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| Sunday, March 16 Updated: March 17, 12:39 PM ET Jets looking beyond Coles while waiting for resolution By Len Pasquarelli ESPN.com |
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While Jets officials await the outcome in the NFL's investigation of the Washington Redskins' offer sheet to Laveranues Coles, the team continues to explore possible replacements for the veteran wide receiver. Jets coaches and personnel officials will meet this week with two more free agents -- restricted veteran Tai Streets of San Francisco and unrestricted veteran Antonio Freeman, ESPN.com has learned. The Jets also have scheduled a tentative meeting with Curtis Conway, who was recently released by the San Diego Chargers. Freeman and Conway are proven commodities, both of them with extensive resumés, but Streets, who was scheduled to fly to New York on Sunday, is an intriguing possibility. A former University of Michigan star, Streets was originally thought to be an unrestricted free agent this spring but, because of a technicality, the NFL ruled that he has accrued only three seasons of league tenure. Thus, he instead is a restricted free agent. The 49ers retained a right of first refusal on Streets, 25, by making a qualifying offer of $1.318 million. That means the 49ers would receive a first-round draft choice as compensation if Streets signed an offer sheet with another franchise, and San Francisco opted not to match it. But a Jets-49ers trade, one in which New York would agree to contract terms with Streets and then send him to San Francisco for less than a first-round choice, has also been discussed, ESPN.com has learned. The 49ers, however, would insist on receiving more than just a middle-round choice. It is uncertain how high the Jets would go to secure Streets' services. Streets enjoyed a breakout season with San Francisco in 2002, with 72 catches for 756 yards and five touchdowns. After starting only four games the previous three seasons, Streets started 13 last year and proved to be a productive complement to fellow wideout Terrell Owens. Streets averaged 10.5 yards per catch in 2002 but flashes some explosiveness and run-after-catch ability. He is, in the eyes of some scouts, an emerging player and that is clearly why the Jets have expressed an interest in him. Among New York's other options:
Moss' value to the Vikings on the field means he won't be dealt. But there would also be a large cap price to pay if Minnesota dealt him. The club would absorb a $13.523 million cap charge in 2003 if it traded Moss, or $5.63 million more than his current '02 cap value. The Vikings certainly have sufficient room to cover that, but tying up 18 percent of your salary cap in a player no longer with the team would be imprudent.
Always an impressive slot receiver, Freeman has an opportunity to return to the Eagles but wants to consider his options first. Because he is an unrestricted free agent, he could cut a much "cleaner" deal with the Jets, one that would not include an offer sheet and would have finality to it. While he is not the player he was a few years ago, Freeman has received high grades from Mike Giddings, an independent talent evaluator whose rating services are subscribed to by many NFL teams. Freeman's receptions total has decreased every season since 1998, but he still has a career average of one touchdown every 7.6 catches, one of the highest marks in that area in the last 10 years.
Conway has fought through some injuries lately but has 510 career catches for 7,587 yards, with 47 touchdowns. He had 57 receptions for 852 yards and five touchdowns last season.
Meanwhile, the Jets continue to press the NFL in its investigation of the manner in which the Redskins signed Coles last week to a seven-year, $35 million offer sheet that included a $13 million signing bonus. The contention by the Jets is that the deal was struck Sunday night but not filed until Wednesday and, in essence, took Coles off the market for three days. In reality, that delay afforded New York an extra three days to begin the process of evaluating Coles' importance to the team and to start contacting potential replacements. While the league takes the charges seriously, it is not likely to void the offer sheet. And one NFL official termed "ridiculous" a published report the Redskins could forfeit a first-round choice because of their handling of the Coles signing. The consensus is that the league might fine Redkins owner Daniel Snyder and uphold the offer sheet Coles signed. Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com. |
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