hagan714

MIKE DETILLIER'S FOOTBALL WORLD
Saints still in need of help at linebacker


http://www.houmatoday.com/apps/pbcs..../1103/SPORTS02


For all the good news coming out of Saints camp -- the addition of head coach Sean Payton and a new coaching staff, the signing of Pro-Bowl quarterback Drew Brees, the drafting of USC Heisman Trophy winning running back Reggie Bush and a record-breaking offseason for season-ticket sales, the one area on the field the Saints still need help at is linebacker.

The free-agent market is pretty thin at the position, and even though I think former Rams and Ravens linebacker Tommy Polley would be a solid addition, one name has constantly been brought up by Saints fans for the past weeks.

And that’s Donnie Edwards of the Chargers.

But it’s all up to the Chargers and their general manager A.J. Smith.

It was no secret in the weeks leading up to the April draft that the Chargers put the 33-year old linebacker out on the trade market, but when no team made the club a viable offer, he stayed in San Diego.

One week before the draft Smith would not confirm or deny trade rumors, but he left no doubt that he would part with Edwards -- if the price is right.

"Donnie may not be going anywhere. It might happen before the draft, after the draft, at the start of training camp, in October, or not at all," Smith said. "One thing for sure is that he will not get cut. People get their feelings hurt, but we are professionals, and we go with our instincts. I’ve never met a player who was happy about being up for a trade. "

Smith, who in many NFL circles is known by the nickname Frank Sinatra for wanting to do things his own way, has refused to give Edwards, who has started all 49 games since joining the Chargers in 2002, the long-term contract he desperately seeks.

Despite averaging 149 tackles since 1999, second only to Miami Dolphins Pro-Bowl linebacker Zach Thomas, Edwards will not get to finish his professional career in his hometown of San Diego.

But if a team is interested in Edwards playing for them in 2006, they will have to make a trade to acquire him.

You really couldn’t pick a better spot for a quality player like Edwards than New Orleans.

The Saints have a huge talent gap at linebacker and the Saints should try and structure a deal similar to the one that Chargers pieced together when they acquired veteran wide receiver Keenan McCardell from the Buccaneers in 2004.

The Chargers acquired the 34-year old McCardell from the Buccaneers for a third and a sixth-round choice in 2005. That sort of deal would seem to be fair for a player like Edwards.

Last season at 32 years old Edwards racked up 152 tackles, despite playing the final 10 games of the season with a torn meniscus in his knee.

In many aspects the Edwards situation reminds me of what happened to Sam Mills in the mid-1990’s when he was with the Saints.

Mills had been a leader and a stellar football player for the Saints for nine seasons, but in the spring of 1995, the Saints did not give the super-productive inside linebacker the long-term contract extension he wanted.

The Panthers, with a pocket full of expansion money, went out and lured Mills to Carolina, and they never regretted the move to sign the 36-year old linebacker. For the next three years Mills, who passed away a little over a year ago, started every game for the Panthers before he retired following the 1997 season. Interesting enough is that some 10 years after Mills has left the organization, the Saints have never replaced him as a player or a defensive leader.

I would be shocked to see the Chargers release Edwards, but if the past is any indication of Smith’s long term actions, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him bite on a trade, if it involved a first-day draft choice.

The former UCLA standout is a close friend of former Chargers and current Saints quarterback Drew Brees and has the same agent in Tom Condon, who has knocked heads with Smith in the past.

For the right price, Edwards is indeed the right player, at the right time for the Saints.

Edwards is a quality player and person, and if he has three good football years left in him he would be well worth a third-round draft choice because in the football world, the future is now.


Benett and a #5 next year?

reggiebush

they have LT and some other guy (i think Turner), no need for bennet, id give a safety or a three for him