Free Agent Signings Update

The day job and putting 2300 songs onto an iPod has consumed much of my time lately. Time to catch up on some NFL free agent signings, post my first official NFL Mock Draft and shift gears with my official NCAA bracket.

NFL Signings (And News)

New Orleans signs safety Kevin Kaesviharn to a 4-year contract. New Orleans needed help in the secondary, and Kaesviharn is a steady veteran who will help immediately.

Meanwhile, Seattle signed safety Brian Russell, a day after signing safety Deon Grant. Both Russell and Grant share an agent, and will add veteran leadership to a secondary that looked lost too often in 2006. Mike Sando of the Tacoma News Tribune has often blogged about how Seahawks President Tim Ruskell expressed his dismay with the play from the safety position, so the Seahawks choosing smart players over the more physically talented ones makes sense.

What does this mean for Ken Hamlin? Arguably the most physically talented safety on the free agent market, he's only had one reported visit (with New Orleans) despite being at the top of every pundits "Top Free Agents" lists. He may, or may not, end up visiting the Tennessee Titans, whose new GM spent the last few seasons working for the Seahawks.

Perhaps the reason why Hamlin isn't generating much interest can be summed up by two plays I saw first-hand in Qwest Field last year.

Play #1 - On a 4th-and-5 play from the Seahawks 31-yard line, St. Louis opts to go for it instead of kicking a field goal. Rams' quarterback Marc Bulger throws the ball deep down the right sideline and Hamlin picks the ball off, tapping his toes to stay inbounds at the 8-yard line. It was a very athletic play, but a very stupid one. Had Hamlin knocked the ball down, Seattle would've had better field position. His decision to intercept the ball was equivalent to a highly successful pooch punt for St. Louis. Seattle went 3-and-out giving the ball back to the Rams at midfield.

And on the subsequent Rams drive...

Play #2 - St. Louis has the ball inside the Seahawks 10-yard line. Bulger lofts a pass into the end zone, right towards Ken Hamlin, who drops the ball. Rams end up kicking a field goal. It was a gift interception for Hamlin, a ball that Jim Abbott could've caught, but he dropped it and it allowed the Rams to add a field goal and trim the Seahawks lead to 1 point.

So for as athletic as Ken Hamlin is, and for as much as he gets the crowd riled up with the occasional knockout hit, he's not a sound tackler and he often doesn't play smart, fundamental football. In this day and age, there may not be a market for a player like that.

The Tennessee Titans are still trying to figure out how to handle the Pacman Jones situation, but in the meantime, they've added a quality cornerback in Nick Harper. This moves protects them in case Jones needs to be released, is suspended or at the rate he's going, trades his appearances in the police blotter for the obituary page. It also weakens a division rival, which is always a smart thing to do.

The Falcons signed Toniu "Two Ton" Fonoti, which drew applause from restaurant owners in the Atlanta area.

Though nobody in the Boston area will come out say it, the Patriots missed guys like David Givens and Deion Branch in the post-season last year. With Chad Jackson, last year's 2nd round pick, out indefinitely with a torn ACL, the Patriots have signed a trio of wide receivers this off-season, including a pair of former Tennessee Volunteers wide receivers, who at one time, didn't care for one another.

Deion Branch was reportedly instrumental in Donte Stallworth accepting a one-year "prove it" contract with the New England Patriots. This isn't a surprise, as Branch is a quality individual who always maintained that his holdout last summer was about business. Watch this video and tell me you wouldn't want this man on your team.

The Seattle Seahawks signed 35-year old TE Marcus Pollard to a one-year contract. When I first heard the news, I still had "high" hopes that the Seahawks would bring back unrestricted free agent Jerramy Stevens. Hours later, the Arizona Republic broke the news that Stevens was arrested early Tuesday morning for suspicion of a DUI and possession of marijuana.

The Arizona Republic did what other news outlets haven't done. They correctly referred to Stevens as an NFL tight end. Other news agencies are reporting it as "Seahawks' Stevens Arrested for DUI...". Stevens is no longer a Seattle Seahawk. His contract expired on March 1st, and he is officially an unrestricted free agent. According to people close the Seahawks, re-signing Stevens was not a priority of this front office. Clearly, they knew more about Stevens off-field issues and in an age where marginal tight ends (Visanthe Shiancoe, for example, got $7M in guaranteed money), the Seahawks weren't about to risk that kind of money in a player they suspected they could not depend on.

Stevens' neighbors aren't the least bit surprised that he's been arrested, and based on their allegations, I can't say I blame them.

The NFL off-season programs are about to shift into high gear. One player who won't be participating in his team's program is Chicago Bears defensive tackle Terry "Tank" Johnson, who will be donning prison garb for the next 4 months.

Philadelphia landed underrated free agent WR Kevin Curtis. As a Seahawks fan, I'm glad he's no longer in the NFC West.

Mac's 2007 NFL Mock 1.0

It's important to note that this entire mock draft will be completely different in a few weeks. The stock of the draftees will rise and fall during Pro Days and individual workouts. So here is the first of many mock drafts/wastes of time I'll complete over the next 6 weeks.

Oakland Raiders - QB, JaMarcus Russell (LSU)
Detroit Lions - OT, Joe Thomas (Wisconsin)
Cleveland Browns - RB, Adrian Peterson (Oklahoma)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers - WR, Calvin Johnson (Georgia Tech)
Arizona Cardinals - DE, Gaines Adams (Clemson)
Washington Redskins - DE, Jamaal Anderson (Arkansas)
Minnesota Vikings - S, LaRon Landry (LSU)
Houston Texans - OT, Levi Brown (Penn State)
Miami Dolphins - QB, Brady Quinn (Notre Dame)
Atlanta Falcons - DE, Jarvis Moss (Florida)
San Francisco 49ers - WR, Dwayne Jarrett (USC)
Buffalo Bills - RB, Marshawn Lynch (Cal)
St. Louis Rams - DE, Charles Johnson (Georgia)
Carolina Panthers - TE, Greg Olsen (Miami)
Pittsburgh Steelers - DT, Alan Branch (Michigan)
Green Bay Packers - WR, Ted Ginn (Ohio State)
Jacksonville Jaguars - CB, Leon Hall (Michigan)
Cincinnati Bengals - LB, Patrick Willis (Ole Miss)
Tennessee Titans - WR, Robert Meachem (Tennessee)
New York Giants - DT, Amobi Okoye (Louisville)
Denver Broncos - DE, Anthony Spencer (Purdue)
Dallas Cowboys - CB, Aaron Ross (Texas)
Kansas City Chiefs - WR, Dwayne Bowe (LSU)
New England Patriots - S, Reggie Nelson (Florida)
New York Jets - DE, Adam Carriker (Nebraska)
Philadelphia Eagles - CB, Darrelle Revis (Pitt)
New Orleans Saints - CB, Chris Houston (Arkansas)
New England Patriots - LB, Paul Posluzny (Penn State)
Baltimore Ravens - LB, Lawrence Timmons (Florida State)
San Diego Chargers - G, Ben Grubbs (Auburn)
Chicago Bears - DT, Justin Harrell (Tennessee)
Indianapolis Colts - CB, Daymeion Hughes (Cal)

NCAA Bracket (To Beat All Brackets)

It may be Friday, but I thought I'd post the best bracket I submitted in a pool.

Round 1
Thursday winners: Maryland, VCU, PITT, Indiana, UCLA, North Carolina, Michigan State, Vanderbilt, Washington State, Boston College, Georgetown, Ohio State, Louisville, Texas A&M

Thursday losers: Old Dominion, BYU

Friday: Florida, Arizona, Notre Dame, Oregon, Georgia Tech, Wisconsin, Kansas, Kentucky, Virginia Tech, Southern Illinois, Arkansas, Texas, Tennessee, Virginia, Creighton, Memphis

Sweet 16: Florida, Maryland, Oregon, Georgia Tech, Kansas, Southern Illinois, PITT, UCLA, North Carolina, Texas, Vanderbilt, Georgetown, Ohio State, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Memphis

Elite 8: Florida, Oregon, Kansas, UCLA, North Carolina, Georgetown, Ohio State, Memphis

Final Four: Oregon, Kansas, North Carolina, Ohio State

National Championship Game: Kansas over Ohio State

I know, three 1-seeds and a 3-seed is a chalk bracket, but you don't win pools by being risky.