NFL GridIron Gab Daily Digest

Earlier Sunday, I had talked about the distinct possibility of the New York Jets going into the 2010 NFL season without their top man in their secondary, cornerback Darrelle Revis. The general manager of the team, one Mike Tannenbaum, said this himself. I would suspect that Jets fans were probably torn about whether Revis would rejoin the team.

Well Jets fans, you can let out that collective sigh of relief.

According to Dennis Waszak Jr. of the Associated Press, Revis and the Jets have agreed on a new contract, according to an announcement made by the team on Monday (Sunday if you’re on the West Coast).

Perhaps you can give Jets head coach Rex Ryan an assist in getting this done as he personally flew to Revis’ home in south Florida over the weekend and pleaded his case.

By the way, as of this posting, no specifics on the new deal were available. But one thing is for certain: Revis signed a new contract and will report to camp fairly soon. It appears that the New York Jets all of a sudden become relevant in the AFC East, all because a cornerback signed on the dotted line. A cornerback names Darrelle Revis.

Wow.

The issues with the Redskins and DL Albert Haynesworth are continuing, as Sunday former Skin LaVar Arrington wrote in his blog in the Washington Post that the Skins could sit home down in week one vs the Cowboys, making him inactive.

Reports are surfacing that Albert Haynesworth will not be active for the opener in a divisional game against the Cowboys. My first thought was, at this point it would have to be health related, but then I saw a report saying that he would get extensive time in the last preseason game of the year. Haynesworth indeed played in the last preseason game, the whole game.

Well that sunk my proverbial battleship, can’t be health related if he played the whole game against the Cardinals. Well after the studying of the game film, reports leaked out that he was less than impressive in the game. So with him making the cut, it still led me to believe that if this report is indeed true that this is a result of a few things.

Based on the issues with the team and Haynesworth, nothing would be a surprise, and it would be interesting to see if the team decides to sit the 20-million dollar man in the teams all important season opener.

Nnamdi Asomugha seems to feel that the Raiders pickups this offseason have made a pretty big difference going forward for the Raiders.

He may spend much of his time in the defense’s meeting room, but Raiders cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha told PFW he can tell two key additions on offense are making a big difference. “Offensive coordinator Hue Jackson has come in and done a really nice job of getting guys in position to be effective and bringing out the most in the players,” he said. “I think the quarterback situation (with Jason Campbell) has helped us out a lot. Anytime you’re going to be a contender, he has to be the guy that can have a commanding presence, not just for the offense, but for the entire team.”

Steve Phillips from WBIR TV in Knoxville, is reporting via Twitter that the Titans have released running back LeGarrette Blount. He was hoping to get the last running back spot on the Titans roster. Blount drew all kinds of unwanted attention last year following Oregon’s season-opening 19-8 loss to Boise State when he punched Boise State defensive end Byron Hout in the face after Hout touched Blount on the shoulder.

The Steelers running back position seems to be in good order, with Issac Redman being behind Rashard Mendenhall and Mewelde Moore. Even with that, Pro Football Weekly suggests the team may look to ink a veteran back at some point this week.

A source close to the Steelers suggests the club could look at free-agent running backs to bolster their depth beyond starter Rashard Mendenhall. Veteran Mewelde Moore is slated to be Mendenhall’s backup, but the options beyond Moore are not as established or steady.

Redman led the team in rushing last year in preseason, but was released anyway. This preseason he also played well, and I would like to see what he could do in the regular season. To waste money on a veteran backup at this point to me would be a waste.

Sounds like Tony Richardson better not watch last weeks episode of “Hard Knocks,” as it was on that show Rex Ryan made sure to point out he didn’t want to get rid of Richardson. Yes, the same Richardson that was released on Sunday.

Rex Ryan repeatedly stated that 16-year veteran fullback Tony Richardson wasn’t going anywhere. The Jets coach told the media on several occasions that Richardson, who has paved the way for standout running backs like Priest Holmes and Adrian Peterson during his career, was safe. The Jets apparently had a change of heart as they released Richardson today, according to a league source. The team could re-sign him after Week 1 so that his salary wouldn’t be guaranteed for the entire season. In a bit of eerie foreshadowing, GM Mike Tannenbaum intimidated in last week’s episode of HBO’s Hard Knocks that Richardson may be on his way out.

The Houston Chronicle confirms that the Texans are another team that has their eyes on Matt Leinart, who was released by the Cards on Saturday.

The Texans are one of the teams interested in Matt Leinart and could end up signing him if reports are true that Seattle isn’t interested in the former Arizona quarterback who was placed on waivers Friday. On a day in which they made three roster moves and signed seven players to their practice squad, the Texans decided they’re interested in Leinart, according to NFL people familiar with the situation.

If the Texans sign him, he’ll join a team that has Matt Schaub as the starter and Dan Orlovsky as the backup. On Sunday, the Texans didn’t re-sign quarterback John David Booty to the regular roster or sign him to the practice squad, but they have a roster spot open and one spot available on the practice squad. If they sign Leinart, it’s not likely Booty would return.

I have to be completely honest.  I never saw this coming.  I had Matt Leinart starting all the way.  As the off-season wore on, however, it became increasingly clear that Leinart was not going to be able to lead this team.  Despite what was becoming plain to see, I still couldn't admit to myself that Leinart wasn't panning out.  Not at all because I especially liked Leinart or because I thought he was especially talented.  Maybe, however, it was due to the fact that his pre-season numbers weren't so bad.  Maybe it was that Derek Anderson didn't seem like a great alternative.  Maybe I just didn't want to see the Cardinals embroiled in a quarterback controversy.  Whatever the reason, it seems like moot point now; Leinart's gone.

Leinart appeared to have become a distraction.  Coach Whisenhunt seems to have picked up on that as well, which seems to be the reason why Leinart was ultimately released.  Whisenhunt admitted that "this process was not about two weeks into camp or two preseason games.  It was a complete body of work over a period of time."  In short, the Cardinals appeared to have run short on patience with Leinart's attitude.

So with the attitude problems hopefully gone, I'm anxious to move on and look forward to the coming season,which is closer than ever.  Derek Anderson has looked pretty impressive in the third and fourth week of the pre-season and the team certainly seems to have responded to the switch.  I'm looking forward to the season opener against the Rams.  I'm excited about this team's chances and I'm looking forward to Derek Anderson hopefully bringing the team its third consecutive division title.

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