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Season's greetings A third phase of the offseason kicks off June 1Posted: Thursday May 30, 2002 4:30 PM
We're coming down to that magic June 1 date again, the third fun part of the NFL offseason. There's regular free agency, then the draft, and now this, the secondary market of free agents who have priced themselves out of their respective teams' plans for the future. Don't expect a beehive of activity this year, however, with 23 teams within $2 million of the salary cap limit (including rookie signing pools) this week. Let's look at the Detroit Lions to explain this June 1 phenomenon. The Lions, today, are $174,000 under the NFL's projected $71.1 million cap ceiling for the 2002 season. Obviously, Detroit would like to tinker with its roster some, and it can't very well do that unless some major surgery is performed on the cap. The Lions will gain a total of $2.75 million in wiggle room by cutting wideout Herman Moore and quarterback Charlie Batch on Saturday, the first day of the offseason on which a team can cut players without having the entire brunt of their signing bonuses count against this year's cap. When the Lions zap these two players, which they surely will do, only the prorated 2002 portion of their bonuses will apply. The rest of the combined bonuses will come due in 2003. That's a whopping $8.75 million. So next year Detroit will have more than 10 percent of its cap count for two ghosts who, by then, will have been off the roster for more than a year. But for now, this is a way to relieve the team's cap burden, and once the Lions whack both they'll look to sign secondary help for their naked cornerback position. Now, here are the five most interesting moves I expect to see early in the post-June 1 period: 1. Defensive tackle Sam Adams has several suitors, and everyone has put him with his old friend Marvin Lewis, who is now coordinating the Redskins defense. This is the most logical place for Adams, but just remember one thing: If he can get a dime more somewhere else, he'll take it. 2. Wideout Derrick Alexander, 30, probably has five competitive seasons left, if he stays healthy. Look for him to take his 6-foot-2 frame and talents to Minnesota where he'll play opposite Randy Moss. 3. Wideout Keenan McCardell might fit best in Cleveland, but late word is that Houston has made a big push for the reliable receiver and will be in the driver's seat once the Jaguars make their cuts this weekend. McCardell, Corey Bradford and Jabar Gaffney would give the Texans a better receiving trio than 10 or 12 teams in the league have right now. 4. Defensive end Marco Coleman is an intriguing prospect because he still has the kind of quickness coming around the corner that's so valued around the league. Miami and Philadelphia could duke it out for him --with Atlanta as a darkhorse. 5. Wideout Antonio Freeman (not to overemphasize the receiver group, but there are good ones with a number of seasons left) will likely go to Baltimore, his hometown, unless Minnesota is jilted by Alexander. Then it will come down to the Vikings and Ravens dueling for Freeman's services. Speaking of the Ravens, Baltimore had hoped to lure back a bunch of defensive players who were cut in February for cap reasons. Not likely. As one of these players told a team last week: "None of the guys still unsigned want to go back because they think it's going to be a losing situation for the next year or two." If that's so, the coaching and diplomatic skills of coach Brian Billick will be sorely tested this summer. With key defenders Ray Lewis and Peter Boulware angry over the club's inaction on contract extensions, Baltimore would be the latest Super Bowl champions to crumble under the financial pressures of trying to stay competitive after winning the big one. Sports Illustrated senior writer Peter King covers the NFL beat for the
magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. Check out his Monday Morning
Quarterback column every -- and you should see this coming -- Monday morning.
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