pakowitz

The 2004 NFL draft will have to go some to compete with last year’s draft in the trade department. Twenty-two deals were consummated during the 2003 proceedings, including 10 on the action-packed first day, plus two others the day before the draft.

But with a month remaining before pro football’s favorite spring weekend, intriguing trade rumors are beginning to pick up steam — particularly those involving the top three selectors in this year’s draft, the Chargers, Raiders and Cardinals, each of whom we hear would seriously consider trading down from their lofty perches.

Specific connections between teams are few and far between at this writing, but there is one connection that warrants special mention — the Cardinals (whose head coach is Dennis Green) at No. 3 possibly hooking up with the Browns (whose pro personnel director is Green’s son, Jeremy) at No. 7.

The way we hear it, the Browns would love to land a left tackle the likes of Iowa’s Robert Gallery but realize that they would almost certainly have to move ahead of the Giants at No. 4 to have any chance of doing so.

As was the case last year when they traded down in the first round, the Cardinals have more than a few glaring needs. Especially if Pittsburgh WR Larry Fitzgerald is selected with one of the first two picks, the Cardinals might be more than a little willing to move down in the first round — provided they are still in a position to grab a blue-chip player with their first pick, which they feel they could with Cleveland’s seventh overall pick.

As for other specific teams worth mentioning, the defending Super Bowl-champion Patriots, with four picks in the first two rounds, are a team particularly worth watching. We hear New England may consider trading up for a badly needed running back, such as Oregon State’s Steven Jackson, or trade down and stockpile more picks, which is something Patriots head coach Bill Belichick likes to do.

Trade action could really heat up in the second half of the first round. With the Bengals (17th) and Saints (18th) both in dire need of cornerbacks and the Patriots (21st) and Cowboys (22nd) both looking for running backs, there could be a wave of activity by teams looking to beat them to the punch for the best players at those positions.

All things considered, it looks as though another chaotic first round could be just around the corner.



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PFW's The Way We Hear It
New Orleans

The Saints were nothing special on the field last season, muddling their way to a .500 record. But that doesn’t mean the Saints are planning a major overhaul of the roster. General manager Mickey Loomis believes he only needs to tweak the roster in a couple of areas by following an 18-step plan to send the Saints to the playoffs. We’re told the plan has gone perfectly so far, save for one miss — FB Terrelle Smith signed in Cleveland instead of sticking around in the Big Easy — but Loomis still is pleased with his team’s progress. Sources say Loomis became even more comfortable with the team’s offseason plan when he saw the Buccaneers start to overhaul their roster on both sides of the ball. The way we hear it, head coach Jim Haslett believes all the moves the Bucs have made will weaken Tampa Bay, while the relative stability in New Orleans will help the Saints rise to power.




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26DEUCE26

Why is Haslett worried about the Bucs ( who finished behind us last year & we beat twice the year before), instead of the Panthers who had our number and made it to the Super Bowl last year?

WhoDat

Famous last words:

\"The way we hear it, head coach Jim Haslett believes all the moves the Bucs have made will weaken Tampa Bay, while the relative stability in New Orleans will help the Saints rise to power. \"

I know this isn\'t a direct Haslett quote, but why does it feel like that one is going to bite the hell out of him?

pakowitz

Sources say there isn’t a lot of animosity between Saints DE Darren Howard and the team and that a deal will be worked out prior to training camp to avoid Howard having to wear the franchise tag all season.





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