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Raiders insider: Collins' fate is up in air
If the salary cap does not rise, the quarterback may be relocating.
By Jim Jenkins -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, March 4, 2006
As the Raiders begin to address their salary-cap overrun, reportedly the highest in the NFL at the start of the week, the prime issue in the process appears to be what to do about quarterback Kerry Collins.
Conventional wisdom has Oakland planning for the 2006 campaign with a new head coach in Art Shell and a different starting quarterback.
It may well turn out, though, that Collins doesn't go anywhere. In postseason comments, both owner Al Davis and Shell indicated that the 11-year veteran is salvageable, that all the team's offensive woes aren't solely the fault of the quarterback.
That said, this also is true: the Raiders are well above the cap, and even Thursday's three cuts - defensive lineman Ted Washington, guard Ron Stone and defensive back Denard Walker - still leave them an estimated $15 million over the league payroll limit.
If the NFL and players union strike a deal, extending their labor agreement before Sunday night's deadline, then the cap ceiling goes up by another $10 million, and the Raiders' wiggle room would suddenly look a lot better. It may even influence their decision on Collins.
If nothing changes in the labor dispute, then maybe some of the speculation we've been hearing may come true. One scenario is that Collins, fairly or unfairly getting the brunt of the blame for consecutive subpar seasons as a starter, will refuse to restructure his expensive contract in an effort to go elsewhere.
In his last public comments regarding his contract, Collins said he'd been willing to bend a little, not a lot.
With Collins due a $2.5 million roster bonus Tuesday that Oakland can't be excited about paying, the Baltimore Ravens could be his next stop. The Raiders have alternate routes to comply with the cap, but subtracting Collins saves more than $9 million.
Why Baltimore? Recall that during the Raiders' search for a head coach, one of the supposed candidates to succeed the fired Norv Turner was Jim Fassel, the Ravens' offensive coordinator.
The thinking at the time was that Fassel would be a good hire because he was once a Raiders quarterbacks coach and later head coach of the New York Giants when they went to the Super Bowl with Collins at quarterback.
Fassel, however, never had serious contact with the Raiders about their job vacancy beyond a phone conversation. Nevertheless, he apparently hasn't dropped his interest in reuniting with Collins, if you believe reports coming out of Baltimore, none confirmed by team management.
What is known is that the Ravens would like to have a veteran quarterback compete with Kyle Boller for their starting job, and Collins might be a good fit.
If Collins does go, what then? Experienced and healthy quarterbacks usually aren't available in the NFL. Current backups Marques Tuiasosopo and Andrew Walter aren't ready to step in just yet, nor would be any of the top quarterbacks in the draft.
There is also speculation around the league that Oakland might be inclined to go after Drew Brees of San Diego if the Chargers don't make a move to keep him out of the open market.
On the face of it, Brees makes sense. He has won in the AFC West as a starter and was NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 2004, but is coming off a throwing-shoulder injury suffered in last season's final game. And the Raiders have to be wary about shoulder injuries, mishaps that helped shorten the careers of two recent effective starters, Jeff Hostetler and Rich Gannon. Then again, Davis is desperate to win.
Suffice to say, these next few days should be very interesting.
http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/14225686p-15049922c.html
If the salary cap does not rise, the quarterback may be relocating.
By Jim Jenkins -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, March 4, 2006
As the Raiders begin to address their salary-cap overrun, reportedly the highest in the NFL at the start of the week, the prime issue in the process appears to be what to do about quarterback Kerry Collins.
Conventional wisdom has Oakland planning for the 2006 campaign with a new head coach in Art Shell and a different starting quarterback.
It may well turn out, though, that Collins doesn't go anywhere. In postseason comments, both owner Al Davis and Shell indicated that the 11-year veteran is salvageable, that all the team's offensive woes aren't solely the fault of the quarterback.
That said, this also is true: the Raiders are well above the cap, and even Thursday's three cuts - defensive lineman Ted Washington, guard Ron Stone and defensive back Denard Walker - still leave them an estimated $15 million over the league payroll limit.
If the NFL and players union strike a deal, extending their labor agreement before Sunday night's deadline, then the cap ceiling goes up by another $10 million, and the Raiders' wiggle room would suddenly look a lot better. It may even influence their decision on Collins.
If nothing changes in the labor dispute, then maybe some of the speculation we've been hearing may come true. One scenario is that Collins, fairly or unfairly getting the brunt of the blame for consecutive subpar seasons as a starter, will refuse to restructure his expensive contract in an effort to go elsewhere.
In his last public comments regarding his contract, Collins said he'd been willing to bend a little, not a lot.
With Collins due a $2.5 million roster bonus Tuesday that Oakland can't be excited about paying, the Baltimore Ravens could be his next stop. The Raiders have alternate routes to comply with the cap, but subtracting Collins saves more than $9 million.
Why Baltimore? Recall that during the Raiders' search for a head coach, one of the supposed candidates to succeed the fired Norv Turner was Jim Fassel, the Ravens' offensive coordinator.
The thinking at the time was that Fassel would be a good hire because he was once a Raiders quarterbacks coach and later head coach of the New York Giants when they went to the Super Bowl with Collins at quarterback.
Fassel, however, never had serious contact with the Raiders about their job vacancy beyond a phone conversation. Nevertheless, he apparently hasn't dropped his interest in reuniting with Collins, if you believe reports coming out of Baltimore, none confirmed by team management.
What is known is that the Ravens would like to have a veteran quarterback compete with Kyle Boller for their starting job, and Collins might be a good fit.
If Collins does go, what then? Experienced and healthy quarterbacks usually aren't available in the NFL. Current backups Marques Tuiasosopo and Andrew Walter aren't ready to step in just yet, nor would be any of the top quarterbacks in the draft.
There is also speculation around the league that Oakland might be inclined to go after Drew Brees of San Diego if the Chargers don't make a move to keep him out of the open market.
On the face of it, Brees makes sense. He has won in the AFC West as a starter and was NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 2004, but is coming off a throwing-shoulder injury suffered in last season's final game. And the Raiders have to be wary about shoulder injuries, mishaps that helped shorten the careers of two recent effective starters, Jeff Hostetler and Rich Gannon. Then again, Davis is desperate to win.
Suffice to say, these next few days should be very interesting.
http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/14225686p-15049922c.html