We're going to be blogging about the Combine the next few days, and the cornerback group might be the most interesting position to watch.

There is no clear cut leader to be the first pick drafted. A lot of the slavish Mock Drafts seem to think Mike Jenkins and Aquib Talib are possible top-ten picks.. Mike Mayock, who has been all over Leodis McKelvin of Troy, now has moved Brandon Flowers of Virginia Tech to the top of his cornerback board after watching more tape.

Continue reading "No consensus at cornerback" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 04:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Okay, so this video isn't about football. It's Aaron Gleeman schooling me on MLB players making comebacks this year. I just want to try posting a video for the first time ever, one of the snazzy features available now that NBCSports.com has merged with MSNBC.com. (Look, Fantasy Fix RSS feeds and video player grouping! Hallellejah.)

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 04:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I was set to post my free agency primer for quarterbacks later today, but I'll need to do some serious editing. That's because the top name on the market isn't going to make it there. Derek Anderson and the Browns are focusing on negotiating a three-year contract and GM Phil Savage is confident a deal will be reached. This concession from Anderson, who originally wanted a longer deal, should keep him in Cleveland through 2008 and possibly beyond.

Continue reading "Anderson should keep Quinn on bench" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 10:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Javon Walker, Chad Johnson, and Derek Anderson have all been mentioned as possible trade candidates this season. But I don't think any of them would attract as much interest around the league as Atlanta CB DeAngelo Hall. And it sounds like the Falcons are "exploring trade possibilities."

Continue reading "Hall would be top name on trade market" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 10:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Post-Hype Goodness?

I've milked about as much material from my recent Mock Draft as possible, so let's wrap it up with some interesting late-round picks.

Kevin Jones, 10.01 - It's hard to project an injury so far out. But Jones' torn ACL is probably less severe than the foot injury he recovered from last year. The danger is that Detroit will get serious competition for carries this year.

Julius Jones, 10.03 - Depends on where he lands, but Jones has a solid chance to have a big role next year.

Continue reading "Late Value" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 05:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

The Bears are doing their best to keep all the free agents, and for that they should be commended. They have been known to pinch pennies in recent years, so this is a good sign.

It doesn't mean that it's remotely realistic.

Lance Briggs is gone. Even Rotoworld sophomore slump candidate of the year and noted Bears expert Patrick Dahl agrees. The Redskins are probably ready to make him the highest paid linebacker in the league, salary cap be damned. While the Bears' offer is probably fair, they won't pay him more than Brian Urlacher.

Continue reading "Bears can't keep Briggs and Berrian" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 02:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

After focusing on player movement in my column today, let's get back to fantasy with my first Mock draft of the offseason. Last time around, I looked at some big names that fell. Now let's forecast some names who may be on a lot of "sleeper" lists because they are climbing the rankings this year. For this post, we'll focus on mid-round risers.

Santonio Holmes, Steelers: 5.01 - Not sure if he's already made "The Leap" but a lot of people will be expecting more progress. I absolutely love Holmes, but any higher than this is too early. Plus hanging out with McLovin too much could slow down his offseason training.

Continue reading "Mid-Round Sleeper preview" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 12:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

NFL teams are usually lying when they say a release is for salary cap reasons. Quality players stick; underperformers don't. That was the case Monday when the Bears released Muhsin Muhammad, but extended DE Alex Brown's contract.

Muhammad wasn't that expensive to keep, but he was taking away playing time from younger options like Devin Hester and Mark Bradley. He's turning 35 and only caught forty passes last season. He will probably find a slot role somewhere, possibly back in Carolina, but he needs to be a role player, not a starter.

Continue reading "Bears will spend on wideouts now" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 04:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)

The Fantasy Sports Trade Association held their awards banquet last week, and I'm proud to say Rotoworld cleaned up. As a group, we won double the amount of any other website ...

Best Fantasy Online Service (co-winner with Yahoo Sports)

Best Unique Contest - NBCSports.com $100,000 Fantasy Challenge

Best Fantasy Draft Kit

Best Fantasy Magazine

Continue reading "A brief infomercial" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 03:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

How hard is it for a good offensive linemen to reach free agency? The Bengals made a one-year starter, Stacy Andrews, their franchise player. And it was absolutely the right move.

Andrews is a behemoth who can play guard and tackle, and he would have made a killing on the free agent market. He started 14 games this year (10 at right tackle) after starting only three in his career before this year. Assuming the Panthers tag Jordan Gross, three of my top eight ranked offensive linemen headed for free agency have already been kept. Baltimore's Jason Brown and Dallas' Flozell Adams are also probably staying put.

Continue reading "Good linemen hard to find" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 01:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)