New York Giants: AAdditions:
DT Rocky Bernard, LB Michael Boley, S C.C. Brown, DE Chris Canty, TE Lee Vickers.
Subtractions:
S James Butler, RB Reuben Droughns (cut), S Sammy Knight (cut), CB Sam Madison (cut), RB Derrick Ward, DE Renaldo Wynn.
Re-Signed:
QB David Carr, DT Leger Douzable, RB Brandon Jacobs, TE Darcy Johnson, DE Dave Tollefson
The Giants somehow managed to improve on the best Defensive Line in the NFL. They brought in Rocky Bernard and Chris Canty, who are both likely to start on the inside of the line. They also added LB Michael Boley, essentially adding a third new starter to the front seven. Can the addition of all the defensive aid make up for the loss of Steve Spagnuolo? We'll see.
The Giants lost a couple of key players in Safety James Butler and Running Back Derrick Ward. Hopefully this means the end of the worst-ever sports nickname, "Earth, Wind and Fire." The rest of the players were all expendable veterans on the downside of their career. I wonder if the loss of Ward will take the "wind" out of New York's sails? Get it?
David Carr proved to be a quality backup in limited playing time this season. I've always thought he was underrated after being forced into an impossible situation as the Texans first franchise QB.
The Giants were presented with the option of retaining either Jacobs or Ward - in my oppinion that's a no-brainer and they made the right choice - Jacobs makes this offense run and his early-game pummeling is the only reason Derrick Ward rushed for 1,000 yards last season.
The other players are mostly back-ups and role-players.
Washington Redskins: B-Additions: RB Anthony Aldridge, P Zacrey Atterberry, LS Jeremy Cain, G Derrick Dockery, RB Dominique Dorsey, FB Jonathan Evans, DB Michael Grant, DT Albert Haynesworth, P Dirk Johnson, K Dave Raynor, OL Isaiah Ross, DE Renaldo Wynn
Subtractions: DE Demetric Evans, P Ryan Plackemeier, LB Matt Sinclair (cut), CB Shawn Springs (cut, NE), DE Jason Taylor (cut), LB Marcus Washington (cut)
Re-Signed: LS Ethan Albright, S Reed Doughty, LB Alfred Fincher, WR Marques Hagans, CB DeAngelo Hall, OL Rueben Riley, LB Tyson Smith, K Shaun Suisham, CB Byron Westbrook
It doesn't really matter who's in charge in Washington, they're invariably going to throw a lot of money at free agents and hope for the best. They certainly proved that the case this year with their monster contract to Albert Haynesworth and the large contract they gave to DeAngelo Hall.
I have reservations about Albert Haynesworth. I've heard from multiple sources that he is not really that motivated. He's only had two really good seasons as a pro and both of them were essentially contract years (his contract ended after the '07 season and he was franchised in '08.) How will he play now that the pressure's off and he got the monster deal he was looking for? Only time will tell. Also keep in mind that the level of talent surrounding Haynesworth in Tennessee was immensly better than in Washington. How is Haynesworth going to fare if he doesn't have guys like Jevon Kearse and Kyle Vanden Bosch demanding the offenses attention? Don't expect him to produce like he did last season, but he should still be solid.
As for Hall, he played well last year after the Redskins got him for a bargain basement price. They then overlooked the fact that he's been disapointing everyone for the last three seasons and gave him a monster contract. Let's hope he lives up to it here, even though he didn't in Oakland or Atlanta.
The 'Skins lost some solid contributors in Shawn Springs and Marcus Washington. They also parted ways with the underwhleming Jason Taylor. Ultimately they gained one big piece, at the expense of a couple medium sized pieces. Did they come out ahead? Maybe a little.
Dallas Cowboys: C+Additions: LB Keith Brooking, QB Jon Kitna, DE Igor Olshansky, S Gerald Sensabaugh, LB Matt Stewart
Subtractions: LB Kevin Burnett, DE Chris Canty, CB Anthony Henry (trade, DET), QB Brad Johnson (cut), CB Adam "Pacman" Jones (cut), WR Terrell Owens (cut), S Roy Williams (cut)
Re-Signed: None
The Dallas offseason has been all about trimming the fat. The deadly, cancerous, soul-sucking fat. They couldn't wait to part ways with a delinquint Pacman Jones. Brad Johnson and Roy Williams were cut after several underwhelming seasons. After weeks of consideration Terrell Owens was finally cut, which you can file under the addition-by-subtraction category.
Keith Brooking should step into a starting role as a co-middle linebacker and should perform better than Zack Thomas. Gerald Sensabaugh should ease the loss of safety Roy Williams. Igor Olshansky is a step down from Chris Canty, but he should be solid against the run. I think the Cowboys would have wanted Canty back, but they don't have the money to pay him and Demarcus Ware. They're in a bit of a salary-cap bind, and cutting Owens - though necessary - didn't help.
The Anthony Henry for Jon Kitna trade didn't make any sense to me. Yes, the Cowboys were in desperate need of a quality backup to Romo, but trading a solid starting Corner wasn't the right move to make. I guess they must like their second year players to fill the spots vacated by Pacman and Henry.
The cowboys haven't made themselves better this season, but they still have a lot of talent on the roster. They're doing the best they can considering they're crunched for cap space.
Philadelphia Eagles: C+Additions: OT Stacy Andrews, S Rashad Baker, RB Eldra Buckley, DL Amon Gordon, LB Charleston Hughes, S Sean Jones, CB Byron Parker, FB Leonard Weaver
Subtractions: RB Correll Buckhalter, S Sean Considine, S Brian Dawkins, WR Greg Lewis, CB Lito Sheppard, TE L.J. Smith, OT Tra Thomas, OT Jon Runyan
Re-Signed: LB Tank Daniels, CB Joselio Hanson
The Eagles lost a lot of talent this offseason, including 4 starters from last season and 4 players that saw regular playing time. Brian Dawkins is probably the most visible loss of the group, and the team will certainly lose his leadership and motivation. Dawkins clearly has something left in the tank as he proved by forcing 2 fumbles in the Eagles 44-6 dismantling of Dallas in the regular season finale.
I'm here to play devil's advocate...I think the Eagles are better off now - from a physical standpoint - than they were last season. Let's face it, he's good, and the Eagles wanted him back, but the Broncos were willing to (over)pay him more. The Eagles signed two safeties, Sean Jones and Rashad Baker. The Eagles now have a lot of options at safety. It will likely come down to Quintin Demps and Sean Jones duking it out for a starting spot opposite Quintin Mikell. If Jones wins there's a chance Mikell might move to the Free Safety spot, but anything is possible.
The Eagles signed RT Stacey Andrews to shore up one tackle spot. Andrews will likely start at RT, next to his younger brother Shawn (unless Shawn is moved to LT). I equate the Andrews signing to the Runyan signing of nearly a decade ago. It will solidify the right side of the line for years to come.
The Eagles have been trading players left and right for draft picks and seem to be gearing up for an offseason move or two. I wouldn't be surprised to see them make a run at Anquan Boldin, Braylon Edwards or Jason Peters at some point before or during the draft. If they Eagles could land one or two of those players their offseason grade will instantly get bumped up a full letter or more, as of now, they've made some quality additions, but also have a lot of holes to fill.
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