Six Wildcats Ink NFL Contracts Tiny by mikeschmitz on Jul 28, 2011 11:00 AM PDT in Arizona Wildcats Football

For over three months, six undrafted Wildcats waited in limbo.

Working toward a lifelong goal tainted by uncertainty. No contracts, no workouts, no access to team facilities, no contact with anything NFL.

But when the lockout ended Monday, Nic Grigsby, Colin Baxter, Adam Grant, Travis Cobb, Lolomana Mikaele and Conan Amituanai all joined fellow Wildcats Brooks Reed, D'Aundre Reed and Ricky Elmore in the NFL.

Grigsby was the first Arizona product to officially add NFL to his résumé as the change of pace back signed with the Miami Dolphins on Monday night.

From there the domino effect set in and ironman center Colin Baxter signed with the Chargers, defensive tackle Mikaele with the Bengals, kick returner Travis Cobb with the Bears, offensive tackle Grant with the Broncos and Conan Amituanai joined D'Aundre Reed with the Vikings.

The Arizona Daily Star reported that Baxter chose the Chargers over the Saints, Ravens, Dolphins, Bills and Cardinals, while Grigsby went with the Dolphins instead of the Rams.

How will each player fit in with his respective team? Will he make it past the first cuts? Here's a quick breakdown:
Nic Grigsby

Position: Running Back

Height/Weight: 5'11/206

Team: Dolphins

Strengths: Speed and lateral agility

Weaknesses: Durability, size, dances too much

Projection: Grigsby told The Star, "I'm not a third-down back anymore. They said they want to have me on every down."

But Grigsby is the epitome of a third-down back. He's a great change of pace guy who can stretch the field and develop into a home-run hitter. Remember this is a guy who took the Pac-10 by story his sophomore season with 1,153 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns.

There's no question the talent's always been there, and now that he's bigger and supposedly shaking his injury-prone label, Grigsby could have a chance to be more than a typical third-down back.

But remember, this is also the same player who couldn't get on the field for the better part of his last two seasons. He's also a guy who's battled character issues and could turn into the type of player always bouncing around to look for the right fit.

He's also behind Ronnie Brown and fellow rookie and 2nd round pick Daniel Thomas. When it's all said and done, I see Grigsby turning into a nice back up and possible return man with potential to take it to the house.

It's not out of the question that he develops into an every down back over the course of his career given his talent level, but judging by his UA career, calling Grigsby a life-long third-down back is a safe bet.

Colin Baxter

Position: Center

Height/Weight: 6'3/295

Team: Chargers

Strengths: Toughness and technique

Weaknesses: Size and recent injury

Projection: In the weeks leading up to the 2011 NFL draft Baxter told me, "I think I'm one of the best centers in the draft this year so hopefully I'll go high. Maybe I won't go so high and some team will get a good deal on me, who knows. I think I'm right up there with all the other centers."

The Chargers became that team. Baxter brings a ton of experience, smarts and blue-collar toughness to a San Diego team that indeed did get a "good deal" on him.

Baxter should get a solid opportunity with San Diego as well. The Chargers have establish veteran and former Pro Bowler (2006) Nick Hardwick under center, but he's entering his ninth year in the NFL and there's minimal talent behind him.

Baxter ends up in a good situation, but if he never went down with a torn meniscus near the end of last season, he certainly wouldn't have had to spend the last few months stressing over his employment status. Over the course of his four years Baxter earned ironman status as he started 48 consecutive games and reportedly never missed a practice before the injury.

He was one the Pac-10's best centers and arguably a top 5 center in the country. The injury (that led to surgery) killed his stock, but all he needs is a chance to show his skills and he. If there's one player out of this group with a chance to become a longtime NFL starter its Baxter.

He may be a bit undersized, but he knows how to play the center position and if he can stay healthy, he'll compete for a starting job at one point in his career before it's all said and done.

Adam Grant

Position: Offensive Tackle

Height/Weight: 6'6/325

Team: Broncos

Strengths: Size and Experience

Weaknesses: Age and Quickness

Projection: Grant has a solid chance at NFL longevity, for an offensive lineman anyway. He'll most likely be a career-long backup, but if he can stay healthy, his size and tremendous technique will always land him a job somewhere. The 26-year-old tackle put together an impressive senior season that earned him second-team All-Pac-10 honors. He protected Nick Foles' blind side extremely well and earned a combine invite because of it. I remember when Arizona played (and defeated) Iowa last season Grant did a number on defensive end and Tamba Bay Buccaneer (20th overall pick) Adrian Clayborn. The explosive defensive end finished the game with only three tackles (none for a loss) and no sacks. Aside from Grigsby and Baxter, Grant has the best chance to stand out from this group and make a career for himself in the league.

Lolomana Mikaele

Position: Defensive Tackle

Height/Weight: 6'1/300

Team: Bengals

Strengths: NFL size and good run-stopper

Weaknesses: Lacks explosion and pass rush

Projection: Mikaele was a solid starter for the Wildcats as the co-captain finished with 32 tackles and 7.5 TFLs his senior season. His ceiling isn't super high due to his below-average athleticism, but he is a productive player who specializes in stopping the run. His NFL career will most likely be uneventful, but he's solid enough to stay on a roster, especially the Bengals who need defense in the worst way. They finished 19th against the run last year, so there's opportunity within the organization for Mikaele to contribute.

Travis Cobb

Position: Wide Receiver/Kick Returner

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 180

Team: Bears

Strengths: Speed

Weaknesses: Nothing more than a return man

Projection: Cobb may never catch a pass in the NFL because of his mediocre receiver skills, but his straight-line speed gives him an outside shot at making an impact as a return man.

He'll certainly have a great one to learn from in Devin Hester. It's a mystery if Cobb will even make it out of training camp with a roster spot, however. If he doesn't prove himself in the return game, there's no need for the speedster.

Landing a special teams job can also be extremely hit or miss, as a lot of things have to go right in order to stand out as a return man. Cobb certainly has the ability.

He took a kickoff 100 yards to the house against Iowa on national TV last year, which is most likely the one play that earned him an NFL check.

Other than that he was fairly non existent and I expect Cobb to find how hard it is to make it as a return man, and bounce out of the league in a few years.

Conan Amituanai

Position: Guard

Height/Weight: 6'3/332

Team: Vikings

Strengths: Versatility

Weaknesses: Limited experience

Projection: Conan has the worst chance of the six to stick in the league. He'll have the support of D'Aundre Reed in Minnesota, but there's not much that separates him as a guard.

His biggest positive is that he can play both sides of the ball, as he came to Arizona as a defensive tackle. But other than that, I don't see Conan sticking in the NFL for long.

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Dane Sanzenbacher and Chicago Bears Reach An Agreement, Other Rookies Also Signed

Soldier Field - Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears and Ohio State Receiver Dane Sanzenbacher agreed to terms on Tuesday, immediately following the end of the NFL Lockout which witnessed all player to owner negotiations stall for 136 days.

The move is a big one for the team as Sanzenbacher was a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2010 after he led the conference in receiving yards (948) and touchdown catches (11).

Other new contract agreements for the Bears were reached with the following players:

Kris Adams, WR, UTEP
Kyle Adams, Purdue, TE
Mario Addison, DE, Troy
Tanner Antle, LB, Tulsa
Tressor Baptiste, Texas A&M, LB
JC Brignone, Mississippi State, C
Antareis Bryan, Baylor, CB
Corbin Bryant, Northwestern, DL
Travis Cobb, Arizona, WR
Josh Davis, Georgia, T
Dom DeCicco, LB, Pittsburgh
Ricky Henry, Nebraska, G
Mike Holmes, Syracuse, CB
Robert Hughes, Notre Dame, RB
Ryan Jones, NW Missouri State, CB
Spencer Lanning, P, South Carolina
Alex Linnenkohl, Oregon State, C
Jordan Miller, Southern, DT
Deron Minor, McNeese State, LB
Sean Murnane, Central Michigan, DT
Dane Sanzenbacker, WR, Ohio State
Andre Smith, Virginia Tech, TE
Winston Venable, Boise State, S
Trevor Vittatoe, QB, UTEP
Anthony Walters, Delaware, S
Jimmy Young, TCU, WR

Per lockout regulations teams were able to commence rookie signings at 9 a.m. CT on Tuesday.

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New Orleans Saints players, officials easing back into the business of football

Tuesday at New Orleans Saints camp felt an awful lot like the calm before the storm.
The team didn't complete any major roster moves on the first day of business after the NFL lockout, although General Manager Mickey Loomis and his staff were no doubt running up the phone bill with endless calls to players and agents late into the night.

And only a handful of Saints players trickled into the practice facility after being allowed full access to the building for the first time in nearly five months.

The Saints plan to release their training-camp schedule today,
Players are scheduled to report to the official start of camp Thursday for a team meeting and activities such as physicals and conditioning tests. And the first practice is expected to be held Friday, although the team has not confirmed that.

It's not clear when the first practices will be open to the public. Those early practices could be very basic, with the Saints still working with an incomplete roster. They had only 47 players under contract as of Monday, barely more than half of the 90 players they're allowed to have on their training-camp roster.

They've been adding to that total by agreeing to deals with several undrafted free agents since Monday night. But they cannot officially sign any deals with veteran free agents until Friday afternoon, even if they're re-signing their own players.

And those veteran free agents won't be allowed to practice or work out until August 4, which is the official start of the new league year, since their contracts won't go into effect until that date.

NFL teams were allowed to begin negotiations with veteran free agents Tuesday morning, however, and a handful of "verbal agreements" were announced around the league as the day went on.

Many NFL observers have speculated that the slow pace of contract announcements is because players can still change their minds -- or be wooed elsewhere between now and Friday.

Very little news surfaced Tuesday concerning the Saints' 28 unrestricted free agents. And there was nothing new to report on the future of Saints tailback Reggie Bush, whose contract will need to be restructured if he is to remain in New Orleans.

The earliest the Saints could release Bush is Thursday afternoon, although they likely will attempt to work out a new deal with Bush before they make such a decision. Bush is scheduled to receive an $11.8 million salary in the final year of his deal, with a $16 million salary-cap hit.

One of the Saints' veteran free agents, linebacker Scott Shanle, shared the details of his day. He was contacted immediately by the St. Louis Rams. He spoke to their general manager and linebackers coach about their interest in him. He also spoke with Saints linebackers coach Joe Vitt for the first time in months and later spoke with Saints officials about their interest in re-signing him. He said the Cincinnati Bengals also expressed interest in him, among other teams, and he was working toward setting up at least one free-agent visit.

Shanle, like most of the Saints' free agents, said he would love to remain in New Orleans if the offers are similar. But he needs to explore all of his options.

"I think they want me back. But it's a matter of how much they want you back," Shanle said, pointing to what happened with fellow linebacker Scott Fujita last year as an example.

The Saints wanted to re-sign Fujita as a free agent but couldn't compete with the financial offer of the Cleveland Browns.

The most highly coveted of the Saints' free agents are expected to be left tackle Jermon Bushrod, receiver Lance Moore and safety Roman Harper.

Moore addressed his situation on Twitter, saying, "I'm waiting patiently for the right deal tweeps. (I don't know) where its going to be yet, but I will let everyone know as soon as I do. Thanks for all of your support."

About 10 to 15 players showed up at Saints camp Tuesday morning for voluntary workouts and some long-overdue quality time with the coaching staff.

Among the players seen driving in and out of the Saints' facility were safety Malcolm Jenkins, cornerbacks Tracy Porter and Johnny Patrick, kicker Garrett Hartley, quarterback Chase Daniel, tailback Lynell Hamilton, tight end Tyler Lorenzen and long snapper Justin Drescher.

"It was awesome," Daniel said of being back in the building for the first time since the lockout began in March. "For us last night, we were just (champing) at the bit to get in this morning. It was like Christmas Eve last night. Just waiting to be back around people that you know, that you trust, that you love here.

"I came in, did a workout, threw some passes to Tyler, got in the cold tub, hot tub, just used the amenities. Got our free lunch, which was awesome. But it was good to see all the coaches. That's the main thing. And to see everyone, all the support staff here, they all missed us like crazy. You know, we're like their kids. That's what (equipment manager Silky Powell) said. It's good to be back."

Saints quarterback Drew Brees wasn't at camp Tuesday. He wrapped up his final workout in his offseason home base in San Diego. But he expressed his relief and excitement in a radio interview with WWL on Tuesday night.

"It's been a long time coming," said Brees, who was instrumental in the labor negotiations as part of the players association's executive council. "Obviously, this was a wild offseason for all of us. This was uncharted territory, something none of us was used to. ... And there was just a lot of uncertainty as to how long this would last.

"It came down to the wire, but we got a deal done that we're all very happy with. We feel like it was a fair deal for both sides."

Asked what his message to Saints fans would be, Brees said, "I can't tell you how excited we are to see all the fans out at camp."

"I know how excited they've been in years past about the start of the season, and I think this one maybe even moreso than years past because there's been so much uncertainty and so much doubt as to whether there was going to be football this year," Brees said. "So I know it freaked everybody out. It scared everybody. But here we are, football's started, and I know everybody's pumped up and ready for it."

Brees' own contract will become an issue soon. He's heading into the final year of his six-year deal with the Saints and eventually will become one of the highest-paid players in NFL history. But he said that's not the most immediate priority for himself or the team.

"When the time comes to talk about extending the contract, we're ready to do that," Brees said. "But after this (lengthy) process to get back to football, that's really all I'm looking forward to right now. Establishing an identity as a team and trying to win another championship."

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Albert Haynesworth Traded To The Patriots

Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots may have just made a splash. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Washington Redskins traded DT Albert Haynesworth to Belichick's Patriots for the whopping price of a...2013 fifth round pick.

We'll see how it works out. Here are four thoughts on the Haynesworth trade.

-Our Pats blog makes a good point: A 2013 fifth rounder is equivalent to a 2012 sixth rounder which is equivalent to a 2011 seventh rounder. Peanuts.

-He's only going to make $5 million this season.

-I thought Haynesworth hated playing in the 3-4? Last year he wouldn't even line up at the nose so Belichick has some work in front of him but he must feel comfortable with Haynesworth (or agent Chad Speck must've done a hell of a recruiting job for Belichick to buy in). Also, keep in mind: the Pats only ran a 3-4 40 percent of the time last year so they're not in it full-time.

-Somehow, and you know it will happen, Haynesworth will turn his career around in New England. I don't know how. I don't even know what position. But this is such a Patriots move. I don't know how they do it, but they will. The rise of Haynesworth, sort of like WR Randy Moss.

-Dec. 11, Pats at Skins. Should be a good one.

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