in 15 games (eight starts). That performance is Hall of Fame worthy compared to Porter, however.

An MRI this afternoon confirmed that Texans quarterback Matt Schaub has an injured MCL. Jay Glazer of FoxSports.com is reporting that it is an MCL tear, and Schaub will be out for at least four weeks and perhaps will be put on IR. Coach Gary Kubiak didn't get into any detail in his presser but suggests Schaub will be out 2 to 4 weeks.

Backup Sage Rosenchappa Rosenfels will get the start, and he is likely to put up big numbers (and perhaps big interceptions) in Schaub's absence. Kubiak hasn't decided who Rosenfels' backup will be--either practice squader rookie Alex Brink or some guy they work out tomorrow.

The play that got Schaub limping didn't receive a flag, but it looked like it should have. Vikings DE Jared Allen dove directly into Schaub's knee, without being blocked into it. The above video shows a couple of different angles of this.

An MRI this afternoon confirmed that Texans quarterback Matt Schaub has an injured MCL. Jay Glazer of FoxSports.com is reporting that it is an MCL tear, and Schaub will be out for at least four weeks and perhaps will be put on IR. Coach Gary Kubiak didn't get into any detail in his presser but suggests Schaub will be out 2 to 4 weeks.

Backup Sage Rosenchappa Rosenfels will get the start, and he is likely to put up big numbers (and perhaps big interceptions) in Schaub's absence. Kubiak hasn't decided who Rosenfels' backup will be--either practice squader rookie Alex Brink or some guy they work out tomorrow.

The play that got Schaub limping didn't receive a flag, but it looked like it should have. Vikings DE Jared Allen dove directly into Schaub's knee, without being blocked into it. The above video shows a couple of different angles of this.

The fine fellows at Hashmarks conducted a wide-ranging interview with NFL head coaches, covering everything from the league's dirtiest player to its best quarterback to brainiest defender. The survey also asked coaches which "Pro Bowl-caliber player would they not want on their roster?"

Of the 20 head coaches who responded, 14 voted for Dallas Cowboys receiver Terrell Owens, who was the runaway winner. Chad Johnson of the Cincinnati Bengals was a distant second with three votes.

In case you're wondering, Randy Moss, Drayton Florence and Adam Jones each got one vote. (I had no idea Florence was such a malcontent; my money was on that loud-mouthed troublemaker Philip Rivers*).

So, why is T.O. the runaway winner in what seems like should be a pretty tight race? Since coming to Dallas, Owens has been the model teammate (if we're willing to overlook that whole weird suicide thing, anyway), even going so far as to blubber for his teammate.

Shaun Rogers to Cincinnati. Alan Faneca to the Jets. Lance Briggs visiting Tampa Bay. The compensation for Jonathan Vilma. The proximity of Patriots/Randy Moss, Jaguars/Drayton Florence, and Dolphins/Calvin Pace agreements.

There were a lot of conflicting reports and stretches of misinformation on the first day of Free Agency 2008, and that is no doubt due to the increasing presence of the Internet and, particularly, the Blogosphere in football. No longer are the rumor mill and breaking news constricted (and filtered) by an MSM hindered by lead time and afraid of being wrong. They didn't report news until it was officially news.

Now, with a cadre of sometimes anonymous insiders with pockefuls of sources willing to step out on that iLimb, even the MSM is jumping in with bloggier formats and a willingness to boldly jump the gun in an effort not to be out-scooped by us basement-dwellers, left hung out to dry much like the symbolic newspapers you see in the accompanying image.

The good news is that the increase in misses is well worth it for the large increase in hits that have resulted. Asante Samuel's deal was reported nearly a day before he signed his name, and many other deals have been correctly reported early in the last 36 or so hours. So sometimes it pays to take the bad with the good.

Besides, it's all keeping me very entertained.

It's hard to say the Lions' secondary was the weakest link on the team last year -- the offensive line might have something to say about that -- but it left quite a bit to be desired. But it appears that they're going to make a concerted effort to get it up to speed very early in free agency.

They've already signed safety/nickel Dwight Smith, who has connections with Rod Marinelli and Joe Barry from Tampa. Then there's the soon-to-be former Charger Drayton Florence. Though free agency doesn't start until, oh, about four hours from now as I write, I think we all know where Florence plans on going.

Florence said Thursday in a telephone interview he heard through the grapevine the Lions were interested in him. He knows the Lions need corners and thinks he could be a good fit.

Asked about Dwight Smith, Florence said: "Let him know I'm trying to come over there and help him out and lock it down in Detroit, man. I'm trying to get that Super Bowl ring.

That's pretty direct. If that weren't enough, the Lions could be getting a good corner in Domonique Foxworth from the Broncos, who are hot to trot for ecstatic Shaun Rogers.

These moves would appear to make the Lions' secondary much better, but with Lions seeing truly is believing. Still, give them an "A" for effort.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

1. Defensive Tackle/Linebacker/Cornerback. I know this reeks of a cop-out, and I guess you're right. But every time I think that the Saints need one of these positions over the others, I change my mind. On one hand you've got defensive tackle, where Hollis Thomas, the only true nose tackle, is 34 and playing year-to-year. He's consistent against the run and pass, but can't play a full game anymore. The rest of the tackles are just adequate, and starting 3-tech Brian Young's a free agent who probably won't be back. Then there's linebacker, which features just two players, because middle linebacker Mark Simoneau has no impact whatsoever. Scott Shanle ain't no prize, neither. Finally, there's cornerback. The crew, outside of Mike McKenzie, is terrible (admittedly, with faint hints of promise). And McKenzie's torn ACL should keep him out until October at earliest. So you decide which is worse off.

I don't expect the Saints to go after any of the marquee free agents at these positions, but I wouldn't be surprised to see under-the-radar signings like Corey Williams or Drayton Florence. Most of the improvement will come in the draft. I'm all for Sedrick Ellis in the first, even if the Saints have to move up a few spots from 10 to get him. This is a deep draft for linebackers, which is helpful, and good young corners like Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie will be available after the first round.

Hearing the news that Saints' corner Mike McKenzie -- the fourth-ranked defensive back in success rate and seventh-ranked in yards per pass according to Football Outsiders -- tore his ACL last Sunday wasn't quite the Christmas gift I was hoping for.

It's bad enough that there was such a drop in talent from McKenzie's side of the field to Jason David's (the worst success rate and yards per pass in the league), what's more discouraging downright petrifying is that the timing of the injury means that, as of now, David is the best healthy corner on the Saints' 2008 roster. It was clear enough that the team already needed to improve at corner, and there will be a few quite good ones on the market. But instead of signing one, they'll probably now have to sign two and draft one on the first day.

As players are franchised and resigned, things will obviously change. But as of now the big three are Asante Samuel, Marcus Trufant, and Nnamdi Asomugha. There are a number of mid-price upgrades to be found, too, in Drayton Florence, Dominique Foxworth, Randall Gay, and Eric Green.

With $31.69 million available under the salary cap, the Saints have plenty of money to address the position, even after giving extensions to Marques Colston and Will Smith. There are other positions on defense that need fixing too -- defensive tackle and middle linebacker chief among them -- but those are positions you address in the draft. The Saints need to win before the nucleus of this offense dissipates; they do not have the time to wait for young cornerbacks to develop. And I don't have the time (or patience, or inner strength to not call Dr. Kevorkian) to watch another secondary like the one I had to endure this year.