Looking for Work (Part One)
By May, any NFL veteran without a job is either hurt or their career is on the fringe. Here's a quick look at some of the notable names without a job. Some of these players are bound to end up on our end of summer fantasy football tombstone series: Who's Done?
Quarterbacks
1. Byron Leftwich- A former top-ten pick with 52 touchdowns and 38 interceptions, I thought Leftwich would be a popular target this offseason. There hasn't been a single peep from interested teams.
2. Daunte Culpepper - Could this really be it for 2004 NFL MVP runner-up? I think he can still be a decent backup.
3. Kelly Holcomb
Running Backs
1. Kevin Jones- New England and Cincinnati make some sense.
2. Ron Dayne -Dayne has his limitations, but he was the second-toughest player to stop for no gain in the NFL last year, behind Ronnie Brown. He led the NFL in the category in 2006.
3. Shaun Alexander- - Does he want to accept a backup role? Since he doesn't help on special teams, Alexander may not get a job.
4. Musa Smith- At least we had Week 17 last year.
5. Michael Pittman - One of the best third-down backs of the last decade could be down.
6. Anthony Thomas
Comments
Why'd you leave Shaun Alexander off this? Did I miss his signing?
Posted by: G | May 19, 2008 10:53 AM
I'm really surprised Leftwich hasn't gotten a job. He's better than anyone Chicago, KC or Minnesota has on their rosters. Dayne did pretty well in his second chance, so his status is semi-surprising. Teams are probably taking a wait and see approach with KJ.
The rest: Holcomb - so-so backup, Culpepper - who knows, Musa - robbed by injury, Pittman - age, A-Train - plodder... replaced by younger models.
Posted by: Chad F. | May 19, 2008 10:58 AM
interesting list, but you could break it down into three subparts
(1) guys who were good before they got hurt but sucked after they got hurt -- leftwich, culpepper, etc.
(2) guys who were good before they got hurt and still good after they got hurt (the first time, we'll see about the second time) -- kev jones
(3) guys who were never all that good to begin with -- dayne, musa, thomas, holcomb
Posted by: veggieb | May 19, 2008 11:05 AM
Leftwich, Culpepper and Holcomb no doubt have value as backups in this league, but in the case of Leftwich and Culpepper - do they realize that's what they are? My guess is they still think they're starters in this league and should be handed opportunities instead of working hard for them.
In the case of the running backs, Kevin Jones should and will land with a new team and given another shot to stay healthy but the other guys are pretty much done. Teams would rather take a shot on an unproven rookie to mold as a 4th string RB than any of these guys.
Posted by: endzoneview | May 19, 2008 11:15 AM
yea, alexander needs to be on there with exclamation points behind him. and i guess were gonna see part two, wr & te, later?
Posted by: scott c | May 19, 2008 11:58 AM