Under further review, Tebow to Jets deal is dead for now

Posted by Michael David Smith on March 21, 2012, 4:52 PM EDT

AP

As Tim Tebow’s trade to the Jets hangs in the balance over a disputed $5 million payment, a team that could get much more than $5 million in ticket revenue from Tebow’s presence is considering trading for him.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are now in the mix and attempting to work out a trade with the Broncos for Tebow, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. Tebow was a national championship-winning and Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback for the Florida Gators and is an enormously popular figure there, and he more than any other player could alleviate the Jaguars’ perpetual problems with filling their stadium. Jaguars owner Shad Khan has made no secret that he’d love to see Tebow in a Jaguars uniform, although the football people in Jacksonville don’t appear to be particularly interested in his services.

Merril Hoge: Colts should draft RG3, not Luck

Posted by Evan Silva on March 21, 2012, 12:03 PM EDT

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To suggest there might be a better 2012 draft prospect than Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck is considered blasphemy in some circles, but ESPN’s Merril Hoge doesn’t shy from bold opinions.

On Wednesday morning’s SportsCenter, Hoge argued vehemently that the Colts would be better off drafting Baylor’s Robert Griffin III than Luck with the No. 1 overall pick.

“I went in thinking it’s gonna be Luck [over] RG3,” conceded Hoge, who says he devoted 120 hours of game-tape watching to both signal callers.

Goodell hammers Saints for Bounty Scandal

Posted by Mike Florio on March 21, 2012, 1:24 PM EDT

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The NFL has released its official announcement regarding the penalties imposed as a result of the Saints’ three-year system of paying defensive players for, among other things, trying to injure opposing players.

The league imposed significant penalties against coach Sean Payton, defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, and G.M. Mickey Loomis, and for good reason.  Commissioner Roger Goodell wants to be sure this never happens again.

Tebowmania is on it's way to New York City

Posted by Michael David Smith on March 21, 2012, 12:51 PM EDT

Tim Tebow is a New York Jet.

One day after the Denver Broncos signed Peyton Manning as their new starting quarterback, Denver has traded Tebow to the Jets for a fourth-round draft pick.

The trade ends a tenure in Denver with Tebow that was one of the most astonishing two-year stints that any player has ever had with any team. Tebow was a surprise first-round draft pick in the 2010 NFL draft, then surprisingly became the starter in the fifth game of the 2011 season, and then shockingly led the Broncos to a series of improbable comeback victories and became arguably the NFL’s biggest star.

And now Tebow is with the Jets, one of the many teams he beat with a great fourth-quarter comeback last season. It’s not clear whether the Jets plan to allow Tebow to compete for the starting job, or whether they expect him to be a wildcat quarterback, but the player who’s as famous as any in the league is now in the Big Apple.

Mark Sanchez, Tebowmania is in your rear-view mirror.

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Griffin and Luck's Pro Days will be televised

Posted by Michael David Smith on March 21, 2012, 10:17 AM EDT

AP

If there was ever any doubt that America is obsessed with the NFL draft, consider this simple fact: The Pro Days forRobert Griffin III and Andrew Luck will both be carried live on multiple TV channels.

Both NFL Network and ESPNU will show both Baylor’s Pro Day today and Stanford’s Pro Day tomorrow. And to think, there was a time when people thought televising the actual draft was overkill.

The reality is that there’s almost nothing either Griffin or Luck could do to change their draft stock. Luck is a lock to go first overall to the Colts, and Griffin will go second to the Redskins. Their Pro Days are hardly even necessary.

Tebowmania appears to be down to four teams

Posted by Mike Florio on March 21, 2012, 1:11 AM EDT

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It’s now a given that Tim Tebow will be traded.  The question remains where.

Per a source with knowledge of the situation, four teams currently are in the running:  the Jaguars, the Jets, the Packers, and an unknown (for now) candidate.

The source said the mystery team could be the Dolphins.  Despite reports that the Dolphins aren’t interested, the theory is that those reports are coming from G.M. Jeff Ireland, who doesn’t want Tebow.  It’s believed that owner Stephen Ross and team president Mike Dee are very interested in bringing Tebowmania to South Florida.

Alex Smith's deal is done, keeping him in San Fran

Posted by Evan Silva on March 20, 2012, 10:14 PM EDT

AP

Alex Smith lost all of his negotiating leverage with San Francisco when the Seahawks and Dolphins signed Matt Flynn and David Garrard, respectively. Smith should consider himself lucky the 49ers didn’t play hardball.

The NFL Network is reporting that Smith and the Niners have agreed to terms on what is believed to be a three-year contract worth about $8 million per season.

Jaguars have serious interest in Tim Tebow

Posted by Mike Florio on March 20, 2012, 10:05 PM EDT

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The prodigal son may indeed be returning home.

Jacksonville native Tim Tebow, soon to be shipped out of Denver, supposedly says he wants to play in Florida.  And one of the teams in Florida reportedly is very interested in making that happen.

Michael Lombardi of NFL Network reports that the Jaguars have “serious interest” in trading for Tebow.

Given that G.M. Gene Smith is widely believed to be a non-believer in Tebow, it’s safe to say that the interest comes from, well, on high.  New owner Shad Khan has said he would have drafted Tim Tebow in 2010.  Now, Khan has a chance to put his money where his mouth is.

Eagles win in the DeMeco Ryans trade

Posted by Mike Florio on March 20, 2012, 9:04 PM EDT

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When the Texans shifted from a 4-3 to a 3-4 defense last season, a few hiccups were inevitable.  The biggest of which was the neutering of middle linebacker DeMeco Ryans.

The 2006 NFL defensive rookie of the year had his worst NFL season despite starting every game, and the Texans opted to unload a contract that had been crafted under the presumption that Ryans would personally be much more productive.