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By Sean Salisbury
ESPN Insider
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This has been an exciting offseason so far as Edgerrin James signed with the Cardinals, Daunte Culpepper was traded to the Dolphins and the Saints signed quarterback Drew Brees. Barring some huge move down the road, these are going to be the crown jewels of these teams' offseasons, so let's take a quick look at each move and what the organization should do next to further help their team.


Advantage Miami

The signing of Culpepper could shift the balance of power in the AFC East.Even though I still believe it's premature to say Culpepper will be ready by the start of training camp, I know this is an absolute steal for the Miami Dolphins and a great present for offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey. Culpepper is a proven talent in the NFL and brings an explosiveness to the quarterback position that hasn't been seen in Miami since the retirement of Dan Marino.

His signing is a direct shot across the bow of the New England Patriots, as the Dolphins now have an offense that can score consistently after years of being a one-dimensional team. The Dolphins were competitive last season in the AFC East, but the offense wasn't good enough to win games, and they fell short. That was because they didn't have a quarterback they could rely upon to make plays. That's not the case anymore, and now the Dolphins have the talent on both sides of the ball to overtake the Patriots.

It's amazing to me that the situation in Minnesota got to the point where Culpepper could be had for a mere second-round pick. Last season he would've gotten the Vikings a first-round pick and probably more, but due to his injury and the situation between him and the organization deteriorating so much, the Dolphins were able to get him on the cheap.

I don't believe Culpepper's feelings toward the Vikings are indicative of an athlete who is a whiner. He felt the Vikings handled him poorly and didn't feel they were up front and honest with him, so he acted out. It may not have been the most professional way to deal with things, but I don't believe he'll do the same thing in Miami. In a way, going to Miami is the perfect move for him because they have explosive players, a great ownership and is an organization that treats its players like family. It's also perfect because Culpepper is from Florida, went to school at Central Florida and also trains there. He's going to be very comfortable in Miami, and that's going to translate on the field.

As controversial as it may sound, the Dolphins' next step should be to sign wide receiver Terrell Owens. A lineup with Owens and Chris Chambers at receiver, Randy McMichael at tight end, Ronnie Brown at running back and Culpepper at quarterback would be extraordinarily difficult to defend. They would have the type of offensive balance that wins championships, especially when it's coupled with the Dolphins' typically stout defense. Coach Mularkey is an innovative coordinator, and I'm sure he would salivate at the opportunity to coach that type of talent. He's going to craft a gameplan that takes full advantage of the Dolphins' talent with or without Owens, but I'm sure he would kill for the chance to throw Owens into that mix.

Owens would fit in well with the Dolphins, because coach Nick Saban is not going to take the crap that other coaches have allowed Owens in the past few seasons. We wouldn't hear Owens spouting off in interviews, because Saban firmly believes in team chemistry and isn't going to let anyone believe for very long that he is more special than any other player. Saban is going to nip any problems in the bud and won't let them linger.

Also, Miami would be a perfect place for Owens because it is such a veteran-laden team with an already established leadership in place that knows how to handle fellow players. These players work hard throughout the season, and Owens wouldn't be able to say he outworks everyone else and that's why he should be able to say what he wants. He would have no excuses and might get back to just playing football and keeping his mouth shut.


Important signing for Saints

I have to give kudos to the New Orleans Saints for taking advantage of the San Diego Chargers' mistake of letting Drew Brees go. I don't understand why the Chargers felt it was a good idea to release a 27-year old just a year removed from the Pro Bowl. Brees is an extremely competitive guy who has the talent and intelligence to be a great success in this league, as he's already proven.
It says a lot about his competitiveness for him to take the situation in New Orleans and put it all on his shoulders. That won't be an easy situation for any player, but especially for the quarterback who is going to be the face of the organization. It's good to see that the organization is still able to sign big-name players, despite talk around the league that it might be difficult because the franchise is still in limbo with a split home schedule.

Obviously getting a major talent like Brees is important, but the bigger aspect of this signing for this organization is that it shows it's business as usual for the Saints. This is a very important offseason for New Orleans, because they have to show players and their agents that everything is O.K. The Saints can't afford to sit back and play the pity game, because it could affect this franchise for years down the road. Getting one of the top free agents in the league to sign, especially at such a high-profile position, shows the team is moving forward.

This signing is also going to have a huge impact on the draft, because the Saints were more than likely going to select Matt Leinart of USC with the No. 2 pick. Now they won't need to, because they already have their quarterback of the future.

If I were GM Mike Tannenbaum of the New York Jets, I would immediately call the Saints and start discussing a trade for the No. 2 pick. The Jets should offer the fourth pick in the first round and their second-round pick for the opportunity to draft Leinart. This would give them a chance to get the young, exciting face at quarterback that they haven't had in years.

If they want they can still let Chad Pennington open the season as the starter to see if he brings up his trade value, which would give Leinart a chance to learn the game on the sidelines like Carson Palmer, another former Heisman Trophy-winning USC quarterback. Or they could just throw Leinart into the fire and let him learn on the fly. Either way, they would have the quarterback position set up for the next 10 years, barring injury.

With the Jets' pick, the Saints could draft offensive lineman D'Brickashaw Ferguson, defensive end Mario Williams or linebacker A.J. Hawk. Any of those three players would represent major position upgrades for the Saints and would make Brees' life that much easier.


James plus Green equals playoffs
Dennis Green loves running backs and feels they are just as important to his offense as the quarterback position. The signing of Edgerrin James is the type of move that could vault this Cardinals team not just into the playoffs, but deep into the playoffs. They now have three excellent receivers in Bryant Johnson, Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald in addition to James and quarterback Kurt Warner. This is a team that will put up a ton of points, and Warner is probably looking at a return to the Pro Bowl next season.
This was an easy move for James, because he's moving into a similar offensive situation as he had with the Indianapolis Colts. Just like in Indy, James will be the engine that drives the success of the team, but because of the success of the passing game, he won't see many eight-man fronts. Defenses know they'll be shredded if they try to focus just on James. He's going to love playing in the hot weather and will spend all season melting opposing defenses.

Now this team is going to have to make some tweaks on their defense to keep up with its offense, but the current defense isn't going to stop the Cardinals from being successful. They've made moves in the past few years to upgrade its defense, and now Arizona is just a move or two away defensively from being a true Super Bowl contender.

Sean Salisbury, an ESPN analyst and former NFL quarterback, is a regular contributor to Insider.

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