NFL 2009: Top 10 Offseason Moves
by Carlo Campanella
We’ve officially celebrated the 4th of July, which means that the NFL is just about a month from starting their 2009 Preseason schedule. Last season ended with the Pittsburgh Steelers beating, but failing to cover the spread, over the Arizona Cardinals in an exciting Super Bowl. Fall is near, and football is in the air, let’s take a look at the Top 10 offseason moves that will affect the upcoming NFL season:
1.
Bears trade for Cutler- Since the days when Marino, Montana, Elway and Kelly would all take the field on the same Sunday, it’s getting more and more difficult to fill the starting Quarterback position in the NFL. While the Broncos tried to make their fans believe that Jay Cutler was finally the “franchise” replacement for John Elway, no one ever believed it in Denver. Sure, Cutler isn’t Elway, but with the lack of talent at the QB position the past 8 years, the Bears made a huge improvement from having Grossman or Orton under center. The Bears offense will finally be a threat, as they start Cutler, who’s coming off a season which he tossed 25 TD passes and more than 4,500 yards.
2.
Titans resign QB Collins- Tennessee disappointed in the postseason, but they ended the year with a league-best 13-3 record. Don’t deviate from the best record in the NFL, with most of their stingy defense intact (except Haynesworth), resigning Collins assures that the offense can continue to play their ball control style behind the error-free play of Collins, who only threw 7 Interceptions while he notched 12 TD passes.
3.
Cardinals resign Warner- As mentioned above, a good starting Quarterback is hard to find. Following their Super Bowl loss, there was talk of not resigning Warner and possibly looking towards starting former USC standout, Matt Leinart. They already tried that once- unsuccessfully. And with Quarterbacks constantly getting hurt every week in the NFL (ask the Patriots about losing QB Tom Brady), Arizona can rest easy knowing they are one of the few teams that have a suitable backup if anything should happen to the aging Warner.
4.
Patriots add Fred Taylor- After producing a perfect 16-0 season, the Patriots were good enough to finish at 11-5 even after losing their biggest star, QB Tom Brady. Most of the best teams try to keep their roster together, but the Patriots have not settled, and made more offseason moves the past 3 years then most of their opposition. With the expected return of Brady, adding an experienced Running Back like Taylor might be the perfect fit. Taylor is aging, but his 556 yards and 3.9 yards per carry will be all the pass happy Patriots offense will need from him.
5.
Bills sign T.O. - Wide Receiver Terrell Owens is getting older, but his mouth and numbers don’t seem to be slowing down. Last season, Owens lit up the stat page with 69 catches for 1,052 yards and 10 TDs. If Buffalo QB Trent Edwards is ever going to lead the Bills to the Playoffs, he’ll need a prime-time target to throw to. He’s got one in Owens, now it’s time for Edwards to improve on last season’s 11 TD passes and 2,699 passing yards!
6.
Jets draft Sanchez- After the Favre experiment only lasted a year, the Jets needed a franchise Quarter Back. It couldn’t have come at a better time, as this USC star will now begin his career the same season as the new coaching staff, after Head Coach Mangini left for Cleveland.
7.
Tampa Bay signs Leftwich- After years of leading the Jacksonville Jaguars, QB Byron Leftwich saw his numbers, and playing time, drop to just 303 passing yards and 2 TDs last season as a backup for the Super Bowl Champion Steelers. Tampa Bay ended the year at 9-7 behind a QB rotation that wasn’t very effective and the aging Leftwich can be a temporary answer at best. If he returns to his previous Jacksonville form, it could spell a one year Playoff run for the Bucs.
8.
Chiefs trade for Cassel- There might have been some smoke and mirrors behind Cassel’s 11-5 record with the Patriots last season. Sure, the QB is the most important position on the field, but Cassel had plenty of help, surrounded by players that posted a perfect 16-0 record the previous season. During many plays, Cassel should signs of inexperience, leading the league in getting sacked. This season he won’t be protected by that big and talented Patriot offensive line, but still must learn a new offensive system. Expect him to get a ton of pressure from opponent’s blitz packages as we doubt he’ll come anywhere near 11 wins with his new team.
9.
Giants release Plaxico Burress- There’s no doubt that WR Burress in the lineup is a huge help to maturing QB Eli Manning. Anytime a team loses an offensive weapon that caught 35 passes and 4 TDs it will hurt, but by quickly releasing Burress, they removed all of the media coverage, bad press and speculation so they can start the season with a clean slate.
10.
Seahawks sign T.J. Houshmandzadeh- Seattle split time at the Quarterback position between Senaca Wallace and Matt Hasselbeck (injury) last season, which resulted in a disappointing 4-12 season in the NFC West, possibly the league’s easiest division. After several seasons of dominating this division, Seattle needed to bring in some new offensive weapons - just not sure this is enough help.
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