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New Buccaneers QB
Brad Johnson
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All it took was for Elvis to enter the building to get the 2001 free-agent period
rocking.
Much to the dismay of new Chiefs head coach Dick Vermeil, QB Elvis Grbac decided before
the official start of pro football’s version of March Madness that he would rather
test the free-agent market than remain in Kansas City.
While the Chiefs quickly switched gears in the direction of a QB alternative (the
Rams’ Trent Green appeared to be at the top of their list at presstime), Grbac wasted
no time hightailing it to Baltimore, where he and his agent, Jim Steiner, made it known to
Ravens head coach Brian Billick how much Grbac would love to join the Super Bowl
champions.
For a while, the Ravens were courting the league’s two highest-profile free-agent
quarterbacks — Grbac and Brad Johnson, who had been rumored for some time as a strong
candidate for the Ravens because of his past association with Billick in Minnesota.
However, Johnson surprised many observers when he chose Tampa Bay over Baltimore, signing
a five-year, $28 million deal with the Buccaneers, who now have Johnson, Shaun King and
Ryan Leaf on their QB depth chart. Instead of being reunited with Billick, Johnson joins
another of his former coaches, Tony Dungy, who was the defensive coordinator in Minnesota
when Johnson played for the Vikings.
The Ravens’ leverage with Grbac received a big-time boost when Seattle, another
team in search of QB help, acquired well-regarded Packers backup Matt Hasselbeck. The
Seahawks exchanged first-round draft choices with Green Bay and relinquished their
third-round pick for Hasselbeck. The deal went down on the same day non-free agent Brett
Favre, whom Hasselbeck backed up the last two seasons, became the highest-paid player in
pro football with a new 10-year deal for a reported $100 million.
On March 6, just the fifth day of the free-agent signing period, the Ravens and Grbac
agreed to terms on a five-year, $30 million contract.
Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren, meanwhile, continued to throw caution to the wind
(Hasselbeck has thrown only 29 passes in NFL regular-season games) when he signed six-time
Pro Bowl DT John Randle, who had been released by Minnesota, to a five-year, $25 million
contract with a $5 million signing bonus.
Randle’s signing initiated a flurry of moves just before presstime involving
top-grade defenders.
Hot on Randle’s heels, DE Marcellus Wiley moved from Buffalo to San Diego. Former
Bills and new Chargers general manager John Butler chalked up a reported $40 million over
six years, with a $9 million signing bonus, to land Wiley, who last season became just the
fifth player in Bills history to record 10 or more sacks.
The Browns, with more money to spend under the salary cap at presstime than every team
except Cincinnati, acquired badly needed LB help in the person of 25-year-old Dwayne Rudd,
a former first-round pick who appears to just be reaching his prime after four mostly
productive seasons in Minnesota. Rudd reportedly signed a five-year deal worth $23
million, including a $5.7 million signing bonus.
The most noteworthy free-agent news so far this offseason, however, has been the
inordinate number of big-name cap casualties. "The group of players who will be
released is probably going to be better than the group of UFAs (unrestricted free
agents)," said Ravens vice president of player personnel Ozzie Newsome.
The list of cuts reads like a "Who’s Who" of the NFL. In addition to
Randle, players who have been released include QB Doug Flutie, DT Ted Washington and OLB
Sam Rogers of the Bills; DT Dana Stubblefield of the Redskins; S Rod Woodson of the
Ravens; PK Al Del Greco, S Marcus Robertson and WRs Yancey Thigpen and Carl Pickens of the
Titans; OT Leon Searcy of the Jaguars; CB James Hasty, DT Chester McGlockton and RB Kimble
Anders of the Chiefs; CB Eric Davis of the Panthers; DTs D’Marco Farr and Ray Agnew
of the Rams; LB Bryan Cox of the Jets; LBs Cornelius Bennett and Dwight Hollier and CBs
Jason Belser and Tyrone Poole of the Colts; LBs Ken Norton and Winfred Tubbs of the 49ers;
C Dermontti Dawson of the Steelers; LB Chris Slade of the Patriots; WRs Sean Dawkins and
Derrick Mayes of the Seahawks; WR Tony Martin of the Dolphins; WR Torrance Small of the
Eagles; OT Earl Dotson and OLB Brian Williams of the Packers; CB Ryan McNeil of the
Cowboys (who was quickly signed by the Chargers); and PK Doug Brien of the Saints.
In addition, three of the top five picks in the ’98 draft — QB Ryan Leaf (No.
2), DE Andre Wadsworth (No. 3) and RB Curtis Enis (No. 5) — were set free by the
Chargers, Cardinals and Bears, respectively. Leaf was quickly plucked off the waiver wire
by the Buccaneers.
While all these players would lead one to believe there is suddenly a gold mine of
talent available, think again. Although plenty of serviceable players are there for the
taking, an equal number are considered either huge injury risks or way past their prime.
And there’s one other inescapable factor: For most teams, available money is
harder to find than a needle in a haystack.
"I don’t believe that people are going to be taking chances on free
agents," 49ers general manager Bill Walsh said. "I would bet that some of them
will sign for half what they were making."
There are a handful of unrestricted free agents, though, who stayed put with lucrative
new contracts.
Offensive heavyweights in this regard include Bills WR Eric Moulds, who landed a
six-year deal between $40 million-45 million; Steelers RB Jerome Bettis, who signed a
six-year contract with incentives that could make it worth $35 million; and Titans WR-RS
Derrick Mason, who broke the bank to the tune of about $19 million over five years.
On defense, two of the league’s top-grade free-agent cornerbacks re-upped for
hefty sums (Ray Buchanan of the Falcons and Jason Sehorn of the Giants), along with two of
the most highly regarded safeties (Darren Sharper of the Packers and Mike Minter of the
Panthers).
In the PK department, Olindo Mare (Miami), Ryan Longwell (Green Bay) and Jeff Wilkins
(St. Louis) each signed new pacts averaging more than $1 million per year. |
