Spring Break
A little free agent spice
Terry Horstman
Issue date: 2/24/09 Section: Sports
When the clock strikes midnight a few days from now, it will begin a few of the most exciting weeks of the sports calendar. Of course, I could only be talking about the NFL free agent signing period.
Some of the biggest names in the game will be packing their bags and moving to other cities in the hopes of making their new franchise a contender. There are a lot of intriguing names out there this year, but the free agent class of 2009 comes with a bit more spice than seen in years past.
That spice I'm talking about is imprisoned quarterback Michael Vick. Vick will be released in July and though he is technically still under contract, all signs lead to the Falcons cutting him loose and he'll be free to go wherever he's offered.
When Vick was somewhat exiled from the league after the dog fighting incident, it was unclear whether a team would give him a shot to play again. Now that we are closer to his release date, it seems definite that Vick will again play in the NFL.
There are two teams who have already shown interest in Vick's talent, the San Francisco 49ers and the Minnesota Vikings - two teams both in need of an upgrade at quarterback. For those teams and the many others that are interested in Vick, they still aren't allowed to talk to him until he is released by the Falcons. But one thing's for sure, we'll see Vick in an NFL uniform this fall, and it should be an exciting sweepstakes to tune in to.
Moving on from Vick, there's several other star players who could possibly be sporting new colors come autumn. One player has been wearing the same colors for his entire 13-year career, Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens.
Lewis has been the best linebacker in the NFL and possibly the best overall player. He's a perennial Pro Bowler, a Super Bowl MVP and in all likelihood a first ballot hall of famer. It's rumored that Lewis is close to signing an extension, but also that he's been in deep talks with the Dallas Cowboys. According to sources with knowledge of the situation, it is Lewis' dream to play in the Big D and something tells me Cowboy's owner Jerry Jones won't hesitate to make Lewis one of the highest paid players in the league. All we know for sure is that for the meantime Lewis is a Raven, but will he remain one till the end of his career or just the end of the week?
Some of the biggest names in the game will be packing their bags and moving to other cities in the hopes of making their new franchise a contender. There are a lot of intriguing names out there this year, but the free agent class of 2009 comes with a bit more spice than seen in years past.
That spice I'm talking about is imprisoned quarterback Michael Vick. Vick will be released in July and though he is technically still under contract, all signs lead to the Falcons cutting him loose and he'll be free to go wherever he's offered.
When Vick was somewhat exiled from the league after the dog fighting incident, it was unclear whether a team would give him a shot to play again. Now that we are closer to his release date, it seems definite that Vick will again play in the NFL.
There are two teams who have already shown interest in Vick's talent, the San Francisco 49ers and the Minnesota Vikings - two teams both in need of an upgrade at quarterback. For those teams and the many others that are interested in Vick, they still aren't allowed to talk to him until he is released by the Falcons. But one thing's for sure, we'll see Vick in an NFL uniform this fall, and it should be an exciting sweepstakes to tune in to.
Moving on from Vick, there's several other star players who could possibly be sporting new colors come autumn. One player has been wearing the same colors for his entire 13-year career, Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens.
Lewis has been the best linebacker in the NFL and possibly the best overall player. He's a perennial Pro Bowler, a Super Bowl MVP and in all likelihood a first ballot hall of famer. It's rumored that Lewis is close to signing an extension, but also that he's been in deep talks with the Dallas Cowboys. According to sources with knowledge of the situation, it is Lewis' dream to play in the Big D and something tells me Cowboy's owner Jerry Jones won't hesitate to make Lewis one of the highest paid players in the league. All we know for sure is that for the meantime Lewis is a Raven, but will he remain one till the end of his career or just the end of the week?
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