Around the League: The NFL

Leinart Gone

Cut day has come and gone for all NFL teams and some surprising names were made available. One of the biggest was Matt Leinart of the Arizona Cardinals, who came into training camp penciled in as the starting quarterback. I guess that's why they say 'penciled in', though, as he was quickly erased in favor of former Cleveland Browns QB Derek Anderson.

It didn't take long for Leinart to find another home as the disappointing signal caller signed a one year deal with the Houston Texans to be the teams third starting quarterback behind starter Matt Shaub and backup Dan Orlovsky.

The reason for his departure is, according to sources, because of his inability to instill confidence in coaches and management about his ability to be an effective starter in this league. To that end, Derek Anderson was given a shot to start and showed enough to win the starting job. After all but losing the starting gig, Leinart went public with his frustrations, pretty much sealing the deal for him to be released as the higher ups decided that he would be too much of a distraction to play the second string role. Though there were bitter feelings between Leinart and Coach Ken Whisenhunt, the Coach was all praise on how Leinart handled the situation.

"The one thing I want to make very clear is how professional Matt was about the whole situation," the coach said. "I was very impressed with his conversation with me. He thanked the organization, the ownership, for all the time and effort that they had invested in him. He felt like he had gotten better and he had learned a lot and it meant a lot to me to hear him say that."

Baltimore gets another weapon

The Baltimore Ravens were the beneficiary of another talented player cut this weekend as they have convinced former Seattle receiver T.J. Houshmanzadeh to take his talents to Baltimore. Houshmanzadeh was the Seahawks leading receiver a season ago, recording 911 yards and three touchdowns while catching 71 balls but become the odd man out under new coach Pete Carroll.

"He's another proven weapon for our offense -- a big receiver with good hands and toughness. The one other thing that every coach and player we talked with about him indicated is that T.J. is a driven player with an excellent work ethic," Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome said in a statement.

Housh was convinced to join the Ravens by Ray Lewis, who heavily recruited him after he was cut.

"Ray said, 'If you want to win, this is the place to be,' '' Houshmandzadeh told the newspaper. "The way he is on the field is how he is off the field. Passionate. Our conversation was passionate and insightful.
"I know from competing against those guys when I was in Cincinnati how it is in Baltimore.''
The Ravens traded wideout Mark Clayton to the St. Louis Rams to make room for Houshmanzadeh on the roster. They received a sixth round pick for Clayton and a seventh rounder.

Revis ends holdout

The New York Jets have agreed to terms with defensive anchor Darrell Revis, thus ending a five week holdout and settling one of the most prominent distractions for a team that has SuperBowl aspirations. The deal, worth $46 million over four years with $32 million quarenteed, is a compromise between what Revis wanted and what the Jets were offering and should make both parties happy.
Quick Hits

*The Pittsburgh Steelers have named their starting quarterback for week one and it's going to be third year pro Dennis Dixon. Dixon only has one NFL start, a 20-17 overtime loss to Baltimore last season, but gives the black and gold the best opportunity to win in the absence of Ben Roethlisberger.

"It's every quarterback's dream to get an opportunity to start in the National Football League," Dixon said Monday. "My number's called now, I'm going to have fun with it, I'm happy, then again there's a lot of work to be had."

*Staying with the Steelers, the AFC standouts have chosen their captains for the season and one name is noticeably absent from the list, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Roethlisberger, a captain the previous two seasons, did not get voted one this year by his teammates.

"Ben is our quarterback," Ward said. "He is the leader of this team by being a quarterback. Instead of looking at (Roethlisberger not getting voted a captain), I was happy for Heath (Miller). Captain doesn't just mean what you do on the field. It's what you do off the field."