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Shopping spree Job-hunting veterans face accepting tendered offersPosted: Friday April 12, 2002 3:42 PM
With the draft almost a week away, NFL teams have a pretty good grasp on which players will be available when it's their time on the clock. In some cases, what they're looking for will be gone. Some clubs aren't comfortable with the notion of orchestrating a draft-day trade to improve their position, so they'll be taking a hard final peek at the free agent list. It's a good time for teams to be shopping. Veteran players looking for work know that they may have to lower their demands to strike a deal. Restricted free agents, in particular, feel the heat; they have until Monday to accept an offer or they'll be forced to return to their old club. Take Bears linebacker Warrick Holdman, a restricted free agent several clubs are interested in signing. His agent has asked for a two-year deal with a $1.2 million salary this year and a $5 million bonus due March 15 -- which really makes this a one-year deal. Holdman is likely to find out that if he doesn't lower his asking price, he'll be returning to Chicago for its tendered offer.
Have you noticed the mad scramble to sign unrestricted players the past few days?
These teams can now remove those positional needs off their draft boards and be free to take the best available players when their turn comes. When I was with the Jets, we made some of our best financial deals in the days leading up to the draft because players realized that opportunities disappear when the draft is over. There are still several veterans out there who could affect the draft if they sign before April 20:
Of course, the draft's biggest wild card remains the status of Drew Bledsoe. I hear all about Buffalo or Cincinnati becoming Bledsoe's new home, but I doubt either team would ever give up its first-round pick for him. On the other hand, I could see the Panthers getting a deal done, and still winding up with defensive end Julius Peppers in the first round. The Patriots might really like the Panthers' second pick. Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli do a great job of determining what they will go after in the draft, and both men are very cost-conscious. They could get a player they really want at No. 34 and pay him a lot less than a first-round pick, and send Bledsoe out of their conference at the same time. If the Panthers aren't interested in Bledsoe, the only question left, according to one GM I spoke with is, How can they ever pass on Joey Harrington? Pat Kirwan, who spent 12 years as a pro football coach, scout and personnel administrator, is an NFL analyst for CNN/Sports Illustrated and CNNSI.com.
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