Off Season Recap: NFC

It’s officially May, so it’s time to start looking ahead to the start of the NFL in a few months. Here is a recap so far of what all the teams have done to either improve or hinder their squads in the last three months. I will not give a power ranking scale four months before the season begins. But, since most of the major free agents are off the market and the draft has concluded, it’s time to see which teams have raised expectations and which teams should start preparing for next year’s lottery. Here’s part two…the NFC.

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys
Free agent grade: B+
Draft grade: C
Have they improved: Yes
Why: Because the Cowboys finally wised up and realized that in order to win close games, they need a kicker who won’t shank 30-yarders. Biggest acquisition in the offseason for the Girls was Mike Vanderjagt. What? Terrell who? Oh yeah, that guy who almost single-handedly sunk the Eagles. The jury’s still out on him. Bill Parcells has already gotten tired talking about him and is already frustrated with the media. In May. Not a good sign. Dallas lost Larry Allen on an already porous offensive line. And other than picking up the rapidly-aging Jason Fabini, Dallas did little to improve protection for their statue of a quarterback. They also lost La’Roi Glover, Dan Campbell, Keyshawn Johnson (addition by subtraction) and Torrin Tucker. Vaderjagt is a huge pickup and Akin Ayodele is a nice addition. Owens (subtraction by addition) will blow up eventually (I called it in Philly five days before it actually happened). Dallas had a boringly average draft. For Cowboys fans who actually think Anthony Fasano is the next Chris Cooley, I’d like to ask you to please step away from Michael Irvin’s hidden stash.

New York Giants
Free agent draft: A-
Draft grade: C-
Have they improved: Don’t know
Why: The Giants realized their defense stunk and signed about every able body they could. LaVar joins Will Demps, Sam Madison and Brandon Short in the new Blue defense. Madison is past his prime, and LaVar obviously carries a lot of baggage, but the additions of Short and Demps were smart and aggressive pick-ups. I love to see a team try and improve through free agency more than the draft. The defense should be much better in ‘06. However, the offense is due for a wake up call. 2005 was Tiki’s last hurrah, and Eli will fall back to Earth after passing for over 3,600 yards last season. Remember, the Giants offense sputtered the last few weeks of the season, including that delightful 23-0 home playoff loss in the first round. Most of this was due to a poor o-line and Eli being Eli. The G-men got a lot of depth on the o-line this offseason, but didn’t do anything to improve their below-average starters. And the Giants won’t be slated for 19 home games this season. This team still can’t win on the road. The draft was below average. Sinorice Moss will be good, but not right away.


You're looking at the worst coach in the NFC East. He may also be coaching the East's worst team.

Philadelphia Eagles
Free agency grade: D
Draft grade: A-
Have they improved: No
Why not: Losing T.O. may be a benefit off the field, but the usually inaccurate and now fragile Donovan McNabb has absolutely no NFL-caliber wideouts to throw to. Unless we’re counting Reggie Brown. And I’m not. The only addition worth noting for Philly was Ed Jasper, who as a defensive tackle, will do little to help the Eagles score points. With plenty of wide receivers on the market, and with plenty of room under the cap, the Eagles chose to go their typical cheap route and hope that one of the current receivers steps up. The Birds did have one of the better drafts. I don’t like the first round pick of Brodrick Bunkley, but the second round pick of Winston Justice is an absolute steal. So are the fourth round picks of Max Jean-Gillis and Jason Avant. And I like the pick of Jeremy Bloom in round five. That’s a guy that’s worth rolling the dice for. A lot of potential pros in the draft, but that won’t help Philly this season.

Washington Redskins
Free agency grade: A
Draft grade: C-
Have they improved: Yes
Why: I’ve been over this before, but here’s a quick recap. The two most glaring needs in the off-season for the Skins were receiver and a pass rushing defensive end. The Skins got Antwaan Randle-El and Brandon Lloyd to help take the pressure off Santana Moss, Clinton Portis and Mark Brunell. These guys don’t have to be all-stars even though they could be. They just have to be adequate diversions so the opposing defense can’t key on Portis and Moss. The Skins got one of the best young pass rushers in Andre Carter. And they upgraded their other safety position by dropping Ryan Clark and getting Adam Archuleta. And even though I hate saying it, by getting rid of LaVar the Skins rid themselves of a large distraction without losing that much talent (unlike the Eagles and Owens). Problems solved. No, the draft wasn’t great because of the lack of picks, but who cares? They addressed all their major needs in free agency with proven NFL players. And getting Rocky McIntosh in the second round was one of the best picks in the draft. He should be a legit starter this season for Washington. And let’s not forget that the Skins still have the best head coach and defensive coordinator in the NFL, and add Al Saunders, one of the best offensive minds in the game.

NFC North

Chicago Bears
Free agency grade: B-
Draft grade: C-
Have they improved: Slightly
Why: To anyone who watched the NFC divisional game against the Panthers, it became clear that the Bears most pressing need was corner. The good news is Chicago signed Ricky Manning Jr. The bad news is Chicago signed Ricky Manning Jr., who was charged with assault the day before the Bears announced his signing. If Manning can keep the assaulting between the lines, it’s a good move for Chicago. The Bears also made a smart move and picked up Brian Griese on the cheap as insurance for the annually injured Rex Grossman. Chicago didn’t lose anybody to free agency because…well, no one really wanted their sorry free agents. But the Bears had chances to sign Randle-El and Archuleta and allowed them both to get away. Chicago fell for the hype surrounding Abilene Christian corner Danieal Manning instead of drafting one of the other numerous corners from legit D-1 programs. But the Bears got good depth in the draft. Chicago has improved slightly, but I don’t know if they can improve on last season’s overachieving record. It certainly helps to play in the North.

Detroit Lions
Free agency grade: C+
Draft grade: D+
Have they improved: No
Why not: As usual, the Lions made some head-scratching moves in the off-season. There was a “Redskins-esque” turnover on their roster, but I’m not sure it was for the better. Detroit is trying to stockpile anywhere from five to seven quarterbacks in hope that one of them turns out decently. But switching from Jeff Garcia-Joey Harrington to Josh McCown-Jon Kitna isn’t really an improvement (By the way, what’s with all the “J’s”? Millen does know that Joe Montana isn’t returning to the NFL, right?). It’s more a sideways move. And the McCown/Kitna combination better get used to moving backward because Detroit still hasn’t improved their terrible offensive line. The Lions did sign a bunch of quality role players for low salaries, so free agency wasn’t that bad. Detroit managed to resist the temptation of drafting another receiver, but still didn’t do very well a few weekends ago. Second round pick Daniel Bullocks was a good selection, but the Lions reached for Ernie Sims and did very little with their later picks.

Green Bay Packers
Free agency grade: D+
Draft grade: C+
Have they improved: No
Why not: Brett Favre is still playing, right? That’s why not. Moving on.

Minnesota Vikings
Free agency grade: C
Draft grade: C
Have they improved: No
Why not: They gave up a quarterback who could potentially throw for 3,500 yards a season. If Daunte Culpepper never shows the form he did two years ago, then the Vikings are going to look kinda smart. I think Culpepper will be ready to go and fully healthy, if not this year then next season. And the Vikings did little to replace him. Yes, the Vikings made some nice pick ups. Tony Richardson, Chester Taylor, Steve Hutchinson and Ryan Longwell were all very nice additions. But you don’t trade away your franchise quarterback because he is unhappy. Their draft was mediocre at best. The best thing the Vikings did all off-season was get rid of Mike Tice, who may be on of the worst coaches to ever grace the sideline. Forget all the scandals, Tice took a team with Randy Moss and Culpepper and ran it into the ground. Embarrassing.



No more of this in Minnesota.
Culpepper is taking his roll on to
South Beach.











NFC South

Atlanta Falcons
Free agency grade: B-
Draft grade: C-
Have they improved: Yes
Why: The Falcons kept the core of their team in place and made a couple of nice additions through free agency and the draft. The addition of John Abraham will make their defense a terror to face with all their current pass rushers. They also added Lawyer Milloy who still has some decent years left in him. The addition of Jimmy Williams in the draft is a nice compliment to DeAngelo Hall on the other side of the field. And the late selection of D.J. Shockley is an interesting one.

Carolina Panthers
Free agency grade: C+
Draft grade: C+
Have they improved: No
Why not: The Panthers lost two-thirds of their impressive linebacking core and half of their secondary. The losses of Brandon Short, Will Witherspoon and Ricky Manning will be hard to overcome in one season. Carolina did manage to add undersized but quick Na’il Diggs to help the recovery at linebacker. But Carolina did little to improve their secondary, and did little to get some much need depth at o-line. And Steve Smith is still basically the only wideout weapon for the Panthers. Give defensive coordinators an off-season, and they’ll find a way to stop him. So the Panthers had better come up with some decent alternatives if Smith is double-covered all game. Carolina made a brilliant pick to snatch DeAngelo Williams with the 27th selection. The rest of their draft was below average.

New Orleans Saints
Free agency grade: B+
Draft grade: A
Have they improved: Yes
Why: How often does one team get a potential franchise quarterback and running back in the same off-season? Almost never. But it happened twice in 2006, and the Saints were one of those teams. The addition of Drew Brees was as smart a move for New Orleans as it was a dumb move for San Diego to get rid of him. The additions of Scott Fujita, Mark Campbell and Michael Bennett were also first-rate. The Saints did lose LeCharles Bentley, T.J. Slaughter and Darren Howard, so it wasn’t all perfect in the world of free agency. But to have Reggie Bush fall into their lap after the complete ineptitude of Houston was unbelievable. Bush will be a star in the league. Even if he somehow fails, the Saints still have Deuce McAllister in the backfield. But you simply can’t pass on a talent like Bush. The second round selection of Roman Harper was an underrated, but quality draft pick.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Free agency grade: B
Draft grade: B
Have they improved: Yes
Why: Unlike most NFL teams, the Bucs recognized they had a problem at offensive line and fixed it by signing and drafting offensive linemen (unlike Houston, Dallas, Detroit and several other teams that try and add talent at the skill positions instead of improving the real problem with their offenses). Tampa grabbed Torrin Tucker and Toniu Fonoti off the free agent wire and drafted two NFL-caliber prospects (Davin Joseph and Jeremy Trueblood) with their first two picks. This will help Chris Simms more than signing another receiver would have. The Bucs also add Jamie Winborn in free agency to bolster their defense. It was a quiet, but productive off-season in West Florida.

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals
Free agency grade: B+
Draft grade: A+
Have they improved: Yes
Why: Arizona is the other team to add a potential franchise quarterback and running back in the same off-season. Like the Saints, the Cardinals really only made one big signing in free agency. But the inking of Edgerrin James outweighs an otherwise lackluster free agency for Arizona. But the draft…oh boy the draft! Usually I don’t get worked up about a draft because it’s all still potential. But the first three selections by Arizona were amazing. How the other 31 teams allowed Arizona to get Matt Leinart, Deuce Lutui and Leonard Pope in the same draft is beyond me. Leinart will be the quarterback of the future for the next decade. Lutui should start immediately at guard for a below-average Cardinal offensive line. And Leonard Pope was the best tight end in the draft. Even their late selections of Brandon Johnson and Jonathan Lewis were steals.


Two main reasons that Arizona could challenge Seattle

St. Louis Rams
Free agency grade: B-
Draft grade: D+
Have they improved: Not really
Why not: The Rams are a real mess. All their talented players are aging and getting well past their prime. All the new selections and pick-ups haven’t worked out well in the St. Louis. Their team looks good one week, uninterested the next. The Rams did add Corey Chavous, La’Roi Glover and Will Witherspoon, while only losing Adam Archuleta through free agency. But they overpaid for all three. All of their quarterbacks of injury problems and their offensive linemen, other than Orlando Pace, are terrible. They failed to address those problems. Their draft was a stinker. Tye Hill will not amount to much in the NFL.

San Francisco 49ers
Free agency grade: D
Draft grade: D-
Have they improved: No
Why not: It’s hard to imagine that this team could be any worse than the 2005 disgrace they put on the field. But the 49ers managed to get worse. They lost Julian Peterson, Andre Carter and Brandon Lloyd through free agency, losing their last three players that anybody in their right mind would pay to see. The solution was to add Antonio Bryant, T.J. Slaughter, Larry Allen and Walt Harris through free agency. Ugh. Then the 49ers made the mistake of the draft by selecting Vernon Davis with the sixth pick. I’ve been over this, but to sum up, you don’t select a tight end with the sixth pick. Especially not when you need help at almost every other position. Not when that tight end was a non-factor on a mediocre college team. Ooooo, he jumps high in the combine. So what? Not when there are tight ends like Leonard Pope, who proved what he could do at a national powerhouse in Georgia, available in the late rounds. But the 49ers had a second chance to improve their team in the first round. They failed again by picking Manny Lawson. Lawson benefited from playing next to Mario Williams for a few seasons at NC State. Like Williams, Lawson’s success was helped by the fact that NC State’s entire defense was good. But in San Francisco, without Carter and Peterson, Lawson will be the target and will be nowhere near as effective as he was in college. Only Buffalo had a worse draft.

Seattle Seahawks
Free agency grade: C+
Draft grade: C
Have they improved: No
Why not: Good move in signing Julian Peterson. But they lost restricted free agent Steve Hutchinson to Minnesota for a rather large sum of money. And to retaliate, the Seahawks signed Minnesota restricted free agent Nate Burleson to the exact same contract. Who exactly are the Seahawks hurting here? Certainly not the Vikings. Which player is more valuable, Burleson or Hutchinson? It’s Hutchinson by a long shot. The draft was uninspiring. There isn’t much instant talent left with the 31st pick, so the Seahawks drafted for depth.